#finding comfort in fanon rn

[gonedreaminggg]

i'm realizing that i love dante x nana but only in the non-canonical sense

they're so very nuclear family and it makes me SO HAPPY but every time nana (prior to the name reveal) is on screen she makes me want to THROW MY COMPUTER ACROSS THE ROOM

mostly because of the way she's been written in mcd... it just makes me so angry because she has POTENTIAL but jesson somehow manages to ruin everything.

[howlsofbloodhounds]

i am a certified yapper in your blog 😔/lh

can confirm that soul intent is a fanon/headcanon thing! information about monster souls in canon is not much at all. i guess people developed their own ideas about how souls work, though i suspect handplates au pretty much popularized the idea of soul intent magic and such.

i do find that idea neat so i often play with it, especially intent magic. it's just such a fun idea that ties in LV and battle mechanics too in a non-battle scenario. i headcanon that monster souls are intrinsically sensitive to magic and psyche, so magic can be performed consciously or subconsciously, and it's really important for magic users to take care of their mental state to properly channel and use their magic (my headcanon as to why killer is less reliant on magic abilities - he's somewhat disconnected from his soul).

and like, i like the idea that souls can emit a "magic field", i guess? it's not a thing souls do all the time, it's more of a learned technique that broadcasts to people your intentions and transforms your soul engagements into appropriate settings (like a magic/soul etiquette thing, idk if i'm making any sense lol). in battles, the field forms as a bullet board/battle environment. in healing and intimate settings, the field forms as a soothing barrier to calm people. i like the idea of magic fields overlapping with each other. imagine the feedback sent between each other - it's like a mind-meld of sorts. i think that's the sort of intimacy killer would enjoy, this positive feedback loop he has with color and knowing what color is feeling and answering back without saying a word. the psychological, the emotional, hgnhhhh. you can see how this can translate in a more... let's say, intimate encounter.

~ crowshipping anon

a more intimate encounter you say? 👀 i can hear take me to church or talk by Hozier going off rn /j

but no seriously, I’ve never heard of anything like this before in headcanons and fic. It seems so interesting. the idea of a sorta mind meld during those more healing and comforting moments does seem like it’d be a very soothing experience, cant help but wonder how it’d feel for both parties to experience. i wonder what killers exact experience with it could be?

what if something that was twisted too, or it is one of those things that remained untainted? perhaps because killer either never has experienced like it, or isnt sure if he can trust that he has before?

i wonder what colors experiences with it could’ve been. it doesn’t seem to hold the same weight and consequences that absorbing the soul would, so that erases his hang ups with that idea—fear of losing himself, fear that killers intentions towards him and their relationship might be less genuine and deliberately chosing to be with color and perhaps something born from a need for control or obsession or unhealthy devotion and fear of loss—and now moreso just a genuine expression of connection and intimacy. something color has also been without for a long time, something that was taken from him.

would love to hear people’s opinions on this.

[not-eli]

Hear me out.

I'm literally pissed with some people rn. They're hating on Will and finding dumb and stupid arguments and Istfg you give me the same vibes as those toxic percico shippers that literally tried their all fucking best to make Will seem like a bad person.

"He kissed him when he was upset that's so rude!!" No bitch he wanted to comfort his boyfriend but he didn't know what to do. It was explicitly stated that they had never kissed before and it was an impulse. Maybe he didn't mean to do that, but it's not like Nico minded it, did he?

"Omg he is unsure of his feelings for Nico!!" No you deep shit he has a fucking thing called ANXIETY. I have anxiety as well and I can assure you that believing that the people you care about don't actually love you or are going to leave you at any moment is a normal symptom. Now, I'm not stating that he has canon social-anxiety, but do not come up with these kind of bullsheets where he's forcing himself or sm.

Also, many of people complained about how he was "unimpressive" like I'm sorry bitch, do you know what the actual hell "fanon" means? No everything we theorize is true, and it Just can't be.

Will obviously feels a lot of pressure on his shoulders. He became a cabin consulor when he was like 11 or so (I don't remember the actual age alr) and as the best healer of the camp he feels like he just CANNOT fail, and I can assure you it's the worst feeling in the world.

Please, do not criticaze characters without firstly getting to understand them.

[prpfz]

🐍🍎 | Hey! 21 y/o Transmasc writer looking for lazy lit to novella Hazbin Hotel Rp! 18+ only! Discord only! Praying for some dead dove friendly writers, as I’m not necessarily looking for dead dove for the ideas I have now, but I’m definitely open to them and do favor them! I’m looking to play Lucifer Morningstar, and hoping to find any Alastor’s, Adam’s, Vox’s, OR any Oc’s for Lucifer’s angel siblings to pair him with, MxM only tho, so maybe some “fanon” siblings like archangel Michael. Currently looking for angst centered plots right now, maybe some good hurt/comfort, and sprinkle in some drama too for fun! I’d like to explore themes of Lucifer’s regrets, his crushed hopes and dreams, the struggle of new ones blossoming, his depression, the pain of being cast out, his divorce with someone he thought was his true love, etc. Some dead dove themes of toxic and abusive relationships or brocon are very much welcome though! Maybe Alastor or Vox take advantage of a depressed or vulnerable Lucifer, maybe a fight between our muses goes too far and y/c really gets under Lucifer’s skin or in his head, maybe Lucifer’s dealing with some unexpected feelings for y/c and he’s scared to move forward because of his past, maybe siblings who were once tightly tied together turned enemies from a betrayal have unexpectedly crossed paths again, etc etc! The list goes on! I’m just really craving angst for Lucifer rn! Last little note, I do hc my Lucifer as transmasc/ftm in case that’s a dealbreaker! And if smut does come up, I cannot see my pathetic little duck lover being anything but a bottom, he was absolutely all talk in that fight with Adam. Leave a like and I’ll get back to you asap!🫶

give a like and anon will get back to you

[kiisaes]

top ten for MHA 😅

ohhhhhh

deku

bakugou (these two are obvious, lol. deku is my ultimate favorite hands down, even if bkg's arc and characterization appeal to me more)

dabi (through sheer backstory alone. i feel like his character was built up well and the reveal wasn't like .. shocking or anything, but was really impactful regardless. it enhances the entire todoroki fam drama i was already eating up before!!! every time i learn more about him and his history, i like him more LOL. hard to explain how i like him exactly, but reading through his backstory chapters is a guilty pleasure of mine. doesn't help that i can relate to him. lol. el oh el.)

uraraka (i think i like my interpretation of her more than her canon character, though. i can't tell what hori is doing with her rn so i'm basing my liking of her off of what i think he's doing? which is making her a subversion of the love interest trope and making her attraction to deku a mere stepping stone for her own development. i also really like her design and quirk hehe)

kirishima (kirishima backstory is one of my favorites; insecure, down on himself, overall average and dorky guy wants to better himself because he's inspired by those in his life. his view on masculinity is also very fun and comforting, a break from "strong must mean stoic" bullshit u'd expect from a character whose quirk is the embodiment of strength. i like canon kiri more than fanon kiri though .. sometimes i feel like fanon detracts from his character a lot lol)

hawks (ever since i realized his character literally represents "a caged bird" my appreciation for him went up 100% ... he's a little fucked up ... but what can he say ... he's an optimist!)

shouto (pretty hard to dislike him. he was higher on my list before, but he sunk a bit after my appreciation for other characters grew. it's not that i like him less though!!! just waiting for something crazy to happen with him so my love will skyrocket again)

toga (exciting character who's a play on the yandere character trope! i like how her arc connects to ochako's and the "chemistry" they have. still think toga confessing to deku out of nowhere was goofy as hell but that's neither here nor there. i feel like a lot of ppl like toga just bc of how she looks and her personality, and i'm ... not immune to that LOL it's indeed really fun to witness)

and everyone past this is relatively equal to each other, imo. there's so many characters in mha that it's nearly impossible to parse through all of them and pick my top 10. so i picked 8 that stick out to me for their own reasons, characters i find genuinely interesting and that i read the series for

not to mention, a lot of characters don't really hold much weight at all, especially compared to the protags. hence there's less of an actual reason why i like them, and it moreso falls on their design or vibes. i don't really dislike many characters either — either i like them or i'm neutral to them, aka they're fine, they just don't take up much thought. i only hate characters that are insultingly unnecessary, like mineta

[ssreeder]

THIS IS GOING TO BE AN INTERESTING READ SREEDIE BC IVE GOT VAVAVOOM BY NICKI MINAJ STUCK IN MY HEAD RN

hey handsome ;)

I’m back bc you can’t get rid of me ever <3

katara is so real for finding comfort in arbitrary routine. like I’m not following the politeness rules for YOU I’m following the politeness rules for ME so that I feel better >:(

ALSO what I think is really important to remember and usually gets lots in fanon, the fact that zuko like.. literally IS the face of the fire nation in the war for katara. like she has nobody else to project on OF COURSE it’s going to be fucking Rough to overcome her hatred for zuko when he’s literally synonymous with genocide for her. unless there’s somebody else she can realistically focus on (ie. the fire lord is too abstract a concept for her rn), it’s never really gonna get better AND YOU CANT BLAME HER bc how else are you meant to process fear and anger if you have nowhere to direct it (does this line of thinking mean I need therapy sreedie?? answer honestly)

OHOHO look at that sreedie. I’ve gone an anticipated katara’s own musings. I’m so psychic today.

also really depressing that zuko actually does canonically look like his father so like… katara isn’t exactly Wrong to imagine his face

aaaaaand he’s back to normal with the monosyllabic responses !! and anger !! he’s healing so well.

trust zuko to argue about the semantics of life saving lmfao

CRYING WHEN ANGRY IS SO FUCKING ANNOYING I FEEL YOU SO HARD KATARA

not katara accidentally predicting the zukka relationship out of anger T-T

NOT THE “I will be back” NOTE ZUKO PLS

SLAY AANG ILY AANG YOURE THE BEST ZUKKA WINGMAN EVER

ughhh FUCK OFF IROH just say you’re homophobic jfc

YES JEE I’m always in the I Love Jee camp so this is nothing new BUT YES CRITIQUE IROHS HANDLING OF ZUKO

jee is TOTALLY a literature nerd with all the analysis of implications of zukos outfit that he’s doing and I am so here for it

HAIR RUFFLES WIDNWLDNQPXBWFORN THE HAIR FRHDKWE AODKW I am completely calm and reasonable about this.

sokka is like “I’m so good at being subtle about being in love with zuko :D” and zuko is like WE JUST FUCKED IN FRONT OF EVERYBODY MAYDAYMAYDAY

LMAO jee is like FINALLY some drama to become invested in

I LOVE CULTURAL CUSTOMS AHHHHHH I’m such a goddamn nerd ohmygod

YAYYYY TOPH I love toph she’s a ride or die fr

nooooo now I’m emotional about jee. the whole being fire nation first and human being second is a really nice touch though, in terms of world building and reasoning behind why fire nation citizens are so committed to the war effort despite their own suffering bc of it

wait wait maybe I’m going insane rn but WAIT a moment please… so this is what I’m working with: when zukka got separated, sokka became like Both of them?? like they didn’t have each other to balance themselves out, so sokka adopted zukos personality (without the zuko skill set Unfortunately) and conversely, zuko like… Had Neither personality bc he was fucking Dying so he had other priorities. and now both of them are out of whack bc their personality divisions are fucked

OMG RASU telling sokka he groped zuko in front of everyone T-T he’s doing the lord’s work

ohohohoboho rasu knowssssss ʰᵉʰᵉʰᵉʰᵉʰᵉ

THESE BITCHES ARE ENGAGED OMG

DADKODA AND CHANGGGGGGG oh I’m so happy rn. I’m genuinely going to squeal when chang and zuko reunite AND FUCK IROH HE CAN GET FUCKED JEE GET A BETTER LEADER TO DEDICATE YOURSELF TO

anyways :D

I’m expecting zuko and chang to have the most magical long awaited airport reunion imaginable, and if these two bitches DONT hug I’m going to cut all your electrical wires and clog your toilets

KISSES XXXXXX

I have accepted I’ll never be rid of you, so I’ve stopped trying. <3

Haha, I think we could ALL use some therapy lol <3 but as for Katara I think she is allowed to be upset and dramatic because she is 15 and tired. So stop being an asshole Zuko.

I think both Zuko & Katara left that interaction feeling less than satisfied.

I love writing Jee as the man who notices shit. Haha. Why is his collar so high? IDK JEE WHAT DO YOU THINK?!

fucking love Jee

I’m a sucker for details, and unfortunately I can’t always get them all out into the writing but I wasn’t going to CUT (hahahaha GET IT??) the hair lore mwahaha.

Dude Chang and Zuko reunion is long over due but also I might be a dick and just bomb everything before Chang gets close

Why not right?

KISSSSSSESSSSS XOXOXO

[aclosetfan]

I worry because there's so many different characterizations out there of the Puffs and ESPECIALLY the Ruffs that I don't really know how to tackle things. A lot of these characterizations can be contradictory too in a way I don't really see much in other fan works for media since there's so little to go off even when they're super prominent in works. You'd think that would give you more freedom but it makes things more nerve wracking. Honestly it makes me wish more than ever that this fanbase had more people I could exchange ideas with like it used to. Fandom is pretty dead now so I'm left navigating mostly in the dark outside of reading other fanfic and deciding what I like and (more often) dislike as opposed to really being able to talk to people one on one.

I think lastly, my interpretations of the ppg and rrb can divert a lot from traditional fanon interpretations. The Ruffs a lot more so than the Puffs.

Those are all very valid worries. It sounds like you’ve got some novel ideas for your fic—definitely not cookie cutter—so it’s completely reasonable to be nervous about “how you’re doing.”

But i guess my question is, why do you care? I’m not saying this to be discouraging! If it’s a dead fandom, the few people left are going to look at any new content they get, and if they don’t like it, they simply move on! Their loss. If your interpretations are so novel or new, and other fics can’t help you tackle your characterization issues, then you can fuck it up as much as you want and no one will know the difference. You can play around with all sorts of characterizations. You’re not boxed into one fic idea, you can take what you like and disregard what you don’t, and that’s the freedom of creative writing. You can do whatever you want!

It’s nice to bounce ideas off of someone, but in small, deadish fandoms, a lot of the time, you’re just chilling with yourself. That’s the name of the game. But I think I like that feeling of freedom. Other fandoms have too many voices that drown out the actually interesting stuff. In the small ones, you find stuff made by passionate weirdos and their always absolute gems. If you do want to talk to someone in a small fandom, you’ve got to be brave and *do it*. It will always go 100% better than you likely expect!

Like tell me anon, what’s going on in your fic? What are you stuck on? Just drop a link in my dm to your fic and I stg I’ll read it and give honest feedback if that’s what you’re looking for. I’m writing a pretty hefty legal brief rn for work, and probably wouldn’t be able to get to a fic until this weekend, but I’m down to help. I just need people to put things in front of me or work pushes them from my mind 🫠

Also from a practicable, writing standpoint:

1) It sounds like you may need a character bible. If you’re overwhelmed, I’d devote time to just dump drafting character concepts and organizing them into something manageable. A lot of writing isn’t the actual writing, but the outlining. A sound outline will make you feel more comfortable.

2) Shorter chapters will help too. The less there is, the more time you’ll likely devote to editing.

[rowannkhanna]

pspspsps. now i am asking about YOUR fanon !!!!! how are wawa and rogue together :]

RUBS MY HANDS THANK U FOR GIVING ME STAGE ohhh where do i begin

for now i think their first meeting is still the same as the cheesecake manor mystery thing bc its generic and cute BUT i just think its funny that walnut just met her dads Ex Basically and didnt know it. likewise w roguefort not realising this is the daughter of their Ex Basically

i cant think of anything specific plot wise rn but ooohh i just think that roguefort at first just respects walnut sm for her intelligence and good eye. and walnut sees them as a worthy opponent she takes them seriously she doesnt underestimate them and shes Fair with them (as shown in the butter painting affair)

i think this kind of base view is important when writing rivals/enemies HDNND they have to see the other as a worthy equal they shld respect the other as their enemy they shld not underestimate their enemies

eventually tho roguefort finds that they care for her a Lot more than they realise. also forgot to note that after the abandonment, roguefort sticks by the Flying Solo mindset. no time for alliances or partners or wtv they can only trust themself. that includes Family i think like they start having this mindset that even family can let u down no matter how much u give.

walnut is pretty stubborn like her father ( def more stubborn and impulsive tho ) so i think shes gonna have a bit of a harder time expressing care for roguefort ( she cares a lot she doesnt want them to crumble or get hurt ).

also just thought of smth plot wise a bit but like i need for smth to happen that allows both almond and roguefort to disappear and that its up to walnut ( and my oc, who happens to be rogueforts emotionally adopted kid but rn were focusing on just walnut JDNJD.. ) to save her dad and her arch nemesis

i also think that during the escape, almond gets hurt (BUT NOT TOO HURT TO THE POINT HE DIES i can not kill him or any of them i wld be so sad) like i thino he loses a leg or two and is pretty much paralyzed. bed rest for a good while and its so so hard on both roguefort and walnut, both thinking they couldve done better to protect him. theyr both blaming themselves while simultaneously telling the other its not their fault HDNDND comfort ensues

ne way yeha i. them 🙏

[misora-msby]

my haikyuu crushes as things my previous crushes/exes have done

"summary": this is purely just for fun and half crack, but enjoy reading my experiences lol

characters: ushijima wakatoshi, miya atsumu, sugawara koushi, suna rintarou, hoshiumi kourai, semi eita

ushijima wakatoshi

giving his jacket when you're cold

so one day you show up to school

let's pretend today is an event so you've got a costume and your skirt is shorter than usual

no, japanese school skirts are not short as you think and i know from experience that they often go past your knees

UNFORTUNATELY it's also pretty cold :(

and he notices that you're shivering just a little because man ur thighs are kinda exposed ;-;

so wakatoshi walks over and gives his jacket

"here. you can use this."

you: "ah... i'm fine! i don't need it..."

wakatoshi: "i insist."

aww that's so sweet of him <3

miya atsumu

getting cockblocked together

OK THIS IS A REALLY FUNNY THING THAT HAPPENED TO ME AHAHA

i'll put it in a way that fits our dear tsumu-kun <3

ok imagine lining up for a one of those events where you have to be in your clubs

you, dear manager, and atsumu very clearly have a thing for each other

you know, giggling and grinning when you talk together

him choosing to sit next to you at lunch

texting often

suddenly i'm missing this crush but whatever

so yes you two are standing next to each other and he turns for a bit to talk to suna in front of him to talk about something...

when osamu behind you asks,

"hey. is it okay if i stand next to my bro?"

of course who are you to deny him? plus it's not like you're gonna actually SAY "i'd rather stand next to atsumu"

so you just "mm, sure. :)"

and when tsumu turns around

"???? bro wtf i wanted to-"

osamu: ._. ?

atsumu: "never mind."

sugawara koushi

being your best friend

sugawara just seems like the perfect guy for best friends to lovers

do u feel

the friend who'd listen to you cry at night and who you would comfort over texts

the guy who'd laugh at the stupid shit you find funny and would also send you really weird memes

you would fall for each other but at the wrong times

end up fighting about it and losing the friendship lol im not feeling extreme guilt rn i promise

but would probably still care about u a little even after not being friends anymore

aight i'm stopping here y'all get the idea

hoshiumi kourai

laughed at me for playing minecraft

self-explanatory bitchass

one of the reasons i stopped crushing on him smh

unfortunately i was a huge mcyt/smplive stan and oH IT'S FUNNY FOR A 17 Y/O TO LIKE MINECRAFT HUH

i can see hoshiumi "HUH! YOU PLAY MINECRAFT?? LOL OK"

shut up i bet hoshiumi would play minecraft nonstop if he didnt discover volleyball >:///

ok redemption for hoshiumi bc i do love him

staying up late on calls together

he’s surprisingly cute that way ♥︎

kourai’s always got a lot to talk about and will definitely listen to everything u wanna talk about!

sometimes you two fall asleep on call together uwu

unfortunately he wakes up earlier because of vb practice and you can hear his alarm clock through the phone.

“kourai... wake up, your alarm.”

“...”

“nnn... kourai... wake up your alarm is so loud...”

“zzz”

you hang up on him and he’s also late to practice

thank goodness for hirugami waking our boy up :,)

suna rintarou

ghosted and ‘cheated’ went on a late night walk with you

ignore the first thing i said :) that's fanon suna lol

GOING FOR SCHOOL OVERNIGHT FIELD TRIP!!

so y'all went to tokyo?? for the overnight trip

it's getting late and it's the last night so the teachers say "you all have free time tonight! just be back by 10pm okay?" wow they're trusting

so you and rintarou decide to spend the night together exploring the neighbourhood.

holding hands for some reason while you walk down the quiet streets talking about life.

then ending up at a little coffee shop where his friends were already eating together at and you shyly talking to them.

atsumu: "oi suna, who's this? ya don't really talk to many people."

suna: "i'm not a loner...? anyways, this is y/n. we were in the same group for most of the trip."

passing by your own friends who are Very Interested in whats going on between you two.

friend: "oo y/n, who's that?"

you: "uhm... a friend!"

and ending the night by just barely cuddling in the hotel's lounge area in your pyjamas

semi eita

said he was writing a song for you

musician semi musician semi

say it with me

WE LOVE MUSICIAN SEMI!

guys who play instruments are automatically 5x hotter. fr.

anyways

sometimes you two are sitting together just chilling

because dates with eita are sometimes just enjoying each other’s presence 🥺

he’s strumming at his guitar and occasionally scribbling down some notes while you’re probably playing on your phone or switch

he plays a new melody and you’re like

“oo thats a nice song. what’s the name?”

eita: “i haven’t really thought of a name... i just came up with it after all.”

“ohh...”

“maybe i should call it y/n?”

smooth bugger i’m gonna kiss u on the mouth so hard semi eita

[beardedhandstoadshark]

Is there any fic you would recommend us on ao3? Something that stole your heart or that was different/special for you?

Uhhhhhhh My Immortal

…Ok no, actual rec‘s. Um.

Meet us at the Milk Bar is a really good fic. It’s about all the NPC‘s in Legend of Zelda: Majoras Mask getting together one by one to spend their last hours until the moon falls onto them, and man. The emotions. You don’t even need much context from the game to understand it (though it obvs has more impact that way) so please, read it.

That’s kinda the main one rn but for a bunch of other stuff (ignore it, it’s just a lot of self-indulgent fic recs)

Harry Potter and the Lack of Lambsauce. A fic about Gordon Ramsey (the way he‘s presented in his shows) being a professor in Hogwarts. I know it sounds like a pure crack-fic, but isn’t, has 99 chapters and is genuinely pretty good as far as I can tell. And I don’t even care about Gordon Ramsey, let alone Harry Potter.

The Heart and Soul Series which is pretty much the Kirby fic series (I don’t. Actually read anything Kirby related otherwise, surprisingly). Though, granted, it needs a bit of character context. Enemies to friends but they’re still rivals and also idiots.

(grabs the funny subway man) YOURE GOING BACK HOME FUCKER is not a crack fic. It’s a submas reunion fic. The Hurt/Comfort is real and strong with this one

And also 97% of what I read is in Legend of Zelda & related fandoms, sooooo. Yeah. If nesting multiple readmores into each other were a thing, I‘d put one here, but alas. I

Hero, what ails you? Whump. Hero collapses after being too stubborn to realize he’s got pneumonia, gives skeleton-mentor a second heart attack in the process

My Inner Life, their outer Nope. Roast-fic. Assortment of various Zelda characters torture themselves live-read and comment on the fic "My Inner Life“, also known as the My Immortal of Zelda fics

Dimensional Links, the OG of OG‘s of "throw all the Link‘s together“ AU‘s, pretty much the first ever fic I read, forgot everything what happens in the plot but still remember it being really good so it must be

And speaking of "throw Links together“ AU‘s, since you genuinely can’t take two steps in any Zelda tag on AO3 or tumblr without coming across Linked Universe stuff might as well throw some of those here too

How to kill a God Really engaging Murder Mystery with lots of world-building. Might as well be Original Work. Which is great so you don’t even need any context!

The Most Sincere Kind of Lie someone put this one in a collection called "Darkest LU shit I can find“ and. Yeah. It’s really good. Angst. So much Angst. It hurts a lot, but it’s. Just. Really well written

Stick a Fork in 'em cause they Done got Roasted crack/roast fic parodying the way fanon generally writes the different Links. I hate/love how accurate these are lmao

A Fishing Rod in Hand is Worth 2 in System Memory LU but glitches are a thing. Whatever this particular type of "4th wall break but not quite“ is called (Undertale does that too) I like it. + Crack treated seriously is always fun. + this has an actual story, so honestly I‘m not even sure if it can still be called crack, + it comes with descriptions for all the glitches, + while it says 6/? the way it currently ends makes for a pretty good open ending so it’s cool

[hello-yue-here]

About your atla ship songs, I have a couple of questions (sorry if my phrasing comes out wrong, english isn't my first language and I worry it might across as accidentally defensive): how did you end up with the choices for zukka, jetko and yuekka (note: I haven't seen the great comet, so feel free to obsess over it, I'm intrigued now and the hype is appreciated!)? Sidenote: I think the mailee choice is HILARIOUS and the tokka one just make me sad, I didn't expect to be attacked like this😭

kdjfha;s i love you im gonna obsess SO HARD over great comet now. you may regret this

this is gonna be so long so the rest is under the cut whoops

yuekka: no one else from great comet

where do i even begin. WHERE DO I EVEN BEGIN

okay so background information on this show: it's based off of a 76 oages excerpt from war and peace and its centered around a woman named natasha (and this guy pierre but he's irrelevant to this song so we wont worry about him) and natasha's bethrothed is off fighting in the war right now. she hasn't seen him in a while but she is in love with him.

every single lyrics of this song SCREAMS yuekka to me. the innocence and purity of their love. the love at first sight. and even the melancholy ending just- i go apeshit for this song. i love this song so much. and denee benton's voice??? kljsdhflwksugf please listen to this song if you haven't already. listen to the whole show. your life will be changed forever.

onto the lyrics (i stg this is ab to be the whole song whoops)

"the moon"

THOSE ARE THE FIRST WORDS ON THE SONG. natasha and andre (her bethrothed) met underneath the moonlight. Sokka and Yue first spoke to eachother at night and always met each other for their most intimate moments under the moonlight. also yue is LITERALLY the moon so like: right of the bat with those two words it's yuekka.

"and i saw your eyes / and i saw your smile / and the world opened wide"

sokka fell in love with yue the moment he saw her in the canal. she literally enchanted this motherfucker. everything about her made his heart go crazy. and 'the world opened wide' to me is from yue's perspective. Yue had never left the north pole and sokka had seen a good chuck of the world at the point. He took her on appa, he told her about his adventures. he saw the world yue wished to see and you know damn well that Sokka would have done anything to give it to her.

"oh the moon /oh the snow in the moonlight / and your childlike eyes and your distant smile / ill never be this happy again / you and i and no one else"

natasha sings fondly about the moon and the snow, seeing as it was where she fell in love with andre. yue and sokka LITERALLY fell in love in the same place: in the snowy nothern water tribe under the light of the moon. childlike eyes: THEYRE CHILDREN!!! distant smile: this is where it gets a little sad. theyre both children with way too many duties during a world that has known nothing but war for the past century. they want to be happy but yeah, theyre smiles are distant and far away because happiness seems out of reach for them most of the time. i'll never be this happy again: the moments yue and sokka shared together were probably the happiest either of them ever were. they were able to ignore the war and the world in the moments they shared together. and with no one else. no one else would be able to give each other this sense of peace and happiness and love.

"joy and life inside our souls / and no body knows just you and me / it's our secret"

Yue and Sokka had to sneak out in secret at night to go and see each other. Yue and Sokka couldn't be together for real because Yue was already engaged, but they were literally in love so she decided to see him anyways in secret. kasdjfhklasjd im losing my mind over them at this point.

"this winer sky / how can anyone sleep / there was never such a night before / i feel like putting my arms around my knees / and squeezing tight as possible / and flying away"

these are my FAVORITE lines in the entire song. yue and sokka had never felt this strongly about anyone before and that's why they are so drawn to each other. they had never experienced love before and they wanted to hold onto it for as long as they could even though they knew they couldnt. Sokka takes yue up on appa and she is wistful and wishes she could live like he does every day: ie flying away. oh my god these two deserved so much better. so much fucking better.

now for the saddes part. the saddest fucking part.

"maybe he'll come today / maybe he came already / and he's sitting in the drawing room / and i simply forgot"

natasha misses andre so intensely at this point. when i first listened to this show and heard this song i was like "wait a min... is andre like... dead?" and im sure i wasnt the only person who assumed that this was why natasha felt so sad by the end of such a beautiful song. (spoiler alert andre is fine)

but this line really exemplifies how sad natasha is, and hints at the fact that andre may never come back. it implies that their relationship is doomed (at least in my opinion) and that's all yuekka. Sokka misses yue intensely when shes gone. Yue accepted her fate almost immediately but sokka was in denial. he thought there had to be another way. but in the end it wasn't meant to be. and sokka will go on, loving yue, wishing for her back, even though it's not possible.

fuck im gonna cry.

zukka: all i've ever known- hadestown

"i was alone so long / i didn't even know that i was lonely / out in the cold so long / i didnt even know that i was cold"

sokka is from the swt so theres where the cold comes in. also in the gaang (initially) it was just him katara and aang. and katara and aang were much closer to each other than sokka was with aang and the two of them were benders so sokka was kind of an outsider with the two of them. He also represses a lot of his emotions and feels the need to do everything himself so i do see a lot of loneliness in sokka. and the fact that so many people in his life have left him (his mom, yue, his dad, suki briefly, etc...) he is known to keep people at an arms length. i see a lot of loneliness in sokka.

zuko's loneliness is a lot more obvious: he has literally been cast out and abandoned by everyone except iroh. and even then he still feels the need to be alone (remember zuko alone? thought so) these boys look after themselves and push others away and revel in their loneliness in order to keep themselves from getting hurt. at least in my opinion on canon and also some fanon because id be a liar if i said fanon didnt influence how i view ALL my ships (not just zukka)

"all ive ever known is how to hold my own / but now I wanna hold you too"

COME ONE MANNNN, they just wanna hold each other. theyre both very big protectors as well and kljhflkasdhg they wanna protect eachother like kljdhfl im gonna lose it rn.

"You take me in your arms / And suddenly there's sunlight all around me / Everything bright and warm / And shining like it never did before / And for a moment I forget / Just how dark and cold it gets"

SUNLIGHT SYMBOLISM. zuko is literally powered by the sun. i don't think i even NEED to elaborate on this one anymore lol. They find comfort in each other away from all of their trauma. when they're together nothing else matters and i personally love that for them. they both deserve love.

"I knew you before we met / And I don't even know you yet / All I know is your someone I have always known"

these two are extremely similar in canon. many parallels. older brothers overshadowed by their prodigy little sisters. longing to make their fathers proud (granted one dad is good and one is fuckin evil), both are pretty bad with emotions. both are seen protecting others before themselves (sokka protecting suki during the serpant's pass, sokka protecting toph on like multiple occassions, zuko protecting katara in the final agni kai), the list goes on. they know who the other is because they see themselves in the other person. they already know each other because they are each other (in a way, not entirely, but the similarities are strong in my opinion)

"I'm gonna hold you forever / The wind will never change on us / Long as we stay with each other / Then it will always be like this"

i just think this line is so cute and sweet (ignoring all the symbolism and foreshadowing that comes with the last line in the musical itself. im gonna pretend this is nothing but happy) and i think these boys deserve happiness so yeah. this song is zukka to me lol.

jetko: thrill of first love- falsettoes

if you've never listened to this song go an do it now. you will know INSTANTLY that it is jetko because of the dynamics alone. marvin and whizzer are pure jetko and i take no crticisms.

marvin and whizzer are both extremely stubborn, and they don't always get along, and they fight a lot, and they get mad at each other a lot, and they are both passionate as hell, and they will bring this passion into everything. they love each other that is without a doubt, but they arent perfect and they are once again stubborn and determined as fuck.

sound familiar? it's literally jetko.

the lyrics aren't what remind me of jetko, but the dynamic itself. the lyrics are too on the nose for a gay couple in 1970's america so that rlly cant apply to jetko all that much. but the way these two characters bounce off of each other and get annoyed with each other and argue with eachother reminds me of jetko. because let's be honest: these two are the most stubborn characters in the whole show. they will fight for what they believe and it will take literally everything to change their minds.

i love jetko but i think they would have petty arguments all the time and get aggravated by one another so easily. and this is even seen in canon: they work so fucking well together but they did not even HESITATE to fight one another after neither of them would give in and let the fight about whether jet was right or wrong about zuko being a firebender. like i cannot say it enough they are stubborn as fuck.

but underneath all that stubborn pettiness and bickering: marvin and whizzer still love each other. and jet and zuko would still love each other. because even though they are stubborn when it comes to arguments, they are even more stubborn and determined when it comes to each other. these two passionate motherfuckers are in love.

(now when i chose this song i decided to ignore the fact that this song literally spells out the fact that marvin and whizzer's relatinoship is doomed because they literally say passion dies. thats the difference between jetko and whizzer and marvin because i dont think passion dies. i chose this song strictly for the bickering lmao)

and i know you didnt ask about tokka but,,,,

i rlly wanna talk about the tokka one

so im going to

tokka: on my own- les mis

look. i KNOW this song is about unrequited love and i love tokka as a couple but,,, the unrequited love in this song just SCREAMS unrequited tokka to me so thats what i went with.

eponine is a girl who has neglectful parents who lives life by her own rules: toph. eponine is shown to be tough and confident and spunky to others but behind all of that she has emotions, she feels love, she hides her vulnerability so much: toph. she is in love with a guy she cant be with because he loves someone else: TOPH

eponine is toph to a t and toph is eponine to a t. this is not up for debate lmao

"without him i feel his arms around me"

toph is always seen grabbing onto someone (and its almost ALWAYS sokka) when she's somewhere where she can't use her feet to see. FEEL and ARMS cmon. look at it.

"and i know / i know that he is blind"

COME ON. IMAGINE TOPH SINGING THIS LINE. this line is already powerful enough in les mis but having toph, a blind character, sing it just makes the symbolism even deeper. toph sees the potential relationship they could have together. toph sees that sokka is oblivious to this. toph is not blind to the truth or the potention, but sokka is blind to her feelings. im about to lose my mind over this line.

"I love him / But every day I'm learning / All my life / I've only been pretending / Without me / His world will go on turning / A world that's full of happiness / That I have never known"

i need to sit down for a moment. toph grew up in a household where her parents did not understand her. she has learned to hide her true emotions and vulnerabilities from everyone. and its the fact that toph knows that she and sokka will never be together and the fact that she still loves him in spite of that is what makes this even more heartbreaking.

"but only on my own"

TOPH AND EPONINE SWEETIES I LOVE YOU

thank you for indulging my theatre kid nonsense. you are very sweet and kind and lovely and awesome and i hope you have a lovely day bestie :) <3

ask me why i think these songs go with these ships

[whirlybirdwhat]

Heyo~ I just wanted to say that your fanfics have inspired me to write my owns, they're so good!!

But my writing isn't nearly as good, do you have any advices for this starting writer? <3

oh my gosh anon !!!!!! im ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ !! im so glad they inspire you, and I wish you all the best on your writing!!! you got this, and please link them if/when you post!!!! 👀👀👀

as for advice - i got a few things!

first off, your writing is yours, and - especially in fic - there isn't necessarily a type of 'good' writing, just different skill sets! for instance, i find that my weak point is dialogue, while im great at worldbuilding + emotions. another writer might be the opposite, but it doesn't mean my writing is 'bad' and theirs is 'good' or the reverse, simply that we have different strengths! as you grow as a writer, you will find your strengths and learn to grow them, and your weak points! there is truly no standard, so don't put yourself down!!

moving on to more advice however - (EDIT: theres a tldr at the bottom because sorry, i rambled a bit!!)

1. write. it doesn't matter where, it doesn't matter when, it doesn't matter how! I have written fics on sticky notes in the middle of class (whiskey peak chapter of esom) on discord in the span of a few hours (make a choice (turncoat hero)) and in my notes apps (the ace/yamato fic i posted)!! if you learn to write anywhere you please, this will keep ideas from leaving your mind, and allow you to get into the zone that there doesn't have to be a set time to write!

2. length never matters for a fic. If 100 words is all it takes to write what you want to write, then 100 words is all it takes! don't let the general adoration for long fics to scare you off from writing, and write what you're comfortable with. I know writers who only write chapter fics, and writers who will only write one shots (then there's me, who tries to do both at once lol.)

3. when i am lost with the plot of a fic, the first thing i do is draft an outline of what i want to happen next. this is just a simple bullet point outline, in the general fashion of, say

- luffy gets a different hat post pirate king

- monkey steals hat

- luffy calls for zoro

- zoro sleeping?? sanji kicks him then fight

- the monkey is revealed as the red haired pirates monkey

- shanks shows up "miss me anchor?" party time

brief, follows a simple set of actions, perhaps one or two lines that i thought of while writing, and gives me a skeleton to follow so that when i lose myself in a fic i know where i can go next. Some people find it useful to do this at the beginning with a super detailed plot, and others never write a outline at all! it depends again on how you grow as a writer, so don't be afraid to try different things out when you approach a fic

4. stuck on a part? writer block? can't focus? get up drink a glass of water, and get back to writing! i find this helps me get refocused on writing when i am stuck, a little body 'wake up' as you will.

5. never EVER delete a scene from a fic. never. NEVER. move that scene to another doc, put it in a 'scrapped writing' folder, idc, but never delete it entirely. it helps you grow as a writer, and you can always put the scene back/reword it, etc. i cannot count on my hands how many times i have reworked a previously scrapped portion of a fic and came out the better for it!

6. having multiple wips is okay!! celebrate it even!! i always have at least five docs for five separate fics up on my computer at all times so i can shuffle between them when writing and write what im inspire for in that moment. its okay if you never make headway on one of them, as long as the ideas keep flowing

7. want to get something out quick? word wars are your friend - set a timer for 15 minutes, and write as many words as you can. this is especially fun if you have someone doing it with you, so you can compare counts at the end and share your story!!

8. writing, like all art, takes time. and, generally, there is a chance you will write faster when you first set out to write then you will later, because later, you will be more conscious of your word choices and be more deliberate and careful in your plot, rather than just churning out works. It's okay if you don't churn out 5k a day - writing is not an obligation!

9. have. fun. im serious! write what you want to write, even if it seems no one will love it or like it or want to read it - write what brings you joy, what makes you smile, even if it's something that's been done a thousand times before!! this is what fic is, for your own personal enjoyment. Additionally, do not be discouraged if there's a low amount of reviews for something you put your heart and soul. it sucks ass, yes, (i have a couple fics i love which have only gotten like, a quarter of attention of some of my other fics) but ultimately, the idea you wrote down is one you want to see in the world!! it doesn't quite matter what anyone else likes.

10. grammarly, word counter, word, etc - anything with a spellcheck is your best friend, and will generally catch things you miss if you cant find someone to proofread for you. additionally, if you want to be more critical of your fic, look for friends tto give constructive critcism, but know that you absolutely do not have to accept it from any stranger online unless you asked specifically for it.

11. fanon is fanon and popular headcanons are popular headcanons and both are absolutely not canon. you do NOT have to follow it if you do not want to.

12. read!!! i read a lot of fic, a lot of published books, and each has something i really enjoy and apply to my own fics.

13. to reiterate again just... write. write and write and write. i have over 300k posted to ao3 rn, and more in my docs. you will not improve your writing to any standard that you set for yourself unless you write!! always practice!! learn from your mistakes!! grow!!! you will improve with time, i promise, just go out and write what makes you happy anon!!

tl;dr have fun, write a lot wherever and whenever, and write for yourself before anyone else. you will improve with time as a writer the more you practice, and it doesn't ever matter how long your work is.

if you want more specific advice on formatting fic/general rules/ your first time posting, feel free to send another ask!! but for now, i wish you the best of luck anon and a very 👀👀👀👀 at your future fics!!!

[astraltrain]

HOLY SHIT REI CUPTOAST IS BUPINE AO3??? you are perhaps my Favorite dsmp author and also Always On My Dash and i just fuckign connected the dots LMAO.... anyway. now that i have a brain to rei bupine cuptoast pipeline via anon, i wld like to say!! im a massive fan of ur writing etc. and i also have So many feelings thoughts etc. about tubbo and schlatt and your portrayal of their relationship + tubbo's trauma from it (especially the 'i wish he'd been worse' bit in kintsugi) is genuinely... ow. it's also really nice tho bc the way you write his flavor of Fucked Up from that is exactly the same as i've always thought it was? i.e. the messy conflicting emotions of "i know he was bad but he wasn't but he was but i was just imagining it but he was awful but i was the problem not him but i know that's my fucked up brain saying that but-" etc.. and also how your tommy + tbbo are both very screwed up but in obviously different ways...idk just a big fan of portrayal of trauma that's not just *sudden flashback* *romanticised panic attack* *hurt/comfort* yk? and it's so rare to find fic like that...... what else. also big shoutout to tubbo 'uses substances as probably bad coping mechanisms' underscore, thats another thing that i Always want to see touched upon in fanon but i never do : / (actually. sdhfshdfksdfn. i'm finally starting to write again after Years and two of my wips touch on both of those topics. so. take that as u will sdfhdnffnn) also the way u write tommy too........ i would like to Hug My Boy :(((( ALSO (last one i promise)..........thank u.....someone else who fuckgin writes c!beeduo as solidly romantic..... :']]]]] ;-; <- that is all i have to say on the matter. anyway im so so sorry to clog up ur inbox like this, it is very late for me and i am no filter rambling but!! ur very pog and cool and stuff!! love the stuff ur doin!!! :)

ANONNN THIS IS SO LOVELY TYSM OH MY GOD?? i do not have words rn but this is so nice wth :]]

[theplanetprince]

Fanfiction Review

I can already tell this is gonna be super confusing bc I've been writing fic since I was 12 but have since gone through so many identity changes. But let's play anyway!

Thanks for the tag @redead-red

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

My current library is 8. I don't actually write fanfic too often unless a specific idea intrigues me-- or something in the fanon just doesn't line up with me. I do have at least 4ish more stories planned and maybe a revised version of an ancient story from when I was young. 2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

166,451! Pretty neato!

3. How many fandoms have you written for, and what are they?

Uh, in no specific order,

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (lost to purging)

Doctor Who (you ain't gonna find these)

Sonic

NiGHTs into Dreams

Dead by Daylight (<3)

Danny Phantom (my beloathed) Supernatural (my other beloathed)

and uhhhh, I think a bunch of various other video games I can't remember. For the sake of brevity I'm gonna put the rest under the cut.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

This is actually pretty funny bc I have so few fics released. I only get emails for certain ones all the time, so I wrote this part out by guessing, but I ended up not needing to change it. (also, don't read most of these; they're old and bad)

1. Schrodinger's Adolescent, 337 Kudos (Danny Phantom)

2. Teen Years and How to Survive Them, 97 Kudos (Secret Trio)

3. Two Fake Feds Come up the Laneway the other dayyyyyy, 56 Kudos (Letterkenny/Supernatural)

4. Brother's Keeper, 40 Kudos (Halloween, DBD)

5. Beginner's Guide to Destroying the Moon, 37 Kudos (Sonic)

5. Which of your fic do you want more attention for?

I'll be real here, I still enjoy most of the work I did for both Beach House Bummer, and Beginner's Guide to Destroying the Moon. I just wish I got more love for the latter bc I might be inspired to finish it lmao.

6. Do you respond to comments, why or why not?

I really try to! I love the long rambly comments I get on Schrodinger's because I can feel those people are giving me the same passion I put into my work-- Though most of the time I get the generic "post more" or "update plz" which I dunno I'm grateful for the interaction. Still, I don't really want to repeat like "I'm trying my best, dude." about 12 times a day.

7. What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

I'll be real I only have two completed fics rn-- but I can tell you I had this one fic that I wrote when I was fourteen where the ninja turtles had to burn down a lab full of half-born mutant embryos, and like I remember writing that and then going to middle school the next day like "They don't know I'm a literary genius."

8. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

Probably the Letterkenny/Supernatural crossover-- I feel very strongly about SPN and how people take it way too seriously, so when I found out it was filmed in Canada. It used famous Canadian actors from the show Letterkenny, it felt way too good to pass up. I do hope to write in that space again when I'm feeling less depresso-espresso.

9. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Yeah. It's probably a big reason why you'll never see the tmnt fics for a while. I also used to write a lot of OC stories, and this was back in 2014 so like those were def hit the hardest. I'm glad to say it's like... subsided for the most part. I don't get hate as much as I just get really confusing and creepy comments, which don't hurt my rejection-sensitive-ass as much.

10. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Hahahaha, no.

I am kind of bad at writing it, and I don't really like writing it. Which yeah that makes sense. My friends sometimes when they find out I write fanfic as a joke they'll send me some of the worst examples smut they can find and to test my talent I'll try to rewrite it to make it some kind of titillating-- but alas it just isn't my forte. The cons of being an asexual I guess.

11. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Uh, yes and no? I think I had one of my older fics stolen, retranslated, and then retranslated again to English? That was so long ago tho.

12. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No, but I'd love to give it a shot sometime.

13. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

Honestly, it's sonadow. I know it's cringe but I'm free, dammit. Outside of that I guess my favorite dynamic is jock/nerd, which you've probably gleaned from my resume here fhsdkjf.

14. What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

I've been working on Teen Years and How to Survive them since I was 16, I only started making headway on it when I was 19-- so I feel like that speaks for itself hskjhg.

15. What are your writing strengths?

It's been told to me that I'm very funny and I write convincing dialog that captures a character's voice. Which is extremely flattering despite the fact that I feel like I'm tricking you all.

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

probably scenery and landscape, if I'm honest. I also accidentally keep creating scenes just for the dialog instead of action or environment.

17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I think as long as I can guess what they're saying from context clues, and the writer is courteous enough to include body language and the like, then it's mostly harmless. I love including a bunch of references in fic whether it's cultural, historical, or just like a quote from a movie or something so I have a bunch of tabs open regardless it wouldn't be too inconvenient for me to fire up google translate or something.

18. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!

19. What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

Probably Schrodinger's Adolescent, it really opened up a lot of doors for me in the DP fandom and I got to meet a lot of cool people because of it. It really cheered me up from a dark place. And despite me writing it initially out of anger and spite its grown into this soft thing that really means a lot to me.

20. What fic are you most proud of?

Honestly, I can't pick. I'm both embarrassed by them all and yet glad they bring people some form of comfort.

Uhhhh who to tag-- I don't really know

@ten0rreaper is the only one I can think of-- whoever else I guess can have at it. I'm not very good at these things lmao.

[panharmonium]

I like good romantic pairings as much as anyone else but lbr viewing media solely thru the lens of “shipping” is rly reductive, so I appreciate ur view on romance not being a priority in merlin. Like, I’ve seen too many posts abt Merlin mocking Arthur at their first meeting w ppl saying things like “that is not a straight thing to say 👀” Guys. You’re missing the point, which is that Merlin is brave and cheeky and rn Arthur is a bully. It’s a good moment, but an obsession w shipping ruins it yk?

god, yes.  thank you.

i'm putting the rest of this under a cut just because i know for a lot of people the above kind of fandom experience is fun, and i'm not here to harsh anyone's vibe.  i'm glad that people are able to enjoy fandom in their own way, and me talking about my own preferences does not mean i think anyone else should change what they're doing.  i am comfortable curating my own fandom experience to suit my needs - @ everyone else, please continue to do your thing and have fun with it!

I’ve seen too many posts abt Merlin mocking Arthur at their first meeting w ppl saying things like “that is not a straight thing to say” 

YES.  this is my least favorite shipping-related trend ever.  

it's not just that scene.  it's every single moment in the show (and not just between merlin and arthur, either).  every possible interaction gets pulled out and twisted to be about how in love two characters must be, when the actual point is Clearly Not That, and it's exhausting.  i know other people find it fun, and i'm glad they're having fun, but for me, it's exhausting.

for a show where the main character canonically demonstrates virtually zero interest in romantic attachment, it's really...difficult for me sometimes to fully immerse myself in this fandom, because almost all of the fannish content is about shipping merlin with arthur.  and if you don't think arthur is good enough for merlin (valid lol), you ship him with gwaine, or somebody else who you think would treat him better.  merlin without a love interest - the merlin i know from canon - is so hard for me to find.  i don’t really see him anywhere.

(also, to clarify: the PEOPLE in this fandom are fantastic.  everyone I've encountered in my limited experience has been beyond lovely; and pretty much everyone I've met has always seemed totally warm and welcoming of various ships and opinions, which obviously isn't something you find in every fandom, so in that sense, my experience with the merlin fandom has been consistently awesome.  what i'm musing about now isn't individual shippers or their preferences; it's about the overarching content-related experience of being a non-shipper in a fandom where, content-wise, shipping is The Main Thing To Do.)

and of course, this isn't just a merlin fandom trend.  this is the way things have been done in every fandom i've ever been involved in.  every single interaction between two characters always ends up getting pulled out and viewed through a shipping lens, and suddenly everything about the characters as individuals is made to be about the relationship.  EVERYTHING.  things that very clearly have actual, non-romantic explanations get taken out of their context and framed as "they're in LOVE."

and again, as I said before - there's nothing inherently wrong with that, and if people have fun with it, good!  that's what fandom is for.  but it's not my jam, and it can be a bit frustrating sometimes, because a) it’s a reductive analysis, like you said, and b) as someone who is deeply invested in all the friendships on this show, i'm not sure what the institution of friendship is even supposed to look like in this fandom.  does it actually exist?  because a character can't do anything even remotely kind without immediately having it captioned "they're so in love" or "today in totally platonic things, winkwink nudgenudge"

like

what tiny smidgen of caring is small enough to fall under the category of friendship?  how cold and unfeeling do characters have to be with each other for their interactions to qualify as friendship?  literally everything that happens in merlin bbc is, in fact, a product of the love merlin feels for his friends, and nothing about that fact was ever difficult for me to believe while i was watching the show, but once i got out into the wider fandom, it was like that just wasn’t possible.  nobody would do these things for "just" friends.  nobody would be that gentle or caring or loving with "just" friends.  nobody would look at "just" friends like that.  nobody would grieve for “just” friends like that.

to borrow a phrase from one of george lucas's discussions about a different media issue - "i don't like that and i don't believe that."

nothing about that philosophy is interesting to me, or remotely realistic.  and i don’t necessarily think it’s what shipping as an institution is actively trying to communicate, but it is still what’s actually being said in those kind of *wink wink, nudge nudge* posts.

[it’s worth noting also that the *wink wink, nudge nudge*, “every little thing is romantic” lens only applies when people want it to.  i see a lot of the following two modes in the merlin fandom: when it comes to merlin/arthur, fanon interpretation of the show is twisted to make every single one of their interactions serve as evidence for an imaginary romance, but when it comes to arthur and gwen's actual, demonstrated romantic attraction for each other, fandom twists everything the opposite way.  i constantly see posts that are like "i think arthur and gwen loved each other, but they weren't IN love" - uh-huh.  ok.  convenient, that.  suddenly we’ve lost the ability to perceive romance in every single innocuous gesture?  apparently we can fabricate romance out of two people blinking at each other, but only when the relationship in question is a pretend pairing we wish was real.  otherwise, the canonical romance and all of its attendant acts of devotion just don’t register.]

and you know, it's whatever.  i've been involved in fandom long enough to know that this kind of shipping is just how things always go, and i’m happy enough keeping to my own area and trying to curate my fandom experience in a way that brings me the most enjoyment.  but i 100% feel you on ubiquitous shipping goggles being a difficult thing to constantly navigate.  

[reinventicn]

READ BEFORE INTERACTING:

i’m just making this post since i don’t feel like making an official document right now. so please give it all a quick read! 

this is a sideblog to herflame. all my rules can be found on that blog, link to those here.

i will note that i am a little bit selective when it comes to interacting with people on this blog. i know that there’s a lot of discourse surrounding this musical, it’s content, and specifically evan as the main character. 

along with this, it’s been a long time since i’ve seen the stage show, and i honestly don’t feel like going through the process of finding a bootleg rn. evan is just a comfort character, and i’m just gonna be writing him as i find him interesting to explore. very headcanon based over here, at least until the movie comes out.

before we get into anything else, this blog will have a lot of mentions of suicide, mental illness (more specifically anxiety and depression), grief/death in general, and other topics relating to such. i’ll tag things relating to suicide, but i won’t be tagging things relating to anxiety or depression because they’re so central to evan it would be impossible to tag.

i would FIRST like to make it very clear that i am not going to defend evan’s actions throughout the musical when it comes to lying about being friends with connor. it’s obviously a very bad thing to do, and there is no defense. what i will like to state is that evan is someone who is struggling with various mental illnesses, is suicidal, and feels as if he is entirely alone in the world. the lie starts out because his anxiety does not allow him to correct the family. please criticize evan and all the mistakes that he makes because he makes many, but people turning him into a villain or acting as if he does this only because he wants to sleep with zoe or etc makes me very uncomfortable.

secondly, i’m probably going to be putting a lot of interactions either pre or post show? i’m not against writing certain aspects during the show, but tbh i just feel a lil uncomfortable actively writing evan while he’s lying about connor. i’m not trying to say anyone is bad for exploring things during the show, but it just personally is a lil uncomfortable to write. hope you guys understand

third, i portray evan as bisexual. not a whole lot to say about this one. he’s just a bi boy.

fourth, idk how i feel about a lot of the like canon/fanon ships that people have for this show. zoe and evan is uh.... well there’s a lot to unpack there, and writing them post show makes me a lil uncomfy. i don’t like jared and evan either. connor and evan is a lil iffy as well. so while i’m open to shipping, anything with other canon deh characters is going to require some chatting before hand. 

fifth, idk what else to say but i might update this over time to include more stuff. i’ll let you guys know if i do!!