#for this particular genre of fandom darling.

[princehendir]

The fact that there's just straight up no pre-canon Varric fan content at all is fascinating to me. It's odd, you know. It's unusual. It's not what you would suspect.

[reizoudesu]

day two - dancing in the rain / chilling under the covers

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ context: it’s raining today; you and your lover had nothing else to do; nothing could satiate your boredom!

until an idea hits you— go outside and play, or stay hidden in the sheets. will you risk yourself (and your partner) catching a cold, or remain safely in the comfort of their embrace, inside your homely paradise?

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ fandom/s: genshin impact

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ character/s: aether, venti, kazuha, heizou, xiao, wanderer

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ genre/s: fluffily fluff 

notes: i’m back with self-made prompt. our internet at home was being a meanie six (or more) days ago (we literally lost signal for THAT long), so apologies for the lack of response TT

heads-up/warnings: not proofread, (y/n) is a stubborn ahh in other scenarios, lowercase letters (except in one particular part in heizou's, it had caps on ;) ), long paragraphs, wanderer is named “kuni,” kuni wants cuddles (he’s greedy af), affectionate nicknames (aether - love; venti - little windblume, dear; kazuha - love, baby; heizou - darling; wanderer/kuni - dork, babe)

©reizoudesu

do not copy, steal, mark as your own work (but feel free to repost <3)

-ˏ͛⑅　‧̥̥͙‧̥̥ ̥ ̮ ̥ ⊹ ‧̫‧ ⊹ ̥ ̮ ̥ ‧̥̥‧̥̥͙　⑅ˏ͛-

“are you sure? it’s pouring quite hard out there…” aether - cautious, but eventually gives up and goes with you

you peer out the open window of the living room, the soft pitter-patter of rain falls upon the roof down to the ground, coupled with the occasional clanking of the plates across the room, you just ate, yet you were getting impatient, but for what reason? you were probably bored…

“love, are you okay?” asked the blonde as he looked at you, eyes of topaz and that sweet smile on his lips. you smile back and let him embrace you, fully enveloped in his arms. “bored…” you mutter dully, gazing at the dreary weather. “yeah, it’s gotten so cold lately,” aether added with a frown, a soft hum as he caressed your hair. until… your eyes met his, an idea formed inside that imaginative brain of yours.

“…ah, don’t give me that look,” he sighs, and you giggle in response. “i wanna go out and play in the rain,” and as expected, he gazes at you with eyebrows furrowed, “are you sure? it’s pouring quite hard out there…”

but the rain looks so pretty… “i can’t wait here any longer, and besides, it’s only a drizzle!” you try to convince him, but he only gave you a shake of his head, a gentle smile of concern still plastered.

“(y/n), you might catch a cold,” aether limply replies, “that won’t convince me from having fun with my boyfriend!” you were a stubborn one, that’s for sure. it’s obvious your lover finds your personality endearing yet frustrating at the same time. eventually, after half a minute of persuading did aether finally give up trying to argue with you, and ran off to another room. confused, you follow him, until he brings out a pair of raincoats with a grin.

“wouldn’t want you to get wet, would we? c’mon love, let’s head out.”

he wasn’t sure why, but this wasn’t just your persuasion that draws him in. he recalled having his twin sister lumine asking the same request when they were kids. seeing you happy— prancing about in the rain in your adorable transparent raincoat glistening in the rain— was the same warmth he felt when he took lumine out of the open the same way he did.

suddenly, a loud crash of thunder scared the living daylights out of you, and you ran back to aether for fortress. he got scared as well, and you two huddle together.

"did you hear that?!" "y-yeah, i did..."

for some reason, you didn't want to let go of your boyfriend, and you were crumbling like fine powder in the midst of a storm. aether was about to laugh at this yet he refrained, seeing your shocked figure tremoring like a maraca in his grip. putting a hand under your chin to lift your head towards him, he beamed warmly, and now, you were looking at a bright sunshine of a smile he's wearing.

"don't worry. i'm not going anywhere."

he’ll cherish this moment forever, hold it inside his heart as if his memories made themselves home within it.

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“who cares when we get drenched? let’s keep playing!” venti - energetic and thrilled, a sunshine in the rain

ah, the ever-radiant venti, who finds the positives in all the negatives, the rays of light in complete darkness. how did he even deserve your love? basically, the weather is gloomy, and you two had the same frequencies of ennui, which means, you two are very, very bored.

right now, you two are at home, lying next to each other on the couch like two lazy dogs, with him frequently twirling at his braids of teal while you skim through the book you’ve read twice. you cast your gaze at the window, the grey clouds drearily casting a shadow over Mondstadt. it’s merely a light drizzle, but it’s still enough to make one shiver to the bone.

“oh wait! i have an idea,” you blurt out, abandoning the book onto the coffee table, and your cheerful boyfriend perks up at your voice filled with excitement once again. “ah, little windblume! what’s your idea?”

“what if… we go outside in the rain?” you ask him, and his dark eyes lit up with joy, as always. “i have a better one! we can even go out in our raincoats and stomp in the puddles! haha, i like that, my dear (y/n)~”

and so, you did. you went out with your matching raincoats, with you holding the parasol that could cover two people at most. you two were practically children playing outside a stormy weather, jumping in puddles, without a single care in their lives. 

you were starting to worry when the wind suddenly blew away your parasol, and in an instinct, you chased after it, only for the wind to carry it upwards, far, far from the hands could reach until it nested neatly on the roof of the angel’s share. “i lost my umbrella! we might get sick at this rate!” 

despite this, venti was a little surprised but still grins at you. at this point, you can’t tell if it’s just the wind or was it all your lover’s doing. you shot a glare at his mischief, and he laughs. as always, it should be him. but he managed to apologize a second later “sorry, it’s just that you’re holding back from having so much fun.” 

this caught you completely off guard, but he steps closer and told you this:

“who cares when we get drenched? let’s keep playing!” venti cheerfully declares, putting up his hood and putting his hands in yours. they were damp, but warmer that you thought.

yes, nothing is more enjoyable than reliving a happy memory in a perceived sad scene with your beloved boyfriend.

(you two got really sick right after and jean came to nurse you ‘till full health)

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“nothing is better than a downpour after a moment of a sunny adventure.” kazuha - doesn’t mind one bit, also concerned for your safety, but likes a moment of adventure with you

despite having rented yourselves a home, you two wanted to roam around Inazuma, taking breaks by seeking shelter under trees, canopies of restaurants and houses, or abandoned camps set by treasure hoarders. though you initially thought this is dangerous, he always assured that you both have the blades in your hands for protection. until one day, kazuha tugs at your hand with a warning, right when you hear the faint fore-coming of a storm; “rain is coming… let’s go find shelter.”

kazuha has a knack for predicting the weather by the wind picking up its pace, the few drops of rain from afar, the faintest rumbling of thunder that declares the glory of the Almighty Shogun, the dark monochrome clouds enveloping the once-blue skies. that’s just how perceptive your boyfriend. you’ll have to thank him for that later.

unfortunately, luck is not on your side today, because you were settling right under a tree as you two found nothing. the only shade that served you well was the branches of the old oak tree covered completely in green leaves. he eventually picks up on your shivering; you forgot to bring your raincoat— but he wrapped an arm around your shoulder and waist, and in an instant, your blush deepens; not from the cold, but from kazuha’s warmth.

“you’re shivering, baby,” kazuha whispers, his kind smile and his scarlet eyes making your heart melt. how could a ronin like him be so gentle with you as his partner? he’s no fighter, he is a lover. like always, he enjoys a moment of solace with you in the chaos. he even composed a few haikus to the rhythm of the rain, waiting in intervals to let a few drops fall to the ground with a small splash.

despite the shivering, you were okay, at least warmer than before. you couldn’t come up with conversational topics, but one thought occurred to you.

“kazu, what if… we just have to go in the rain and search for more shelter?” that question made him raise his eyebrows in thought and concern, “hm? are you sure, (y/n)? we can’t have you catching a cold, not in this state.”

“well, it’s not pouring that hard," you tell him with a smile. that fire of determination in your eyes was hard to extinguish, and kazuha was pretty much drawn to it in a way as if he was a moth to her flame. "pretty please?"

kazuha gazes back at you, and immediately concluded that he was done. he sighed and gave only a defeated beam; "alright, just stay close to me and i'll keep you covered, okay love?"

you and your lover took the risk as you ran deep into the storm, the cold air hitting your faces along with the pouring rain. the ground was slippery, and you found yourself slipping while kazuha ended up almost tumbling over you, your screams echoing each other as you fell right upon a puddle of the concrete floor.

for a moment, your eyes meet into a matching emotion of shock, your frame hovering over his own as he lay drenched in the puddle, before you began to snort. kazuha brushed his bangs away from his face and grinned in amusement.

"what's so funny?" "nothing, i think i like the view from up here."

that remark made him flush in a slight red, and he laughed louder. the happiness was utterly contagious, so contagious you could shed tears.

“nothing is better than a downpour after a moment of a sunny adventure.”

maybe he's right. even beauty lies within a mess of life's storm.

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“c’mon, let’s head over there, i think i know a good spot around here.” heizou - yes, absolutely yes. a mundane day turned perfect because of one main ingredient: you

"why hello there, darling," the detective greeted, and you nod with a smile, "hi, heizou!" you just came back from finishing a commission when it started pouring, along with a few thundering that rang in your ears.

"i reckon you just finished a commission? from tsurumi island, i presume?" heizou asked, noticing your troubled look. yes, indeed, the anguish you wore tells the tale that you hated doing that request ever again.

"yeah," you weakly told him, wiping away the rainwater from your hair before heizou hands you a towel and sits next to you. "actually, you're in for a treat! i was just about to head to ritou to investigate... and i could use a pair of hands..."

as always, you like a little adventure with your beloved detective, so you pushed yourself to go. "sure, two heads are better than one." you say, a smile playing on your lips.

but there's one problem... the rain.

"hang on, with this weather, you certainly aren't planning to get us both drenched, right?" you ask skeptically, and he eyed you with a gleam. ah, that look on his face again.

"man alive, you don't trust me that easily, huh? too bad i brought your favorite raincoat.," he unfolds the garment with a feigned sigh, "oh well, guess we'll just have to tuck it away again-"

"actually-! i can keep that," you stopped him, yanking it off from his hands before he could go inside and return it to your room.

you two ventured out into the woods, with your lover going on a small tangent about the case he solved. sneaking past the guards and bumping into gorou, you listened through the whole thing, even if all of it was going nowhere. besides, he just can't help it when you two were basically attached by the hip.

with little time, the rain poured harder, and you were hanging onto the last of your raincoat hoodie, until he looks at the spot nearby. “c’mon, let’s head over there, i think i know a good spot around here.”

and there it is, the harbor. the wood that makes the port where the shore meets the ocean. you look around, not noticing heizou lagging behind you, there's nothing but empty houses, fallen leaves, and the empty area that surrounds the island, "i don't see anything," you say, confused, until he tugs at your arm with a cheeky smile.

"shh, quickly now," he shushes you, and right on the exact fourth beat-

CRASH!!

a lightning hit the surface of the ocean, and a sudden thrill creeps up your spine from the flash. he eventually held you tightly, arms framing your waist like a protective shield, hidden behind a cold concrete wall where your heads can only be seen.

"...you brought me here just to traumatize me, do you?" "oh come on, the look on your face says otherwise."

it's irritating that you're a little more amazed than scared. you were scared, but heizou's embrace took that uneasiness away from you. there was no case, just a little bonding together with your boyfriend.

"i still don't forgive you for lying. but just don't move an inch and we're good. okay?"

"i won't. anything for you."

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“…are you serious? you might catch a cold.” xiao - he won’t let you get sick; not once, not ever

it's true that demons don't stop for the rain, as xiao told you not too long ago. but the idea of going right into a commotion of a storm confused him. you suggested the idea as he was just about to leave the wangshu inn to have a moment of solitude.

"you mortals sure have the audacity to do such activities," he commented with a furrowed gaze, "why did you even suggest that?"

"ever heard of relaxation and fun?" you asked rather stubbornly, yet xiao only gave you a grunt in response, not believing you.

"playing in the rain doesn't even spark any joy in me," he flatly declined, yet you gave him a look; here comes the begging again, "come onnn! at this rate, you even have to point out all the good things you can get from playing in the rain.

"people can stomp around in puddles, take a small shower, anything of that sort! love, come on, just give it a chance!"

"...are you serious? you might catch a cold," xiao stares bewildered at you, and he's also irritated by the idea of you being so reckless and getting into danger. defeated, you slump in your seat, the couch carrying your pouty stature. he looks away, a little guilty for having to put up with you all the time, but he really doesn't want you to go.

"listen," he began, uncrossing his arms as he gazes at you with a grim look, "i don't want you to get in trouble. not after what happened."

so he remembered, you did get sick after scouting the harbor with beidou on a rainy afternoon. it's a silly thought, but you remained frowning at him. "fiiine..."

sighing, you lie on the couch, and the yaksha looks at you shortly before heading outside, not without an order, "stay here, i'll be back."

you wondered what your lover would do, it's raining, yet he wanted you to stay. despite this, you were getting bored to death, so you decided to sleep a wink this afternoon.

you couldn't remember the last time you slept this long, and your sense of smell picked up on xiao's presence beside you. before even realizing it, he had lifted your head and put your head against a pillow, and you heard him place a platter on the coffee table before his parting footsteps.

thinking he was gone, you rose and stretched from the couch, and you smelled... almond tofu. there was a note attached, written in fancy handwriting.

"enjoy your lunch, (y/n)" - xiao

your heart fluttered and you hastily took the hot bowl of the meal and ate with soft, savory bites as the food melted in your tongue. in the distance, xiao is watching, leaning against the wall of the room, his face heating up in red hue as a ghost of a smile make its way on his face.

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“hmph, how childish. just stay inside, you don't want to get sick, do you?” kuni - thinks it’s too childish, but he’s just feeling cranky and greedy; he doesn’t want you to leave

"kuni, just once!" you wailed in protest, on your knees, clutching the pillow in front of you just to act cute, but kuni was not buying it. he growled in annoyance, "i said no."

you tried everything. coax him with tea, nothing; getting him to leave the bed (either pulling, pushing, or dragging), nothing; threatening by ignoring him, nothing; giving him an embrace, he hesitantly complies with another hug, but still nothing. making him get out of bed from the storm is closest to impossible.

you slumped behind the leg of the bed and groaned in defeat. that little dastard... your boyfriend being like this as always.

he knew you so much that he could memorize your antics, much to your disappointment.

"kuniii! get out of bed!!" you scream with a frustrated groan, and kuni replied with an exasperated tone, "just why did you want to make me leave the bed?"

it's stupid, but you had to try, "i like the rain, okay? it's stupid, but i wanna go out and play!" that made him stop, but he clicked his tongue and crossed his arms.

"hmph, how childish," you hear him say. finally, you gave up trying. he's not leaving anytime soon, so you grumpily plop on the bed next to him.

"you're such a killjoy." "..."

you heard him sigh, and then a sudden force drags you back up to bed, a surprised gasp escaping you as he put his head on your shoulder, a small groan.

"playing in the rain won't get you anywhere, you'll only get yourself sick," he grumbled, as if he's chiding you. you know that, but what significance does it even hold? you're getting so bored.

he picks up on your boredom and turned you around, his violet eyes meeting yours, and you blushed as crimson as a rose in full bloom. it always spurred a reaction out of him, a small grin tugging at his lips, but going serious once more.

"just stay inside, you don't want to get sick, do you?" he requested, forming a small tint of pink in his cheeks as he held you closer for comfort. the only thing you could think right now is probably:

"archons, kuni, what's gotten into you?"

despite this, you comply to his request and just bury your head into his shoulder, arms wrapped around his frame as the two of you remained cuddling in the bed.

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©reizoudesu

[waitmyturtles]

I have caught up with Knock Knock Boys, and it is a DARLING KEEPER of a show so far (with some stumbles)

Post-travel drama catch-up continues on my front with Knock Knock Boys, which I picked up in part due to my permanent commitment to support the king, Seng Wichai, one of my top three Thai QL actors of all time. We're through episode 8 on this one, and

I LOVE THIS SHOW

and I hope it doesn't falter, I hope, I HOPE!

Highs and lows below. First of all!

This show is not shy about sexuality. Not NC-sex scenes, per se, but sexuality -- the sexualities of the show's characters. This is SO REFRESHING!

Every character is clearly depicted at a different stage of their experience and their physical and emotional readiness for new experiences. I love it. AND, those stages are used wonderfully and clearly to provide context as to how they're behaving vis à vis each other and their environments.

Part of the early fandom controversies around GMMTV's We Are focused on the show's declining to define, clearly, the sexualities of the young men in real-life terms. This is an endemic issue in Thai BLs, and has been since the birth of the television genre; it's also a common presence in university BLs in particular.

(This is why, early in the life-cycle of the Thai BL genre, Make It Right, as a school-based BL, was already so groundbreaking -- because it didn't hesitate to explore gay and queer life boldly. Compare that to SOTUS, which aired after MIR, which took a very deliberate step BACK from "saying gay." The genre has struggled with openly embracing gay themes since its start.)

The thing is, in real life, for MANY people, when you are a part of, or hang with, queer communities, being queer is a HUGE and central part of most conversations, along with sexual readiness, experience, CRUSHES, attractions, everything. Even one's internal hesitations, or maybe even internal homophobia, are up for discussion.

That's why I grab my pom-poms when I watch a show that doesn't shy away from much more realistic engagement, not necessarily about intimacy as a whole, but really more about the communal aspect and acknowledgment that humans are intimate creatures. When a show depicts people in a community -- especially a queer male community like the Knock Knock house -- engaging realistically about the various stages of struggles and acceptance unto themselves and others that they have about their intimate lives, and weaves interesting and coherent stories about those people, it's something, in this still-young genre, to celebrate.

Knock Knock Boys, with a few stumbles, is doing GREAT on this front. Almond is inexperienced, and suffering because of it! He's got an AMAZING friend and suitor in Latte --

LATTÉEEEEEEE!!!!

who likes, AND wants to support Almond in his growth.

I wanna take a second on Latte, and Jaonine Jiraphat. I love that Jaonine is Bright Vachirawit’s doppleganger (dopplenonger), but also, Latte is kind of like Sarawat's dopplenonger, too. When 2gether was airing four years ago, Bright Vachirawit didn't hesitate to explain publicly that his character, Sarawat, was gay-gay -- again, at GMMTV, which is not a studio that necessarily embraces gay-gay for its characters.

We have the same here for Latte as with Sarawat: Latte is UNABASHED, totally owning and in control of his sexuality, his preferences, and his popularity, all which Almond is paying attention to and learning from. And on top of that, Latte is such an empathic friend, not just to Almond, but to the intimacy student club that he speaks to with Lookpeach. It is a LOVELY storyline of how Latte, feeling comfortable in himself, can use that comfort to help others find themselves. THIS IS BIG, and wonderfully written. And, when Latte pulls back from getting intimate with Almond, because he knows that NEITHER of them are ready, and want it that way -- it was just such a great moment of Latte's awareness and empathy for the both of them. Latte, unless there's a stumble, will be going down in my books as one of the most admirable and openly queer characters I will admire (in my same book as the first openly pansexual homey, Frame from MIR).

I'm also loving the ThanwaPeak storyline, with fiancée Jane doing her thang to get her betrothed un-betrothed. I think the way in which this storyline is written is a bit more choppy: like with so many Japanese BLs that are predicated on endemic miscommunication, I think dropping hints without clarity as to Peak's issues with his family, and Thanwa's unknown struggles with Max, didn't help last week's episode, especially with Thanwa accusing Peak of not truly knowing him -- Thanwa, homey, you need to TALK about your issues with Peak in order for Peak to know them.

That being said, while I don't think I'm the biggest fan of Best Vittawin's acting, I think both Best and Seng are dancing around their characters' hesitations with intrigue and chemistry. Especially Seng: this is not his loudest role as compared to SCOY and War of Y, but the ways in which he can indicate interest in another person with a simple glance and a quiver of a smile is incredible. His acting is on another level, and I think Best may not be living quite up to it, but I can't really blame Best, because Peak as a character is having to figure out SO. MUCH. with a lot going on around him.

I'm looking forward to finally finding out what the exact deal is with Peak running away from Jane and his father, and to finding out whyyyyyy Thanwa would go back to a peeper? AND, was it really Max, not Almond, that leaked the clip?! These are good cliffhangers at this point in a series! These stories have been well-paced, sensible, and told in a sensible order, and we have some big reveals and decisions awaiting us.

This is not a complicated show, but it's a deep one, and it's not shy about telling big stories about growth, homophobia, the economic issues that many gay men face, and what decisions they need to make in order to afford and survive life. I love that this show bridges university life with working life, to tell stories about four young men in very real stages of their lives, being upfront and honest about it. I was not expecting much from this show at all when I first started, but I am LOVING IT, and would highly recommend it up until this point!

[waitingtobelit]

Title: Build Me Up Fandom: 911 Characters/Pairings: Evan Buckley/Tommy Kinard Rating: Teen for language. Genre: This is pure fluff and I'm not sorry! Summary: “If I’m your honey does that make you my Pooh Bear?”

Evan asks around a mouthful of waffle, whipped cream, and strawberries, trying to pull of innocence but failing in the way his eyes light up in clear amusement and the corners of his mouth keep twitching upwards around his food. It also doesn’t help his case that he has whipped cream and strawberry sauce all over his chin. He’s adorable like this, and he damn well knows it; Tommy doesn’t miss the roll of his shoulders as he preens. He’s an absolute menace.

--

Buck teases Tommy with various terms of endearment until Tommy catches him by surprise. In the end, they both render each other speechless. For day 2 of bucktommy positivity week: nicknames and terms of endearment.

Notes: Title comes from the song "Build Me Up Buttercup."

This is shameless fluff and you can probably tell I wrote this while hungry and/or how much I love waffles with whipped cream and strawberries!

For @bucktommypositivityweek prompt two: Nicknames and terms of endearment.

Build Me Up

“If I’m your honey does that make you my Pooh Bear?”

Evan asks around a mouthful of waffle, whipped cream, and strawberries, trying to pull of innocence but failing in the way his eyes light up in clear amusement and the corners of his mouth keep twitching upwards around his food. It also doesn’t help his case that he has whipped cream and strawberry sauce all over his chin. He’s adorable like this, and he damn well knows it; Tommy doesn’t miss the roll of his shoulders as he preens. He’s an absolute menace.

Truthfully, Tommy’s relieved to see Evan having fun like this, after he came over to Tommy’s place yesterday after his shift looking like he’d tried to wrangle a tornadeo. (They watched the new Twisters movie last week and Tommy finds himself unironically saying ‘tornadeo’ as often as, if not more than, Evan. He may or may not have purchased them matching tornadeo wrangler t-shirts right after the movie finished.)

Evan’s eyes had been raw and red; he was still covered in dirt and ash walking through Tommy’s door. He didn’t have to say a word; Tommy could read the shift from hell in the tension in his body. He’d immediately wrapped Evan up in his arms and done his level best to help alleviate the aftermath of a long ass shift compounded by a bigoted asshole captain.

Still, even as Tommy likes to think he helped make last night a lot more pleasant for Evan, he wanted to treat him to a nice breakfast. Evan is always cooking for him; he’s memorized Tommy’s favorite foods and particular meals, and he has a sixth sense for knowing exactly when to turn up at Harbor with comfort food for Tommy. The least he can do is return the favor. And breakfast has always been a favorite meal of Tommy’s; an excuse to indulge in the most ridiculous sorts of foods with absurd amounts of sugar. From the way Evan has been shoveling the homemade waffles with whipped cream and strawberries into his mouth, Tommy’s considering this morning overall a success, even if he did happen to let a 'honey' slip out when asking if Evan was enjoying his waffles and thus, open the door for this morning's current shenanigans. (Not that he really minds, of course.)

“No.” Tommy answers, arching an eyebrow at his boyfriend over his coffee and his own food. He does have to bite down on his lip to contain his own smile though. And from the way Evan’s gaze moves straight to his mouth and his Precious Moments blue eyes spark with noticeable interest, he doesn’t miss it either. Teasing and/or flirting with Evan over food is quickly becoming one of Tommy’s favorite pastimes.

“My sugar bear? My sweet honey pie? My darling beau?” Evan places his face in his hands and it’s entirely unfair how that gesture brings out the sweetness of his smile and the addictive energy of his whole being, neon bright like the most creative bar lights in L.A. “Angel? My favorite tornadeo?”

“Do I want to know where you’re coming up with these nicknames?” Tommy asks after a deep sip of coffee, spicy, warm, and mixed with hot chocolate, just the way he likes it. Each term of endearment seems more ridiculous than the last although, admittedly, Tommy can’t contain his smile at ‘my favorite tornadeo.’

Evan grins around another bite of waffle before he washes his food down with the glass of orange juice next to his plate. “I may or may not have found a book of creative terms of endearment at the flea market with Hen and Karen the other week,” he admits. The curve of his smile is as open as the clearest blue sky; Tommy wants to navigate his way through life with that smile all around him.

“Lovebug? Main squeeze? Darling dear?” Evan asks, and goddamn it, Tommy is so in love with this buttercup of a man. His eyes widen; he smirks around his coffee as inspiration strikes. What can he say? Evan isn’t the only one who can get swept away in a moment.

“Whatever you say, buttercup.”

Tommy sets aside his empty mug as he says it, relishing the way Evan’s whole face turns tulip pink and the man himself seems to lose all capability of speech. He walks over and leans in as he cups Evan’s face, pressing his heart into Evan’s tongue as they kiss. Evan presses his own heart back; Tommy tastes it in the breathless moan Evan lets slip like wayward honey. Evan tastes sweet like strawberries and whipped cream; Tommy imagines he must taste like coffee. A perfect blend of bitter and sweet.

By the time they part for air, Evan’s eyes are wide and shining and his lips are kiss swollen; blooming. He smirks a little, and Tommy feels his soul swoop down into his stomach, like he’s about to fall over the drop of a rollercoaster.

“Okay beautiful.”

[avelera]

Something something… one reason fanfic writers so rarely predict the new season or installment of their fandom’s show/movie/book etc is because of how rare it is (these days?) to see a non-romance-centric plot in fanfic.

- New installments are going to have a plot. New installments of mainstream genre fiction stories in particular are going to have a plot that is not romance. (Usually, there is an emotional plot and an action plot, though more commonly the emotional/romantic plot is what we call the B Plot and receives less focus than the Action A Plot as a result.) Even if there is romance in it, even in those rare glorious instances where The Popular Ship becomes CANON, there’s gotta be something for the characters to do besides fall in love in the vast majority of genre works.

- Fanfic writers by their very nature are derivative. They work with what’s given (or judiciously ignore it) and OCs are generally less popular at best and frowned upon at worst. But any new installment of canon is, with rare exceptions, going to have new elements including new characters in the mix as part of the whole “the characters need something to do” thing. This makes any predictions difficult if not impossible. Also the principles upon which trained screenwriters develop new characters is very very different from how fanfic writers tend to think of and construct OCs.

- There are common script writing principles that are not shared in common with most of fanfic culture. Like the idea of having a comic relief character, or in general a wider cast of characters including things like a side kick in addition to the love interest, or a villain, or other things like action, set pieces, conflict, non-romance-related conflict, one-shot single episode plots based in a short term conflict that still advances the wider plot, etc. Don’t even get me started on the fandoms that seem to forget their show is a comedy and yet a fraction of the fic and a fraction of the predictions include comedic elements (cough OFMD cough Good Omens cough) that are core to how any new installments will be structured.

Obviously there’s some sweeping generalizations in here. There are absolutely gen fics that focus on plot over romance, and sweeping action-packed predictive fics that introduce a roster of new characters, and fics that set out to mirror episode structure like case fic, etc etc.

And this isn’t a criticism! The vast majority of the time, fanfic is NOT trying to be predictive, it’s trying to fill a missing and/or unfulfilled need that a mainstream genre work usually doesn’t provide, or sets out to deliberately provide variations and riff on the canon instead of attempting to recreate it!

But I do find it interesting how often fandoms coalesce their predictions around the fandom darlings and the romance predictions, which is entirely reasonable by the way because romance is a huge part of fic culture, but less reasonable is when fandoms seem to forget that the actual next installment of their thing is probably not going to focus on the romance or character stories to the exclusion of all else, particularly if it’s a genre fiction work with action or comedy elements.

There will be a new plot. And that plot will probably be more informed by script writing principles as seen in the mainstream, not on fandom or even romance genre tropes. There will be new filler and new characters. There will be more side plots and one off episodes that have nothing to do with romance. And in general I get the sense that fandoms and fanfic writers rarely come anywhere close to actually predicting what new installments of mainstream works will look like, even when they nominally try to, for this reason.

[elkkiel]

Random questions to get to know you better! What was the first thing about Sleep Token that made you decide to keep listening/interacting with the fandom (doesn't have to be how you found them originally)? What inspired drawing them as cute cats? If there was one thing you wanted people to know about you, what would it be? - whataboutyouisamascot 🌿

@whataboutyouisamascot hello darling Z!!!! it is good to see you here, happy timezone!!

What was the first thing about Sleep Token that made you decide to keep listening/interacting with the fandom?

I tend to get really fixated on a particular artist/genre, and won't be able to listen to or enjoy other music while I'm stuck in that fixation. At the time I first heard ST (recc'd by a coworker), I was in one of those music phases where I could only listen to Spiritbox. Like, I listened to The Summoning and I couldn't even finish it, because it wasn't the music my brain worms were demanding at the time. Vess' voice was also a bit of an acquired taste for me (I understand the peanut butter comments tbh), but it's definitely akin to getting used to drinking scotch—it (in general) may not taste very good when you first start out, but DAMN is it delicious once you've acclimated to it. He's got that smooth whiskey/silky red wine voice, and I wish more people gave themselves a chance to appreciate a unique voice like his (100% /pos)

Getting into it, it was the lore, general vibes, and the drumming; I have been a ii girly from day 1 lol, he really is that special ingredient that makes the whole recipe come together. Once I was released from my Spiritbox phase, of course. Some newer followers may not know, but I'm a veteran Dream stan (not active at all right now, but the grind never truly stops) all the way back from 2020, peak DSMP. So I've always been a sucker for a good story in alternative mediums like that. The fandom is just the right balance of gay autistic nerd energy that I thrive in, so it felt really natural to find a home here 🩷

What inspired drawing them as cute cats?

I've always drawn them as cats. Save for like a few Human People here and there. My first fanart was my fandom newcomer's impression of Vessel, with little extra context, as a cryptid cat man lol. From there, it was shitposting about him as my fave cat memes, cat BTTV emotes, etc. I am very much a cat enjoyer, and just kinda stumbled into it being my "brand" purely from the love of it.

Also I find the cute kitties to be a little personally healing. Between uni, finally getting mental illness treatment, being in an abusive relationship and still recovering from the aftermath, etc etc, I lost a LOT of fundamental art skills. Like human body/facial anatomy because I was just too burnt out, busy, or depressed to draw. Cats make me happy, and cats are a little easier than people. So I can draw what I love while I try to heal and find those skills again.

If there was one thing you want people to know about you, what would it be?

Hmmm, trying to figure out how to word this lol. I think, overall, that I mean well with everything that I say and do. I fuck up sometimes with tone and/or assuming people know I'm being over the top or sarcastic. But I actively check myself before I post and make sure everything I put out into the world is in good faith.

For example, I'm faaaaar less horny on main than I portray myself—in fact, I'm actually a pretty committed Christian, so I'm not comfortable being 100% /srs horny on main even if I wanted to lol. I just find it fun to play up the rabid fangirl and go over the top with thirst tagging. I'll be real, they're fucking HOT lmaoooo, sue me. But any "sexualization" I do is always a bit, since I don't know these people and there's a veeeery slippery slope between gushing over hot guys and straight up objectification. If that makes sense.

OR, I also like insult-based affection for friends (eg. if you are friends with me you are a stupid idiot baby nerd and I love you). But my neurodivergent ass, similar to thirst posting, sometimes has a hard time reading the tone of the convo and can accidentally go a little far with things. I never ever want to hurt anyone, much less actually insult people I like!! So I wish I could organically give a disclaimer that it's all 100% out of love and to let me know if I missed the mark ;w;

Sorry that was long, it's just the one part of interaction I get nervous about so I feel the need to over-explain

thank you for taking the time to ask!! I really appreciate it 🩷🩷🩷🩷

[cantfuckbracket]

Can't Fuck Bracket: Group Stage Release Schedule

Alright everyone, now that Group 1 has been posted, I'm going to be a normal poll runner and post the release date for the group stage

Each group has 3 characters, and I'm going to release them in 3 clusters so there aren't too many at once

Obviously, not all characters who fit into a particular group are in it, because I needed to organize them and it would be impossible to find 32 forms of criteria that would apply to 3 characters and 3 characters ONLY in a group of 96. So if you're thinking "X character would also fit in Y group!" - you're probably right. But I made executive decisions to be able to distribute them equally

Cluster A - Groups Separated by Fandom - 29/04 at midday UTC

Some fandoms had several characters submitted, so I tried to keep those together so that 1- the same big fandom can't own half the bracket; 2- small fandoms can have at least one round of fun before they're inevitably swept by Pikachu; and 3- we can have some healthy fandom debates

CLUSTER A GROUPS:

Group 2: Mob Psycho 100 (Part 2) - Toichiro Suzuki versus Dimple versus Reigen Arataka

Group 3: Chainsaw Man Male Characters - Aki Hayakawa versus Denji versus Kishibe

Group 4: Chainsaw Man Female Characters - Asa Mitaka versus Kobeni Higashiyama versus Power

Group 5: Endless Summer Characters - Jake McKenzie versus Everett Rourke versus Aleister Rourke

Group 6: Marvel Characters - Tony Stark versus Peter Parker versus Steve Rogers

Group 7: Shadowhunters (All Media Types) Characters - Jace Herondale versus Book!Alec Lightwood versus Clary Fairchild

Group 8: The Mysterious Benedict Society Characters - LD Curtain versus Jeffers versus Dr Garrison

Group 9: Death Note Characters - Light Yagami versus L Lawliet*

Group 10: Final Fantasy XIV Characters - Zero versus Estinien Wyrmblood versus Wedge

*only two characters from this media were submitted, so this group has 2 contestants

Cluster B - Groups Separated by Genre/Media Type - 01/05 at midday UTC

Group 11: Video Game Characters - Kaname Date (AI: The Somnium Files) versus Scout (Team Fortress 2) versus Stanley (The Stanley Parable)

Group 12: Adult Animation** - Strong Bad (Homestar Runner) versus Tord (Eddsworld) versus Gojo Saturo (Jujutsu Kaisen)

Group 13: Horror and Thriller - Adam Murray (The Mandela Catalogue) versus Jurgen Leitner (The Magnus Archives) versus Jack Chambers (Don't Worry Darling)

Group 14: Children's Animation - Osmosis Jones (Osmosis Jones) versus Grunkle Stan (Gravity Falls) versus Eberwolf (The Owl House)

Group 15: Books - Jason Grace (Heroes of Olympus) versus Peter Pevensie (Chronicles of Narnia) versus Hardin Scott (After)

Group 16: RPG - Hubert von Vestra (Fire Emblem: Three Houses) versus Anduin Wrynn (World of Warcraft) versus Gilear Faeth (Dimension 20: Fantasy High)

Group 17: Visual Novels - Miles Edgeworth (Ace Attorney) versus Sigma Klim (Zero Escape) versus Duke Richards (Desire and Decorum)

Group 18: Nintendo - Ghetsis (Pokémon) versus Bill Hawks (Professor Layton) versus Toad (Mario)

Group 19: Medialess - Mount Everest (Real Life) versus The Letter W (Latin Alphabet) versus Leg Emoji (Keyboard) versus Scoliosis (Submitter's Body)***

Group 20: Big Popular Anime - Black Leg Sanji (One Piece) versus Todoroki Enji (Boku No Hero Academia) versus Touka Kirishima (Tokyo Ghoul)

**NOT porn. That's pretty much the opposite of this contest. By this I mean "animation whose target audience is not children"

***to make up for Death Note having only 2 contestants, this group has 4. I picked this one to make up for it because it, by its nature, won't have any fandom involved, so it's not particularly unfair to its contestants that they have a slightly smaller chance of going forward

Cluster C - Groups Separated by Character Traits - 03/05 at midday UTC

Group 21: Submissions That Would Have Sent 2012 Tumblr Into A Nuclear War - The Onceler (The Lorax) versus Sherlock Holmes (BBC Sherlock) versus Jean Luc Picard (Star Trek The Next Generation) versus Wheatley (Portal 2) versus Dean Winchester (Supernatural) versus Sans (Undertale)****

Group 22: Characters The Submitters Didn't Think Needed Explaining - Olaf the Snowman (Frozen) versus Lord Farquaad (Shrek) versus Goofy (Disney)

Group 23: Immortal Characters - Booker (The Old Guard) versus Edward Cullen (Twilight) versus Dracula (Hotel Transylvania)

Group 24: Characters Tumblr Loves To Hate - Scott Pilgrim (Scott Pilgrim vs The World) versus Peter Griffin (Family Guy) versus Walter White (Breaking Bad)

Group 25: Childhood Classics - James (Pokemon) versus Ken (Barbie) versus Saruhara Shinichi (Super Sentai Franchise)

Group 26: Characters From Media Tumblr Could Be Normaler About - Palpatine (Star Wars) versus Greg Hirsch (Succession) versus Stede Bonnet (Our Flag Means Death)

Group 27: Vegan-Friendly - Indoor Peace Lily (Submitter's House) versus Seedless Watermelons (Grocery Store) versus Vegan Leather (Real Life)

Group 28: Characters That Inspired Paragraphs - Jiang Cheng (MDZS/The Untamed) versus Bertrand Beaumont (The Royal Romance) versus Joe Goldberg (You)

Group 29: Canon Incels/Shitty Lays - Severus Snape (Harry Potter) versus Tim Campbell (Crazy Ex Girlfriend) versus Ace (Powerpuff Girls)

Group 30: Failgirls - Lydia Rodarte-Quayle (Breaking Bad) versus Lumpy Space Princess (Adventure Time) versus Reagan Ridley (Inside Job)

Group 31: British Men - Prince Charming (Shrek) versus Wallace (Wallace and Gromit) versus Steven Merrick (The Old Guard)

Group 32: Others - Chuck McGill (Better Call Saul) versus Neelix (Star Trek Voyager) versus Dozen Roshuto (Reigen Manga)

****since this group has 6 contestants, 2 will move forward. This makes up for Group 1 technically not sending any character forward, and maintains the chances of a character getting through as the same as the other ones

[wordsifelt]

Can I ask your top 10 fav fics ever (from any fandom, if you don't mind)?

Also, just curious, is there a story behind your name "wordsifelt "?

Hello! To be honest I don't really read much fanfic cause it I get irrationally upset when it doesn't go exactly how I want it to. I had to dig for the ones I HAVE read (which is why I'm late to reply), but in the end I could only find five:

Natsu no Hina(Summer Hatchling) by OAZUKE (Type: Doujinshi, Ship: Miyusawa, Genre: Angst, eventual fluff ig?)

Sorry For All the Trouble by user @ganen-cheese (Type: short fan comic, Ship: Wangxian, Genre: comedy)

Laundry Room by anewkindofthrill (Type: ao3 fic, Ship: Miyusawa, Genre: angst, smut) {side note about this, I read it after a particular manga chapter dropped cause I was desperate for fics abt a scene, and I loved it, despite the fact that I don't really read smut, because of he way the characters were portrayed}

The Student Prince by FayJay (Type: Published? long form fic, Ship: Merthur, Genre: Modern AU, rebirth, High school) {read this after I watched Merlin and got denial after it ended. I don't remember it too well but I think I liked the relationship dynamic}

Peter Darling by Austin Chant (Type: Published adaptation of fairytale, Original Source Material: Peter Pan, Genre: angst, romance, personal growth and healing (also transmasc MC, tw: dysphoria and transphobia tho))

There's others but I either couldn't find them or I couldn't remember their names. I gotta start keeping track of my fics.

As for your second question, when I created this account I was in a low, hollow sort of space. Detached from everything and feeling kinda empty. The only thing that let me feel alive was stories, and I devoured them. My username was a sort of declaration, an epitaph in a way, that I wasn't unfeeling or empty, and that there is something that makes me too want to live.

Thank you for the ask! I'm sorry I couldn't answer properly 😅

[faejilly]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favourite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💕

With the obvious caveat that I would assuredly pick five different fics tomorrow, here you go nonny, in no particular order, and attempting to NOT list just half a dozen Malec things just because they are my Hotel California fandom apparently... But I do have to have at least one for them! #BecauseMalec

out of some dreaming tree: Malec Fairy Tale Quest! A Forest That Eats "People" (and other Things)! Weird eldritch and magical lore!

This AU requires absolutely NO CANON KNOWLEDGE and I keep hoping some of the people who occasionally just read my fic for shits & giggles will try it even though they're not Shadowhunters people. But also more Shadowhunters people should also read it, I had such a great time writing it. 🤣

Vindication: M!Shepard/Jack. Did I mention I have a thing for fairy tales? AND ALSO JACK FROM MASS EFFECT? (I'm love her, your honors)

So it's almost more a series of post-game scenes than my usual prose story style (because Jack POV and that's how she wanted to tell it) and Jack's trying to learn the context of kids' stories, and take care of Shepard who is being kind of a dumb ass but mostly just, yk, trying to recover, and Miranda is Brilliant (even Jack is willing to admit it) and I am very fond of it.

souver'inan isala hamin (weary eyes need resting): DAI, Varric & a Dalish Inquisitor, friends vs family vs love... or something like that.

Having Varric be in your party again, having Hawke's shadow from the previous game spilling over your Inquisitor, was fascinating to me. (Especially as Varric & my Adelaide were family but not ever really friends, and family is a fraught sort of thing for a Tethras and a Hawke/Amell.) Romancing Blackwall and trying to be friends with Dorian, being Dalish and Inquisitor, it was just... prickly all the way through. (In a good way, imo.) My Inquisitor was also noticeably older than my Wardens or Hawkes had been, much more self-aware and dangerous in a way that the narrative of DAI seldom let me illustrate or articulate, and while I'm not sure how much of that is clear in the fic, I can still feel what it was like for Erana to despise the world she's going to save because she loves too many of the people in it to do anything else, and I enjoy wallowing in that sometimes.

Solace: DA2, Adelaide Hawke/Sebastian Vael, my darlings, my beloveds

While not the first thing I wrote for them, it was the story of their first meeting, and it meant a lot a lot a lot to me when I finally did manage to let it happen outside of my head. Also Sebastian recognizing the Adelaide/Bethany/Carver/Daryn joke made my day when I wrote it and still makes me smile.

Fine Feathers: Yuletide fic! Book!fic, which I don't do terribly often! M/F Regency Romance

An epilogue for The Quiet Gentleman which is, if you are unaware, a novel by The Lady Who Made Regency a Viable Modern Genre almost 100 years ago, which means it has a Very Specific Style and I was very pleased I managed to capture it. (Also it's both one of my favorites of Georgette Heyer's books but also one of the most frustrating, because the lead couple has like ONE HALF OF A SCENE TOGETHER so I wrote them together more and honestly now I like the original book better, which is some hellishly ridiculous hubris but I don't care.)

[ambivalentmarvel]

40-50 (:

with your help seek my can't shut the fuck up disease remains incurable (affectionate and self-affirming)

40. What is your favorite world that you’ve created for a fic?

omg probably morgan's world from Runaway Baby (Getaway Darling) the eclectic huge family that's not all blood related just Gets Me, especially when it serves to support Shenanigans.

41. Who’s your favorite character you’ve written?

azula last name avatar: the last airbender you will always be famous

42. What’s your favorite title that you’ve come up with?

ooogh that's so hard!!! maybe all the titles from the Looking Glasses series? i love a theme.

43. Is there a trope or idea that you’d really like to write but haven’t yet?

not really!!!! if i get the brain worms i will write Something, even if it hasn't been published just yet ;)

44. What is your favorite genre to write?

hmm as far as like. fanfic genres. probably crack treated seriously lmao. if an idea barely makes any sense and is held together at the seams by nonsense and tomfoolery i am There my friend!!! nobody is giggling harder at my fics than me

45. What genre/trope do you tend to write the most?

angsty canon-adjacent aus lmao. i have two settings.

46. If you could only write one type of AU for the rest of your life, what would it be?

OH GEEZ. HARD TIE BETWEEN THE AFOREMENTIONED TWO SETTINGS.

47. Is there a trope that you’ve written before but are now sick of?

most homeless peter aus make some Choices with their plots that i generally don't entertain these days, despite having written one myself

48. Who is your favorite character to write for?  Has this changed since you’ve started writing for that fandom?

i've only written one fic from her pov but morgan harriet stark you will always be famous!!!!!!! my darling little creecher of a girl is everything to me (see again: Runaway Baby)

49. What fic of yours would you say is the best introduction to you as a writer?

uhhhhhhhhhhh maybe the choice is yours or Blips on the Record? both of them deal with some pretty heavy topics while also paying a lot of attention to character development and still having some light-hearted moments, which is what i aim for in most of my fics :))

50. How would you describe your writing style?

whatever i want it to be!!!!!! i don't really believe in rules so it's whatever works with that particular piece he he

[twistedrunes]

Just getting some thoughts out of my head about people's vague posting about other people 'stealing' their ideas for fic. Because I gotta say my anxiety is off the scale. Warning: unfiltered rambling below the cut.

I'm going to be vague here because this isn't a call-out post. I don't want to start any drama; people are entitled to feel how they feel. But, I need to get this out.

As anyone who follows me for my writing (if you are, I'm so, so sorry) knows, I haven't put anything out there for ages. But I have still been writing lots of different things. I just haven't shared any of it publicly. Some of what I've been writing has been for one of a particular actor's characters; I even have 2 fics where OC has the same job! But they are, to my mind, very different stories (this will be relevant in a bit).

Part of the reason I haven't shared is because I don't want to let people down by not finishing a fic again (I'm not saying that I'll never finish George, but I also acknowledge it's been a LONG time since I updated). But also because I've noticed the rise of people criticising other people for 'stealing ideas' and honestly, I'm scared of putting anything out there that may bring a bunch of angry fandom peeps raining down on me if I inadvertently 'steal' an idea of one of the fandom darlings. I have way too much other shit happening in my life for my escape to be turned into something I want to avoid.

Over the last few days, I've seen someone (Let's call them VP1) vague posting about other people 'stealing' fic ideas. This person (and many of their mutuals) writes for a particular actor rather than for particular shows/movies/etc. It has come to light today that this person is upset because they posted about a specific au/trope (pervasive generally, but I don't think I've seen a single character this actor has played not subjected to this trope) and a specific character. VP1's post was a couple of pics of the character and a comment that the image made them want to explore this trope. Apparently, someone (let's go with SO1), posted a fic with said character and trope not long after. VP1 is pissed and has gone from vague posting to reposting SO1's fic with a link to the post of 'their' idea.

Now look, I can understand being a bit hurt or miffed, if you think perhaps someone has done something you wanted to do. But, like, my anxiety is going off. Because how on gods green earth does one avoid 'stealing' ideas if it means not writing about anything anyone has ever considered ever?? Especially when that idea is a common trope. How does VP1 know that this fic hasn't been bumping abound in SO1's WIPs for ages. How do they know the person ever saw their post. Or maybe they did see the post and remember that dusty old fic in the WIPs folder. But even if not, does a single post give you the right to stop anyone else from writing about that at all? I mean shit we, could all get a kick up the ass for writing fanfic if that's the case. It's one of the most common criticisms of the genre. Additionally, there is absolutely nothing to say that VP1 can't still write their fic and put it out into the world. I'm sure no-one will complain (two cakes and all that!).

Now, I have read some fics in my time that seemed on the surface to be similar to stuff I had written. And yeah at first there is a bit of a sting. But, given that there are generally a limited number of options for introducing a character into a specific universe, similarities are to be expected. I don't generally write AU's myself, but I have read a million versions of coffee shop AU's often with the same characters by different authors! But most of the fics quickly divert off into a thing all its own. Hell, I've written fics that were based on the ideas, fuck even the worlds, of other members of fandom (looking squarely at you @whentommymetalfie - admittedly, I do acknowledge the person whose thought sent me off to write - if it's immediately apparent to me. If something bubbles up days or weeks later, I may not remember - sorry). And that's what I love about fandom; it's collective, really; we develop fanon, we goad each other on to hurt each other's feelings more and more, and we drag tropes and au's in a million directions to see where we get.

Now, part of the reason I mentioned my own writing earlier is that a particular character played by the actor in question inspired me into 'recycling' original fic ideas I wrote aeons ago (ok, like 2016). I have three fics for that character living rent-free in my brain right now. Two of them both have an OC with the same specific occupation. It relates to how they met Main Character. However, the stories are vastly different in regard to their focus, character development etc. etc. So am I 'stealing' my own ideas?? Am I being lazy by not coming up with completely new everything every time?

I don't know what the point of all this is. Maybe I'm just feeling old and tired. But I just need to get this out.

All I know is there are a limited number of stories to tell but infinite ways to tell them. What matters and what makes them different is how 'we' tell them. Each writer brings their own stuff to it. I mean, 'Person Encounters Alien' has produced everything from "Alien" to "Paul"; they are all different, interesting, unique and influenced by the people who wrote them.

I don't want fic to feel like work or a competition. I want to write stories and share them without fearing fandom wrath. I want to read a dozen versions of the same characters in the same AU and find joy in how each person made it different.

[snow-prince-ftm]

Commissions Open for Writing & RP

Hello, sluts and darlings! I’m currently taking commissions for erotic pieces and real-time erotic roleplay over Discord!

Commissions are only open to readers age 18 and older.

Interested? Read on! (18+ only below the cut)

Hey there - I'm James St. Sebastian of Shapeshifter Stories. I'm a long-time writer of fiction in general and erotica in particular, and a roleplayer with decades of experience. I'm excited to craft your fantasies with you! Snag a session at my special introductory rate of $0.04/word or $22/hour! (Starting July 5th, prices will increase to $0.05/word or $25/hour.)

Who I am:

A queer and transgender writer with a filthy imagination and a passion for getting you off. I'm as switchy and versatile as they cum, and I have a real knack for getting under your skin and figuring out what's going to light you up. I also have a couple of degrees in English literature, so if you're turned on by a huge, throbbing vocabulary, I'm sure what I'm packing will satisfy you. ;)

What I'll write:

Format: I'm available for roleplays over Discord at an hourly rate ($22/hour), or for commissioned pieces at a word-count rate ($0.04/word). There is no minimum or maximum post length to roleplay with me; some of my favorite roleplays have taken place in fast, frequent bursts of very short posts, and others have happened in much longer posts.

Perspective: I usually write in third person (e.g., "Elijah struggled against his cuffs"), but I'm also happy to write in second person ("you struggle against your cuffs"), or in first person ("I struggle against my cuffs"). I can write in any tense you prefer. If you’re not sure what you’d like most, please feel free to ask for examples!

Identities: I've written characters across a broad range of genders and orientations, and I'm happy to explore whatever identities tickle your fancy. I'd consider queer and trans characters a specialty, and I'm also happy to play with gender with cis characters (e.g., if you wanted to explore a sissy kink for a character you'd consider a cis man).

Genres: I'm happy to work with a real-world/modern setting, but I'm also super fond of historical fiction, high fantasy, and sci-fi elements in my erotica. I’m fandom-friendly, and even if I’m not intimately familiar with your fandom, I may be able to take a crash course and write for it. (That’s a weird flex, but it’s something I’m often able to do!)

Types: I can write a broad variety of character types, but I'm especially good at two:

A brutal, bitch-breaking dom with the strength of a linebacker, the patience of a power-tripping cop, and the eagle-eye for vulnerabilities of a middle-school bully, and,

A resilient, sharp-edged sub, cold and clever and sparkling, and shattering like glass when they break.

Those are my favorites, but there's a world of options. Some other favorites include innocent ingenue subs that break open at once, oblivious doms that do half their damage through neglect, clever and accommodating subs who try to survive through harm reduction, and slow, subtle doms who feign affection and gentleness while perpetrating violence.

Kinks: I have a lifelong love of stories centered around non-consent, rape, and ravishment.* Within the fantasy of the commission or roleplay, that could be a fully non-consensual encounter, a consensual non-consent (cnc) kink scene between willing partners, or a scene that happens without consent but leaves the sub feeling blissed-out and conflicted. I'm extremely into a wide range of BDSM kinks, and I especially love stories that involve kidnapping, captivity, master/slave dynamics, imprisonment, and the like. I love huge, impossible insertions, overstimulation, monster-fucking, breeding, and other kinks that are about pushing the submissive's limits, physical or emotional, and I'm game if the violence gets extreme. (You want the sub's pelvis broken under a giant werewolf dom? I'm down for that.) I'm also willing to explore some scary identity-based scenarios under some circumstances - for instance, if you're a queer or trans person looking for fantasies of corrective rape or abuse, I'm open to talking through that together. And I can write a single kink in a multitude of ways – whether you want a breeding kink story where the sub becomes the dom’s little incubator forever, or breeding kink story where there’s no real risk of pregnancy at all, I can accommodate you.

And there's a wide variety of kinks that are less central to my experience, but that I would be enthusiastically willing to explore. In general, I'm extremely game to try new things, even if they're highly taboo; if you have something in particular on your wishlist, let's talk about it! I promise to be non-judgmental about what turns you on and honest about what I think I can write well.

*Note: A word about fantasies of rape and abuse - they're extremely common and normal, both among the general population and among survivors in particular. It's very common for people to eroticize things they're afraid of, or things they're processing. This can be true even if you fantasize about being the perpetrator – brains are complicated! If you're feeling ashamed about this kink, please know that there's no need to be.

Not Quite A Kink: This is a funny one, but I fucking love aftercare in my fiction. Whether it’s the creepy, unsettling comfort of an abusive dom stroking their shivering sub’s hair, or the genuine relief of an adventuring knight defeating the dragon who’s been using their monarch as a captive fuckdoll and whisking them away to safety, I’m totally here for writing the decrescendo parts, too. I don’t have to include that if you don’t want it, but if that tickles your fancy, know that I can provide it in spades.

Hard Limits: I will not write with you about underage characters. (I know that people sometimes want to write erotica featuring underage characters for some of the same healing/processing reasons I outlined above that can foster an interest in darker stories in general. I’m not condemning that; people heal and grow in a variety of ways, and the choices about how they do so can be deeply complex and personal. I’m just placing a limit on what ideas I’m willing to explore with other people; sexual stories featuring underage characters are not among them.)

Likewise, I will not write with or for any client under the age of 18, and I will block you if you ask me to. Even if the age of majority in your area is lower than that, I need to make my rules based on the age of majority where I live. Also, if you're under 18, you shouldn't be on this blog anyway! Please unfollow me.

I'm not aware of any other hard limits I have, but people learn new things about themselves all the time; if I come across a hard limit for myself that will impact our work together, I will talk with you about whether you'd like to pivot what I'm working on for you or receive a refund.

How it works:

Consultations: Not sure if you’d like to write together? Set up a free 15-minute new customer consultation! We can chat over Discord about what you’re looking for and whether we’ll be good fits for each other.

Brainstorming: I charge a reduced rate for the time we spend talking about what you’d like, whether we’re planning our roleplay or sketching out the parameters of your commission. The first 30 minutes of talking about details is free; after that, brainstorming together is priced at $20/hour. (I don’t want to charge you a lot for the planning part; if you aren’t sure what you want, I’ll do my best to give you helpful prompts so we can get through the planning quickly and smoothly.)

Roleplay: I do paid roleplays in real-time for $22/hour. This means that you book time at my hourly rate and we write together over Discord during that time. Of course, you may not always know exactly how long a roleplay will take – that makes sense! We’ll make our best estimate together. If things get exciting and you’d like to go longer, I’ll be happy to accommodate you unless the extension conflicts with another booking. If our time estimate is incorrect, we’ll settle the balance at the end of the session. If we’re writing for more than an hour over our estimated time, I’ll pause to check in and ask you to pay an additional installment to book the extra time.

Commissions: I write commissioned pieces for $0.04/word, starting at 250 words. We’ll agree on an estimated timeline for the piece, beginning at three calendar days. Pending availability, I also offer rush 24-hour turnaround for an additional $35.

Payment: I accept payment via CashApp, Ko-Fi, PayPal, and Venmo. I request payment for half the booking up-front, and you pay the other half at the end. You can find my payment methods at my carrd, here.

Other things to know about me:

I've done a lot of research about the ways in which people can use storytelling, especially in the form of sexual fantasies, to process and move through trauma. I'm not a therapist, but I am a survivor of some kinds of abuse and violation myself; I've always worked through my experiences this way, and I'm really interested in the ways that fantasies and playing pretend can put agency and control back in survivors' hands. This interest shows up for me in the area of sexual violence, as well as in the areas of identity-based violence like homophobia and transphobia. If you like to play with fire, please know that you can trust me to play responsibly with you. I'm highly focused on consent, check-ins, and aftercare, especially when I'm domming. I will take good care of you. That's important to me.

How to reach me:

You can reach me via DM here on tumblr, via DM or chat on reddit at u/shapeshifterstories, via Discord at #shapeshifterstories, or via email at sierralimauniformtango [at] protonmail [dot] com. (Of these, Discord is often the most immediate way to reach me.)

Please feel free to message any time, whether I appear online or off; sometimes I may appear busy or offline when I’m already booked up, but I’ll be happy to reply to your message as soon as I’m available.

I retain the copyright to the material I write, and my ability to use it for marketing purposes or in my portfolio. The copyright can be shared with you or exchanged to you for a larger fee, to be negotiated with me privately. I keep the copyright to all my work by default.

[chaosincurate]

My month in music - April 2023

Little Simz - NO THANK YOU (relisten)

Whitmer Thomas - The Older I Get the Funnier I Was

Young Guv - GUV III

Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want to Turn Into You (new)

Caroline Rose - The Art of Forgetting (new)

Blondshell - Blondshell (new)

Wednesday - Rat Saw God

beabadoobee - Beatopia (relisten)

Waterparks - Intellectual Property

mau from nowhere - The Universe is Holding You

Feist - Multitudes

Daughter - Stereo Mind Game

Ramones - Ramones

Alvvays - Blue Rev (relisten)

Bob Marley & The Wailers - Uprising

beabadoobee - Fake It Flowers (relisten)

Warm Human - Hometown Hero

Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare (relisten)

Waterparks - Fandom (relisten)

Little Simz - Sometimes I Might Be Introvert

Prince - Sign 'O' The Times

Björk - Post

Write-ups below

Little Simz - NO THANK YOU

A largely laid-back hip-hop album that still displays an ability to uplift when necessary, with great use of brass instruments in particular to introduce energy or glory to a song.

Recommended song: Gorilla

Apple Music link

Whitmer Thomas - The Older I Get the Funnier I Was

An indie slacker album that doesn't take itself all that seriously, with humorous songwriting throughout.

Recommended song: Rigamarole

Apple Music link

Young Guv - GUV III

Light, jangly, and airy, indie-leaning power pop. It's well produced and well executed, and worth a listen if that sounds like your sort of thing.

Recommended song: It's Only Dancin'

Apple Music link

Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want to Turn Into You

A diverse electronic pop outing from indie darling Caroline Polachek which casts a broad enough net to please pretty much anyone who likes the genre, which I think is the biggest reason for the hype and "must-hear" status amongst reviewers. Don't mistake my comments of broad appeal for accusations of blandness though, because there is a very satisfying identity to the album which, while not groundbreaking, isn't something that can be easily found elsewhere.

As the album art suggests, the album transports you to a paradise, so if you fancy an affordable holiday, and you like indie music, this album could be just what you need.

Recommended song: Bunny Is a Rider

Apple Music link

Caroline Rose - The Art of Forgetting

A great, expansive indie pop album which excels in personable lyrics, left-field pop production, and earning its melodramatic moments. Most of my favourite elements are present on Miami, particularly that explosion of sound towards the ending. Give it a listen!

Recommended song: Miami

Apple Music link

Blondshell - Blondshell

I don't know if I just have a warped perception of the alternative rock scene lately, but it seemed to me that Blondshell came out of nowhere with a polished sound, high-profile playlist spots (at least on Apple Music), and sudden credibility, but even if that makes me suspicious of where she came from, I'm glad she's here, because the album is good. The album has energy, unique themes, and a healthy dose of passion, making it exactly what you've come to expect from alternative rock, and it's executed well enough to not get boring.

Recommended song: Salad

Apple Music link

Wednesday - Rat Saw God

Another alternative rock album, but this one is a little more unique, blending the more expected sound of the genre with country and shoegaze, creating a noisy, harsh wave of sound, which lead singer Karly Hartzman passionately wavers over with vocals that can pump you up as well as they can tear your heart out of your chest.

I'll leave it at that because I don't think I could make a better case for this album than it's 8 minute epic Bull Believer can. I highly recommend giving it a listen if you're a rock fan.

Apple Music link

beabadoobee - Beatopia

beabadoobee always excels in charm, and this album is no different. Every song on this album, whether the ones I like or dislike, has this innate childish wonder about it. A nostalgic, innocent warmth and fun that you can only really instill in the art you care about. In this instance particularly, the album revolves around that childishness, as confirmed by the album title and artwork which was conjured by a way younger Bea.

The nostalgia comes from the sound palette, but crucially, not the the sound itself. The sound palette is very reminiscent of the music her childhood-starved generation (which I also happen to share) grew up on: 00's alternative. She wields this sound palette in very peculiar ways, most clear with the first proper song on the album, 10:36 and later on Talk when distorted guitars are used, not in an aggressive way, but instead with a sort of sparkle. I think that sort of contradiction is how beabadoobee makes music that is so representative of this generation. It captures the anger, but centers the yearning for childhood as we retreat to youthful expressions and experiences, especially the idea of doing things simply because they are fun and offer reprieve. It's a false innocence. A distorted representation of a sparkle that our eyes have lost.

To be clear, I'm not saying that this was all intentional and that they necessarily knew the effect this small touch would have on me and potentially others, and even if they did, I'm not saying this is exactly why they thought so, but all the same, this is what it means to me. The reader decides why the curtains are blue, not the writer.

Apple Music link

Waterparks - Intellectual Property

Although it might be considered a hot take in some of the circles I usually find myself in, I like Waterparks. From their harder pop-punk style at the start of their career, through the poppier first few albums, to what I will call the hyperpop-punk style of their past couple albums... I think they're a great band that has evolved very satisfyingly up until this point, providing some rare pop experimentation.

This one though? I found this a big step back. The opener, ST*RFUCKER, promises a pretty high-quality retread of the last album's sound, which I would be on board for, but REAL SUPER DARK is a more accurate representation in my view. The album more broadly does retain Awsten Knight's ability to add interesting twists to common themes (such as turning a love song into a self aware obsession song), but the execution is almost always distractingly flawed. It also doesn't help that the mixing on this album is dreadful, particularly with the vocals being buried beneath generally unaffecting instrumentals. That latter point was so bad that I didn't even realize one of the songs had backup vocals until I relistened when the lyrics were added on Apple Music.

This was just a very disappointing listen, and I genuinely don't know who to recommend this to other than the people who would have heard it already. Greatest Hits is just way better if you haven't heard any of their hyperpop-punk style, Fandom is a better overall summary of the band's sound, Double Dare is the best example of their pop-punk stuff, hell, even Entertainment has some great stuff on there as the band start to experiment and find a more individual sound, and honestly I think INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY is the worst of them all.

Recommended song: ST*RFUCKER

Apple Music link

mau from nowhere - The Universe is Holding You

If I were to attempt to find a common thread throughout this album, I'd probably have to settle on something broad, like lo-fi, because it is one of those incredibly sprawling, artistically indulgent projects that I love to listen to, but hate to try to make a write-up for. Without doing a track-by-track, the most useful thing I can do is tell you that mau traverses many different styles with great ease, and recommend a handful of songs.

If a laid-back and poppy hip-hop jam sounds good to you, Haba Na Haba is a great choice. If you're after something with a little bit more energy, closer and title track The Universe is Holding You is a great choice in that style too. My favourite though is the straightforward lo-fi pop bop Refuse Refuge. The whole album is high quality though, and there's only a few I don't really like, so its well worth a listen in my opinion.

Haba Na Haba || Apple Music link

The Universe Is Holding You || Apple Music link

Refuse Refuge || Apple Music link

Feist - Multitudes

A singer/songwriter album with a warm, earthy tone and poetic lyricism. The album makes good use of sparse instrumentation that somehow still manages to fill the soundscape well and places the lyrics front and center.

Recommended song: The Redwing

Apple Music link

Daughter - Stereo Mind Game

I often feel like obscure indie music can fall into this trap where it sounds all light and airy, perhaps in the pursuit of that 'immaculate vibes' type of sound, but without realizing that it still needs a pulse to get there. It can easily be overlooked, because it's usually quite subtle compared to the flood of reverb and synths, but it is absolutely crucial, at least for me, to make the songs memorable and enjoyable.

Daughter fully understand this though. This album never left me bored because it is always moving forward. It is usually slow enough to still be laid back, but it's always moving forward and never feels aimless. It's a good album if verby and vibey indie sounds like it'd appeal to you.

Recommended song: Be On Your Way

Apple Music link

Ramones - Ramones

Okay, look, I know this is a classic. I know that I risk losing my punk fan license if I say anything bad about the granddaddy of the genre itself, but this just didn't do anything good for me. Maybe one day I'll look back and think I was a fool for this, but this album - this 29-minute album - bored the shit out of me. Every song sounded like the last except for some tiny tweaks, and it was a sound that was best executed on the title track Blitzkrieg Bop.

But that isn't a deal-breaker. Hell, some of my favourite albums are somewhat sonically homogeneous, but this didn't have anything else to make up for it. No interesting lyricism or themes, no experimentation with instrumental palette, nothing.

And yeah, sometimes if you aren't used to a genre or sound, it can all feel a bit samey to you, just through inexperience, but I grew up on pop-punk (an offshoot of this album's purer punk), and have listened to a bunch of comparable stuff since, and it doesn't help me hear much difference between tracks.

It was an okay listen for me, don't get me wrong, but it is just too flawed for me to respect it as a classic, and the group of people I can imagine recommending this to is tiny.

Recommended song: Blitzkrieg Bop

Apple Music link

Alvvays - Blue Rev

I've already gushed about this album enough on my post on Alvvays, but suffice it to say that this sprawling indie album is exceptional and must-hear for any indie fan. I love it dearly.

Apple Music link

Bob Marley & The Wailers - Uprising

I'd never listened to a Bob Marley album before this, but my brother recommended this album to me last month (as in April), and I was suitably interested, so I gave it a go. Naturally, it was my first reggae album and remains my only reggae album to this point, so I don't really have the adequate tools to speak at all critically on the album, but I did enjoy it. The messages are conveyed well, and the music feels as communal as the lyrics.

Apple Music link

beabadoobee - Fake It Flowers

This should be a quick one. Pretty much everything about Beatopia also applies to this, except the sonic diversity. Her first album is pretty focused in comparison, but retains all the charm, fun, and energy of her most recent effort.

Apple Music link

Warm Human - Hometown Hero

Warm Human describes their sound as 'sludge pop', and I think that works excellently to describe the sound of this album. It takes distorted guitars, drenches them in reverb and somehow delivers it in a way that sounds appealing in that particular pop way.

Recommended song: Daylight Savings

Apple Music link

Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare

I listened to this one to commemorate the anniversary of it's release. That should tell you I love this album, and this most recent listen changed nothing on that front. From the blistering pace of opener Brianstorm, to the cheeky, bouncy fun of Fluorescent Adolescent, and, of course, the album's patient swan song 505, along with plenty more, this album makes a great case for being the best Arctic Monkeys album for me, and by extension, one of the best modern rock albums.

Apple Music link

Waterparks - Fandom

Now I get a chance to be positive about Waterparks! On Fandom, I believe they strike the perfect balance between pop cheese, pop-punk melodrama, and otherwise meaningful artistic expression. Sure, sometimes the scales wobble a little, but it never feels like its falling far enough into one facet to noticeably undermine the others or feel bland.

I think this album probably also makes itself a great contender as the quintessential Waterparks album, with it being placed at their stylistic crossroads, and being so passionate and personal, so clearly cared for, that I struggle to see how any other could be placed ahead of it as a representation of the band. To paraphrase Awsten in future lyrics, they got everything they wanted on album 3 and it shows, with the band clearly demonstrating a radical self-acceptance, allowing the music to be cheesy at times, a tad melodramatic, impatient, as well as the more accepted traits like energetic, inventive, catchy, and fun.

I know Waterparks have their haters, but if you're willing to approach them with an open mind, this album is a great place to start if you ask me.

There. Now everyone is unhappy.

Apple Music link

Little Simz - Sometimes I Might Be Introvert

I should have gotten to this way sooner. I had heard Little Simz' name a lot since this album dropped, and always meant to get to it, so when I saw she dropped another album at the end of 2022 I thought it was the perfect opportunity to get into her music, but after starting with NO THANK YOU, which underwhelmed me, this album dropped down my list of priorities. That was a mistake.

This album is everything I thought NO THANK YOU lacked. It's full, energetic, fun, and had themes I was way more able to grab onto, as well as a far more satisfying execution of those themes when listened to as an album. Not only are interludes used to great effect to reiterate the broader themes, the albums thematic flow is so smooth, with it being pretty common for the last few lines of any given song to tie itself into the next song on the album.

I should have gotten to this way sooner.

Apple Music link

Prince - Sign 'O' The Times

This isn't the first time I've tried to get into Prince. My brother is nuts about the guy's music, and has tried to get me into it as well, to little avail. He got me to listen to two albums, Purple Rain and Dirty Mind. I appreciated both, but always felt like, considering his legacy, I was missing something. I loved the hits, and always felt like that they lined up with what people said about him, and I respect a lot about the guy, but I couldn't get into an album of his the way I thought I ought to, which was very frustrating.

That was all a while ago though, and seeing this album as I was looking through AOTY, I thought I'd give it one more go after listening to the title track. After all, my brother loves it, and the title track seemed up my alley, so maybe this could be the album to finally give me some understanding.

Early on I got concerned it'd be another album where I could take a few songs from it but ultimately be unfulfilled. I even considered calling it a day after 5 or 6 tracks, which I hate doing, but the incongruity between what I hear from other people that I respect about Prince, and what I hear from Prince is too frustrating for me to have an enjoyable experience. I'm glad I held out though, because I loved the second half of this album, and I finally had something sustained for me to latch onto. I don't think I'll be bothering to explore more of Prince's music, but I'm so relieved that there is a run of songs within an album that I can point to and say "this is Prince earning his reputation", especially considering my brother's passion for the music.

Apple Music link

Björk - Post

I've only been writing about music on a public platform for a few months, but one thing I've experienced a lot is the thought that, despite my passion and the potential for a good post about something I love and want to share, it isn't worth making because it's popular. Everyone has already heard about it, so it's just preaching to the choir. Hell, I even felt it to some degree talking about Arctic Monkeys earlier. But the fact that I hadn't listened to Björk yet and only really considered it when Mic the Snare did a Deep Discog Dive on her is one hell of a counterpoint to that. We all have blind spots, and it never hurts to help people find music they might love, even if it's kinda on their radar.

But enough about me, this album was an incredible listen. Experimental, full, and uncompromisingly weird in a way that just makes the emotion more palpable. It's largely cohesive, it's entirely unique, and always passionate. I could compliment this album forever, but I could never fully describe it, but I'll give it my best succinct shot: I once heard someone describe Lorde as essentially gay Radiohead, but from what I've heard from all three artists Björk fills that role way better.

Apple Music link

[en-oughlove]

A B O U T E N - O U G H L O V E

back to main nav. the admin.

WELCOME TO EN-OUGHLOVE!

this post serves as a 'guidebook' of sorts that will help the blog's readers understand how the #en- tags are defined.

in every fic recommendation, you may see this particular format:

< OP's raw content data; reblog >

🔖 FIC TITLE

#en-dearment: my darling #en-tourage: SEVENTEEN #en-dorphin: YOO JEONGHAN #en-ergies: fluff, alt-u #en-courage: renhaissance #en-vision: my dream

D A V I N C O M M E N T S — [a paragraph or so of a fic review]

read on to find out what the #en- tags mean!

H O W T O N A V I G A T E

# en-dearments. this tag refers to fic length/type.

M Y A N G E L mostly fic teasers and fic series masterlist. this tag will contain fics that aren't released yet at the time of reblog. more of like a ‘coming soon’ /general linking tag.

M Y S W E E T H E A R T fics tagged are either SMAUs or group headcanons of any length.

M Y D A R L I N G one-shot fics or a series' single chapter that has a word count equal to or more than 8.0k words.

M Y L O V E one-shot fics or a series' single chapter that has a word count of more than 4.0k words but less than 7.9k words.

M Y D E A R one-shot fics or a series' single chapter that has a word count of more than 1.5k words but less than 3.9k words.

M Y B A B Y one-shot fics or drabbles that has a word count of anything that is equal to or less than 1.5k words.

NOTES: ficrecs under the subtag 'my baby' are DRABBLES and usually don't have the "davin comments —" added to it; but my thoughts on it are visible in the tags!

# en-tourage. this tag refers to which group.

the groups that i read/actively look and write for are enhypen, seventeen, bts, tomorrow by together, stray kids, le sserafim, and dreamcatcher. HOWEVER, anyone can USE THE TRACKING TAG #ENOUGHLOVENET regardless of fandom—i will still put it in the queue!

# en-dorphin. this tag refers to which member.

MEANING which member(s) or member unit is emphasised. if it isn't an individual/centric fic, it is only listed under en-tourage because it is an ensemble.

# en-ergies. this tag refers to what genre.

FOR NOW there are FIVE defined genres. FLUFF, ANGST, DRAMA, HUMOUR and ALT-U. ficrecs can contain MORE THAN ONE GENRE.

here's a quick guide: FLUFF and HUMOUR are both generally lighter themed-fics, but HUMOUR is more centred on comedy and crackfics while FLUFF is more centred on romance.

ANGST and DRAMA are both generally heavier themed-fics, but DRAMA is more centred on being plot-heavy, while ANGST has minimal plot but is more emotionally driven.

ALT-U contains themes that lean towards scifi/supernatural/fantasy, etc.

# en-courage. this tag refers to which author.

writers deserve all the love and recognition. comments and appreciation for what writers do makes their hearts happy—here's to more encouragement for writing and creating.

G I F T S & S E R V I C E S

# en-vision. this tag refers to fics i wrote.

M Y D R E A M fics i'm boosting from my main when they've fully finished!

M Y F U T U R E fics i wrote as gifts for my friends/fics i write upon request!

# en-trust. this tag refers to fics by other fic writers that i've reviewed/beta'd.

Y O U R H E A R T fics i'm involved in the beta-reading process of before it gets published! usually authors tag me in them! &lt;3

Y O U R S O U L fics i've been requested to read for review. this is different from beta-reading, because the work will already be published prior to review AND most of the time, is a fic i didn't look for myself—and will be reblogged by queue (using the tracking tag #ENOUGHLOVENET).

any more questions? ask box is open! otherwise, happy reading!

BLOG EST 2022 — EN-OUGHLOVE.

[earlgraytay]

The Author's Darling

So I follow a lot of people who post a lot about OC/self-insert positivity. And that's genuinely great. I love people's OCs and self-inserts. But occasionally, I will see someone, in an attempt to Defend The Honour of OCs and self-inserts, defend a particular kind of writing mistake. And that pisses me off, because it does everyone a disservice.

There are plenty of people who write OCs and self-inserts who do not make this writing mistake, and equating the two is unfair to every OC writer who works hard at their craft. There are also plenty of people who write canon-character-only fanfic or original fic who do make this mistake-- and that hurts both them and their potential readers.

The mistake I'm talking about? Writing a sort of character I'm going to call an Author's Darling.

I'm going to talk about what Author's Darlings are, why they're bad, how you can avoid writing one, and what an Author's Darling isn't. I put a cut in this post, because it's long.

What is an Author's Darling?

An Author's Darling is a character who cannot fail at anything that matters to the author of their story.

What this looks like in practice depends on the author-- different authors prioritize different things. Some authors think their Darling should be stone-cold badasses and never lose a fight. other authors are fine with their Darlings getting knocked out every time they try to throw a punch, but would be very upset if their Darling got rejected romantically.

Plenty of characters succeed at most things they try. Superman wins most of the fights he takes on, but he's not necessarily a Darling. But if you look at a character and you can say, "oh, this character would never lose a fight", or "everyone loves this character and would never get mad at them"? You've got an Author's Darling on your hands.

And- especially in fandom- a character can be a Darling in the hands of one author and a perfectly fine character in the hands of another. Steve Rogers/Captain America is an example of a character who gets Darling-ified a lot. Captain America is supposed to be a shining example of The Best that humanity has to offer- he's virtuous, strong, brave, and oh so pretty. It's easy to fall into the trap of making him incapable of failing at whatever you want him to do, whether that's "punching a lot of Nazis" or "supporting Bucky in his recovery". But a lot of writers manage to thread the needle and write Cap as the lovable, flawed person he's supposed to be.

Why are Author's Darlings bad?

Well, two reasons:

Writing an Author's Darling is a really good way to give yourself writer's block, especially when it comes to the plot. If your character can't fail at anything important, this means that it's really hard to build tension. If your character is going to automatically succeed at anything that's important to the plot, all you're writing is "and then they win, and then they win, and then they win". It can get pretty monotonous pretty quickly, especially if you're writing genre fiction. You can run out of ideas, or your inner critic can go "this isn't how stories work???? the FUCK???" and block your creative flow. If your character can't fail at anything- important or not- it's hard to come up with a good story for them at all. You know how sometimes you get a character rattling around your head but you can't get a plot for them at all? One of the first steps in fixing that is making sure you're not writing an Author's Darling.

Writing an Author's Darling makes people not want to read your work. Now, look. I know everyone says "you should write for yourself, and screw anyone who says otherwise!" But let's be honest here: it sucks to spend hours working on a piece of writing, post it, and then get, like, 2 hits and no kudos, or 1 tumblr like from your friend who likes everything that crosses their dash. It's incredibly demoralizing. Author's Darlings are one of the big factors that make people stop reading a story. As soon as a reader gets the sense that the protagonist can't screw up- that they're "too perfect"- the tension in the story is gone. There's no reason for them to keep reading, because they know the character's just going to Press The Win Button And Win. So they'll click out without saying anything, and you'll wonder why no one's reading your fic.

What isn't an Author's Darling?

This section is haunted by the ghost of Mary Sue. If you're reading this list and you're new to fandom/young, you might wonder why I'm calling out certain specific things; this is a fandom war you missed, don't worry about it.

An Author's Darling is not a character of any specific gender. Male, female, and nonbinary characters can all be Author's Darlings.

An Author's Darling is not necessarily an OC. In the current fandom climate, it's way more likely that a Darling will be a 35-year-old canon male character the writer calls "babygirl".

An Author's Darling is not necessarily a self-insert, but it's really easy to make a self-insert into a Darling. There's a reason people recommend that newbie writers avoid self-inserts- it can be really hard to write a character based on yourself that screws up something important. It takes a lot of vulnerability and courage to write, and it's not something you want to show everyone.

An Author's Darling is not an "overpowered" character or a "cool" character. Your character can have sixteen katanas and do air dashes and still not be a Darling- and your character can be a powerless human in a superhero setting and be the biggest Darling to ever Darling. Having "too many" powers or standing out "too much" in the setting is often a symptom of a Darling- if you don't want your character to fail at anything important, and being The Coolest Person In The Room is important to you, you're going to make your Darling overpowered and good at everything. But it's not the thing that makes an Author's Darling bad.

An Author's Darling is not a 'perfect' character, or a character without flaws. There's a lot of overlap in the Venn diagram, don't get me wrong... but you can load up a character with "flaws" that don't matter to you. A lot of dudebro male writers, for example, will make their Darlings emotionally constipated, mean, and Bad At Relationships. These genuinely are character flaws... but these writers don't give a flying fuck about the character's relationships. They're happy to let their Darling fail at this stuff to prove he's FLAWED!!!- but try and make them write a fight scene their Darling loses, and they'll break out in hives.

Why should I care? Writing is supposed to be fun, and writing characters failing is not fun for me.

Writing is a craft. It is no different from knitting a sweater, making a stop-motion film, or trimming a bonsai. There are ways to do it well, and there are ways to do it poorly.

It can be fun and rewarding to knit a shitty sock with holes in the heel where you forgot how the pattern works and weird lumps in the calf. It is more fun and rewarding to get good enough at knitting that you knit socks you can wear.

Similarly, it can be fun and rewarding to deliberately write stories about overpowered Author's Darlings that are boring to read for anyone who isn't you. But it is more fun and rewarding to get good enough at writing that you write stories other people will want to read.

And you know, maybe you don't care about that. Everyone needs a hobby that they're bad at and have no interest in getting better at; it keeps you humble. Maybe writing is yours.

But plenty of writers do care. And tarring every writer who writes OCs and self-inserts with the same brush- the brush of "this is supposed to be fun! we're writing deliberately bad things! yay!"- is an insult to anyone who writes OCs and cares about their craft.

If you want to write well, you should be aware of what an Author's Darling is, and if possible, you should try to avoid writing them. If you don't care about writing well, that's fine- but please avoid implying that every OC or self-insert character is badly written in this particular way.

[avelera]

Why "Our Flag Means Death" Should Teach Media Creators to Stop Queerbaiting the Fans that Made them Rich

If Our Flag Means Death continues to match and even exceed "Ted Lasso" levels of sleeper-hit/word of mouth popularity, it'll confirm a theory I've had for a long time that Hollywood has vastly underestimated how many of their A-List hit movies and stars rose to mainstream popuarity because of fandom and queer culture.

Like, look, obviously I'm super biased as someone who has been in fandom since I was a pre-teen, but I've strongly believed for some time that shows and actors who really get pushed over the edge from "popular" to "super-duper mega-hit that no one saw coming bonkers fame" often owe their rise to the high-octane energy that comes with fandom and queer people shipping two of the main characters in a same-sex relationship. Some examples:

Xena - As an early example (though honestly, you could put X-Files here as a straight version of the same phenomenon) would we even be hearing about this show today if not for the Xena/Gabrielle shippers? I mean, I'm sure the show was good for some value of 90s episodic action show "good", but I'd be willing to put a significant amount of money down that queer kids suddenly realizing something about themselves and going absolutely apeshit over those two gave it popularity and longevity other similar shows in its genre did not enjoy.

Supernatural - I mean, need I say more? Urban fantasy/horror shows are a dime a dozen-plus it's literally one of dozens of procedural shows with arguably the only unique quality in the first season being it's a couple hot guys with a muscle car. But add the early Sam/Dean shippers and the later frothing fandom around the Destiel will they/won't they shipping and you have a season count and popularity that dwarfs other similar shows in its class.

BBC Sherlock - literally catapulted Martin Freeman and the now ubiquitous, Oscar-nominated Hollywood darling Benedict Cumberbatch from near-obscurity to absolutely dizzying levels of fame. After that show, A-List directors like Peter Jackson had to wait their turn to get these guys into their movies. Sure, S1 Sherlock was fresh and cool in ways that should be appreciated but I don't think I'm being a totally biased fangirl to say what fueled the word-of-mouth insanity over the show was fans hoping John and Sherlock would end up together, especially given early buzz and interviews with the creators that intimated that they were more open to the idea than many past reimaginers of Sherlock Holmes.

"But Avelera," you might say, "Didn't these shows queerbait the shit out of their audiences? Didn't they basically drop breadcrumbs through their episodes and interviews teasing queer people with the possibility of these couples going canon and then openly laugh at them when they got their hopes up?"

Yeah! And that's what actually makes me a little insane about all this! For the longest time it felt like shows like BBC Sherlock and Supernatural in particular were aware of the fact that some percentage of the fandom driving their shows into popularity and their actors into worldwide recognition did so because of slash shipping, but for some fucking baffling reason they decided that the straight cis male audience was the one they couldn't risk alienating! Now, sure, I know straight cis men who were fans of Sherlock and Supernatural but let me tell you, those guys weren't watching that show 100x in a row! They weren't signing petitions for more seasons or evangelizing it to everyone they met. They watched the show, liked it well enough, and moved on. Plenty of shows appeal to just those guys and get canceled after a couple seasons, and yet they're still treated as some kind of gold standard for the audience to chase.

So it was kind of insanely infuriating to have these creators openly laugh at the slash fans that, it was my suspicion, weren't just a portion of their fanbase but actually driving the engagement. And where I get especially insane is my conviction that these creators just didn't have the data at their disposal to really understand that the people they were mocking weren't an audience they could risk throwing away. They were still so entrenched in the idea of keeping the mainstream happy and the idea that the mainstream preferred shallow straight relationships over the main shipped pair getting together that they treated their core base as the aberrant fringe and the aberrant fringe who really wouldn't even notice if they got canceled as if it was the core base.

Because who the fuck was watching Supernatural after however goddamn many seasons except insane shipper fans holding out a shred of hope that once the mainstream lost interest they might get more than scraps off the table? Who was clamoring for multiple seasons of Sherlock on the promise that they might see some fulfillment? Who still remembers Xena fondly and not just as some silly mindless 90s show? It's the queer/fandom fans, I truly believe this even if it might just be me seeing everything through the lens of being in that subculture.

There is no more talk about making BBC Sherlock after the final spitting in the face of the queer fans that the last season did, the fans burnt out on getting strung along. Even shows that are more queer-friendly but still resist onscreen confirmation (Good Omens you are on thin fucking ice but I'll give you S2 to stop dancing around the issue trying to appease all your perceived audiences) are seeing frustration directed towards them. Queer/fandom audiences are exhausted with being laughed at and jerked around and treated like the minority audience when they are in fact what drive these shows to worldwide recognition. They're not a bellwether or jumping on the wagon, they are the core audience.

And I think, if Our Flag Means Death continues to triumph in popularity, it will finally provide some quantification for exactly how much queer and fandom audiences really can be the difference between a show that's just one of many in its genre as far as audience engagement goes and shows that suddenly shoot into the stratosphere through word of mouth popularity. Sure, there will still be non-fandom, non-queer mega-hits that do very well too on sheer strength of quality and freshness (for example, Ted Lasso), but as an audience to aim to please instead of the one you just aim to string along so you can have your cake and eat it too, I hope OFMD serves as some kind of awakening.