#god i haven’t posted a wip in forever

[parkitaco]

one of these days i will wrangle this fic into something coherent but today it is just Vibes

[tgmsunmontue]

From the top 1/? (WIP)

IceMav, (eventual) Explicit, (background Hangster who are already established). Set post-TGM. (No dead Ice obviously).

Featuring not-mistaken identities (where they (Ice and Mav) pretend to be in the dark for REASONS), Ice is Jake's Uncle Tom, Mav is Bradley's Dad, everyone knows everyone, (un)requited love, coming out as an older person, and a little bit of a circus-vibe where Ice has a horrible realization that this is indeed his circus and these are also his monkeys.

An AU where Mav married Carole and adopted Bradley to make things easier legally. A USNA Bradley who has been very careful to separate Dad/Pete from godfather/Maverick. They had an argument prior to TGM, but it was around Maverick being careless with his life (RE: Darkstar because Bradley got the call that Maverick was missing, presumed dead). So it was about risk taking and thinking while flying, so that was happening and Bradley admits to the Dagger Squadron that Maverick is his godfather and they have a ‘complicated relationship’ which isn’t a lie per se, however it’s… complicated.

                He and Bradley haven’t reached the stage yet where they’ve met any of each other’s family. They haven’t even introduced each other to their friends as boyfriends yet, and their circle of friends overlap. And he’s okay with that. More than okay actually. Doesn’t quite know how he’d broach the whole by the way I’m sort of related to the COMPACFLT through my mom conversation. He’s close with Tom now, closer than he is to any of his mom’s other cousins that’s for sure. Idolized him when he was young, and now also holds a deep-rooted respect and affection for the man. It had also helped knowing he had someone to look to as a role model, someone who was gay in the Navy and got so high up no-one could do anything to him now. Jake wanted that. Badly.

                But he also kind of wants his Uncle Tom to be happy. Although, hell, for all he knew he could have had a secret lover all these years. If anyone could keep it hidden it’s Uncle Tom, face quiet and impassive, unmoving and unflinching. He’d really hoped for a callsign half as cool as Iceman, and even if Uncle Tom jokes that he does have a literal half with man, he wishes he didn’t have the connotations of Hangman, even if it’s because of fucking song lyrics he was forever quoting and now twisted into something that make people assume things before they even know him.

                Not that he really has that problem now, with the Dagger Squadron being made a permanent detachment and with them all knowing each other so well now. They know he’s got their backs when it actually comes down to it. And he likes being based where his Uncle Tom is, because while he’s meant to be based in Hawaii they’ve made some concessions due to his cancer treatment. He knows their entire family is grateful, not least his Aunty Sarah. God, he knows it’s the high of surviving a literal suicide mission but life feels so good right now. He’s expecting Bradley to turn up any minute, they’ve got plans for dinner and a movie and then sex, not necessarily in that order.

                When he opens his door and Rooster is there, he can’t help the little happy swoop his insides do and he lets Bradley kiss him hello.

                “Hi.”

                “Hi. How are you?”

                “Good. Little annoyed… my dad is talking about getting back together with an ex…”

                “Is this the ex you like, or don’t like?”

                “You can safely bet money that it’s nearly always an ex I don’t like. I don’t think he’s ever had a relationship with anyone I’ve actually liked… shit that’s depressing.”

                “Maybe you just have really high standards for him?”

                “You mean unlike for myself, where my standards are really low?”

                “Hey!”

                They end up play-wrestling which quickly morphs into not-play making-out and yeah, the sex comes before dinner but he was sort of banking on that, making food that would be perfectly fine just staying warm in the oven. They end up curled around each other on the sofa, queuing up a movie and Jake asks about his day. Listens as Bradley talks about going out to Maverick’s hangar to work on the plane, having lunch with his dad and he wonders if Maverick has met Bradley’s step-dad. Obviously he must have, he’s been around even longer, although it must be weird to have two people called Pete wandering around, he guesses that’s why Bradley calls Maverick Maverick, and his step-dad dad. Stops the confusion.

                He knows Maverick and Bradley had a falling out of some sort, they’d been very angry with each other. He figured out that Maverick flew with Bradley’s dad, was the pilot when his dad died, and he’d thought it had been that. But then Bradley had dropped the bombshell that Maverick was his godfather and they’d had a fight over something he can’t talk about, but they would be fine. So Jake hasn’t pushed wanting to also hang out with Maverick, because when Bradley talks about the P-51 and the hangar his fingers itch but he gets Bradley wanting to mend bridges with his godfather.

                More than that though he wants to meet Bradley’s step-dad, doesn’t understand Bradley’s reticence about introducing them. It’s not like he’s going to care. But they’ve only been doing this, whatever it is, for a couple of weeks, which he guesses is early days, but with everything they’ve gone through in the last couple of months it also feels like several lifetimes. Then again, he’s in no rush to introduce Bradley to Uncle Tom, so maybe it’s for the best they wait a few weeks. Or months.

                “You still thinking about your dad?”

                “Yeah. I just need to get him seeing someone else. Anyone to take his mind off getting back with Georgia. Or any of his exes for that matter. Georgia especially is… well. I have no idea what she gets out of sleeping with Dad. She’s anti military for a start.”

                “The fact that she gets to sleep with him?”

                “Ew, gross…”

                “Maybe she thinks she can convert him to a non-military life one blowjob at a time…”

                “You could try that on me you know, see if you can convince me to do something with a blowjob…”

                “Don’t think I need the promise of a bj to convince you to do anything,” Jake says with a grin. “You know, my uncle Tom is gay, maybe we could set them up? Well, assuming your dad swings both ways?”

                “Huh. Yeah… He does. Keeps that pretty much on the down-low, very much on a need to know basis. Pretty sure I only know because I saw him trying to sneak a guy out when I was seventeen. Did make me feel safer about coming out to him myself though.”

…            …            …

                “Jake, I am not installing Grindr on my phone, work, personal or otherwise.”

                “Thought you might say that, so I bought you a burner. Well, please don’t actually burn it, but you know what I mean.”

                “Jake…” Tom lets out an exasperated sigh. “I wouldn’t burn it. I know what a burner is. I’m not an idiot. I just don’t want to go on a date…”

                “Okay, so you don’t actually have to go on a date. All my cards on the table. I’m using the app to introduce you to the step-dad of my… uh, a friend.”

                “A friend huh? Is this the same friend you won’t introduce to the family?”

                “Yes. The exact one. Anyway, I just want you to send him a couple of messages. Let’s say ten messages. After that you can go back to ignoring it, remove the battery from the phone and pretend it never happened. Okay?”

                “Will you let it go if I do this?”

                “I mean… yeah. I hope you make a friend or something, but he’s military as well, so you guys have something in common at least…”

                “Fine. But I want the name of your friend.”

                “No! You’ll just look him up.”

                “He’s Navy?”

                “No!”

                “He is! Good job.”

…            …            …

                “Bradley! Why is Grindr amongst my recently installed apps!”

                “I’m setting you up!” Bradley calls out, grabbing two beers to go with their takeout Chinese.

                “I don’t need setting up. I can find my own dates. I don’t need an app!”

                “Yes, you do. You can’t get back with Georgia just because you’re lonely. Look, I’m not going to make you swipe through dick-pics…”

                “Maybe I want to swipe through dick-pics!”

                “Mav, be serious! You just said you didn’t want the app!”

                “Seriously? You’re the one that installed Grindr on my phone.”

                “God, maybe this was an awful idea.”

                “Yeah, you think?”

                “Okay, give me a second,” Bradley mutters, rolling his eyes and pulling his own from his pocket and thumbing into his contacts.

                “Hi… how’s it going?” Jake asks, voice quiet, and he must still be at his Uncle’s house.

                “Not well. You think we can maybe just set them up with an app that blocks their numbers and then just let them talk that way?”

                “Can’t hurt to try… your dad resisting the Grindr approach too huh?”

                “So much. And I get it, HE’S REALLY OLD,” Bradley says, raising his voice while looking Mav dead in the eye.

                “Hey! I heard that!”

                “You were meant to!”

                He ignores the glare Mav shoots him and pokes his tongue out at the back of his head as he walks away.

                “Okay, let’s see what we can find. I’ll message you and let you know.”

                “Sure thing.”

                Fifteen minutes later Jake has sent him the information, an end-to-end encrypted messaging app, one which hides the number of the phone sending the message. It’s silent and has to be manually opened to check for notifications, which is very old-school but means there’s no potential odd sounding pings. The icon is a mundane looking tower symbol and he guesses that could mean anything.

                “Okay Mav – you need to give this guy a chance okay? Please?”

                “What’s in it for me?”

                “I will stop bothering you about… uh… your love life for six months?”

                “No deal. I want to meet the guy you just rang. Who’s he in all this?”

                “Uh… I guess he’s my boyfriend.”

                “Ooohhh… it’s new huh? You’re in that new loved-up stage where you want everyone around you to be in the same stage.”

                “Uh, I mean we’ve known each other for years, but we’ve recently… come to an arrangement.”

                “Is it boyfriends or friends with benefits?”

                “Well, we weren’t exactly friends before, so definitely closer to boyfriends I guess,” Bradley says, carefully skirting the fact that Mav actually already knows Jake quite well.

                “Great. I’ll send what, ten messages to this guy and then I get to meet your guy in two weeks.”

                “No! Three months. And twenty messages.”

                “You realize you can’t force me to do anything right? You have no bargaining power here?”

                “I know, but… for me?”

                “Ugh… sad cow eyes. Fine fine, put them away. I’ll message the guy. But I do want to meet your guy when you feel the timing is right.”

                “Yeah, of course.”

                God he hopes this works because he has no idea if Mav will like the fact he’s with Jake or not.

…            …            …

                They meet up every week when they’re both in the same place, and it’s been a treat these last few months, but also a trial. Usually the distance has been a unintended blessing, making his unfortunate case of unrequited love easier to ignore. When he was younger he’d thought it was just a crush, that it would just… fade away. Instead the opposite has happened, time and distance have hardened and solidified similar to how pressure and temperature turn limestone into marble his love for Maverick is a solid and unmoving object that is ever present. Every time Mav walks through his front door he has to fight the urge to enfold him in his arms and just hold him. Every time.

                “Did you ever want kids of your own?” Pete asks and Tom startles, looks across at him.

                “No. I have nieces and nephews and cousin’s kids coming out my ears. They’re enough trouble to be getting on with, without adding my own genes to the mix. Wasn’t ever going to happen anyway,” he tacks on, and he wonders if this, today, this moment, will be the time it twigs and Mav will ask what he means.

                “Too much trouble by half. Do you know what Bradley did the other day? Installed a dating app on my phone.”

                “What? Why would he do that?”

                “He thought I was considering getting back with Georgia for some reason.”

                “And you’re not?”

                “No. Anyway, he’s trying to set me up with someone. At least you don’t have to worry about that.”

                “You’d be surprised. My cousins kid bought me a phone, a burner phone, with a dating app installed on it.”

                “Oh yeah? Which one?”

                Tom swallows.

                Okay.

                No more subtle hints.

                It’s now or never.

                “Grindr.”

                He didn’t purposely wait for Mav to have a sip of his drink, but he still sprays it out across the coffee table, eyes bugging out and he can’t seem to look Tom in the eye and he feels his stomach start to sink.

                “You… ah… you know that app is for gay guys right?”

                “I’m aware.”

                Pete just stares at him and he wonders if this is it. The moment his best friend just gets up and walks out of his life.

                “You never told me.”

                “You never asked.”

                “Yeah well, there was a whole thing about not asking and not telling until about ten years ago so… sorry if I thought you’d have maybe mentioned it. Or at least… alluded to it.”

                “I did Pete. With something called subtlety. I know it’s not your strong suit, but I tried to leave it there in the open for you to pick up on. I’m only just… getting to the grips with the idea of being more out.”

                “Okay. Uh. Does anyone else know?”

                Tom snorts.

                “Yeah, my whole family for a start. Had to get them to stop trying to marry me off. Slider of course.”

                “Why of course? Why Slider?”

                “He’s known me for a very long time.”

                “I’ve known you for a long time.”

                He doesn’t want to mention that Slider figured it out, because he’s had to learn to be subtle, and his weak point has and will always be the man in front of him. And he can never let him know. Still, Mav sounds annoyed.

                “Slider figured it out. He’s too perceptive for his own good,” Tom mutters, because he’s also the one person who knows about his lifelong torch bearing.

                “Huh. Okay.”

…            …            …

                Tom locks the house up, Mav having left to go home after Tom had soundly beaten him at chess. He knows it isn’t one of Mav’s favorite games, that he really only plays to humor Tom and give them something to do while they talk… his brain is catching on something and it’s going to bother him until he figures it out. Pete. Playing chess simply to spend more time with him...

                He stops.

                Blinks.

                Pete had said Bradley had installed a dating app on his phone.

                Within a day of Jake giving him a phone with Grindr installed, which quickly morphed to a simple encrypted messaging service.

                He’s learnt to not ignore his gut and this is deeply suspicious with the coincidence.

                He wonders if Jake and Bradley are dating. The idea of that makes him smile, even if it’ll cause an administrative nightmare. He knows they know each other, they’re part of the same squadron and there are rules, however it wouldn’t surprise him at all if both Bradley and Jake decided that that particular rule was for other people.

                Wait.

                He suddenly needs to know which app it is exactly that Bradley installed and he has his phone in his hand ringing him before he even considers the time of night, or where Bradley might be right now.

                “Hey Uncle Ice… Everything okay?”

                “Hey Bradley. Sorry for the late call, Just, uh, Mav mentioned you installed a dating app on his phone. You mind telling me which one it was?”

                “Uh… Grindr. Why?”

                “Oh. No reason. Just curious Thanks. Have a good night.”

                Why would Bradley install Grindr.

                Maverick’s not gay.

                To his knowledge Maverick isn’t even bisexual. Or anything else that might imply he’s anything other than overwhelmingly heterosexual.

                Maverick didn’t say anything tonight when he learnt about Tom’s own sexuality.

                Maybe Bradley knows something Tom doesn’t.

                Scratch that.

                Bradley definitely knows something Tom doesn’t.

CHAPTER TWO

[kiwiana-writes]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Thanks @cha-melodius and @stereopticons for the tags! I know I’ve done this in the past, but it’s been a hot minute…

How many works do you have on ao3?

239!

What's your total ao3 word count?

822,937—but that’s a collaboration-boosted lie. Per my writing tracker, words that I have personally written and published on AO3 is 693,613

What fandoms do you write for?

Mostly RWRB these days, but the majority of my back catalogue is Schitt’s Creek, with a few others sprinkled in for fun. The Pairing definitely made my brain whirr… we’ll see.

Top five fics by kudos:

With so much of my heart (that none is left to protest), RWRB, 65.5k, the Much Ado About Nothing stage actor AU

Kinda think that I might be his type, RWRB, 12.8k, Alex and Bea fake date and Alex gets a little distracted by Bea’s brother

We were supposed to find this, RWRB, 3.3k, soulmate AU

We always walked a very thin line, Happiest Season, 2.7k, Riley character study/alternate ending

All the Lonely Starbucks Lovers, RWRB, 5.8k, barista Henry repeatedly putting his foot in his mouth in front of his coworker crush

(This is how I learned Puck It has been knocked out of my top five 😭)

Do you respond to comments?

Yes! And absent a Schitt’s Creek resurgence of some kind that sees me absolutely inundated I don’t see that changing.

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Five ways it could have ended (and one way it still could), Schitt’s Creek, 1.2k, for the love of god read the tags

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Like… most of them? I love to end on a good HEA haha. For sheer joy, though, it’s probably With so much of my heart (that none is left to protest)

Do you get hate on fics?

From time to time. I’m very free with the delete button. Weirdly, it occasionally pops up in the AO3 comments but mostly seems to come to me via anons on tumblr??? I have no idea why.

Do you write smut?

It’s been known to happen, I guess 👀

Craziest crossover:

I haven’t written any AO3-era crossovers! A few fusions/media AUs, but no crossovers.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to my knowledge.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope. I’ve only been asked once, and they wanted to post off AO3 which is a big heck nope for me (and my permissions statement has now been updated to reflect that)

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Heck yeah I have. I’ve done several anthology-type collaborations where we each wrote a chapter in a fic, and I’ve fully cowritten fics with @ships-to-sail several times. We have another collab coming up for @aroyallybigbangrwrb and I’m also cowriting The Big Secret AU with @indestructibleheart which is essentially us one-upping each other on emotionally devastating ideas until someone writes them down. Good system 😂

All time favorite ship?

Stop making pansexuals choose things.

What's a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

Look, the chances of kinktober 2021 being finished at this point are slim 😂

Schitt’s Creek kinkverse… I don’t know. I have little snippets written of future fics and they’re great but… idk. Maybe I’ll write one vignette-y wrap up fic one day.

What are your writing strengths?

Narrative POV, dialogue that feels like the characters, epistolary bullshit, smut apparently.

What are your writing weaknesses?

Coming up with actual plot lmao. Visual descriptors — I’m not even remotely a visual person so I really really struggle with writing the sorts of things people can visualise. Also like… the passage of time? A scam.

Thoughts on dialogue in another language?

Love it. I’ll shoulder tap a fluent speaker if I need an actual sentence/anything Google isn’t super reliable for. Forever heartbroken that there are no fics in my second language in AO3 and no reason for me to be able to sprinkle it into my own writing (though one of the subscriber shindig prompts might be about to change that 👀)

First fandom you wrote in?

HP

Favorite fic you've written?

Stop! Asking! Pansexuals! To! Choose! Things!

I don’t know there are 239 of the bloody things 😂 I’m far more interested in what other people’s favourites are than what my own is!

I have no sense of who’s done this already so apologies if this is a double up but tagging @agame-writes @affectionatelyrs @anincompletelist @cricketnationrise @getmehighonmagic

@happiness-of-the-pursuit @hgejfmw-hgejhsf @indestructibleheart @inexplicablymine @nontoxic-writes

@read-and-write- @rmd-writes @sparklepocalypse @welcometololaland @whimsymanaged and, as always, anyone who wants to play!

[pricemarshfield]

Answer the prime numbers. Do All Tha Prime Numbers 🫵

good lord. okay but i’m putting it under the cut

2. Do you plan each chapter ahead or write as you go?

biiiit of both? i know very concretely where i want a fic to start & end, i know the general placement of a few important scenes throughout the fic, and then i have Loose outlines about how each chapter will get me there. but mostly i write as i go; i just have an idea of the endpoint so i don’t wander off into the wilderness (drive my outline wildly off course)

3. Describe the creative process of writing a chapter/fic

well since playing bg3 it’s: become haunted by an idea involving raphael baldursgate, say oh my god no i haven’t even written any of my current wips in months i don’t have time, and then blacking out with 6k of porn that’s somehow not even close to done on my google docs. and this repeats forever

but also. i kinda just do it idk. i sit at my computer and write until it’s done

5. Do you like constructive criticism?

context dependent. if i ask for it, yeah. unprompted in comments, nah. people are much better about this than they used to be, which is funny because i’m less bothered now than i used to be. baby fic author sarah was haunted by concrit; current me is like yeah critique is the only way to improve but i am writing this for funnnn so leaf me alone

(should specify i Just mean in terms of like. technical advice here. if i’m being a bigot in my writing somehow, that is something i want to know and fix asap)

7. How do you choose which POV to write from?

vibessss. whoever i wanna write more in the moment unless the specific scene only works from one perspective. this is why talk is getting a sequel (threequel. i guess. bc i’m also doing the two-part “endings”) which is just the same fic but from raphael pov bc i want to write him now

11. Link your three favorite fics right now

only three? damn. can i do four 😭 you sent me over a dozen questions i’m doing four.

of street names & subway wall prophecies by @dalgursbate is SO good. buffyverse au shadowstarion, so well-characterized and vivid and also FUN i LOVE it. i already liked shadowstarion (shocking! girl who multiships everything likes pairing between two of her favorite characters!) but now i rotate them in my mind forever. i want to bind this physically so i have it and am only stopped by having not actually kept most of my bookbinding stuff when i moved. but i need a physical copy so i can Eat It. also everyone should read everything else molly’s ever posted

who will burn who by @pouralaura is so good i’m proselytizing for it. PHENOMENAL fic. professor au raphael and he is SOOO fun; he fits so well in this verse without being defanged into something unrecognizable. and also it’s HOT!!!! SO HOT! fanning myself when i read it! the prose is just soooo fucking nice in this too. all of what i’ve said about this fic is true of all of laura’s fics and once again. everyone should read everything she’s ever posted

Blood in the Wine by @atrueneutral is so fucking interesting that i literally had to lie in bed and just stare at my ceiling and THINK about it after i read the latest chapter today. priest raphael au But Watch Out. i’m so deeply intrigued by the world-building in this, and neutral’s tav is INCREDIBLY compelling. this fic makes me want to paint again and if i had a canvas on hand i probably would have by now. and not to sound like a broken record but everyone read all of neutral’s fics too tyvm 🙏

Cooler Than Me by @wetcatspellcaster has absolutely brightened my day with every update, which has been nice because boyyy am i going through it a little bit. an academic/celebrity modern au with rosalie frostsong, love of my life, as the academic consulting on a film about a historical figure she Hates, and astarion, playing that guy. it’s so fun and funny and fluffy, and i just love seeing how all the different characters are translated to this AU because they’re ALL bangers. fox you are my roommate and know this already but for anyone just reading through, i absolutely cannot recommend all of emma’s fics enough :)

for all of these peep me being #insane in the comments and also know i could have listed like eight more fics even Just sticking with bg3, plus like 10 more if i brought in all the banger d20 ones i still need to catch up on. anyway i’m gonna go reread all of these once i finish answering this ask

13. what’s a common writing tip that you almost always follow?

FOR ME show don’t tell works. because i treat it as a mantra to make sure i’m showing what i’m telling, since my (unedited) writing style is just. so direct. my characters are introspective and love to think “i am doing x because y which results in z” and that’s fun but sometimes less is more. but also i think it’s a tip that’s oft misused and not always helpful hence the For Me

17. What do you do when writing becomes difficult? (maybe a lack of inspiration or writers block)

i simply do something else 👍 i am past the point of forcing words out of myself. i wrote a 40 page paper in one night bc i procrastinated so badly in my senior year of college and i don’t want to return to the mental state that invoked in me. especially not for Fanfiction, my Hobby

19. What is the most-used tag on your ao3?

post-canon, fluff, and alternate universe - canon divergence are the main three; i should note that these are largely one-off fics under 2k i wrote half a decade ago, and most of my fics now are messy longfics with a lot of smut. the canon divergence one is still real though

23. Best writing advice for other writers?

🗣️ if you’re stuck, go back three sentences!!! oh my GOD did this save my editing process. the fact i finish editing chapters ever is due to this. also write what you want to write when you want to write it; if you’re writing for a self-imposed deadline or entitled commenters, the fun’s gonna get sucked out of it Fast.

also if you get someone who makes a Lot of fic requests that brush veryyyy close to what you’re not comfortable taking just block them. it’s fine. protect your peace

29. What’s your revision or editing process like?

finish draft. take a full day away from it. reread. fix mistakes. i absolutely Should do more—reading aloud, probably make comments to myself and then go back—but tbh. i am impatient. i want to Post and see people’s Thoughts right away

31. Do you start with the characters or the plot when writing?

used to be characters and a Vibe and the plot would come after, now plots complete with characters and themes attack me in the night until a new outline appears in my google docs. i blame raphael

37. How do you choose where to end a chapter?

“okay so this chapter should end at this scene :) oh god why is this other scene getting so long. ah fuck this is already 6k words and i’m not halfway through my plans. oh jesus christ wait a second it’s incredibly self-indulgent additional scene with the steel chair!!” and then i keep writing until i hit whatever is in my outline. don’t do this. you can change your chapter count. i am inflexibly stubborn but everyone else can and should do that. or just don’t commit to a chapter count at first. don’t be like me

41. Do you tend to reread fics or are you a one-and-done kind of person?

I LOVE REREADING FICS !!! i guarantee every single fic i recommended above i have reread at least a dozen times times, and i think all three of them came out this year. one i discovered a momth ago. i have some fics i have reread Hundreds of times. i Love to reread fics

43. Do you take a sadistic joy in whumping your characters, or are you more the "If you hurt them I would kill everyone and then myself" kind of person?

*poorly hiding a comically large mallet behind my back* i’m sooo nice to my characters actually. ignore the longfic which is just my tav’s bad end. and also the one where i put her in a version of hell she’d hate more than usual. and also all the things i’m gonna do in later knife’s edge chapters. and also that time i posted “this sucks for everyone but me, the writer who loves making things worse”

47. How many times do you usually revise your fic/chapter before posting?

one. two if i’m really motivated. like a quarter of the way through before i give up and post immediately if i’m really UNmotivated. don’t be like me

53. How do you spend your time when it comes to fanfiction? Are you primarily a fic reader, writer, or a perfect 50/50 split of both?

i go through phases of each. i’ve written a lot this month, i read a lot last month. i think probably like 60:40 reader/writer but it’d probably be 50:50 if i wasn’t so committed to leaving comments with my full thoughts (and i love commenting. so i will not give that up)

59. Does anyone in your personal life know you write fic? if not, would you tell anyone?

my mom said she’d read my noir au when i told her about it (she has not). my grandma tried to figure out what to get me for my birthday by asking what fanfiction characters i liked right now. my aunt who i don’t even like has my ao3. i have no shame and also my writing fucks so like

61. Why do you continue writing fics?

I Need. To Read My Ideas. I Need Them To Exist. The Words Need To Be Out Of My Head And In A Form I Can Enjoy. also it’s fun and i like the community aspect of fandom

67. Do you prefer prompts and challenges, or completely independent ideas?

i love prompts and challenges but the fics i’ve been most excited to write have been fully independent ideas. still, fics i’ve loved and think are some of my best have come from challenges! so. idk i guess wishy-washy copout answer It Depends

71. When it comes to more complicated narratives, how do you keep track of outlines, characters, development, timeline, ect.?

i got a note on my phone with bullet points that are not clear enough and that i will be confused about later until at 3am i remember what the hell i meant by a bullet simply reading “jowan” (note: this is a real example. it is not a dragon age fic)

73. What do you think makes your writing stand out from other works?

i got no clue. i’m so bad at describing my own writing in general, i have no idea how to differentiate it from others’ work. i like it though! i’m just terrible at articulating stuff about my Own writing lmfao

fox you sent this to me An Hour Ago. if there are typos dont tell me. if i missed a prime number for Sure dont tell me. goddamn.

[ghuleh-recs]

★ Ghost Fandom Fic Rec Tag ★

VERY annoyed about the anon hate I’m seeing in my favorite writers’ ask boxes lately. So! I thought I'd live up to my username. Let’s appreciate some amazing writers and rec some fucking fics.

Rules (re: loose guidelines)

Pick some fics from your AO3 bookmarks or your likes/reblobs here on tumblr, and post them with links and a blurb about it. Maybe a summary or just a reason you liked it. As many or as few as you feel like sharing. Then, as one does, tag your friends.

This is a ZERO pressure tagging situation—if you’re too busy or don’t feel like participating, no biggie at allll. Let’s just spread some love and positivity shall we?

I’ll go first (some slightly spoiler-y descriptions ahead):

[REC] and 1080P by @st-danger We've got some absolutely delicious vulnerable Dew x completely smitten Swiss right here. Long story short, they send a video of Dew in panties to Aether. These are scorchingly hot. Part of Saint’s Kinktober series—which you better subscribe to if you haven’t already.

This Swiss x Aeon stoned hand kink ficlet from @crimsonclergy actually set my brain on fire yesterday. So there’s that.

This fic from @riconas featuring insecure Dew knotting Aether. A little desperate, a little mean, a LOT sexy.

A Touch Too Much by @miasmaghoul Hey have you ever wondered what would happen if Dew went into heat during a ritual? And how he might react to Papa singing about daddies and caressing him during KTGG? Hmm? You ever wonder about that?

It would tear me apart, it would haunt me forever (so much you'd never get to know) by @littlemoon-beam oh boy this is some stunningly good Dew angst. This fic will hurt your feelings and then you’re gonna thank Moon for it. She really blasted into this fandom like the Kool-aid guy and we are honestly so hashtag blessed for it.

Now for some reader-insert if that’s more your style.

Misaimed Desire by @violet-lazer Whoops. You accidentally texted Secondo something saucy and he summons you to his office. Whatever will he do to you? Part of her excellent First Kisses: Papal Edition series. Terzo is next so y'all better subscribe.

Banchetto by @angellayercake This. This right here is the good shit. Terzo is wasting away, not handling life after the Ghost Project well at all. Primo and Secondo enlist your help seeing as you’ve got some serious cooking skills. This is gorgeously written with some god tier slow burn and eventual smut. It’s a WIP but the most recent chapter is super satisfying, don’t you worry.

The Cardinal's Bride by @ramblingoak If you’re not following along with this, you’re REALLY missing out. This is pure bodice-ripper GOLD. Some of the most satisfying slow burn I have EVER read. I reread the whole thing every time Oak drops a new chapter.

The Prince by @kissingghouls Vampire!Terzo x slayer!reader need I say more? I am loving the latest installment of Suck Club (you should really read them all). Terzo is pathetic and wears crop tops and it has me actually kicking my heels and giggling as I read.

One last thing:

Leave a comment on ao3, or reply/reblog (with tags) here on the hellsite anything you enjoyed that someone else recommended. I dare you. The author might even reply and you’ll feel oh so special.

I tag: @littlemoon-beam, @rightintheghoulies, @myghemicalghostmance, @angellayercake, @ramblingoak, @neekocalico, @kissingghouls, @stede-bonnets and anyone reading this that also enjoys fanfic. Yeah you. I’m so serious. Don't test me, boy.

(Feel free to tag me back because I have soooo many others but this already got way too long.)

[medusapelagia]

WIP Weekend

The lovely @hbyrde36 tagged me! Thank you!

Here’s how it works:

In a reblog of this post or new thread, post up to five (5) filenames of your WIPs

Post a snippet from one of them. Snippet must be words you wrote in the last 7 days. We’re posting progress here. If you haven’t made any, go make some and come back to play!

After you’ve posted, people can send you an ask with one of your file names. You must then write 3 sentences in that file. If the filename is one you can't share from, write 3 sentences on it anyway, and then 3 more on another to share.

That’s it! You can invite others to join in, or just post.

If you’re reading this, you’re invited! If you see someone posting a WIP Wednesday Game snippet, send them an ask! Make them write.

This weekend I can finally share some snippets from two of my BBs fics and I’m super excited!!!

So…

🏴‍☠️- Hidden Treasure (omegaverse, metal sandwich, pirate au) Stranger Things Big Bang

💍- Getting to know you (again) (steddie, forced marriage, amensia au) Steddie Big Bang

❓- Secret Sapphic BB (I HAVE to work on this one!!! Claims are close!!!)

🚀- Steddie Space AU

🪄- 1Ml words Steddie celebration fic

🦈- SharkBilly 2

(I have many others but those are the ones I REALLY need to work on 😂)

So please: ask me!!! 😂

This is my no pressure tag list:

@kallisto-k, @spaceofentropy, @lorifragolina, @sunflowerharrington, @helpimstuckposting

@lingeringmirth, @oiveyzmir, @pezilla, @jad3w1ngs, @slippy-slip

@ilovecupcakesandtea, @hornedqueenofhell, @lightoftheseraph, @kaizenkhaos, @romeren

and everyone else who si working on their BBs (I see you!!! and if you see this post tag me because I'm a curious gremlin!!!)

Under the cut a snippet from SharkBilly 2

Steve swallows loudly. Thank god Billy is down there and not here with him in his room because his jeans are getting uncomfortably tight in the crotch area. More underwear. He almost throws the entire drawer in his duffle bag.

Wouldn't food and water be more useful? I can hunt for you but I can’t find water. Not the kind you need.

Food and water. Yeah. It’s just like a school trip only… It's forever. Steve feels it deep in his bones and somehow he’s not surprised, like it was a call he always waited for without knowing it. With a sigh, he grabs his duffle bag and goes into the kitchen where he finds a few bottles of water and some crackers that he packs immediately with some fruit.

[bbutterflies]

2023 fanfic year in review

Thank you @kasienda for the tag!!! Been meaning to do this since I wrote so much in 2023!

Fics completed this year:

Oh my god I was writing lovesquare still at the beginning of the year… who was I back then… I finished I’d fall in love with you a thousand times and Meant to be, and then wrote all of Intertwined. I try to hold these all in kind thoughts. I don’t think they’re all that great, personally, but I just hadn’t written as much when I wrote them and never outlined or planned ahead. But I’m happy people liked them!

And then I went off the deep end with adrino:

I’ll give myself a name (something stupid and pretentious)

Falling into place

ways to say I love you

promise me forever

The memories we (don’t) make

Not much of a cat person

The moment I knew (I’d no choice but to love you)

Chemistry with him (for Ninovember 2023! I wrote the entire thing in about a month and a half and posted daily in November. My life took a serious turn for the worse by the end of the month and the comments and support on this fic were so amazing and incredible and kept me going!)

Love you snow much

And then I ended strong with this incredibly devastating (but really good) loveywalker one shot: fine line

Number of words written:

My ao3 stats say I published 329,988 words in 2023 which is insane????? I don’t know how I did that but oh my god it was so fun. I know I wrote way more that I didn’t publish with edits and stuff I scrapped, but I don’t keep track because it would just be way too difficult… at least another 100-150k if I had to guess in cut scenes and wips I haven’t published and stuff I just decided I didn’t like. I don’t know how in the world I managed to write so much while already a sleep-deprived grad student but I definitely don’t regret it. It was a blast.

Your most popular fic:

By hits, Meant to be. Oh man… if I wrote this now I’d do so much differently. I was surprised people loved it so much, and looking back, I’m like oh god… the mistakes… but it’s all a learning process! :) and I learned and grew so much from this one.

By kudos, ways to say I love you, which I didn’t expect to gain any traction at all. It’s just over 600 words, something silly and cute I figured a couple people would like, and it totally blew up.

Your personal fav:

I know I’ve said this before but Falling into place, hands down, is my number one. I know I’ve also said before it’s such a queer, teenage experience, but it is and it means so much to me. Being in high school, being in love with your friends and not even knowing it, aughhh I just love it. I love the way I wrote it. I’m so proud of it still!

Your fav scene:

Oh man… probably the kiss scene in chapter 9 of The moment I knew (I’d no choice but to love you). I wrote it so many times and made so many edits but I ended up so proud of it!

A fic or scene that challenged you:

I had a lot of fun with most of my fics! Having multiple wips on the backburner gave me a way to take a break and work on other stuff when I was having trouble with one and I can usually come back with fresh eyes later and never have too much trouble. But right now, If I hold you too close is challenging emotionally. It’s super personal and self-indulgent, and digging into a lot of my own past and traumas and mistakes to write it has been harder than I thought it would be. I’m excited to keep working on it but it’s been draining at times for sure.

A line of writing you’re proud of: 

Oh man, I don’t know how to pick a single line… I’ll have to go with this (even though it’s technically more than one line) from Falling into place:

Adrien’s eyes were locked on Nino’s. He was staring back with something in his expression Adrien couldn’t quite read, something he hadn’t seen before. Or maybe he had but he’d just never been looking.

A comment that touched you:

A few come to mind! I’ve had several people comment on my adrino fics telling me they hadn’t shipped them before but they do after reading, and honestly that’s my number one life goal at the moment haha. I love adrino! I want more people to love them!

I genuinely love all the comments I get. It means so much that people read and love my work. The people who say so specifically always get me teared up… I’ve gotten several on my fluff fics that said they were going through stuff in life and my writing was a bright spot for them, and genuinely that’s insane to me. To touch someone else, to have a positive impact on their life through art…. oughhh it’s just so human and raw and I love it! I’m so honored!

Something that inspired your writing:

I honestly spent a lot of time writing what I personally wanted/needed to read! I needed more domestic adrino fluff, and I wasn’t finding quite what I wanted to read, so… I wrote it for myself! I love rereading them knowing it’s exactly what I want to read, and knowing other people enjoyed them too. I’ve been incredibly selfish in my writing this year (in the best way) and it’s been so inspiring also to see other people want to read it too! The moment I knew (I’d no choice but to love you) was something I didn’t think would garner much attention at all. A rarepair and a super silly trope? I thought whatever, I’m writing it for me, hopefully a couple others like it, and it got so much more positive attention than I thought. I’m so glad!

Your proudest accomplishment (that one scene; finally finishing that one fic; posting your first fic; etc):

Probably figuring out I’ll give myself a name (something stupid and pretentious)! I think I’ve mentioned before I was originally writing it as a lovesquare fic. I wrote it and rewrote it like six times before I thought, no, this should be about Adrien and Nino. And then it just clicked!

Do you have any writing goals for the next year?

I have a secret wip in my docs I’ve talked about a couple times, but it’s a slowburn teenage adrino and I really would love to write all of it! I think I’m struggling to decide exactly what kind of story I want to tell and it’s making it hard to outline and write when I don’t have a clear end direction, but that’s something I’d definitely love to figure out.

And I’d love to get back into lovesquare, too! I have a few wips that I keep putting on the backburner but I really want to dust them off and finish them, and maybe start some new stuff. Writing my loveywalker fic was SO fun (if devastating) and I can’t believe it’s been months since I sat down and wrote lovesquare.

This isn't a direct writing goal, but I'm determined to comment more on fics I read. I love getting comments, and I don't leave them enough on the fics I love, and that's something I really want to change!

Anyone you would like to thank?

@kasienda and @flightfoot I think are tied for commenting on my fics, and it really means so much to have cheerleaders in my inbox!!! Especially writing adrino when readership is lower, it was a huge help to have people reading and commenting and cheering me on <3

@asukiess and @isabugs recently for screaming with me in general about this show! You’ve inspired me to write so much more… I can’t wait to be absolutely unhinged in 2024.

And all my commenters on ao3!! I don’t know everyone’s tumblr and couldn’t possibly tag them all but it means so much every time I get a comment. I wouldn’t be writing as much as I do without the direct support! Thank you!!!

[hiccupbutpurple]

Wip Game

RULES: post the names of all the files in your WIP list, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send an ask with the title that most intrigues them and then post a little snippet or tell them something about it. And then tag as many people as you have WIPS!

Tagged by: @howtowhumpyourhiccup :D

I don’t think I can realistically do that many but @reallyprofoundkryptonite @worldwhightnight @sorushing @violet-moongem @amyrafierceblade if y’all haven’t already been tagged and feel like sharing! Of course anyone who see this and also wants to participate go ahead!

Imma put all the ones I’ve at least started writing for because we’d be here all day if it was also the ideas that just have a few dot points or things. Some have actual titles some are just random description type things lol. I put the general ship name or character in the title so I can easily find it but it makes it less vague ig but eh. (Also sorry this is kinda long so I’m putting in under the cut lol.)

- How Time Has Transformed You

- To Rediscover An Old Self

- Some Things Shouldn’t Be Admired

- Preparation – Vigcup

- Tired – Vigcup

- Hiccup and Gobber self-care reminders

- Searching – Hiccstrid/Heathstrid

- Knock - Hicclegs

- Improper use of Maces and Talons - Vigcup

- Swordsmanship – Dagvigcup

- Accidents - Hiccstrid

- One inspired by entertain – Vigcup

- Room Where It Happens – Hiccstrid runaway Hiccup Au 1

- Put on a show – Dagcup

- Lusty Confidence - Hicclegs

- So You Wanna Marry Hiccup – Dagcup

- Naga Viggo one – Vigcup

- Hypnosis – Vigcup

- Love it When You Hate Me – 3 Versions (Hicclout, Vigcup, Dagcup)

- Honesty – Hicclegs

- Hiccup comes out to Gobber

- God Au drabbles (Starts with when lighting strikes) - hijack

- Finding Wounds – Hiccstrid runaway Hiccup Au 2

- Survival confessions / Hiccup tells Viggo about savages ship – Vigcup

- Heather period blood insanity – vent fic + Heather

- Projects – Hiccstrid

- Jane Doe / Heather’s soliloquy

- Borrower Au

- Venomcup Au drabbles

- Humiliation – Vigcup + Heather

- Thrall - Hiccup

- Snotlout and Small Hiccup drabbles

- Finding Trinkets – Hiccup and Toothless

- Toothless and small Hiccup

- At a Spa - Vigcup

- Making Up For Lost Time – Stoick and Hiccup

- Viggo and Hiccup + Dagur on treaty signing day

- Rock me in - Hijack / Hicclegs

- Mala/Dagur/Hiccup

- Lovefool – Vigcup + concerned Stoick

- Hard Hitting – Hicclout

- Constantly on the Mind – Hiccup

- Half Runaway Au – Vigcup

- Viggo and Hiccup in bed talking

- Sex Puzzles – Vigcup

- Forever suffering for other people - Hiccup

- Spying – Vigcup + Riders

- Ghost hunt – Riders

- Hiccup see’s ghosts

- Ride - Hiccup/Jack/Astrid

- Obstacle Courses – Zephyr and Hiccup

- Who is the hottest – Drunk Hiccup stupidity

- Survivor – Vigcup og day one fic

- When the smoke clears – Dagcup

- ‘What if I have that berserker insanity inside me?’ ‘I want that Berserker insanity inside me.’ – Dagcup + Heathstrid

- Panic attacks – Heathcup

- Paints - Nuffink and Hiccup

- Burns – Hiccup

- Tango – Vigcup

- Saviour – Heathstrid

- Expendable – Riders

- Ships and Anchors – Valka and Hiccup

[flynncorvus]

BWU Artos - Style Changes + A Poll to Decide A Speed-Paint

(TW: Hard on the eyes with coloring, but nothing too bad. Intense effects. A poll!)

•Picture Redraw (Found Pic on Pinterest) Fun fact about this one, I actually drew it the day before I went to his concert! I was hoping to get it signed, but there wasn’t a good time to do so. Now it’s just hanging around in my files. I really enjoy the playing with effects I did here, so that’s nice.

•Day After Day Fun fact about these three, they were drawn three days in a row! I don’t know what it is about this man, but something compels me to draw him. Anyway, here is when my style got more intense, but it tones down (proven by the drawings on my blog now) I wanted to make these into stickers, or at least the second one, but I got discouraged by my parents and didn’t do it.

•BWU but Cat (“Meow”) So I drew this when I was considering the light brushes, as one can see. Most recent drawing, and I was thinking about making this a short little GIF, when I realized that it would be too much work. Anyway, now I have this cat boy in my files, and I like looking at him when I’m overstimulated.

•~~—————•——————~~•

So these drawings are all drawings I’ve posted before, but I wanted to post them again with a little more explanation/backstory. Plus, I haven’t been posting in a while other than my WIP Thank You for 500 Animation, and I don’t think the drawing gods will be kind on me for a while.

I swear his music is amazing- the one artist that I’ll stick with forever (mostly because he saved my life like 2-3 times already). Depression is not fun, but listening to good music while burying your face in a bunch of pillows is! Pretty nice music, I recommend, go listen.

Onto the next topic, I was thinking on posting speed-paints for these drawings, but I don’t know which one to do first. Therefore, I need the broshimiskies to help decide!

Tagging mooties here because I can (Go check em out): @minkschasijasi, @frilled-cheese-sandwich, @clownpalette, @naughtynoodlestogo, @axlswifeandhusband, @liandir, @lotsofstupidshit, @anxiousandpessimistic, @lyxapple, @milky-beans, @gabrielsbubblegumbitch, @elusiverascal, @minimanuke, @xiewang05, @kevin-ibw, @rose-morose, @astralhsp

[colesabi]

20 Questions for Fic Authors

Thank you @silvercap for the tag!! :))

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

8

2. What is your AO3 wordcount?

49,895

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Resident Evil exclusively but do have a couple for Pokemon.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

I don’t have a whole bunch and most of mine are relatively new (posted within the last year)

I. When Time Runs Out with 155

II. Fragment with 70

III. I’d Remember You Fondly If You Hadn’t Betrayed Me with 34

IV. The After with 25

V. Under The Skin with 25

5. Do you respond to comments?

Absolutely! I love and cherish each comment I receive.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Haha umm okay probably, ‘I Will Haunt You Forever’ - MC straight up is sacrificed so… I’d put Fragment here if I had posted it with the alternate ending…. 👀

7. What is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I’m an angst queen so happiness is a relative term lol but I guess ‘When Time Runs Out’

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I hope I don’t ever. Haven’t gotten any yet.

9. Do you write smut? If so, which kind?

Yep. Not a whole heck of a lot. I try to keep it plot relevant except for my prompt based one-shots, those just are self indulgent. lol.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest crossover you’ve ever written?

Nope.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

God I hope not…

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope.

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

Nope.

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

So my very first is Serennedy but Chreon has overtaken that. I also enjoy Metaltango and Nivennedy. ClaireJill is awesome too. I’ll also scope out OT3’s in the form of Nivennedyfield and whatever the ship name is for Leon/Luis/Ada.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I don’t have too many WIPs because it stresses me out to be working on so many things at once but probably the Leon one-shot I have where he wakes up in a morgue. I keep thinking I’ll get back to it and will write a little every now and then but then lose interest.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I've gotten the most compliments/comments that my characterizations are good. I think my dialogue is pretty passable. Lol.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Probably just going for it and not fully fleshing the plot out. Sometimes I’ll find myself re-reading something after I’ve posted and think I should have done more there.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I’m mildly familiar with Spanish and can pass with French but I am too chicken to even attempt it in writing which is why I won’t write Luis… even though I would love to do a Serennedy fic. Also, his is more Castilian so that’s different than the Spanish I’m used too.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Very very first, probably Yu-Gi-Oh but I have no idea where those are on the internet. That was SO long ago.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

Fragment, no question. I put my heart and soul and a piece of me in that one.

Tagging- anyone else who wants to participate!

[liloinkoink]

told connie that for their clew sweep art they could pick any wip of mine they wanted and i’d either post or write some sentences for it. connie picked one of the lamplight offshoots, so i wrote a brief scene as a set up for the concept/renchanting dynamic

this one is essentially “dogwarts never falls and ren is never turned to fire, allowing martyn and his party visit the city while it still stands and ren still serves as the city’s god”

When Martyn arrives to their usual meeting spot, his friend is already there, sitting at the edge of a small fire. His hair is down tonight, flecks of something golden twisted into it in patches. Despite the fancy style, he’s dressed plainly, down to sloppily-rolled sleeves bearing his arms against the early-evening chill. He waves when he sees Martyn, a smile wide enough to close his eyes. Though Martyn can’t see the man’s tail hanging over the back of the log, he can hear the sound of it whipping up the leaves behind him.

“Hope you haven’t been waiting too long. Dinner ran later than I thought it would,” Martyn says, sitting down across from him, “I was worried you’d think I stood you up and go home.”

“No worries,” he says, “What did you do for dinner?”

“BigB took Grian, Tim, and I to one of his old favorites. Nice place, good food, and they had a woman there singing. I wanted to see if they had any slot open so I could sing anything, but I think the barkeep just assumed I’d been drinking before I came in.” Martyn pauses so his friend can laugh, soaking in the sound. When the man laughs, the whole clearing seems somehow brighter.

“Can I hear you sing?” his friend asks. Martyn hums, pretending to think it over.

“I dunno, that barkeep was pretty strict, but I think I could wear her down. I could have a gig there by the end of the week, if you want to come with me,” Martyn offers, but his friend’s face falls.

“Depends,” he says, and when he smiles, there’s something off about it, “Have you guessed my name yet?”

“Hm… I’ve got a good feeling about tonight,” Martyn says, “What letter am I at now? O? It’s not Oliver, is it? Owen? You don’t really look like an Owen.”

“It’s not either of those, no,” he says, one of his ears flicking. He rests one of his elbows on his knee, propping up his chin in his hand.

“I’m going to get it,” Martyn says, “Owen was close, though, wasn’t it?“

“I’m not telling you,” he says, smothering half of his expression behind his palm. For all his secrecy, he’s surprisingly easy to read. Martyn grins.

“Now what part of that was close…?” Martyn says, drumming his fingers on the log below him. “At this rate, I’ll definitely have it figured out before that big festival BigB was talking about, and then you basically have to go with us. You can’t avoid me forever.”

“There are a lot of names out there,” his friend says, noncommittal.

“Everyone in this city is so damn evasive. I still haven’t met the god, you know. Went to the temple again today and he wasn’t there,” Martyn complains.

“Oh?” his friend looks away, “Maybe he’s shy.”

“I doubt it. He’s supposed to be the city’s god, after all, he meets tons of people every day. I don’t see why he’d be avoiding some adventurer. I mean, I know I’m good looking and all, but— Don’t roll your eyes at me!”

His friend laughs without bothering to hide it.

[elfiaa]

Omg!! I haven’t posted in a while huh?? Anyways, this post will be an art dump (filler) while I recover from a writers block 🫶

A bunch of art will be W.I.P’s, art I’ve made for friends, doodles, etc

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Completed:

A character sheet of my I sort for Our Life: Always and Forever by GB Patch Games (MY REAL ONES SINCE DAY ONE ILY 😫🫶🫶)

Their visual novels are so well written, and you can definitely tell how well their games are made, so definitely check the, out!! In this drawing, my insert is a child, as there is only a demo of their new game released.

Cutieliscous yummy nerd boy blushing his brains out 😍‼️‼️ (Idia Shroud)

A drawing of Jack howl that I started months earlier that I’ve just recently finished(goals 🔥🔥)

WIP’S:

She’s a Genshin insert i made, I’m not sure what to do with her now that I don’t play the game much🙁 I named her Mari (ik, so original...!) and I designed her character to be about light and life. Her character corresponds with the next character, who im going to Name Ezra for the sake of not confusing anyone.

She’s a hydro polearm user, and is usually found in Sumeru and Liyue. She frequents any gardens or botanical areas found by Ezra, and is usually baking or doing other domestic things for her friends. Def the type to make her fighting really graceful tbh..She’s the more friendly one of the two, and is seen more frequently in public compared to the other.

Another genshin oc (😭😭). I made it that he was a sort of god or spirit of death. As l said before, his name is Ezra. I wanted him and Mari to appear as polar opposites, but actually be really close. Almost sort of a yin yang type of thing. He's more of a shut in, and can be found looking after the plants & wildlife for Mari while she is gone.

I Imagined he would be an electro swords user, but I never actually got into his character as much as I'd like to. As said before, Mari likes to bake) & is found baking for her friend frequently. His favorite dish of hers is the flan, and in return for making him food, he looks out for the animals & special plants she is especially fond of. He's never seen by the public, as some have said that seeing his true appearance drive even the purest souls mad (so edgy!!! & emo 😍!!)

He’s also naked in like all of the drawings I have of him since I never came up with a costume design for him or anything

My twisted prefect and Ruggie bc I’m in love with that furry and that furry only!!! (Tbh during this time was when my art was at its peak, but this one just wasn’t it..😣)

Doodles:

Mari + Lisa because she’s always been my favorite librarian lady 😘😘

I was being artsy don’t hold this against me

SOMEDAY,THIS COULD B THIS COULD B ORDINARYY😫😫!!

They’re real idc what you have to say…

This one’s for sure crappy so, I’m sorry for that :((

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anyways if you sat through and read silly comment after comment of this post then I’m glad, I’m happy when people enjoy my content, so likes comments and reposts are appreciated ^^❤️

With that, I hope you’ve had a good day today, and I hope you have one tomorrow, and the days following that!! Look out for a new post coming soon 👀👀

-Mari

[pikaminari]

Can yall help me out? I did this coloring of someone’s fanart forever ago (with permission) but I can’t find the original artist. I know they were on tumblr and I thought I had saved their original post in my drafts but I can’t find it. I’d really like to find the og artist for the lineart so I can credit them. It seems their watermark was cropped out at some point and I can’t find another version saved that has the watermark.

Also if anyone is wondering (I ask as if people even noticed) why I haven’t been posting my own colorings in a long time, it’s cause I lost them all lol. I got a new phone and all of my old digital art and colorings didn’t transfer, so I only have the ones that I had saved to post and they are scattered within over 8000 photos I have on my phone (the photos did transfer thank god) which also means I lost literally all of my wips, including personal projects that I’d spent over 40 hours on perfecting every single shade and shadow. I wish I could show you guys my progress on some of those but oopsies they’re fucking GONE. So that uh really demoralized me and sent me into art block for a few good months. The same also goes for fics, I primarily write in the notes app on my phone, which I also fucking lost 🙃 and I had three and a half chapters written at the time so I had to rewrite them from memory which was also incredibly demoralizing and sent me into writers block and just plain old procrastination because I’d rather write something new than rewrite something I’d already spent hours on writing and editing.

But on the bright side this phone can operate tumblr, unlike my old phone which would overheat in less than five minutes if I had the app open and crash.

Anyways…. Please help me find this artist!!!

[gallavichgeek]

Fic Writer Interview

Okay I finally filled this out. Thank you @suzy-queued and @ms-moonlight-inn for the tag.

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 

Good old 49….hmm I wonder what lucky number 50 could be 🤔

2. What’s your total AO3 word count? 771,726 👀

3. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Saving Grace (Which is now a published novel)

His Name was, Slave

The Ian to Mickey’s Cal

South Side Forever - this one surprised me

Sex Tape

4. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

All the time. I could easily leave an essay for a reply 🙈

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

Two Kisses.

And to be fair I told everyone how angsty it is and they all told me to post it on A03 (I did a poll) and well, I guess they weren’t expected THAT.

6. What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

Everything I write, besides Two Kisses, has a HE, the HAPPIEST, hmmm it would have to be either Hope or His Name was, Slave. Purely because they both have the boys going through a lot to get that happily ever after.

7. Do you write crossovers?

Not yet. Not sure if I would.

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Have I ever 🤣 I just laugh because the hate is mostly idiot trolls or immature readers that didn’t understand what I was writing or read the tags.

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

Do I ever 😈😈 , I once wrote a fic where Mickey f*cks himself with his own d*ck sooo, not much is off limits. (Except 3 ways/orgies. No go!)

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

God, I hope not.

11. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes, I’ve had a few of my “fill in” s11 fics.

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

With the wonderful @ms-moonlight-inn on our fic When You Call Unexpected

And I co-wrote The Ian to Mickey’s Cal, though the sequel I wrote by myself.

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

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

Oh I will. I have two sitting away that I know I’ll eventually post.

15. What are your writing strengths?

I’ve been told many times that my writing is like watching a movie.

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

Taking a small idea and making it much larger than it needs to be.

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

Don’t think I could trust myself to know it was accurate.

18. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Gallavich!

19. What’s a fandom/ship you haven’t written for yet but want to?

Nothing has resonated with me the way Gallavich has so no other ship has inspired me enough to want to write it.

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

That’s like asking someone to pick their favourite child. Or saying Cameron or Noel.

Hope has a very special place in my heart.

Obviously “When You Call Unexpected” for collab work

And I’m pretty proud of all the smut I wrote in OnlyFans

[feedthepheasants]

begged & borrowed time | gale dekarios -- ch.17 out now!

still reviewing ch.18 so it may be a moment but chapter 17 has just been uploaded. i've reposted the snippet i posted from wip wednesday below!

fic stats: 17 chapters [ongoing] | 52,737 words (im sorry) | gale x oc [druid f!tav]

~*~*~*~*~*~

wc: 1,098 | wynn [oc] and ~the vampire~ share a dance (and more!) at last light--!

“Well, foolish or not, I’d like to have a little bit of fun myself,” Astarion teases. “Wynn?” 

I’m taken aback, looking between the open floor and Astarion. “No,” I say quickly, shaking my head. 

“Darling, don’t make me beg,” Astarion whines. I look to Gale, who looks between Astarion and I, contemplating whether or not he should say something. I look back to Astarion, who now brandishes a pout. 

I shake my head, fighting a smile. “Fine,” I relinquish with a sigh. “One dance, and no more.” Astarion smirks at his victory, taking my hand from the table as opposed to offering his own. He throws a look I don’t see over his shoulder, presumably towards Gale, as we make our way to the floor. Though the music is still lively, the tempo begins to slow. Astarion makes a suave move of turning me, still keeping his grasp on my hand, then pulling me against his front, his other hand resting in the middle of my back. I feel my cheeks flush. 

“Oh, don’t be like that,” Astarion croons. 

“Like what?” I say as we sway to the melody. I allow him to lead, unsure in my footsteps. I glance around at some of the others dancing around us. 

“So worried about everything around us. So…nervous,” Astarion replies. He takes his own glance about the room, but he’s quick to turn his gaze back to me. “Just relax, why don’t you? Enjoy what might be the last night we’re alive.” I look down at the ground, missing a step and nearly stumbling, but Astarion’s strong hand at my back steadies me. We move slower than the others, due to the injuries to his legs, but I’m grateful. “You can’t ignore me forever, you know.” I still don’t look at him, my eyes now focused on Karlach, Wyll and the tiefling children on the other side of the room. “Wynn,” Astarion says again. “Gods, will you please–”

“Astarion, I–” 

“Look at me,” Astarion pushes, his voice low and so full of authority that I can’t help but face him. His cheeks appear a bit sunken in, and his skin is more grey in pallor than usual. Though his exhaustion is bared plain on his bruised face, his eyes are wholly focused on me. I don’t know that I’ve ever looked this intently into the vampire’s eyes; at first glance from a distance, they’re just red. But this close, they’re a swirl of shades from crimson to cherry to wine. The depth in them is haunting, but beautiful. “Well…now you look terrified. Entirely the opposite of my intentions.” 

A thought catches on an off-handed remark he’d made earlier at the table. I realize the intensity in his eyes isn’t just innate focus. It’s hunger. “Astarion, when did you last eat something?” He makes a face, and I fight the urge to roll my eyes. “When did you last drink?” 

Astarion clears his throat, shifting uncomfortably as he looks off to a corner of the room. “You know, it’s dreadfully impolite to ask one about their eating habits.” 

“Astarion,” I warn. 

“It’s–” He sighs, begrudgingly. “It’s been a little too long. As I said before, I haven’t been exactly lucky with catching anything of substance around here.” 

“Then drink from me,” I say without hesitation. He sucks in his cheeks as he thinks, clearly considering it, but hesitating. “Really, Astarion. We need all the strength we can muster if we’re going to win the fight against Ketheric.” 

Astarion’s eyes study my face for a moment, then flicker away to look at something behind me before glancing down at the ground. “Well…when you put it like that…” He turns us, and I’m looking across at Gale, who watches Astarion and I. 

“I–” Astarion looks down at me. “I know I usually fill a cup from my hand,” I begin to say. “But if it’s easier–” 

“Are you sure?” Astarion says quickly. 

I shrug. “I’m pretty sure every cup in this inn is already in hand,” I offer. “And I’m sure you probably prefer it from…you know…” 

Astarion seems taken aback for a moment. “Only…only if you’re sure,” he nods. 

I nod back, giving him a soft smile. “I trust you, Astarion.” One of his hands remains steady on my back, and the other moves to gently dust my braid off my shoulder. Our eyes meet one more time, and I nod again, reassuring Astarion that it’s okay. He lowers his lips to my neck. 

“It should only hurt for a moment,” I feel him whisper against my skin. “Just a pinch.” I close my eyes, readying myself. Astarion’s lips brush against the tender flesh of my neck, still healing from my wounds, and then I feel the sharp sting of his fangs as he bites into me. 

My eyes flash open only for a second before they fall closed again at the sensation of Astarion taking long pulls of blood straight from my veins. I feel it in my feet first, a strange tingling that trickles up past my ankles, rising higher and higher as my blood leaves my body. A wobble threatens my knees, and I fear I’m about to lose my balance until Astarion’s hand on my back pulls me tighter to him. I think we’re still dancing, swaying with the rest of the crowd to Alfira’s lilting voice. I lose the strength to hold out my arm, but Astarion gently tucks it against his chest, still enclosed in his long fingers. I feel another swell of blood leave my body and my head starts to float, so light and so warm that my fingers dig into his shoulders to maintain my balance. 

It could be seconds or hours that pass between us before I feel his fangs retreat from my skin. His breath is hot against my neck. “Wynn,” he breathes. I only swallow, unable to find words in the swimming sensation in my head. “Just…a bit more–” 

“I think you’re done here, Astarion,” a tight voice sounds next to us. I blink my eyes open to see Gale, a muscle flickering across his tensed jaw. He winces in discomfort, but stands his ground. Astarion raises his head from my neck, meeting Gale’s eyes. 

“I was wondering when you were going to cut in,” Astarion says with a lazy grin. My blood is smeared across his chin. He turns to look at me, tucking a loose piece of hair behind my ear. 

Gale clears his throat. “I won’t be cutting in,” Gale answers. “I’ll be getting Wynn to bed.”

[kuwdora]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Tagged by @deerna and @jawanaka !

How many works do you have on A03? 110 - but this would probably be +200 if I had been crossposting my fanvids there. I still remember when video embeds did not work on AO3 pages. But that was ages ago. And I’m terrible at crossposting. Especially when I have so many to crosspost at this point.

What's your total A03 word count? 280,783

What fandoms do you write for? In the past it was Stargate SG-1/Atlantis, Heroes and Sanctuary and a lovely romp with Being Human UK. Star Trek. These days I’m still on The Witcher, with the occasional fleeting non-witcher stuff I manage to finish.

What are your top five fics by kudos? I can see through you, The Witcher Netflix. My Geralt and Jaskier role reversal thing. More like a role inversion.

Surface Tension, The Witcher Netflix. soft very established relationship Geralt/Yen/Jaskier smut.

Papa’s Got a Brand New Suit, Star Trek: Deep Space 9. Julian/Garak PWP. From ye olde porn battle days. Learning Curve, The Witcher Netflix. Yen/Jaskier, post-season 2 soft feelings and sex with an emphasis on all of Yennefer's pain.

Heart Tap, The Witcher Netflix. Leshen Eskel(/Geralt). My first story about what it could be like for Eskel to live with his transformation into a monster. I'm actually surprised this is in my top 5 kudos considering how niche it is but man I love my tree boyfriend and have so many more thoughts about him that I haven't gotten out yet...

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? Yes! I try to respond to comments when I can. Sometimes it takes forever and sometimes I do forget to respond to comments but man I love rolling around in them.

What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? My angstiest endings are for fic that I haven’t finished or posted on AO3 yet for more of my witcher fixations. But for posted things?? Hmm. I do have an old Heroes fic called Code of Hammurabi that is Peter/Sylar time travel AU that’s particularly angsty and gave me the chance to rummage around in the way Peter would endure in a very very messy situation.

Oh, my Doctor Sleep ficlet is also pretty angsty. Danny reflecting on his time with Billy when Billy's ghost shows up. I'm smiling upside down is the name of that ficlet.

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Oh that’s probably my smutty fluffy thing for Being Human. PWP. Moon Mambo, Hal/Tom.

Do you get hate on fics? No, but I sense that’s only a matter of time before someone directs their hate at me.

Do you write smut? Yup.

Do you write crossovers? Yes, but not for a very long time. I have a “Ciri collects all the young girl protagonists from sci-fi/fantasy books for a group project” crossover idea but my focus is too scattered to get that going. I did start it with a Nona-meets-Ciri Locked Tomb/witcher crossover here: Call to Adventure.

Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not that I’m aware of. I think my stuff is far too niche and self-indulgent for that kind of thing but who knows. The internet is a smaller place these days but people seem to find new ways to steal. Alternatively: I did learn that someone submitted one of my Stargate SG-1 vids to a Creation Con fanvid contest that had prize money in it. That was very upsetting to learn well after the fact.

Have you ever had a fic translated? Nope.

Have you ever co-written a fic before? No, not co-written. But I do love rolling around with my beta and workshopping my fic into better shape and a lot of my stuff ends up way better as a result of my betas. And I also love doing the same with folks who ask me for beta. It’s a fun kind of collaboration.

What's your all-time favourite ship? Agh this one is so hard. Don’t make me pick just one. Aeryn/John from Farscape. Fraser/Ray(s) from due South. I don’t write a lot of book Yennefer/Geralt but they also are It for me.

What's the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Oh my god, definitely my TWN Leshkel canonical divergence AU thing. I have something like a whole season 2 (not a fix-it) outlined, with lots of stuff focusing on Ciri and Leshy Eskel, and Leshy Eskel with Triss. With more stuff about witcher-and-leshen biology and Wolf School disappearing, Kaer Morhen becoming a magical greenhouse where a mythical Swallow is rumored to visit every 6 years.

What are your writing strengths? Description, maybe characterizations. Theme and tone.

What are your writing weaknesses? Too much description, comma splices. Slow pacing.

Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic? I think it’s fun to do but it can be a lot to read and I definitely will overthink the writing and both the reading. If it suits the characterization and context clues within the text, I think that’s cool. But I think it’s fine to go without con-lang or other languages in fic. It’s just a matter of texture and color that adds to the scene, you know?

First fandom you wrote for? Stargate SG-1.

Favourite fic you've ever written? Ever??? It’s so hard to pick just one. Hang on, I got several of those ‘rec 5 of your favorite fics’ asks in my inbox. Lemme see if I can pick 5 for that.