#guys if we keep this up this silly little idea is going to develop an actual plot

[yourloveaton]

Hi! I saw all your AU art just recently and noticed you were saying we can ask you about it! (ITS SUCH AWESOME ART BTW I ADORE IT THE WAY YOU DRAW THEM IS AKAKAKKDMSMAMD!!!!)

I don’t have a specific question, but I do want to know more about it.

So can you just tell me anything about it?

Ahhh THANK YOU SO MUCH !!! I’m so happy that you liked my au art and wanna know more about it !! You have no idea how much joy that makes me feel 🥹💖

Well I can tell you some info and facts about the au, how I’m planning to develop it and all that !! It’s still fairly new and I did it out of nowhere at 3 am in the morning because I thought of my old ideas that I had years ago when undertale was on it’s prime but I was too young to bring ideas to life properly HAHAHA I hope my writing doesn’t bore you!

The au is pretty much founded on the idea of what if Sans also used to be a royal guard when he was younger? Boom. That’s where it spiralled and now I don’t know how revert back to who I was before because I ended up doodling a lot of undertale stuff along with the au, it didn’t help with the fact that my very good beloved friend kept encouraging me and feeding my inner demons of my undertale brainrot HAHAHA

I’m planning to develop the au into 2 parts: Before Undertale and after Undertale.

Before undertale is basically the events that happened before the plot of Undertale took place while after undertale is when they’re finally on the surface and the events that will happen on there! Sounds very generic and common I know, that’s why I’m going to try and develop it to be a bit different and hope that the au is not boring or developed horribly :’D It will take some time though since I know developing an au with a unique plot is gonna be very challenging, there are so many ways to mess it up and aghhh I really don’t wanna mess it up TT

Here are the main cast of the before undertale, this is a very OLD sketch that I made to figure out who’s there and how old they would be before I proceed to develop on the characters. So their heights might not be as accurate as it is in the sketch.

Also DISCLAIMER, Alphys and Undyne never met in before Undertale, so just know there’s no weird agenda going on here! They first met during Undertale plot when they’re both adults (Alphys 29, Undyne 23) so it’s all good!! I thought I needed to point that out because the age gap might seem alarming at first glance knowing they’re officially a couple 🙏 The before undertale plot begins at the age displayed on the sketch, and it ends after uhh.. 10 years? Yeah it’s ten years of events before the main undertale story starts!

I do want to portray the skele family with wholesome moments and you know, how great they are! Well that is before the downfall but we ain’t talking about that for now !! They’re just so beloved to me and I know they were such a sweet family AND WOULD HAVE VERY FUNNY MOMENTS IN WHICH I WANNA DRAW IT OUT!! So yeah, stay tuned for silly mini comics of them eheh

At first, I wanted Trickster (yes I’m calling his royal guard nickname, it’s like a whole different persona of his (alter ego???) where he’s energetic and acts very silly, whimsical, presenting puzzles and quizzes to his opponents sometimes but also can be very intimidating and prove that yeah, there’s a reason why he can be like that cuz it’s HIM) to be nothing more than a mischievous silly royal guard that wanted to keep causing trouble for Gaster but then it grew to be a bigger thing where he unintentionally became the symbol of hope and an entertainer for the whole underground before Trickster disappeared without a trace(?)

I’m still working on this whole concept so not everything is settled yet!! Well what I can also say about Trickster is that Alphys might be involved with the whole Trickster business too eheh

I’ve been practicing on drawing the characters so that I can draw better for this little au project of mine, I hope I can share my progress with you guys as things go on !!!

That’s the general stuff I’ve thought of so far, I hope you enjoy reading ! Thank you for reading and do feel free to ask whenever you have questions about the au or anything else :D✨✨✨✨

[benevolenterrancy]

Swords pining for each other's cultivator is my new favorite type of pining. Love your NieYao content! <3

I don't suppose we could get Baxia or Hensheng throwing a tantrum while Jin Guangyao / Nie Mingjue are away, leaving their owners to deal with the embarrassing aftermath?

Also, do you have any recs you'd recommend with these two?

this is the exact moment Nie Huaisang realised he was going to have to start meddling in his big brother's love life (con't: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

Hensheng, on the other hand, doesn't throw tantrums but WILL sulk...

[foldingfittedsheets]

One of my earlier jobs in life was at a little pizza place. I worked there when it was first starting up. It’s the only job I’ve ever been fired from and it was because a new manager came in and cleaned house. Because my state requires a reason to be fired he said I used too much pepperoni. So now on job applications I get to write that I was fired for “excessive use of pepperoni.” Never fails to get a laugh.

Anyway! For this story to make sense I’ve first got to set the stage. This pizza place started out as the Wild West of management but one of the original investors was super committed to work programs through the prison. We hired a ton of ex convicts and they were all, to a one, super hyped on Christianity. Like born again for the sole purpose of lauding Christ with their every breath.

I hadn’t been working there long but I’d definitely noticed the Jesus bug had gone around, and as I’ve never been religious at all I tried to steer clear of the topic for my own safety.

The day our story takes place, I was folding boxes. Anyone whose ever worked pizza can attest, there’s so much box folding. It’s something that happens at every lull, the pizza machine demands box folding on a grand and epic scale.

On my right folding his stack of boxes was a guy wider than he was tall, made of pure muscle, Corey. He was newer on staff, and due to a stutter he didn’t talk much. All I knew about him was that he got hired through the rehabilitation program and had done time.

On my left folding was a tall middle-aged woman who loved to yell at me, Cindy. She and I rubbed each other the wrong way and had nothing in common, leading to a tense working relationship.

We folded boxes in silence. This was really my best case scenario as a quiet Cindy was a Cindy not riding my ass, and Corey intimidated me.

But the weight of the silence grew too much for Cindy, who finally said, “I really want to go to bible school.”

I folded a box. I had less than no idea what bible school even was and I didn’t want to get sucked into a religious topic.

On my right Corey said, “W-why, Cindy?”

“Well, cause I believe what’s in the Bible, but I just don’t know it all.”

He nodded sagely to this.

Cindy continued, “And every time I sit down to read the Bible I get real sleepy. And I know it’s the devil.”

It’s so hard to convey her tone in written format. It was delivered with the emphasis and exasperation of an inevitable inconvenience. Like, I just know it’s the squirrels eating the bird seed.

I froze in place at this pronouncement. My only exposure to Lucifer was Neil Gaiman’s Sandman comics and I was trying to mentally twist into a frame of mind where The Morningstar cared enough about this one middle aged lady expanding her knowledge of the Bible that he followed her around cursing her with sleepiness when she picked it up.

I think I expected Corey to say, “Well that’s silly,” or something to acknowledge what a bizarre thing Cindy had just said.

Instead he said, “Yeah!” In a tone of complete agreement.

I didn’t look up. I tried to keep my face neutral at this development.

But something must have shown. Corey said, “You don’t believe in God?”

I shrugged casually and said, “If I did I wouldn’t talk about it at work.”

“C-cause it’s t-true. If y-you t-ry to r-read the B-bible on unsanctif-fied gr-round the d-devil m-makes you s-sleepy!”

I made a noncommittal sound and fled into the back room.

Over the next week it drove me crazy though. The logic of it wouldn’t leave me alone so finally one day when it was just Corey and I in front, and the restaurant was empty, I said, “Hey man, I have a question.”

He shrugged and listened.

“I really don’t mean this with any disrespect, I just genuinely want to know about the logistics-“

“J-ust ask.”

“Okay, so if Cindy gets tired when she reads any book, is it only the devil making her tired when it’s the Bible?”

His face went purple with fury and he yelled, “F-fuck you!” at my retreating back as I fled once more into the back room.

It will forever remain a mystery.

[angelicaether]

Redacted Appreciation

I’ve seen a few posts like this going around but it’s always in the context of “popularity” which just feels like a way to divide the community instead of uplifting each other. So instead of sharing who I think is “popular” in the community I figured I’d share some people who inspire me to create ^^

These are in no particular order and if you want a more comprehensive list of fic authors/artists to check out I recommend looking at @autisticempathydaemon 's recommendation lists.

@litlkim - One of my favorite Redacted people, a dear friend, and one of the OG lore keepers!

@ryoko-san - Eve is one of the first RA artists I ever came across and getting to see their OC development and AUs is so fun!

@zozo-01 - A wonderful fic author and all around lovely person, highly recommend

@spookybeandoodle - She has one of my favorite Alexis designs and is a joy to work with for comms!

@pinksparkl - Genuinely one of the nicest people I've ever met with some of the best fics to boot.

@deviarisa - Super sweet and super creative! Always love hearing her ideas!

@lovelylonerliterature - One of my favorite fic writers in the community, and always a pleasure to talk to!

@androgynouspenguinexpert - My dear beloved friend and a wonderful artist! I love seeing traditional work with her designs!

@gingerbreadmonsters - Another wonderful author, super unique ideas, always beautifully executed!

@frenchiefitzhere - Ms. Marie herself, one of the sweetest people I think I've ever met in my life! Her songs are always a delight!

@thefablefoxart - Another wonderful artist! Fable's David was the first design of him that I ever really latched onto!

@ejunkiet - A great fic writer, her Imperium fics are so so good!

@teafairywithabook - Another wonderful author, super creative, and a great person to talk with!

@mars-mell - Mars' Goobers live rent free in my brain all the time, I love seeing these little guys on my dash.

@belovedbow - Bow's style is so romantic and I love their work so so much. It's lovely!

@stardreamers25 - Super cute art! They have this adorable Sam/Darlin' piece that lives rent free in my mind!

@sylentnights - Another great artist, I adore their Ash design its so friggin cute!

@agentplutonium - If you want a good Milo fic, Pluto is your go to and it's tasty every time

@sainthowlzon - A wonderful artist, their listener icons are so fun and their scribble dolls are so cute!

@nortyourself - My dearest friend, a wonderful artist who's drawn such a fun array of characters, but their Hush design is top tier for me!

@replaycamera2 - The other OG lore keeper! Chloe is truly a foundational member of the community and she helps keep us canon compliant whenever we need help

@dominimoonbeam - One of my favorite fic authors, I adore their fics and I'm excited to dive in to their original works soon!

@mr-laveau - Super talented artist! Their stylized work is so fun and recognizable and I love their designs!

@penncilkid - Another dear friend, their rarepairs are so good and always have so much thought behind them + they're always ready to encourage other people's creativity!

@autisticempathydaemon - Lexi Sun is so creative, her match ups and busybee pairings are so fun and she's put together great rec lists for the community, also a delight to talk to!

@cashandprizes - Lexi Moon is one of the nicest, most creative people I've ever spoken to and she is so ready to help unleash my nonsense at any time

@your-local-mom-whore - She's about to make her fic debut and y'all don't want to miss it! Lucy is one of my most beloved friends and mutuals and always encourages me creatively!

@sincerelywhistler - Another super recognizable artist, Whistler's art is so fun and unique and they have a ton of really cool OCs!

@pycth - And last but not least, the illustrious Pycth who I have convinced to draw David more times than they would care to admit but it's so fun every time! Plus they jumped on my silly AU nonsense so fast and I love it.

This is by no means an entirely comprehensive list but these are the people that I've had the pleasure of talking to or interacting with and they're so lovely, I really recommend taking a look at their work! Like I said, most of the posts I've seen along these lines have been about popularity and I just don't think that's a great mindset to have. Instead we should be uplifting each other and sharing each other's work! Fandom isn't about popularity, it's about community!

[the-s1lly-corner]

Hello!

Could I request Masky and Tim and Brian and Hoodie, with having a crush on a reader who is slowly opening up to them more? Like maybe talking more around them and looking less tense, maybe even holding their hand or arm when they’re feeling anxious?

Thank you!

-🐨

Tim, Masky, Brian, and Hoodie developing a crush on the reader!

ooooo hoohoo this is going to be interesting me thinks! finally got a moment to sit down, so im going to knock out from requests yahoo! still taking requests lesgo! written as neither explicitly creepypasta or marble hornets, but tagged as both (break dances) tim and brians parts a little shorter than their counterparts, which.. was unintentional.. sobs..

TIM:

maybe its because i struggle with writing tim in love, but i think he would be tense around you. i was originally going to say awkward, but that doesnt seem quite right... he doesnt avoid you, or treat you any different... but you can tell that theres something on his mind... its going to be like pulling teeth trying to get him to say something. you do find him lingering around more than usual before leaving to do something, also tends to check in on you more than before... but that doesnt mean anything, right..? i mean you guys are still only friends, right??

MASKY:

so you know how i tend to write masky to.. not really be expressive and kind of just there watching the reader, like some sort of little guard dog of sorts who probably has claimed the life of at least on person? yeah take that idea and make it a little more intense because uh oh! hes now starting to have feelings for you and since theyre new there hasnt been time for them to mellow out and chill! do i think he would go the yandere route with you? no, but thats simply because the admin doesnt like the yandere trope in most cases. but do i think he would stick by closer to you and make excuses to hang around you? yes. does he come off as stalkerish if we are assuming the reader and masky dont actually have a relationship? oh yeah 100% but by default i write that you guys interact before any feelings are caught.. leaves you random stuff, like gifts.. or even "offerings" in your room to try to appeal to you and keep your attention. does get a little possessive about you, though

BRIAN:

i think out of the four hes the most open and loose with things, but thats only because of his more easy going and jokester nature (at least according to the silly wiki im reading and what i remember of him). basks in the fact that he can make you laugh and smile, i think thats something really important for him in general when it comes to you but i think it becomes an even bigger deal for him when he starts catching feelings for you. i also think out of the four hes the most likely to tell you about his feelings!

HOODIE:

more mellowed out version of masky, still carries some of brians boldness, i think. probably the third most likely to open up about his feelings, behind tim and before masky. also leaves you little gifts and such in your house somewhere for you to find, though i think he makes a game of it. masky leaves them in plain sight, while hoodie is going to make you look for it. more touchy than usual, tends to hold on longer when you guys share a hug or you pass something to him. also physically stands closer to you than before. the lingering stares. stuff like that. you probably think hes mad at you thanks to the mask and his intimidating height, but rest assured hes just trying to find the best opening to ask you to be his

[cassiachales]

Journal Entry Four [[And Grayson Hawthorne’s Lips] Yes, His Lips]

note: still can't belive the amount of love this silly little self-indulgent fanfic is getting. y'all are the reason i write <33 this chapter is also *slightly* longer than the others taglist: @f4iry-bell, @never-enough-novels, @reminiscentreader, @dahliawarner, @lanterns-and-daydreams

Saturday– It’s been four days since I last saw the reason I bought this journal. Xander’s been demanding to know what happened on Wednesday, and though I really want to tell him, I want to keep that moment to myself. A secret between me and a certain Hawthorne. I’m busy wondering what we are. Acquaintances? Friends? Something with bigger feelings? I don’t know and that keeps scaring me. ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

Sometimes, you wish you didn’t like guys who wear suits and have dry conversations.

But you can’t help it. 

Xander’s on the floor, his hand on his forehead. “Why didn’t the pebble work?”

“Wait, so you were the one who put the pebble there?”

“I thought it would work.” He moans. “It should’ve worked.”

You don’t tell him about how Grayson’s fingers were on your waist and how they still left a phantom touch.

You don’t tell Xander about what Grayson said.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── “How do you do this to me?” ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

And you can’t get his voice out of your head. Low and seductive and you can still feel the featherlight touch of his lips at the curve of your ear.

Grayson’s been ignoring you. When you arrived at Hawthorne House that morning, you’d seen him.

You’d almost said hi when he brushed past you as though he didn’t know you, and Xander had seen it.

“Someone give that guy a dose of happiness.” Jameson had said, his hands around Avery’s shoulders. 

And now, Xander was busy moping about how his attempts to set the two of you up had failed miserably.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── He asks me that question as though I know the answer.  The only answer I want to ask is: HOW DOES HE MAKE ME WANT HIM?? Yes, he’s attractive. Yes, he’s absolutely amazing. And yes, I might be a little bit in love with him. ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

You get up from the floor, patting Xander’s head. “I’m gonna go get you a drink.”

He groans. “I hate drinking.”

“You definitely look like you need one.”

“I do, actually.” Then he perks up, as though there’s another idea in his head.

“Xander, don’t you dare–”

“Grayson’s office has the best scotch and wine.” He begins, ignoring you. 

“I am not getting whiskey from his office.”

“Oh, you definitely are.”

“I am not.”

“Do you want a chance with him or not?”

Obviously, you do. But that doesn’t mean you’re going to go to Grayson Hawthorne’s office and get a drink from there.

“You are going to go get your own drink.” You say, crossing your arms. “I am not going to go into that prick’s office.”

“Gotta love how he developed from being a hot guy to a hot prick in your eyes.”

“Who said I still find him hot?”

You didn’t care if people called you petty. If Grayson would ignore you, you would ignore him.

Simple.

Xander gets up, nudging your side. “At least get the whiskey.”

“You’re a drunkard.”

He shrugs. 

You sigh.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── I am definitely the dumbest person on the planet for actually going to the office and getting the whiskey. ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

You walk down the corridors and go up staircases before you find his office.

You knock.

“Come in.” He says, and his voice sounds as though he’s half asleep.

You can’t help but wonder when, exactly, he’d actually slept through the night.

Opening the door, you step in, and when his eyes meet yours, they’re in surprise. 

He says your name.

And god, you love the way your name rolls off of his tongue.

“You’ve been ignoring me.” You whisper. You didn’t mean to talk to him about that, but the words escape you.

“Not on purpose.” He whispers back, getting up from his chair. The desk is littered with papers and he looked half-buried in them.

“It seemed like that when you just walked by me like I was nothing.”

“You could never be nothing, Not to me.” He says, and he walks towards you before his back straightens and he looks away.

Until then, until he looked away, you’d believed you could have actually been something to him.

Now?

You feel as though someone is going to take a hammer to your heart.

“How dare you say I could never be nothing and then look away? How dare you play with my heart?” You say. You’re fuming, you can’t believe that you were falling for a man like him.

Until you see him quiver. His eyes are mad and his whole body is shaking, like he wants to say something but the words just won’t come out.

He walks to you, your chests almost touching.

His hands are quivering when they’re on your arms, touching you with a featherlight touch, as though he can’t quite believe you’re real.

“Why can’t I think straight when you’re with me?” And then he says your name, and you’re falling.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── He looked at me like I was the only person alive. Like I was the reason his heart was beating. ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

“Whenever I look at you, I cannot think. Whenever I see you smile or laugh, I feel the sudden urge to join you. Whenever I hear your voice, I feel like I am a damned man and you are my only chance at salvation. How? How do you have such an effect on me? Why is it that you are the only person who crowds my mind? Why can't I help but want to be with you? Why do I want you? 

I don’t know. I don’t know why–or how–you consume my thoughts. I have never been able to give my heart but to you? When I am with you, I want to give you all of me. I’ve never been so unsure of my feelings, and then you came along.

I think I love you. I think I am hopelessly in love with you.” Your name rushes from his lips like it’s a prayer.

You can’t breathe.

His lips are nearing yours, and then they stop when they’re a finger’s breadth away. 

“I’m afraid that if I kiss you now, I’ll never feel like stopping.” He says, his voice in a low whisper. “But I’m also afraid that if I do not kiss you now, I’ll never be able to think of anything else.”

For two seconds, the two of you stay still.

Then: “Can I?”

The barest of nods.

His lips are on yours and you feel like you’re on fire.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── Oh, no, I’m not writing the rest of it down. I’m afraid someone will find this and read this journal and just because of that, I am not writing anymore. But I will say this: his lips are extremely soft and his kiss is like a secret that he never wishes to give away. ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

Journal Entry Three

[zolawffy]

Calling them out their name!

Ft. Zoro, Law, Crocodile, Doffy, Sanji, luffy.

Zoro

Zoro was literally minding his business and training. He was clearly trying to focus. But you decided to go bother him, the usual.

“Zozo!!” You call out to him. He sighed in annoyance because he heard you coming. However, he couldn’t stay mad because he hasn’t seen your pretty face all day. He took a long glance at the beauty before him before continuing his training.

“Hey.” He said positioning all 3 of his swords. You knew he was serious because he had his bandanna on.

“I’m bored we should go out today before its too late..” you say eyeing him. He still didn’t even look your way. So you got a little upset. He just ignored you.

“Zo.” You said firmly.

“What is it Dammit, I’m a little busy here woman.” He said lifting the dumbbells off of his swords. You decided to do something very crazy to get his attention.

“Why you gotta be a bitch all the time?” You said resting your head against your hand. Oh girl you thought he didn’t hear that? You heard the dumbbells drop and his swords did too.

That mf was caught ALLLLLL THE WAYYYY off guard. You seen a vein or two pop through his forehead. He was mumbling and cursing under his breath, he was mad as hell. He took his weights and trained elsewhere.

poor zo.. 💔 dont worry you guys made up.

Law

Law was just sitting down on the couch. Earlier, he’d act like it was such a task to swap places with the pile of clothes, making it easier to get the clothes into the correct room.

You were mad at him because you had to do it all by yourself. However, you weren’t that mad when you developed one of your silly plans in your head.

You never called Law out his name before. But the way he’s looking at you while acting lazy, had you on boiling point.

“You’re a bitch sometimes, law.” You said before his eyes shot open. He was appalled too. He rarely ever heard that word come out of your mouth anyway.

“M’ sorry mama.. you don’t have to call me names. I’ll make it up to you.” He said motioning to the cushion beside him.

Law was too sweet and too chill to actually react badly. He doesn’t like that you called him a bitch but he understands why you did it. Though it wasn’t right. He still love you thoughh.

Crocodile

Ma’am i think you’ve lost your mind.. 🧠 here ya go.

Crocodile was sitting in his office working away, the usual. And it was toooo quiet. He looked at his watch snd calculated that you should be walking in any minute now.

That’s when you came into his office.

“There you are, Sweet girl..” he said signing his papers.

“Hi croc. You said you’d take me shopping today.” You smiled as you leaned onto his desk. Your favorite store had new clothes come in and you heard its selling fast. So croc promised to take you there.

“Did i now?” He said signing away. You started to pout and doubt he was even listening to you. Which he wasn’t. You sighed aloud.

“Yes and the clothes are gonna sell out before we get there.” You said pouting.

“Cheer up sweetheart. My work ran a bit overtime today. I still have a lot to d—“

“You Dick head! You’re a liar too.”

He laughed then removed his cigar and blew his smoke. “Is that what i am, sweet girl? Sweet girls don’t use that language.” He said firmly.

You were mad. So so mad. So you decided to keep going.

“Ughh you stupid fucker—!” You yelled at him. But he just stared at you. He didn’t laugh this time.. i think you done it.

“That mouth is gonna get you in trouble, girl.” He stood up.

Lets just sayyy you wont call him out of his name again and he madd sure of it.. you gonna need a wheelchair maam, take one and go. 🦽🦽🦽

Doflamingo

Listen here ma’am, NOT A GOOD IDEA!!!

You were talking to your friend, (one of doffy’s servants) and you both were talking about Doffy.

Doffy was sitting at the stool at the kitchen island reading a newspaper about himself. So he wasn’t paying attention to you guys.

“He can be a bit ruthless sometimes, i dont know hoe you do it..” she said looking at you with sympathy.

“I mean yeah you’re right he is a bitch sometimes.” You shrugged. You heard a grunt and you turned towards him.

“Oh really.”

“Yes really and you know that.”

“Have you forgotten respect already, darling?” He said getting to eye level with you.

Yeaaah that night you definitely got a little punishment. And yes he did use his strings.. i got a lil lazy for this one but i might add moree.

Sanji

Sanji is too precious to do anything to hurt you. However if you called him out his name, he would feel like he did something horrible.

So he would make you a variety of foods, lights some candles, give you a bath, massage you, PAINT YOUR TOES, AND GIVE YOU SOME WINEEEEE. and maybe even some fun time after. Just to make up for his guilt.

Luffy

Luffy— of course he did something. He’s always doing some.

He ate ALL YOUR DAMN FOOD THAT YOU WERE SAVING!! what more do you have to do.. you wrote your name on the box and he still doesn’t listen.

He ate all the food and you called him s bitch. He just laughed and said the food was good. Poor luf luf doesn’t care or doesn’t know what it means.

[gachagon]

I watched the newest episode of The Amazing Digital Circus, and yeah I can already tell this is gonna be a great show. I think it manages to handle both its comedy and horror pretty well without one being less effective than the other.

The pilot was great, but I really like that episode 2 shows us a better picture of the characters than what we already thought about them. I think the most surprising character who's development was made really clear was Pomni.

In the pilot she's naturally apathetic and also freaking out about everything, and the promo material with her included seems to follow that same track record, but here in this episode Pomni does what Ragatha's been trying to do with her the whole time! She consoles this cute little gummy gator guy about his own existence and stuff in a really mature way that we just haven't seen Pomni do before.

This episode is really about the fear of not belonging or having an impact on other people. The beginning nightmare sequence where Pomni imagines herself being abstracted versus the end with Kaufmo's funeral really shows that what she's most afraid of is that she ultimately won't have a place here at all, even if being there terrifies her.

I think Pomni has come to terms with the idea that she won't be able to leave or find an exit right away, but the fear of not fitting into her role as the Jester and doing the same song and dance for eternity eats away at her.

The funeral is a really good coping skill for all of the people in the Circus (minus Jax who just didn't go to the funeral at all) because it eases the fear of not remembering any of the people you spent all that time with, but also eases the fear of being forgotten.

I can imagine the idea of Gummigoo not remembering Pomni but still being out there "Out of bounds" is sad, but unlike the people in the circus he can always come back and in a weird ironic twist always has a place in the world he's in. And even if he doesn't remember Pomni, she'll always remember him and that's the really important part.

Also can I just say that I love this little crocodile/gator man T_T He showed up with such a silly concept but I think he really added a lot to the episode. It makes me wonder what would've happened if he really was allowed to stay in the circus despite not being real.

The episode has a lot of themes about being aware of your own mortality and why you're even alive and what purpose you serve. And in the end, for Gummi he was able to stomach the truth of his own existence with the help of Pomni, but he decided to just keep it a secret from everyone else up above.

After he gets "poofed" its safe to say he'll always still exist just not in the way Pomni saw him. And whenever Cain wants to use him for a future quest, he'll still have the same old memories of his friends and his "sick mom" who needs syrup, but the knowledge of Pomni and being Out of Bounds will not be there.

Is it better that he doesn't know what's out there? That his mother isn't actually real, and that he and everyone he knows is just 1's and 0's in a computer? Or is it better if he does know and is able to cope with that reality? Likewise, should Pomni really even worry about trying to leave this world she's been forcefully thrust into, or should she just go with the flow and accept her place as the Jester in the circus?

Truly an "Ignorance is Bliss" kind of story. We already know from this episode alone that the one thing Jax craves is chaos but that's not because he's fallen in line with being a rabbit in the game or because he wants to leave.

I think Jax is an excellent parallel to Pomni in this episode. Where Pomni tries to peacefully cope with her place in the circus and possibly coexist with the world around her, Jax wants to do nothing but cause as much disruptions as possible. Jax has accepted long ago that he's not leaving, but instead of losing his mind over it he's just become an incredibly selfish person who only wants to take his entertainment from other people. He uses his veneer as the trickster rabbit to cause as much problems in their journey's as possible all so he himself won't go crazy.

And even though in the end he's not there to witness what happens to the candy people, I think just having something new to think about is enough for him in a weird way. While Pomni struggles with feeling like she belongs, Jax has been there for a long time and his biggest struggle is "disappointment". It's being so mind numbingly bored that you forget yourself.

This is leading me to believe that what causes people to abstract isn't finding the exit or thinking about the exit, but that it's more personal than that. Abstraction seems to be when someone really truly breaks under the pressure of being in the circus itself. All of the members of the circus seem to cope with being in the circus in different ways. For Gangle it's drawing and art, for Ragatha it's throwing herself into all of the journey's and just immersing herself as an actual "ragdoll" who's going on quirky adventures, Pomni just potentially found her way of coping which could be trying to just help other people with their own baggage and being an ear to listen to, and Kinger has by all means lost his marbles so as long as he's not thinking about how hard it is being in the circus he's fine.

I think Zooble's is to just not go on the adventure's at all or maybe we just haven't seen how they cope yet. I'm guessing that Kaufmo didn't really have a coping skill, either that or it became too much and he abstracted. I think his obsession with finding an exit had something less to do with the exit itself making him go insane, and more about the possibility of him remembering something he wasn't supposed to.

He probably regained his memory in some way and that was what led him down the spiral into abstraction, looking for a way out in any way he could.

[igglemouse]

What's Going On In The Iggleverse?!

Hi! Hello there! So I know one of the concerns for my legacy is it can be a lot! I always want to emphasize for anyone that goes "Oooh this looks cool but it's too late in!" it is not! NEVAR! Just jump in and if you are ever confused I'll be happy to answer any questions!

So what is this post?! I guess this is just a weekly wrap up post to help everyone keep up with things and also just a chance to summarize things!

So let us start!

We start with Gracelyn as she was mostly featured last week and while it is only her 2nd episode there is a lot going on in her story! Right now, she seems to have a love interest that is tied to her destiny in some form or fashion? Is it love or is it something else?! Well, they certainly are digging on each other what ever it is!

It helps that Niklas, the man who seems to be her fated lover, seems to do everything right! He's happy to help her do chores even when he doesn't live with her...yet!

But Gracelyn has other worries. For instance, her dear friend, Valerie Van Vilet, AKA Triple V, AKA V, AKA Vee, AKA VVV...invites her out to witness some magical ritual or some other crazy event. Gracelyn, a spellcaster not allowed to practice magic, is eager to go see what's going on...

And once there she not only witnesses her friend chanting and practicing some form of magic and she also meets a mysterious robed figure named Alana Thayer. Alana claims to be from the Matlock Society, a ermmm...well, club, that is dedicated to practicing alternate forms of magic. It's also a club named after Gracelyn's family, she is Gracelyn Matlock, after all.

She really isn't sure what to make of the whole thing just that it is someway connected to her. It is not the last time we will hear from the Matlock Society that is for sure! She's also dealing with being watched by The Realm itself AAAND by a vampire as well. She has a lot going on and Episode 3, titled Spellbound, is not too far away!

As for Frida, who is currently expecting, she's not dealing with vampires or sorcery or anything of the sort but that doesn't mean things are all peachy!

Her friend, Irene, is hoping to start her own restaurant but the problem is she's quite broke. She's been searching for an investor, someone to foot the bill while she runs the place and hopes that Frida will help but she's been having issues with finding one that the last guy she met seemed more interested in investing INTO her and not into her business...

But as for Frida?! She's happily expecting and you know what...we might meet a future heir very very soon! I'm excited, now only if she could get Pascal excited about it too...

In other Iggleverse news here is a banner you will be seeing soon as Zer will be making her out of this world debut! Every heir has a theme and vibe and hers is basically goofiness. The banner kind of gives me a Nickelodeon vibe and maybe she's like a once little green alien that was obsessed with taking over the world...

BUT that's not all...

There will indeed be a 4th heir, an idea I've thought of for a while and one that I feel like is necessary. One, because I want to do it and two...because I want to do it! One thing is I really enjoy playing normal sims too and while Gracelyn's story and vibe will be a bit darker and more twisted...and Zer's will be silly and stuff..I'd like another normal sim like Frida to balance things out. It will also assure that when there is a heir vote I can still do the old rules of I pick one heir and the rest you all vote for! Also yes, the heir is a she. I'm biased, I like playing women!

This heir is in Early Development though and I'm sure once I start playing them I'll have a banner and posts for it all!

Any ways! This kind of weekly wrap up was fun to do so expect more of it!

[princesstarfire1234]

Random ideas for a hypothetical Scavengers (mini) series

So I made a google doc a few nights ago and filled it with random ass ideas for how a cartoony likely-episodic Scavengers series could go... It was around the same time I wanted to get to animating a Scavs-related thing but no promises there or to this ever becoming more than rambles

Anyways... heres an unorganized collection of my silly thoughts:

POST-WAR!! War’s over, Autobot-Decepticon alliance is great and dandy for everyone except of course the folks who got left behind and forgotten by respective High Commands and have had to make their own dealings in space to get thru life and shit; focusing on the daily struggles of your average low of the low genericons/bots, the Scavengers

Optimus and Megatron are definitely married (trust); we go the IDW MTMTE route but instead of Megs off on a quest with Roddy and gang, he’s with Optimus and they both publicly surrender/call truce or whatever on-video and agree to help repair cybertron instead of squabbling, sending a message to all cybertronians taking refuge amongst the stars blah blah blah its time to go home (pilot should open with this i think, set the worldview up straight from the beginning)

It could either be set in the slums of like some populated city or smthn, like maybe Dead End of Kaon or smthn OR… now consider… Set NOT on Cybertron, literally anywhere BUT Cybertron; the Scavs wander space, at least every few episodes or so would be set in a different planet or smthn, having them do their usual shenanigans and (failing) their supply/scavenging runs, as well as the occasional star station too for like a pit stop i guess; there’d be atleast one episode where they go to earth probably

Main characters (scavs duh, but lemme write some shit down here rq):

Krok - the dutiful, ever-patient (one can of engex away from losing it) leader of the Scavengers; he’s the one that usually has the single functioning brain cell

Crankcase - the skillful pilot of the crew’s beloved Decepticon-hijacked Autobot vessel, always in a sour mood, think TFA Ratchet but up the old man crankiness to 500; really good at fixing things (mechanic)

Spinister - a little stupid… all the stupid actually… but he’s got things rattling in there too, don’t worry! The Scavengers’ medic; would probably be Cybertron’s greatest surgeon if it weren’t for everything else

Fulcrum - Defunct?? Rejected?? Something-class Decepticon, a bit of a coward, found in a dumpster by Misfire; he’s a technician too! Score!

Misfire - ideas are about as good as his aim (which is not at all); the really really talkative and social one; rejected Rainmaker/Seeker (bro didnt pass Decepticon Academy, rip)

Additional members that get added to the crew later on!

Grimlock - resident Dinobot and the only Autobot on the crew (for now or smthn idk), thinking of either having them find him during the pilot episode or a bit later on?; i think Krok would definitely have a thing where he’s super wary of him until a big character development episode thing happens like in MTMTE #46

Nickel - hmmm idk yet.. Maybe a former high ranking decepticon officer whose position has been stripped from her the more fucked up and bad the faction ended up becoming because she was very vocal about its problems til the current day? (I just don’t think her being connected to the DJD would work here womp womp)

Flywheels (unsure) - some mech that tagged along with them during one random shenanigans episode

MP3 / or some other new human character (unsure) - they have an episode where they go to Earth and befriend silly human… may or may not keep them, maybe they could be an honorary Scavenger but only appears sometimes or stays on Earth but keeps in touch with the Scavs (look I just think having a human on the crew would be kinda silly and funky for the dynamic)

Meanies to the crew (weekly bad guy):

Novastorm - leader of the Rainmakers; has beef with Misfire

Skullcruncher- Krok hates his guts; he’s the TFA Sentinel to Krok’s TFA Prime, probably served together on like whatever the equivalent of a Warworld ship would be in this

Raiders??? Space pirates??? Idk but I’d def make em be related to Spinister’s past or smthn (this was inspired by some fanfic I read a bit ago, I think Fool’s Paradise on AO3)

Needlenose? (Spin trusted him, betrayed copter boy :((( or smthn)

Scorponok - probably the biggest threat of the show (ofc not in universe), but he’d be like IDW Scorponok in that one Scavs issue, all kinda silly and dramatic but def a threat, he kinda reminds me of Dino/BW Megatron a bit

DJD (absolutely unsure, maybe a passing mention or not at all) - would probably have to sillify them a bit (a lot, idk how the hell Cyberverse managed it with Tarn)...

There's more in the doc but they're not fully formed ideas yet... My countless hours scrolling the Scavengers tags on tumblr have also given me ideas for certain kinds of episodes that could happen but again, nothing concretely written down yet

If I have the energy or remember this, I'm def gonna be updating it with some more ideas cuz whether this becomes real or not, its fun!! Maybe I could write it as a fic one day or if someones wants to idk

Okay bai bai for now, I gotta eep 👋

[oneforblu]

skip and loafer episode 12

Skip and Loafer is one of my favorite mangas. It's a beautiful story about high schoolers growing up and their relationships with one another. I had been wanting to reread the manga for a while, but I realized I had never actually watched the anime! So, I finally decided to watch it, and I was blown away.

Episode 12 was a perfect season finale, and the entire season blew me away. From the beginning, we watched as Mitsumi adjusted to life in the city by making new friends and joining the student council.

One of her best friendships is with Shima Sousuke, a popular, handsome boy. What I love about episode 12 is that we see Shima's character arc hit its climax. Throughout the show, he is a laid-back guy. However, his internal conflict has to do with his constant need to perform for validation.

While Mitsumi is sure of her future, Shima doesn't have a clue what he wants to do because he has always done what others have asked of him. Of all the people in his life, Mitsumi is one of the few who knows about Shima's child-acting phase. She's pretty perceptive when it comes to Shima. Even when many others can't tell Shima is having a difficult time, she can see through his facade.

This scene may look silly initially, but it's Mitsumi's attempt at protecting Shima.

Ririka, Shima's childhood actress friend, went through a rough patch that she blames on Shima. Since Shima believes he is at fault, he is always at her beck and call despite feeling uncomfortable. At this point in the episode, Mitsumi realizes Ririka purposefully sent Shima's mom away. Despite Mitsumi having some moments where she can't read a room, in this instance, Mitsumi knows that ririka means trouble.

The only way Mitsumi can think of warding off Ririka is to strike a pose similar to that of an anteater. It's silly, but it's a testament to Mitsumi's character. She isn't afraid to look weird if it means she can help someone. Throughout the season, Mitsumi was always making little messes, such as throwing up during the assembly and getting called the "big boss" of the school. Despite these awkward moments, Mitsumi doesn't let this get her down; she gets back up and keeps moving forward.

Shima is aware of Mitsumi's resilience. Unlike himself, Mitsumi isn't afraid of messing up. Shima finds himself drawn to her. Out of all the people he's met, Mitsumi is the one that he finds himself reaching out to.

During the season finale, Shima has a monologue that is one of my favorite moments in the entire manga. It's a testament to his character and the foundation of his future development.

Shima's constant need to perform has forced him to believe his OWN ideas and feelings don't matter

Since childhood, he has thought acting would be a way to make his mother happy. Although he hasn't worked since childhood, he has held onto that mentality his whole life. If he gives people what they want, they'll be happy, even if it costs Shima happiness.

Shima is tough on himself despite his "laidback" appearance. He believes his words and actions have no meaning and that he has no purpose if he isn't "performing" for someone else. He even calls Mitsumi and Kanechika "dazzling" and says that they're so far away from him. He doesn't see himself as someone who can fearlessly do what they want.

Although Shima clearly admires Mitsumi, it isn't until his big performance that he realizes what many of his feelings boil down to.

"I know this feeling. It's envy."

During his performance, he engages in an inner dialogue that circles around the idea that Shima doesn't know himself. Did he want his mom there to watch him perform? Does he want to keep acting? Was he glad she didn't stay? Is his lack of confidence the reason he is uncomfortable around girls? "Does it mean I can act if it's for myself?"

At the end of the day, Shima does not know who he is or what he wants. Unlike Mitsumi and Kanechika, who go 100% into everything they do and are genuinely happy about their choices, Shima has no clue what he finds joy in.

"You'll never be one of them."

It's a simple quote, but this is what leads Shima to understand his jealousy. He has separated himself from those he finds resilient, and despite believing he has to put on an act to make others happy, Shima is envious of those who can live freely.

Yes, this way of living may have been "easy" for Shima and may have even made many people happy, but it doesn't work anymore. After meeting someone like Mitsumi, he sees someone who isn't afraid to "get her hands dirty." Even Kanechika, who has succeeded with his plays, wouldn't have been able to get to this point without doing a few awful projects.

To find success, you need to be willing to make a mess and fall a few times. Although finding success is significant and unique, the most important thing is finding what you love and doing all you can to achieve your dream. This is why Mitsumi and Kanechika are so resilient. They understand there will be troubles along the way, but no problem is too big if it means they can accomplish their goals.

Shima takes a step forward to a new way of living by being vulnerable with Ririka.

Shima feels guilty about what happened with Ririka from the beginning, but we see him gather the courage to finally form a boundary. He isn't completely cutting himself off because he genuinely cares about her, but he tells her he can't keep following her down this destructive path.

I can not stress enough how important this moment is. He had spent so long doing what people expected of him because he believed it was the right choice. He was a people pleaser to a fault, but now he wants more for himself.

"I enjoy this school."

This is one of the rare moments when Shima is honest about his feelings, especially when he loves something. He loves his school, he loves acting, and he loves his friends, and he isn’t going to keep being the same person who was once passive about everything.

This scene is just so impactful. Following his inner monologue, where he talks about doing what others want and being jealous, now he can unapologetically say what he feels. This entire sequence is just so perfect.

I may be incredibly biased since Shima is one of my favorite characters, but this episode was one of the best-written episodes I have seen. It was a perfect way to end the season, with Shima finally stepping forward to become his own person.

Of course, he'll have moments when he's clumsy, but the important thing is that Shima is ensuring that he has a chance to find himself.

Towards the end of the episode, we get a cute moment between Shima and Mitsumi, which leaves her thinking, "But today, he seems almost like...a kid?"

I just love these last few moments of the episode. The little interaction between Shima and Mitsumi was too cute and such a nice touch to the season finale.

What I love the most about this scene is that Mitsumi notices that Shima has a more childlike air. It's almost like all that weight that was piling up throughout the season is finally gone, leaving Shima with the chance to spend his high school days comfortably.

All in all, this episode was the perfect season finale! The writing, the voice acting, the animation—everything was just so well done. It truly brought the story to life.

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There aren't enough words to describe how much I loved this episode, but I hope this post at least gave insight into why I love this series so much. Shima's growth is one of the best parts of this series, and this episode begins a new chapter in his life.

I love Shima and Mitsumi so much. Skip and Loafer is one of the best pieces of media I have ever read, and it will always have a strong impact on my life.

[dr-docktor]

About Floppy Disk Curt... So, do you have some more plot made for this au? Sorry if you made a post and I missed it, I just mean - how does Owen realize that Curt is (semi) sentient? What does he do? How sentient is Curt, actually? What does he remember? And how much can he feel? Does their codependence get worse?

HAHAHA I'M SO GLAD YOU ASKED. I sort of expanded on some of the lore in some previous asks but none of it is super organized so I can go over it real quick! I'm still developing a lot of it so if things don't make a ton of sense, I'm working on fixing that lol. First off, I sort of shifted the time period around to be closer to the 90's to better fit the technology, aesthetics, and the rise in popularity of mascot-y desktop assistants.

Owen kills Curt during the staircase scene and despite what he tells himself and his coworkers. He regrets it. He regrets it so god damned much. There's no one to feel so strongly about anymore, whether it be love or seething hatred. He just feels empty.

Meanwhile, Chimera retrieved Curt's corpse and uploaded his consciousness into a computer with the hopes of getting what little he knows about the inner workings of A.S.S. out of him. (don't ask how this is possible, uhhhh silly sci-fi shenanigans I guess)

Of course, he's not cooperative. So Chimera opts to do the totally sane and not evil thing by separating himself from his memories of being human. His ambitions, his relationships, everything except for what Chimera needs. They can't seem to find a way to outright delete the memories for good (I'll probably either rework this part or figure out why they can't outright delete them) but what they can do is try and build up walls of restrictions to prevent him from accessing them. So for a a little while he's just this blank slate spitting out what little information he knows about A.S.S. Mostly useless.

Until Chimera gets an idea.

With the rise of a new trend comes the opportunity for PROFIT. This one being the rise of household computers and mascot-y desktop assistants to help the average user learn how to use a computer.

But Chimera wants to take it a step further. They are the future, after all. They want a desk top assistant that's incredibly life-like. Something that the user can have a genuine conversation with (like an incredibly early chatbot). This project is also absolutely meant to be spy-ware. 1000%. No way its not.

They call the project the 'Beta Anatomy Simulacrum Technology for Research and Development'. Or B.A.S.T.R.D for short! (I had to STRETCH to make that acronym work lmao)

Rather than start this from scratch, the project head (The name I'm going with right now is Harper Royale) has the brilliant thought of "well, what's more life-like than an actual human consciousness in a computer that we have collecting dust somewhere in the tech labs? It's already a husk we just add some code to it and bam it's ready!"

So they take the empty husk of digital curt mega and fix it up a little. Royale thinks its a good idea to give a miniscule amount of his humanity back to him. Namely curiosity (so he can learn things) and a basic understanding of how to have a functional conversation with people. Nearly everything else, like the cheery personality and character model, is all added in by the developers.

The good news is the projects going great! Employees within Chimera are finding the little guy really helpful and entertaining. Employees nickname him DC as a reference to his knowledge on A.S.S. Like their own personal informant inside DC (as in the capital of the us where a lot of government buildings and information is stored)

The bad news? Curiosity. Because now he wants to know why the sad looking British guy from one of the first few rounds of test trials keeps calling him Curt.

Tt spirals into this terrible loop of DC starting to put stuff together, never quite reaching the conclusion that he was a living person once (much less the importance of one Owen Carvour) before the employees catch on to what he's doing and reset him from square one. Over and Over and Over again. The only frame of reference that DC has are these hidden notes he leaves himself during each loop.

Eventually the higher-ups at Chimera realize that the cost of having to go through the complicated process of resetting DC the moment they figure out that he's gained a little sentience and then run through test trials AGAIN simply outweighs the potential profit. So they move to shut down the project, much to Royale's dismay.

The higher-ups joke that Carvour should be the one to do the honors, given everything between him and Curt. And he's like "ok yeah I'll do it" and they're like "we were joking but you've given us zero reason to doubt you so have fun killing the simulacrum of your former closest friend, bestie"

Owen, of course, decides to go behind everyone's backs and download the one and only existing copy of the B.A.S.T.R.D program onto his personal computer. At this point, Owen has no clue about DC slowly regaining his sentience if left unchecked and literally only did it because he has problems about processing the fact that he killed Curt that he refuses to confront. (what a normal guy)

So slowly, having been freed from this loop of resets, DC slowly begins to put together the pieces. He doesn't know how exactly Owen may or may not be involved in any of this, but he keeps most of this growing autonomy a secret for safety reasons. Just in case Owen is decidedly someone not to be trusted and turns him in.

DC, however, will test still the waters by subtly bringing up memories that he knows are somehow important to either him or Owen and then gauging his reaction. Doing his damn best to put together context clues.

Admittedly I don't have anything beyond this yet. I'm still working on Owen's reactions to all of this and also how the technology works. But I hope this answers at least some of your questions!

[essential-oils234]

Writing 101: Tips and tricks for experienced authors to novice ones, or just a little reading for anyone who wants to learn something new.

Have you ever gotten into a slump where writing feels like a failed career and nothing you write ever seems to turn out well? (I know I have). Maybe you're itching to write something, it's been so long since you've looked at your notebooks of inspiration or google docs of madness. Maybe you just don't know where to start, and it feels like you've failed before you even begun.

Well, I have a few tips that just might remedy that!

(I'm in no way an experienced writer. I've read a lot of books, watched a lot of character analyses on Youtube, but I'm only at the start of my writing journey. So please don't take this to be expert advice and don't feel disheartened if my methods don't work for you. Everyone has a unique style of writing, and it's only through trial-and-error that you can really begin to find yours too.)

So, without further ado, here are some tips and tricks that helped me organize my thoughts and plan out chapters, develop my characters, and resist the call of procrastination.

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"What do I want from this story?"

It's a question that sounds elusively simple, but it's one that's more tricky to answer. For me, at least, it's hard to pinpoint a few ideas that manage to encapsulate what I want the readers to feel or understand from my story. It's even harder when I try to summarize my thoughts into broad themes/ideas, such as love, compassion, hard work, etc.

I usually start a story on the basis of something really small, and then I work out from there. For example, I'm currently working on a Genshin Impact fic that I only started writing after watching an animatic. An animatic. (The link will be at the end of this post, if you guys want to check it out and show some love to the creator.)

A whole freaking story started on the basis of an animatic that is 1 minute and 41 seconds long. It's kinda crazy how that worked out. But in a way, it makes sense. The biggest creations start from small, simple ideas that slowly grow over time.

What I'm trying to say is: don't disregard those silly little ideas that you think don't hold much importance over trying to figure out the big, important plot. Oftentimes, it's those silly little ideas that make up the big important plot. So I'd advise you to turn to a blank page or start a new google doc and write that question at the top. "What do I want from this story?" Your answers could be anything, from little details like "he goes back to his birthplace to confront his family" or more broad ideas like "they have a conversation about loss and how to cope with that". Bullet points or sentences, whatever you choose, this is your dumping ground for all the stupid ideas you have that might not ever make it into your story. The point of the question is to exercise your mind and get it thinking about the main plot, as well as a helpful organization tool for all those scattered thoughts that don't really fit anywhere else.

2. "What if I can't start writing a story because I just don't have any ideas?"

That is a harder question to answer, since writer's block has a multitude of solutions that work for some people and don't for others. My advice is, keep focusing on the small things, since it essentially forces you to start minimally and branch out from there. Inspiration is all over the internet, and those small ideas can help jumpstart your brain into creating something new. If you see a few posts about 'cottagecore' on Pinterest and that inspires you to write a fantasy story about witches, then go for it! If you read a book and want to write something similar, except with a different ending, go ahead! (Except if you're posting it on the internet, please credit the original creator.)

Don't feel guilty for "stealing someone else's idea" or mad at yourself for "not being able to come up with anything original". We all have to start somewhere, and it's okay if what you write isn't completely novel. (That's what fanfiction is for, after all!)

Oftentimes, our brain puts us in a corner where we convince ourselves that we just can't write anything because we don't have any ideas. Maybe that's true, but the thing about writer's block is that you really won't have any ideas unless you start actively thinking about potential plots or characters. Searching up 'writing prompts' on Tumblr will no doubt feed you with a slew of interesting ideas that you can build off from there, and Pinterest is a gold-mine of creativity. The main thing, of course, is to have fun in the process. In the end, the person who you're really writing for is yourself.

3. "Okay, I have a few ideas and plot points, but what about organizing it? How do I go about organizing a multi-chapter story?"

This question is from people who are mainly like me, who like organizing their chapters out before they actually write them. It's good to have a reference point to come back to if you take a writing hiatus, and it's just nice having everything jotted down somewhere I can easily find.

I'm not going to get too specific here, since everyone has their own way of writing notes, but after I have a bunch of main ideas that more or less make up the whole plot, I start narrowing those ideas down into chapters. I have sections of bullet-points for each chapter, which have general ideas that aren't too specific, since I tend to figure out the specifics as I'm writing. (ex. He has a flashback that shows his past before switching back to the present) If you're a person who's pretty gung-ho about these things, you might lean towards the idea of "figuring it out as you go along". If you're super organizational, your chapter notes might go down to the most minute detail before you actually start writing.

I also have a few 'braindump' sections that are pretty much like the "What do I want from this story?" notes, except they're a bit more relevant to the plot instead of just random details and dialogue I want to insert sooner or later. I also have sections where I write about important themes in my story that require further elaboration (ex. the concept of morality, what it means to be human, etc.) It's important to flesh out these ideas beforehand so you have a good idea of how to show these underlying themes in your actual story.

Last but not least, please, please, please flesh out your characters before you start writing a story. It's honestly my least favorite part of writing, but it's incredibly important because your characters are what makes up your story. A good story is known from it's good characters. I, personally, create lists of traits/flaws for my main characters so I can, as a writer, understand them better and know how to show their personalities in writing. I also write lists of attributes before and after they go through ✨character development✨ so I can understand how they've changed and grown and start formulating ideas on how to show that in my writing.

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So, we've reached the end! Yay, that took way too long and I didn't even get to talk about procrastination!!🎉🎉 Hopefully, this will not be the first and last 'Writing 101', since there's plenty more I'd like to talk about and plenty more to learn. If you have any questions or anything you want me to talk about next, don't hesitate to drop a comment or ask me anything! I'll try to answer to the best of my abilities. If you liked this post, please leave a like or a comment. It's really motivating and just feels great to know if people like my content.

(Here's the link to the animatic I mentioned earlier: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REBxGWSMRn4. It's been a huge source of inspiration for my writing and art, and the person who made it is insanely talented. If you're into Genshin Impact or just want to see some good art, go check out their other animations and comment/leave a like!)

I hope your writing journey is nothing short of spectacular and creatively amazing, and I'll see you in the next one!

[yourlocalpurplekinnie]

What is this.

Honestly?? Just why would someone think this is a good idea???

Why do they keep trying to force the twins into romantic subplots when the other one of them is im danger???? Like the one with Zeyet and Yuhi wasn’t really too upfront because that was more people going “oooo are you guys on a date” rather than an actual one.

I enjoyed that episode with Yuhi and Zeyet as well. Not because of what it was on the surface level but rather how I interpreted it as.

I saw it as him being overwhelmed with everything and desperately wanting to get himself some more time, some time to ensure he doesn’t break down immediately. And while he wasn't able to duel his sister, which I've seen people saying that episode was pointless because of that, I think that he needed that break, that moment of feeling as if he's a normal teen again (well as normal as a yugioh character's life does get) and - ultimately - that's why I believe he was able go steel himself to sacrifice himself for his sister.

He was able to have a good last day before everything happened, and even if he can't remember it, then maybe the people who were there could remember him fondly.

I don't think he would have picked to hang out with Zeyet, Sabyuas and Zwijo on his last day willingly but he still needed time away.

Some people might just have viewed him being insecure about his silly outfit as just a stupid thing to have before the big finale to the arc but I viewed it as him trying to be that "absolute life form" like his sister is likened to. After all, they did a good job at hammering in the fact that everyone around Yuhi felt as if he didn't have that same resolve as Yuamu does. The scene where the UTS employees are talking about how Yuhi depended on Yuamu when they got their first homework really stuck with me in this regard. It's SUCH a small thing to mention but to have it when people like Zwijo are talking about Yuamu's resolve and her willingness to throw herself away??

Honestly pretty good writing in that regard not gonna lie.

Though, I don’t think I’m gonna enjoy this episode when I am able to watch it.

Mostly because it’s Zwijo whose she thinking about.. and that there are ACTUAL feelings going on.. like PLEASE do not go this route Yugioh Go Rush. If this turns out to be the case I will actually just be so mad.

Especially the queercoding we got from Zwijo because that would be yet another character like that that’s forced away from a queer relationship. And I’m not saying it’s not a possibility for Zwijo to be bi or pan or something else, I think having that set up with Yuudias only to throw it away would be BAD.

Especially seeing as though the dub is gonna be using the “diversity” to promote the show to people.

And why the hell is Zeyet gonna be telling Yuamu that Zwijo’s her “fated one” in the first place??? Is it to try and distract her from her brother or something?? I’m not sure and I’m scared to have to find out…

Anyways, this wouldn’t be complete without talking about Yuna. Because instead of exploring her character more of how shes like WITHOUT someone she fawning over all the time, they decided to move her onto YUGA of all people and say shes had a crush on him and shit??

I believed she was a lesbian at first and after some grief of her getting a big, big crush on a guy, I just accepted it because she still clearly loved Rovian and I was being a little too silly over that!!! So bisexual Yuna is still there.

But yeah I want to explore HER character more.

Because she’s clearly obsessive and codependent on people she likes (Rovian and Yuga). And she seems to NEED that favourite person and constantly wanting to be around them and honestly if we got to explore that and the self destructiveness that comes with that I would be hooked. Not only would it be a very interesting watch, it would develop her character greatly outside of her relationship with another character (something I really thought that was gonna happen when she left the Rovian bandits), but it would make her a really relatble character to me and probably many other people.

Yes, I know this isn’t the type of show to expect that sort of thing BUT Go Rush has had wonderful moments, moments that have made me cry and ones I regularly think about.

To drop the ball with the characters like this over and over again is basically just killing off the audience.

I plan to watch until the end but I don’t think this will be my favourite generation at all. It has times I love it and times where I wanna just erase episodes entirely. The characters are ones Ive gotten attached to and so I wanna know what happens next with them and its up to the writers to make that worth while or not.

I will give them one thing though they’re so good at writing finales a lot of the time. Like I dont think I need to mention how amazing the Yuudias and Zwijo confession scene?? Or the Yuga vs Yuhi -> Yuamu vs Yuhi -> Yuamu vs Yuudias. The impact that had on me was immense. That was definitely an amazing thing for Yuamu’s character and of course the most recent finale - the one where Yuhi became Otes.

Unfortunately, I saw spoilers for it beforehand so I wasnt able to go into it blind but I still cried over it. Especially when Yuhi sported his old UTS outfit. That really got to me.

Yuhi also slowly forgetting Yuamu?? Torn me apart.

From what I heard from the current arc, it’s not really shaping up. I haven’t watched it yet as I use the subs that Entame Subs put out and they’re kn hiatus now but that just means for a binge spree when they come out /hj. The focuses of the episodes are quite random to pick of all times I think??

But alas I’ll have to see how I react to them when I’m able to watch them.

Not too much optimism despite the amount I want to have because welll… while they do nice finales they don’t always do good episodes before that..

I don’t think I’ll hate Go Rush though. It would be tremendously hard to make me hate it really unless they do something REALLYYYY REALLLLYY bad. So let’s just all hope for a good outcome for this series.

[ursachaotic]

Ok this might be a little weird and I want to tell this to you anonymously because I don't want to make you feel pressured into answering ^^' (let it be known I am a mutual of yours & I know we don't talk but I think you're really cool <:) Your genuine love for Gravity Falls and you excitement about The Book of Bill is kind of. Helping me rekindle old love for the franchise. I stopped interacting with it more or less involuntarily (bad experience with bad people) and felt bad that I can't get into it but honestly your interest did help me rediscover it, or at least start to do so. Like I've picked up my old Journal 3 a couple times this week, I thought about re-watching the show, I bookmarked the cheapest "to be released" listings for TBOB in the online shops in my country, I have the thisisnotawebsitedotcom bookmarked too. I've been picking up my hand-made-from-a-towel Bill plush and just looking at him. Thinking about trying to find his hat and make him a new bow because I took them off when it was just too awful to perceive.

I hope this isn't weird. I genuinely don't mean to be weird or trigger your anxiety or anything, I mean it. Your love for this show and everything around it is helping me a bit to rediscover my own, which is great, because as someone with interest in folklore, the paranormal and cryptids, GF was an amazing thing to discover. I myself made a grown up version of Dipper, who's a full-on cryptid hunter and wrote a lot of stories about him, later turning that concept into my own thing because it was too painful to keep but I loved all of the creatures I made and the lore and stuff. So I just took my ideas and moved it into my own thing, which is currently my most developed universe with my most beloved ocs.

This is lengthy. Sorry. Again, I genuinely don't want to creep you out, just, I'm glad I found you and your art and your comic and that you're so excited about your interests. Please know that you are never bad or annoying for loving what you love, please continue being so passionate about things, because it's really cool. You're cool. I hope you know that ^^ and, well, if not, I'm telling you. You're cool and your work is amazing.

(If you would prefer me to pm you feel free to post about it here or your personal? blog, whichever you're cool with, I'll probably see it and can just pm you with like "haha yeah I'm the long rekindled-interest anon" or you can answer this or just read & delete, I really don't mind if you don't want to answer ^^. Just, wanted to say this. Again I hope this isn't weird ;w; I swear I'm just a little adhd guy who used to love GF a lot, and possibly might be okay enough to start interacting with it on his own. And your love for the franchise helped.)

Hi this made me tear up (iN A GOOD WAY I PROMISE AHSDOFISADH I CRY WHEN I'M HAPPY LOL), this is seriously so, so sweet. Thank you so much for sending me this!! 🥹 I'm really glad that all of my silly Gravity Falls stuff has helped you get back into the show, and I hope you enjoy it and enjoy the Book of Bill if you get it!

Also, this seriously means a lot to me, especially because I'm actually really self-conscious about my interests and passions haha. I'm terrified of being seen as annoying, and there's been a lot of times recently where I've shut down out of the fear of being annoying about my interests. But I'm starting to not give a shit about whether or not people find me annoying online?? I want to be super vocal about something I adore so damn much cause it makes me happy! I've also been burnt out on drawing for a WHILE, but reading this book has given me so much inspiration, and drawing feels really fun and exciting again for the first time in a while! I struggle with depression a lot too, but my love for Bill and excitement about what's to come for the series has helped me feel really happy and kept me going for the first time in a bit. So, while I'm still scared of being perceived as annoying, I'm really happy right now and I want to keep doing stuff that makes me happy, even if that's just drawing Bill antagonizing me / my sona lmao. Seriously, thank you so much for sending me this! It's incredibly sweet and I'm really grateful that you did ;w;

Also you can absolutely reach out over DMs!! I would love to talk, but I hope you're having a wonderful day!! 🥹❤️

[dr-trafalgar-law]

Trafalgar Law X CisFem Reader

13

"You're telling me she just lied to the government-yoi?" Marco sat across from your cousin at the dining room table in the Newgate house.

"She did well, I guess." Zoro shrugged.

"That's so unlike her." Marco rubbed his face and adjusted his glasses.

"Yeah, well, she's been doing a lot of things that are unlike her lately." The greenette grumbled,"This is your fault anyway. We told you to stop bothering her."

Marco's brows pinched, "Sorry loving her is such a bother-yoi."

"She's been an anxious mess for months and when she finally starts to get over you, you get her tangled up with the government?"

The blonde sat back surprised and ran his right hand through his hair.

"She's over me?"

Zoro sighed heavily,"What do you want from her, man?"

"Zoorrooooooo!" Luffy interrupted from the next room, "When are we gonna play Mario Kart?! You're taking forrreeeevvvveeerrr."

"Shut up, will ya?!" His older brother hollered back.

"She needs to move on and so do you." Zoro stood, "If you get questioned, you were ordering a cake and she put you on the wait-list. Nothing more complicated than that."

Marco watched your cousin leave the room. He hated the idea of you moving on. None of this was what he wanted, especially everything that hurt you.

An anxious mess?

You were always content and warm. Had he really done that much damage? Was that night in November really the end? He didn't want any of it to be true. After the years the two of you had shared he'd assumed you'd be happy if the baby wasn't his - that you'd have your chance to be together again. You always had this silly dream the both of you would somehow get skipped in the matching process, and though you wouldn't be allowed to legally be married, you could still live out your days together.

He lit a cigarette and stared down at the bottle of beer on the table.

Getting over him?

That stung. He knew you weren't happy with him popping up out of nowhere. He didn't know why he couldn't stop himself from seeing you. But to know that you might be falling for some guy you were forced into a relationship with made him feel sick, even worse, there was a pang of envy.

He was matched with Amande for a reason, he just didn't know what that was. They got along well enough and were physically compatible. But she was also rather cold toward him. They'd been married for months and he couldn't tell you her favorite color.

So many things we're simultaneously unraveling and developing he was having a hard time keeping it together. Was he really just supposed to let you go?

__________________________________

A week passed and you hadn't had any more unexpected visitors or phone calls. Zoro reported back that his conversation with Marco went as expected. There wasn't much more you could do but hope there was no further investigation. 

Things at home weren't as awkward and distant as they had been. You had dinner together more often, or as often as Law's schedule would allow. Sometimes you stayed up late chatting about your childhoods.

It was a rainy Sunday evening and you had gotten comfortable on the sofa with a bowl of popcorn. Law entered quietly after getting home from his shift and taking a quick shower. He settled next to you with a book. You spread the blanket covering your lap to his to share some warmth. He watched you adjust your position next to him like this was something the two of you did daily.

Feeling his gaze, you paused, "Oh, sorry. You're probably warm after your shower."

He stopped you as you began to take the blanket back, "It's chilly in here, don't apologize."

"A-as long as you're comfortable." you murmured, shifting your focus away from his soft smirk.

It was an expression that made your chest squeeze a little in an exciting way. He looked at you like this more often than he was probably conscious of.

"What are you watching?" his interested tone floated past the pages of his open book.

"Chef's Table… it's about chefs from all over the world. They aren't famous really, but they are well known in their respective countries or regions."

"Do you only watch cooking shows?" he sounded clearer as the book moved away from his face to note how your ears and neck heated up.

"I-I guess so?" you stammered, "I mean I'm a chef, I love to cook - you know that."

Why did this feel embarrassing?

Law smiled, "Yes, I benefit from it frequently. I just can't think of any other shows you watch. There's nothing wrong with it."

"I watch other things," you glanced up at him drawing a blank on any good examples, "I can't think of any of them at the moment…but I do."

He chuckled and raised his book again, "Forgive me for interrupting."

You sat like this for a while, each enjoying your own activity but sharing the same space. Law occasionally paused his reading to ask a question about the program you were watching.

The pins and needles sensation in your right hand roused you while the soft glow of the idle Netflix display lit the living room. It took a few moments for your sleep hazed mind to realize you were still somewhat upright and instead of being nuzzled into the couch cushions, you were resting against your fiance's side. You took the opportunity to admire the juxtaposition of the sharp angles of his face and his soft expression. In the few months you'd been cohabitating you had never seen him look so peaceful. His lips parted slightly as he sighed. For some reason that flustered you and you decided you had to move.

Stretching you shifted carefully trying not to wake him. He rarely slept through the night. You just needed to slip away and tuck him in to stay the night on the sofa.

But when you moved his arm tightened around you.

Crap.

Suddenly it was too warm and you were trapped.

You were going to have to wake him.

"Law…" you whispered, placing your left hand on his chest.

He hummed and shifted a little, not enough to free you.

"It's time for bed." you murmured gently patting him, "You can't sleep out here."

"No." he murmured softly.

"No, what?" you half chuckled, "c'mon, let's get up. Or at least let me go so I can go to my room."

His eyes fluttered open as a deep frown bent his lips.

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to wake you up." Finally you were able to move out of his hold.

"It's fine." he ran his hands over his face attempting to be conscious enough to stand while you got to your feet and turned off the TV.

"Well…have sweet dreams." As you turned to make your exit his fingers caught yours.

"F/N, stay in my room tonight…please?"