#hua cheng it’s 3 in the morning

[yumemiruuuu]

Hua Cheng: gege… would you still love me if I was a lovester?

Xie Lian: … a what?

Hua Cheng: (holding a lobster)

[dreamingthroughwords]

hua cheng being so clingy to xie lian is my favourite thing. like yeah that’s calamity crimson rain sought flower with his arms wrapped around his beloveds waist pouting because xie lian is pretending to be exasperated by his nonsense (he loves it actually) so he’ll cling and pepper kisses to the curve of xie lian’s neck and squeeze him until xie lian finally gives him and they spend the rest or the night together like usual ❤️

[herbofthyme]

I’m looking for a thing. I’m looking for my bamboo hat. Where’s my bamboo hat?

[whatmattersisyou]

It's a lazy Sunday and Xie Lian and Hua Cheng are making pancakes.

Well, only Hua Cheng is, Xie Lian is hanging around and measuring ingredients while sitting on the countertop of their kitchen. He's been banned from cooking for their friends; they are all celebrating together in the afternoon for He Xuan's promotion to ghost king boss at his job, so they invited everyone at their place cause Hua Cheng is loaded and hualian's house is the cosiest.

Hua Cheng thinks their tastebuds are shit. Xie Lian is happy though, excited at the prospect of having everybody gathered in their safe haven, so Hua Cheng is happy too :3

The kitchen is a mess of flour dust and melted butter. There is what probably is a piece of egg shell stuck on Xie Lian's cheek and the flour-y shape of Xie Lian's hands on Hua Cheng's sweatpants where they cover his butt and part of his thighs and -

Xie Lian smiles and steals a piece of pancake from the fluffy tower Hua Cheng is making. Hua Cheng loves him.

There is no better morning.

[malinanan]

Got my copy of the star of misfortune today and I adore it!! Great work and makes me want draw! My absolutely favorite is hua cheng painting xie lian in the cave of mt tonglu! It's just so gorgeous!

Also, the timing was perfect! Just this morning I finished my yearly reread of tgcf and got your comic only a few minutes later! There is no better way to continue with the hualian brainrot!

Hello!!

Oh, I’m incredibly glad that everything arrived and that the book pleased you!! I'm happy that you liked it :3

Thank you for your kind words and support! This means a lot to me🙏❤️🥰🥰🥰

[askew-d]

Fanfics ideas, cause you love MXTX works . Your top 3 fav MDZS characters will be besties with who (in your opinions) if they were in other universe, with characters from TGCF & SVSSS? Hope my questions are not confusing.....

hi, anon! sorry i’m terrible late for this ask. hope you don’t mind :) i am not sure i can provide great fanfic ideas, but here’s my opinion about who’d be besties with who in the mxtx universes, and i added more than three or favorite characters, by the way:

1. wei wuxian would create a group of besties with xie lian, shen qingqiu and hua cheng (and get together really often with nie huaisang group of friends)

wait up! i mean, wei wuxian would get along with xie lian because of his obvious fair morality principals and they would eventually get along with shen qingqiu for their intimate experiences with their husbands. if shen qingqiu was frustrated with luo binghe, of course xie lian and wei wuxian would share advices. wei wuxian would love to hear xie lian's lifetimes of stories and xie lian would love to hear his in return. shen qingqiu would slowly warm up to them.

and now, why hua cheng? i personally do not see hua cheng warming up to a human other than wei wuxian. not only because wei wuxian is a demonic cultivator, but also because wei wuxian would always thoroughly respect xie lian and have him like a great friend because he also has been treated like shit by others and understands xie lian. i think hua cheng would appreciate that. shen qingqiu would not judge xie lian either, so i guess they would all be ok nicely hanging out.

and they would spend time with:

2. nie huaisang, shang qinghua, shi qingxuan and sha hualing

you cannot tell me that nie huaisang would not become friends with sha hualing. they are both capable of everything. nie huaisang would be a little scared of her at first? surely. but something would happen, perhaps a case in which only he could help her out, and they would end up turning into acquaintances bordering into friends. one hand helping the other (perhaps not always for the greater cause).

anyway, shang qinghua and shi qingxuan though? personally, i think they would hit it off right at the first sight. shang qinghua would help him with writing, even, and open a new word for nie huaisang.

3. jiang cheng would slowly start being friends with feng xin, mu qing and liu qingge (even if none of them will admit it)

jiang cheng? admiting he made friends with those angry idiots mu qing and feng xing who cannot stop fighting? admittng that he made friends with that weirdass liu qingge? and vice versa? no, they will never say it. but fairly enough, i think jiang cheng would end up getting drunk one day, they would all start complaining, being angry, hitting things over, discussing over those gays kissing at their feet all their time, and the next morning, they would just grow an inch closer.

they would still roll their eyes at one another every time they are in a social conference. they would still be tsunderes even if they just spent an afternoon hanging out gossiping back and forth. yet, i think they would grow closer, and in a life and death situation, they would fight together like reluctant sworn brothers.

4. lan wangji would befriend ling wen, mobei-jun and luo binghe

lan wangji and ling wen i think its clear that they would be nice friends, helping each other and having tea together. mobei-jun would just be there because, if shang qinghua must have his time to be with nie huaisang and other human friends, at least hanguang-jun is one human that he tolerates for the simple fact that he does not talk much. so that is enough for him. luo binghe would only become close to lan wangji because they would trade nice recipes for their husbands. and also, it would be nice if lan wangji also helped ling wen, binghe and mobei-jun out with understanding how human works. they would be so confused and would want explanations of human experiences from hanguang-jun (one time or another, i can swear that mobei and luo binghe would want to receive advice towards their sex life too).

5. lan xichen would grow fond of yue qingyuan and he xuan

lan xichen, my dear! for you, i think you would have a good friendship with yue qingyuan, only. with he xuan, i think its horrible to say that he xuan would seem to be a wise guy, so you would become close to him, you would have tea together, only for at the end you have another disappointment to discover that he isnt exactly who you think he is and another time you will be crumbling in sadness, so i will not say it. but there, i will leave you all with this angst side. or perhaps you would get along with shi qingxuan better because he sure been through this whole experience just like you, huh.

6. the juniors would be besties with shang qinghua, shi qingxuan, lan qianqiu, ning yingying and ming fan

do i need explanation for this one? hahah, they would all love to learn more from shang qinghua and laugh at his antics, follow around shi qingxuan just like ducklings, be impulsive with lan qianqiu, play around the town with ning yingying and judge others with the company of ming fang. perhaps beat some that threaten their superiors in the middle :) would love to check their shenanigans.

[mrcformoso]

Fanart Directory for Paper Flowers for the God of Gods

You can read the fic here! It is HuaLian with FlowerGod!XL with Rapunzel and Hades&Persephone vibes.

Because I need a place to reference all the fanart because holy cow you guys are amazing!!! (Also, I'll be rearranging the links in fic to be like in relevant chapters I love you guys so much huhuhu)

Thank you thank you thank you to all the people who have been making fanart, you are all so talented and wonderful and I hope you receive as much love as this fic!!! <3 <3 <3

Chapter 1:

Xie Lian with Butterfly Weeds and E-ming by @rosietearz

Chapter 2:

Xie Lian and Hua Cheng's first meeting by @rosietearz

+Version without the water effect by @rosietearz

Chapter 4:

Xie Lian with Pink Carnations by @demonicaldamage

Chapter 7:

Xie Lian with Their Flowers(tm) by @juicedpeachy

Hua Cheng and Paper Flowers by @soliohua

Chapter 8:

Reimagine of the Prison Break by Gocty (IG)

Xie Lian rescued from Heaven by @soliohua

Cuddly Morning HuaLian by @anxietyismyjam

Chapter 10:

Xie Lian with Their Flowers and Purple Heliotropes and White Yarrows by Mayaunnie (DA)

[sunnyfoxsstuff]

Hey sorry couldnt write Yesterday but im writing today the very first chapter! I thought about it way too much lol

Enjoy ;3

Chapter 1:New beginning

After the event at the black water manor and being stripped from his divinity the former wind master has tried his best to get around and survive, xie lian had offered him to stay at puqi shrine 'til he gets back on his feets he had agreed but he only stayed for a day or two he was more fearing hua cheng than living outside, however xie lian adviced him to try and go see at the royal capital knowing there is some beggar's living there he thought that he'll find refuge over there

The former windmaster of course took the advice and went over to the royal capital however he took atleast two good days to get there because of his injuries he was limping and slow

After getting to the capital he found some beggar's just as xie lian had told him they got along pretty well shi qingxuan had always a talent to get along with anyone he'd meet, a day After he started feeling nauseous he tried to ignore it but soon his body made him know that he was gettin too weak to even move, often he would just lay down Somewhere and sleep it was all he could do after all, the beggar's had a kind heart and couldnt bear leaving him on his own so they tried their best at helping them.

It was a morning when shi qingxuan woke up in the halley way he had fallen asleep at he looked around still weak and Saw his beggar friend's still asleep

he looked at the Sky above his head and closed his eyes shut again opening them soon after he somehow felt more..light felt better like as if he wasnt ill anymore

Looking down where his hands are supposed to be he couldnt see them but he could see his beggar friend's waking up,

He ran up to them excited and happy "guy's look! Look! I Can walk! I Can move im feeling better!!" However they walked passed him to where he was sleeping, confused he followed them, soon enough one of them started to cry another pray for some god's and the other one just went on his way to try and find their breakfast,

when the former windmaster took a look at what was going on he gasped almost all of his air out of his lung's and felt nauseous seeing his own body laying there lifeless and gettin more pale.

The now soul of shi qingxuan stood there watching his own body for what felt like minute's but had been atleast 3 hour's

until he'd look at his right side where there was a ominous shadow with what seemed like two golden eyes looking at his body quickly After leaving, it was he xuan.He xuan had came to check on him? But why? Shi qingxuan was more confused by he xuan coming over than his own situation

After some more minute's of standing there he decided that he wanted to make it up to he xuan for what shi wudu had done to him "atleast try" he said to himself determinated,

for the next couple hour's he'd try to manifest his New form but if anybody could see him all they'd see is a little bouncing spirit

"ugh! Why cant i just get my form to manifest already?!" He said pouting 'bout it, even so he still went on his plan and started to move away from where he had died and stayed for the past day's

He decided to make his way to puqi shrine first often stopping to still try and get his New form or to just stare at everything living in the forest the Sun soon started to set down, shi qingxuan isnt used to not sleep at night or even the no breath needed so he setted himself Somewhere and looked at the night Sky with the glowing star's smiling enjoying the cold air and little glowing bugs standing besides him on the grass.

Hey sorry imma stop there for the first chapter i feel like its long enough however i already know what im gonna write in the seccond chapter so do not fear it shouldnt take too long until i post it ;p i rlly Hope u enjoyed it atleast im tryin my best to think this through

[weirdocat83]

*kicks your door down* YOU. I need to write a silly oneshot so I can fall back into writing because Losing Hope is dramaful and I can't comprehend the words I am writing. I need something goofy. Something silly. Issue? I can't think of any silly plot ideas. SOOOO, I come to you, the au/headcanon master, as a mere writer hoping to find motivation. Do you have any silly ideas that you'd be willing to let me sculpt into a quick oneshot?

Whenever I think silly ideas I default to cumplane because they’re ridiculous and them quoting memes wwhile nobody knows what they mean will never not be funny to me. I mean, imagine explaining a meme without the internet! Bonus points if some of them start picking up on how to use the memes without knowing the context.

A friend of mine told me about a svsss au they don’t intend to write where Shen Jiu is a strict teacher and Shen yuan is the TA that grades his students papers so LBH and SY end up communicating through notes and doodles :)

*takes a Quick Look at old posts because I had ideas then and I don’t have any rn*

Not really that fluffy but Any Hualian time travel or truth serum. There’s like, one truth serum fic in the TGCF fandom that’s good and Xie Lian has both so many secrets and also the sassiest thoughts. Also Xie Lian and Hua Cheng meeting while still alive (and possibly ascending together??).

I would also like to direct you to this post and this post because some aforementioned things are there but also various other ideas that could work. It was an idea day and today isn’t (unfortunately)

Any scenario in which anyone gets drunk. Literally pick a character and choose how they embarrass themselves and regret their decisions in the morning. Xie Lian could harp on about the dirty things he keeps to himself as well as insulting *so* many people, Hua Cheng could be very soft and emotional but also really kind and ends up giving so many compliments even to Feng Xin and mu qing (much to their shock and amusement) speaking of mu Qing, get him wasted. My man has so many emotions and unnecessary thoughts. Cuddle the man and make him laugh. I think he’d be a little more insecure openly but also happier. We’ve seen LWJ drunk but imagine wwx drunk. Idk if that’d be angsty or not but up to you. I think he’d be soft and VERY cuddly. Half of what he says is completely nonsensical but the other half is very sweet. Binghe would be clingy and Shen Yuan would probably be singing some modern pop song with airplane (who is equally wasted).

Outing myself here but non-explicit abo is probably one of my fav types of fluff. Idk something about people being intensely cuddly while surrounded by soft things and being incredibly vulnerable always gets me. Like, ‘nope, you’re mine to cuddle for the rest of the week. Live with it.’

Chatfics are my preferred crackfics because hell hath no chaos like a bunch of people smushed together in a gc with naming privileges and being unable to leave. Bonus points if it’s in high school so there’s extra drama and humor. Imagine Hua Cheng and Xie Lian haven’t confessed but everyone else knows? Hilarious. Mu Qing and Feng Xin fighting in the halls (again) over something stupid and getting suspended? Hilarious. SQX being girlfriends with HX and going on dates (they had a rough start with their relationship because Shi Wudu pulled some shit that was NOT run past SQX which led to a lot of difficulties but eventually they did become friends again and eventually lovers.)

Anyhow that’s all I can think of. I also had some fluffy-ish ideas for losing hope if you want those ;3

[sanflower0w0]

Writing Patterns

Rules: share the first line of your last ten published works or as many as you are able and see if there are any patterns!

Tagged by @crystalsamethyst! Thank youuuuu❤️❤️❤️ This is so exciting!

(un)forbidden words “Gege?” Xie Lian froze mid-yawn when Hua Cheng’s gentle voice echoed in his mind in the middle of a tedious dispute resolution meeting in the heavens.

let me be the one you crave Xie Lian painted stroke after stroke with his calligraphy brush, willing his hand not to tremble.

collecting the shards of our broken souls The sunlight was a dusty golden through the broken window when Xie Lian returned to Puqi Shrine.

look at me, don't look away Xie Lian was all alone until morning. He was alone in his own ruined temple with a black sword full of resentful spirits and a deadly silk band for company.

take my hand, take my whole life too Xie Lian sipped the last quarter of his Long Island iced tea, then carefully blew bubbles with his straw, trying to have them form between the leftover melting ice cubes.

when only moonlight watches you Hua Cheng lay on his side, propped up on his elbow, and gazed at his sleeping husband.

The Ghost King Has A Secret (which has nothing to do with ketchup.) Xie Lian stared at the neat maze-like pattern of red in the middle of his bedroom floor. His precious paintbrushes were soaked scarlet, and his whole room smelled like... ketchup.

unraveled like royal silks “Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince of Xian Le, The Prince Who Pleased the Gods,” Mu Qing drawled, leaning smugly at the doorway, “Does Dianxia feel powerful and proud in his fancy robes again?”

let dreams be embers Xie Lian nuzzled Hua Cheng's pillow sleepily. 

look at me, don't look away (ch3, because I kinda liked this beginning kfjjkdgd) The next evening was clear and starry. A taut silence wrapped delicately around the temple like a sheer robe on a lovers’ secret rendezvous night.

HmmmMMMmmmMMmmmm I think I use a lot of dialogues and close-up descriptions of actions/environment...

Tagging: @rnbwstar @edenwolfie @scrapimmortal and whoever else would like to! :3 ❤️

[dreamingthroughwords]

no matter what official art it is donghua or audio drama or anything hua cheng is ALWAYS looking at xie lian like we get it my guy he’s your entire world we know you look at him like he hung the stars and moon and is your entire world and yeah he is we get it. relax a bit

[lryghe]

MXTX thoughts; conventions

The long awaited (not) analysis of MXTX conventions is here! I’ve literally been meaning to talk about this for months but it got sidelined in favour of vicious arguing on PDB about MBTI. Anyways! Obviously this post will contain spoilers, and something I wanted to touch on was 3rd person limited in MXTX, but I already have a post on that here, so feel free to check that out for a better explanation of it. Beware of mediocre analysis ahead, I’m a little rusty (also shoutout to the person who liked some of my posts this morning, you reminded me to actually write something!).

THE AGENDA since this post is long:

Non-linear storylines

Dying and resurrection

Colour symbolism

Character tropes

NON-LINEAR STORYLINES

An interesting thing that follows MXTX’s more thought out works, is the non-linear plotlines she follows in them. This itself is a really good convention of writing in general, especially if it’s done well, and I can safely say that MXTX did it astoundingly well in TGCF. The clear cuts between time periods in relation to each book is an incredible feat, and is something that easily trumps MXTX's other examples of non-linear storylines. Through the use of the jumping back and forth in time, specifically in TGCF, creates an excellent cause and effect, something that is definitely central to the novel. Everything done has an effect, whether that be on the continuation of the plot, or even as a characterisation point, so the non-linear narrative cements that sense of foreboding hanging over everything. A simple sentence said when Xie Lian 17 somehow amounts to a complete upheaval of the heavens 800 years later, unveiling a conspiracy well over 2000 years old. A friendship group dissolving due to difficult circumstances results in a really horrific friendship confession later in the novel. Shi Wudu trying to save his sibling ends his own demise, the crippling of said sibling, and a vengeful ghost with nothing to do anymore. This nonlinear storyline is definitely used in MDZS as well, but I found it a bit more complex, and actually, now that I think about it, is a really good reflection of Wei Wuxian in general. The thing with MXTX, is that all her novels are in 3rd person limited, so they follow our protagonist in 3rd person, but it’s tinged with their own personal views and biases that limit the omniscience of 3rd person. And with MDZS it would be a fair assessment to say that the unordered mess of time leaps in the novel are an excellent indication of Wei Wuxian’s bias leaking through the 3rd person. The incessant jumping is difficult to follow in places (don’t say otherwise), but it’s actually a genius idea because it’s an accurate assessment of the thought process that Wei Wuxian probably follows anyway. I wouldn’t say that this was definitely on purpose however, as MDZS was written before TGCF, so it could just be MXTX growing alongside her writing, but hey, maybe it is a stroke of complete and beautiful genius! Don’t bother mentioning SVSSS, it’s definitely an interesting novel, but it’s not non-linear, at least not as wholly as MDZS and TGCF are. The most you’ll get in SVSSS is like a two line flashback, plus the extra’s, but I think that’s a reflection of when MXTX wrote it.

DYING AND RESURRECTION

Moving on from serious conventions, MXTX’s trope with one of the main characters dying and then coming back later is a really funny kind of convention, because it’s not funny in the moment obviously, but the fact that it’s done at least once per novel is hilarious. Wei Wuxian’s initial resurrection after 13 years of being dead, Shen Qingqiu’s return in his plant body 5 years later, and then his return back to his ‘original’ body, and Hua Cheng’s little death defying stunt at the end of the novel. Then there’s the use of cliffs and such, like Binghe’s fall into the Abyss, Hua Cheng’s fall off that wall (forgive me its been like 3 years since I read TGCF), and if we’re being inclusive, then there’s always Wei Wuxian’s death in The Untamed. Maybe there’s a hidden meaning in there somewhere, but it’s fine to look at it from a surface level, which amounts to ‘MXTX got bored and needed some drama’. A perfectly reasonable deduction. 

COLOUR SYMBOLISM

Another thing I wanted to touch on was the colour symbolism that MXTX uses because I think it’s pretty cool, AND it has the added benefits of adding symbolism and contrast to each novel's main character and their love interest. It’s mentioned in the novel’s obviously, but it really shines in fan content and fanarts. I like the symbolism of Luo Binghe and Shen Qingqiu’s robes both being green before the time-skip, because Luo Binghe was a disciple at the time and a little white lotus, so the green was used to directly align him with Shen Qingqiu. After the timeskip he’s obviously got his big boy pants on and swapped to a stunning black and red ensemble, fitting of the protagonist, and that itself contrasts Shen Qingqiu’s majestic and lofty green robes, because Binghe means business with this fit. A fun thought is how green and red fit together on the colour spectrum, because they don’t, they’re contrasting colours which is some real obvious symbolism. Do I really need to spell out Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian? I feel like this one is rudimentary. White equals noble and virtuous, pure and holy, and black is evil, demonic, cruel, and scary. Simple! And Hua Cheng and Xie Lian’s red and white are a very cute mixture, because although it gives them a Bingqiu style christmas tree vibe, it’s interesting in comparison to the previous two love interest and main character dynamics, considering red and white are a lot more complimentary than black and white or red and green. And it’s a testament to how similar Hualian are with their complimentary robes, how like-minded they are throughout the novel, especially considering their predecessors. Or maybe I’m overthinking it, who knows?

CHARACTER TROPES

In regards to tropes of MXTX, I think her character tropes are incredible and have the addition of being really funny. She’s consistent enough with her conventions that clear links can be drawn with her side characters across all 3 novels. To begin with, there’s Mr Angry. I think you can guess who that is, but it's Jiang Cheng, Liu Qingge, and Mu Qing. All have a really close relationship with their related main character, all are angry or harsh where they probably didn't need to be, and all three are good fighters. Then there’s the guy who’s always smiling, like Yue Qingyuan or Lan Xichen. Complacency is a key part of their characters, and excuses aside, it’s interesting how it played out. You could argue for Jun Wu to be a part of this circle, but I’ll keep that to myself. Finally, there’s the fodder characters, only useful to further the plot in a miniscule way. Gongyi Xiao (MAY HE REST WELL), Xiao Xingchen, and once again, I don’t have a very good TGCF equivalent. Gongyi Xiao dies after the events of the water prison, and Xiao Xingchen was really just there to highlight how fucked up Xue Yang was. Rest in peace our beloved fodder, especially Gongyi Xiao, MXTX should have treated you better…

I think I’ve typed myself out honestly. Kudos to whoever reached the end of this post, I haven’t written this much since my Team 7 analysis when I got back into my Naruto phase briefly.

Word count: 1271

Reading time: 4 ½ mins

[lenglengflames]

hua cheng definitely is someone who spent years to perfect his skin and haircare routines, different routines for morning/ night, drier/ humid weathers, etc, he's had 800 years to figure that out. (let's pretend that even in death or godhood, pimples and acne are inescapable.) he has scented oils, luxurious soaps/ cleansers/ shampoos, you name it, he has it.

on the other hand, xie lian is the kind to splash his face with cold water and call it a day. he washes his hair with water and whatever equivalent of 3 in 1 shampoo in ancient china. he used to have the same rigorous skin/haircare routine as a prince, but years of travelling outdoors doesn't really give you the opportunity to sustain that. (but he's blessed genetically; he learns that on his travels when he doesn't experience the breakouts, the greasy hair, as badly as other, a good shower does the trick nicely.)

so, xie lian is incredibly surprised at the 20 or so step routines that hua cheng developed for his hair and face at different times/ conditions of the day and weather. vice versa, hua cheng is horrified to learn that xie lian does nothing but the bare minimum. (he also gets a little very salty about that.)

[user-needs-new-hyperfixation]

Writing Patterns

Rules: list the first line of your last 10 (posted) fics and see if there's a pattern!

Thanks for the tag @hergan416!

I'm working in order from the oldest of the ten to the newest (except of course that the multi-chaptered ones sort of throw that off). For the two multi-chaptered ones included, I'm throwing in the first line of the first chapter and the first line of the latest chapter to compare and contrast those too.

10. In the Absence of Tea (Mycal, E)

“What are you doing?”

9. Candle in the Window (Mycal, M)

Albert is entirely alone.

8. Melt Like This (Sherliam, E)

“Do your fangs always come out when you’re hard?”

7. if you're asking, yes you have me (Mycal, E)

It starts with a mission gone awry for MI6; a past squabble with some criminal gang making it impossible for any of the core group to go undercover into the particular pubs and opium dens they are investigating as part of a possible smuggling ring.

6. Candles for the Year (Sherliam and Mycal and brotherly affection, T)

William yelps as his foot turns in some small burrow or divot hidden beneath the snow. Wool-mitted hands reach for him as he tips, grabbing at his waist.

5. Betwixt and Between (Moriathree cuteness, T)

William sits atop Albert’s dressing table, swinging his legs back and forth, socked heels knocking lightly against strong oak. Albert is peering forlornly into the mirror.

4. Roses and Moss (Mycal, M)

Albert’s beauty is best drawn out in the sunlight, in the way it coaxes auburn shimmers from his hair and turns his eyes an almost impossible emerald.

3. Veneration (Hualian, E)

The Soldier is jolted awake by the sharp caw of a crow outside his makeshift shelter. When he crawls out into the chilled morning air, he is struck by a sudden wave of disorientation.

2. Slow and Steady (Hualian, E)

Chapter One (January 24, 2024) --

The nights are getting cooler and cooler, and yet as the maple leaves fall and turn the ground into a sea of endless red, Xie Lian lingers still atop Mount Taicang.

Chapter Four (May 5, 2024) --

The sight of Hua Cheng standing by the bath is enough to make Xie Lian’s breath catch in his throat. Evidently he’s magicked himself clean, but done no more than that.

Love, In All Its Disrepute (Mycal, E)

Chapter One (April 24, 2023):

Lord Holmes is staring.

Chapter 16 (May 26, 2024):

Albert kicks a pebble across familiar paving-stones and hunches his shoulders against the brisk evening breeze and wonders at his own hesitation.

Apparently I used to start way too many things with a single isolated sentence, but have gotten a bit more varied over time. Still looks like I should switch things up at a bit from starting stories and chapters with CHARACTER NAME though lol.

tagging (no pressure of course, only if it's fun!) -- @xieliansbignaturals @loichte @soapy-soartp and anyone else who wants to claim a tag from me haha!

[queer-lovebot]

Doing the 1st line game a la @fallenstarzz and also @dayurno. Many of these are WIPs but some of them ARE published! Uhh I will include little summaries for funnies:

1. Rehabilitating Kevin into drinking human blood has always been an uphill battle. (Kandreil Monster 3some my beloved)

2. When Neil woke up this morning, blankets barely covering him and Kevin’s arm in his face, he hadn’t expected his day to turn out like this. (Kevy pregnancy scare)

3. “This is stupid,” groans Kevin from the Maserati’s driver seat. (Daylight fic fest)

4. Kevin’s nightmares haven’t been getting better. (Good to Go)

5. Nobody takes Andrew Minyard for a kind person, and they’re correct to do so. (Pros n Cons of Corn)

6. Kevin has a kicking problem. (Kandreil magical realism)

7. Jeremy Knox has it out for Andrew. (Summer Camp)

8. The museum, Hua Cheng tells himself, was Xie Lian's idea. (Museum horror)

[juicedpeachy]

Writing patterns

Rules: share the first line of your last ten published works or as many as you are able and see if there are any patterns!

1. “Heaven is overwhelming, more often than not.”

2. “It was no secret that the kingdom of Xianle was growing weaker.”

3. “In the depths of Ghost City, just outside a particularly lavish red manor within a large pavilion were two men.”

4. “How long had Xie Lian been laying under that tree?”

5. “Things were a blur for a really long time.”

6. “There were mornings like this.”

7. “Xie Lian had always been a late bloomer of sorts.”

8. “Third time's the charm, right?”

9. “As Xie Lian and Hua Cheng came down from their respective highs, Xie Lian pressed his face against his beloved’s shoulder.”

10. “Yin Yu could never say he didn’t see the affection between Hua Cheng and Xie Lian.”

Short little statements, acting as hooks, seems to be my typical start!

I’m not gonna tag anyone specific, but if any of my mutuals wanna do this pretend I tagged you!

Thanks to @crystalsamethyst for tagging me :3

my ao3 is crispytaco