#i completely get why the author did it and it's meaningful in an effed up way but

[hopestanding]

The way I tried to like this character/give them them the benefit of the doubt and they did something that got my favorite character killed and now I just loathe them

[jimlingss]

Thank you, everyone, for your words of encouragement. In this short amount of time, I’ve been absolutely overwhelmed with messages of support. I want to reassure you all that I’m by no means as hurt as some of you think, or at least not after so much kindness. I’ve always encouraged all kinds of feedback!! From compliments to constructive criticism. And I’m (supposedly) an Adult™, so I can definitely take someone’s opinion.

Regardless, thank you to everyone who reached out to me. I want to respond to each and everyone of you under this post so I don’t flood other people’s dashes.

Anonymous said: about the anon who said your fics lack emotion, hmm i wouldn't quite agree tbh, i remember reading tears of a villian and deadass crying, it hurt me so much!! also, in "fall in hatred" their feeling are so well portrayed and i could understand why they acted a certain way! to conlclude, there is always some space for constructive criticism but your stories, are to me, something very attentively built and created, it's apparent that you completely enjoy writing, I can feel your enthusiasm!!

--to that anon; pls don't get this wrong way but it's just the way I see it and I've read quite a lot till now

nah deadass crying isn’t good enough anymore, anon. You have to be keening and violently sobbing until you’re brought into the ER for my fics to be considered to have emotion. lol I’m only kidding, thank you for the message.

peachiest-hun said: To that anon who said your work lacked emotions, I beg to differ! I have read Jungle Park so many times I know at exactly which chapter when the heavy angst starts happening and I read those parts when I just want to have a good cry (I still cry every. single. time)! Also Head Over Heels to Hell, The Colour of Our Voices, Love So Shallow (because I so relate with OC), and many more have given me the FEELS (happy and sad ones). 1/2

So what I'm trying to say is that Jimlingss is doing a great job in her craft. She does deliver emotions in her work and the reason I love it so much is that it's SUBTLE and not completely in your face. Sometimes emotions that are subtle and they hit you slowly, but powerfully it hurts even more for me. On another note, I'm loving Sugar and Coffee. In times of darkness which are often these days, I have something to look forward to every week to keep me motivated. So thank you Jimlinggs! 2./2

Istg Jungle Park is one of the most unexpectedly beloved fics on my blog but I love it hahaha I can’t believe you’ve read it to the point of knowing what chapter is what though. that’s an honour. There’s definitely stories of mine that are less subtle than others, but I’m glad that you enjoy the latter of them too :’) Thank you.

Anonymous said: This is my first time ever leaving a message on someone’s tumblr, but I just felt that I HAD to after reading that anon’s comment about your stories lacking emotion. I wholly disagree (in the nicest way possible, not throwing any shade at anyone). I’ve read all of your fics (for the past two years) and I look forward to when you release new material (the highlight of my Mondays right now after I come home from working at a clinic). Your stories have really lifted my mood during this pandemics an

Anonymous said: Sorry for that long tangent. Don’t even know if I made sense. You don’t have to respond to any of this, but you deserve to hear some positive words as well.

Oh my god. Did I just take your tumblr-message virginity? asdfghjkl I’m kidding. but thank you for reaching out to me. I can’t believe you’ve been around for such a long time and that I’m a part of your Monday routine :’) 

Anonymous said: OK that ask about "constructive criticism" was def imo RUDE. You don't just anonymously go into someone's asks and bluntly tell an author that their fics "lack emotion". That is not the way to encourage someone to improve and continue to work hard. That's just flat out mean. That person clearly doesn't care about your feelings or the fact that you write and share your stories for FREE for us to enjoy. I love your stories and appreciate what you've shared with us. Thank you for your hard work ❤️

I like to give the benefit of the doubt to anons and anyone sending me a message online in general. God knows there were times I meant well but it was received wrongly. But anyway, my mind was more boggled than I was hurt, that’s one thing for sure.

joonie-mono said: + it was called love so shallow which genuinely made me see myself in a character, but my point was that your writing has a specific feel to it, it's made me laugh and cry (His Name personally killed me :] ) and that's my opinion. You and your writing are amazing and I'm sorry but that anon was just so wrong.

oof bringing out the evidence. be my attorney please.

Anonymous said: As someone who has read your entire masterlist (and going through it again) i will have to wholeheartedly disagree with that anon. The way you portray SO many emotions in your fics is *chefs kiss* and I honestly thought that the ones that “lack emotion” were meant to be that way, with an open ending, the idea that their love just started, soo.... yeah, I’ll have to disagree.

There are definitely stories of mine that are a bit looser on romance. Such as Kitchen Romance, The President’s Son, The Heiress’ Son, Arcadia, etc. But I have a loooot of fics that are quite emphasized in either despair/sadness or cute fluff.

ladyartemesia said: ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! I am here to disrespectfully disagree with anon who probably doesn’t write effing ANYTHING and has no idea what it takes to produce the content you do. I have followed for months and I’m still not through your masterlist BECAUSE reading your stories is a bloomin EMOTIONAL EVENT. When I read Brass and Strings, I LOST A WHOLE DAY. Like I was so into it, my DAY was gone. Anon is prolly salty there isn’t more smut I guess. That’s whatever for them. (Part 1)

It’s subtle, deep, meaningful, and incredible and you’re one of my favorite authors. I can’t FOR A SECOND let that comment go cause it’s RIDICULOUS. You’re literally so gifted. You don’t need to change a thing. Every artist, no matter their medium, should continue to improve. So in that sense I wish you all the growth in the world as you work towards the perfection of your craft. BUT SERIOUSLY you’re an incredible writer. That anon is loony. I’m so sorry you had to even read those crazy words.

As I answer these messages, it’s starting to feel like I’m the third party mediator of a dispute and all y’all are just HAMMERING it to this anon, LOL. I’m not sure if the anon is necessarily requesting for more smut but if they are, they might be happy this Friday (*COUGH spoiler for those actually reading my responses)

Anyway, you’re too kind. thank you. I am definitely not as hurt as I was earlier.

((and tbh you’re hilarious, you’re actually making me laugh irl))

krystle1990 said: Woah!! Ok first that Anon is absolutely crazy. I literally stalk your page for new work being put out! I probably blow up your notifications daily. I've never been disappointed in any of your work. You always give a heads up if it will take time for the characters to realize their feelings which I absolutely love. It always leaves me ready for the next part and I am glued to my phone with every update. You're amazing and I can't wait to see how you grow with your work. 💜😘

ASDFGHJKL PLEASEEE if it’s someone who’s worried about blowing up notifications, it’s me. To those who have notifications on I sincerely can’t fathom how often I blow up people’s phones. I digress, I always give out warnings to keep people patient since I know slow burn can be excruciating haha thank you for the message.

kigurumu said: Also just want to add that saying you have good intentions or "don't mean to be mean" does not cancel out whatever offensive thing you just said. IT WILL STILL RUDE. Not saying all negative feedback is bad. Criticism can be hard to take no matter how it's phrased, but telling a writer to be more like another writer is like telling them their style isn't good enough which is NOT helpful. Your writing is your own. If the anon wants to read fics that are like gukyi's, they can read gukyi's fics 🙄

Also I've been waiting until Sugar and Coffee is done so I can binge it all at once but avoiding spoilers from all the asks is so hard haha! I keep seeing all these good things about it and I'm SO tempted to just read it now but I've already waited this long so I don't wanna give up kfnrjrofvjskdh guess I'll reread your other fics in the meantime

The message was fine on its own but I think dragging in another writer at the end was definitely not ok. When will comparing writers end. But regardless, gukyi and I are cool with one another - i mean we wrote 100k together so it’s gonna have to take a reverse Zuko arc for us to be on bad terms lol

Anyway, oooh you’re one of those bingers. Can’t say I blame you cause I love binging myself, so it’s understandable for readers to wait till the series is over. and since you were so kind in following up your original message with two more and expressing so much appreciation for me :’), I’ll let you know that the finale of Sugar and Coffee will be posted by July 20th! by then, the entire series will be completed. 

Anonymous said: Tbh i think that neither you nor that anon is wrong. Some people like it more romanticised and cheesy, some people dont. I believe that your stories are more on the realistic side of life. People (whom your characters represent) cant always be cheesy and passionate for love, there are other things in life! Maybe you're just the type who's too realistic for any hopeless romantic things like i am and it's fine. Not all writers can write dramatic romance

Tbh, I agree. It’s a matter of opinion and there’s no one wrong in the fight of opinions. As I’ve said many times on my blog, the cringe factor varies between person to person. What someone might think is fluffy is absolutely cringey to another. What someone might think is a good amount of fluff is not enough for someone else. I’ve written a lot. And I’ve made sure to add lots of variations between the amount of romance in my stories. Indeed, some are definitely more subtle and “realistic” while others are completely cheesy and makes me gag from the amount of sugar in it lol I just think the anon should take a look at more of my stories before coming up with such a conclusive opinion.

Anonymous said: I’ve been reading your fics for over a year now and religiously follow updates every week. Why? Because they make me feel something whether it be joy from fluff or grief from angst. I’ll remember a story of yours months after I first read it and return to it just to feel those emotions again. I understand that emotional responses are usually subjective but I think that anon needs to read your works again, because they sure are missing out.

I replied to that anon that they should check out more of my fics and then come back to tell me if they haven’t changed their minds, so I don’t know if they’re missing out or not lol

I don’t expect my stories to elicit emotional responses or fanatic feedback for everyone. God knows there’s been other people’s writing styles that just didn’t resonate with me no matter how hard I tried to read their stories. But all I ask is that people try. It’s fine if you give up halfway but at least try reading. That’s fair to ask, right?

[brokenedgeben]

So This Is Not Going To Make Me Any Friends On Tumblr...

...but I realized something about Leia in TLJ that is no doubt a “no shit Sherlock” moment, but took a while to dawn on me. (Shows how much I know) (Likely trigger/content warning for discussions of physical assault and other unpleasantness) What really strikes me as Leia being not Leia in TLJ is her lack of compassion. Now, when you think of the more compassionate of the siblings, Luke is usually the one who gets mentioned with his faith in Vader (which Johnson decided to discard considering his inexplicable thought of killing Ben). But Leia is no slouch in being a genuinely kind person. I think one of many reasons she works isn’t just because she’s a self-rescuing young woman (though there is that too) but she also proves that you can be kind and still strong. As someone who’s not good at being assertive and feisty, I appreciate that looking back. (Seriously, when I was a kid, I hated that I wasn’t “feisty” enough. I didn’t know where I’d get just being timid and nice) And she is — remember her comforting Luke after Obi-Wan was struck down in cold blood while he couldn’t do anything about it? Remember her reassuring Luke about Han after Han’s temporary departure in ANH? Remember her bonding with Wicket? Hell, remember TFA when she expressed sympathy for Finn regarding his worry about Rey, praised Finn for ditching the First Order, and expressed hope that her son could be saved from himself? True, she had a bit of a temper, and a bit of a dark side — see also her nearly letting Chewie strangle Lando for his indirect part in getting Han carbon frozen. (Which, admittedly, is not one of my favorite scenes of OT Leia, especially since Lando really did do the best he could in a no-win situation) But that is a far, far cry from TLJ Leia where there seems to be no real compassion. OT Leia had her moments of anger, but that’s a far cry from slapping someone in retaliation for something that was critical to saving lives. (Seriously, even putting aside the hyperspace tracking, that dreadnaught wasn’t something to be trifled with) And even if he had done something wrong, you don’t strike someone in anger. If I were writing Leia, I would have had her speak to Poe in private and had her come off more like Christopher Pike in Star Trek Into Darkness — basically, explaining what went wrong and why it was wrong. (Assuming Poe actually did something wrong, which he didn’t, but even if he did, physical assault is never the answer) In this case, maybe show a bit of humanity in that she was possibly scared for Poe — it would also do well in setting up that allegedly loving relationship we never saw between them in TLJ. Besides the slap being grossly out of character for Leia and heavily Unfortunate Implications-worthy in regards to treatment of men of color (people accusing this film of misandry are missing the point entirely; it’s not just that the film’s portrayal of men isn’t good, it’s that Poe and Finn get the brunt of it. Luke may have been portrayed as a crotchety hermit, but he also was framed as fundamentally The Hero in the narrative, and Kylo was framed as fundamentally the Sympathetic Villain. *), it really gives worrying implications to how Johnson views women. Does he genuinely believe that women are only strong if they’re aggressive and violent? Not to mention trying to frame Leia and Holdo as good leaders when the execution of that framing is flawed at best. (Rey’s a completely different topic and something I can’t talk about without upsetting any Reylos who follow me) Seriously, two women in power and they’re portrayed as basically incompetent. How many cis male leaders are portrayed that way? They get the whole spectrum of competency that female leaders don’t. It’s galling because I know woman authority figures in my life who were genuinely positive influences and they were nothing like the caricature of female authority that I saw in TLJ. (Seriously, putting aside the excluding NB and trans people with that stupid “a woman in a dress with feminine energy was the toughest thing I could think of Poe going up against” comment from Rian Johnson — I saw it on Twitter; I wish I was making this up — what is so unfeminine about a woman in a military uniform? Better yet, why do women have to be traditionally feminine? I’m sure the Jedi Exile from KOTOR II would chew Johnson out if she heard that comment, to say nothing of women who’ve served in the military. **) I don’t know why it’s so hard to write women kicking ass and taking names. Are we not people? Do we not have the full goddamn spectrum of emotions like *people* do? Can we not be as competent as anyone else and not have to look like unintentional buffoons? And can’t we be kind and strong at the same time? I don’t blame Carrie Fisher for this, for what it’s worth. She did the best job she could, and she was a genuinely good actress (and from what I heard, really kickass and funny). She always was. I don’t blame anyone who acted in TLJ for the way their characters went, and I didn’t *want* Leia and Holdo to be incompetent. (While we’re at it, I don’t blame Laura Dern either. Seriously, check out her role in Jurassic Park; she’s absolutely adorable when she sees the park for the first time) Honestly, before I saw the spoilers on Tumblr about Poe, Leia and Holdo (and Luke, and others), I had some faith that TLJ could be good. But Rian Johnson effed up big time on this one. It’s sad when a film trilogy lasting from the late seventies to the early eighties gets a woman in authority down better than a film released in 2017. Representation for women isn’t just including them. (And that goes out to people of color, LGBTQPIA people, anyone you can think to represent) It’s giving them meaningful stuff to do. One of my favorite portrayals of women in authority were the minor characters Terena Adare and Queen Talia in KOTOR II, and that game came out in 2004. You should know better, Rian Johnson. And we? We deserve better. All of us. * I’m talking about intentions, not execution. ** And what is our obsession with femininity and what it means to be feminine? Back in my day (yeah, I know, I sound old), girls could do whatever they wanted as long as it wasn’t illegal and wear shorts and a T-shirt if they damn well pleased, at least in the books I read. And that was in the fucking 2000s.