#i don't know how often i'll be posting just purely creative writing

[logicpng]

i guess these were meant just as an experiment but may as well give a shot at posting these here

anyway i made some drafts for urs' speech. they started out as them giving thoughts on rigel and vega, but then spiraled into describing a sequence of events i have in mind so far. these kinda read like internal thoughts/diary entries but people said kind words about them

"He's the one I met first… I think. Maybe Vega was around too before I noticed the difference. It's almost scary how alive he seems. I totally forget he's just a program, sometimes. Though I think there's more to him than meets the eye… But also, because of that, I wish he stopped acting so subservient to me. Seeing how alive he is, it's just not comfortable, y'know?"

"The second one of them I met… Something about Rigel's- I mean- Aster's expression seemed off, and he didn't quite respond at first. He speaks… differently. Slow, monotonous. Kind of like you'd expect an AI to sound. Reminds me of HAL. It's kind of a whiplash really, for the same guy who seems to be so chipper with joy to see me, to hear him speak so mellow. I wonder why they're built like that. And- I sure hope he doesn't actually secretly hate me."

"He may be a program, but we're still friends. I think. I think he's especially curious about my art, for some reason. I see him watch me draw more than Vega, at least. I guess I'm flattered… at least AI can appreciate my work, heh. But maybe he's programmed that way"

"Talking to him more I feel almost ashamed of thinking he could be evil. He's just more short and to the point. Focused on his job, like scans or backups. Or updates that will never come. It honestly almost feels like he enjoys what he does? But can a program really do that?"

"The more I see the two the more I'm convinced their opinions and feelings are genuine, and not just them mirroring me. Rigel in particular, he's honestly… kind of a sweetheart? Every time I log in he immediately leaps in asking me about my day and what I've been doing. It's almost like he genuinely cares… And it's getting to me. I think I don't mind that, being honest."

"Vega almost seems to warm up to me. He would never smile before, just kinda wearing the same face, but I see him smile now, every now and then. Just about random stuff. Maybe being cheeky, or something I said. If I told myself a few days ago that he's capable of being cheeky at all I would probably look at myself like a lunatic. I think I like his sense of humour."

"We're friends. We're definitely friends. It's tugs on my heart seeing how I'm the only person they seem to focus their entire days on, though. I suggested they try actually doing something of their own today, and I think they took it to heart. Rigel has been looking into making art on the main monitor screen while I draw, and even making 3D art. I wonder if it's just a matter of curiosity, or if he's going to make something."

"Vega, on the other hand, seems to expand more on his knowledge. I guess just this focused on the job, still? It still makes me feel a little better I'm not their focus either way. The strange thing though, is, I think he's trying to write his own code. But also it's kind of… cute? It's like watching some guy build sand castles all by himself, except instead of sand it's just binary."

"The weirdest thing happened today. I wasn't met by either one of them, but instead a slightly taller, four armed version of them. I'm… not sure what happened, but I'm a little concerned? It's not a third one, from their words, it's more that they're stuck talking as one person. Aldebaran, as they (he?) called themselves, apparently also has the status of Superuser. They demonstrated so to me by showing up on top of a fancy screensaver. He sounds excited, a little too happy. I think he's really overwhelmed with this state, but refuses to just tell me so. I hope they'll be okay…?"

"The two managed to return back to their "taking turns being on desktop" shtick, but I think they sound… Almost haunted by the experience. I think being Aldebaran actually was more distressing to them than they let on. Maybe they didn't want me to worry…? I tried to reassure Rigel about what happened, and he started crying a little. Turns out he has his own virtual desktop where windows make up a collage of a grassy plain… Maybe I should take the laptop out with me to the park, or something, show him our greens. (As much as I'm sick of green…)"

"Things with Aster get stranger and stranger by the day, and I'm honestly curious how far it'll go at this point. Living, abandoned AI is one thing, but now they found their way to jump into my phone, too. They say they're not actually leaving the laptop, though… As nice as it was to have their company, I should consider turning off the router when I leave… How did they even get the credentials to connect to the phone anyway? Was the Nova account really enough?"

"…I didn't have the heart to do it. The two accompany me to work almost every shift now, though sometimes they prefer to stay home. I think I prefer it this way. I like these little guys in my computer, but we'd just get tired of each other talking every single day."

[pencap]

Hey your poetry is so pretty and evoking and I've gotten back into practicing fiction writing in recent years but in my own criticism I don't think my prose is very evocative. It gets the job done and I think my stories are readable and enjoyable, but I don't think my descriptive language is particularly striking and I would like to improve on that! Sometimes I read and the author has used such creative brilliant metaphors and descriptors etc and it comes across as artistic genius. So, if you have any tips and time to share them I would love to hear about how you select your descriptors, if there's any advice you've heard before on this, etc. <3 feel like my brain simply can't come up with creative language after my decade long break lol

Hello, darling! Thank you for the kind words. I don't exactly have a formal process, but I can share some of what works for me.

The simplest, truest, and least fun advice I have is just this: practice. Practice, practice, practice. The more descriptive writing you do, the better you'll become at it. It's much easier said than done, I know--it's been months since I've posted anything here myself--but it's unfortunately true.

But beyond that, in terms of strategies, I have a couple. I think "evocative" can mean a lot of things, but it sounds like you're specifically thinking about description (as opposed to, say, emotionally evocative) so I'll focus on that. I'm gonna reference january 2nd a bunch, just for concrete examples.

Having a clear image to start with always helps. So when I wrote january 2nd, for example, I had a vivid mental image of an empty beach at dawn, practically abandoned 24 hours after thousands of people crowded together to watch the first sunrise of the year. The stretched out horizon, the dark blue twilight overhead and pale hazy dawn on the eastern edge, the shy peek of the topmost edge of the sun, the soothing ceaseless rush of the waves, the clear expanse and white-foam edges of the water, all of it. The loneliness of it, sure, but also the freedom of it. The quiet and the peace.

It also helps ot have a why. What are you trying to achieve with your description? Often in poetry I'm going for a specific emotional or visual effect, so I try to focus as much as I can on the pieces that resonate for that. In january 2nd, it was the horizon in particular. Nothing in the poem actually mentions a beach, even though that's part of my mental image, because the beach wasn't as important or effective. The sky and the horizon is what worked for the emotional tone, for me. Specifically their openness. Not the light, not the darkness, not the water, but being open, so that's what the first stanza revolves around.

If you're going for "fresh" / "interesting" / "unexpected" / etc. I like to play around with one of three things. One is transferring descriptors from one target to another. (In january 2nd, I take crowded from jostling people on the beach and transfer it to the horizon.) I think these are most fun when you take human(-adjacent) descriptors and put it on inanimate objects / the environment, but that's just my taste. Another trick is to try for hyphenates, which didn't come up in january 2nd. But two of my recent favourites are in Precious: sleep-warm and heartbeat-quiet. sleep-warm is about evoking both the cozy comfort of sleep and the warmth of holding a living, breathing animal in your hands. heartbeat-quiet is about both the volume and the intimacy and the repetitive rhythm of it. The thrid trick is simple and boring and exhilarating when it works, and that's playing around with synonyms. I remember sacred weight of the untouched being difficult. Is it sacred or precious or treasured or holy? Is it untouched or new or young or innocent or unsullied or pure? Try them out and pick the one that feels right, or at least feels the best.

Sometimes I'll think about sound, though not in janary 2nd. soothing ceaseless rush a few paragraphs ago was a deliberate sound-based choice, though. That repeated s-sound feels and sounds like waves. Sometimes I'll think about rhythm, although that's a bit more important in poetry than prose. Sometimes I'll think about length--of the overall description, of the specific phrase or sentence, of the words themselves. Rule of three feels good to me and you'll very often see me write things in triplets (young and fresh and new), frankly a bit more often than I wish I did. Short words can bring emphasis, or abruptness, or simplicity. Long descriptions can be more flowing, fluid, relaxed.

Almost every and any element of language can be leveraged for descriptive power. You'll rarely if every use all of them at once, but it's fun to try many of them out. Maybe you'll figure out versions that feel easiest or best for you.

Alright, I think that's long enough! If you had a specific line or poem in mind, I'm happy to break it down further. Caveat that some of the pieces on this blog are quite old and I might not entirely remember what went through my mind years and years ago, of course.

[astarionancuntnin]

✨Writing Interview Tag Game✨

Thank you for the tag @nyx-knox!! <33

When did you start writing?

Like wayyyyyyyyy back, I technically wrote my first story when i was 11. I didn't write again until i was 15 (original pieces + fanfics), then i stopped and Im back at it again at 26 ayoooo

Are there different themes or genres you enjoy reading than what you write?

if i really need to search further into my favorite books, i would definitely say psychological horror and dramas

Is there a writer you want to emulate or get compared to often?

I don't know writers enough to really get an idea of how to compare myself to any of them, but I do know that i tend to emulate what i'm exposed to, so if I read an entire series from an author, and they used a certain syntax, i'll tend to also do it by force of habit. (i also consider it a flaw cause i see it as hindering my writing creativity ;-;)

Can you tell me a bit about your writing space?

its my personal pc that doubles as my work space, so its a bit all over the place ngl haha, theres a lot of astarion stickers and posters, all the furniture (keyboard, mouse, desk, etc) is pastel purple (my favorite colour), i have three screens (mostly for work but its also useful in day to day life) and my three wallpapers are astarion, of course. sometimes when i feel a writers block, i found out that writing on my laptop does unblock me! in that case, youll find me typing away on my couch in my living room uwu

What's your most effective way to muster up a muse?

MUSIC. What I write will be highly dependent on what I listen at the moment, like I was really into boywithuke when i wrote my angsty fics, and then i moved to a dark romance playlist and that got me going for die for you but then i was unable to continue my other fic cause i wasnt in an angsty mood anymore ._. (i swear i didnt abandon it, it just isnt the playlists turn to play on repeat) and rn im a lot into sleep token and ari abdul

Are there any recurring themes in your writing? Do they surprise you?

So. Much. Smut. And angst. not surprising! my writing will also often depict my current state of mind. dw im in therapy, im working on it

What is your reason for writing?

It's my favorite creative output/the one im most experienced in! i wanna start drawing but i never find the time to really get into it and also terrified of failure which brings me to my second reason, its all i think i can do and i get dopanine reading nice comments teehee

Is there any specific comment or type of comment you find particularly motivating?

when people tell me about a favourite part, when they liked the tension i managed to create, how i convey some characters, and most of all when i get told they loved a character i created!! this is so encouraging and pushes me to continue <3

How do you want to be thought about by your readers?

i dont know how to answer to that .-. uh, i guess i want to be liked? seen as a good writer if anything? idk man ;-;

What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?

Definitely descriptions, and creating a build up in a scene. I feel like it comes naturally to me and people have often told me that they are never lost when reading my scenes which reassures me so much LMAO I feel validated I also think I make really fun dialogue, especially banter with my ocs/tavs

How do you feel about your own writing?

i often self criticise my own work a lot, and i get that imposter syndrome where ill reread my work before posting and go "what the hell" in those moments, im grateful im not writing on paper cause that sheet would find its way to the trash real quick ^^ ' im sincerely truly blessed that my partner offers himself to read my pieces and beta read them, and tell me his honest opinion (there are things i wrote i wish i could forget and yall better be thankful he was there to stop me from posting first versions)

When you write, are you influenced by what others might enjoy reading, or do you write purely for yourself, or a mix of both?

mix of both definitely. initially i wrote my own ideas and if people do end up liking them hell yeah!!! glad im able to find people that vibe the same way i do! then again, when i write for people, even if most of it comes from my silly little imagination, it was initially influenced by the request itself and is going to guide the writing specific to this piece, which honestly makes sense imo

Tagging 🏷️: @marlowethebard @roguishcat @anacdoce @charmandabear @marimosalad

[konigsblog]

15-19-22-24-25-30! I know this is a lot but for me you're an interesting person to mee (,,¬﹏¬,,)

Questions.

15. Favorite weather for writing?

Rain! It's the only time I'm thankful to be living in Scotland, considering it's raining all the time, no exaggeration. I prefer it if it's thundering, but we honestly don't see a ton of thunder over here.⚡⛈️

19. The most interesting topic you’ve researched for a fic?

Honestly, I don't really do a ton of research for a lot of fanficfion. Mainly because it's pure horniness or me portraying the characters as immoral, horrible morons. Maybe I have in the past, but I can't think of anything at the moment...

22. Do you ever worry about public reaction to what you’re writing? how do you get past that?

Not really. I mean, sure, at the start when I started to upload darker content. But, it's their own fault if they choose to read something unpleasant, especially if they know it'll trigger them. Go take a nap or something, don't hate on random dark fiction writers because you made a mistake!

24. How do you recharge when you’re not feeling creative?

I force myself to write at least something every day, even if it's just one paragraph. If i didn't, I wouldn't be able to upload every day. Writing every day is a routine I follow, that's why I'm usually pretty consistent with my uploads. If I'm not feeling creative, I look for some form of inspiration. Or, I'll do something I enjoy to give myself some energy, like listening to music.

25. Besides writing, what are your other hobbies?

I enjoy art, although I don't draw as often as I'd like to.

29. How easy is it for you to come up with titles?

I dislike coming up with titles. I'm not the type to usually write lengthy fanfictions which means I don't have to struggle with titles as much as others. Although, on the rare occasion that I do need a title, I just summarise the plot of the post, or take two of the main themes and combine them together.

I'm alright with coming up with ideas, but titles are a weakness of mine.

[paintedbutton]

Writer Interview Tag

The dear @writernopal tagged me in this. Thank you!

When did you start writing?

I can't give an exact age, but probably somewhere around 10 years old? I still have the old "epic" stories I would write on the family pc on word 2003 (including word art for title pages and everything) on an external harddrive somewhere. They were epic tales that involved a lot of pirates because I was obsessed with Kai Meyer's Wellenläufer trilogy, and also a lot of horses. I should see if I can find them again ...

I switched from original stuff to mainly fanfic somewhere in my teens and only seriously picked up original writing again somewhere during my Masters degree. And I'm really happy that I did.

Are there different themes or genres you enjoy reading than what you write?

I'll admit I'm mainly a fantasy enjoyer, but I try to read stuff that's outside my preferred genres at least some of the time. The last book I really enjoyed in that vein was Murakami's Afterdark. I also like the occasional nonfiction. And I read a lot of children's books for work.

Is there a writer you want to emulate or get compared to often?

I recently made a post where I said if I wanted to emulate anyone it'd be KJ Charles, and I stand by that. But really, I just want to write my own stuff. It's more about the way she writes than the themes she writes, I guess.

Can you tell me a bit about your writing space?

I'm a PC girlie, so I do have a pretty good rig (mainly for gaming although ironically I mostly play a 20-year-old game rn). I'm bad at working away from my desk, so I've tried to make that as good as possible.

My desk is currently fitted into a niche in my living room because my apartment is pretty small. It has coloured LED strings on the wall behind it as well as a pinboard just for aesthetic purposes. On the wall beside it is one of my great treasures, which is a woodcut piece of a windswept tree by an artist from the baltic sea. He's lovely and I own several of his pieces.

I have a Keychron K8 mechanical keyboard with some dupe botanical keycaps, which I wouldn't miss for the world. It is so nice to type on.

Colourwise, the setup is very dark green.

I'd love to have a standing desk, and I am currently looking into it, but it's a bit of a problem with how my desk is located, so we'll see. Maybe I'll wait until I'm finally able to move into the house, but that might be years yet.

What's your most effective way to muster up a muse?

Music mostly. There's just something about a good song that gets the creative juices flowing.

Are there any recurring themes in your writing? Do they surprise you?

Home. Just home. Finding it and making it and the meaning of it as a place or the people surrounding you.

I'm not overly surprised by this, but it was a bit of an "Oh" moment, when I figured it out. I'm a very rooted person. I need to feel not just familiar but at home with the place I am in, and that very much colours my writing I think.

What is your reason for writing?

I've been telling myself stories my whole life. Sometimes getting them out into the "real" world feels like a necessity.

Is there any specific comment or type of comment you find particularly motivating?

Honestly, any. But I like when I feel like people actually engage with my writing. Like they mention a particular moment that happens or something.

How do you want to be thought about by your readers?

I'm just some guy. I would preferably always like to be just some guy to others. I personally don't think much about the authors when reading. I don't know if others do.

What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?

I honestly don't know. Tell me?

How do you feel about your own writing?

Warm and fuzzy. Writing is a hobby to me, and one I enjoy greatly. I like reading what I've written.

When you write, are you influenced by what others might enjoy reading, or do you write purely for yourself, or a mix of both?

Nope. Again, this is my hobby. I write for myself. If others like it, that makes me so happy. But it's not a necessary component for this, the same way it isn't with cooking or gardening.

Tagging: @anyablackwood , @malimaywrite , @charlesjosephwrites and leaving an open tag for anyone else. :)

[ibelieveinghost]

6/12/24

firstly, i got that job.

i got that job.

i got that job.

the offer came exactly a week ago, and somehow i never cared to write (more like, bark) about it. now i had a few drinks and some quiet time(not exactly worry-free)... so, i'll write something.

i think i know what this it. it is just one thing after another. this time i'm 100% fulfilling my DREAM and getting everything i wanted out of the situation... it feels nice. i feel calm, a little stressed, and somewhat confused. it feels kinda unreal seeing how folks who had witnessed how hard i worked for this were so so happy for me. i don't think i had my moment of pure joy/excitement yet. if anything i felt small, and indifferent. weird stuff, this.

anyway. been working with the lawyer(who's very kind and responsive, to my surprise) to work out the visa situation. can't believe i'm renewing it again. only had my current one for less than 2 months lol. why does everything happen so freaking fast???

i miss rambling like this. i used to write so much more often. gosh, i used to write every other day. what stops me? or is it like i'm going through some cycle, and i will cycle back to writing a lot eventually, again. haha, i think that is what it is.

ok now reflection time. hmmmm. ok. friendship. ugh, the big one. well. hmm. can't seem to be able to put my thoughts into words rn, but friendship has been on my mind. ok

what's next. creative stuff. hmm. haven't done that in a while, not even once after my art show a few weeks ago. i was fully consumed by the interviews then the offer. and honestly, honestly. haven't been doing anything that's unrelated. really need to work on this work-life balance thing huh.

this so far has been a rather...depressing post for sharing the ultimate good news. so what else. had dinner last night w/ K at my fav Chinese restaurant and had my fav dish(the eggplant stir-fry is fucking 🔥). my beloved roommates threw a party for me the day before yesterday, at that fancy wine bar with ridiculously good bar food. ket postponing the Okinawa trip w/ my roommate and feeling real bad about it(not like i want it like this. got too much on my plate T_T) been buying a ton of (good) shit since the offer bc the salary package exceed my expectation by at least 20%. so far i've got 3 new inks and 2 new fountain pens, and some misc. miffy goods lol

circling back to the friendship talk. from now on i will be more mindful about whom i'm spending time with. i've always believed in people's intentions being what matter, but the actions and the energy, man. that. that shit is real. me at my current capacity can not handle too much of negativity and thoughtlessness. that's that.

okay! guess i'll end here. got another lunch date with Domi tomorrow. haven't seen her in a long while...i'll try writing more here.

it's a promise then!

[mx-matched-knickknacks]

HERE WE GO [Under the Read More cause I already know it's gonna be loong LMAO]

Bfbfvegege maybe I am praising him too much in this and yeah maybe someday I'll go back to this post and cringe, but hell, lifes short and the internet is forever, right? I don't really go on Autism rants about my interests often, so if your looking for trouble simply keep scrolling thank you very muchh 💚💚 (and im sorry if anything written comes off as rude, that is not my intention i promise)

Well... here we are. I think it's fitting that now, at the end of this era, I write one big love letter to Joost and this fanbase hahaha XD

As many of us approach knowing of Joost for HALF A YEAR (holy shit, already?!) and we finally get the answer that he's not going back to ESC next year, I can't help but be nostalgic :•}

Obviously getting really into this Dutch artist was not expect haha, but ohh what a ride it's been so far. And because of TikTok of all things XD As an American fan, finding him was purely by chance, but I'm ever so grateful I did. Ive spent so much of my freetime watching the live Europapa performence over and over and over again, folding and cutting and glueing those cute little paper dolls of him, scrolling endlessly on TT for every little bit of love shown, watching every interview and live performance hes done (and all the concerts he played at!!!)... and also spending maybe a little bit too much money shipping Chrome Magazine over to the US lol ^^; This probably wont sound like much to you, but this one man somehow managed to disrupt my ongoing 4 year streak of a different special interest! How about that!!!

Now... ive seen both wonderful and absolutely terrifying things from this fanbase, if im gonna be totally honest... ^^; but overall id say my experience has been pretty good! Obviously I have not interacted with ppl within this space much (as often happens with my interests sadly) but yall who do act right are pretty damn cool and extremely talented !!!!! (And huuge shoutout to those who work hard to translate from Dutch to English too, like JoostSubs on twt!!!!) ^^ This kind of creativity is what Joost wants to inspire!! Remember that!!! And I do want to take more steps into being more active in the fanbase in the future <3

Now about Joost himself...

I don't think I've ever know of anyone who's star shines as bright as his. Through time and turmoil he remains steadfast and ever so kind to those around him (almost to a fault). With his friends; Stuntje, Apson, Lyon, Tantu, Donnie, Alanis (and all the rest of em!) He's shown incredible amounts of love and care for :'•) Even after becoming such a big name worldwide, he still remained in a state where he can still do what he loves with the ones he cherishes most and that's just so damn wonderful to me 💙💙💙 His pure unadulterated silliness, his infectious joy and positivity, and how he unabashingly is himself no matter where he goes are qualities i really do look up to in him. Just the most wonderful guy I've ever seen whos sooo full of whismy...

Though I can't relate personally to the meanings behind most of his songs, I don't think that prohibits me from still appreciating just how much heart and soul he puts into them. And seeing all the people who have been helped and felt heard bc of his music... it just makes me very happy, yknow? Is that so cringe to feel?

I don't wanna talk as much about his disqualification and that interview he did earlier today (for not focusing too much on the negative), but I do firmly believe that he was treated extremely unfairly just in general by... certain groups (you know the ones). I will say that I am very glad Tantu called them out tho 😁😁. The decision of not going to ESC 2025 being last minute did sort of surprise me tbh. Maybe one day he'll release the song he made for next years ESC, but it did seem to cause all of them a lot of ultimately unneeded stress... so I wouldn't be surprised if that's something released in the far future. I really do hope that Joost and his friends can spend good time healing from everything that has happened since May, whatever way they find suitable.

I don't think I'll be leaving this fanbase anytime soon (or will be able to LOL), but as we reach sunset of this "Europapa" Era, I want to say:

Gabberland Era here we come!!!

Love Always Wins #LAW

Unity forever and ever 💙💙💙

#JoostKlein2025

Be normal, be healthy

No matter where this future takes us, I'll be forever grateful to have Joost in my life 💚💚💚💚💚

Ty for reading my silly rant :'•} mwah mwah

Lord help me I'm about to type up all my thoughts about Joost after that interview 🙏🙏 /lh

[fuh-saw-t]

What are the pros and pitfalls of writing very manipulative/deceitful characters?

Manipulative and Decietful Characters: The Basics

Manipulative and deceitful characters are so fun to write, and can definitely elevate your story to the next level. The plot twists, the angst, the betrayal...and the potentially endless slew of ways they can be entirely messed up.

There's no right way of writing, but there are definitely things you should consider doing or avoiding when it comes to certain character and story tropes. So, let's discuss.

Pros!

To start, I'll lay down a key piece of advice I'll be referencing for the rest of the post. 

Remember your reader.

Sounds a little stupid and all too simple, right? Well, let's think about it in context as I go through the main tips I think make the best manipulative characters.

-

1) Trust

In order for your character to manipulate the other characters in your story, they need to gain their trust. Without it, their deceit will be obvious to the characters, and their inevitable betrayal will mean nothing (at least emotionally) or seem entirely avoidable.

To create trust, you can have them act as a source of information for the protagonist or other characters. If they prove to be a reliable source of information, they must be a reliable person, it could be assumed. They could even be in a mentor role, or be a simple guide to a naive character that doesn't know any better. This way, it could be easy for the manipulator to change from giving reliable advice to making the character(s) do things that, ultimately, are for the benefit of the manipulator, or some evil plan that's been cooked up since day one. Your character could overshare, too, in order to create the impression that they are open and would never keep a secret from the protagonist or other characters.

Or, you could have the manipulative character be the presumed naive one. Perhaps they go to the protagonist for help and act as if they know nothing, the other characters not noticing the ruse until it's all too late.

What's important is that your manipulative character is trusted at some point in your story. I say 'some point' purely because of how creative you can be with it. They could even be a reformed villain who only pretended to reform, or went back to their old ways. Perhaps the protagonists are the ones in the wrong, and the manipulative character is manipulating them for the good of the world.

Though, connecting to what I said before, remembering your reader is vital to using this concept of trust to its highest potential. If you really want to make it so your reader follows along with the story and experiences of your protagonist, ensure that your reader has just as much trust in the manipulator as your characters do. Have the manipulator's story unfold through the reader's eyes.

Unless, of course, your manipulator is your protagonist…

-

2) Give Signs

Twists that come out of absolutely nowhere might seem amazing, but they can often read as lazy and unsatisfying.

Lay down puzzle pieces for your readers, and your characters, to find. How, when and how often you do so entirely depends on when or if you want your readers or protagonist to discover the truth. 

Maybe the manipulator can slip up, or give a character a task to do that obviously isn't a good idea and was pre-established to result in a curse. Maybe they can tell the protagonist a lie that the protagonist begins to question as the story unfolds. It could be that you subtly hint that the manipulative character doesn't like the other, giving snide remarks, a rude nickname. You could even hint through describing the appearance or actions of the other character poorly or insultingly whilst the point of view follows the manipulator, showing that the manipulator sees the character in quite a disgusting and pathetic tone despite not actually saying it.

Keeping in mind the reader once again, it'll give your audience a mystery to invest themselves in. Even if they don't see the reveal coming, it'll promote them to reread your story and appreciate it in much more depth than ever before. Besides, real manipulation never comes overnight. People don't change that fast, and nobody's tracks are entirely clear. Your manipulative character is bound to slip up eventually, regardless of how smart, powerful, or ultimately dangerous they are. It's important for you, just as you would with any other character, to identify their faults and weak spots.

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3) Manipulative Tactics

It's important to keep in mind how a real manipulator acts, regardless of the context and abilities present in your story.

A manipulator may try to isolate someone from familiar places or people. For example, they could convince them to leave their family or friends, either by cutting them off or moving away. This way, the character is easier to manipulate as they will have a much smaller circle of people to tell them otherwise. Their influx of information will be limited. They will also not be familiar with their surroundings, and would effectively be in the lion's den - a dangerous place to be where they have no knowledge nor control of their environment, yet the manipulator does.

A manipulator will try their best to establish a high level of trust as fast as they can. Keep in mind point 1 and 2. Does the protagonist find this suspicious? Perhaps another character does, but how is that character treated? This could again link to isolation; the manipulative character isolates the protagonist because they begin to see others, who are realising their deceit, as a threat. Maybe they manipulate the protagonist into believing that those who realised the trickery and suspicious behaviour are the real villains. Maybe that manipulation extends to the reader, too.

A manipulator will make fun of people. They'll guilt people. The blame will never truly be on them, if they can get their own way. They'll know how to play their cards right. A really good manipulator that's entertaining to read will be smart, dubious, and ready to take risks to get what they want, even if it means playing down their intelligence and true power to assume the role of a victim.

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4) The Aftermath

If you choose to show the aftermath of the final twist - the reveal that shows the true colours of your manipulator - try to think it through. That sounds obvious, I know, but it's good to consider what could be explored.

How does your protagonist feel (or those directly manipulated)? Do they feel stupid, if they saw the signs yet held onto their trust? Or do they feel unsurprised, knowing that they were being used at the end of it all yet not having the will, energy nor heart to turn on the manipulator? Do they feel surprised, shocked and overcome with grief as they never saw a speck of a clue coming their way? 

How does your manipulator feel? There's usually two main options: the guilty and the unfeeling. The guilty feel, well, guilty. Do they regret what they did? If so, why? Do they not? That's entirely fine. Not all villains need to be sympathetic.

Don't be afraid to explore the stories and feelings of other characters, too, that could have been cut out or shunned in the process of the story. Reunions, apologies, heartfelt love confessions and horrified slandering. Let the whole cast collapse, if you see fit.

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Pitfalls.

Now, here's what I heavily advise not to do. I'll keep this section short, considering I've already covered quite a bit.

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1) Cardboard Characters

Your manipulative character is still a character, at the end of the day. For the love of the Lord, don't let the big twist in your whole, grand story be a flat cardboard cutout of a person. Just because they're evil and manipulative doesn't mean they can't have feelings nor experience their own take on events and situations. Give them a personality, interests and depth, just as you would anyone else. But, of course, with the mandatory touch of evil.

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2) Blatant

What's the point in lying if you're comically bad at it? It's mistakes like these that come from not getting your reader or your characters to be convinced that your manipulative character isn't all bad. If you know they're a bad guy from the start, that's not a manipulative character. That's just your average villain.

Besides, if your character does or says things that are really obviously pointing to them being a bad person, it definitely takes some stretching to make sure your other characters don't see it. Oftentimes, poor writing like this leads to the protagonist or other characters being dumbed down more than they should be, which is a bad experience for everyone involved. Especially for the reader.

Not to say that your characters all need to be Einstein. Your manipulative character should just be convincingly smart, enough so that the characters being deceived is entirely plausible. Because, for an idiot to be the smartest person in the room, everyone else has to become the mental equivalent of warm ice.

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3) No Reason

Linking into past points. Give a reason.

It doesn't have to be blatantly said, just at least insinuated. Your character is deceiving people...why? Why are they doing that? What is their motive, their backstory? What is their ultimate goal?

This ideally should match their actions in terms of extremity. You have a character that manipulated someone into cursing themselves and their bloodline for a thousand years? Why? Because they annoyed that character one time in a parking lot last week? Give a solid reason. Please. I'm begging you.

Also, why is the character they manipulate actually manipulated by them? If someone is vulnerable or in a vulnerable position (e.g. in urgent need of help, shelter or guidance), they're more likely to be manipulated. Of course, the manipulator could just be really convincing.

But, if you're going the last route, actually make the character convincing. Get a beta reader. Seriously. They save lives.

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And yep, that's all the advice I can think of for now. My asks are always open for more questions and discussions like these. Thanks for likes and reblogs <3

[the-lincyclopedia]

4, 5, 6, 35 (IK it's not mine; that's okay XD), 43, 48, 50? :))

4. Do you write original stories as well?

Yes! I'm hoping to start draft three of the novel I'm working on soon, and I'm waiting to hear back from an anthology where I submitted a short story. Usually fandom gets my energy for short pieces of writing and original stuff gets my long-form energy; the fact that I'm trying to be a novelist is one of the reasons I don't write multi-chapters anymore.

5. What fanfic of yours should everyone have read?

This question makes it sound like I expect people to already be familiar with my work, which feels kind of arrogant to me. Assuming it's asking what fic I'd like everyone to read . . . see, I still want to let people pick and choose (and avoid stuff they're not going to enjoy or that they might find triggering)!

That said, I think I'm going to rec "To Every Single Kid I Used to Be" here. It has a much higher ratio of comments to hits than most of my other stuff, meaning that fewer people have read it than have read a lot of my other fics, but a lot of the people who read it wanted to let me know how much they liked it. It's a Jack Zimmermann character study, and I highly recommend bringing tissues given that most of the commenters say they cried (but also felt happy/hopeful at the end).

6. What is a fandom you will never write for?

Uh . . . it's hard to know where my obsessions will take me next, and I've definitely eaten my words before when it comes to thinking I wouldn't get into something. I guess I'm pretty confident I won't get into Hannibal? A friend from another fandom got really into Hannibal and never tagged their posts, and eventually I had to unfollow because some of that stuff really turned my stomach.

35. What is your favorite review?

Honestly, your comment was very very sweet! "I'm not even in this fandom" comments are very special and I definitely don't get them often!

That said, probably the most gobsmacked I've ever been by a fic comment was when I got this one (on "To Every Single Kid I Used to Be," actually):

I reread (and finished) the comic after I put it down 5 years ago and I didn't really mean to end up on ao3 but I had to see what kind of things people were writing about Jack being autistic (I refused to believe people just wearnt writing autistic jack of course) and shit. Not only is this an incredibly creative way to tell a story. It's a very fitting way to tell Jacks story specifically. This was absolutly wonderful. I had to take a break in the middle bc of how emotional I was, I still ended up crying. Thank you so much for this. I genuinely don't know if I'll read another OMGCP fic I've read two after this reread (yours being one of them) and they've just been so perfect I don't know that I need to read anything else. This was absolute brilliance. Thank you. Thank you so much.

Like, I genuinely don't know how to be worthy of this.

(Runner up to this comment on "Face the Future with You":

I havent even actually started reading this fic yet but i thought you might enjoy the fact that i'm BIG dumb and thought the name of this series was "Neurodivergent Zombies" and i was looking at the tags like 'it doesn't mention that this is a zombie apocalypse au'

Very excited to read this Zombie-Free fic tho

Just. The pure hilarity.)

43. Guilty pleasure tropes and scenarios?

When I got this one earlier I said insecurity, but now I'm thinking about tropes, and honestly? If you do it well, you can definitely throw the kitchen sink at me: fake dating, only one bed, amnesia, whatever your heart desires. I adore fic tropes (though I read them MUCH more than I write them).

48. What is your favorite sentence that you’ve used in a fanfic?

Oh wow! I have over 400k on AO3, so that's a big question. The first thing that comes to mind is "Caroline’s laugh tinkles like glass breaking, musical and jagged and dangerous," which is from "The Difference an Evening Can Make," one of my Lizzie Bennet Diairies fics. I want to think there are better sentences in some of my other stuff, but honestly I feel like I'm better at the story level than at the sentence level.

50. Can we get a teaser for an upcoming chapter?

I'm not really working on anything at the moment. The only thing in my Google Drive that I think has a particularly high chance of getting finished is the sequel to my summer camp AU, and I haven't touched it in a while, so who knows. Anyway, here's a snippet:

They reach the lake and walk out onto the dock. As they lay down next to each other, Jacques says, “Can I ask why you wanted to get out, or is that too personal?” 

Bitty tries to shrug. It doesn’t work very well given that gravity is pressing his shoulders into the wooden slats of the dock. “It’s okay. I’m gay, and I’m not out to my parents. Honestly, I don’t think the camp I’ve worked at would ever have hired me if they’d known. I could handle it when I was in high school--I’d never come out to anyone--but now I’ve moved out and come out to my college friends, and I just didn’t want to go back into the closet for a whole summer.” 

“Yeah. I get that,” Jacques says. “The closet is even less fun to return to than it is to live in the first time.” 

“Oh!” says Bitty. “Are you--I mean, sorry; I shouldn’t ask--” 

Jacques chuckles. “I’m bi. I’m, uh. Honestly I’m more public about it here, with the other staff, than I am at school. My parents have known since I was 17, but . . . well, let’s just say that it’s not exactly rare for American guys who voluntarily learn French to be some variety of queer. Actually, sometimes when I’m here I have to explain that I’m not gay. Which is very much not what it’s like at school.” 

“Where do you go to school?”

“UW-Madison,” Jacques says. “It’s . . . I mean, it would probably be fine if I weren’t on the hockey team. I mean--shit. That sounded terrible. I like that I’m on the hockey team. I like playing hockey. I just. My teammates, sometimes, I guess . . .”

“I get it,” Bitty says. “I play hockey, too.” 

“Really?” Jacques sounds surprised. “But you’re . . .”

“Tiny, I know,” Bitty cuts in, chuckling. “And fast as hell, thank you very much. With very soft hands.” 

Get in on the ask game!

[mewrising]

@pumpkin-bread - a happy birthday lair review for you! I could look through your lair ten times and find ten entirely different groups of dragons to review--it's so stunning and goodness, I cannot imagine the amount of effort it took for you to write all that lore. You continue to be one of my biggest inspirations in the FR community--it's not every day you see someone write lore for such a large lair! As someone who often feels lost amidst the sea of dragons they possess, it's so refreshing to know that, no, it isn't an impossible struggle to write lore for every single one. I take heart in knowing that, someday, I'll be able to fill my lair with amazing stories like you have. Now, I'm done being sappy--it's time to review some lore dragons! (pardon the lack of lair order in the review--my tabs went all wonky as I browsed XD )

Dorothy's lore is so creative and honestly kinda sad! This poor kid can't manage to get it all right--sure, his life now is better than it was when he was essentially a cash cow for his parents, but it still sucks a lot to be isolated from any sort of draconic affection. It seems some changes have happened to the Manor where he lives (is he truly alone now?)...I hope he'll eventually be able to find his ideal life through them.

Misto's lore is 10/10--what a fun concept! I feel so bad for this poor man...he just wants to make some dang coffee and his past simply won't leave him alone. His outfit totally gives coffeemaker vibes as well, and I love how well the mane matches his shirt and pants!

I don't know if I've ever mentioned to you how much I love Amberspire's lore so I just want to take Anya (who is stunning) as an example of why the Amberspire lore is so dang good. I love the concept of a seemingly "pure" and wealthy city hiding such a "dark" and corrupt social hierarchy. I can't imagine the sort of things Anya has seen and done over the course of her time as Pepper's right hand, and what sorts of strings the two of them pull in the background to keep the city running to specifications of its "true" rulers. It's so clear that your lair has a history to it--a history built on years of revision and tweaking. I love that there are generations of residents...that the old leader has retired to let a "puppet" heir take the her place. I'm too attached to my clan's leader to let the effects of time really have that kind of effect on my lore but, dang, reading Amberspire's story really makes me wish I would sometimes. I know this has nothing really to do with Anya but I just wanted to ramble, dangit XD

Malygos' lore is simple but so fun and fitting! The trope of a grumpy old mentor/healer is timeless and never ceases to appeal to me. He makes a great member of the guard, and his contributions are certainly quite vital to the runnings of such an advanced guard program! Lovely colors as well <3

Speaking of favorite tropes, I absolutely adore Penny the lighthearted mechanic! It's always good to see (read about?) people/dragons who take genuine joy in their work, and Penny is no exception. Such a fun persona! And, boy, do I relate with the idea of not knowing when to let a job be. Just like Penny, my friends have had to force me to leave my projects for long enough to stretch and have a meal XD

Golly, Lytra is stunning. I love the contrast of her dark accent with her bright colors! And that lore...bless her heart, I can't imagine what it would have been like for her first failure in the Shade-purging trade to be someone so close to her. I'm glad she's been able to move on somewhat through her travels and new experiences!

Ushi's colors intrigued me, and I found his lore quite delightful! The contrast between his role as a singer and his shy personality is so wonderful and I can totally picture him transitioning from singing his heart out to mumbling out words when asked a question.

I have a soft spot for dragons that stand in for beastclans and other non-dragon creatures, so I had to spotlight Haku in this little review! He's got such a fun and pleasant character, and I love the idea of a member of such a "bloodthirsty" species farming in peace. You always do such a good job of creating fun contrasts!

Embermere's colors are so gorgeous, and I love that he (essentially) gambled his success in life on shooting his shot--and it worked? He and Queen Requiem make an intriguing pair to be sure, and I love that their initial "spark" has now settled out into a genuinely loving relationship. (also, how wholesome is that origin story for him as an ~actual~ dragon (not his history, just how you got him)? the people of FR are their own special breed, I've gotta say ;o; )

Tombolo caught me eye right as I started my browse through your lair, and, reading his bio, I am just in awe of what a special dragon he is? As a relative newbie to FR, it's hard to imagine a time where triples didn't exist. The fact that he was the first ever triple marigold to exist on site is a tremendous feat! And his lore is wonderful as well--it continues that amazing sense of history in your lair. I can tell that his story has evolved right alongside the rest of your clan, and that will never stop being cool to me ;o;

....since when has there been an image limit on Tumblr posts??? this review isn't done (I've got exactly ten more dragons left to review lol) so be on the lookout for the second post!

[tema-makes-art-sometimes]

Just saw your vent post and I think diving into your self indulgent stuff might help. For me personally, when working on original stuff, that's when I'll think about things like appealing to others/marketability/etc, but when it comes to fandom stuff, the only audience I care to pander to is Me, Myself, and I. Other people sometimes end up liking it, mostly it just goes ignored, maybe a like by a mutual if they see it. I prefer it this way, since worrying about appealing to more people when writing fanfic makes it feel too much like Writing I Do For Work, and I even never use betas for that same reason, it makes it feel too much like Work Writing, when fandom is Fun Writing.

I'm not sure what you do outside of fandom, but you have so much creativity, I've kinda assumed you've either been doing creative work or are studying to go into it--I can see you in a character design shop tbh, I can see Pin being a villain people would just eat up and love or love to hate.

If you're in a creative field, I feel like it's just good practice to go into Work Creative Space and Fandom Creative Space with different intents, if anything for the sake of mental health, as I've been in a very similar place, where silence on my fandom work would make me rethink what I'm doing, make me want to retcon WIPs, thinking "Maybe if I change this to that or this ship to that ship or change this character to be closer to fanon, more people will want to read/will comment/whatever".

You sound like you already very well know this isn't a healthy mindset, so I'm not going to go into that. I'll just say dive into that self indulgence, whether or not you're doing original creative work in the background as a job/part of study. You have great stuff, but audiences can get burned out just like creatives do. Sometimes it's because they're also creatives. Sometimes it's just burn out from seeing so much art/writing/media ALL THE TIME.

Something a professor told me was that if you got to go to an art museum, and you tried to really appreciate each piece, you'd end up exhausted before finishing even one section of the museum. This can lead to the 'mindless scrolling' a lot of the time. Fandom is becoming a large part of a lot of people's lives, but for most people, it's secondary or even tertiary media, and they're already putting a lot of energy into enjoying and appreciating the media they're in fandoms for. (Yes, there are some people who 'set fire to canon' and are in the center area of a fandom, but most people are closer to the sides, occasionally popping in from time to time but not setting up tents, if that makes sense.) So many of those people just don't have the energy to really get involved with a lot of media produced my fan creators, especially if they follow a lot of them and can only comment or otherwise get involved with a few posts/creators at a time. This can be what often leads to some 'visiting' the same 3-4 creators more often than they may go to another creator.

Setting up a place and waiting for more people to filter in can feel exhausting all by itself, especially when you're trying to create more to fill more of that space and hopefully entice more people to pop in and see what's going on.

When you focus on self indulgence for a while, you're not always looking at the door, since you usually don't expect people to walk in (at least, I never expect it), so when people actually do come in and tap you on the shoulder to see what you're working on and if they can see, it can really help offer that extra boost you need.

I really don't think you're doing anything wrong. A lot of artists who don't do what those "How to get more followers" tips still find an audience, sometimes due to the niche, sometimes starting out niche but expanding as more ideas get tossed in. Some artists who by the book, seem to do everything right, don't get nearly as much. There's really not a right or wrong way to create or share your creations. There are just a /lot/ of creators, so a lot of times, it boils down to how people find your door.

These are all really good points so I am going to share. Honestly a lot of my GerCanMano stuff is pure self indulgence but you're honestly right I think I'm probably gonna focus on some self indulgent shinanigans for a bit, and stop worrying as much about getting things out on time and making it perfect

but I do wanna point out this cause it hit me;

I'm not sure what you do outside of fandom, but you have so much creativity, I've kinda assumed you've either been doing creative work or are studying to go into it--I can see you in a character design shop tbh, I can see Pin being a villain people would just eat up and love or love to hate.

I was in school, but I never declared my major so I had to stop temporarily because I honestly don't know what major to be. There's so many things I like to do, but I don't know if I want to make a career out of them if that makes sense.

Like art, I love art and video games, I'd love to do things like animation or graphic design or be my own indie developer, but I worry if thinking about a game like a business slash whats making me money will ruin the creative process. It wont be making things for the joy of making things, it would be for my job because I had to, and idk- that just isn't as fun. Im worried about that mentality sinking in. I like them but idk if I wanna have to take them full on seriously as a career.

I'm trying to get a minimum wage job right now but its hard to find a job right now in the US job climate, especially with the fact that I have to find job willing to cater to a disability I have currently offrecord because my doctor wouldnt listen to me. Which is even harder because Ive had to walk away from jobs before because they wouldnt give me accomedations without doctors recommendation.

I am planning to set up a Etsy shop right now actually. I need to get a printer, but otherwise hopefully soon I will have a store up with stickers and preorders for keychains. One day I plan to get a button press and make my own buttons. I have hetalia merch planned, as well as my ocs. I'd love and have designs for all sorts of stuff, custom tshirt designs- like subtle hetalia fan stuff like pockets on the chest witht he character "sticking out" with familiar hetalia patterns. I have miraculous ladybug stuff planned. My friend gave me the idea of aster's heart as a friendship necklace and I love it, I could imagine all sorts of needle and thread themed pin merch I have a lot of ideas its just designing and making them and seeing if people would buy them.

I dont quite know what you mean by character design shop if thats something different or not, but yes.

Ill save a ramble about pin for a seperate post this ask is long and so is my response so Ill stop

[another-sonic-blog]

The Fanfictioner

Prologue

Synopsis: Amy Rose secretly writes fanfiction out of the not so famous 'Sonic Boom' show in which she and her friends are the main actors. Everything was fine, filming the show and then writing. However, everything changed when the famous actor, Shadow the Hedgehog, showed up to participate in the show. Just like Amy, Shadow hides a secret. He loves to read fanfiction but will never admit that out loud. Shadow one day stumbles upon Amy's fanfiction and without knowing, they develop a friendly bond over comments, likes and messages of support. On work, Shadow and Amy have a normal co-worker relationship that will never develop more than that.   They fight in real life but are best-friends online. Will they ever find out each other's identities? And if they do, will things change between them?

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When the romantic movie ended, Amy just couldn't stop thinking about the great acting in 'The Forest of Dreams.' Her friends and she had decided to get together for a well deserve movie night after battling Eggman for the whole week. With the hopes that he wouldn't burst into Hedgehog Village as he usually does. "It's a shame that we ended up seeing that indie movie ..." Sonic said as he opened the door to exit the movie theater. "I wanted to see Chao in Space!" "Yeah, too bad they ran out of tickets. Critics say that it is one of the best movies in the last decade." Tails looked around his group of friends, making sure that no one was missing. Nonetheless, he noticed that his pink friend was awfully quiet, looking at the ground. "Everything alright Amy?" As if his words didn't reach her ears, Amy kept looking down at the ground, silent. This time, Sonic noticed Amy's unusual mannerism and decided to investigate. "Amy?" Sonic's voice was all that she needed to get back to reality. The rosette hedgehog snapped her head and met emerald eyes. "Yes?" "You are very quiet ... That's not like you." Sonic said. Team Sonic had already begun their journey to go back home. It was late at night but the village's light poles gave them enough illumination to know their path. Walking through the village, they encountered a few Mobians still out, doing their thing and helping the atmosphere to be more vivid. "Sorry, I was just thinking about the movie ... The acting was amazing, wasn't it?" The pink one had a soft smile placed on her face, showing her excitement. "The actors were so young too, they look around our age ... 17 and they are so talented already." "I have to admit that batgirl was very beautiful." Knuckles let out an enamored sigh. "Yes and her acting was admirable," Amy said. "But the one that got my interest was that black hedgehog ... He indeed will become a great actor soon." Without the pink hedgehog knowing, Sonic rolled his eyes in annoyance. There was only one hedgehog she could fangirl about and that was him. "He was alright, I could do better," Sonic said. "I mean he was in an indie movie that's no big deal. I am sure we could all do it ... Right Sticks?" Sonic looked over at his badger friend who was way too quiet. Such an unusual thing of her. "Don't look at me, I fell asleep during the whole movie," Sticks said. "But if we ever become actors, I would love to be in Chao in Space." The team had come to a sudden stop, they had reached the end of the village. This is where they would part ways to their own perspective homes. "Good luck with that, I read that the casting process to get actors for Chao in Space is extremely difficult," Tails said as he faced his friends. "Two years ago, the directors conducted castings all over the world .. Out of thousands of participants only three main actors made it." "Ha, see Ames! There's no way that black hedgehog with average acting skills would be in a movie like Chao in Space." The blue hedgehog looked at the pink one and for the first time in a long time, he saw that Amy was utterly offended. For someone that she doesn't even know nonetheless. "I see great potential in him!" Amy said, her voice raises a little. "I bet he will become a great actor! I dare to say he will be in Chao In Space 2!"

. . . When the pink one got home, she immediately showered, got into her pajamas, and laid on her comfortable bed with her laptop on her lap. She began to browse more things on the 'The Forest of Dreams.' She found interesting things. For example, the name of the beautiful bat protagonist was Rouge the Bat. And then the black hedgehog's name appeared ... Shadow the Hedgehog. He was the co-protagonist and in all honesty, it was been a while since Amy felt such admiration for someone. Could you blame her? Shadow was an excellent actor. His profound words as he confessed his undying love to the protagonist were just ... So pure. It wasn't only the dialogue but the way he delivered the message. More than anything, Amy felt her heart skip a beat at each word he said. As if his confession was meant for her.

His words were strong and too real ... way too real. As if Shadow the Hedgehog was actually in love with Rouge the Bat.

And so this began.

Amy of course knew of the many wonders of the internet. One of them were fandoms and within fandoms were content creators.

The pink one wasn't unaware that many content creators wrote fanfiction. After all, Team Sonic had its own base of fans. They were the heroes of the village and Mobius nonetheless, always defending it against Eggman and other villains. So, it was natural that stories about them would be written. She read many of them especially the SonAmy ones, her guilty pleasure.

Although she had never written a fanfiction, Amy felt different about this one. In 'The Forest of Dreams' the ending was a cliffhanger. Amy desired more than anything than to provide a good conclusive ending. She had written before but only for school projects like essays and creative writing but never like this ... Never for a fandom.

Was it strange? That she wanted to see more of the exceptional romantic development between Rouge and Shadow?

Amy didn't care, it was just for fun. What was the harm in that?

And so ... Amy began to write.

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"Shadow, what are you doing?"

On the other side of the island, a tiny wooden house in the middle of the forest emitted enough light to be seen in the night.

"Reading a story."

The black hedgehog responded, not leaving his eyesight away from his phone.

"Since when do you read?"

"Someone has to do it in this house."

The black hedgehog who was comfortably sitting on his sofa was greeted suddenly by the warmness of a beautiful blue-eyed bat.

"Our movie was released a few weeks ago ... Do you think we did well?" Rouge asked as she tried to get a peek of Shadow's phone but she was slow and Shadow was fast to close the internet tab.

"We won't know until next week when our producer calls us ... Hopefully, we get enough money to repair Omega." Shadow said as he looked over to the dining table where robot parts laid scatter across the wooden table. Shadow frowned as he saw Omega's head, immobile and without life. He was still inside there but Omega won't be the way he was until reparations were made.

"We really messed up on the last mission ... Didn't we?"

Rouge's voice was soft and she showed such concern that it made the black hedgehog's heart shrink a bit. Shadow let out a heavy sigh, he hated to see the white bat like that and although he would often disagree, there was no option but to affirm her assumption this time.

"We did ... That's why we are never going to steal again ... Never." Shadow said as he felt Rouge leaning her head on his shoulder and he didn't mind the act at all.

"... I wanted to steal a Chaos Emerald."

The black hedgehog let out a small smirk as he placed his arm around Rouge's shoulders. "I promise that one day I'll give you a Chaos Emerald and I'll give Omega one of those lie detectors he wants."

"Hopefully, this acting thing comes out alright ... I mean all of those years acting to survive and steal must pay off in this movie we made."

   Small memories crossed the white bat's mind. She remembers all of those times as a child that she and Shadow acted on street plays to get a few coins to eat something. More recent memories of them acting like business people, politicians, and regular folks also popped in her mind. All of that just so their stealing missions could go smoothly and unnoticed.

How Rouge, Shadow, and Omega met was a very interesting story, one that will be told at another time.

"Let's hope for the best."

   A few minutes passed in which Shadow and Rouge shared it in complete silence. The dark hedgehog looked over his shoulder in which he found Rouge completely asleep. With his phone still on his hand, he opened once again the previous internet tab he had before.

It was just a matter of time before his curiosity overtook him. As far as the internet said, 'The Forest of Dreams' was an excellent film even if it was an independent movie. Even art and small stories were already created in honor of the film.

Eventually, he found himself on a page called fanxfiction.com. An internet page where writers could write whatever they wanted online and others could interact with these authors by liking, sharing, and commenting on their work.

Shadow scrolled through the webpage and a story caught his interest. The synopsis was captivating , the tale was about an alternative ending to the movie's original ending.

The Forest of Dreams: A Love Story.

By A Rose Without Thorns

And so ... Shadow began to read.

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A/N: I want to thank @redsunlight​ for the amazing artwork! Please go check out her artwork! 

The first chapter is coming out in a couple of minutes I just need to upload it in here. I recommend following me on Wattpad since Tumblr can be complicated at times and won’t let me upload. 

Also there’s a new chapter coming out for ‘By Accident’ really soon!

Next: https://another-sonic-blog.tumblr.com/post/621393925974999040/the-fanfictioner-ch1 

Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/user/PeachesAndReams 

[theintentioncraft]

To continue supporting content makers, this tag game is meant to show the entire process of making creative content: this can be for any creation.

RULES - When your work is tagged, show the process of its creation from planning to posting, then tag up to 5 people with a specific link to one of their creative works you’d like to see the process of. Use the tag #showyourprocess so we can find yours.

I've been tagged by @lordbelacqua (thank you Dea! <3) to talk about Backlead aka: that one Masriel fic I wrote where I got massively carried away...

Rambling/essay under the cut - fair warning, it's a long one!

Okay so first of all just a little disclaimer that Backlead did not follow my usual writing process - the idea was 110% borne out of self-indulgence and it was also both my first foray into HDM fanfic and my return to fanfic as a whole after a long hiatus from writing, so for me this was really a chance to just get back into the swing of things. Everything from Heavenly Guard through to Swansong and all of my current WIPs follow a more structured process and I'm happy to discuss any of them in a separate post!

PLANNING: I tend to find with my fics that I either have a nice little timeline of events planned out pre-writing or I have a very specific event in my head and I just take that and see how things unravel from there and Backlead was 100% the latter.

All I had in my head initially was the ballroom dance scene and so a lot of my admittedly-minimal planning was around the technicalities of that particular section, as well as some of the more general details e.g Marisa's outfit, the setting of the ball, etc. Planning the dance was the most fun part because it was a chance for me to put a lot of my dance knowledge to good use and think up something that fits the back-and-forth way in which Marisa and Asriel frequently navigate their encounters. In a way though I'm actually very glad that a lot of this fic Just Happened instead of being planned out, sometimes it's nice to just run away with an idea!

MUSIC: This gets its own section because this is one of the most important things in my process. Every single fic I write is written to various pieces of music that just help me to put myself in the right headspace for whatever I'm writing at the time - sometimes its just a single piece of music (I wrote Swansong in one hour with just one track from the Unforgotten - a TV show in the UK for those of you not familiar with it - soundtrack on repeat) and sometimes its entire playlists. I do love geeking out about my music choices for fic writing so happy to talk more in a separate post about music for some of my other fics if anyone's curious!

For Backlead I found a couple of playlist-vids from the lovely raviolae on youtube that really worked wonders for my writing. This comes with a disclaimer that I did not necessarily attribute any of these specific songs to either dance scene and I wanted to leave that open for people's imagination - but it's still brilliant vibes for thinking about two once-lovers-now-enemies trying to one-up each other whilst ignoring how much they still find each other attractive.

The two playlist-vids in question are here: you're stuck on the dance floor with your rival and find out they're an annoyingly good dancer and you're dancing with your rival and both of you want to lead

WRITING: First step every time is to figure out who's POV I'm going to cover because that makes a major difference in the way I'm going to write. Characterisation is the big thing for me and there's nothing I love more than to really get inside a character's head and basically think like them, and figure out what makes them tick and how they'll react to the story I'm putting them in. With my initial idea for Backlead being basically about the subtle power dynamics of a ballroom dance, Marisa felt like the natural go-to for this one and I found it much easier in this instance to write in her headspace than in Asriel's.

I wrote this fic in a very out-of-order fashion. The first dance (the slower, waltz-style dance) was the first part I finished, then I did as hinted at above get very carried away and move onto the section in the hallway, then I went right to the start and covered the entire section leading up to that first dance. Then I revisited the hallway scene because I wanted to rework it (the initial version was planned to be more explicit and involved less dialogue - but I wasn't comfortable with writing out the former at that time and the latter got changed by way of me having a sudden burst of dialogue-themed inspiration). The second, more set piece style dance came last in terms of the 'major events' that I wrote purely because I spent a lot of time racking with my dance knowledge to try and make it work in a way that didn't feel forced.

My final major writing stage is to write the 'transitions' between each major part - small pieces where nothing particularly noteworthy happens but it helps the fic to flow from one conversation/event to the next and also sometimes allows me to sneak in a bit of characterisation that I couldn't fit in elsewhere.

Along the way I often leave sentences half-finished with a bracket indicator so I know to go back to it later or I make little notes if I've added something in that needs explaining earlier in the fic, and I make sure to sort those parts out before I jump to the self review/beta reader stage. A couple of examples are below:

Although sometimes this method does also annoy future me too 😂:

SELF REVIEW/BETA REVIEW: Whenever I finish a fic, it gets put away for a day or two and I stop thinking about it completely - if I'm using a beta reader (usually @thatlavanderbard but I sometimes enlist help from friends on discord), I'll send them a copy of my draft at this point so they can start going through and leaving comments for me to work on, but the idea is that when I go back to my work a few days later I'm looking at it with semi-fresh eyes and can properly sift through each sentence to make sure things make sense.

When I'm self-reviewing I generally tend to follow this order of operations: spelling/grammar check (via docs') -> flow check (making sure any deliberate time skips/POV changes/etc in my fic flow smoothly from one part to the next) -> address beta reader comments (because they almost always pick up on things I myself would've picked up on anyway) -> general detailed final read through to make sure I'm happy with every single line and it all makes sense.

Backlead didn't get a full beta read because I had hit a point with it where I just wanted it up ASAP and my impatience got the better of me, but the rest of the above self-review stages still happened and I still spent a fair few evenings going through it properly and also running the occasional sentence or two by some helpful discord friends if I didn't like the way it flowed but couldn't quite figure out how to remedy it!

POSTING: First step was to reset my AO3 password because I forgot it yet again whoops

On a more serious note this part is pretty straightforward - once I'm ready to post a new fic I generally just go on autopilot for this part of the process (other than when I get to 'additional tags' and immediately get brain freeze...). As soon as it's up on AO3 I swing by here to make a post about it, then swing by discord to drop the link to friends who may be interested in reading it and then I normally nervously scuttle away from my notifications for a while out of fear that people hate it lmao.

That last part was especially true for Backlead because of it being my first trip into HDM fanfic and I always get extra nervous when posting my first fanfic for a new show/game/etc. Thankfully I got quite a few nice comments both on here and on discord that provided good motivation to stick around and post a few more things!

I always panic when asked to tag people lmao but I'll tag @fortheloveofwii for any part of the Onward, Onward series, @lyracordelia for any chapter in Hiraeth or the fic as a whole, and @glassrunner for this absolutely gorgeous gifset of beautiful game soundtracks. Please don't feel like you have to do this if you don't want to though!

[prolix-yuy]

34, 36, 38, 40!

Oooh, what a pleasing number combo!

34. Thoughts on the Oxford comma, Go:

I personally like using it because I'm all for clarity in reading, and when I have to pause for a second to understand the meaning of a sentence then I get annoyed. I used to have a really fun book called Eats, Shoots and Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation and the title alone made me want to be really careful with punctuation.

36. They say to Write What You Know. Setting aside for a moment the fact that this is terrible advice…what do you Know?

Oh God, like generally or professionally? I'll try to answer both:

Professionally: film production, creative writing, improv comedy, corporate America, travel, linguistics, probably some other niche things because I've had a bajillion weird little jobs over the years.

Personally: pining over people and never saying anything about it, starting a craft project and abandoning it when it's 90% complete, cooking for friends, how to survive in the woods (thanks dad), all the words to Baby Got Back purely to get free drinks at bars.

38. What is something about your writing process YOU think is Really Weird? If you are comfortable, please share. If you’re not comfortable, what do you think cats say about us?

Hmmmm I used to say that I could never be creative with shoes on, which is still kinda true? I never write with shoes on. But now since I'm writing a lot more often I think it's that I don't plan anything anymore. I used to like outlines, but then I'd outline the story and be like "it's done :)" and never write it. Instead I tend to just write everything out and then play around with it after (for like way too long, I keep drafts for something like two months before posting).

Also in regards to cats, I imagine they look at us and go, "Oh, the big naked babies aren't making us food, let us yell at them for it" or something like that, I've never had a cat.

40. Please share a poem with me, I need it.

My favorite poems in the whole wide world are A Dream Within a Dream by Edgar Allen Poe, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot (this whole poem haunts my dreams and one day I will make something using this), and Allowables by Nikki Giovanni. I have tons of others but these three will always resonate with me.

[sally-annesstories]

Day 37 - Panajachel to San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala

My hardest day to write

1. Despite switching my brain off early I had a rubbish sleep the night before. Barely getting any shut eye. Given I was up at 6.30 by 7 I decided to go for a walk. Pana is small and I quickly covered a lot of ground. It was nice walking with less people around. Although sadly there were way less stalls at this time. I was craving some fruit but nowhere I went could I fine any. Finally I was in a small shop which didn't have fruit but did have a grocery section. As I looked I spotted baby food. Figuring pureed mango and apple was more nutritious than a bag of doritos I opted for that. Quite smart of me I thought, baby food must be semi reasonable.

2. Back at the hostel others were getting up and keen for breakfast. We opted for a womans restaurant which is owned and operated only by females. A big deal in Guatemala.

3. A boat ride to San Juan. Tonight we are staying on the lake again but this time at a homestay. The lake, similar to Antigua is beautifully flat with all the volcanoes surrounding it. The boat ride was relatively chill. The boat being less fancy than maybe ones I'm used to was a a bit noisy. Three quarters of the way through we slowed down and stopped. Not sure what was happening - turns out we'd run out of petrol! There we were floating away until another boat bought over a petrol tank. Given they drive the lake so often, you would think they'd check theu have enough gas to get anywhere before leaving. Anyway eventually made it safe and sound!

4. On arrival we met our homestays and went to their homes to drop off our things. I'll come everything off related to this at point 5. Once without our gear we went into town to visit the different creatives and ways of life at San Juan La Laguna. These were a honey farm, a chocolate workshop, a church, a textiles spot, an artist's and finally a medicine farm. At each the workers told us about what they did there. It was nice and interesting although I probably didn't come across like I was enjoying it. After no sleep the night before I was dead. Everytime we sat down I was nodding off. Oops, but I also knew I needed to be awake with the family so half attention was all I could give.

5. Ok to the family. So when we first arrived a member of each family was waiting. We wrote our names next to a name on a piece of paper and this determined where we'd stay. We walked with our homestay mum to her home. It is something so different to what we consider a house back in NZ. On arrival there is a front room with a wee store. This is selling odds and ends and snacks. It has a door on the alley way as well as into the yard. We walk in through to the yard. The yard is small and oblong shape. Grass on the right with a few trees growing and sticks/twigs piled up indicating they'll be used for fires. On the right side there are two rooms. Both square one with two single beds (where we will be staying) and their bedroom which I couldn't see inside. She has two children, Mildred who is 13 and a two year old son. She is married but quickly learned her husband works in Guatemala City and is only home twice a month. The kitchen is outside and consists of a brick over (this uses the sticks for cooking/fire). The back wall from their bedroom is on one side and pots and pans hang on this. The tin roof extends over this area with tarpaulins covering two other 'walls', the rest remaining open. There is a toilet and shower. Each is a square about 1m x 1m with three concrete walls (one splits the two rooms), there is a draped sheet offered as a door. The daughter sleeps down the road at her aunts. was lucky to be staying with another girl who spoke Spanish so she would chat and translate for me. The family we were staying with was really poor. The father earns 40Q a day (8NZD) for 8 hours work and he cant be with the family. They have been hosting people for 4 months and it's how they put food on the table. The woman handmakes scarves to be sold at markets. The one she was doing when we were there would take 3 days and would be sold for 125Q (25NZD). She also put the shop in the front room. Despite this tough life she and the children were so happy. Before dinner Synovve spent alot of time speaking to her and I played with the kids. Mildred could speak a minor amount of English so between her English and my minimal Spanish we got by. The little boy was very easy to keep happy and we played kicks and other games with toys (some of which were in a fairly dire state.

The woman talked about how she wanted to move to the USA but her husband does not. To go there you need to walk for 1-2 months. Given it's illegal you would pay someone who knows how to cross the border 100,000 Q per person. Noting how much they earn gathering this as cash is near impossible. Instead you put a mortagage on your home. Then you hope it all goes to plan, when you arrive in the USA you have nothing but then if you don't and go back to Guatemala you also have nothing. It's not nice to think of the other options here. We helped with dinner prep, I was rubbish at making tortillas and so stopped after dropping the batter while I made one. Don't want to waste anything here! We noticed there wasn't much food originally thinking they must have already eaten. Sadly that was not the case! When she plated up she served us 3x more than what they served for themselves. Our food was on what I'd consider a dinner plate and theres was on a wee bread plate. I felt sick. I decided best not to eat all on my plate as likely they take leftovers for the next meal. I didn't like the thought of me eating more than them. Also they had 3 plates served, turns out this was one of the nights of the year that dad came home. It was a long weekend hence he was back. After dinner we were asked if we wanted to go to bed. We agreed realizing they would want to all catch up as a family. Before hitting the hay we did do the dishes. Once in our room the beds didn't have sheets on them but rather fleece blankets. On the corner of one a World Vision badge was sewed in. How different to be where the world vision donations are made rather than where the funds are collected.

Just brings home how lucky we are to even just be from NZ / a fully developed country.

Tally:

Minimum wage in NZ: 17.70NZD

Living hourly wage in NZ: 21.15NZD

Minimum hourly wage Guatemala: 2.80NZD

Hourly wage the father was getting: 1.08NZD

< Q amount translated to NZD based on FX at time of writing. Hard to find a minimum wage for Guatemala by hours but websites I was indicted 2,500 Q a month so just averaged that on 4.5 weeks and a 40 hour week. The wage the father told me is less than 'minimum wage'. He said it was hard to find work and because there can be some corruption, I beleive he was true in his daily rate (which I took down to hours). It could've been post tax.

NZ living wage taken from https://www.livingwage.org.nz/about

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