#i had this as like a list format in my drafts and thought why not just make it a fr list lol

[wavesmp3]

masterlist - insp list!

a masterlist of sorts, sorted by whatever might've inspired it if something did inspire it heavily eurydice + the sea is yours to take + 8000 layers of inyun + are you happy? + ode to you → have all been posted for both the boyz and for seventeen

MOVIES/MUSICALS/SHOWS → one day → hadestown → before sunrise → minari → eternal sunshine of the spotless mind → past lives → daisy jones and the six → psych

BOOKS → harrow the ninth by tamysn muir → fire by kristen cashore ➤ the general vibe of the the sea is yours to take especially the love story is very much inspired by fire and brigan's romance in the book → the children of blood and bone by tomi adeyemi ➤the magic system in oasis is very much inspired by the magic in this book → chemistry by weike wang ➤ was very much trying to emulate chemistry's style in today i want to burst into flames → nothing to see here by kevin wilson ➤ the whole idea of bursting into flames in today i want to burst into flames was basically taken from this novel → i'll give you the sun by jandy nelson ➤ was again very much trying to emulate jandy nelson's beautiful writing in lie to me and again in this unfinished fic let’s make a trade: the sun for the stars → mexican gothic by silvia moreno-garcia → the hundred thousand kingdoms by n.k. jeminson

SONGS → ok well i guess that’s it then by cimorelli → boredom has a new best friend by tyler the creator → vertigo by khalid → back to you by selena gomez → mr. hollywood by joji → tujh mein rab dikhta hai from rab ne bana di jodi → ribs by lorde → dance to this by ariana grande and troye sivan → i don't care by ed sheeran → it runs deep by trisha mohring → yeh kya hua sung by shreya ghoshal → dynasty by rina sawayama → limbo unreleased song by billie eilish → here goes nothing by dpr live → rain song from minari → how can i pretend? by waisa project → used to be young by miley cryus → sliver of time by sarah kinsley → not a lot, just forever by adrianne lenker → oh no darling! by sarah kinsley → the giver by sarah kinsley

THE SEA! → the sea is yours to take (wjh) + the sea is yours to take(ljh) → a story about us → summers & shots → only us and the ocean → taking chances (special mentions: geronimo, scene in ode to you, scene in love you until the golden hours, scene in clouds, before the bucket falls, dreamscapes)

[tiramiiswu]

ੈ✩‧₊˚ indomitable

⋆⭒˚. invincible x green lantern!reader ⭒˚.⋆

✦ masterlist || next ✦ imagine: local delinquent girl acts as the one and only green lantern of earth and who just so happens to have a distinct disdain for a certain half-viltrumite she has the displeasure of meeting ✦ pairings: mark grayson x reader ✦ warnings: n/a ✦ a/n: reader is a sort of magical girl inspired green lantern in the sense that i keep picturing her hero costume to be reminiscent of the pretty guardian sailor moon sailor senshi outfits, specifically sailor jupiter’s since she’s already green. her personality is bit of a mix of makoto kino from pgsm and kyoko sakura from puella magi madoka magica when it comes to inspiration because i love my bastard daughter, but i think it definitely evolved in a way that doesnt really align with that as well anymore ✦ originally this was meant to be longer but im not super used to the like? headcanons bulleted list style of formatting this imagine is in and i tend to like ramble and get off my initial thought so hopefully this cut version is readable enough, i might make multiple parts to this just to get some of my other headcanons out because i did really like some of the extra ones i just didn’t think they fit that well with the main ones (i also just want to write about gl!reader and her beloved punching bag ^^;; )

edit: I FORGOT THE OTHER HALF OF MY DRAFT FUCK.

✦ mark grayson was a fucking loser

✦ that was something you were sure of

✦ he’s some stupid dweeb with a dorky interest like seance dog who’s not even worth looking at over the gum stuck to your shoe

✦ you’ve known him since you were kids, when he was an annoying little boy with a gap in his teeth

✦ your parents trying to set up playdates with him and his family after moving into the neighborhood some time before you developed your powers

✦ before everything went to shit

✦ at twelve you were sought out by the green lantern’s ring, unsure as to why it chose you or how you were considered worthy

✦ maybe it was due to your childish belief that evil could be thwarted by the power of love and justice, like the pretty guardians and magical girls in the boxsets your mother let you read with her and the old vhs tapes you watched sitting in her lap growing up

✦ maybe it was your stubborn resolve when it came to protecting your friends on the schoolyard from snotty little boys who tried to pick on them (you were sent to the principal’s office due to your quick response to slug your tiny little fists at some stupid brat’s mouth enough to be on a first name basis with them, much to your father’s dismay)

✦ whatever it was, you were over the moon with your newfound abilities

✦ through sheer willpower you were able to construct anything your imagination thought of, you could fly, and (most importantly to your 13 year old self) your ring could create any hero costume design to anything your heart desired, complete with a dazzling transformation sequence to boot

✦ at first it was everything you ever wanted, days at school spent wanting to do nothing but go out and fight the forces of evil with your totally awesome magical powers (sort of)

✦ for a while you even wondered when you’d get your own team (all magical girls had a team comprised of their friends to fight off evil, so obviously you would get one eventually, right?)

✦ you spent a lot of time in class doodling what you thought your team would be like, which of your friends were bound to be chosen next and join your side (in the back of your notebook you even had some little doodles of you and some masked phantom thief type character that you could no longer pin who your kid self was thinking of at the time when you stumbled upon your old notebook)

✦ but of course, life wasn’t that simple

✦ you never got that team of magical girls, or other lanterns to come to your aid and help you fight off evil

✦ you didn’t have a moment where a kind older teammate you picked up along the way reassured you and comforted you when your body ached from being thrown around like a rag doll by some super powered freak trying to destroy a city block

✦ no one else was there to help you when your ring faltered and your constructs fell apart because you were just a little girl fighting for love and justice against real monsters, bad guys who wanted to break your bones or worse, ones who couldn’t be magically defeated with a magic tiara or a special transformation power-up

✦ it was you who had to do all of that

✦ it was you who had to choke back tears and lick your wounds just to push all of that fear down into the pits of your stomach and pull yourself back onto your feet to hit the bastard who broke your rib ten times as hard

✦ your constructs were tougher, brighter even, they no longer shattered after one heavy hit against the body of a big bulky target

✦ but it wasn’t your courage making them stronger—

✦ it was the unwavering resolve that you were going to punch and claw your way out of each hell you got into and survive, even if you had to die trying

✦ at some point you quit sticking your neck out for other people

✦ you stop searching for fights to start and to prevent crime before it escalates with regular patrols of the city

✦ you only ever came to the aid of civilians when danger was making itself present in big conflics, it gives you more time to be a regular girl and live your life

✦ by eight grade you had had to switch schools for fighting other students

✦ mark noticed that before your expulsion you seemed to have quit picking fights to protect your friends (friends who gradually started to drift away from you late seventh grade) and now you seemed to just be starting fights out of nowhere

✦ you needed to let off steam from your hero work, taking it out on some annoying boy in class was the closest thing you had to a goon or grunt

✦ he didn’t see you again until late into high school

✦ or, really he didn’t see you until he ran into eve after getting his powers

✦ because you saw him immediately after transferring back to the same school district and getting enrolled in the same high school as him

✦ somehow the world couldn’t be smaller

✦ you saw him the first day of senior year

✦ how could you forget, you punched him in the jaw at your parents’ funeral nearly four years ago

✦ you basically ignored him as much as you could

✦ i mean really he’s the same as he was as all those years ago as a stupid kid— dorky and innocent

✦ it was almost insulting the way he didn’t recognize you at first, but to be fair you gave him the cold shoulder and pushed past him in the halls whenever you could

✦ he often saw you smoking under the bleachers during breaks

✦ you still got into fights sometimes, he’s seen you throw a mean right hook whenever one of the other students were bothering you, so he generally he keeps his distance (still, he found himself looking at you over his shoulder every time he did notice you, something about the bad girl delinquent vibe gave you an allure of some kind)

✦ so now imagine being you, taking a night off for once from beating crooks bloody and waiting for civilians to get into trouble before swooping in to save them (again), loitering around Burger Mart and using your lantern ring to make a lighter to light a cigarette (you left your lighter at home— a nice vivienne westwood that belonged to your mom)

✦ you’re minding your own business when you see a familiar face come out from the back of the restaurant

✦ your brows scrunch up identifying the boy in uniform as your least favorite regular human on the planet as he’s hauling two trash bags over to the dumpster

✦ you groaned at the sight of him and rolled your eyes, going back to lighting your cigarette when you see him fidget with the bags for a moment before fucking chucking one of them into the fucking stratosphere

✦ you just sort of stare at him from where you were sat with wide, furious eyes

✦ because no way this loser gets powers out of fucking nowhere

✦ no fucking way you have been busting your ass for years getting stronger, learning how to suppress your fear and push yourself to be stronger, faster, more durable, everything to survive when you’re doing your rounds as Earth’s only green lantern

✦ and mark fucking grayson gets to throw massive heaps of trash into fucking space like it was nothing

✦ if there was a God somewhere, you were sure he’s laughing right at you

✦ you’re there when mark— sorry, when invincible makes his debut as a hero, during the initial flaxan invasion,

✦ you’re exceptionally more irritated than usual

✦ the others chalked it up to your usual grouchiness, but atom eve (your one and only friend) caught onto your ire rather quickly with just how aggressive you seemed to be that day

✦ when mark approached eve in the halls at school afterwards you didn’t do anything to hide your scowl, appearing behind her like a shadow

✦ it took him a second to notice you and he’s not all to proud to say your sudden arrival made him jump a little

✦ scared for a second that he was talking loud enough for someone to have heard him reveal his identity when he remembers you as one of the heroes who he fought beside during the flaxan invasion

✦ you’re annoyed when eve offers to lend an ear to mark, call it jealousy or just you being territorial of your only friend, but there was no way mark grayson gets one rocky start as a hero and immediately gets to be reassured by someone

✦ he gets his powers without needing to prove anything, he gets support from the get go by another hero like eve as soon as he doubts himself, it made you sick— HE makes you sick

✦ from then there on you just couldn’t shake this guy off you

✦ you ran into him more often at school, or at the store, hell you were getting put on the same assignments by cecil

✦ you’re sick of him

✦ sick of his stupid face and that dorky grin of his

✦ how he’s always checking in on you when you go down during a fight and how his voice sounded a bit softer when he spoke to you

✦ the way he makes your face heat up and made your stomach flip when he looked at you—

✦ oh…

✦ oh hell no.

✦ you needed to hit something and you needed to hit something hard (preferably mark)

✦ you were already pretty standoffish and kind of mean when you had to interact at school, but now?

✦ whenever you’re paired with him for missions half of it is spent barking at him and calling him stupid for not being careful enough

✦ he doesn’t even really know what gets you so heated sometimes but he’s getting better at dodging your punches when you start wailing on him post fight

✦ you hate how much effort you have to put just to keep up with him sometimes

✦ he makes you put in the work when he’s barely breaking a sweat

✦ you want to hit him with your hardest construct sometimes just to see him get skipped like a stone. he’s durable, he’ll live

✦ seeing you in action is something else

✦ your costume hasn’t really changed since you were younger (really the sailor scout uniform was just too good to switch up)

✦ but the duality of the cute bows on your leotard and the short pleated skirt compared to the sight of you slamming a heavy green mallet over some poor supervillain’s head always draws his attention to you

✦ you fight so effortlessly in mark’s eyes, you’re quick on your feet and there’s a unique power behind your punch that make him feel the earth beneath his feet shake when he sees you clock someone in the jaw

✦ you always looked so cool with your stoic, determined expression and he admires how ✦ you seem so put together, you barely stagger between attacks, it’s as if you’re just going through the motions

✦ watching you ring-sling is such a sight to see

✦ you’re so quick to adapt your light constructs he can’t imagine how fast you must be thinking for you to be able to switch as naturally as you do, almost like breathing

✦ he’s seen you combo your ring-sling constructs with your raw strength, hitting them with a green baseball bat before the same light construct stretched into a tether or a lasso to yank them back into your ring bearing fist— which by then had some brass knuckle or gauntlet wrapped around it to bust up their jaw

✦ you do surprisingly well at keeping up with him, you’re nowhere near as fast or durable as he is after he starts getting deeper and deeper into being invincible, but your willpower wasn’t something to laugh at

✦ he admired your courage and strength, even if he was at the end of some of those punches

✦ the two of you were such a strange pair

✦ both of you seemed oblivious to the way you looked at each other

✦ maybe it was the goggles on his costume but mark never seemed to realize that the scowl on your face wasn’t the same as your usual resting face (though he found the scrunch of your nose and the furrowing of your brows very cute)

✦ and you (despite your observational skills and general common sense) couldn’t tell that the sheepish puppy dog look on his face when he talked to you wasn’t just how his stupid face looked

✦ you also didn’t seem to realize that thinking about him as consistently as you did wasn’t something you’re supposed to do about someone you claimed to despise

✦ eve is at her wits end with you guys, especially since she was most often the one left to mediate between the two of you

✦ rex tried to do that once, but seeing as you were strongly aligned with eve and hold grudges longer than anyone else you still weren’t giving him any civilized response that didn’t involve chucking him into a lamppost ever since eve confided to you about him cheating

✦ also he used your spare lighter as ammunition once and he was still feeling the pain in his arm from when you broke his wrist after that

[ducktoo]

Office Antics

Yena x Reader

Note: Recently rewatched Hyemileeyechaepa and man I missed 2/3 of Jo Yuriz. If you haven't watch it yet I really recommend yall to do it!

Here's for fellow resident duck.

The office was alive with the familiar hum of keyboards and the occasional ring of phones. It was another Monday morning, and as usual, you were the first one at your desk, sipping a subpar instant coffee you’d made from the breakroom. The workday ahead promised to be a mountain of reports, client proposals, and dreaded spreadsheet formatting—tasks that demanded focus. Yet, your mind wasn’t on the work.

No, your thoughts were fixated on a certain someone who had yet to show up.

Choi Yena. Your supervisor. The office’s resident prankster. The embodiment of chaos wrapped in pastel blazers and a permanent grin. She was always the last one to arrive but somehow managed to make her presence known instantly, turning even the dullest workday into a whirlwind of noise and mischief.

You were halfway through organizing the team’s task list for the day when the elevator doors dinged.

Speak of the devil.

“Good morning!” Yena’s sing-song voice bounced off the walls as she burst through the door, holding two iced coffees in her hands. Her grin stretched wide as she plopped one down on your desk.

“Iced Americano for my favourite team member,” she chirped.

You raised an eyebrow, instantly suspicious. The last time she gave you coffee, it was spiked with salt instead of sugar. “What’s the catch, Sunbae?”

Her eyes widened in mock offense. “No catch! Can’t a supervisor just be nice to her hardworking team?”

“Not when that supervisor is Choi Yena,” you shot back, narrowing your eyes.

She gasped, clutching her chest as if wounded. “Wow. The lack of trust here is unbelievable. I’ll have you know that I’m turning over a new leaf. No pranks today, I swear.”

You weren’t buying it, but the coffee smelled too good to resist. With a cautious sip, you confirmed it was safe. No salt, no hot sauce, no glitter bombs waiting to explode. Yena watched you expectantly, her lips twitching like she was holding back laughter.

“What?” you asked, already bracing yourself for whatever she had planned.

“Nothing!” she said, a little too quickly, before skipping back to her desk.

-

Work officially started at 9:00 a.m., and the day unfolded like any other. You were in charge of preparing the weekly task overview—assigning smaller chunks of projects to each team member while flagging urgent deadlines.

The first task on your list was compiling data for the company’s quarterly performance review. You groaned inwardly, knowing the amount of cross-referencing it would require.

“Hey, sunbae, can we talk about the client feedback report for the Kim & Lee project?” you called over to her.

“Of course,” she replied, spinning her chair dramatically before walking over to your desk with her usual exaggerated flair. “Let’s tackle this head-on. Serious Yena-sunbae mode: engaged.”

You slid the draft report across the desk. “The issue is with the client’s notes on the second phase. They’re asking for an entirely new cost analysis, and we’ve got a two-day turnaround. Can we reassign some of my other tasks?”

Yena leaned over, scanning the document with a furrowed brow. For once, she was genuinely focused. “Hmm. Good point. Let’s offload some of this to Eunji and Sungho. I’ll handle the final approval.” She gave you a thumbs up. “Boom. Delegation, baby.”

-

By mid-morning, the office had settled into its usual rhythm: the quiet clatter of keyboards, the hum of printers, and the occasional buzz of phones. You were elbow-deep in Excel, trying to fix a formula that some long-forgotten coworker had created to "streamline" the quarterly financial summaries.

Spoiler alert: it didn’t.

“Why does this formula look like someone coded a secret message?” you muttered, leaning closer to your monitor. You had just started unravelling the mess when—

“Ya, ya, yoohoo!” Yena’s voice broke through your concentration, startling you so badly you nearly toppled out of your chair. She was suddenly looming over your desk, holding up a packet of snacks like she’d just discovered gold.

“Want some dried mango?” she asked, dangling the packet in front of your face.

You sighed, rubbing your temples. “…Sunbae, do you even work here, or are you just here to disrupt me?”

“Excuse me, I’m your supervisor. Disruption is part of my job description,” she said with a wink. “But seriously, how’s it going with that finance thingy?”

“It’s not a ‘thingy,’ it’s a nightmare,” you replied, gesturing to your screen. “This formula makes no sense. It’s like someone deliberately made it as complicated as possible.”

“Let me see,” she said, pulling up a chair beside you. She squinted at the screen, then immediately leaned back, shaking her head. “Yeah, nope. That’s a you problem. I’m more of a ‘big picture’ kind of gal.”

“Wow, so helpful,” you deadpanned.

“Hey, I didn’t say I couldn’t help in other ways!” she chirped, pulling out her phone.

“Oh no. What are you—”

“Shhh. I’m solving your problem,” she said, cutting you off as she started typing furiously. A moment later, she grinned and held up her phone. “Ta-da!”

You squinted at the screen. It was a meme about how Excel was designed to make grown adults cry.

“Very funny,” you said, but a small smile tugged at your lips.

“See? I’m boosting morale. That’s like, half my job as a supervisor,” she said, patting you on the shoulder before skipping off to her own desk.

-

Five minutes later, the printer jammed.

“YENA-SSI!” someone from the design team shouted.

She popped her head up like a prairie dog. “What? It wasn’t me!”

“It’s always you!”

“I take that personally,” she said, hopping up from her chair and making her way to the printer. “I’ll have you know, I’m a model employee. Watch and learn, folks.”

You glanced over just in time to see her dramatically roll up her sleeves, as if she were about to perform life-saving surgery. She yanked open the printer tray, dug around for a moment, and triumphantly held up the offending piece of paper, which was crumpled beyond recognition.

“Fixed it!” she declared, tossing the mangled paper into the trash.

The printer whirred back to life, and the team gave her a half-hearted round of applause.

“Thank you, thank you,” she said, bowing theatrically. Then, as she walked back to her desk, she sprinkled star-shaped confetti onto the floor behind her like she was leaving a trail of breadcrumbs.

You sighed, already knowing who would be tasked with vacuuming it up later.

-

At around 10:30 a.m., Yena made her rounds through the office. She stopped by everyone’s desk, offering unsolicited advice and handing out snacks like a chaotic fairy godmother.

“Eunji, you’re overthinking that layout. Trust your instincts!”

“Sungho, great job on the client emails, but maybe use fewer emojis next time. We’re professionals, remember?”

When she reached your desk, she leaned over your shoulder and whispered, “Still fighting the Excel file?”

“Yes, and it’s winning,” you replied without looking up.

“Want me to call IT?” she offered.

“I am IT,” you said flatly, earning a laugh from her.

“Well, when you’re done, come see me. We need to prep for the Kim & Lee client pitch. You love PowerPoint, right?”

You groaned. “You’re evil.”

“Evil? No, no. I’m effective,” she said with a wink before disappearing into the break room.

-

When lunchtime rolled around at 12:00 pm, the office buzz quieted as everyone scattered to their usual spots. Some gathered in groups to eat at their desks, while others slipped out for fresh air or made a beeline to the cafeteria. You decided to head to the break room to escape the endless spreadsheets and give your eyes a break from the glaring screen.

As you stepped inside, the smell of warm food hit you immediately—ramyeon, fried rice, someone’s dubious reheated fish—and in the middle of it all sat Yena, perched on the counter with her legs swinging, humming a tune to herself.

“Ah, my loyal team member!” she greeted dramatically, raising her half-eaten kimbap like royalty. “Come to dine with your favorite supervisor?”

You rolled your eyes but smiled as you made your way to the fridge to grab your lunchbox. “Favorite by default, considering you’re the only supervisor I report to.”

She grinned. “Still counts.”

You settled at the table, peeling back the lid of your leftovers: some rice, grilled chicken, and steamed veggies. Simple, nothing like the variety of colorful side dishes Yena always seemed to have. As if on cue, she hopped off the counter and slid into the seat across from you, pushing her kimbap container into the middle of the table.

“Want some? I made it myself.”

You eyed the kimbap warily. “What’s in it?”

“Rice, seaweed, veggies, and unconditional love,” she said with a wink, holding out a piece with her chopsticks.

You raised an eyebrow. “Unconditional love, huh? Sounds suspicious coming from you. sunbae.”

She gasped dramatically. “Wow! Can’t a supervisor just share her lunch without being accused of foul play?”

“Not when that supervisor once put chili powder in my tteokbokki.”

“That was one time!” she protested, pouting.

“And what about the fake soy sauce prank? Or the time you switched the sugar with salt?”

Yena bit her lip, clearly trying not to laugh at the memories. “Okay, fine, maybe I have a history, but I swear this kimbap is safe. Scout’s honour!”

You stared at her for a moment, debating whether you should trust her. Finally, you gave in, cautiously taking a piece from the container. It looked normal enough. Taking a slow bite, you braced yourself for some hidden twist—but to your surprise, it tasted great.

“See? I told you it’s good!” Yena said triumphantly, clapping her hands together. “I’m not just a prankster. I can cook well.”

You shook your head, chewing thoughtfully. “Fine, I’ll admit it. This is actually... really good.”

Her face lit up like you’d just handed her a trophy. “Knew it! Now I feel validated as both your supervisor and a good home cook.”

“Don’t push it,” you warned, but there was no bite to your tone.

The two of you ate in relative peace for a few minutes, the easy banter filling the room. Yena kept sneaking pieces of your chicken when she thought you weren’t looking, and you retaliated by stealing some of her kimbap. It was a rare moment where she wasn’t causing chaos, and you found yourself genuinely enjoying her company.

But, of course, this was Yena. The peace was never meant to last.

“So, about that trust thing,” she started, her voice taking on an innocent lilt that immediately put you on high alert.

“What about it?” you asked, narrowing your eyes.

“Well…” She reached into her bag and pulled out a small plastic spider, dangling it in front of your face with a mischievous grin. “You’re not scared of these, are you?”

Your glare could have cut through steel. “Sunbae, I swear—”

Before you could finish, she tossed the spider onto your rice. You jolted back, startled, only to realize it wasn’t moving. Fake. Of course, it was fake.

“Relax!” she said between bouts of laughter, clutching her stomach. “Your face—oh my gosh, I wish I’d recorded it!”

You picked up the spider and tossed it back at her. “You’re unbelievable. Can’t even make it through lunch without pulling something, can you?”

She dodged it with ease, still giggling. “What can I say? It’s my love language.”

“Your love language is being too nice,” you sarcastically muttered, shaking your head.

Yena just winked, stealing another piece of chicken from your plate. “You’re lucky you have me to keep things fun.”

-

The office was quiet as the clock ticked closer to quitting time. Most of your co-workers had already packed up for the day, leaving you and a few others burning the proverbial midnight oil. Your focus was on the final edits for the Kim & Lee proposal, your fingers flying across the keyboard as you updated figures, corrected typos, and double-checked client specifications.

The spreadsheet in front of you was practically your baby at this point—a meticulously crafted, formula-heavy masterpiece. Losing it would be catastrophic.

As you clicked to save your progress, the screen suddenly froze. Your cursor vanished, replaced by a spinning wheel of doom. Then, without warning, the screen went blue.

You blinked, momentarily stunned.

The iconic blue screen carved deep into your tired mind; the haunting words lingered:

“CRITICAL SYSTEM ERROR. ALL FILES DELETED.”

Your heart stopped.

“No, no, no, no!” you muttered, panic bubbling to the surface. You frantically clicked the keyboard, your mouse, anything to undo the apparent catastrophe. Nothing worked. The message continued to flash, taunting you:

“ALL FILES DELETED. SYSTEM FAILURE IMMINENT.”

Your pulse was racing. Everything—hours of work, detailed charts, carefully formatted tables—gone in an instant. You’d have to start over, and with the deadline looming, that wasn’t just inconvenient; it was impossible.

“Why now? Why me?!” you groaned, your voice echoing in the empty office. Sweat prickled the back of your neck as you opened Task Manager, desperately trying to shut down whatever program had caused this.

That’s when you heard it—a barely stifled giggle.

Slowly, you turned your head, eyes narrowing.

“Yena-sunbae” you said, your voice low and dangerous.

Behind you, Yena stood just outside your cubicle, clutching her phone and biting her lip to keep from laughing. Her shoulders shook with barely contained glee, and her face was turning red from the effort of holding it in.

“What did you do?” you demanded, your tone sharp enough to make her flinch—almost.

That was the wrong question because it sent her over the edge. She exploded into laughter, doubling over as if you’d just told the funniest joke in the world.

“Your face!” she managed to wheeze, tears forming in her eyes. “Oh my gosh, you should’ve seen your face!”

“YENA,” omitting the formality, you shouted, standing up so fast your chair rolled backward.

“It’s—it’s just a screensaver!” she choked out between fits of laughter, holding up her hands in surrender. “Relax! Your files are fine. Everything’s fine! I saved it already!”

You froze, your panic slowly giving way to disbelief—and then anger. “A screensaver? You nearly gave me a heart attack for a screensaver?”

She nodded, wiping her eyes. “I couldn’t resist! You’ve been on edge all day, and you were so focused—it was too perfect!”

You stared at her, torn between throttling her and collapsing into a puddle of relief. “Yena, I swear, if you ever—”

“I’ll never do it again, promise,” she interrupted, holding up three fingers in a Scout’s honour gesture. Then she ruined it by snorting with laughter. “Okay, maybe not never, but not anytime soon.”

Your glare could’ve melted steel. “You’re lucky I didn’t actually lose anything, or I’d be writing the longest HR report of my life right now.”

“Aw, come on, don’t be mad!” she said, stepping closer and placing her hands on your shoulders. “It was funny, admit it.”

“No, it wasn’t,” you grumbled, sitting back down and trying to calm your frazzled nerves.

“You’ll laugh about it later,” she said confidently. Then, after a beat, she added, “...Maybe.”

You huffed but couldn’t stay mad at her for long. This was Yena, after all. Chaos was her default setting, and you knew what you were signing up for when you started working under her.

“Alright,” you sighed. “But you owe me dinner. And drinks. Good drinks. None of that cheap stuff.”

“Deal!” she chirped, already bouncing on her heels. “Let’s go! My treat. No pranks this time, I promise.”

She linked her arm with yours, dragging you toward the elevator. Despite yourself, a small smile crept onto your face.

With Yena, your life might’ve been unpredictable, messy, and occasionally terrifying—but at least it was never boring.

Even though you wanted to quit halfway through because of her antics.

[iamnmbr3]

Hey! I remember a while ago you said you were working on a sort of funny sort of serious drarry letter writing fic or something like that? Are you still writing it and if so could we see a little bit of it?

Hi anon! I am in fact still working on that fic. The premise is that basically a few years after the war Harry, who hasn't seen Draco since the trials, gets annoyed with Rita Skeeter asking him questions about whether he spoke at Draco's trial because there was some secret enemies-to-lovers thing going on and sarcastically agrees...not thinking about the fact that sarcasm doesn't translate well in print (especially when Rita has NO incentive to explain the context). Draco owls him about it and they start writing back and forth. Just a fun little cracky scenario I entertained myself with. I am still working on it though I've never published a fic before and idk if I'll actually post this.

If you like you can see a tiny excerpt from towards the beginning below the cut. Tho obviously it's still in draft form and in order to publish I'd need a beta to help me remove any egregious americanisms since I learned American English and also to figure out how to get it to format properly on AO3.

Potter,

Thank you for your reply. 

Frankly I am shocked that the quote is genuine. I had assumed it entirely fabricated or misreported by an unreliable secondary source. Do you mean to tell me you actually answered a question from Rita Skeeter of all people with the words “Yeah, that’s right. Everyone who thought we hated each other in school just couldn’t recognize the obvious romantic tension”? You actually said that? To Rita Skeeter. 

You needn’t worry about forcing the Prophet to issue a retraction on my account. As I said, it’s not my (less than sterling) reputation that’s being besmirched by this story. I am happy to let the story die on its own if you are. (Personally, I vastly prefer this coverage to the last time I was of interest to the press.). Do whatever you think is best. 

For your convenience I have attached a blank scroll since clearly you must be desperately short on stationary. Why else would anyone send back a response written on the back of the original message?

Sincerely, 

D. M.

P.S. It was five years, not six. 

***

Yes. I really said it. No “unreliable secondary source” (like you in fourth year you mean?) necessary. I was being sarcastic! It’s not my fault she left out the context! I probably should've seen it coming, but what was I supposed to do? Hermione made me promise not to hex any more reporters. 

I have a question though. If  you didn’t think the quote was real and you don’t want me to stop the rumors, why did you write to me in the first place?  

By the way, I forgot to say in the last letter. Tell your mum sorry about the reporters outside the Manor. Has she considered using the Fidelius Charm to hide the location? Or the location of your flat, for that matter. That’s what I do to keep them away from my house. 

Also, Hermione says wasting paper is bad. There is plenty of room on the back of this scroll so I don’t see why I shouldn’t use it.  

Harry 

P.S. Five years? So is nose breaking supposed to be a secret Pureblood friendship ritual or something? 

***

Potter,

One does not write letters on the back of other correspondence. It is simply not the done thing. Furthermore, as we can use magic, we can simply replicate an existing piece of paper indefinitely, thus preventing waste. The need to conserve and recycle paper is a purely muggle concept, though an ingenious one. I still don’t really understand how they can turn certain used materials into new objects without magic, though my neighbors have tried to explain it to me. 

Yes, just like me in fourth year (something I hope you know is included on the long list of things I deeply and sincerely regret about my past).

If you must know, I wrote to you because I thought you might suspect I’d planted the story for my own purposes. Clearly I vastly overestimated your ability to handle reporters. For future reference, silence is a wonderful way to prevent unfortunate quotes from appearing in print. 

Our previous correspondence two years ago made it clear to me you wouldn’t welcome further contact (I don’t mean to accuse you; I wouldn’t have wanted to associate with me either) but I didn’t think you would believe me if I simply denied it directly, and I was eager to avoid the impression that I would repay you for your forbearance with the same petty duplicity you had come to expect from me. I apologize if I’ve done the wrong thing. 

Unfortunately, both my mother and I are forbidden from concealing our residences with the Fidelius Charm until our respective five year Ministry-ordered probationary periods have expired. 

I will pass along your apologies next time I see her, though they are hardly necessary. 

Yours,

DM

P.S. I only meant that the incident on the train was about more than misguided feelings of rivalry. I blamed you (unfairly) for my father’s imprisonment and for my family’s sudden fall from grace both in mainstream wizarding society and among the ranks of the Death Eaters, and for the task that subsequently fell on me as a result of my father’s failure. It was my first true experience with any kind of hardship and I handled it extremely poorly. A better person would have questioned the ideologies and actions that led them to that point, but instead I sank further into the darkness that will now overshadow the rest of my life.

[markrosewater]

I think your article today did a good job laying out why Play Boosters had to come about, but I'm still feeling mildly apprehensive about the change. I reread your articles "Project Booster Fun" and "Set Boosters" and one of the throughlines in those articles was player agency. I liked that Set Boosters and Draft Boosters filled different niches and purchased both types of boosters depending on my needs. Play Boosters feel like a compromise that is going to leave both parties less satisfied.

As a drafter, I don't like the idea of a draft pool being warped by the List slot. If you continue to do premier set Universe Beyond tie-ins (like the Transformers and Jurassic World cards), I don't look forward to drafting those (even if I can appreciate them design-wise). The "extra value" that you mention doesn't matter as much to a drafter if they are passing that value to the left (although, I guess in fairness, they could also be passed value, but it does exacerbate the age-old dilemma of do you draft for value or do you draft for your deck?).

As a collector, it's disappointing to see the loss of a guaranteed art card (although I'm sure I'm the minority in that). The odds of opening a card from the List also seem a lot lower and the List taking over a common slot instead of the Token/Ad slot feels worse. The List in the Token slot was always a bonus, even if it was only a common or uncommon. If you continue to do premier set Universe Beyond tie-ins (like the Transformers and Jurassic World cards), I'm worried that the designs will be limited by keeping Limited in mind rather than making the best design for the IP.

That's just my two cents on the matter. I'm sure you folks have thought about it a lot more than I have and we'll have to wait until Markov Manor to see how Play Boosters...play out.

The market didn't want two core booster packs. It turns out more Magic players enjoyed having a fun booster opening experience than enjoyed playing limited formats, so set boosters were edging out draft boosters.

Our move to play boosters is us trying to keep player agency. We want players who want to play limited formats to continue to have the opportunity, but we wanted players who enjoyed a more exciting booster pack opening to keep having access to that as well, so we basically changed the set booster such that it also allowed limited play.

This is not us trying to lessen Magic for anyone. We're adapting to the needs of the players while staying true to the needs of the market. The history of Magic is constant evolution, and this is just the next step in the game being the product that makes the greatest number of players happy with it because it lets them have the greatest options of how to interact with it. If we were shrinking agency, we'd just make set boosters and stop having limited be part of the game.

[livelaughlovetoread]

ALITS - Behind the Scenes

I was chatting with people on Discord and organizing my timeline folder for ALITS, and I thought it would be fun to share the outlines from part 1.

To start out with, ALITS is my first fic, so I really did not know how to go about planning. But I have gotten my Ph.D., and I thought to plan it like I do experiments and academic papers - with data collection and a paper outline.

I started in June of 2024 by collecting canon in formation and putting it down in one document (titled FF, real official). That turned into 3 files: Timeline, People, and Important Text.

Timeline is everything that happens - from Voldy's coming to power to plots that build on each other over the years. If you find this document, you will know all - or maybe not, the grammar and spelling are bad. But it is meant to be notes for me about what happens.

People is a document that has everyone in order of birth and details about them. I wrote in-depth character backgrounds for everyone, and all of that is in the doc, too. This way, when I am talking about someone, I know what I have/will say about them.

Important Text is anything straight from the books. So we have SMW and things from Remus or Sirius. This makes it so I can go back and ref if when needed.

Below the cut is more on how I started the fic, the outline, and what happened. It will spoil ALITS part one, so read it only if you want spoilers (or maybe to know if you want to read it?).

ALITS was originally a 5th year-death fic, which is why Mistle-Wow was written and published as a test balloon to see if I could write.

With people liking Mistle-Wow, I began writing more.

Then I realized that one thing I missed when I read Jily fics was how we got to the 5th year by the lake moment - what was it that made James want to ask her out then? Why did he do it like that - why was Lily smiling before that.

What happened?

And to answer that I needed to go back.

So I drafted from 1st to 4th year.

And then I was like - but who are they when they get to school?

You have a whole personality by 11. Kids are forming their own styles and opinions. Who were the people that got on the train?

So, I wrote the large backgrounds for the big players (Marauders, Severus, Lily, James/Lily Parents), and the doc was like 7k words of just notes.

And I was like... is this part of the fic... how do I tell everyone about these people that I have found - do these memories come as flashbacks later on, or do I tell their story for the start.

I originally was only going to do James and Lily (that is why they are chap 1 and chap 2 listed). But then I was like - who the fuck are the other people I am writing about?

I thought they would be short, fun chapters (dear reader, I wrote 100k. They were not short).

I also was not planning on writing from the parent's POV; however, writing a four year olds POV and making it coherent was not possible, so I took advantage of parents being able to help tell the story. (This was a decision that was made two days before the first chapter was posted, as I hated how the fic started.)

Almost everything I drafted made it in - some things changed over time like names or dates, but I'm kinda shocked how on target I kept everything.

James playing football did not make it in as a full scene - but it was mentioned. There is one thing blocked out that is a spoiler for later that I decided not to put in the first chapter.

There was a lot written that was not drafted out. This is especially true for everyone who was not James/Lily. I had the notes you see below for the others, but I then started with dates and writing down those memories. When writing the moments that I planned, I thought about what character traits were missing and added those.

Some things are also not written as they are such hard-held headcanons of mine - like that Sirius was not physically abused and was smart. Sirius having a betrothal was something that came to mind when thinking about pureblood society and how it would function. I did not plan for it - but it is now listed in other places and will play a big role.

Also not written is Remus' depression. That is just something I hold so strong that I did not write it down, the man hated himself so much, and no notes were needed for me to remember that.

One other thing that changed was Snape's mum's emotional neglect. When writing her, I realized that, yes, she abused him by emotional neglect, but her situation was so complex - she wanted her son and loved him so much, she was just being hurt too.

These 1.2k words turned into the 100k ALITS part one.

[mysticsparklewings]

Obscutober 2024 Day 4: Apricate ☀️

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Apricate (v.)

to bask in the sun; to expose to sunlight

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Hope you’re all feeling as good as a cat sleeping in the window on this 4th day of Inktober 😉

I’m not really because it’s a traveling day & those wear me out, but hey could be worse! 🤷‍♀️

Click the "Keep Reading" and we'll talk more about my thoughts/process for this piece ✨

(Apologizes in advance for any formatting issues; I wasn’t able to draft the Tumblr post before we got on the road and I am so not used to doing this on mobile. 😅)

⭐️ Like My Art and Want to see more of it? Here's All My Links! ⭐️

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I apologize for the lack of my normal description today, Sparklers. As I mentioned yesterday, I've got on my plate today and I just don't have the time to get into the details right now! I'll see if I can come back in the evening and flesh things out more, but for now I'll leave you with just some bullet point thoughts:

My primary inspiration was kitty cats basking in "puddles" of sunshine they find on the floor, or sitting in sunny windows, etc. Hence the cat-window-silhouette thing happen as sort of the main focus of the mandala.

I also thought of sunflowers, and coincidentally sunflowers are non-toxic to cats, so it would be acceptable for a kitty to sit in a patch of sunflowers while both flowers and feline face the sun.

More obscurely, to help fill space and add contrast, I thought of these things.

I tried to go for a little bit of an effect with the background like the sun is actually shining through the windows, but I'm not sure I pulled it off correctly.

I was 95% done with this piece when I realize it looked much more washed out on screens that were not my iPad, so I had to back track a bit and try to fix it. Now I think it looks too dark with how low I keep the brightness on a lot of my device screens, but I think a lot of people keep their screens brighter than I do by default (at least during the day) so I'm sticking with it.

I'm still not really happy with the "red" for the curtains. I was going for a kind of desaturated dark coral, but it kept coming out either too pink or too dark. Ultimately I settled for too dark because it went better with the sun-through-windows idea, where the curtains would be more shadowed anyway.

White might have been the more natural choice for the lines, but then you probably couldn't see the cat silhouette and I could not be bothered going back and changing it to outlines. [And it looked kinda weird as outlines when I first started drawing it, which is largely why I ended up filling it in the first place.

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See the Prompt List

Artwork © me, MysticSparklewings

Obscutober Concept Inspired by nikolas_tower

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⭐️ Like My Art and Want to see more of it? Here's All My Links! ⭐️

[cornelis-rage-poetry]

The diary of an Underground Writer January 16, 2025

In 1980 on my fifteenth birthday I got this amazing present from my parents "26 Griezelverhalen" (26 Horror Stories) by Edgar Allen Poe. Published by Hollandia, in a translation by Simon Vestdijk (a well known Dutch writer in his own right) and with illustrations by Arthur Rackham.

I remember it was at the top of my wish list, I don't remember how or why I, as a young man had become interested in the works of Poe, but for some reason I was drawn to it, fascinated by the dark and mysterious nature of his stories. And in later years I bought several other publications of his work either in hardcover or paperback, always with a somewhat secretive desire in the back of my mind, to one day read his work in the original English language.

And now, practically a lifetime later, again it's my birthday, today I turned 60 (can you believe that? yeah I know I'm an old boomer)(hehe), and to mark the occasion I bought this present for myself, usually I don't buy presents for myself, but because I turned 60 (!!!) I thought: oh well, might as well buy something special and make myself happy. And so I bought this Barnes & Noble edition of "The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe", in the original English language. And it feels like a circle closing from then, way back in 1980 when I was just a boy, to now as I've become an old man.

And I've also noticed as I've become older, the more I feel this desire to go back to how things once were, it's not just this feeling of a circle closing, it's also with a sense of nostalgia, you know like the glow of moonlight, glistening on the surface of a river at night, as the water tries to finds it way back home, to the sea.

Update on my writing, everything goes forward with a steady pace, the formatting of my poetry collection into an ebook for kindle and kobo is mostly a technical formality and doesn't require much time. However the rewrite of my little novel does require time and attention too. I finished the first draft half way December of 2024, and now half way January I'm almost done with the second draft. And it's not only about rewriting, it's also about bringing balance to the story and the style in which it is written, as I've noticed that earlier chapters have a slightly different writing style than the later, as it's been written over the span of about one year, and one's writing style always changes a little bit over time. One might say, as it matures within the story.

And in the rewrite I'm trying to bring the writing style of the chapters closer together, bring balance to the story as a whole and make the reading experience more homogeneous. I hope to finish this second draft later this month, or perhaps early February, I will then let it sink in for two or three weeks, and give it another read to see how it holds up, maybe do some more rewriting, if needed. The plan is to round it all up in March and April, and then hopefully bring the poetry collection as well as my little novel out on kindle and kobo before spring sets in, so they can surf the waves of warm and sunny days.

Alongside these two projects, I've also started working on a third project. It's about the story of why we are here, the story of the Universe and evolution and stuff like that. I've started making notes a few years back, and at the time I had no idea what it was all about. But in recent times, I've started to notice a thematic structure in all those little scribbles and now (like two weeks ago) I've started organizing these notes by theme and topic, to get a better understanding of what it's all about and what it all means and then once it's all organized, usually the main story will show it self. I know it's a weird way of working, but for some reason it works for me, the same thing happened with my little novel. For now let's give it the working title "Project 3", I do have some ideas of what to call it, but it's still very early to give it a real title, and besides I'm not yet sure if it's a little novel or a collection of related stories and or meditations.

Anyway, today was my birthday and it was a good day. I've slept for seven hours, it's cold outside and I'm at peace.

[pricemarshfield]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Spread the self-love ❤️

thank you for the ask, neutral!! time to show my deeply multifandom roots and not have any of these share the same fandom 🫡 below the cut because i’m chatty as hell

number one on the list is a recent one but absolutely my all-time favorite thing i’ve ever written: talk, a bg3/raphtav-and-also-haarlep-is-there smut oneshot

i don’t use this tweet here because it’s smut, but because no fic has EVER gripped me by the brain and haunted me for months until i wrote it like this one did and also because the devil’s hot. i laid awake at night in a cold sweat thinking about this even before i’d finished house of hope for the first time. i’m not even being hyperbolic here, this fic GOT me. also this fic converted me from haarlep-neutral to haarlep’s personal cheerleader. they’re so fun

my beloved darling tav already had a very strong characterization to me but i still feel like i Learned her through writing this, and certainly learned a lot about her dynamics with raphael and haarlep. enough that i’m braving actually writing a longfic for them, and feel free to hold me to this because otherwise it’ll languish in my drafts for another six months. but i’m actually formatting the first chapter for ao3, it’s Genuinely almost done !! promise

fun story about this is i cheerfully told my mom i’d finished writing something after i posted this and she asked to read it. i was like haha. well i’ll do that after work! and then i didn’t ♥️

-

number two on the list is what i’d have confidently said was the best thing i’ve ever writtennbefore talk, and that’s one of my dimension 20 big bang 2021 fics: plant a garden in the yard, then, a fantasy high/aelwyn & ayda friendship fic where they explore the deeply haunted tunnels beneath aelwyn’s deeply haunted house

it’s hard to overstate how personal this fic ended up being to me, enough that i hold it as close to my heart as my other d21bb fic which i wrote about grief while Actively grieving. both fics for that event ended up being a good deal more melancholic and introspective than i thought they would at the start, but this one Feels more intimate (for lack of a better word)

aelwyn & ayda are both characters that mean a lot to me on their own, and figuring out their friendship—prickly and uncomfortable as it starts—was honestly healing. there’s something really cathartic about writing a character who’s gone through such extraordinary circumstances in their canon finding a path Towards genuine connection and happiness, even if they don’t find it and Especially if things still aren’t perfect.

also the only time i’ve ever actually hit ao3’s comment length limit was on a reply to an absolutely lovely comment my friend shark left on it so :) the response to this fic was also really nice!

-

number three on the list is my queen b magnum opus even though i have one that’s like 8 times longer than it: teeth, the book 1 mc/poppy romance i craved/theoretically a smut oneshot that became something more.

this is a remix of another fic i wrote, so it feels weird to prop it up higher than the original, but i’m just so fond of this one. queen b is a very silly game and poppy min-sinclair can be a VERY silly character but my bea for this fic is another oc i grew deeply attached to, and i think the sheer self-indulgence of the fic shines through, in a good way.

also, i think the characterization in this is strong enough that i’ve been able to recommend it to friends with better taste who haven’t played queen b, and they’ve still enjoyed it! which is just IMMENSELY validating as a writer :’)

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number four and five on the list are my niche oneshots which i wrote for a target audience of me, myself, and i, and i think that’s part of why they work as well as they do!

four is a session with dr. martin whitly, a prodigal son fic which focused on ainsley & martin, namely ainsley relying really heavily on her father, despite the fact he’s a serial killer that she Knows he’s manipulative and terrible.

the fact that i wrote this before the season 1 finale is astounding to me. i have never called characterization beats harder than this, and i feel comfortable saying that even though the actual plot points are quite different, and also even though ainsley isn’t canonically gay. that’s okay because i know and perceive the truth <3

prodigal son’s cancellation is something i’m hard-pressed to say i’m Upset about this far out, but i wish every day that the episode where some ainsley issues got addressed had lived to see the light of day.

this fic i Cannot recommend to people who haven’t watched prodigal son because it’s me extrapolating and picking at lines of dialogue that Suggest a lot without confirming much, but that’s also really fun, in its own way. some of the best fics i’ve ever read are enjoyable specifically as transformative media.

-

five is walk with the devil, a the martian/ares3some noir au which was honestly 90% a style experiment but like i fucking nailed it?? there was a stretch of a couple years where some of my best work were from smashing together whatever pairing i wanted to write with a bunch of prompts and seeing what i could make from it (werewolf au caitvi was also one, and a runner-up on this list)

this fic has a lot of hallmarks that i know people aren’t usually a fan of, but i love it. non-linear narrative. major character death but also maybe not, you won’t get closure and neither will the characters. actively avoiding concrete details in favor of a strong, hopeless tone. bringing in a ton of the cast for no reason. LOTS of 1940s slang. and because of that it’s my baby. weirdly i feel like my johanssen characterization is better in this than in either of my two canonverse fics?

i don’t know that i’d write fic for the martian like this again—a lot of what i like about it is really different from the more transformative fandom approach for the things that compel me to write—but i’m glad i did, because this fic is my darling. more people should be experimental in their fics because some of the weirdest stuff will almost always be some of the best !!!

anyway answering this made me so very hyped to write more once i’m off work !!!

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

You mentioned yesterday when answering my 1-3 review-ish that all the Chapter 5s bar one would be quite low down the list so seeing 3-5 here, doesn't really surprise me all that much because this has a LOT of flaws with it.

And given the history behind this chapter its little surprise as out of all the V3 Chapters, 3-5 suffered the most development hell of them all as Kodaka and everyone at Spike Chunsoft struggled really hard to come up with a good Chapter 5, and there were lots of drafts and revisions each with wildly different outcomes. The only recurring theme between each version was that the victim and culprit worked together. So if you are wondering why Kaito and Kokichi feel out of place as a victim/culprit pair, that's why because there was a good chance neither of them were meant to die this chapter but after slamming their heads against the wall enough times, this is what we got. I am curious what the other alternatives we could have gotten were but short out of a data breach I don't encourage under any circumstances, I doubt we would ever find out.

As you mentioned a big issue is this is a reskin of 2-5 but its a way inferior version since Kokichi is not Nagito. Nagito is a creditable threat because we've seen many examples on how willing he was gonna go for his ideals, and he also makes it very clear if he likes you or not. Plus Nagito had just found out the truth about Class 77-B being the Remnants of Despair so there was a motive for his anger. With Kokichi it felt like since everyone hated him after what he did last Chapter he decided to go "fuck it" and go completely crazy.

Another major difference between Nagito's and Kokichi's plan was Nagito had thought out his plan well and made it so it became almost impossible to solve since anyone could have thrown the poisoned fire grenade. The only way there were gonna win is to weed out the traitor which only works because Nagito would view the traitor as the only innocent, and this meant Chiaki had to expose herself to ensure Nagito's plans failed. But all of this can be saved for 2-5. Kokichi's plan though had nurmous holes in it since yes he drove everyone to despair but all the Mastermind had to do was use a Flashback Light to give them hope and that brought everyone's spirits up. Plus kidnapping Kaito was always gonna be a poor move since we all know someone who is very attached to Kaito and who would not hesitate to delete Kokichi from existence if given the chance, so does it really come as a surprise when Maki decides to try and rescue Kaito on her own, and kill Kokichi in the crossfires?

And while Kokichi making a unsolvable crime is a good idea on paper, in reality seeing as Team Danganronpa would do anything to keep the show running, plus there was already a case of the culprit being the wrong person with 3-1, so they would just execute whoever was in the exicel regardless of if its true or false because the producers don't care, they just want a good show. And even if everyone was killed in Chapter 5, there's a good chance it would have made the show even more popular, because there was evidence that Danganronpa was getting stale in the V3 universe as you would expect from such a long running show. So having it so everyone died in one chapter in a unsolvable case, that would have brought a lot of in-universe discussion and it might lead to Team Danganronpa changing the format slightly so that more scenarios like what Kokichi's plan was would come out like making more disruptive characters like him. Far from stopping the Killing Game, Kokichi's plan would have benefitted it more then anything.

I think there should have been more emphasis on Kaito's illness rather then it be a throwaway but once again since 3-5 has been muddled around so much, it could have been that some scenarios would have had the illness be more of a factor and Kaito dropping dead during the trial or something. What's worse is that Shuichi and Kaito have a bit of a fallout in 3-5 due to the previous class trial and while Maki tries to help patch things up, I'm not really sure if this conflict was ulitmately resolved satisfyingly, I know Kaito does apologise to Shuichi when he secretly visits him while being held captive, but given Kaito was under watch from Kokichi at the time, its not sure if its sincere though the fact he gives Shuichi words of encouragement before he dies means I do think the bridges have been mended but I dunno I wish it was done better.

Another thing is due to how confusing 3-5 is, a lot of people have ran conspiracy theories that Kokichi didn't even die, since due to how the whole trial was run and how compliant Kaito seemed to be, it could be Kokichi was just hiding afterwards and him being alive explains the plothole of how the auidence seemed to comply at the end because Kokichi hacked into the broadcast signal and turned it off so nobody could vote. And while people give all kinds of evidence and its a interesting theory, its one I don't buy because I just believe its wishful thinking from Kokichi fans that he is still alive.

The whole Gopher Project fake storyline was also kinda meh as while its revealed to be completely fake, its like how do people not notice a swarm of meteorites heading towards Earth with space COVID in them? I know Bubbles played with this in Starship of Hope by explaining its caused by a rogue planet going through the Kulper Belt which made the astariods go crazy, but still we have eyes on space all the damn time, sure we sometimes miss a asteroid or two but not an entire swarm of them. That's kinda hard to NOT notice and also how come Jupiter doesn't do its job and mess with the flight path of a lot of them? Really you could tell the plan is bogus and fake and really the only logical conclusion I can see is that its terrorism and a group similar to Ultimate Despair hijacked the meteorites and just yeeted them at Earth. Kinda glad it wasn't real in all fairness.

Another issue here is the Maki-Kaito relationship. This is one of the few "canonical" pairings as Maki more or less admits in this chapter she has developed feelings for Kaito and its what drives a lot of her actions since she just wants Kaito to be okay. And that's fine because love can make people do stupid and crazy things, but it wouldn't be what Kaito wanted from Maki. As the entire character arc between Kaito and Maki is the former wanting to show the latter there is more to life then being a merciless monster, and that she is a person with thoughts and feelings. So if the entire character arc is for Maki to learn to be her own person, then why does she decided to go and try to do a dramatic rescue to save Kaito and kill Kokichi in the process? Especially since Shuichi and co already made plans to rescue Kaito and confront Kokichi the following day so why does Maki decide to go rogue when there was already a plan in the works?

And I know the easy way is that Tsumugi made Maki do it, but since we have never seen Tsumugi do something like that in V3 and if anything she was panicking big time during the entire chapter which makes it seem she's lost control and recieving hell from her superiors. Her statement in Chapter 6 it was part of the plan I suspect was an lie to save face because looking how she reacts in Chapter 5, its very telling that she's lost control of the situation.

I am reminded of the fake spoilers of Chapter 5 which gave some interesting alternatives that we could have gotten. One of these fake spoilers is the reveal that Kokichi was born into a cult of Despair and was groomed to be its leader...and all the horrific implications that follows. The characters find out about this in Chapter 5 and they confront Kokichi who goes completely crazy as a result due to the trauma involved as it turns out the reason he lies all the time is as a defensive measure for what he had to endure. So Kaito decides to kill Kokichi because everyone assumes he's the mastermind, but midway through Kaito killing Kokichi, he realises that Kokichi isn't the mastermind but its too late as a fatal blow was dealt. Kokichi though is happy since it means at long last, someone believed him and he dies condent. Kaito then takes Kokichi's body and crushes it under the hyderelic press so in the fake spoiler, he was already dead when the press went down, and then he had to rush to the trial to stop Monokuma from trying to frame Maki as the blackened and then he implores everyone to vote him.

The trial itself is fun because you don't know who the victim and culprit is but the problem and its another plot hole, is that Kokichi apparantely wrote an entire script for Kaito to act like him. Thing is he wasn't able to gloat Kaito into helping him until after Kokichi got fatally poisoned by Maki who if he did, would mean Maki gets killed, and when you are slowly dying from poison you don't have enough time to write 5,000 words on how to speak Kokichi. I mean I probably could do it in about 5 hours, but I use a computer, Kokichi would have had to write this all out which takes longer. You could argue that maybe Kokichi had this written in advance but how was he gonna convince Kaito, who btw hates his absolute guts and was only helping him because if he didn't one of the people he cares about the most would die. And it also implies Kokichi has Ultimate Analyst like abilities which again is something we haven't seen from the character.

Long story short, while the trial had good emotions and it led to a interesting case, the fact that this was apparently a pig for Spike Chunsoft to figure out how to write it shows, because they wound up doing a rehash of 2-5 but missing a lot of its good marks and leaving behind a lot of plotholes and stuff that doesn't make sense. Maybe if Chapter 5 wasn't so much of a brain fart for Kodaka, maybe the case could have had more consistancy and be stronger overall. But as it stands, we are left with a chapter which has a lot of flaws and plotholes and a scheme that was doomed to fail due to the nature of the Killing Game.

Sadly, this won't be the only time a chapter gets slaughtered by edits and changes which wrecks the entire narrative, but I see that one being way more severe as it happened literally at the last minute. But you see which one I'm referring to when we get there.

//First of all, I'm really sorry I didn't answer this yesterday. I always look forward to your reviews, but yesterday I was preoccupied with personal matters.

//I had some friends over for the week to celebrate my birthday that happened at the beginning of the month. And I create all of these posts in advance, so it just uploaded on its own without me needing to do anything.

//But I'll talk my way through this now. To start with, I'm gonna be real, if I ever had the chance to talk with Kodaka and his team, and we got to talking about Case 5, now that I know what was going on at the time, I think I'd have nothing but kind words for the man.

//Yeah, okay, I don't think I would try to hide all the issues that I talked about with V3-5, but if this really was under the constraints as you've described them, I think what we actually got is pretty freaking fantastic.

//Again, I LIKE this case. I just have very prevelant cons with it that kind of balance out the pros. While I do really like the alternate scenarios that you talked about here, if I'm being real, I still think I prefer what we actually got as opposed to them.

//In terms of comparison to 2-5 though, it's very easy to pinpoint exactly why it falls so flat. And the main reasons all have to do with the masterminds behind the plan.

//Let's just say that there's a reason why there are so many videos and posts out there trying to pschoanalyse Komaeda. Because not only is it a fun and interesting thing to do to try and explain the actions of this madman, and debate whether or not it's justifiable to do so, but it's rewarding to as well, regardless of what conclusion you reach.

//Nagito's motivations are flawed and nonsensical, but they are also logical. He's had such a rough life that constantly teeters on and off collapse due to his batshit luck that he cannot control, so the reason why he's crazy is because he tries to ground himself with whatever he can. It's like a coping mechanism, and it makes him do insane things.

//He loves hope because he fears despair, and as stated here, the simple reason why he did what he did in Case 5 is because he had a reason to want to go after everyone else. He found out that the Future Foundation were the good guys, and the students were the bad guys, which is why a switch was flipped that made him set up the trap as intended, and it's genius.

//But Kokichi isn't the case. Psychoanalysing him is almost impossible, because he's both too simple AND too complicated.

//The short version is that he's just a pathological liar, but Kokichi throughout all of his spiels about how lies and truths can change, he never actually gives a reason why he lies; at least not an honest one. And when he dies, even Shuichi says that they will never find out what's really going on through his head.

//And neither do we. And we likely never will.

//On the one hand, Kokichi being left as such an open book for people to make their own interpretations is cool, but at the same time, it just stirs conflict, because everyone can kind of agree that Nagito's psychology comes from a singular place, largely because of how straightforward he is as a character.

//Kokichi is complex for the sake of being complex, and it doesn't really work in his favor for this case.

//But yeah, Kokichi's plan to create an unsolvable crime in Chapter 5 could have made the show more popular, completely going against what he tried to do to end the game. What's worse, as I mentioned, it is really taken away what Kokichi tries to do when Tsumugi stands on ceremony and tells everyone she predicted he would attempt this, because she wrote his character.

//Assuming that's true, which lets be real, it probably isn't, but assuming it is, that really means that this whole trial was just overall worth absolutely nothing. Despite how much they try to play up Kaito's sacrifices as noble, Kokichi was trying to destroy a power that he didn't fully understand.

//Nagito knew, when he was dying, what was really going on in the virtual world, and formed his plan surrounding that. Kokichi had no idea what he was up against, tried it anyway, and played with fire. While that's not out of character to him, Kokichi is more methodical than he lets on. Everything he does means something in the grand scheme of things, as Chapters 4-6 really try to show.

//So it just kind of sucks that it turned out this way.

//What I will say though is that in regards to Shuichi and Kaito's falling out, it does make sense how that one quick conversation was enough to fix it.

//Not only was the situation desperate at the time, but I don't think Kaito was ever THAT mad at Shuichi.

//Kaito, contrary to what people might think, ISN'T an idiot. He KNOWS that if Shuichi hadn't exposed Gonta, they would have all died. But it ties in with his belief that no matter what, he could not believe that Gonta would be cruel enough to commit a murder on his own. And he was kind of right, considering Kokichi masterminded most of Case 4.

//Shuichi is not to blame for what happened to Miu and why Gonta turned out the killer. But that doesn't stop him being angry about it, and just taking it out on Shuichi because he's basically the only one that he can anymore.

//That doesn't make it right, let me just quickly add. It's still stupid of Kaito to do that. I just think it would be in-character for him to realize such himself, but unable to prevent himself from lashing out about it because it upset him that much.

//In his defence, V3-4 was VERY upsetting.

//Next, the Kokichi conspiracy theory, while cool, probably isn't accurate either. Because there would be no reason for him to hide away like he did, because again, he would not have known about V3 being a TV show.

//Also, in regards to Maki, I'm not going to defend her actions, because they were still stupid, but you have to remember that Maki, while agreeing to the rescue, had a few reasons why she went on her own. The most likely circumstance is that everyone agreed to go save Kaito in the hangar, but Maki probably realized that while everyone was willing to fight Kokichi and the Exisals, none of them were probably willing to kill him.

//She on the other hand, for lack of better words, needed that twink OBLITERATED.

//Also, what the hell was she going to do? Go back and admit that she might have killed both Kokichi and Kaito? So yeah, it was stupid, but the reason why Maki went off on her own is because she probably felt she couldn't trust the others, and at this point in time, she didn't care anymore. Kokichi had crossed every line and she wanted him DEAD.

//Also, I really don't think that Tsumugi had anything to do with Maki's actions, because Maki would have SAID so in Chapters 5 or 6. She could have gone "Wait, but that reminds me...Back when I was trying to rescue Kaito in the hangar, it was Tsumugi who said blah blah blah..." you get the idea.

//But we never got that, and come on. Tsumugi doesn't do a single damn thing that's remotely mastermind-like for the entire Killing Game, besides killing Rantaro and framing Kaede, which we don't even discover until Chapter 6. It's pretty unlikely of her to do it now of all times.

//I think there were also other ways that Kokichi could have convinced Kaito of what was going on. All he had to do was show him the proof that he WASN'T the mastermind, and that his tools were created by Miu, and explain that his plan is to end the Killing Game.

//In fact, Kaito even ADMITS at the end of the trial "I was on board the moment he told me he wanted to end the killing game."

//Like, Kaito SAYS this EXACTLY!

//The fact that Kokichi was able to goad him into it with the poison cure was pure luck more than anything. Despite how much Kaito hated Kokichi, and does so until his own death, I doubt it would have taken that much to convince him to help end the game, even if it meant making a sacrifice.

//But yeah, like I said already, it is honestly kind of surprising looking back how people remember Case 2-5 so fondly that they fail to realize just how much greater it is than 1-5, V3-5, and I would argue A-5 and A2-5 didn't really hit that mark either.

//Unlike Case 3, none of them are BAD. Not even this one. It's still very good and very fun. They just aren't universally fantastic. But we have a whole rest of a list for that to get to soon enough.

-Mod

[blackbird-brewster]

Friday Fic Recs

What I've Read:

Criminal Minds, JJ/Tara/Emily, Tara/Rebecca

Rated: E || WC: 218,576

Why I Love It: I just finished my first read through of Part 3 since I finished it back in December. Let me tell you, it was SUCH a delight. I had forgotten so many little details, I was constantly gasping and sharing parts of it with my partner in utter delight. If you want a light-hearted polyamorous rom-com AU, this is the series for you! Reading Part 3 instantly inspired me to start Part 1 over again. I'll never get tired of this series.

Criminal Minds, JJ/Emily

(Unrated) || WC: 1512

Author: villainousunsub

Why I Love It: I've been reading some of my old Jemily faves again. This is such a great one-shot. This is such a beautifully written one-shot. Lots of fluff and fun with the whole team.

Criminal Minds, JJ/Emily

Rated: G || WC: 1944

Author: velutluna_ithil (@velutluna )

Why I Love It: The weather is getting colder where I live and this is the perfect winter fic. Domestic Jemily will always hold a special spot in my heart and reading Emily with Henry is so delightful. This is just a soft, fluffy, fic that ticks all the boxes for me.

WIP I'm Excited About:

Criminal Minds, Emily x Reader

Rated: E || WC: TBD

Author: kattwyllie (@storiesofsvu )

* Read on Tumblr [here]

Why I Love It: As soon as I heard 'Emily as a Sugar Mama' I was intrigued. The set-up in this first chapter is already amazing and I am highly looking forward to reading more. I never thought I'd be reading reader insert fics and I definitely never thought I'd be hyped about a reader series, but Katt single-handedly changed my mind and all my preconceived notions. The way she writes is so magnificent, you can't help but get drawn in. This story is sure to be an exhilarating read.

What I'm Writing:

Criminal Minds, JJ/Tara

Rated: E || WC: 88,000

Updates: I have been working on this for what seems like three years (it's probably been a month). Compiling all of the drafts, outlines, and cut scenes into one full version of this fic has proved to be a monumental task. I know this fic was already niche because it's JJ/Tara, but I hope my handful of Jara readers will enjoy this extended cut and the look at what the writing process was like for such a difficult fic format.

More Fic Recs Under the Cut

Other Recommendations:

Past Friday Fic Recs:  [Friday Fic Recs - Tumblr] || [CM Fic Recs - AO3 Collection]

Rec Lists: [JJ/Emily] || [Tara/Emily] || [CM Femslash]

My Fics: [Jemily] || [Temily] || [Jara] || [Smut] ||  [All]

[breefarrow]

Found this post in my drafts when cleaning them out and @thoughtsthatarehardtoexpress told me I shouldn't delete and I should post this one so...

In one of Z newest interviews, he mentioned 1D and going solo. Honestly feel like the main quote that was going around when this was fresh news was just phrased poorly and his new PR team didn't make the best idea having Z just say "well a certain someone was already planning on leaving the label" when talking about his decision to leave 1D and go solo. It makes it sound like a dig at one specific member who was planning to "ditch" the band to go solo, and he just decided to "beat them" to it by leaving first.

It would have been better had they made it clear the issue was no one in the band really wanted to or was planning to resign with their toxic management/label so Z just left before that time came and 1D had to deal with the drama that came with not resigning with their toxic label. Though 1D could have been looking for a new label and not planning to disband bc louis did say no one [of OT4] was thinking about disbanding UNTIL Z decided to leave the band.

How it was phrased caused toxic solos for some reason to think Z was making a dig at either Louis or H [main suspects for wanting to "ditch" the band]. Thus either saying "of course fake ass louis wanted to ditch his so called friends" or "of course H wanted to go solo he's so full of himself" depending on what branch of the toxic 1D solo tree they are apart of.

Louis has talked about how he didn't originally see himself doing solo music or having a solo career and that once 1D was over, he would just write music for other artists and how in his doc showed how sad he was the band was coming to an end. H loved 1D more than anything. Still to this day, he sings WMYB when he has many solo songs to pick from even when it's a small set list for x event H still sings WMYB. So that along with louis telling us prior that they weren't thinking of disbanding tells me L&H weren't trying to dip and this was a poorly worded thought and badly done PR from Z new team.

Even though former directioners know L&H weren't planning on leaving early, this poorly worded 1D portion of one of Z solo interviews it caused solos who hate L or H to think he meant L or H was planning to ditch 1D to go solo AND it caused radio stations to talk about it like it's fact Z was saying H wanted to leave quickly to go solo. This erks me knowing how much L&H loved 1D and still do !!

It makes sense [to me] that Z was the biggest contender for member who didn't mind leaving early *to go solo* not bc he hated the boys or "1D itself" but bc he talked about his distate for boybands prior to 1D formation, auditioned with an R&B song [which more then likley means he wanted to be an R&B artist], had songs he wrote for 1D albums that were passed on [songs he later put on his debut solo album showing how much he loved them and wanted to sing them] and was working on a solo album not long after leaving 1D. Solo R&B just seems like what he always wanted. Sadly, due to his health issues at the time, it seemed things didn't go as planned for him, thus why he had many canceled interviews and concerts back then. I just really wish bad PR that makes it seem like L&H negatively liked/hated 1D when they don't wasn't done.

[televinita]

Books Read in 2023: The Why

That's right, just because it's much closer to 2025 than 2023 doesn't mean I can't still pull out this out! Mostly because I found in my Tumblr drafts that I had already done the work of putting the cover collages together, and what am I gonna do, waste that?

ANYWAY, BOILERPLATE EXPLANATION TIME: In a tradition I accidentally started for myself in 2016, at the end of the year I look back at my reading list and answer the question, why did you read this particular book? Books are arranged in chronological order of read date (unless it made more sense to put series books together), split into groups by target readership age, plus nonfiction at the end. As best I can tell, anyway; choosing between YA & middle grade for older books is often a trip. I'll toss in "how I heard of it" if I can still remember...

ADULT FICTION

(split into two parts because there are a lot)

Run Rose Run - Dolly Parton & James Patterson. 2022.

Half the promise of a companion album, half just because “girl runs away to become a country star” sounds like the only-slightly-older version of my beloved Somebody Everybody Listens To.

How I heard of it: a book blog

Treasure State - C.J. Box. 2022.

Read & enjoyed the whole Cassie DeWell series so far (this is #6).

The Pink House - Louise Platt Hauck. 1933. Family Matters - Louise Platt Hauck. 1934.

See this post.

These Silent Woods - Kimi Cunningham-Graham. 2021.

Recommended by a Goodreads friend + father-daughter bonds* + self-sufficient life off the grid. (*the PLAN was to picture Owen + Maisie but then this gifset from Big Sky happened)

The Siren of Sussex - Mimi Matthews. 2022.

The Belle of Belgrave Square - Mimi Matthews. 2022.

Don't know what Past Me was doing with the collage order here, but I read Belle first -- originally checked out because beautiful cover + horses + Beauty and the Beast retelling for the latter. But on this particular day? I started with the second one because I was on day 2 of my Tom Hiddleston Spiral and omg look who just so happens to have a romance on deck featuring a British love interest.

And then I cycled back to the first book, now even more enthusiastic about my plan to cast Dev Patel as the love interest.

How I heard of it: book blogs

The Santa Suit - Mary Kay Andrews. 2021.

Picked it up for the cute cover, and then the first page was so much like the start of Arnie and a House Full of Company (woman driving up with her pets to a beautiful but decidedly overgrown/neglected old house she’s about to move into) that I got immediately sucked in.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Twenty-One Truths About Love - Matthew Green. 2019.

List format, bookstore owner, and mainly: it’s so flippin’ rare to find books about married couples in love whose only conflict is external, let alone such books from the man’s perspective.

How I heard of it: Barnes & Noble

The Bookshop of Secrets - Mollie Rushmeyer. 2022.

Beautiful cover + MN setting + antiquarian bookshop + hunting for a lost local treasure??

How I heard of it: can't remember :[

A Different Blue - Amy Harmon. 2013.

A mostly-age-appropriate student/teacher romance which I have saved for a billion years to get the casting right, only to throw that plan to the wind when I decided I could use Hiddleston for this too (plan quickly abandoned as he does not fit at all beyond sharing a nationality)

How I heard of it: Goodreads, a full decade ago

This Bird Has Flown - Susanna Hoffs. 2023.

I MAY have been googling keywords trying to find a novel that reminded me of Hiddleswift, and instead I got a way better option for casting him in (this one worked beautifully).

The Escape - Lisa Harris. 2020.

Bought cheap at a book sale because thriller (marshalls hunting an escaped fugitive) in the woods/mountains!

A Thing of Beauty - Lisa Samson. 2018.

Thought it would be a romance plus an element of cleaning out a hoarder’s house. "Former child star" sounded cool too.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Love For Beginners - Jill Shalvis. 2021.

Bought cheap because beautiful cover + a summery romance including dogs.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Bellman & Black - Diane Setterfield. 2013.

Jack Davenport narrates the audiobook and literally no other reasons.

How I heard of it: Libby (the app)

Smothered - Autumn Chiklis. 2018.

It me! (I’ve never seen another book about a college grad who immediately moves back home with her parents and struggles to find a job.)

How I heard of it: Dollar store

Doctor Who: Autonomy - Daniel Blythe. 2009.

Tie-in novels featuring Ten are always quick/fun/easy fare, and this one is set in a mall (!), but mostly, the audiobook is narrated by Georgia Tennant.

How I heard of it: Libby

Something Wilder - Christina Lauren. 2022.

A romance featuring an overnight trip on horseback AND searching for treasure?? Sold.

How I heard of it: Book blogs or YouTube

Famous For a Living - Melissa Ferguson. 2023.

A romance featuring an Instagram Influencer detoxing (fleeing the backlash of a scandal) via a job in a National Park? Sign me all the way up.

How I heard of it: Once Upon a Book Club

Dr. Laurie's Conquest - Berta LaVan Barker. 1980.

Bought cheap because romance about a vet, w/ specific mention of a horse. Read now for the Mount TBR challenge because it’s short.

How I heard of it: Goodwill

Something Wild & Wonderful - Anita Kelly. 2023.

Pacific Crest Trail = hiking inspiration! (and a side of romance never hurts)

How I heard of it: a book blog

Tin Camp Road - Ellen Airgood. 2021.

Loved her middle grade novels and wanted more of her writing; this plot looked more exciting than her adult debut.

How I heard of it: Goodreads/author's back catalog

The Grim Reader - Kate Carlisle. 2020.

Cute cover, and cozy mysteries make great audiobooks, especially when book-centric.

How I heard of it: Goodwill

Lady Sunshine - Amy Mason Doan. 2021.

Beautiful cover, I loved her debut, 70s music scene in one timeline, and inheriting an estate in the other? Sold.

How I heard of it: Barnes & Noble

The Small Room - May Sarton. 1961.

Small, compact size + an intriguing setting and premise perfect for the fall season (young English instructor’s first teaching job at a New England liberal arts college; the publication date added to the intrigue).

How I heard of it: used book sale

The Study of Animal Languages - Lindsay Stern. 2019.

It is not very often you find novels about two college professors married to each other. Also, the title topic intrigued me.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Two Rogues Make a Right - Cat Sebastian. 2020.

Good Omens Season 2 briefly awoke the slash urge in me, and then this happened. Reviews calling this an indulgent, plotless pile of hurt/comfort fluff (positive) sealed the deal.

How I heard of it: Reddit

Home Before Dark - Riley Sager. 2020.

Hype convinced me to try one of his books; a woman restoring a supposedly haunted house definitely looked like the best one.

How I heard of it: book blogs, originally, I think

Lock Every Door - Riley Sager. 2019.

The House Across The Lake - Riley Sager. 2022.

I LOVED the above and immediately wanted more, and since the waitlist for his new one was too long I went for the next-best-sounding ones because they had the coolest settings (and THEN I was finally satiated for a while).

The Paris Apartment - Lucy Foley. 2022.

I had such a good time with Lock Every Door that obviously, it was time for another apartment mystery I’d been vaguely thinking about reading for a while, again due to its cool setting.

How I heard of it: book blogs

The Apartment - S.L. Grey. 2016.

When I searched the above in my library catalog, this title came up in relation. Absolutely I want to read a horror book set in a Paris apartment! (especially as the age difference between the MC and his wife maybe made me think about Michael Sheen & Anna. don’t judge me)

A Paris Apartment - Michelle Gable. 2014.

This ALSO came up in the search results and HELL YEAH I would like to read a novel based on one of the most fascinating news stories I’ve ever heard. (I actually had two options for this, but went with this one first because it seemed more literary; I wasn’t really in the mood for a romance)

Dead To Me - Cath Staincliffe. 2012. Bleed Like Me - Cath Staincliffe. 2013. Ruthless - Cath Staincliffe. 2014.

Catching up the Scott & Bailey TV series, learned they have tie-in novels?? IMMEDIATELY checked the first one out of my library and had such a good time with it that I rounded up the remaining ones ASAP.

How I heard of it: library catalog

The Good Turn - Dervla McTiernan. 2020.

Still in the mood for detective fiction from across the pond so time to finish out this trilogy.

When The Reckoning Comes - LaTanya McQueen. 2021.

This had some good reviews and I was intrigued by the prospect of a horror novel featuring a wedding at a haunted plantation. Maybe a mob of ghostly former slaves bringing a bloodbath? (no. it’s not that graphic. But it’s really good)

How I heard of it: a book blog

Plain Bad Heroines - Emily Danforth. 2020.

Her debut exceeded expectations so I was vaguely curious about this very different book, since she’s only published the two in over a decade, but my interest was solidified when I found an ARC copy with a promotional fake-newspaper insert inside. Wanted context for appreciating that.

How I heard of it: Goodreads/author's back catalog

Fair As A Star - Mimi Matthews. 2020.

Watching The Essex Serpent means I’m back on my stan train following a summer break, and what’s that? My new favorite romance author has one featuring a vicar?

How I heard of it: Goodreads/author's back catalog

You Look Something - Jessica Mehta. 2020.

Random library shelf pull because short read, interesting cover and premise (first-in-her-family college student, but written for an adult audience), and immediately intriguing writing style.

A Haunting on the Hill - Elizabeth Hand. 2023.

Cool cover + “officially licensed return to the setting of Shirley Jackson’s novel”?? The setting was the best part of that book so I hoped this would be the actually-scary version of what I wanted that one to be.

How I heard of it: ooh...can't remember if Goodreads, book blog or YouTube

Daughter of No Worlds - Carissa Broadbent. 2020. Children of Fallen Gods - Carissa Broadbent. 2021.

This random tumblr post about a series I'd never heard of before immediately sparked a vague hope to make this Loki/Sylvie-shaped; liked the first book enough to throw myself into the second, though I got burned out and have yet to finish the trilogy.

The Missing Treasures of Amy Ashton - Eleanor Ray. 2021.

“It's easier to love things than people. Things are safe. Things will never leave you.” I've never identified harder with a line from a book summary in my life.

How I heard of it: ...Goodreads? maybe? COME ON SELF this was literally only 10 months ago.

The Minuscule Mansion of Myra Malone - Audrey Burges. 2023.

A (magic) dollhouse and a 30-something reclusive blogger? It me! Add an implied romance with a guy who (somehow) owns the real-life version of the mansion and this sounds tailor-made for me.

How I heard of it: BookOutlet

Forgotten Trail - Claire Kells. 2023.

Read & enjoyed the first two in this National Parks mystery series, new November tradition unlocked.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Thornyhold - Mary Stewart. 1988.

Saw a cool illustration in a Readers Digest Condensed and wanted full context because I always love a Cool Mysterious Overgrown Inherited House.

How I heard of it: did I count this as "in another book" or "used book sale" when I made my graphs last year, I wonder.

The Last Ranger - Peter Heller. 2023.

I really like the way he writes both nature and men. (I also may have been fully immersed in my Jensen-Ackles-in-Big-Sky era.)

How I heard of it: Barnes & Noble

Just Like Magic - Sarah Hogle. 2022.

Loved her previous romance, and though skeptical about this one, I trusted the 5-star rec of a blogger with very similar reading tastes (she was CORRECT).

How I heard of it: a book blog

========

YOUNG ADULT / TEEN

(again broken into two segments because there are a lot)

The Little Woods - McCormick Templeman. 2012.

Bought cheap because pretty cover + boarding school murder mystery

How I heard of it: used-book section of Barnes & Noble

Lawless Spaces - Corey Ann Haydu. 2022.

Mostly the beautiful cover, a little bit the promise of stories from multiple generations of women in one family.

How I heard of it: book blog

Friends Like These - Jennifer Lynn Alvarez. 2022.

Loved her first YA thriller.

How I heard of it: Goodreads/author's back catalog

Scattered Showers: Stories - Rainbow Rowell. 2022.

I love her but not all of her writing styles; after waiting One Eternity (9 years) for more contemporary writing from her I did not hesitate.

How I heard of it: book blog

We Walked the Sky - Lisa Fiedler. 2019.

Dual timelines: one teen a circus performer, the other her granddaughter who’s just inherited a Box of Memorabilia?? Two things I adore.

How I heard of it: dollar store

Butterfly Yellow - Thanhhà Lại. 2019.

Mostly intrigued by the working-on-a-ranch aspect.

How I heard of it: book blog

Five Survive - Holly Jackson. 2022.

Liked the whole AGGGTM trilogy, was excited to try a different and more thriller-y flavor from her.

How I heard of it: book blogs or YouTube?

Texas Gothic - Rosemary Clement-Moore. 2011.

A google result while trying to find a lost book for someone, and: Ranch-sitting? Ghosts? Kitchen-witch type magic in an otherwise real-world setting? That beautiful cover? SOLD.

Maybe One Day - Melissa Kantor. 2014.

Cancer novel + best friends have both been reliable staples for me in YA.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Last Secret You'll Ever Keep - Laurie Faria Stolarz. 2021.

Sequel (or really companion novel) to a book that impressed me 2 years ago.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

If You Find Me - Emily Murdoch. 2013.

Intense curiosity about how a girl who'd been hidden away in a trailer in the woods with her little sister by their neglectful mom for almost a decade would cope with a return to society and her bio dad.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Coming Back Alive - Dennis J. Reader. 1981.

70s teens running away to live off the land is one of my favorite tropes.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Final Gambit - Jennifer Lynn Barnes. 2022.

Love this series!

A Wild Thing - Jean Renvoize. 1970.

Another 70s teen running away to live off the land. This time in Scotland!

How I heard of it: lost-book forum on either Reddit or Goodreads

Beloved Monster - Helen Markley Miller. 1968.

18-year-old girl inherits a sprawling mansion? LET’S GO! Especially if it’s also vintage.

How I heard of it: ooh, it's been 5+ years, can't remember. Maybe a Goodreads friend?

The Perfect Place to Die - Bryan Moore. 2019.

Oh I ABSOLUTELY want to read a YA novel set in Chicago’s infamous murder mansion.

How I heard of it: Goodreads (via a staff rec post)

Song of the Shaggy Canary - Phyllis Anderson Wood. 1974.

A slow-burn romance between a divorced teen mom and a 20-year-old recently discharged soldier? Sign me up.

How I heard of it: pretty sure it was one of the Speaking for Ourselves volumes.

Loki: Where Mischief Lies - Mackenzie Lee. 2019.

Step 1: watch the Loki series as a result of your newfound actor stanning + an influential gifset, fall in love with the character and the seemingly-canon ship.

Step 2: immediately google for YA novels with this dynamic.

Step 3: have officially licensed YA fanfic fall straight into your lap.

I Tell A Lie Every So Often - Bruce Clements. 1974.

Found at a book sale, vaguely wanted to read ever since reading an essay about it in Lost Masterworks of Young Adult Literature.

Losing Gabriel - Lurlene McDaniel. 2016. Somebody's Baby - Lurlene McDaniel. 2017.

Books 3 and 4 in a series I love that the library doesn’t have; I already owned the latter and was glad to be able to continue after buying the third at a book sale.

The Last Exit to Normal - Michael Harmon. 2008.

Got it in a blind bag and thought it would be interesting to read about a teen (in Montana!) coming to terms with his fairly-newly-out gay dad’s relationship. (narrator: it wasn’t)

Camper Girl - Glenn Erick Miller. 2020.

Inherited camper-van + road trip!

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Year of the Rat - Clare Furniss. 2014.

Bought cheap because unusual premise in YA (mom dies giving birth to second child) + pretty cover.

How I heard of it: used-book section of Barnes & Noble

You Look Different In Real Life - Jennifer Castle. 2013.

Needed an audiobook, unusual premise for YA (reality/documentary series checking in every 5 years with teens they first filmed in kindergarten).

How I heard of it: Libby

Thief of Happy Endings - Kristen Chandler. 2018.

Love this author, plus horses. Specifically, mustangs!

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Summer of Sloane - Erin L. Schneider. 2016.

Pretty cover and just looked like a solid, summery contemporary YA novel.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Lake House - Sarah Beth Durst. 2023.

WHAT IN THE AWESOME SPOOK COVER (also, stuck on an island with an obviously and very unexpectedly abandoned/destroyed summer camp?? Spoooook!)

How I heard of it: YouTube, and I even specifically remember where -- GabbyReads

The Foreseeable Future - Emily Adrian. 2018.

Beautiful cover + unusual post-grad life plans (working as a CNA instead of college) always interest me

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Don’t Slam The Door When You Go - Barbara Corcoran. 1972.

I love this author...and yes, we have yet another round of runaways trying to live off the land. :D But this time in a ghost town!

How I heard of it: OpenLibrary

The Last Beautiful Girl - Nina Laurin. 2021.

Beautiful cover + Influencer + creepy historic maybe-haunted house, sold.

How I heard of it: Barnes & Noble

The Island - Natasha Preston. 2023.

Reliable (if mid) genre author + an empty amusement park setting? also, Influencers being lured to creepy islands for Murder Reasons never gets old.

How I heard of it: YouTube

Mermaid Park - Beth Mayall. 2005.

A google result while looking for a lost book title, idea of a girl training as a “mermaid” swimmer at a theme park sounded intriguing.

Everything Beautiful Is Not Ruined - Danielle Younge-Ullman. 2017.

I’ll read basically anything you have about teens being sent to Wilderness Struggle therapy, so this was on my TBR, but was particularly motivated after reading Paris Hilton's memoir and not being able to (cheaply) get my hands on Sarah Stusek's book.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Body of Christopher Creed - Carol Plum-Ucci. 2000.

Loved her second novel, have been curious about this one due to its acclaim for a while and then I found it at a book sale – read quickly to send it on its way again.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Creep: A Love Story - Lygia Day Penaflor. 2022.

Teen girl rationalizes stalking to enhance the experience of shipping her very-accessible real-life OTP? Sounds like the less-legal, IRL form of what we do every day with our favorite celebrity couples on social media and I was curious to see it play out. A little bit because I also made personal celebrities out of some classmates in school, so I recognize the thrill of seeing them in person, though I did not stalk them.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Silver: Return to Treasure Island - Andrew Motion. 2012.

90% because the audiobook is narrated by David Tennant and for once it’s not part of an obnoxiously silly children’s series. 10% because adventure and treasure-hunting.

How I heard of it: Libby

Game Change - Joseph Monninger. 2017.

I like this author and have a soft spot for high school football (further enhanced by the football-player character on the new Goosebumps series).

How I heard of it: used book sale

The Unfinished Life of Addison Stone - Adele Griffin. 2014.

Mixed media formatting! Such a cool and unusual way to tell a narrative.

How I heard of it: I thiiink, many years ago, I was specifically googling for books with unusual formatting.

Heartwood Box - Ann Aguirre. 2019.

"When Araceli Flores Harper is sent to live with her great-aunt Ottilie in her ramshackle Victorian home--" literally sold. (combined with how it looked like a horror book w/ the possibility of ghosts)

How I heard of it: used book sale

Sunny Song Will Never Be Famous - Suzanne Park. 2021.

Cute cover and title, YouTuber in need of social media detox, FARM IN IOWA SETTING?? Sold.

How I heard of it: library browsing

Nobody Else Can Walk It For You - P.J. Petersen. 1982.

Found on the “free” cart shortly after hearing about it on Goodreads' lost-book forum and thinking it sounded like a cool thriller.

Dream to Me - Megan Paasch. 2023.

Haunting cover similar to my beloved Amelia Unabridged, sisters, inheriting a mildly creepy old house

How I heard of it: library browsing

These Things I've Done - Rebecca Phillips

Bought cheap at the dollar store for the girl-dating-late-best-friend’s-brother aspect (shared grief ftw!). Read now to confirm I could unhaul it.

=========

CHILDREN'S / MIDDLE GRADE

Survival Strategies of the Almost Brave - Jen White. 2015.

Bought cheap at the dollar store because cool cover + sisters fending for themselves when abandoned by dad.

Polo Cowboy - G. Neri. 2021.

Sequel to a surprising hit I read last year.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Diddakoi - Rumer Godden. 1972.

Recommended by a Goodreads friend because horse! + Traveler girl + reliable classic author.

Stella - McCall Hoyle. 2021. Just Gus - McCall Hoyle. 2023.

Dog book! recommended by a Goodreads friend. Loved it so much I read the companion novel ASAP.

Grand National - John R. Tunis. 1973.

Bought cheap at Goodwill because vintage horse book; read now to see if I could get rid of it (yes).

Running Out of Time - Margaret Peterson Haddix. 1995. Falling Out of Time - Margaret Peterson Haddix. 2023.

Reread of a childhood classic in anticipation of the new sequel.

Ten Miles Past Normal - Frances O'Roark Dowell. 2011.

I wanted to read about a girl growing up on a goat farm.

How I heard of it: OpenLibrary

Sweet Home Alaska - Carole Etsby Dagg. 2016.

I liked her previous book and was excited to learn about another part of American history that was new to me.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Thornbush Jungle - Rutherford G. Montgomery. 1966.

I will read anything he writes about animals.

How I heard of it: antiquarian bookstore

Maisie Lockwood Adventures no. 2: The Yosemite Six - Tess Sharpe. 2022.

Loved the first book, finally bought the second when I couldn't borrow it from anywhere.

The Eagle's Shadow - Nora Martin. 1997.

Reminded me of my favorite childhood movie, Journey to Spirit Island (at least in terms of setting and a similar culture).

How I heard of it: used book sale

Lila and Hadley - Kody Keplinger. 2020.

Girl + dog story, with a photographic cover (is the only thing that overcame my author grudge).

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Me, The Beef and the Bum - Charles Hammer. 1984.

50% funny title, 50% I love cows

How I heard of it: a book about teen books

Sardines - Sashi Kaufman. 2022.

Pleasantly surprised by her ability to write boys in YA, waited a million years for a third release from her (even if it was middle grade).

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Vandals of Treason House - Nancy Veglahn. 1974.

Vintage book about cleaning up & learning about a historic house? Neato.

How I heard of it: Goodreads/lost book forum

Sire Unknown - Marjorie Reynolds. 1968.

“Read because…” Vintage horse book, next question. (as to why I read it NOW, working on the Mount TBR challenge and randomly pulled this from the shelf)

How I heard of it: used book sale

The Explorer - Katherine Rundell. 2017.

Liked a previous book of hers, always love “crashed and got lost in the jungle” stories.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Gallery - Laura Marx Fitzgerald. 2016.

STUNNING cover + excited to read about a girl working as a maid in a fancy 1920s mansion

How I heard of it: a book blog

NONFICTION

A $500 House in Detroit: Rebuilding an Abandoned Home and an American City - Drew Philp. 2019.

Available audiobook + always interested in old-house renovation.

How I heard of it: Libby

Wildflower - Drew Barrymore. 2015.

A People magazine cover story on her reminded me I had meant to read this, since she’s always been a favorite actress.

How I heard of it: ONTD

The Zoo on the Road to Nablus - Amelia Thomas. 2008.

Bought cheap because beautiful cover + always interested in reading about specific zoos, especially those affected by war in the Middle East.

How I heard of it: used-book section of Barnes & Noble

Gizelle's Bucket List: My Life With a Very Large Dog - Lauren Fern Watt. 2017.

Reminded me of Boomer’s Bucket List, but also I will read most pet memoirs

How I heard of it: Goodreads

My Bookstore - ed. Ronald Rice. 2012.

What could be better than a bunch of authors writing short essays about their favorite bookstore?

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Animals Welcome - Peg Kehret. 2012.

Who can say no to a short memoir aimed at kids about animal rescue, especially by a prolific children’s book author from my youth.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Open Book - Jessica Simpson. 2020.

I’ve always liked her despite not knowing much about her work; seeing this at Goodwill finally inspired a read.

How I heard of it: ONTD

The House of Spirits and Whispers - Annie Wilder. 2005.

Saw it at a garage sale, definitely here for a spooky haunted house of relatively local interest.

The Actor's Life: A Survival Guide - Jenna Fischer. 2017.

I LOVE HER.

How I heard of it: ...hm, can't remember! maybe ONTD, maybe just Office fandom in general?

This Is Not a Pity Memoir - Abi Morgan. 2022.

While in another acute round of stanning Mr. & Mrs. Tennant via the latter's social media, I was trying to figure out what kind of novel would most satisfyingly represent the vibes of their relationship and concluded it’s not the falling in love so much with them as it is the steadfast endurance, so maybe hurt/comfort in the form of illness? A bit of googling later and this was so wildly, absurdly on the nose despite being nonfiction (a British actor and a wife on the writing/production side of the industry, with kids) that I had to read it immediately.

Paris: The Memoir - Paris Hilton. 2023.

I don’t have strong feelings about her as a person, so I was mostly just curious – especially the part about being sent to abusive juvenile behavioral rehab facilities, a topic I’ve always found fascinating.

How I heard of it: ONTD

The Writer's Tale: The Final Chapter - Russell T. Davies & Benjamin Cook. 2010 edition.

Good Omens sends me directly into a Doctor Who renaissance, time to finally read this tome I’ve been saving since the last time that happened! (four years ago) This is the only era of Doctor Who I care about so the more detail, the better.

How I heard of it: Half Price Books. Like back when it was relatively new, and I was a fool who didn't get it because it was pricey.

The Last Bookseller: A Life in the Rare Book Trade - Gary Goodman. 2021.

The subject latter alone would have gotten my attention, but this was actually my favorite bookstore until it closed.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Lessons from Tara: Life Advice from the World’s Most Brilliant Dog - Andy Rosenfelt. 2015.

Read & loved his first book about big fluffy rescue dogs, wanted more. Read now because a Goodreads friend just read it and reminded me of that fact.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Office BFFs - Jenna Fischer & Angela Kinsey. 2022.

I LOVE THEM AND THEIR FRIENDSHIP AND THEIR PODCAST.

She Memes Well - Quinta Brunson. 2021.

Love Abbott Elementary; had completely forgotten this existed until I was looking at Goodreads Choice Awards nominees of years past and then read on a whim.

Tell Me Everything - Minka Kelly. 2023.

Speaking of things I found out about via Goodreads Choice, I don’t know much about her as a person, but she’s really pretty and this sounded compelling and harrowing.

Sold to the Lady in the Green Hat - Emma Bailey. 1962.

I love auctions (well, estate sales, but same principle), I love old books, and I LOVED the illustrations and charming humor of vintage domestic memoirs I saw immediately at a glance.

How I heard of it: sale corner of the library

The Woman in Me - Britney Spears. 2023.

Mild curiosity due to inescapable hype, but mostly just determination to publicly confirm it wasn’t any better than her sister’s book, which I read the year before.

How I heard of it: ONTD

=========

Whew!! Done. I'd like to tell you and myself that I'm keeping up with 2024's log, but I actually got bogged down in trying to log every detail (cover thoughts, where it's set, why I was drawn to it, why I read it now, where I got it from), and burned out around early June because this is also the year I'm going to read 200 books apparently.

And this post already feels pretty messy. So. I guess we'll just see if it is in fact the last one or not..

[infiniteimaginings]

Introducing, me! The author!

note**: This isn’t that organized because I just got back from the lake and I’m actually exhausted. I just had to post it now since it’s been in my drafts for forever and if I didn’t do it today, I wouldn’t do it at all.

Name: You can just call me Space or Infinite, or anything space related!

Pronouns: I go by any pronouns, I don’t mind what you refer to me as. I’m AFAB and people typically use she/her for me, but I really don’t care, female, male, non-binary, I just don’t have labels on anything me wise. (it just doesn’t bother me, you can use they/he/she, literally anything and I promise, i’ll be okay.)

Writing info about me!:

I apparently get sick easily (recent months) if I take a prolonged break (with no scheduled fics out), I probably just got sick, couldn’t write, and I’m trying to recover [in my bio there’s a question of ‘am I sick?’ This is how I update you guys if I’m actually sick.]

I’m in a lot of fandoms, it’s just that I forget. So I write for more fandoms than listed, and for more characters than listed, I’m just forgetful. (You can just send an ask or message me if you want to know if I write for something)

I love writing and I take the stories I write seriously! I spend a good amount of time on them :) I’ve been writing stories since I was very little and I’ve even been writing a book.

I write on ao3 (I post these stories there along with others, don’t get on me too much though because I haven’t been transferring the stories over, I will soon lol)

I was a wattpad kid before ao3 and here (what an era 💀, no i will not talk about the horrors I wrote there that will never leave my mind)

My favorite character at the moment to write for (out of the ones I’ve written so far) is Max Thunderman because he’s fun and he was my favorite as a kid.

I have a million ideas a day, so if you see me yapping about god knows what (i’m so serious about god knows what, because i don’t know what i’m talking about half the time) and then I don’t post for three days (just of me being silly, not fic wise) it’s because I’m writing everything down into my notes and planning them out for when I have time for writing.

I swear I also write for what I enjoy not just requests, but I love answering requests! Even on the list of fics coming out, some of them are stories I just really really wanted to write and requested for myself (not like through the inbox, just in my head)

The reason I always make any of my fics neutral for the reader (unless gender is specified in the request), is because of experience. I’m black, so to be honest as I grew reading fanfiction, it wasn’t very thought of to include black reader descriptions within x readers. It always had to be specified “x black!reader”. If it didn’t, it always said pale skin, long flowing hair, etc, etc. I don’t have pale skin and I have short coily hair unless it’s in braids, so it never resonated with me and I didn’t really get to connect with them, unfortunately.

So, I automatically do gender neutral but also, if you haven’t noticed I don’t specify skin color, eye color, height (but sometimes i make characters put their head on the readers, just depends on the placement, but i try to consider it), nothing of the sorts. It’s completely neutral so that everyone can enjoy it and not feel left out. I try my best to be all inclusive in my fics, because the fics I read for my favorite characters weren’t.

Random things about me:

My favorite color is green (dark forest green) (yes, I know I’m specific)

I play instruments (Piano, ukulele, drums) and I also sing. I was in chorus, theatre, and plenty of clubs growing up.

Studying is something I enjoy which is why I research for the fics I write! If you see anything specifically accurate I either already knew it or decided to research for it. Don’t be surprised if someone asks for where I found information and i put it in mla format as a response.

I genuinely enjoy conversation with everyone, so I encourage you guys to message me for anything.

- You have a question about my blog? I’ll answer it quickly since I have notifs on (for messaging only).

- You’re wondering if I write for something specific since it’s not in my listings? I’ll tell you if i’ve watched it, and if I haven’t i’ll watch it myself and then ask for details on your request.

- You want to ask how I do something? I’ll give you a step by step with links.

- You want to ask about me in general? Go for it!

- You just want to talk? I’m a professional talker, and also a professional listener!!

I’m currently studying psychology 🌝, as a major

I watch anime and read plenty of manga

I always fill my time doing something. I read, write, sing, draw, craft, build, clean, etc. I do anything and everything because I personally believe if I don’t, I’ll just rot away in bed and I hate the idea of that.

I cant do a single thing in the same spot for over two hours, not even that. If i’m writing, I’m constantly taking a break to watch tv, dance break to music, chores, planning for something else, or moving to a different project. (I get uninterested so quickly)

Trust me when I say I actually sleep a lot lmao. Some of you guys go into my messages saying you’re worried I don’t get enough sleep. The latest I’ve stayed up to write has been to like 12:30 in the morning, and I wake up at like 7:30-8:00 in the morning every time. Then I take a nap if I get tired in the slightest.

Most of the time though, I stop writing by 10:30, and go to sleep at 11. If I don’t, me staying up to two in the morning is because of my own poor choices (webcomics, manga, fanfiction, reading my own writings multiple times). Please don’t worry about me, I’m big on sleep so I’m never deprived of it. If I complain it’s just because I’m tired and can’t go to sleep because I’ll end up even more tired.

I have 3 piercings in each of my ears, one on my nose. I have 0 tattoos, because ironically, I’m terrified of needles.

I genuinely love literature more than the average person. I also just love reading and stories in a general sense. I ache to read every book I ever see, even though people say it’s impossible I will try to fulfill my dream until my death. To the point where I can whisper the words of poets who died centuries before my existence has come to mind. Only to keep their spirits alive for a little while longer, to tell the world that these authors are still desired and that the words paint pictures society should be craving to see.

**Any images are from a board I’ve been saving to on Pinterest for the past two years. Images I think reflect how I act majority of the time.

I can’t think of any other useless information about me, so I’ll stop here! I’ll probably add more stuff since I’m a talker lololol! Thank you for reading, love you bunches!

[kuleana--does-anyone-care]

capstone update #1

TO REITERATE: I'm planning to produce a 30-min documentary film.

Hello, I'm finally here to update my blog! I meant to do this last week, but didn't... I was struggling to wrap my head around this project and what I'll be doing this semester.

I think I'm a little crazy for taking this on. Sometimes it feels like too much, but I certainly won't be quitting.

My first reality check was trying to populate the workback plan. It was a necessary step, but so difficult. I had to come back to it a few times to get it sorted out. I always feel like I'm overlooking something when I'm planning out a project, and I've never tried to produce something of this magnitude before. But I sat down with my workback plan again tonight and finally have it in good shape. Coming back to it has helped me process what I'll need to do, and I feel pretty certain now that I'm not forgetting anything. I also recreated my workback plan in Notion, because I don't think I'll be able to stay on track if I only look at it on Google Sheets. (The formatting... the lack of color-coding and other viewing modes... Nah, homie, I can't. TwT) I also gave myself dates to complete things by. I know I can work to a deadline, and now I have a ton of them. Isn't that fantastic!

Anyway, I'm really happy with my organization on this project now that I have all my tasks thought out, written down, and with dates. The tricky part now will be keeping the Google Sheet updated according to the Notion.

Right now I have a bunch of tasks marked as "in progress." There's so much I need to do in the next two weeks, mostly making lists of people and Instagram accounts to reach out to. I already follow a lot of accounts but I have not created a master list for myself to keep track of them all. Once I have my list, I can start drafting up messages to send to them, asking if they might want to participate in my doc, or could put me in connection with people who would. I'm kind of worried that I don't have much to show for myself, a presence, or a reason why they should trust me, that kind of thing. But I'll try it anyway.

I also need to draft emails/ send texts/ make phone calls to people I know, who said in one way or another that they might be able to lend a voice to my project. Cast out a bunch of lines and see if I get any bites. 🎣

Another thing is, I want to find videos on YouTube and Vimeo of the ʻOnipaʻa Peace March that happened a couple weeks ago. I wasn't able to go myself, but I'd really like to incorporate footage of it into my film. Maybe someone would be willing to let me use a few of their shots. If not a person, maybe one of the local news outlets. I also need to do some research. I have a playlist of some news clips about the Red Hill water crisis from when I made my 5-minute piece about it in Fall '22. But there have been updates since then, and I need to collect even more. I'm not 100% sure what or how much I'll do with it yet. But my creative process is 'collect all the stuff, look at and absorb it all, ???, get vision, create the vision'... so step one is gathering more things. :)

Also want to find more PDFs. Last semester, I found some studies and national news articles about Red Hill, pollution by the Navy/ issues similar to what's happening here, but my research topic was persuasion, so I spent the vast majority of my time on that. There's definitely more out there, and I want to find it because I'm thinking of using scans/ screenshots in my film.

Oh, and I'm planning to request titles from ʻUluʻulu by 2.16. Gonna try my absolute best to stay on top of the deadlines I've set for myself. LONG POST: FINITO!!!

[derpycat02]

Hot Take

Okay so now that I've been on the website instead of the app for a few days I have things to say I think.

The app is better (for me) than the website hands down. Easy. No competition. And no, this is not just because I am used to the app version. I actually thought this out.

Things the website does better than the app (to satisfy you long term tumblees):

I can delete a poll from my post if I accidentally click it thinking it is the listing format option. I do this a lot because listing is different than font type in every document editor ever, and there is no way to remove polls from drafted posts on mobile that I have found. The website puts a big fat red X in the top corner of the poll. This is helpful

Bigger screen = less overwhelm. The information to screen ratio is smaller which is less overwhelming for my skrunkly little brain. Also, since I have the pride theme activated (which was a bitch to try and find) all the extra space is pink!

More customization options. I haven't actually played with this, but it seems to be the thing that most Tumblr users use to say the website is better than the app. I did notice there were more options for themes when I finally figured out how to do that, which was cool. (On mobile, I'm pretty sure there are just 4 themes: light mode, dark mode, tumblr classic, and pride. I could be wrong though)

No push notifications. I have notifs turned on on mobile for all of the polls I follow, so I get like over 30 notifications from Tumblr alone overnight. It's very stressful, but I put up with it because it keeps me from missing voting times and ensures that I can go through and like every post that comes out from accounts that I am invested in. I know liking does nothing algorithm wise. I just like showing support and likes are a nice, quick, easy way to do that. Anyway, without the push notifications, I'm pretty much confined to me my feed, which I've never HAD to scroll before. The way I am now consuming content has become (mostly) more relaxed and less stress inducing.

Text formatting. I like that it's a drop down menu. In the app, It's just a button, and you have to press it repeatedly to get the format you want (this is fonts and listing specific).

Things mobile does better that the website

Navigation. Oh my gosh the app is SO much easier to navigate than the website. It took me less time comparatively to figure out how the app worked than it did for me to figure out how to do most things on the website. The website has been around longer, and therefore has the opportunity to be more complicated. The whole point of mobile apps is to be a simple, accessible way to go about navigating whatever the app is for. It's just easier to use.

Typing in posts. The amount of times my laptop has just randomly stopped typing in the middle of the post is ridiculous. It tends to happen when the "draft saved" bubble pops up, which makes me think it may be a glitch with the website rather than my computer. My computer also does not have this problem literally anywhere else. Also, the "draft saved" bubble, while cute and reassuring, obstructs my vision just a bit. There is so much dead space to either side. Why is this bubble not off to a side instead of right in the middle of where I am typing? It was also difficult for me to find the text formatting option, but this is mostly because I was not used to it.

GIFs. I do lots of propaganda, and to save space on my device I use gifs instead of going on the internet and downloading pictures and finding video links. I'm not always very good with words, and find that images tend to be more convincing anyway. On the mobile app, when I search something in the GIF search bar, it stays there even after I've made a selection. Not having to re-type my search 10 times makes it a lot easier and less monotonous to look for propaganda and fill up a post. This is not the case on the website. As I learned after attempting "Kitbull" propaganda, you have to re-type your search each time you add a new GIF. That got annoying really fast, and I only wound up putting two GIFs when I would normally use all image spaces (10).

Push Notifications. But I thought you said the website not doing this made consuming content less stressful??? I know what I said, and yes, for the most part, it does. However there are a lot more areas where the lack of push notifs on the website make my Tumblr experience a lot more stressful. For one thing, I am missing out on ALL of those polls. I follow SO MANY polls, because I was able to keep up with all of them as long as I had push notifications. I have not been able to vote in many polls this last week because I would have to go through and search every single one of their usernames exactly correct to find their pages and vote in my regular fashion. I simply do not have the time, energy, or memory to be able to do this. I also do not get notified when I am sent a message. I learned recently that most Tumblr users don't use the "share" function on posts, (via) however my girlfriend and I use it all the time. Our feeds consist of different interests that we like sharing with one another, so we share posts and polls back and forth just for funsies. To show that we love each other. Etc. etc. The website does not notify me when I get these messages unless I am actively in the tab, so I don't know when she's sent me something. Same goes for any interaction with my account or on my posts. I cannot see if someone has made a comment or a silly reblog with funny tags unless I am in the app. You know what the website DOES show me? How many new posts have been made. This is CONSTATLY refreshing even while I am actively scrolling and not only shows up in the app but also in the tab information. This is why I have such a problem with this. I understand that computers in general just don't do push notifications, but usually with social media, you can see how many notifications you have by checking the tab above the search bar. There's usually a little number in parenthesis next to the title or name of the social media you are using. This is very helpful for me, since my computer doesn't always give a little sound when I get any kind of notification, so I can just look over and see what I've missed while I was queuing up Spotify or playing Minesweeper or Solitaire. With Tumblr, this number only factors in the number of posts that I haven't seen yet. This number stressed me out, has me constantly refreshing the page even before I am done scrolling, and is not actually helpful in any capacity.

Page Jumping. Both the website and the app are dogwater at not jumping around the page while you scroll. However, the app is slightly less so. Page jumps in the mobile app only happen when an ad loads in where it wasn't before. This is pretty consistent with how any webpage, crappy mobile game, or social media app works on a phone (on my phone at least). When I'm scrolling anything I have to be careful to wait until all ads have loaded before I try pressing a button or I'll accidentally hit something I'm not supposed to. On the website on my computer, Tumblr page jumps every time I reblog. EVERY. TIME. Reblogging is, like, the currency of the realm. It is how things are meant to be done. I don't have the energy for a page jump every time I try to reblog something. That's gross.

Screenshots. This is admittedly more of a device difference than a Tumblr format difference, but it is affecting how I interact with Tumblr, so I thought I should put it on here. If you actually follow me and try to keep up with what I post (which isn't much) you know about my Untitled Bots threads. Essentially when I see a bot follow me, and their name is either blank or "Untitled" I screenshot it, crop it to the word "Untitled" and add it to the thread with a silly quip or lament or goofy photo. However, to make sure I don't miss any, I don't block and report these bots until after I've gotten a screenshot of their profile. Because it is so difficult to take and edit screenshots on my laptop specifically, I have not updated this thread even after being able to access Tumblr via the website.

For these reasons, I have decided the app is better than the website. Thank you. Have a nice day.