#i had to write it :/ i love moshang too much

[greentrickster]

Okay, so, just so you all know, I'm aware of what many of you have probably been thinking in regards to the Great God Airplane AU: "Yes yes, blah blah Shen Jiu blah blah Bingge, WHERE IS THE MOSHANG, IT'S AN AU CENTERED AROUND SHANG QINGHUA, WHERE'S THE MOSHANG??!"

Thank-you for waiting patiently instead of saying this part out loud, because up until this point Moshang has mostly been doing the literary equivalent of sitting in a corner of my head with head pats and juice boxes being just the goodest boys whom I love so so much, you know?

Here's the Moshang:

It's a few days after the conference where Shang Qinghua got outed as Airplane Shangdi, and that's exactly how long it took Shen Yuan to get used to the idea and go back to treating him like normal (because he's read too much of SQH's terrible porn to ever truly take him seriously for an extended period of time). Which, as it happens, on this day includes razzing Airplane for the fact that, after everything that's happened, his sex scenes still have 'written by a virgin' slathered all over them.

To which our favorite divine hamster, newly imbued with some actual, legit self-confidence and tired of being razzed for this, snaps back that yeah, so he's a virgin, so what, he's been literally too busy his entire time as Shang Qinghua to get around to finding someone to do something about that with! Besides, Mobei-jun's also a virgin, and no one gives him shit about it!

Shen Yuan: ...like hell he is, you're telling him a guy like that's never had sex!

Shang Qinghua: Yes I am! (arms folded and nose in the air) He's the sort who's only interested in doing stuff like that with someone he wants to spend the rest of his life with and he doesn't have any love interests because I didn't write any for him, because I wrote Mobei-jun for one person and that's me! He is my perfect man, no one else's, and we're both virgins, and I'm God, so there! And if you have anything else to say about it, I'll- I dunno. I'll have Precious Blossom shrink Binghe's dick or something!

Shen Yuan: ...

Luo Binghe: A slightly smaller pillar might be more convenient, actually, but don't threaten Shizun. >:(

Our favorite hamster then gets to choke on his own spit, spin around on his cushion (half falling over in the process), and gape at the portal he hadn't noticed Luo Binghe and Mobei-jun just use to sneak into Shen Qingqiu's house.

There is silence for a moment before - in the most daring display of disloyalty he's ever made - Mobei-jun calmly pushes Binghe out of the way, ignores his indignant 'I am your emperor how very dare you-!' squawks, picks up Shang Qinghua by the back of the robes, and walks back through the portal with him.

Shen Yuan: Well that just happened.

Binghe: Husband, what did Shang shibo mean about not having written any love interests for Mobei? What does his writing have to do with that?

Shen Yuan: ...I don't have enough tea and snacks for this.

(also there will be more of this, and we're gonna cut over to our icicle/hamster duo, I'm just very tired at the moment)

[tossawary]

Hey! You've mentioned female!SQH in passing a while ago and that concept has been living rent-free in my brain ever since. I'd love to read your thoughts on it if you have more/are interested in sharing. Hope you're having a nice trip! :)

Thank you! I don't have many concrete thoughts on Fem!SQH (or Fem!MBJ or F/F!Moshang for that matter) besides the fact that I would try my best to make it a hot fucking mess. I would probably write it as a cracky one shot and I would want Fem!SQH to cause constant secondhand embarrassment on multiple levels. Not that Airplane Bro as Fem!SQH would be especially oblivious, no, she knows what she's doing and it's hugging thighs, committing crimes, and making other sect leaders walk out of conferences asking themselves if women should really be allowed to cultivate.

I'm exaggerating a little, but also not really. Airplane Bro is wily and genre-savvy and an apathetic bastard, at the same time that he's a clingy idiot who needs to pay more attention to what he's saying, and I resent assumptions that a female character is automatically the one "carrying the braincell". I would want to write something outrageously funny in which Airplane Bro transmigrating into Fem!SQH causes some chaos and gives MBJ even more issues than MBJ already had.

(I'm talking about a Male Airplane Bro transmigrating into a Fem!SQH here because I think a Female Airplane Bro transmigrating into a Fem!SQH sounds a little too OC for me to write that, though a woman writing an incredibly successful stallion novel like PIDW is very fun to think about. Even Airplane Bro growing up as Fem!SQH would inherently shift his character at least slightly, but that would be a firmer base for me to start on and I'm growing more comfortable with the idea. There's lots of room to explore Airplane Bro's relationship to gender and women by having him transmigrate into a female character in his stallion novel world.)

As for the idea of a Fem!SQH in PIDW... the details all depend on what kind of story you want to write. Only changing SQH's gender inherently has very different vibes to doing a full genderbend on the entire cast of PIDW/SVSSS. In a full cast genderbend, I personally don't really see the plot beats of the original SQH changing much. In a SQH-only genderbend, things could stay the same still, but if you wanted to switch it up, I suppose that in PIDW, the premise could instead have been an ambitious Fem!SQH trying to (maybe successfully?) blackmail MBJ into marrying her, but also resenting the necessity of having to marry for power, especially to a demon, and so hating MBJ's guts. Which would be mutual.

Lots of potential themes for a Fem!SQH's storyline in PIDW about how power can be given and taken away, the pros and cons of the legal situation of marriage, the intersection of sex/gender and class, and all sorts of interesting things.

Okay, now that I'm thinking about it, I kind of like the concept of PIDW Fem!SQH blackmailing MBJ into marrying her or something and then PIDW MBJ later on murdering his own wife. That seems sufficiently dark for PIDW. It would also be a stark contrast for PIDW MBJ to be a murderous widower when Luo Bing-Ge has so many wives. Putting Airplane Bro into that particular Fem!SQH situation for the SVSSS version of those events has strong Bluebeard fairy tale vibes. But that's also probably a slightly more serious story than the cracky vibe I was originally envisioning.

Mmm, I don't have any specific thoughts besides that at the moment. It's all fun to think about, though. ❤

[aceinabook]

Scum Villian's Self-Saving System Vol. 4 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

Character 5| Setting 5| Plot 3.5| Writing 3.5| Enjoyability 4

Rating: 4.2 Spice Level: 2/5

I have finally read the extra fanfics of this series all ref constantly Bingmei VS Bingge! I enjoyed this as it feels fun and it's nice to see how different our vision of LBH is to Airplane's OG Binghe! It was so sad that he wanted SQQ to come with him, and annoyed that he didn't get what he wanted. Binghe then getting sad that SQQ thought Binghe was better at sex was kind of funny, but I actually don't really care for the sex scenes between them because it just feels not great.

I loved the Succubi extra is fun and seeing LQG getting jealous of a rando(Binghe obviously) that the Madam Meiyin's fortune telling. SQQ is so oblivious to everyone's feelings about him…sir please notice this angry boi flirting with you. I would also be super frustrated if I was LQG. Did not like the casual Transphobia of SQQ in this chapter though. Not cool my dude.

The Shen Jiu extras…I felt so bad for SJ. He was so misunderstood. I don't want to talk too much because you learn a lot about the OG goods and I think it's important. One of my favorite things about this is just the relationship of SJ and YGY was so important. Even his relationship with LQG, so good. None of this story excuses his abuse of LBH, he does regret it, but what can his regret do? I do see why he has so many fans and I can count myself among at least feel so bad for him. Maybe just dont take a child and abuse them just cause you think they had a better child and chance then you my dude. Ok??

The TLJ and SX extra was short and cute! Really is kind of funny of SQQ original vision of him and how he's just a little poetry and book loving guy who just wants to be spoiled.. just a little guy and SX just being like allright you keep owing me money little guy. I thought they were cute and it is very funny to see.

Airplane extras were so funny. He's just a pathetic dude I laughed so much during his extras. Also it was super funny to me that he told LBH that he should be pathetic to SQQ so SQQ will like him. It worked but WHY DID YOU SAY THAT?? MBJ being like….does this mean SQH likes me and then asking SQH being like being pathetic means you like them? SQH yeah it does! MBJ:omg he likes me. I see why Moshang is so popular. I did love that scene where SQH leaves MBJ and he freaks out on him. They had a lot of great moments.

The rest of the extras are just cute BingQui moments I liked all of these they were so cute! Binghe being Jealous of SQQ giving other people his attention being the norm. I did find it funny that Binghe started to read Regret of Chunshan outloud and being all smug about it and SQQ being flustered. It was very funny.

Airplane, why did you think the interview question was a good idea…..It was so funny that most of the questions SQQ was like I don't want to answer this and LBH just being like stop asking questions that just make Shizun mad! And getting mad at Airplane.

The Wedding Chapter was cute except for the weird sex scene. I thought it was cute SQQ whispered husband to LBH, but LBH not hearing was so sad dude. all you want he said husband just listen to his pathetic self.

Something I really liked about all these extras is it was about the world as a whole and not just the main couple. Most of them were really fun!

[hayateart]

Moshang plot bunny

I have this plot bunny, which can become either a comic or a fic but I don't know yet. It just won't leave me alone but it's still vary vague so I cannot start working on it.

It's basically a hurt/comfort, angsty story, title 'Nobody Likes Shang Qinghua. And that's okay!' Except, obviously it's not.

People only interact with SQH when they want something but they tend to avoid him as a person. LBH, his 'son', simply cannot stand him, mainly due to SQH relationship with his husband. Airplane considers Cucumber-bro as his best friend though he knows perfectly well that it's not the same for Cucumber. He is just a servant to Mobei Jun, while Mobei Jun is his entire world. Etc. You get the idea.

Except that's not entirely true. This is all only SQH's point of view. For so long he had to deal with people who didn't care much about him - his parents and half-siblings, his new parents and new siblings, martial and otherwise. Himself - he is perfectly aware of all his flaws and shortcomings. He knows he is a coward, and a sell-out, he talks too much and is too clingy. He is just deeply unpleasant person to associate with, so obviously, nobody would actually like him.

But people do like him. Sure, LBH finds him annoying and is kinda jealous, but he also loves how his husband loosens up around Qinghua. Nobody understands Shen Yuan like he does. He is also Mobei Jun's entire world - he would not be alive without Shang Qinghua, much less become a king.

There are different instances that only confirm what SQH thinks he knows is the truth until he finally gets seriously hurt. In his own words "At least it was him who took the hit and none of the truly important characters of the story. Because, who is he, really? LBH is the protagonist, SQQ/SY is the love interest and the secondary protagonist at this point. MBJ is important best friend, confidant and advisor. And who is SQH in terms of the great plot? Still but a canon fodder. And that's okay!"

SQH has this talk with SQQ and SQQ could not be more horrified. How could he not notice that SQH puts so little value on his own life and well-being? That begs an intervention!

Generally, it's all about character's self-worth issues and other characters making sure that one feels appreciated by the end.

Problem is, I really can't iron out any details. I caught a cold during my holiday and I can't do much except lie in bed and complain. Also, I run out of tissues a while ago and I'm now using toilet paper, but that's beside the point. I am afraid I won't feel good enough to start working on it before I have to go back to work when my days off run out. After that, I tend to work 6 days [64 hours, to pay all the bills] with 2 days of break [when I'm tired] so any artistic endeavors turn out very slowly.

I understand SQH for writing PIDW the way he did. If it paid my bills, I would absolutely write shitty papapa in hopes of getting at least part of my stories out. Instead, I work a job I can barely stand. Which is almost the same. [I think a lot of us like SQH so much because we can really relate to him. I know I can.]

I will write that fic/draw that comic though. I want to get my feelings out. Just wait for me.

[moldybonessmell]

SVSSS danmei novel review post

So I had a winter break and finished reading SVSSS and here are some of my thoughts about it.

DISCLAIMER: this as an analysis post and if you might get upset over criticism of the novel, please stop reading. My intend is definitely NOT to send hate but do a review.

Disclaimer number 2: I'm a danmei fan and have read mdzs, tgcf and 2ha so I have some point of reference for comparison

Starting up with the things I LOVED about the novel:

The idea is popular, but the author made it have an interesting twist (ridiculing the genre of something you wright right at the moment is a gigachad move fr fr)

The plot is interesting and entertaining, the novel is easy to read and follow

There is a good part of humour that I enjoyed (the whole Tianlang-jun bit lol)

Characters are well-written in general (even tho I raise an eyebrow at some of them)

I absolutely adore MoShang couple. Them being a tsundere and a gremlin is very fun and I liked the extras showing the development of their relationship. The whole bit where MBJ openly says hitting a person is the way he sees flirting and SQH being oblivious that his own ideas of courting made MBJ convinced he's flirted with too is hilarious. SQH not only creating himself his perfect man but also pulling him for sure makes him a god in their world lol

Another unofficial couple I grew to like is LiuShen aka LQG and SQQ. Ngl I was oblivious to the chemistry they have - "They are such good friends!" as historians would say LOL. But after spending some time in the fandom I think I adore them a lot (esp after finishing this one extra where it's obvious LQG is convinced they are soulmates and is gay af lmao)

Now, on the other side, criticising the novel.

My problem is that the novel seems way too short?? The whole plot is to fill plot-holes but the novel itself seems to have a plenty of them:

We don't know anything about the System, why it works, who created it and for which purpose?

The fact that Binghe doesn't even know SQQ is not his real shizun?? I really expected some confrontation in the end and stuff but bro just lies to his husband till the rest of their lifes now ig?? I was really looking forward to see this and LBH thinking he's betrayed again but we never got it, not even in extras. We got a little hint when SQQ couldn't explain LBH how he knows so much about what will happen, but this seemed to just be sweeped under a rug in the end.

The novel is too short, there are so many interesting plot-lines to explore and possible scenes to write but extras only explore already existing dynamics and seem to be cut-outs / behind-the-scene stuff the author probably just decided to not put in. Half the time I was sitting there and thinking about the fact that someone definitely wrote a fanfic about this or that fact

I've read other mxtx novels and tgcf, for example, felt complete to the point I didn't even read extras, as it felt like the story is whole and finished.

Another problem I have with the novel is that some very important info about characters is still hidden in extras, for example:

The fact that LBH acts like this with SQQ because SQH himself got him the idea?? I really thought bro is a cry-baby LOL (call me SQQ bc of how delusuional I am). The way SQH not only pulled his dream man but helped the story progress with LBH pulling HIS dream man is AWESOME and I wish it was in the main novel part.

Another extra-hidden part I wish wasn't hidden, is the fact that SQH was always thinking about og Shen Yuan and that's why they end up actually being friends, it feels like an important bond was kinda lost in the finished novel.

All in all, I enjoyed reading SVSSS but understand why it's not as popular as mdzs or tgcf. This is everything I got at the moment, thank you for reading!

If you have any thoughts or can explain some of the confusions I mentioned, you're welcomed to do so in comments!

Just please be polite, thank you!

P.S. I firstly wrote this post to drafts right after reading the novel and edited it after finishing extras and ngl some of my thoughts have changed.

[corduroyserpent]

3 and 7 for the fanfic author ask game?

3. Tell me about one of your fics you think is underrated/underappreciated.

this one is still pretty recent in terms of when i posted it but i think So Much for Stardust is awesome. it's 32k of moshang featuring lovely art! and it's written in close third person omniscient (fun!) and it's filled with fallen stars and lesbian pirates and zhuzhi-lang! we all like zhuzhi-lang, right?!

also it has mobei-jun being ridiculously attracted to shang qinghua which is very important to me

Focused as he was on the jade seal, he did not notice that Shang Qinghua had decided to use their impromptu break as a chance to wash his robes. It was only after a sudden splash roused Mobei-Jun from his musing that he saw the human was knee-deep in the stream, wearing nothing but white underclothes that bunched and stuck to his legs, wet and translucent in places.  Mobei-Jun’s eyes widened minutely. His heart pounded.  He quickly looked away. “My king,” Shang Qinghua called over, “give me your clothes too.” A muscle in Mobei-Jun’s jaw twitched. “Why?” “Uh, so I can wash them? And the fabric is torn. I thought I might repair it before we continue our journey.” Shang Qinghua’s voice wavered in uncertainty. Mobei-Jun chanced a glance. The little human had crouched down further, water clung to his shift and allowed a full view of soft stomach rolls and the curve of his hip.   Mobei-Jun took off his clothes—sans pants—and flung them at Shang Qinghua’s face. 

it has at least 200 kudos in my heart but i think it might have gotten more reach had i posted it chapter by chapter instead of just slapping all 10 chapters down at once. oh well, i stand by that decision. it works best when you can read the whole story from start to finish anyway <3

7. Is there a character or ship you'd love to write for, but haven't yet?

rei from nu carnival! i am mildly obsessed with him and i really want to write yakumo/rei/olivine because i think it would be soooo much fun 💕💕💕

[fanfic author asks]

[toomanytakennamesagh]

Ohhh random gush post cuz I can’t seem to focus on my essay after reading the latest chapter which filled me with SO MUCH DELIGHT. I just gotta let these words out cuz they’ve been festering in my brain for a bit.

SVSSS and Moshang fans are probably familiar with this name, but for anybody who doesn’t know (cuz ley’s be honest I don’t have a lot of followers and this is probably gonna get buried under a bunch of other Tumblr posts), Tossawary is a pretty active SVSSS author. I love them so much. Like, they post on Tumblr pretty regularly, draws art, AND writes amazing fics. I feel like the SVSSS fandom struck a goldmine with them.*

More under the cut cuz this got a bit long? And there may be some spoilers to their fics. 

The thing I love the most is how they always seem to complete their fics? And this gives me SUCH a sense of security? Because I HATE feeling the pain of seeing a discontinued WIP so much, but with their stories I get to enjoy the joy/agony of waiting for new chapter updates without having to worry about whether or not it will actually finish.

(And this is no hate to authors who DO have unfinished WIPs, okay. Even if they’re unfinished, I’m honestly glad it was put out in the world for readers to enjoy. Please don’t see this post as a bash, because you’re great too.)

They also write one of my most favorite versions of Shang Qinghua and Mobei-jun? (And Moshang in general.) Like, they perfectly capture the mess and hilarity of the ship, the REALLY BAD miscommunications and weird history together. They write meta posts and fic ideas about Mobei-jun’s family history and thought process, and how he would come to fall for a weird guy like Shang Qinghua. 

BUT THAT’S NOT ALL! Because they also create lovely OC’s (Luo Jiahui and Peng Hongpeng, I’m staring directly at you). Like, they add to the stories perfectly, they’re properly fleshed out, and their relationships with Shang Qinghua are wonderful. 

The relationships--romantic or platonic--in general are great. THEY GOT ME TO LIKE A SHIP I WASN’T ORIGINALLY EVEN INTO (cough shang qinghua x yue qingyuan). They gave me a lovely familial dynamic between Shang Qinghua and Luo Binghe!** THEY LET LBH’S MOM SURVIVE, AND HAD SVSSS!LBH MEET HER!***  

And as someone who’s a sucker for worldbuilding, Tossawary fleshes out the history and setting of the SVSSS/PIDW world beautifully. I have a thing about reading the day-to-day tasks and stories of life on Cang Qiong Mountain, and how the world works outside of that. Like, yes please, tell me more about what the Peak Lords talk about in their meetings. I actually do really want to know about the kind of requests/documents/dealings Shang Qinghua has to deal with.

Anyways some of my favorite fics:

Nothing to Me, Nothing to You-- A SVSSS and MDZS fusion featuring Cloud Recesses Shang Qinghua and Yue Qingyuan, and Wen!Mobei-jun. It features a lovely friendship between YQY and SQH, and Moshang slowly getting closer and acting like dumb teens. 

Stepping Up- Currently on chapter three, and inspired me to write this post in the first place. IT’S AN DING LBH GETTING (kinda) ADOPTED BY SQH! AND DISAPPROVING OF MBJ! Just watching his protective mode go on sqh is a delight, they deserve to be in cahoots. THEY DESERVE TO BOTH BE CARED FOR. 

the ability to remain sober and gracious- I’m a qijiu simp okay. Even if this fic isn’t romantic, I still love how the argument turned out. And how that argument even started hehe. 

Catch a Falling Star- It’s a Stardust/SVSSS fusion. SY is the star, and he’s going on a road trip with lqg and lbh. Need I say more? 

love to the ones i’ve never met- This fic’s synopsis BROKE MY BRAIN FOR A BIT. I WENT FERAL WHEN LJH AND SVSSS!LBH MET! WHEN LBH GOT TO SEE THE PINTWILF UNIVERSE! I’VE WANTED THIS SO FOR MUCH. HE DESERVES TO HAVE A FAMILY AND GET MOTHERED AGAIN. 

Anyways if you haven’t read their fics please do. Tossawary if you ever read this post just know your hard work is appreciated and very much loved. 

*Also not to say I don’t appreciate other svsss/moshang authors, because I DO. The fandom is full of amazing talented people, and I delight in all their creations. 

**I have very strong VERY SPECIFIC FEELINGS about LBH having close platonic relationships. That boy needs friends and family, he’s suffered enough in canon!  

***It was everything I ever wanted

[ultfreakme]

Who are your favorite romantic relationship's couples in books/ manga/ anime/movies/tv series (can be canon or non-canon)? Feel free if you want to write the reasons or not of why you love them...

Sorry if you've answered this question before......Thanks....

Hi Anon!! Hope you're doing well! OOOOH this is a tough one, I have so many ships I enjoy, I think I change pairings and find new ones every few months. But if I had to pick........

AkaFuri (Akashi x Furihata from Kuroko No Basuke): I've shipped them the longest, I'm pretty sure my writing got better through writing and researching for fics of the ship. I also transitioned from traditional to digital drawing through drawing this ship, so yay it's them! I love them because Furihata was someone Akashi and everyone underestimated but Furihata defied everyone's expectations, conquered his fears and managed to stand up against him. Kuroko and the Seirin basketball team changed Akashi's opinions and made him see everyone as equals, but Furihata sorta kickstarted that.

ItaJun (Itadori x Junpei from Jujutsu Kaisen): I actually shipped them back when JJK was first airing! So that's three years with them dear god. I made a post about them but to summarize, I love the potential they had & loved how they clicked together!

Zukka (Zuko x Sokka from Avatar The Last Airbender): This one's relatively new but they got me obsessed enough to write a 300k word for for them and made me go on an unstoppable and frankly unhealthy drawing spree for months (I have a callous on my hand...unsure if it's because of just them but they definitely didn't help). I love their dynamic, they play off each other well, make up for each other's weaknesses and their interactions are always funny to watch. They're very cute to me.

JonJay/JayJon (Jon Kent x Jay Nakamura from DC Comics): A CANON COUPLE!!! They're very adorable and I enjoyed watching the way they helped each other get to their goals in their introduction comic as a couple(Superman Son of Kal El). Watching Superman be bi and have an Asian bf was just, very inspiring. The way Jon's heroism and ideals are defined by Jay's ideals is so cool.

I have a lot more which I can put as honorable mentions: Korrasami (The Legend of Korra), SatoSugu(Jujutsu Kaisen), Stucky (the Captain America Trilogy was awesome and the only part I like from the MCU), KiriBaku(I think I'm pretty much over them now unless I get back into BNHA), Calliette(bring back First Kill please please PLEASE), XiCheng(Jiang Cheng x Lan Xichen from MDZS), BingQiu & MoShang (both from Scum Villain Self-Saving system).

These are the ones I remember. There's probably some crucial formative ship for me that I'm missing but rn I think this is it.

My qualifications for being obsessed with a ship are:

HAS to be gay

They should be complementary in some way

The franchise they come from needs to have a plot that isn't their relationship, but their relationship, or just the character's motivation is sorta woven into the overarching theme of the story. Example; In AkaFuri, Furihata is instrumental in defeating Akashi and his team because Furihata isn't there to exactly take down Akashi. He CAN'T. But if he works with everyone else on his team, he stands a chance and can make a difference. The ultimate theme of KNB is that we should value friendship, teammates and should lift each other up rather than view the world as enemies to defeat. Korra and Asami are seemingly polar opposite with Korra being a representative of spirits while Asami is a representative of human technological advancement. TLOK is about harmony between these two aspects of the world, and Korrasami's relationship is a representation of that. I think pretty much all my ships can work like that (Jiang Cheng is too cynical, never lets anyone close and is prone to conflict, Lan Xichen is too trusting and too complicit, never wanting conflict and therefore not really confronting anything and BOTH of these flaws of theirs are to their detriment, etc etc).

I think I like ships which I can use to examine the themes of the main story, and see how the union of two people could influence the meaning of the canon.

And, I'll be honest, it's also about how aesthetic they are together and how good the smut potential is. It's shipping in the end, and I can write thousand-word meta essays but also be going gaga over their smut lmao.

Hope this was an adequate reply!! Also please don't apologize, I hadn't answered this before I think? haha i keep forgetting what i write.

[hailsatanacab]

Challenge! 18 Questions for Writers

Thank you to @die-erlkonigin6083 for the tag!!!

How many works do you have on Ao3?

only 6... I am not a fast writer 😅

2. What's your total Ao3 word count?

147,953 - 113,000 of which belong to cetbwa, which is incredible to me, I never thought it would get this big!

3. What fandoms do you write for?

on ao3 I only have mdzs and dpxdc rn! I've written for a few other fandoms, but nothing ever really got finished

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

close enough to be whole again

Unable to Forward

The Problem with Portals

My Father's Sword

almost (sweet music)

5. Do you respond to comments?

😬i.... do not. I really wish I could say yes to this, and while I try to get to the first few on a fic... I'm not the best at keeping up to date with them.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

so far, I think we're safe from angsty endings!! I really need to step up my angst game, don't I?

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

idk probably i wouldn't know where to start - if only because I included the tag "Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian Get Their Happy Ending"

8. Do you get hate on fics?

not that I know of! There have been a few rude comments, but nothing horrible, thankfully :)

9. Do you write smut fic? If so, what kind?

I'm pretty dreadful at writing smut, it just doesn't come easy to me at all. There's a wip that I'm trying so hard with and it is f i g h t i n g me

10. Do you write crossovers? If so, what's the craziest one you've written?

hell yeah babe! I was never into crossovers until dpxdc gripped me by the throat and I have not looked back since!!

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I hope not!

12. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

uuhh I tried co-writing a smutty mormor sherlock fic way back when, but we both sort of just lost interest. Otherwise, nope! Would be interested in trying, though!!

13. What's your all-time favorite ship?

I'm not super into ships tbh? Like in my current dpxdc hyperfixation phase, I'll read anything - there's no ship I'll drop anything for and nothing I won't read

for everything else: hualian invented love, moshang invented some fucked up dynamics, wangxian are just perfect, (beefleaf honourable mention)

14. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

my mdzs psychic!wwx and detective!lwj murder mystery fic that I honestly still love the concept for, but now I'm just... onto other things. I'm sorry bby 🙇‍♀️

15. What are your writing strengths?

I love writing dialogue, I really enjoy it. Catch me in my room reading all my conversations out loud just to see if they sound natural

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

Description! I hate describing things! I always forget to do it and it's always a hassle to make it flow within the story. You can't stop the whole thing just to describe what someone's wearing otherwise it's boring, but trying to get that sweet spot of letting the audience know vital information about the scene in a way that doesn't detract from everything else is... diff

17. First Fandom you wrote for?

yikes probably harry potter. I distinctly remember writing something on quizilla with an OC arranged marriage to Draco Malfoy. She had a secret base inside a tree and she was sorted into Gryffindor (because of course she was) and all the boys loved her. very oc.

18. Favorite Fic you've written?

uuhh!! i really enjoyed writing The Problem with Portals, it was just so much fun! Obviously cetbwa, too, because I can be so unapologetically angsty in that 😅 love to put that guy in situations

And I am answered! Thank you again for the tag, and in return I shall... @gilbirda and @thewritingowl

[tcfactory]

cries bc i just managed to read the new chapter of in tune and ohhh my i love him. get scooped, jiu. does bullying sqh count as accidentally indulging in foxy behaviours? ive certainly seen our local foxes chew on the rats they catch around here. i love your writing so so much, please never stop <3 <3 <3

I'm really happy you are enjoying my writing.💕

I have ran into a bit of a conundrum in the next chapter I'm writing so I'm taking just a short breather to rework my remaining outline to account for the whole extra 'let's strongarm MoShang into making their courtship official' arc that has, once again, sneaked up on me (in the original outline the reveal happened before the concert. in the new outline they are announcing the courtship and the alliance officially after the concert. XD) With a side order of "LQG/LGJ the awkwardest of first dates", "Oh god there's two of them (SQQ about LGJ and SQH)" and "SQQ and YQY have their thing going on (horrible first time and the fallout of it and the Xuan Su reveal)". There will be a 'SQQ gets turned into a fox for a while so YQY can give him comfort cuddles' in there somewhere. So, uuuuh. Yeah, that's too many threads to just wing it, so I'm just going to replan my outline again. With some Thought put into it.

In the meantime I'm going to try to get that JiuYuan daemon AU I had floating around into a fic for JiuYuan week (I haven't done a ship week in soooo many years I want to try this time). Short!!! Not letting it spiral into 100k words again, I have a tight outline and no distractions allowed.

All I need to decide is whether I want it to be explicitly clear from the star that the wolf is SQQ's daemon and SY is just stupid (affectionate) or go along with his assumption that it's a bird and the wolf is something else. Both have their appeal, honestly.

[kenmab]

the truth is that shang qinghua didn’t understand why mobei-jun kept him around anymore. if shang qinghua thought abt the pros vs the cons, well there wasn’t any pros left.

“don’t...” mobei-jun said. his cold hand drowsily grabbed shang qinghua’s in the middle of the night. of course he was recovering from saving shang qinghua’s life again, that man had gone from double agent peak lord to human outcast back to esteemed peak lord only to be subjected to being kidnapped for a demon king’s ransom. the whole situation felt a little silly, airplane had written every single one of these characters into creation just to be abused by them in such a way! but all of this just confused shang qinghua even more. just what was shang qinghua’s purpose in this mobei-jun’s story at this point when all he had left to do is cause trouble?

“don’t....” mobei-jun repeated. his hands were always cold, shang qinghua didn’t notice how well he had adjusted to this.

“don’t what, my king? i was just going to go and get you a cup of tea to help you recover...” shang qinghua spoke quietly from mobei-jun’s bedside. mobei-jun continued to look at him.

“.....i have servants to do that sort of thing,” he responded in the low voice. shang qinghua blinked twice. aren’t i the servant who should be doing that sort of thing?

“are—are you sure, my king? i don’t mind it if you want something to drink. have you eaten anything today? i can—“

“no.” then mobei-jun waited a moment. “every time i let you out of my sight, you disappear...”

which....was not untrue. shang qinghua was cursed in this way, any day he begged mobei-jun for permission to travel away for a few days, he never came back. none of it was his fault—bandits, demons, humans with worse intentions and higher cultivations—it always made him feel suspect when he had to explain to his savior that he wasn’t running away from him!! it was just a poor situation!! the present shang qinghua was only but an easy target, but the present mobei-jun...

“my king...” shang qinghua couldn’t fathom his own character’s intentions anymore. if he didn’t exist in this world to be ordered around or to be slapped around by his sworn king, then what was the purpose of him staying around for so long? to write poetry or love stories under a surname for the public? if that was the case, did he have to do so under the roof of the northern demon kingdom? shang qinghua stayed at the manor, his food was specially delivered from huanhua place, his ink was always high end, his own worries or missions were low. he was almost always accompanied by such a powerful ascended demon king. after all the years shang qinghua had semi righteously stayed by mobei-jun’s side all the way up until saving him from death, saving him twice from death, he didn’t expect his life to turn out like this.

if shang qinghua indulged in any small hobbies of his, mobei-jun observed quietly from the sidelines with his eyebrows almost noticeably raised. if shang qinghua ever took a trip to an ding peak, upon his departure back to the demon realm mobei-jun would patiently wait at the bottom of the mountain to escort him back safely. if shang qinghua ever wanted or needed something mobei-jun would do his best to bring it life, going as far as cooking him dinner upon request. whether it was mealtime or bedtime, mobei-jun would listen to shang qinghua’s ramblings about storybooks or tales from home, florals he’d seen or recipes he’d learn, there would be calm idle chatter.

shang qinghua had pretended not to notice the way his sworn king had claimed him by switching his ribbon while tying his hair up one morning as per shang qinghua’s request. he pretended not to notice that mobei-jun had stopped hitting him and had actually resorted to patting his head every so often. but shang qinghua really hadn’t noticed at all the way mobei-jun let him touch his face and hair and arms in a way he wouldn’t have been allowed to in years before. nor did he notice the softness in mobei-jun’s face as they spent their time together. on cold days draped in his king’s heavy cloak, shang qinghua would forget to pay attention to how slow and easy their lifestyle was, only after dark would he start to wonder what he was doing, and why he was allowed to be doing it.

mobei-jun gazed at shang qinghua for a moment longer, then turned his head away looking towards the dark night sky.

“don’t.........go. don’t go anymore. just stay here. stay......by my side,” he said quietly. his voice hadn’t been cold towards shang qinghua in years, tonight was no different. “come here and lay down with me.”

shang qinghua stared at him before just doing what he was told—which is just what he does best. but he still didn’t understand. what about our situation keeps in such a great mood? especially if im no longer useful to him, why now does he want my company? why would someone want someone as un-useful as me...while looking at the back of his king’s head, and feeling the hand grabbing his quiver just slightly, shang qinghua ignored those kinds of thoughts again. a familiar wave a warmth passed over his heart while looking at this person lying next to him.

“goodnight my king,” shang qinghua whispered. “and hurry and get better, i don’t want to lie in bed all day! let’s go into to town and purchase a new book once you’ve recovered.”

“......en”

“and.....there’s a new pastry i’d really like to try in the city! some fried and covered in sugar.”

“.....en”

and there’s something i wanted to buy...

mobei-jun turned and looked at shang qinghua. only shang qiuhua could tell his expression was of curiosity and not indifference.

something to remind you that i won’t run away...

these are words that he wouldn’t say out loud, he wanted trinkets to remind them of each other. maybe he could waive some of his king’s uneasiness this way. a secret plan to nonchalantly give mobei-jun a piece of himself.

“my king, what are you smiling about?” if you could even call that a smile! shang qinghua still didn’t understand why mobei-jun continued to let him live in such a way, especially after all his initial duties were over. but in the end, he couldn’t ignore how much he enjoyed being in this kind of situation. it was an ending he definitely would’ve never written for himself.

[tossawary]

Happy January, everyone!

I’m going to be keeping this icon for another month or so because I like it, but here’s a monthly/yearly update regardless.

I was away for the past week or so, not really able to do much besides post chapters from my phone (did not have access to Twitter), but I’m back now. I think I’m mostly going to spend January doing a little light housekeeping (AO3 comments, tumblr asks, overdue art etc.) while I focus on some job-related stuff for the next month or couple months. I was so busy last month that I had to stop answering a lot of AO3 comments for 41 days or so? It turns out that posting 3 multi-chapter fics in that time span left me with 1,700 AO3 comments. Definitely ending the year on a bang! Thank you!

“forgiveness for whose sake?”, “love to the ones I’ve never met”, “hey, share the weight a little”, and “Sit With Your Soul” were all gift fics for FTH 2022. I intend on continuing my Daemon AU, “Sit With Your Soul”, soon, but I’d like to reread SVSSS first because I’m feeling a little out of touch with the original material. I’ll keep people updated on my progress in regards to that. I’m also going to be writing some commentary for “love to the ones I’ve never met” probably this month. I had a lot of fun with all that prompt writing (I wrote 5 fanfiction novels this year!) and now I’m going to explore some other stuff, so I don’t think I’ll be doing FTH 2023 as a writer. There’s a Moshang Big Bang (10-30k) happening soon, however, that looks a little tempting...

Out of curiosity, how did people like the daily posting of a single arc? I think I prefer the weekly format, but this was also a lot of fun.

I’m lucky enough to be at a point in my life where I can write a lot and quite often very quickly. I’ve had a lot of practice and my living situation is good. I get a lot of fun out of it. And yet creativity can be exhausting. It’s not effortless. It can be hard and frustrating work that eats up a great deal of time and sometimes feels a little thankless. Sometimes, no matter what some people tell you about how good time management fixes everything, there is no time or energy to carve out of your life. (Don’t worry, I’m in a good spot. I just want to offer reassurance.)

After posting my AO3 stats for 2022, I want anyone feeling a little down about their creative projects to know that an inability to write or draw or whatever it is that you do is not your fault. Speaking as someone still working out what boundaries to draw when, who occasionally feels down about all the things I want to do but haven’t found the time for, if you need to draw the line and announce the need for a hiatus with no clear end in sight, it’s fine. If you need to go back on your word and ask for a pause, it’s fine. Don’t walk on strained muscles goes for creative efforts too. Sometimes, you just need to put down the project and go bake yourself the easiest cookie recipe you know, or pop out to the store and treat yourself to food that you don’t have to make yourself, or just lie down for a few hours in the middle of the afternoon on your day off and do fuck all. In my busy periods, I am not actually working every hour of the day; it’s just that instead of spending my free time writing, I am more likely to be napping on the couch. It’s good for the soul.

May you have a restful 2023. ❤

[grimfiendfyre]

I know they don’t ever really interact in canon, but I like the idea/headcanon of Tianlang Jun becoming sqh’s best friend through their shared interest in literature. I can see tlj being a big fan of sqh’s writing and he’s always excited/hyped to talk to sqh about his works and what he liked about it. I just think tlj deserves a friend who will still go to human plays with him and talk about smutty literature. Let these two be weirdos together and have fun! I just think their personalities have so much potential for hilarity, but also a strangely wholesome friendship haha. 

But also imagine this is before moshang get together, but post-noodles incident, and sqh and tlj seem to be getting closer and people start assuming that they’re totally boning/together which is not helped by sqh sometimes referring to lbh as his ‘son’ when he’s muttering and those who overhear are like ‘I knew it! They’re totally together! Lbh is tlj’s son and if sqh is also calling lbh his son then that means sqh is basically claiming lbh as his son too as his “stepfather” and this means their “relationship” must be pretty serious’. The demons in the demon realm are basically like ‘I’ve connected the dots!’. Mbj is very jealous and displeased, but also tlj is a full heavenly demon AND tlj had a human partner before which means it seems like by all accounts tlj would be a better suited spouse for sqh because of common interests in his writing and also because he’s successfully courted a human before and knows what humans like. Tlj thinks these rumours are hilarious and sqh is just oblivious to them or if he is aware of them thinks it’ll blow over and that only a few stupid people would ever believe those rumours (jokes on sqh, majority of the demon realm thinks it’s all but confirmed and are sitting by with metaphorical popcorn watching this ‘love triangle’ of sqh, tlj and mbj play out before their eyes)

I bet tlj does stuff like put his hand on sqh’s lower back or on his shoulder while sending mbj a shit eating grin when sqh isn’t looking just to start shit. Tlj said ‘I’m going to cause problems on purpose’ because he thinks it’s funny lol. Tlj is just internally laughing, while poor Mobei Jun is angsting and brooding in a corner thinking he’s going to lose sqh. Tlj probably went ‘you know mbj is totally in love with you right?’ and sqh would just straight up not believe him and is still in denial and would probably be like ‘you’ve been reading too many novels if it’s clouding your judgement that badly’. Although I think tlj is actually rooting for moshang to get together, he’s like I tried my best so I might as well have fun with it until they get their shit together and thinks maybe if mbj gets jealous enough they’ll actually do something about the tension around them that you could cut with a knife.

[vodkassassin]

Hey hun! Reminding you about that Moshang list like you asked!

Sorry this took so long, I ran out of energy and didn’t get any more until like, yesterday. Okay, so! Moshang fic recs!!

AN IDIOT’S GUIDE TO A HAPPY MARRIAGE by tagteamme. Chapters: 8/8, words:  156,680

Summary:  In order to pay off a debt that's not his, Shang Qinghua agrees to marry a man that's as cold and unyielding as he is stupidly rich.

Vod Notes: I’m not normally one for modern AU’s, but there’s just something about aspiring CEO MBJ and flat out broke SQH somehow wiggling his way into his heart that gets to me. The characterizations in this story are flawless, and the customary Moshang miscommunication/misunderstanding had me tearing out my hair at several points, yelling at these two dumbasses; and that’s how you know it’s a good one. 9/10 because I experienced lots of stress while reading this, which actually is a sign of a fantastic story, I’m just really weak and pathetic and immerse myself in reading way too much, so actually 11/10! Depends on how you look at it I suppose lol

a rose by any other name by sarahyyy. Chapters 1/1, words: 6,795

Summary: The one where Shang Qinghua suddenly becomes Prime Demon Marriage Material™ (bc of the LBH/SQQ marriage).

Vod Notes: somft. MBJ just loves SQH so very much, and SQH is pining ad dense as fuck. The perfect Moshang fic recipe. They are warm, soft, clueless idiots in this while still somehow being entirely competent, and we love to see that. SQH is a man made of contingency plans <3 I love it when authors do my son justice. 10/10

How to Panic Your Demon King by StarlightLion. Chapters: 1/1, words: 7,816

Summary: Mu Qingfang is starting to wonder if this is a requirement to be a demon lord. At least this one isn't kidnapping him.

Vod Notes: A delicious one shot about MBj worrying about the love of his life, who is a strong, dedicated, talented man who has an unfortunate training mishaps and then tries to cover it up bc he’s also dumb and doesn’t want to worry anyone. Stupid man. SQH we love you pls take care of yourself. You’re giving your husband grey hairs. A special treat toward the end with a MQF POV! My sexy doctor man is exasperated and done with everything. 10/10

it must follow, as the night the day by Tossawary. Chapters: 7/7, words: 26,342

Summary: Airplane Bro transmigrates into his own web-novel only to find out that the System messed up his world! Shang Qinghua is a demon in this world! All the characters supposed to be humans are demons in this world! And all the characters supposed to be demons are...?

Vod Notes: You simply cannot go wrong with Tossawary. They have the most scrumptious servings of Moshang in all the land. For this specific one, we’re gifted with a lovely Role Reversal AU! It’s got everything! Demon!SQH who is a absolute mess of a man? Serious cultivator MBJ who is stoic and cold but has the heart of a hero (or just a heart hardwired for SQH specifically)? Espionage? Feed it to me slowly like grapes. 11/10

You Will Never Step Lightly in the Dark by Janusoverlord. Chapters: 11/11, words 57,218

Summary: Shang Qinghua wakes up in the aftermath of Tianlang-Jun's rampage on Cang Qiong Mountain and has to navigate the delicate political situation he now finds himself in. Luo Binghe is building a harem with Shen Qingqiu as his first, and honestly most terrifying, husband. Yet, Luo Binghe seems to be turning his eyes to Shang Qinghua as a possibility as well. Excuse you? What is this? He didn't sign up for this!

Vod Notes: holy fuuuuuuuuuuuuuck this one blew my entire mind! Not only do we have SQH looking out for number one (which is himself, bless you my son) when shit turns strictly bad, but we have a absolutely, one of a kind, PHENOMENAL badass SQQ who is supporting his bro and fucking shit up left and right and everywhere for Airplane’s sake. God. This was like drinking fine wine. Breathtaking, spectacular. My life has been changed. MBJ spends most of this being a big, sulky, upset mess but don’t worry, cucumberplane fixes that up themselves. LBH get’s put in time out by both his husbands (because this is LBH/SQQ/LQG), because he fucks up in this majorly and SQQ isn’t fucking happy and doesn’t let him get away with it just because he gives him the puppy eyes and I AM LIVINGGGGGGGGG!! TLDR: simply superb badass cucumberplane, sad boy MBJ hours, and LQG gets stuck with babysit the naughty demon king duty. VERDICT: umm?! 7000/10

A Queen’s Trials (And How to Speedrun Them) by daddykeehl. Chapters: 1/8(as of 4/17/21), words: 25,000.

Summary: Shang Qinghua is now well on his way to the same happily-ever-after that every protagonist gets, but two things stand in his way. The Queen's Trials, and a council that just won't give up. Too bad for them, they really don't know who they're dealing with.

Vod Notes: Sorry I can’t hear any of your questions over the loud, shrill screams of my absolute LOVE for this story. it’s not finished, no, but it’s set up in arcs per chapter, so I’m fine with waiting for the next one to come along, and so will you if you read this. Because, lemme tell you. Fucking amazing. An SQH who knows everything about the North? He’s God, dammit, why wouldn’t he? Using that to his advantage? Not just to prolong his life, but to legally win the right to marry MBJ. God, this story is just absolutely breathtaking. I was speechless when I got to the end of chapter one. The sheer level of worldbuilding! Catch me with actual hearts in my eyes. The small DETAILS! The magnificently built OCs! The culture, the writing! The character interactions! SQH goes around accidentally winning the lifelong loyalty of every badass, OP demon in the Northern realm. I am still screeching. daddykeehl you’re my number one. fucking 200k/10 heart eyes emoji, heart eyes emoji (also, it’s part of a series! The story before this one, Quick, Easy Steps To Realizing You’re The Queen Consort, is also VERY good.)

[spockandawe]

Hi....If you don't mind me asking, who are your favorite MXTX characters (top 5 from each novel)? And why? I'm sorry if you've answered this question before.

It’s absolutely no problem at all!! I don’t think I’ve been asked this before, but hey, I also have zero object permanence, so it keeps things fresh and new. And it’s interesting to see how my answers change over time! Lemme see, I think I’m going to go in reverse order, because I feel like then I’ll be doing the worst agonizing up front.

TGCF

Fifth favorite: YIN. YU. I know that he’s a minor character and him even making it onto the list is pretty solid performance, but I do feel guilty that he isn’t higher than this. He came out of nowhere in my first reading and punched me in the stomach with emotions. I find his sections so hard to read, and I was DEVASTATED when he died and BEYOND stoked to find out he was still alive in the extras. His story hurts so much! I am weak against characters who have relatively modest goals and still see them snatched away (see also: my next entry) and have to struggle on. I wish wish wish I had a way to see more of how he made his peace with things after being thrown out of heaven, and the nature of the (distant) relationship with Hua Cheng and what happens with Quan Yizhen now that he died in his arms, and still came back anyways, my god!

.

Fourth favorite:  He Xuannnnnn. I have a hard time articulating particulars, but. I love him a lot. I love a character with a grudge, with a deep, painful grudge, where the grudge is hurting him almost as much as it’s hurting the people around him, and setting the grudge aside would also hurt, and then what has any of this been for-- I've used this metaphor for other characters, but I don’t care if I’m overusing it, because I love it. He feels like a character caught in a thorn bush, where simply being there... hurts, but trying to escape or move in any ways is going to hurt worse, and there’s no path forward that doesn’t involve pain. And like... I don’t love the way he hurt Shi Qingxuan (who didn’t quite make this list adfasgdafsd I’M SORRY) but I wouldn’t have liked to see him swallow back down all that pain and set aside everything that happened to his family and fiancee either! I’m always, always soft for characters who have no good path forward and who grit their teeth and set out anyways.

.

Third favorite: MU QING!!!!!!!!!! I have done... extensive screaming about him. And I love him veryvery much. I can already tell that this list is going to have a lot of mean boys on it, and like... no regrets. Especially since this is one of my FAVORITE flavors, an unapologetic mean boy who is rarely (but sometimes!) soft for the people around him, and who regularly tries to do decently by people, but who consistently gets shat upon and misunderstood and accused of acting in bad faith. I screamed when he and Xie Lian finally got to talk their friendship out in the book. I also screamed when I realized how immediately after Xie Lian’s return he started looking out for him again, and how sincerely, despite his horrible attitude about it. I still want to write more fic for him so badly. I love him so much.

.

Second favorite: Xie Lian! What a good boy! The best boy! He’s so sweet and gentle, but also the best fightboy this world has ever seen, and also so gently snarky with the people he loves! I just... really love me some traumatized characters who have trouble recognizing that they can be Loved, and I’m not going to write this whole essay right now, but I think in some ways, he’s the most... passive about his romance, out of all the leads? Shen Qingqiu is aggressively oblivious, but Xie Lian kind of gently shrugs off the idea that he might be Hua Cheng’s special someone, until he finally gets hit with the cluestick. I generally shy away from the idea of a character “earning” love, but he’s maybe the mxtx character who moves me most with ‘you deserve to be loved’

.

Most favorite: Hua Cheng. HUA CHENG. Oh my god, gotta love this boy. Gotta love this devotion. I love a mean boy who is soft for one person, and he EMBODIES it. I mean, I love Shen Jiu, but he barely manages to do the soft thing at all, while Hua Cheng is over here like ‘if I could only be the stone beneath your feet--’ It’s hard to talk about him separately from Xie Lian, because they’re a unit in my head more than just about any other characters on this list are. I don’t want to get this list to get out of control, so I’m not going to scream for too long, but... I could just watch him go forever. I want to write him forever, and that’s a huge aspect of what draws me to some characters.

MDZS

Oh god, I think I lied, I think this book is going to be hardest. Making these choices is AGONIZING.

Fifth favorite: .....Lan Wangji. Oh god, I feel bad about how low he is. But this story is just packed SO full of wonderful characters, and I’m already consumed with guilt over all the characters who aren’t going to make it. I don’t love them less! But my love for characters in this particular story is very evenly distributed. And I think that Wang Yibo’s acting is possibly scoring points with me that the book might not have earned all by itself. Microexpressions and subtle body language add SO MUCH to a character with such flat affect, and I would be drawn to such a closed-off character anyways, but it really helps. And I love, like... the combined subtlety and intensity of his relationships. It’s not that subtle once you know what to look for, and the brother/sworn brother network makes for varying degrees of how much other characters understand of the things he chooses not to explicitly express, and it gives a really interesting character to the way he interacts with the people around him. Also, love me a man with intense separation anxiety.

.

Fourth favorite: Jiang Yanli? I think it has to be Jiang Yanli, but these rankings are hard. So. I just talked about how much I enjoy the flat affect and closed off nature of Lan Wangji? Well, guess what, I also love it when m’girl is just very GENUINELY AND OPENLY an absolute sweetheart of a person, and I love the contrast between her genuinely kind nature and the uncomfortable pressure that her family’s dynamics put on her to start parenting at a very young age. It’s not necessarily a happy situation, but she adores her brothers so much and they adore her so much! And it’s... a very understated element of the story, but after her parents died, her baby brothers went off to war, and one wreaked havoc as a straightforward commander and one of them disappeared for months and returned as a creepy-ass zombie puppeteer. And she STILL dotes on them like before, despite knowing what they’re capable of. Like, yes, Wei Wuxian just raised an army of corpses and forced a man to eat himself, but I shall still boop him on the nose and feed him Soup. How can I not adore energy like that?

.

Third favorite: Wei Wuxian, I think. I do adore him a lot. He gives me some of the same vibes that make me ache most with Xie Lian, where he is trying his best, and is struggling to hold on in the face of lots of suffering, and I find it really interesting that when the suffering peaked, Xie Lian was forced go on because he couldn’t die, while Wei Wuxian... expired. That line about ‘he thought that no matter how large the world was, there was still no place for him’ always sticks with me, and hurts me deeply. Xie Lian had most of his personal attachments stripped away, and was left to wander on his own, while Wei Wuxian still had a number of strong connections left, but abruptly exited life. And that informs their respective trauma so interestingly! The way Wei Wuxian bounces between high energy chaos and drained exhaustion is really fascinating to me, and was the thread that held me attached to the book through a very confusing beginning. And I’m still very drawn to how intensely he loves, whether it’s Xiao Zhan’s fantastic acting, or it’s him busting out with how much he wants Lan Wangji in the middle of the Guanyin Temple scene. He’s a fantastic character, honestly, I don’t think such a convoluted book would have held together very well without a protagonist this strong.

.

Second favorite: Xue Yang :X Look, he’s a good boy and I love him. Who among us hasn’t done a few mass murders that we are completely unrepentant about, but that we would really like to keep hidden from our current boyfriend, actually? Anyways, as always, love me an angry boy who makes terrible decisions for understandable reasons. And I do love a character who is consumed by agonized ragrets (see my next entry), but I DO also love me a character who has no regrets at all and doesn’t even have much interest in trying to justify himself to anyone else around him. Just look at that confidence! Look at him go!!

.

Most favorite: Jiang... Cheng....... I knew he and Xue Yang were going to be at the top, but those were the only parts of this list that were easy. I mean. Love a self-sabotaging angryboy who is also super super sad and keeps hurting himself in his own confusion. And while I love the romantic thread in all of the mxtx books, the agonized family thread in mdzs is one of my favorite parts, and something that I don’t really see echoed in any of the other stories. I need ten million jc+wwx reconciliations, at LEAST. He’s so sad! And so angry! And I want to see him becoming less of that thing, and for Jin Ling and Wei Wuxian to demonstrate very firmly how much they love him, because they do. I am invested in his happiness in a way that goes far and beyond any of the other non-main characters, haha

SVSSS

Fifth favorite: Tianlang-jun. I think? Oh god, but moshang. THIS IS REALLY HARD, I HATE THIS ;-; But especially since writing my fic, Tianlang-jun has really won me over. And like, he already hurt me good in the novel, just thinking about how he was an innocent young guy, just! Trying to have a girlfriend! And instead got trapped in sensory deprivation, body-rotting-hell for twenty years, when he didn’t do anything wrong!!! He suffered, so much! And I live for his intensely strained relationship with Luo Binghe, because it’s! Perfectly understandable and painful, from both of their perspectives! And he wants to hate humans so badly, but in the end, when he’s told that Su Xiyan never betrayed him, he starts helplessly asking the people around him, ‘really? is it really true?’ and then in the end he loses the only family member he has left who cares about him, and it’s just! Everything is terrible! I have a su xiyan au brewing in my head because I can’t stand it! Someone just give this man a loving partner!!!

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Fourth favorite: Shen Qingqiu. But... moshang??? Goddammit. Anyways, this dumbass. I find him so endearing, in his dumbassery. I sometimes get a bit frustrated with Wei Wuxian for being oblivious, and Shen Qingqiu is just asking for me to react the same way, but I... don’t, for the most part? Because he thinks he has good information, and he’s slow to react to a changing playing field, and I still haven’t read another transmigration novel that strikes the same balance of hypercompetence and intense incompetence :ppp It’s a funny book, and he’s a funny character! And I really vibe with him, in most parts of the story, which covers a pretty darn wide emotional spectrum. Plus, the running internal commentary is choice.

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Third favorite: Liu Qingge. Look, I’m a woman of simple needs, and sometimes I just need a high-quality fightboy who clearly cares deeply and is absolute garbage at expressing his emotions. I can’t articulate it much better than that. I absolutely howl at the succubus extra, when Shen Qingqiu is talking to Madam Meiyin about his future partner, and Liu Qingge is like ‘oh my god, sHE IS CLEARLY DESCRIBING ME’ and Shen Qingqiu is like ‘haha, liu-shidi, i thought you thought this was stuupidddddddd’. They’re both so dumb. I love them so much. But stupidity plus war god fighting energy has a narrow lead over stupidity and internal commentary track.

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Second favorite: SHEN JIU. GOD. I’m still arguing with myself over whether he should go first, but Luo Binghe hurts me consistently through the whole entire story, so I think he wins. Shen Jiu just stabs me in the heart at strategic moments. This is it. My ideal mean boy who is soft for one (1) person, and who BOTH does unconscionable things for terrible reasons (someone just. give him a pile of girls to teach, it will be much more pleasant for everyone involved), and who ALSO gets blamed for things he didn’t do even when he tries to act in good faith. It is the best of all painful worlds. And even at the end, when he has a powerful person who wants desperately to protect him, he still tries his hardest to shove that person away, to keep him safe. I’ve got like four aus where he gets to live. I’m so invested in this character, I love him so much.

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Most favorite: Luo Binghe. He was.... made for me............ Like, the overwhelming amounts of childhood angst were baked in by Shang Qinghua, but the in-story pain and suffering is PRECISELY my jam. I love a character with separation anxiety! I love a character with massive anxieties over being unwanted! Over nobody ever, EVER just choosing him! I love a character struggling with the idea that the person he loves most in the world thinks that he’s intrinsically Disgusting! I love the kind of stubborn determination that leads him to preserve a corpse for five years, desperately hoping for a way to revive it, constantly cooking fresh food, in case, in case he someday wakes up. The way Hua Cheng loves is overpowering, but he’s had time to like... learn to be mellow when he needs to be. Luo Binghe doesn’t have a chill bone in his body, and if he’s acting chill, it’s probably because he’s done some mental math and decided that being more clingy right now will probably get him pushed away harder. I love the combination of manipulative tendencies and a very, very genuine fear of rejection and being unwanted. There is nothing I don’t love about Luo Binghe, including his worst decisions. I love him so so much.

[razberryyum]

Scumbag System (SVSSS donghua) Episode 10 Thoughts (spoilers)

(covers SVSSS chaps 24 - 26, BC Novels Translations)

And thus the first season of the SVSSS donghua comes to an end...rather weirdly abruptly to be honest, but more on that later. Obviously I love the donghua. It was not perfect, but it still exceeded my expectations. I truly appreciate what they were able to do within their budget constraints and I think they captured the spirit of the source material perfectly, which is really all I hope for when it comes to adaptations.  The writing was strong, the humor hit the spot always (for example, when poor Shizun got motion sickness from sword riding, I guffawed), and they also gave us some of the most beautiful characters I’ve ever seen on screen, especially with Shen Qingqiu, Luo Binghe and Liu Qingge. I really, really hope they release official figurines for them. I’m going to start saving my money now just for that possibility.

Even though their time together in this episode was short, the BingQiu love was definitely strong. They gave them a combo move that was not in the source material: for someone like me who grew up watching Cantonese dramas, two characters who have a combo sword move (”雙劍合璧”!) are usually a couple so I was especially tickled by this addition. I am always thankful to the donghua team for the little Easter Eggs they give us for BingQiu, like the way Binghe's eyes lit up when he sees SQQ... 

or when SQQ touches him...

Once again, for those not in the know, it can easily be interpreted as a disciple just being devoted and filial to his Shizun. But for those of us who have read the novel, of course we know it’s indication of Bingmei falling in love with SQQ. I love how subtle yet significant these little expressions of Binghe’s are, and I hope they continue on with these little touches even in the next season. 

Of course then there are the more obvious gestures, like that HUG:

It lasted for a good 15 seconds and oh my God look at the Binghe’s hand placement!  There was totally nipple groppage happening there! This wasn’t in the book by the way...SQQ didn’t get woozy and Binghe most definitely didn’t have to catch him like some fainting damsel, so we have the donghua team to thank for this wonderful moment of (sexy) physical contact between the two of them. 

The donghua team was also especially generous in this episode since not only did we get some BingQiu love, but we got a pinch of LiuShen and QiJiu love too.

LQG’s eyes were on SQQ the entire time! And then Yue Qingyuan as usual took any opportunity he got to touch his Qingqiu.  So all shippers were fed. Hell, they even threw in some more straight-baiting again so peeps who are watching the show for the “straight” romance between Luo Binghe and his never-to-be-future-wife Qin Wanyue were fed too since the scene where Binghe gives her the handkerchief to wipe away her tears were not in the chapters of the book for this episode, and racking my brain I don’t even think it was in the book, period. I’m trying to remember if that handkerchief even holds any significance but even if it does, it’s all for naught since we know Qin Wanyue is at most just a minor side character. She does pop up again later on but then is mostly forgotten, so...not quite sure what that moment was all about other than to, I don’t know, throw off the censors?

I’m also not sure why we spent so much time with Liu Mingyan and Gongyi Xiao in this episode. Nothing against them personally, I like both characters very much (despite my previous complaints about GYX’s character design), and it’s not that they don’t deserve more screen time, but this was the season finale! Even though the next season has been announced, God knows when we’ll see it next year and how many episodes it would be, so every minute of screen time matters! That’s why I was a bit puzzled that they used up half of the episode showing LMY basically facing the same perils with her group of fellow disciples as before and GYX just running from that huge serpent. Even if that thing DOES turn out to be Zhuzhi-lang, it was still a bit much. They weren’t exactly character building scenes either so...why? Budget reasons? Didn’t have enough money to pay SQQ’s voice actor (Wu Lei-laoshi) so they had to stick in miscellaneous scenes to lessen his screen time? 

I’m kidding of course. God I hope that wasn’t the reason because that would just be sad.

Speaking of miscellaneous scenes though, what was going on with these two dudes?

I gotta admit, I’m a bit salty that these two mob characters got to do what our main couple can’t. What’s their story? Why do they get special privileges? Damn these nobodies. XD

All kidding aside, I have to say, of all the episodes this season, this might be the weakest one, not only because of the “filler” scenes, but also, the way the episode ended was so odd, especially for a season finale. The season basically ended on a scene transition. Not a cliffhanger, just a scene transition, and then cut to credits. What?? Why??? It’s almost as if they just ran out of time so had to stop the show all of a sudden. And then as if to make up for it, they added post-credit scenes which, honestly blew me away because it was so unexpected. It was indeed almost enough to make me completely forgive the weakness of the episode as a whole and that weird-ass ending.

I teared up!  The scene was kind of chopped up, didn’t even flow that smoothly, but I still got emotional! I’m sure when I see this scene in its entirety next season I am just going to be destroyed. I think they made it even more gut-wrenching than it was in the novel. Looks like the donghua team really aren’t gonna hold back when it comes to delivering the BingQiu knives. 

We also got to see Mobei-jun appear in the post-credits scene; I guess they had to stick him in there since he was featured in the poster for this season, so it would have been weird if he didn’t at least make an appearance.

I immediately thought of him as Sephiroth’s younger cousin when I first saw him on the poster and I still feel that way. Anyone related to Sephiroth, I will approve and instantly have affection for. For the MoShang shippers’ sake, I hope the Shang Qinghua they create for him will be just as pretty. I think I can now safely discard my guess from last time and also that moon-faced bearded ojisan others have guessed. We actually got a glimpse of the real deal in this sequence:

They strategically made him blurry so you can’t really make out his features, but what we still can tell from there is that he does not have facial hair (hence, he cannot be the ojisan) and the hair crown he’s wearing is silver and different from the twinky sect leader. So I guess we’ll be getting a fresh out of the microwave Airplane Bro instead of any of the no-name potential cannon fodder we’ve already seen. 

We’ll probably get the abyss opening up in maybe even the first episode of next season but that’ll still leave a lot of ground to be covered in just 10 episodes (rumored). There haven’t been any talk about a third season, but I really hope it’ll happen, even though it might take them a while to make it. I know it’s premature to even think of a third season when we haven’t even gotten an actual release date for the second, but I’m greedy because I already miss the donghua. This season was over so quickly, I’m already mourning the lack of new episodes. I hope we get the second season in the first quarter of next year and then by some miracle, a third or even fourth to properly finish out the story. I know we will never get the FULL story, but as long as they keep the spirit of BingQiu’s love and continue to hint at it like they’ve been doing this season, I will be more than satisfied. 

And while I’m wishful thinking for new seasons, I hope we also get a BingQiu duet and character songs. I love the opening and ending theme this season, if they want to save money I totally don’t mind if they just use the same OP/ED themes in the next season as well, but I hope they throw in a good BingQiu insert song and then release some individual character songs as well. I’m still not a fan of Binghe’s voice, but maybe they can have someone else do his vocals for the songs. SVSSS is the older son of MXTX’s works, I feel like it already got short-shrifted in terms of adaptation since it got the lesser budget compared to MDZS and TGCF. Hopefully with how popular the donghua is this season, it will be given a bigger budget next season so they can bring to life all the subsequent proceedings from the book properly. And whatever they’re paying Wu Lei-laoshi, SQQ’s voice actor, they should double it because that man is just amazing. I worship his voice and performance. I wish he would read the audiobook version of the the novel. I would listen to the hell out of that.  I have always loved SQQ, but if I’m going to be honest, I came into the show just a little more excited about seeing Bingge being brought to life. I still love Binghe of course, in all his phases, however, now,  because of Wu Lei-laoshi’s stellar voice performance (and of course SQQ’s beautiful looks), I’m leaving this season absolutely head over heels about SQQ/Shen Yuan. Also thanks to the show, I’m completely obsessed with Liu Qingge as well.  So for those two reasons, I will eternally be grateful to the donghua team.