#i know these posts usually have grammatical errors and misspellings

[teecupangel]

From @knine-nights-loves-ac

Oh fuck yeah. Desmond training the local wildlife to do his bidding. Forget just losing a finger, Abbas and Al Mualim are fuckin doomed. It could start small, little nuisances that rodents or birds bother them with. Or their horses not listening. Etc. But eventually escalating.

From @thedragonqueen1998

Omg, the mental image of Desmond giving Al Mualim the side eye while pushing away his hand is killing me. XD I bet Al Mualim baby talks to Desmond when they're alone. Desmond is very distressed by it. Altaïr wonders why his dog hates Al Mualim.

From @zero-saito

I can hear the boss music now! When Desmond gives the signal to start their plan finally to get rid of abbas and almualim!! So much chaos!

It happened while Altaïr was away on a mission far enough that he had to leave Desmond with Kadar, something he had done since Al Mualim started to give him missions that kept him away from Masyaf for more than a week.

It wasn’t because he believed Desmond couldn’t take the long journey. It was simply because he didn’t wish to make him suffer through such thing. He was safer and more comfortable in Masyaf and Kadar takes care of him perhaps even more than Altaïr did.

Malik says Kadar coddled him like a fussing mother would a babe.

Altaïr would have to agree with that.

Desmond was not an innocent pup.

He was the most devious hound Altaïr ever met.

He knew that Desmond hated Al Mualim for some reason. A hatred Altaïr had seen him have for only one other person: Abbas.

And he knew no one would believe him if he was to tell them just how intelligent Desmond was. How he was much a partner in missions than anything else.

How it was clear that Desmond was planning for something big.

So really, Altaïr shouldn’t be surprised to hear that Masyaf was attacked while he was away.

Abbas’ finger being bitten off by an unknown animal (a wolf Abbas had screamed but other people had suggested it was more like a mangy dog than an actual wolf) was a prelude to whatever Desmond had planned.

Or perhaps even some kind of test.

So really…

Wild animals suddenly attacking Masyaf?

Altaïr wasn’t even surprised anymore at this point.

Said animals laying siege on Masyaf with the help of birds that managed to open the gates?

Now, that sounded like tall tales.

But Malik was the one ‘reporting’ to him so it had to be real.

Kadar was next to him, petting Desmond as he explained how Desmond had been barking the entire time and would have charged to fight those wild beasts had Kadar not kept him in his arms tightly.

Altaïr and Desmond glanced at one another.

And Altaïr knew then and there that Desmond had not been barking in anger but to shout commands to the invading ‘army’. Desmond had been both the spy and commander that had led to lots of minor injuries, Abbas falling from a high enough height that his legs would never recover and Al Mualim…

Al Mualim apparently got chased and… broke his back.

If that wasn’t serious enough, the wild beasts chasing him had trample on him and it took a lot of Assassins to save…

What was left of him.

Altaïr wanted to sigh.

“As of this moment, you are now the acting mentor, Altaïr.”

Wait.

What.

“How is that possible?” Altaïr asked with a frown.

“All the other Master Assassins are either busy with missions outside of Masyaf or had been injured by those beasts.” Malik informed him and he could almost see Malik’s desire to grit his teeth while Kadar looked at him with bright eyes, “You are the highest ranking Assassin in Masyaf at the moment who can lead us. You have to lead us until the other Master Assassins return or recover enough that an emergency meeting can be started to talk who will succeed Al Mualim.”

Altaïr blinked.

And turned to stare at Desmond.

… who was wagging his tail and panting with his tongue out.

The perfect image of a dumb dog.

Oh, this conniving little hound.

This was his plan from the start.

There's plenty of Desmond dog asks, but has a chihuahua one been made? Just imagine Altaïr carrying a small handbag looking thing with this miniature dog in it that just gives you the stink eye. If anyone other than Altaïr, Malik or Kadar tries to pet him, he screams for Altaïr. Abbas tried to pick up the "purse rat" once and never again. No one knows where Desmond made of with the finger. Not even Altaïr.

Let’s add this with @saberamane’s idea from this post:

@teecupangel for the 'desmond as a...' subgenre, where dog Desmond is trying to argue with his ancestor over their stupid idea and it's not working because the ancestor can't understand him, and/or is mocking him with their own 'barks'.

.

.

.

“Desmond, we both know that you’re more intelligent that people believe you are.”

“Arf?”

“Acting cute will not get you anywhere.”

“Arrfff <3”

“Desmond, stop. We’re having this conversation whether you want to or not.”

“Rch.”

“Did you… did you just click your tongue?”

“Arf?”

“Desmond, this is serious. I need you to tell me where you put Abbas’ middle finger.”

“Arrrffff…”

“Pretending to yawn will not end this conversation.”

“Arf-”

“I swear if you try to sleep, I will shake you hard enough that everyone will believe I’m trying to murder you.”

“……..”

“……….”

“Arf arf arrrff!”

“Desmond-”

“Arf! Arf! Arf!”

“Desmond, stop-”

“Arfarfarf”

“Acting childish will not-”

“ARF ARF ARF”

“Desmond!” Altaïr’s tone was more an animalistic growl and that finally stopped Desmond’s insistent yapping.

They stared at each other for a moment before Desmond began to growl as well.

“Desmond.” Altaïr growled back, “Behave.”

Desmond continued to growl.

And Altaïr answered it with a growl of his own.

.

.

.

Malik quietly closed the door to Altaïr’s private chambers and walked away. At the end of the hallway, Kadar was waiting, fidgeting in place. He stared at his brother with a worried expression as he asked, “How’s… how’s Desmond and Altaïr? Are they both okay? Does Altaïr know if Desmond…”

Kadar’s expression turned green as he continued, “… ate Abbas’ finger?”

Malik remembered the way the two had been growling at each other and felt a headache already hammering in his head.

Malik sighed and rubbed his face as he said, “I will speak to Al Mualim in Altaïr’s behalf. Desmond is shaking.”

-probably because he was trying to act all strong against Altaïr’s own growling.

“Oh, poor boy. Abbas must have scared him so much. There’s no way he would have bitten him, right?” Kadar made his own conclusions and Malik hoped Al Mualim do as well.

Considering how much of two-faced Desmond truly was, appearing sweet and adorable to the three of them but acting like a hellhound stuck in that small body of his to Abbas…

No.

Malik believed that Desmond did not bite off Abbas’ finger.

He actually believed that Desmond got another animal to do it for him.

He was that deviously clever like his owner, after all.

[genericpuff]

Hiii, I read your post about the stiff dialogue in LO, and I wanted to add my own two cents!

I myself am a person with a nice case of dyslexia (it will most likely show in this message). While I can’t speak for everyone with dyslexia, I pesonally cannot and will not publish anything ”official”, without spell checking it to hell and back. This is mostly because I’m hyper aware of this being one of my ”shortcomings”.

I also wanted to say, that most of, if not all, people with dyslexia that I know are rather self-consious about it. I just find it a bit unbeliavable that all the misspellings/awkward text in LO are there simply because Rachel has dyslexia. To me personally, it seems to be more a product of laziness and/or indifference.

Of course there is the fact that I’m not working on a long project, and I can usually take my time with my work, so maybe I just have more recourses to be careful. I also want to make clear that I don’t mean to say that Rachel’s dyslexia doesn’t affect her workload at all, but I do think she should have the means to check these things, especially since she is quite successful in the field.

Thanks for pitching in on this! I myself do not have dyslexia, but I do understand the struggle of missing words or misspelling them as my brain tends to move too quick at times for my writing speed to keep up LMAO It happens a lot when I'm writing by hand as I can't handwrite as fast as I can type so words sometimes go missing while my brain speeds ahead 😂

I can get why someone might be a little more self-conscious about typos being pointed out if they're making their comic entirely on their own and for free, or if they're just self-conscious about making mistakes in general (it can be scary to put a piece of work out into the world!) but Rachel is literally the top creator on the platform so there's zero excuse for it to have gone this long without at least a copy editor. And frankly it's still weird that they hire a copy editor at all just for checking typos because that's something that can be done so easily (again, Rachel has 4-5 other assistants per episode, you're telling me NONE of them could do it for her? Oh that's right, because she has them all draw their panels in isolation of one another and then she slaps the dialogue in at the last minute -.- the copy editor she has right now seems like the 'last step' before she submits the comic).

That said, if you go back far enough, you can actually find Rachel's take on correcting her misspellings and it's... frankly way saltier than it ought to be? Like I get it, it might feel like an attack for someone to say "hey, I spotted this mistake!" especially if you're self-conscious about it or are living with a learning disorder that affects your every day life, but when you get over that self-consciousness of making mistakes, it's really not that big of a deal? Like, yeah, it can be really frustrating when people point those mistakes out because it makes you feel bad or reminds you that you're struggling with something like spelling that seems so natural and 'easy' to everyone else, but I find true genuine fans of your work don't point these things out to be mean, just to be helpful. Yes, some people are mean about it, but you can usually tell which ones are the mean ones and which ones are the nice ones.

I've made spelling and grammatical errors in both Time Gate and Rekindled that have been kindly pointed out, and you know what I do when people find them? I thank them for spotting what I clearly didn't and I go and fix it. Because it makes my work better for my audience and my own peace of mind.

Rachel, meanwhile-

(tiny picture translation:

Question: Why do you have typos?

Rachel's answer: Yes, believe it or not I speak English. (English-New Zealand not English-American) Remember... not everyone cares about spelling. And frankly if go around pointing out spelling mistakes in peoples comics you have an issue. Plus I'm dyslexic you insensitive ass!)

Like... that whole thing is from her FAQ section that she made herself and she's still having a tone of voice that implies she's directing her answer at one specific person as if it was like an anon ask LMAO and really, I get the spirit of what she's saying, it can be pretentious/rude to point out people's spelling mistakes... in an informal or conversational setting. If you're making a comic or writing a book, though, it's basically a bare minimum expectation that you should be using spell check and making sure things are readable. You're making the work for other people to read after all. So her tone in this followed by the whole "I'm dyslexic you ass" bit just feels so unnecessarily hostile over something that was an innocent mistake and happens to literally everyone. Like, she really do be hurting her own feelings in her own FAQ that she made on her own time, this isn't the only question in there that reeks of 2000's edgy era "fuck you for asking" energy lmao

That said, to be fair, that is from her 2000's edgy era, so I'm hoping she's grown out of that at least slightly, but judging by how she's been managing her comic the past few years, it's clear she still isn't bothering to employ simple tactics to keep mistakes from slipping through the cracks and would rather lean on her dyslexia as an excuse rather than a reason. Dyslexia is a reason for typos, but where it becomes an excuse IMO is when she blames her dyslexia and then doesn't fix the mistakes that arise due to her dyslexia or do anything to make her life easier going forward.

Again, she's hired a copy editor, so if they're a permanent part of the team now, that will hopefully make things better. But why weren't they one of the first people hired when it's clear that Rachel could really use the help to ensure her comic comes out being the best version of itself it could be? It's like she's been literally shooting herself in the foot for the last 5 years.

It really feels lazy and, frankly, disrespectful. I know that might be a hot take or seem a little overblown to use that word here, but if you're going to be creating a comic for an audience - and expecting that audience to read your comic each week and in Rachel's case be expected to pay money for it - then you should be doing them the service of making it worth reading and sticking around for. If you can't even do so much as spell check your work - or go back and edit the errors when they arise - then that really goes to show how little you care about your own audience because you're not willing to put in the time and effort to even just fix a typo, let alone give them something worth coming back to and paying for each week. Sure, not everyone pays for the comics, but those viewership analytics are still valuable and it's very clear at this point that they're dropping rapidly week after week, and yet Rachel is doing barely anything to help turn things around.

Lore Olympus disrespects its audience in more ways beyond just the typos, of course, but the typos feel like the shopping cart litmus test - it costs next to nothing to resolve the issue, so if you still choose not to, it speaks to how little effort you're willing to put in to do something helpful for others that already only requires the bare minimum to do.

Of course, much of this is all speculative so take it with grains of salt, but judging by her responses to her own audience way back in the day, it really paints a picture of how Rachel views her audience. It makes it feel like she doesn't release her work into the world to genuinely entertain people or to find others who may connect and resonate with the work, she does it purely for herself and herself alone. That wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing in and of itself, it's pretty difficult to keep up a project if you aren't doing it for yourself to some degree (and you shouldn't create a comic just to earn an audience because that's just setting up unfair expectations for yourself lol), but in Rachel's case, it feels more like she's emulating the same edgelord energy of her "boss babe" Persephone - if you don't love every part of her and her work regardless of its genuine flaws, no matter how easy said flaws would be to fix, then you should just shut up and read her work and/or pay for it anyways because she should be allowed to do whatever she wants and if you don't like it, then you're an insensitive ass.

[stranger-who-writes-fiction]

ALRIGHT. HERE WE GO. THE FINALE ISSUE.

Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #8 - “Ruthye, Supergirl, and Krem of the Yellow Hills”

SPOILERS!

ISSUE CREDITS: Written by Tom King, art by Bilquis Evely, colors by Matheus Lopes, letters by Clayton Cowles, and edited by Brittany Holzherr w/ asst. editor Jillian Grant and senior editor Paul Kaminski

THE PLOT:

As has become the pattern with these series, the plot is pretty simple. Ruthye fights Krem; Comet saves Kara; Kara ‘fights’ Krem; Krem is defeated.

BUT. There are also some ~twists~! 

The real meat of this issue though--and in fact, the meat of this series--has been the character work, specifically with Ruthye, because her journey and growth is a way of showing us, the reader, the kind of impact Supergirl can have on an individual, and thus! We learn about Kara as well.

Now, admittedly, there’s a really negative, cynical way to read this issue. And if that’s how some folks want to read it, that’s their prerogative.

Personally, I didn’t read it in that negative way, and I’m not alone, if various fan reviews and twitter reactions are anything to go by. XD So, just know that I guess some of this is technically subjective!

Okay. LET’S GO. 

(WARNING: Long-winded discussion of comics and potential misspellings/grammatical errors ahead, apologies in advance!)

RUTHYE VS. KREM:

A significant portion of the book is devoted to *the* showdown that we’ve been promised from the start--Ruthye finally has Krem alone, and intends to kill him. And, to be sporting about it, she cuts him loose, and forfeits her weapon to make it a fair fight.

And here’s the first of several unexpected (in my opinion, anyway!) swerves that the plot takes--Ruthye actually wins.

(As is often the case with these posts, I’m gonna be extremely tempted to just upload the whole issue here but! I will try to exercise restraint! And encourage individuals who have the means to do so support the book through official, legal means!)

*deep sigh regarding the current state of affairs re: comixology*

I digress.

I decided to start with this page here because there’s a lot of awesome stuff going on, IMO.

I mentioned this when they released the preview pages but the COLORSSSSS!!!!!

Specifically the back and forth of the blues and yellows, that not only serves as a nice way of visually separating the two scenes unfolding here, but ALSO works in tandem with the rhythm of the panel layout.

Which is ALSO very cool. Because, first and foremost, ya got SEVEN TIERS. An impressive stack of horizonal panels, maximizing the page space! Additionally, Kara’s panels grow as both her emotions and the action mount--the stunned horror of seeing Comet’s sacrifice starts small, constrained. As her shock turns to anger and she breaks the Brigands’ chains, the panel widens, and the last panel extends wider still in Kara’s final feat of strength, tearing the Brigands’ ship apart.

And! In spite of alternating settings and panel sizes, the whole page flows seamlessly thanks to Evely aligning all the focal points vertically; Ruthye and Krem face one another on either side of an invisible center line established in panel one, which continues on down the page; Kara’s face is centered on it in panel two, then Ruthye’s eye and grip on the hilt in panel three, and so on and so forth. Everything lands on that center.

SO. GOOD.

We see this carefully composed rhythm and alignment for the first five pages of the book (but it never gets boring or repetitive, as Evely changes up the sizes of panels and utilizes clever insets to keep things interesting as well as lend visual and narrative weight to certain scenes, i.e. the panels of Comet’s death are massive compared to the tiny panels of Ruthye cutting Krem loose). But then this pattern breaks on page six, when Ruthye’s fight with Krem literally throws her off balance.

Recall Evely’s usual trick, of physically arranging panels to match the flow of the physical action on the page! Here, we do not have a smooth path--it’s a more chaotic arrangement, which captures the feeling of the sudden upset in the fight. 

By the end of the page, though, Ruthye regains the upper hand, and the subsequent pages fall back into that tightly controlled/structured alignment. 

ALL THE KEY IMAGES AND ACTIONS ARE ON THAT CENTER LINE. A great way to guide our eye not only within the panels themselves, but across the entire page!

Anyways, I’m rambling at length about this because the fight between Ruthye and Krem is really important; it takes up the majority of this final issue, but not only that! The whole series kinda hinges on this specific showdown. If it doesn’t have the proper pacing and execution, well. You’ve blown the whole book!

(Which is why I disagree with the criticism that this issue specifically spends too much time on Ruthye and not enough on Kara but we’ll get there, we’ll get there XD)

Right, so. Ruthye’s all set to kill Krem. Everything she’s done, everything she’s gone through, it’s all been leading to this. MOMENT. She even has a big speech prepared, and I must say, it is a good speech. A speech that once again reminds us of how much Ruthye loved her father, and how much he clearly loved her.

(We’re still in tightly structured panels, BTW.)

(I have to put this here b/c it won’t fit anywhere else, so, an aside: I know it’s been a Thing since the start of the book but I don’t think I ever really thought about the fact that Ruthye’s family literally farms rocks. Like. She says her dad planted pebbles and harvested stones. Such a weird, neat little detail about her planet!)

(Okay, back to business.) 

The narrative has reached a point where Ruthye is so justified in wanting this guy dead. But when the time comes!

Why HELLO, staggered, off-center panels! WE MEET AGAIN!

Which must mean another visual representation of the inner turmoil that Ruthye is feeling! As she herself is no longer ‘centered’ and in tight control of herself/the situation!

She can’t kill Krem!

WELL BRONCO BILL WAS A CEN-TAUR, WAS A GOOD FRIEND O’ MINE  ♫

I must pause to mention Horse-Man.

WHO WAS INDEED, SECRETLY A MAN.

(Also King confirmed this is a COIE homage, NOICE.)

(Oh, also, “Bronco” Bill Starr is the name Comet uses as his civilian/human identity.) 

Anyways, as I mentioned in a previous post, I’m genuinely sad that Comet actually, for real, dies in the end here.

But in terms of expendable characters, I actually think Comet is ideal? Like, King gets to have his cake and eat it too; we’re introduced to a Comet that (probably!) doesn’t carry the creepy baggage of his Silver Age counterpart (it helps that Kara is older here, and that King never specifies when, exactly, they met) so not only does the story get to indulge in some of the retro, almost fairytale-esque wackiness of those original Super-Horse stories, but King also gets to leverage Kara’s close connection to the character to sell her final descent into full despair--Comet’s sacrifice is the last straw for her. 

Also, mentioned before but I will mention again, Evely went and made Comet handsome. 

HOW DARE SHE. XD

Not only that, but Comet’s whole vibe--as well as the way Evely has designed/rendered him--matches the tone of the book so well? On a journey across the universe that has features some pretty fantastical locales and circumstances--space dragons and Kryptonite suns and wicked pirates--a centaur from ancient Greece who’s cursed by a magical spell? Fits right in. 

But, okay. To briefly circle back, there is admittedly that question of, ‘Why does Comet have to die? That’s so random, and it happens so quick.’

And I say again: Kara needs to be at her absolute lowest after her confrontation with the Brigands.

It’s just as King’s said from the beginning: in this book, he didn’t want to be precious with Supergirl. He wanted to really push the character to her absolute limits.

So yeah. Kara’s not in a great place, emotionally or physically as she meets up with Ruthye, which brings us TO....

TWIST NUMBER 1:

Ruthye can’t kill Krem, Kara shows up and decides to do it herself, and Ruthye doesn’t understand Kara’s actions, because from the beginning, she was quite firm about no killing, and also that they had to save Krypto.

So Ruthye’s like:

(Except, you know, minus the smiling.)

Which brings us to THE TWIST!

Krypto’s been safe this WHOLE TIME! 

I will admit, I did not see that coming. XD

And I can feel it--I can FEEL the outcry of so many offended SG comic fans, taking to their fan reviews to shout in outrage that ‘Supergirl lied! This whole thing was based on a lie!’

To which I say...well you’re not wrong. XD But also, let us look back and what this book has established...basically from the outset:

And, more recently in issue seven:

(The text is small so I’ll quote it) “And I learned then that up can be down and right can be wrong, and a lie told well can be true and good.”

So, keeping those elements in mind, we go to Kara’s explanation:

Kara knew words were not going to work with Ruthye, and that Ruthye would spend her life obsessed with getting revenge on this man. Not only that, but she’d most likely never succeed in catching him. In short, this would destroy her.

And Kara knows this because she sees some of herself in Ruthye.

As she says, it’s like her dreaming of Krypton.

I reblogged this recently but here it is again:

This is a panel from King’s Heroes in Crisis, which centers on a place called The Sanctuary--a kind of superhero rehabilitation center where the costumed folks of the DC Universe can go to therapy. So we get these bits of ‘confessions’ from various characters.

I remember someone jokingly shared this on twitter when SG:WoT was announced and they said something like: It’s gonna be 8 issues of this.

And you know what...they’re kinda right!

I think this is an aspect of Kara that King considers to be at the heart of her character.

Kara still dreams of Krypton. Which is both a lovely and tragic thing.

AND THUS! WE ARRIVE AT THE CLIMAX! After a journey Kara went on with Ruthye to save her from a lifetime defined by hate*, she encounters just. The worst of the worst, and the very girl she set out to save is still seeking vengeance???

She has failed, utterly and completely; Comet is dead, she has nothing left to lose. So she picks up the sword, ready to end it.

That’s some mighty fine, meaty character conflict, there.

Mmmm, ya love to see it.

But you know what I love even more?

This page:

Brace yerselves, we’re quotin’ the text!

“I learned it! Back on my home. When you kept on fighting and you had no right to. Or during the travel. When you helped me to wash up after going. Even in the midst of all the ruckus of that bus, you took that time. Or in that town where I saw true evil. And I felt eternally lost, and you let me lean on your shoulder and you put an arm around me, pulling me back until I was found. All those weeks chasing the wreckage of the Brigands. And all you did in each place of horror was help those who needed helping, extending to them what you’d given to me. A shoulder to lean on. And when the very sun was against you and had drawn out ever last ounce of strength, you still helpd your arm out to evil and kept it at bay. I saw you outrun magic, just whispering into the impossible that it had no control over you, none at all. Eve now, with a ship of devils above me, I felt no fear, for I knew that you were amongst them and the devils would soon fade away.”

(It goes on but I’ll stop there. XD Also, bolded my favorite part which also happens to be the part that made me cry THANKS A LOT, TOM.)

Ruthye walks Kara back from the edge, and once more I can sense potential complaints: “Ruthye saves Supergirl?? She gets the big damn hero moment???”

Yes, she does. Because Supergirl showed her how to be the hero.

They save eACH OTHER.

If Ruthye doesn’t walk Kara back, if she doesn’t step in, then it means Kara hasn’t succeeded. She has failed, the universe is a dark and cruel place, all hope is lost.

But of course, that’s not what happens. Because she’s Supergirl.  

Kara’s strength of character, her ideals, her qualities both heroic and otherwise, are revealed in Ruthye.

(*Quick note: I’m not suggesting that the parallel here, between Ruthye and Kara, is a one-to-one situation--Kara clinging to the memory of Krypton doesn’t mean she’s lived a life defined by pain and hate. Rather, if we think back to issue six, it’s more about always feeling just a little bit lost:

“She had visited so many planets, but she never saw anything quite like that view again. Red and blue leaves and the wind blowing through them.”

“...she is eternally searching for something. Perhaps justice. Perhaps explanation. Perhaps… Perhaps a tree outside her window, red and blue leaves and the wind that blows between them.”)

(Which is it’s own sort of tragedy, but not like. A hateful one.)

(And we LOVE TO SEE A KARA whose motivation is like. ‘I’ve felt pain, and I’m going to make sure no one has to hurt like I do.’)

(MMMMMM, so good.) 

AHEM. Okay. Moving on tooooooo:

TWIST, THE SECOND!

We abruptly jump to both a new setting and, apparently, a new time! As we arrive on Ruthye’s rock farm, many years later.

We see an aged Ruthye and KARA IN A NEW SUIT.

I REPEAT. KARA. IN A NEW. SUIT.

YES I'm using the gif again. XD

Because it IS PRACTICALLY PERFECT, IN EVERY WAY.

Not just the design of the suit itself--which I’ll get to in a sec--but the lighting! The colors! 

BEST BOY KRYPTO, ALIVE AND WELL AND NOT DEAD IN THE BACKYARD ON THE MOON!

(Yes yes I know that Future State is supposed to be the ‘bad’ future but I’m still mad about it. XD)

The shape of the cape! The clouds! The HAIR!

10000/10, perfect attire for saving the galaxy. 

Right, okay, so the actual design of the suit: 1.) Love that it’s designed by a woman! Which is not to say that women are inherently better at, or preferable to men in terms of designing superhero costumes. Rather, it’s more about the fact that so much of Kara’s comics history has been driven and defined by dudes that it’s refreshing to see a woman get to steer a big visual/creative decision like this. In the DCU mainline canon, no less!

(Though I kinda doubt we’ll see this look again any time soon--as mentioned, this appears to take place in the future, so current books aren’t really beholden to it, which is a DAMN SHAME.)

(....PKJ is pretty great about playing nice with other books in continuity, maybe he’ll insist on it at some point in the future, if Kara shows up in one of his books?)

(Anyways.)

2.) SHORT HAIRED KARAAAAAA! Specifically! A very Silver Age look, that Evely has used in this series but ALSO back in Sugar and Spike!

I love it.

The suit avoids falling into the trap of looking like blue footy-pajamas by utilizing some of the same tricks we see in the season five suit from the TV show--we’re got the two different shades of blue, as well as some neat piping to add further visual interest. The belt has been carried over from the previous costume, but when paired with the pants, it recalls the type of clothing we saw Kara wear back on Krypton/Argo. (The boots, too, look like the type she wore back home!) Said boots don’t come up as high as the ones on the TV suit, but they still function similarly--again, the biggest problem when designing a super suit that does away with the skirt/trunks is finding an aesthetically pleasing solution to breaking up all that blue. Bringing the red of the shoes up higher on the leg unifies the other red elements--they don’t look small and lost! Finally, the cape is like. A best of both worlds situation. XD I personally am an advocate of exposed neck/collar bone Supes--the high-collared capes can look restrictive and stiff. This cape does have a high collar, but opens up the front. Not only that, but it flairs a little as it drapes over the shoulders, bringing more Kryptonian clothing shape language into the mix!

IT’S VERY GOOD. BRAVO TO BILQUIS EVELY, AS WELL AS MAT LOPES FOR THOSE GORGEOUS PRIMARY COLORS.

Also it was noted by @thatsjustsupergirl​ that, much like in the TV show, the suit acts as a great visual marker of Kara’s growth/maturation; I love the classic skirt look, and always will, but it is a very youthful outfit, and has unfortunately become tied to the modern DC take of keeping Kara stuck in adolescence/young adulthood.

I love that this book brought back twenty-something Kara, like in the halcyon days of Pre-Crisis. XD And even if my prediction wasn’t correct--that the book didn’t formally change the IP from Supergirl to Superwoman...

Like. It’s totally there, visually. She’s the Woman of Tomorrow by story’s end. XD

(Which is not to say skirts are bad or solely for younger women/people it’s just ONE CASE where the changing of a costume jives with the overall direction of a fictional character NUANCE, INTERNET. WE CAN HAVE NUANCE IN THESE DISCUSSIONS.)

Wow, okay, got really distracted by the suit, haven’t even gotten to the twist yet. XD

THE SECOND TWIST! Neither Ruthye nor Kara killed Krem.

The ending of the ‘book’ we’ve been reading--Ruthye’s narration--is false!

Aw man, remember back when issue one came out, and a bunch of SG comics fans accused Tom King of making Kara a murderer? And I was over here in my corner like, “I want to see how this goes?”

XD

I’ve seen a lot of folks confused by this twist, actually. I guess they assume that Ruthye’s ‘fictional fiddle faddle’ refers to the entirety of the book, and therefore, everything we’ve just read is potentially a fabrication.

Which...mmm. Is not how I read it.

Obviously, the ending is fake. The dialogue between Ruthye and Kara reveals that Ruthye made it up as a way to provide protection for herself--the Brigands believed (and still believe, thanks to Ruthye’s book) that Kara killed Krem, so they went after her rather than Ruthye.

Ruthye was thus allowed to live out her life in relative peace on her family’s rock farm, without the fear of being hunted across the universe by evil space pirates.

Everything else...is kinda up to the reader, honestly! XD King leaves a whole lotta room for interpretation.

But I tend to think that everything we’ve seen--that is, the art--is the actual account of what went down; the narration boxes--the ‘book’--isn’t so much describing the art itself but is giving the story its general shape/structure/series of events.

(Does that make any sense? XD It sounded good in my head.) 

For instance, note that the narration completely vanishes in some places in these last few issues--the ‘book’ stops telling us what happened, and instead we just get the truth of it, as it were.

Like here, in the final set of pages--no narration over most of them as Krem’s TRUE fate is revealed: he spent hundreds of years in the phantom zone, atoning for his misdeeds. It then picks up on the final to contrast the real ending with the fake one.

I actually love the whole myth and legend vibe. Maybe some of it was exaggerated, maybe some of it was misremembered, but the emotional core of it remains true, that of the journey of this young girl and young woman.

AND SO, THE END.

Yet another point of contention among naysayers XD

Kara saves Ruthye in that she shows her how to live a life free of hate and vengeance, and she takes on the burden of handling the Brigands.

“But!” critics cry, “Ruthye still kills Krem, so it’s all for naught!”

Well.

I’ll admit, the art is an obvious and deliberate callback to the first issue, where Krem kills Ruthye’s father. So I can definitely see why folks would insist that Ruthye has killed him.

But.

Krem is moving after she whacks him, seeming to clutch his head where he’s been hit.

Not only that, but. In issue one, Ruthye’s father is killed at sunset, the world around Ruthye literally growing dark.

Here, the sun rises over the whole proceeding, suggesting, not a grim, bloody end, but rather a vibrant, shining beginning.

Not so much in the sense that Ruthye can begin living--she’s clearly been doing that.

But she let Kara put Krem in the Phantom Zone--she allowed Krem to face the judgement of others rather than a punishment she chose. She’s been denied that one last act of closure (but, again, importantly! She chose to forego it!)

Basically, it’s her turn now. And she gets to tell him, ‘no, actually, I do not forgive you for murdering my father.’

(And by tell I mean: smack him in the face.)

And Kara lets her have that space, that choice. Kara’s done her part, she’s made sure that Krem faced the proper kind of justice and served his time.

She saved him!

Once more, I think King gets to have his cake, and eat it too. XD

(Also, like. I read this as just a smack on the head because it’s way more charming/funny that way? And would sit better with not only Ruthye’s prior characterization, but also with the lessons she’s learned from Kara.)

(And like I said, the ‘book’ picks up again here, to provide maximum contrast between the true events and the false; if Krem was killed here it would sorta undermine the impact.)

But I’ve heard an argument for ‘Krem is killed’ on a comic review podcast, and the way the reviewer explained it, it still jives with the whole message and theme of the book.

(Not as well, in my humble opinion, but. Still technically would work.)

Should note, the character acting and the clarity of the silhouettes in the above page is excellent. 

FINAL THOUGHTS:

So yeah. I liked this! A lot. I mean. A lot. 

(In case I hadn’t made that exceedingly clear. XD)

It’s certainly an unconventional Supergirl story, but I really think it’s what the character needed.

No Clark. No cousin angst. No rotating roster of underdeveloped love interests/side characters. No justifying the existence of a Supergirl.

It was just Kara being awesome for eight wonderful issues.

IDK if DC will really commit to something like this ever again--the fact that this is one of the first Tom King books in a while to not get a hardcover tells me DC still isn’t confident that Supergirl can sell trades.

But like. that’s fine. This book exists, and it’s so very, very good, and BILQUIS EVELY DREW AN ENTIRE SUPERGIRL SERIES FROM START TO FINISH AND IT WAS JUST AS PRETTY AS I KNEW IT WOULD BE AAAHHHHHHHHH!

That’s right. We got in some yelling about the AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAART!!!!! XD

Not only was Evely’s art stunning throughout, but I canNOT get over Mat Lopes colors. KNOCK-OUT AMAZING, EVERY TIME.

And King’s prose? Equally affecting, with a unique and unexpected voice that brought this strange, poetic adventure to life.

I always drop the ball on talking letters so my sincere apologies to Clayton Cowles and in fact all letterers out there for not properly appreciating the art form, I WILL TRY TO DO BETTER IN THE FUTURE.

But, briefly: There was a LOT of narration/caption boxes to handle, across all eight issues, and never once did it feel like they overwhelmed the art. and they never became confusing in their placement.

(Also I love the design of Ruthye’s CHMMP as she bites Krem’s arm.)

And of course, hats off to all the editors--there were some changes throughout the series, but it didn’t feel like the book had changed hands--just one smooth, seamless journey.

I worry that I might be hyping this book up too much--that my bias for Evely’s art, and Kara’s character, and heck, even my fairly neutral-to-positive opinion on King is kinda driving me to heap too much praise on this title.

Like. Okay. I think this is the best King book that’s come out in a while, but of course I would. It’s a Supergirl book drawn by one of my favorite artists. 

But I’ve seen Tom King fans who are not necessarily die-hard Supergirl fans express the same sentiment! So:

(Man just. Recycling all the gifs today, I guess. XD)

I admittedly have some nitpick-y hang ups here and there but they’re so minor when compared to the incredibly well-crafted whole of the book.

Absolutely one of my top three favorite Supergirl titles, and easily the best Supergirl solo book that DC’s put out in years. 

SO. IN CONCLUSION.

Way back, waaaaay back in June, when issue one dropped. The consensus from many reviewers was that Tom King was once more breaking the characterization of a beloved DC superhero to suit his own narrative needs. This Supergirl was edgy. This Supergirl was tough. Tom King must think Kara’s just forever BROKEN and lives a life of LITERAL, UNENDING PAIN.**

(**These are actual, real takes I have seen with my own two eyeballs.)

To which I say:

Tom King’s Crusty!Kara was actually Classic!Kara this entire time! XD

Yaaaaaay! :D :D :D

Right, well.

I think this is where I shall end this long post of Ruthye, Kara, and Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. 

[anjanettexcordonia]

Ties That Bind

**Trigger Warnings** 

DARK DARK DARK 

-NSFW/Mental Health/Violence/Rape Minimal fluff if any at all tbh. 

***If you are sensitive to any of these please do not read. 

Pairing: Liam x MC, Liam x Riley, Drake x Olivia 

Word Count: 4,189 (I know its forever long but its worth it in my biased opinion) 

This is my first time writing any kind of fiction. I was inspired by all of you amazing writers! I received positive feedback on this chapter so I’m hoping you all like it too! Its very dark and very very twisted. I can not emphasize it enough. 

**READ WITH CAUTION**

Excuse any grammatical errors or misspellings. 

This will be a six part series. I do not have a timeline for when I will post. (I’m a mom & work full time) 

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Pixelberry.

“Riley it’s time to go, My Queen.” Liam yells from the first floor of their quarters. “Drake & Olivia are already almost to Lythikos with our children and we are still at the palace! Let’s goooooo my love!”

Riley & Liam were preparing to head to their Valtorian Estate for a night before heading to the United States for a week long excursion at their Biltmore Estate in North Carolina. The Biltmore was their American private residence. Left to her after the death of her mother. They went twice a year just the two of them. Their children had never stepped foot on the property. Much less America. Riley hated America. She used the country only to satiate her needs. Her father and sister never visited the Biltmore Estate. Her father primarily lived in his penthouse in New York. Her sister never left their childhood home in the Hamptons. The Biltmore was hers to do with as she pleased. 

Riley and Liam make their way down to a blacked out Cadillac Escalade waiting for them in the Royal private exit of the garage. 

“Liam, let’s call Drake & Olivia one more time before we get to Valtoria. You know after tonight we won’t be communicating with anyone for a full week.” Riley winked at Liam. 

My God this woman is my everything. How did I survive without her? Liam thought. 

Liam pulls out his iPhone and scrolls to Olivia's name and hits call. 

“Yes your majesty,” Olivia purrs into the phone.

 “Hello Liv, just checking on the kids. You and Drake know Riley and I will be incognito for a week. Remember if it’s an emergency reach out to Hana and Maxwell. Do not contact us unless it’s literally life or death.” Drake yells through the phone, “Li we do this twice year every year since the first little squirt you two brought home. We got this. By the way what exactly do you guys do in America that you’ve never told us?” 

“This trio is a joy. They are perfectly fine. Uncle Max is on his way with Auntie Hana. This should be a Mary Poppins nightmare.” Olivia chuckled.

“It’s just our special time. Not as King and Queen of Cordonia but as husband and wife. That’s all.” Riley replies. Liam squeezing Riley’s thigh at her smirk, knowing full well that wasn’t exactly true. 

“Tell our babies we love them, and take care of and protect them while we’re gone. Don’t let Max feed them too much sugar. They will never sleep!”

Always,” Drake softly spoke, “Uncle Drake and Aunt Livvy are going to show them how fun we really are!” Ellie squeals in the background at her Uncle. 

Liam & Riley end the call with a sigh of relief. This trip was going to be catalyst. They both knew they were coming back to Cordonia forever changed. 

Three hours later Valtoria came into view. The sun was beginning to set over the cascading waterfall behind the large castle. Riley and Liam had been catching up on last minute emails before they arrived. They had an understanding between each other that during their two weeks a year no work was allowed. No cellphones other than 1 for emergencies only. No laptops no tablets of any sort. They completely unplug. 

Bastien stopped the suv in front of the large estate. Liam hopped out running around to hold the car door open for his wife. HIS Queen. 

Gladys met them outside the door. 

“Your majesties” Gladys dipped into a low curtsy. 

“Hello Gladys” Liam replied. Is everything ready for our stay tonight and departure in the morning?” 

“It is.” Is there anything else Your Majesty requests?” 

“No thank you Gladys.”  

As they walk towards the entrance of the large French Gothic style castle, Liam scoops Riley into his arms bridal style and walks her across the threshold. 

“Good night everyone. Gladys have our usual chicken tangine, apple butter bread, balava & chocolate cake left in the kitchen. Everyone is excused for the rest of the night.”

Gladys nodded her head at her King’s command and curtsied as he walked up the grand staircase. 

“Thank you, Gladys!” Riley yelled down at her. 

Gladys and Bastien both knew what that meant. Get out now. Do not come back until sunrise under any circumstances. Gladys and Bastien were the only two who knew. And also who knew why. 

Liam carried his bride to their suite. Their bedroom at Valtoria was protected. They had it modified during their engagement. No one was allowed entrance. Gladys was the only person granted entrance for 2 hours to clean after each visit. And only under the watchful eye of the Queen herself. This belonged to them. They maintained this room. Not staff. Not like the palace. 

The entrance of the door was built almost as a panic room. A large heavy blast proof door protected the entrance. A Handprint scan of both the King and Queen were the only way of access to their master suite. That entire room was reinforced. It was safe. Nothing and no one was coming through to hurt them. If they ever needed protection, this is where they would bring their family. For now, it wasn’t for their family. It was a source of healing and triumph. It was terror and torture. It was love and pain. 

Most of the other service members believed they were simply paranoid. Ruling a country you had a right to be paranoid, is what they told themselves when they walked by the master suite. Some were curious about what was behind that heavy steel door. No one ever attempted to sneak peek. They knew better. No one could explain it, as the king and Queen were very kind and fair people, there was a vibe or an energy that everyone could feel from them. It was uncomfortable. Sometimes there was no emotion from either of them. Hollow blank stares & flat monotone voices. That rarely happened. And when it did, their week vacation was close. Whatever they did during those 2 weeks out of the year made them better each time. 

🍈

Liam flashes his million dollar smile down at his wife as they enter. His manhood already dancing in its confines. They enter their bedroom and swiftly close the door.  Their bedroom in Valtoria is for them. And them only. No one including their children are granted access. And for good reason. The master suite of Valtoria has a large four-poster bed. Above the bed hung a large medal bar suspended from the ceiling with leather arm straps. arm and ankle straps hung from each corner of the bed. The walls were adorned with shelves of Belts, gags, riding crops and rope. There were shelves of weapons large & small daggers and swords. 

The walls were a deep maroon. It was still exceptionally regal but with a darker contrast. This is not a place most people would be comfortable walking into. Most people except the King & Queen of Cordonia. 

Liam kicked the door shut with a force that made the door trim rattle. He tossed his Queen on to the bed, climbing on top of her. He pulled her full lips into his mouth and breathed her in. He could never get enough of her. How did he survive without her? Without her touch? Her voice? Her scent? He never needed anyone except her. Only her. Forever her. No one could calm him like she could. She was his safe house and his haven. He could do things with and to her no one else could understand. Her crystal blue eyes darkened into the depths of the ocean only for him. He knew her. He was her. They were one. Not only in marriage but spirit and soul. They were connected. 

Riley stared up at her husband taking in every perfect feature and every invisible flaw, only flaws she could see. Only flaws she could love. She understood him. She never had to ask why. She was never afraid. It was Game, Set, Match the first time she locked eyes with his deep dark painful eyes. She could sense him before she ever knew him. Her long honey blonde hair pooled around her head as she sank into his fiery kiss. He was the only man she ever willingly kissed. The only man she allowed to ever touch her body. He worshipped her. He was her breath. She couldn’t breathe without him filling her lungs. He filled the deepest parts of her. Parts only he knew existed. Parts that were created not born. Evil. In every sense of the word. 

Fourteen Year Old Riley. 

“Mother, why are you crying?” Riley watches her mother standing in her large walk-in closet pouring herself another drink. 

“Just go away Katherine Riley.” Ashley sighed. Riley could her the sadness in her voice. Usually her mother just ignored her. 

“Mother I..I.. I think it’s best we all stay at school for the summer this year.” 

“I SAID GO THE FUCK AWAY! WHAT DONT YOU UNDERSTAND ABOUT THAT?”

Riley felt the sting of tears in her eyes and she quickly turned to walk away. 

“Wait Katie” Ashley sighed. “It’s time we had a conversation. You're old enough now & after the things you’ve seen and heard throughout your life, it won’t come as much of a surprise to you, I believe.” Riley turned around. Eyeing her mother not sure what to make of this conversation. 

“Your father & I had what you would call an arranged marriage per se. People of our status in life, it’s not uncommon. We dated some. A short while I suppose. Coming from the families that we do it’s important to ensure that our wealth will always continue to grow, we married after a few months of dating.” Ashley took a long sip of her gin & tonic. “To our parents' delight. Not ours. Not mine.”

“Immediately after we married things changed. I was a virgin & I wasn’t ready yet. I wanted to love my husband first. He stole that from me in the most horrific of ways. And you were the product of that. When I look at you, that’s all I see. I see violence, blood and stolen innocence. Each of your siblings were the products of the same. Violent and brutal attacks. Each time left me broken. After the last assault he shattered my pelvis and ruptured my cervix. I can no longer bear children. That’s all each of you are to me. Your father is evil. An evil which you’ve never known. Next time he will kill me. I’m leaving tonight.” 

Riley stood stunned. Trying to wrap her mind around what this woman in front of her has told her. She couldn’t understand. She knew her father tortured her mother. She had her the screams and the slams at night. She saw the blood stained carpets and walls in the stairwell in their Hamptons beach house. She knew her father was evil. All too well. Ashely has no idea the hell her children had been going through. He tormented them as well. He would sneak into her room in the middle of the night when the screams finally ended and watch her. Her brothers never spoke of their trauma but she knew it was there. 

“Can we come with you Mother?”

“No.”

“Can you wait until after my birthday? It’s tomorrow Mother?” 

Riley wasn’t sure why that memory had flashed through her mind. She furrowed her brows in confusion. 

“What is it Riley?” 

“I was thinking of the night before he killed her. Random I guess.” Liam leaned down and kissed her forehead. 

“My King” Riley sighed, holding his forearms in her grasp. 

“Yes My Queen?” 

“Are we prepared for our return to the estate?” She asked, leaning into to bite his shoulder as he hovered over. 

“We are. Our gifts are already waiting for us. They were delivered this morning. They are being fed and groomed as we speak my love. I’m ready for our warm-up before the real work begins.” 

Riley’s stomach groaned. 

“I’m ready. We can eat when we’re finished.” 

🍋

Liam pulled Riley to her feet. He tugged her top above her head. He was thankful she wasn’t wearing a bra. He leaned down taking a taut pink nipple in his mouth, swirling his tounge until it was a hardened peak. He showed the same attention to the other nipple. Riley pulled Liams t-shirt over his head. She always worshipped her playground. She licked her way between each sculpted ab. Liam gripped her hair as she slid his sweatpants to the floor. She leaned on her knees engulfing his engorged length in her mouth while she swirled her tongue all the way down his shaft.  She slowly eased him out of her mouth and stood back up. 

“Fuck Riley” 

“I just needed to taste you my King.” 

Liam bit his bottom lip as he pulled her sweatpants down. Leaving her lacy black thong on her hips. 

They walked hand in hand to the large bathroom. The bathroom sleek and modern. Liam felt the warmth of the heated floors on his feet as he lifted his Queen into the tub. He grabbed a bottle of baby oil off the counter. He poured a generous amount into his hands and covered Riley’s body in oil. He gently lifted her from the tub carrying her back to the bedroom. He climbed the small steps on to the bed standing on the mattress. Riley lifted her arms into the arm straps suspended from the high ceiling. Baby oil kept her skin protected and also made it more of a challenge for them. 

Once she was firmly secured into the arm and ankle restraints with only the medal bar for her to grip onto, Liam stepped off the bed. 

“My Queen, what pray tell interests you tonight?” 

“Torture me Liam” 

“As you wish my Queen, safe word?” 

“Celeste My King” 

Liam smirked at her chosen safe word. Oh Celeste will know who her king is too when we’re finished with her. Won’t she my Queen? 

Liam grabbed a riding crop from the wall and smacked Riley hard across her bare ass. Thong still in place. Riley winced as she heard the crack of the crop against her slick skin. 

“Please my king” 

“Shut up, you don’t speak until I tell you to open your filthy mouth for me” 

Smack. Smack. Smack. 

Liam pulled a small dagger from the bedside table. The handle adorned with red rubies in the shape of W & K. King William Constantine Rhys & Queen Katherine Riley Vanderbilt Rhys. 

He ran the dagger along her torso up to her neck tracing old subtle scars. 

“Open your mouth baby” Liam whispered. 

Riley opened her mouth. She could feel her core pooling. Moisture threatening to drip down her thighs. 

Liam slid the dagger over her flattened tongue flipping it over in her mouth. He slid the dagger down her chin to her throat. He pressed the dagger more firm into her skin causing her blood to bubble to the surface. He sliced gently to her belly button. Riley wincing in pain but loving the feel of cold dagger dragging down her flesh. 

Liam knelt to his knees and clasped his mouth around her nub. Still holding the dagger against her thigh as he gripped her. He dragged the knife across her sex and sliced her underwear in two. 

Liam delved his fingers into her sex as hard as he could. He swirled his tongue around clit. Liam pumped and curled his fingers in out of her fast and hard. His rock hard length dripping precum. 

More Liam Don’t stop.” Riley screamed. 

Hearing Riley scream made Liam abruptly stop completely. Fingers still inside her, Liam pulled his head back to look up at her. 

“Did I tell you to speak?” 

Sliding his fingers out, Liam grabbed the crop and slapped it hard across her dripping pussy. 

“You speak when I say. Next time I won’t be as calm with you.” 

“Fuck you Liam” Riley screamed, Venom dripping from her lips. She was seething at his refusal of her release she so desperately needed. 

Riley covered in welts from the crop and dried blood across her torso, Liam unhooked each restraint. 

“What the fuck Liam? We aren’t finished playing.” 

Liam slapped her hard across the face with the crop. Riley’s head falling to her shoulder. Fire burned in Liams eyes as he watched the blood drip down the corner of her mouth. Riley reached for the dagger as Liam crashed his mouth onto hers. Riley could taste a mixture of copper and salt on his tongue. 

Riley dragged the dagger across Liams thigh drawing a bit of blood. She reached the hair on the nape of his neck and pulled hard. Liams neck snapped as she slid the dagger across his jugular. 

She dragged the dagger across his chest, ripping his chest open watching the blood drip down his chest to his abdomen. 

Liam has enough. He needed her now. He had everything he needed from her. He pulled her into his taking the dagger from her and throwing it on the floor. The slight scabs that had formed from the congealing blood on her sternum ripped open with friction of their bodies rubbing together. Liam slammed Riley into the bed. He grabbed her ankles and spread her as far as apart as he could before slamming his hard cock into her waiting center. 

Riley screamed in pain and satisfaction. Her manicured nails digging into back as deep as she could grasp him. 

“I’m not holding back My Queen.” 

Liam pumped into her hard and fast. He put one hand on her stomach pressing down, the other hand securing her leg as he continued to massage her walls. 

Riley ran her fingers across the dripping blood mixed with sweat. She slid her bloody fingers into her mouth eyeing Liam. 

Liam leaned his head down and licked the blood pooling between her breasts and crashed his lips into hers. He felt Riley’s wall fluttering knowing she was close. His cock tightened as she came underneath him. Liam wrapped his hand around her neck and squeezed as his thrust became frantic. Riley’s eyes were wide seeing the power and fire in his eyes. 

Riley tried to say Celeste. She couldn’t breathe. He was choking the life out of her without even realizing it. He was pumping hard concentrating on his thrusts as his cock disappeared in and out of her glistening walls. 

“I. can’t. let. go. Riley.” Liam spoke between breaths. 

Riley understood. He physically couldn’t let her go. Even if he did kill her. It wasn’t malice or hate. This was raw pure love. This is what he needed from her. From his wife. And this is what she needed. She needed him to bring her to the brink of life and pull her back at the same time. This was them. 

Liam found his release deep within her. He released her neck right as everything went black. Riley’s eyes fluttered open with a satisfied grin on her face. 

“I love you so much my Queen.”

“I love you Liam.“

They laid together on their white silk sheets breathless. Both of their minds running towards the following week. 

“We should get cleaned up my love. We’ve made quite the mess I suspect.” Liam whispered. 

They both slowly rose from the cloud like confines in a state of stupor.

They made sure to always have white sheets to see every drop they spilled from each other. They’re bodies marked from each other’s carnal pleasure. A release unlike any they’ve shared with anyone else. 

“My King you did well. Let’s leave the sheets for tonight.” 

“Very well my Queen. I’m not finished with you yet. We will have a week before our next release.”

The dawn crept through they’re tightly drawn curtains. Riley stretched reaching for her husband but found his side of the bed cold. Riley slowly rose from the bed. Still naked and marked from their endless night. Riley made her way to the shower to find Liam soaking in the tub. 

“Join me?” 

Riley slid in front of him feeling the sting from her open wounds that covered her body. 

“We have a long flight to states in an hour. Are you ready for this Riley?” 

“Liam It’s time. It’s time to take off our masks and savor the tastes of revenge. Of freedom.” 

“This is our last time. We need to take our time with them. Please don’t make it too quick like last time with Madeline.” 

“My king, I take offense.” Riley huffed. “I gave you the release you craved with Madeline. Her life was a sweet release for me.” 

An hour later the King and Queen bordered their private jet to American hand in hand. 

Biltmore Estate

“I can’t believe I’m doing this for these twisted fucks. Fucking monarchs just get to do whatever they want with whomever they want.” Anthony muttered to himself. 

Anthony was the groundskeeper. He took care of everything for his King and Queen during their stays. And they paid him handsomely. He primarily resided at the estate to maintain the grounds as well as the estate itself. The estate held many secrets that he was tasked to solely hold. 

“Please” a raspy voice called out. 

“Shut up Celeste. Your King is on his way.” 

Celeste let a muffled cry as she heard the bars slam shut. 

“I’ll be back to get you cleaned up when I’m finished with Ashley and Amelia.” 

The private jet landed at the airport in Raleigh North Carolina. Liam and Riley made their discreetly to an SUV meant to take them to their estate. 

“Your majesty King Liam” Anthony bowed. 

Liam rushed in. “Hello Anthony, you are dismissed. I’ll need the keys to the Bowels please. Our gifts are secure and ready I presume?” 

“Yes your majesty, they have been cleaned, fed, and await you. I will take my leave now.” 

Riley waited in the suv until Anthony left. She couldn’t maintain a stoic facade during their times away. She spotted Anthony’s car pull away from the estate headed to the servants quarters. Riley rushed out and straight to Liam pulling him into a lustful kiss. They made their way to the nicknamed Bowels, a cellar that has been retrofitted with cells. They hold Liam and Riley’s victims as well as their aggressors. 

“Wait Liam, why is Anton here?” 

Riley looked on the computers outside the cellar doors in the security room. They were only supposed to have 3 women. She didn’t understand. What was Liam up to? 

Liam smirked. Suddenly a loud knocking was coming from the front doors. They glanced down at the monitors. Riley’s eyes widened when she saw the fiery red hair standing in front of the cameras. 

“Liam uh where are our children? Please...” 

“Riley. They are with Max and Hana in Lythikos. Leo will be there soon to help with them as well.  Don’t worry my love. Now to explain about Drake and Liv. They needed to see the truth. About them, about us. I’m ready to share parts of our true selves with the family we created.” 

Riley nodded. She was not in a teaching mood. 

“Private now Liam.” 

“What Riley? What’s the problem?” 

“The problem? How can we be US with them? I’m not here to teach them how to become sociopaths like us Liam. Fuck.” 

“Relax baby.” Liam only used the baby pet name when he was confident in his prowess. 

“Fine. They better not fuck this up and I’m not holding back.” 

The two couples made their way to the cellar door. Liam held Riley’s hand while he unlocked the door. The electronic key and palm scanner both sprang green in sequence. Drake and Liv quickened their breath. 

“We have a ritual guys if you don’t mind standing back. And you can join if you like.” Riley calmly stated. 

Liam and Riley stripped naked. Liam pushing Riley against the cellar door in a hungry kiss. Liv admired the marks and scars the two in front of her were covered in. Some old, some new. She was intrigued. Drake’s breath quickened. They joined their best friends in the nude. Liam and Riley glanced behind them noticing Liv and Drake in the same fashion. None of them faced with the pain they had felt at sometime or the other. The abuse. The abuse that twisted them into who they were. Not who they had become. 

The door opened. Celeste gasped seeing her half brother, sister in law, the scarlet duchess & the commoner walking through the door naked. Celeste had no idea what circle of hell she was about to enter. Nor that there were others destined to meet the same fate she would soon come to meet. At the hands of her King and his Queen. 

“Hello Cece” Liam laughed in a voice unrecognizable to the others in the group yet all too familiar to his wife. 

The demons have come out to play.

[elfwreck]

Sort by today's choice of filters. (Might be based on word count, or a specific tag, or posted in the last six months, or whatever.)

Filter out anything that's incomplete. I may read WIPs, but only by authors I already know I enjoy.

For most fandoms, filter out crossovers. (Does not work with MDZS.) (Side note: I fucking LOVE crossovers. I do not love Kinktober "every chapter is a new story" things, and filtering out crossovers removes them.)

Filter out the tags "reader" and "reader-insert." There are people who love those, and I'm glad AO3 is there for them. I am not those people.

Usually: Filter out Omegaverse. Filter out G and T rated fics. But not always. Again, I'll read these - by authors who write other things I enjoy.

Sort by word count.

Now I'm at the "decide" stage. Read the summaries.

Skip anything where I notice grammatical errors or misspellings. If they didn't bother to clean up the half-paragraph that everyone is going to see before reading the story, odds are, the fic itself will have too many errors for me to enjoy it.

(I do not care if people are using proper grammar. I care if writing errors throws me out of the story. Unfortunately, the worst of these is punctuation around dialogue, and that's rarely included in summaries. But if the summary mentions "Tonys first date" or "five time's they kissed" or "Your going to love it"... I won't; I'm not reading it.)

I look for interesting summaries. I don't look at the hit count or the kudos count.

...I don't look at the additional tags, either; I have those hidden. And the warnings. In a lot of fandoms, I don't look at the pairings because the character names are like six words long and the pairings are hard to read and I DO NOT CARE; I'm looking at the summaries & word counts and that's about all.

(Is this where I mention how very, VERY happy I am that omegaverse is always tagged? I have yet to run across untagged alpha-omega shenanigans, and that's wonderful.) (There may be some that's missing it; I just haven't run across it. Very happy about this.)

After I've found an author I like:

Read their other completed works

Read some of their WIPs, maybe.

Check out their bookmarks and read the stuff they like.

Repeat with new author(s) from the bookmarks.

Another AO3 thing I’m curious about, how do yall decide if something is good enough to read? Usually I follow a rule of 1 kudos for every 10 hits. One because it’s easy math and two it’s yet to fail me. Thoughts? Do you just go for it and pray it’s good?

[anoceaninthesun]

Are readers ever gonna stop with this shit? I couldn’t help but notice this person has not written anything themselves and posted it. And I don’t go all unhinged on them for their lack of capitalization, the abbreviations and their many grammatical errors and misspelled words. But wow. Guys. If you want a writer to lose it and/or just stop writing, this would be how. I informed this individual of exactly how rude and entitled they came across. It’s fucking ridiculous. I wonder if any of you who ever leave comments like this realize that they’re on there forever because of how the outdated review system works on FFN?

I wonder if you realize fic writers work tirelessly to do a pet project and our only reward is kind reviewers along the way sometimes. I wonder if people know this isn’t a damn corporation where we live to serve and when you’re unsatisfied you can file a complaint with someone whether you’re right or wrong and then have someone “fix” it. This is a chapter that’s about two and a half years old. In all the time it’s been up, never have I gotten so many rude remarks about any of it. It’s actually a chapter I’ve always been pretty damn proud of, and a lot of people mention it’s their favorite chapter in that particular arc and note the things they like such as the fight scenes or the overall intensity of the character’s emotions, etc. I usually am able to go back from time to time and reread both the chapter and its comments with fond memories. Now this.

I have a very good mind to move the fic from FFN to AO3 where I can continue to fully regulate comments. I have only continued to post to both sites because some readers have accounts on one place but not the other. And for people on FFN who have been there all this time, I didn’t want to exclude them. Anyway, woke up to this steaming pile of bullshit with a little bit of false courtesy sprinkled on top and had to rant.

[lupihero]

THE POSITIVE & NEGATIVE; mun & muse - meme.

tagged by: @bxstiae​ thank u!! tagging: anyone who wants to do this ♡

fill out & repost ♥ this meme definitely favors canons more, but i hope oc’s still can make it somehow work with their own lore, and lil’ fandom of friends & mutuals. multi-muses pick the muse you are the most invested in atm.

My muse is:   canon / oc / au ( has au verses ) / canon-divergent / fandomless

Is your character popular in the fandom?  YES / NO.

Is your character considered hot™ in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK.

Is your character considered strong in the fandom? YES / NO / IDK.

Are they underrated?  YES / NO.

Were they relevant for the main story?  YES / NO / MAYBE.

Were they relevant for the main character?  YES / NO / THEY’RE THE PROTAG.

Are they widely known in their world?  YES / NO / MAYBE.

How’s their reputation?  GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL.

How strictly do you follow canon?  —  pretty strictly. tbh i think i could do with a little more canon-divergence but i usually focus pretty hard on canon and diverging too far in my own muses, unless they were poorly written, tends to bother me.

SELL YOUR MUSE! Aka try to list everything, which makes your muse interesting in your opinion to make them spicy for your mutuals.  —  need a sweet country boy with a heart of gold who loves hard and fast and considers everyone he loves as part of his family ? how about a boy that can kick your ass to the sacred realm and back with his bare hands and a dizzying amount of strength ? how about a big friendly wolf that really doesn’t act all that much like a wolf but is big and soft and a really nice companion ? a boy that carries on and sees the best in people despite his trauma ? a boy who’s an absolute fucking dork and loses his mind whenever he sees a cat ? will smith poses @ link

Now the OPPOSITE, list everything why your muse could not be so interesting (even if you may not agree, what does the fandom perhaps think?).   —  he’s the protagonist, he’s too nice, too likable, and he might be, from some perspectives, super overpowered. a lot of his flaws are issues that come with a lot of protagonist characters, like selflessness to a fault, recklessness, a desire to help no matter the cost, etc., and it might come across as overdone or unoriginal for someone like him.

What inspired you to rp your muse?  —  twipri has been my favorite video game of all time since i first played it the xmas after it came out, when i was 7. it was an unbelievably huge influence on my life, and got me through a whole lot of shit i’d have to go through up until i was a teenager. it was a constant for me, a comfort. and link, being the protagonist, was of course the center of it. i connected to him really hard, and becoming him whenever i played the game was like magic to me as a kid. honestly, i dont know why i didnt write him until this year, because he’s been such an easy headspace for me to slip into for years. ig i just figured it was about time? id already written both tp zel and midna at separate points, so it was only right to complete the trio ksjfgh

What keeps your inspiration going?  —  the game itself, its soundtrack, art, linked universe and its little fandom, and you guys! just seeing all of your posts and your passion for loz and its characters helps fuel the love i have for it too!

Some more personal questions for the mun.

give your mutuals some insight about the way you are in some matters, which could lead them to get more comfortable with you or perhaps not.

Do you think you give your character justice?  YES / NO.

Do you frequently write headcanons? YES / NO. ( i have. built up a lot of hcs about this boy over the years )

Do you sometimes write drabbles?  YES / NO. ( i usually do write drabbles every now and then, idk why i haven’t for link yet )

Do you think a lot about your Muse during the day?  YES / NO.

Are you confident in your portrayal?   YES / NO. ( hmm i mean. i think i am, anyway?? i like the way i portray him, but i guess im sorta insecure about whether or not yall like my portrayal lmao )

Are you confident in your writing?  YES / NO. ( more or less, it depends on the day. back when i was a Gifted Kid my Gift was writing, and i was literally always chosen to read things i wrote aloud at school assemblies and things, so i. very much have a love / hate relationship w it )

Are you a sensitive person?  YES / NO. ( i mean. i try really hard not to be but :’^) )

Do you accept criticism well about your portrayal?  —  tbh, i don’t know?? i usually do with other muses, but bc twi is very special to me i have literally no idea how well i would take it. of course, if u do have criticism ( of the constructive sort, of course ), i still welcome it

Do you like questions, which help you explore your character?  —  yes!!! if you ever have anything you wanna know about twi and the way i write him, please ask!!!

If someone disagrees to a headcanon of yours, do you want to know why?  —  nope. unless it’s in the context of sharing hcs back and forth and building on each other or part of a friendly conversation, i don’t want to hear why you think i’m wrong. i still think about that personal that rb’d a hc i made a month or so ago and put in the tags all the reasons they disagreed w me and i wish i didn’t bc i hate it

If someone disagrees with your portrayal, how would you take it?  —   i?? dunno??? i guess i’d just tell them to unfollow. i’m not here to write link the way you think he should be written, i’m here to write him the way i want to.

If someone really hates your character, how do you take it?  —  hkljfg does anyone hate link??? like. he’s link. he’s neutral at worst. but it’s not my business if someone hates him, so to each their own ig

Are you okay with people pointing out your grammatical errors?  —  mm i don’t mind it, but i don’t really see the point. rp is a form of writing that doesn’t need much editing, and when it does, we are our own editors, so of course we’re going to make mistakes and overlook them. english is a complicated and hard language, and typos/misspellings/grammar errors happen and it’s not a big deal

Do you think you are easy going as a mun?   —  yes!! i’m a very laid-back person in general i think, and of course i have things i won’t tolerate and i’ll speak up when i need to, but at the end of the day rp is a hobby, and it’s something we do to have fun, and i know that having fun is the most important part of doing this. though, sometimes i think my anxiety & fear of confrontation might make me a little too lenient on things like my own rules tho kjfhg 

that’s about it, congrats for filling out!

[adventurebeneaththewords]

Hello! I see your posts pop up in my feed all the time and I thought I’d say hi. I’m curious about your editing process. Once you have a finished first draft, what do your revisions look like? I’m almost to that point in my WIP and I don’t really know where to start. Thanks in advance! 🌻

Hi! Nice to meet you!! :)

I have some general tips I can give, and then I have my own specific editing process! Remember to do what works for you! You’ll learn more by trying things out yourself. I hope some of this gives you a good place to start, though!

First of all, some key things I look for when editing are:

run-on sentences

commonly misspelled words that won’t show up in spellcheck like “form” vs “from”

are my sentences clear or should I rewrite them to make them easier to understand?

repetition (like using the same word too often to describe a setting or how someone is talking)

showing vs telling (bad: “he surprised her”, good: “she gasped when she saw him”)

and obviously grammar/spelling

My personal editing process starts by organizing my manuscript into chapters! I usually aim for my chapters to be more than 1000 words, and I like my chapters to end at a pause or shift in the plot/action.

Once I have my chapters, I like to focus on editing one chapter at a time! I’ll copy the entire chapter and paste it into another program (so, if I’m writing in google docs, then I’ll paste the chapter into Microsoft word, into a Grammarly document, or into the Hemingway Editor).

Microsoft Word and Google Docs tend to pick up on different grammatical errors, so I like comparing the two!

Grammarly is a tool I use for consistency! There are three different types of English: American, Britain, and Canadian! So I can set Grammarly to a certain type of English to make sure my spelling remains consistent!

Lastly, I use the Hemingway app to trim back on run-on sentences. It will also point out how many adverbs you’re using and recommend a certain amount per words in your document. It really helps to make your writing clear and concise!

I hope you’ll find some of these tips/tools useful! Keep doing what works for you and, if you get stuck, don’t hesitate to ask for help. :)

Happy editing!

[excusemeblog]

Put a cup in it...

Wow. The response to my first post was overwhelming, I’ve had about... zero people, not a single soul actually, has read or even acknowledged the existence of my beautiful blog -- that I spent all of 45 minutes on. Congratulations, guys. You’ve ruined my dream of becoming Tumblr famous in a day...

But I digress -- today we’re talking about FEMININE HYGIENE PRODUCTS! (*men, everywhere, cowering in fear*)

Doesn't everyone just love, when a woman, takes it upon herself, to write about her experiences as a woman, even though there are a ridiculous amount of blog post, articles, awkward school health videos, and even telegrams (true story... probably) about the same thing?

No? Oh, then do I have news for you... it’s happening, sweetheart. Unfortunately, my mores code’s a little rusty, so you’ll just have to bear with me for the misspellings and grammatical errors that are my life.

(side note: I downloaded Grammarly and... game changer, I finally learned that it's "bear with me" and not "bare with me" - what a time to be alive.)

As many of you know, roughly once a month, a woman has their period and oozes blood out of their vagina for about a week. I probably could have found a better way to explain that, but you get the point. We are being "prepared" for the first 9-15 years of our lives for this exact moment. As if the countless pow-wows with our girlfriends, awkward conversations with our parents about "becoming" a woman, and a very cluttered Google search history, even helped us when we looked down one day and realized our khakis had somehow turned red.

All women have a preference when it comes to products. Some prefer pads, whether they have a fear of sticking something foreign up there or you're Edie Fitzgerald, from "We're the Millers", with an unfortunate shallow vagina. While others favor tampons, for their more sanitary feel and much quieter package removal, unlike pads, which feels like you're smashing a bag of chips, but in a bathroom. Some people don't wear either and use period underwear designed to absorb just as much as pads and tampons without the hassle, but I'm not a fan of, essentially, adult diapers.

I, on the other hand, am ecofriendly, but most importantly... low on funds, so buying a new box of tampons every month when I could be spending that money on cheese fries, is a no for me. So this month, when mother nature came knocking with my monthly “gift”, I decided enough was enough and spent the extra $20, over a box of tampons, to purchase a menstrual cup.

Personally, I picked the Saalt menstrual cup, size small, for no other reasons than that it was the cheapest ($33 at Target, but I just checked their website and it's only $29... that's just rude, Target.), the packaging was super cute, and the color was named Himalayan pink. I was skeptical at first since it promises to collect about 3 tampons worth of blood and that it wouldn’t cause any more discomfort than a tampon, but I needed to understand all the hype surrounding these things.

I didn't know how I was going to fit this weird silicone shot glass inside of me, but thankfully the packaging teaches you a bit of origami and how to shove, twist, and go. After a minute of struggles it finally clicked, literally, I doubled checked the seal and was good to go! It felt a little odd the first time I wore it but now I can't feel a thing, it's even better than a tampon. My flow is usually super heavy the first 2 days, so I did have to empty it about every 6 hours, which is actually AMAZING since I'd maybe get 2 hours from a single super tampon.

The removal was a bit odd and sort of painful, only the first time, but that was my fault since I didn't keep the cup fully collapsed and tried to pull it out fast when you're supposed to slowly wiggle it out, I don't like to listen to directions. Then I just rinsed it out, reinserted it, which was super simple this time opposed to the first, and went on my way.

I do think I should warn you about one thing that you never have to worry about with other products, the blood, EVERYWHERE. It completely covers your hand, so for a short period of time you look like you murdered someone, but just wash your hands and you're good to go. I'd say the only possible "negative" is that it's hard to change in a public restroom since not many people want to walk out of their stall and wash their blood out of a cup. However, you wouldn't have to change it in public as long as you plan your day accordingly, and if the public restroom is a private room you definitely can change it without any fear of someone walking in.

Basically, this is the best invention since sliced bread. (which by the way wasn't invented until 1928, less than a century ago, how did people survive without bread slicing machines back then...)

The cup lasts about 10 years and it actually supposed to help relieve cramps as compared to tampons, which can surprisingly cause your cramps to feel worse. Plus all the money I'll be saving not speeding that extra $10 a month on tampons, that's $1200 for the next 10 years, and not to mention the copious amount of pants, underwear, and bedsheets I've ruined over the years. The cup doesn't affect anything in your daily life either, feel free to swim, sneeze, and jump on all the trampolines you want with absolutely no leaks.

I highly recommend to everyone to make the switch, I swear it's the best decision I've made, and I'm excellent at making decisions so that's really saying something (lol if only).

Thank you for coming to my TedTalk -- that is actually my blog, but basically is just a place for me to have endless conversations with myself. If I was a real blogger, I'd give you a schedule of my postings but I don't want to start our relationship off with a lie, so see ya next time.

xx

T

7.14.19

[gottaenjoythelittlethingzz]

sorry part II lastly, on my wip I usually finish writing about 3am; and dont proof it like I should. Just too tired. Often there are punctuation issues misspelling etc. Do you recommend posting it only after I clean it up. and get everything perfect "well nothing with me is ever perfect but close there to

(No worries!! Anything I can do to help!)

I totally relate to this. You might could find a few of my posts with the tag “late night writing” because I’m more active and less distracted at night. By all means continue writing at the time that you body and mind are most willing to write.

Again, stimming from your first ask, it’s all about how you personally want to run your blog.  I’ve yet to share chapters or full/immersive excerpts because I’m stuck in an editing loop of the first two chapters. I’m sure the tenses are still not 100% concrete all the way through.

But if you’re confident in your writing ability and not an obsessive editor than it’s completely up to you when and how to start sharing your content. I will tell you that the more clean and well organized you are the more readers you will earn. Tumblr can be screwy sometimes (or all the time. One of my posts its bugged and I can not edit it or link it on other posts), and the easier you make it for people to find your works the more they will be willing to look into your content. The same can be said for the writing itself. The cleaner it is, the less spelling or grammatical errors present, the more readers you will obtain.

If it’s fanfiction or short stories, people can be rather forgiving. But the longer the work, the more consistent you will want your work to be. I’m holding off one sharing for two reasons: 1. It will be months in between updates and I don’t want people to lose interests and 2. I’m trying really hard to make every scene, every line consistent and as “perfect” as it can possibly be.

Now, it is true that nothing will ever be perfect. The more you work on something the better it becomes, but it can never truly be perfect and the first or second draft is never as bad as we first make it out to be. If you state that what you are posting is the first or rough draft and you post it knowing you have intentions of improving it later your readers will be a little more forgiving. 

The main thing is being confident in your writing and being proud of the work you’ve done. If you can achieve that than you can post anything whether its the first or last draft. And posting your writing process will give you a virtual catalog to look back on and remember where you started and see how far you’ve come. This alone may be worth the effort.

Whatever your decision, make sure you’re happy with it and remember you are posting for you first and foremost!

(Thanks for the asks! I hope you find anything useful in these rambling posts. I wish you the best of luck. Go out there, create, and have fun. And stop by any time if you ever have any more questions or need some encouragement. ~Nevada)

[myoyakoro]

SABOACE WEEK DAY 2

SABOACE WEEK DAY 2

PROMPT: LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT

TITLE: YOU’RE NOT A MONSTER

GENRE: ROMANCE, ANGST

RATING: RATED T

WORD COUNT: 825 WORDS

WARNING: MENTION OF VIOLENCE, GRAMMATICAL ERROR AND MISSPELLED WORDS BECAUSE I WRITE, I EDIT, I POST.

NOTE: SUPER RUSH, SUPER LATE AND DON’T EVEN MAKE SENSE.  I DON’T EVEN KNOW IF IT IS POSSIBLE FOR A KID TO FALL IN LOVE THAT YOUNG. ON ANOTHER NOTE THIS WILL BE GOING TO BE KIND CONNECTED AT THE ONE OF THE PROMPT HERE. MAYBE?

FOR: @saboace-week

 The first time Sabo saw Ace he couldn’t help but find the freckled-man mesmerizing, his eyes that burn with so much hatred and loathing but deep inside he could saw those eyes, longing and begging for acceptance and love. At the tender age of five he fell in love at first sight at Ace.

 “What do you want?” Sabo heard Ace asked his voice sound irritated. Sabo had been following Ace for a while now and when he heard Ace stopped on his track and called him he hastily hide at the nearest tree. “Stop hiding. I already noticed you following me around from the start.” Ace snort but still sounded piss. Sabo emerged from his hiding spot, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

 “Hey.” He greeted awkwardly.  Ace’s scowl intensified.

 “What do you want?” He asked irritably, his eyes glaring sharply at the blond.

 Sabo’s breath hitched at the intensity it have. He feels giddy and butterfly swirling inside him. He knows what it is, what it pertains to. He remember reading something like this at the book he hide  from his parent, those book that is not related at the lesson his tutor teach him nor his parents  want him to learn. He reads it as an enjoyment and escape from the stifling life his parent wants him to live as. But he didn’t expect to experience it himself.

 “N..nothing.” He answered with a light tint of pink in his cheek. He heard Ace click his tongue.

 “Whatever. Get lost.” Ace said without a care and continues his trek down the mountain. Sabo followed Ace stubbornly anyway.

Everyday Sabo follows Ace wherever he goes like a lost puppy. He follows him everyday just to get a glimpse at those beautiful eyes, those eyes that seemingly speak a thousand words. From following Ace he learn why he beat up those older men mercilessly, the reason why those eyes long for acceptance.

 Ace is the son of the late Pirate King and because of that he was considered as monster. A monster that was being held back by the shadow of his late father. But to Sabo he was never a monster but a lost young kid that wanted to be free. Free from the shackles of his origin and most of all free from this unjust world. Just like him. He wanted to tell him that but he was afraid to be rejected because he knows how Ace’s trust issue ran deep.

 It was when Ace enters at a bar that full of worthless, drunken men and started asking the same question all over again, that everything went wrong, for Ace, that is. But to Sabo it is the start of everything. Ace had underestimated the strength of those unruly pirates and got beaten to a pulp. They didn’t stop until Ace was black and blue and when they’re done they just leave him like that. Sabo from his usual distance away from Ace ran to him worriedly. He cursed his self repeatedly for not doing anything, for just watching. He was angry at his self for being weak and unable to save Ace from them.

 “Are you okay?” Sabo asked to Ace who is already standing up. He wrapped his arm around Ace to help him but the young freckled kid pushed him violently.

 “Don’t touch me. Get lost.” Ace gritted but Sabo still insisted to help Ace. Ace’s scowl deepened. His bangs were shadowing his angry, frustrated face. “Are you mocking me?” Ace shouted.

 “No.” Sabo answered and he swung Ace’s arm on his shoulder to make Ace lean his weight against him but Ace pushed him again, standing up limply.

 “Do you think I believe you? You’re probably thinking that a monster like me deserve this. You must be laughing at me at the back of your head.” Ace continues with a scowl on his face. Sabo could already see how Ace’s eyes were glazed with unshed tears of frustration. Ace groaned as Sabo remained quiet.

“You’re wrong.” Sabo said softly, walking towards Ace. He raised his hand, noticing how Ace flinched and close his eyes probably expecting a hit, to touch Ace battered cheek gently. “You’re not a monster, Ace, don’t believe what people say about you.” Sabo said in a soft tone. Ace shook his head.

“No. you’re lying. You don’t know me. How can you say that to me like you know me that much?”

“I’m not. If you don’t believe me then I’ll prove it to you just give me a chance” Sabo said with so much resolution in his eyes. Ace’s eyes widen at how Sabo look at him with the seriousness that he didn’t expect from the kid his age. Now the tears that Ace was trying to suppress from earlier are now flowing freely as Sabo gave him a wide toothy grin and give him a hug.

“You’re not going to regret it.”

[allbaseballmom]

The Little known Secrets to Boost Your Kids Emotional Intelligence - https://allbaseballmom.com/blog/the-little-known-secrets-to-boost-your-kids-emotional-intelligenceInside: Blank journals can work for teens and adults, but most kids need more support for journaling to work well. Here are the best journals for kids that will help your child get all the emotional benefits of journaling for kids. Some mornings before school, my 9-year-old daughter won’t eat her breakfast, no matter what I say. “You’re going to be starving when you get to school.” “This is your last chance to eat for six hours.” “You won’t be able to focus on anything if you’re hungry.” She’ll take a bite or two to get me off her back, but that’s it. Or on other days, she gets home from school, grabs a book, and heads straight for a quiet spot to read, barely acknowledging me or her little sisters. In both situations, I used to needle her for an explanation: What’s wrong? Did something happen today? What are you worried about? But that never worked, and eventually I got the message. Because when you’re in the middle of real emotional upset, you don’t exactly want someone following you around and incessantly bugging you about it. What You Don’t See As a Parent My child happens to show every bit of emotional upset outwardly, but every child experiences big emotions on a regular basis that they don’t know how to talk about or process on their own. For example: Another kid might have said something mean to your child, and it’s been eating at her all day. Your child might have received a homework or test grade that made him feel like a failure. Her class might have been running late on their schedule today, meaning your child had to rush through lunch and didn’t get to take a bathroom break mid-day. He might be stressed about having to speak in front of the class soon or about a big project he doesn’t know how to get started on. She might have heard about a birthday party her friends are going to but that she didn’t get invited to. Every day, our kids encounter moments like this that leave their little hearts bruised. As parents, we typically don’t know about these moments, and our kids don’t necessarily know how to bring up what happened in a positive, proactive way. Which makes sense because some adults don’t even know how to do that! So how can we help our kids process these emotions and move forward? Because if I’ve learned anything from watching Frozen 42 gabazillion times, it’s that “conceal don’t feel” is not a recipe for emotional wellbeing. And as it turns out, research shows that kids who have a healthy emotional intelligence do better in school, have more positive relationships, and develop more empathy. Related: 150 Family Conversation Starters That Will Unlock Your Child’s Heart Photo by Caitlin Regan How to Help Your Child Learn and Grow From Challenging Moments Asking a direct question like, “Did anything happen today that upset you?” usually doesn’t work, and as I learned, needling your kid until they spill the beans isn’t terribly effective either.   But about a year ago, I stumbled on one essential tool for my parenting toolbox that’s helped my daughter process big and small emotional bumps in the road: journals for kids. Journaling is a powerful tool for coping with emotions – for kids and adults – because: The emotional release you get from journaling can lower anxiety and stress, plus help you sleep better. Journaling can put you into a state of mindfulness, where your negative experiences don’t seem quite so earth-shattering. Writing by hand about your emotions helps you better understand and process those emotions, and it also seems to unlock the maximum calming effect related to journaling. Not to mention journaling is an excellent (and fun) way to help your child build your writing and communication skills. Many kids get discouraged by the experience of writing in a school setting because they get negative marks for grammatical errors or misspellings instead of encouragement for expressing themselves. Journaling gives kids a positive and healthy way to express themselves without fear of doing it “wrong.” And yet, as effective as journaling is, you can’t just throw a blank journal at your child and expect magic to happen. Related: 7 Best Family Bonding Games That Will Help You Reconnect Quickly {Printable} 10 Best Journals for Kids That Will Boost Your Child’s Emotional Intelligence Blank journals can work for experienced journalers, but most kids need more support for journaling to work well. The problem is if you go search Amazon for “journals for kids,” you’ll get a whole slew of results to wade through. How do you know which journals for kids are the best ones? How do you find the kids’ journals that will actually help your child get all those emotional benefits of journaling? In my family, we’ve taken several kids’ journals for a test drive, plus I’ve been kind of obsessive about asking friends and family if their kids use a journal, which one they use, and if their kids enjoy it and keep up with the journaling. The list below is the culmination of our own personal experience as well as the experience of many other families – so you don’t have to wade through hundreds of Amazon reviews to find out which journals for kids are the absolute best. 1. Just Between Us: Mother & Daughter or Between Mom and Me: A Mother Son Journal One of the best ways to ease your child into journaling is by joining her with a shared journal. We have personally used this mother-daughter journal, and my friends with boys have loved this journal for mothers and sons. You take turns with your child writing in this journal, and in the process, you find out what’s weighing on your little one’s heart. Of all the journals for kids on this list, this one has been our personal favorite because it gives you a magical way to get your kid to open up about what’s going on so you can stay connected. Side note: Unfortunately, I haven’t found any high-quality “dad and me” writing journals for kids that build the father-child relationship in the same way. If you know of one, please let me know in the comments! Of all the journals for kids on this list, this mother-daughter journal is our personal favorite 2. Mom and Me: An Art Journal to Share or Draw with Me, Dad! A similar journal that a few of my friends rave about is this gorgeous mom and me art journal. One of the co-authors is a licensed art therapist, so the book includes tips on how to start an open conversation with your child, the best ways to communicate when you’re creating side-by-side, and more. Draw with Me, Dad! is from the same publisher but written by a different author who’s a licensed psychologist. If your child isn’t ready for a writing journal quite yet, these art journals for kids give you a fun way to dip your toe into the world of journaling for kids. 3. Q&A a Day for Kids or for Teens This is another favorite in our family. You can fill it out as a family, or each child can have their own journal to fill out. Here’s how it works: Every day, you answer one question from the book. You record up to three years of answers on the same page, which means after a year you get to see the answers from the previous year. Adorable! This is how we started ours when we first got it: If you love this journal idea, you can also get a version of this journal for couples and one specifically designed for moms. 4. Me: A Compendium In this journal, kids draw or write to fill in the prompts on each page. The illustrations are gorgeous, and the simple design makes this journal the perfect fit for preschoolers, kindergarteners, and early grade schoolers. This fill-in journal is perfect for younger kids The prompts on each page are fun and keep kids engaged, from “This is my favorite thing to say” to “If I had a robot, I would program it to…” and “These are my top three ice cream flavors.” After your child fills out this journal, it makes a one-of-a-kind keepsake. 5. Time Capsule With prompts like “How to have the best day ever” and “How to fix the worst day ever,” this kids’ journal is for an older crowd than Me: A Compendium. The publisher recommends ages 8 and up, but I’ve heard from parents whose kids enjoyed this starting at the age of 6. A few parents reported that this journal was particularly great for getting reluctant writers excited about writing, which is a fun bonus of journaling for kids. 6. Choose Kind Journal If your child enjoyed the bestselling book Wonder or the movie based on the book, this journal is a lovely tie-in. The journal includes daily prompts to inspire kids to “do one wonderful thing every day,” from writing a compliment for someone else on a Post-It Note, to reflecting on someone who’s taught you something you’ll always remember, to a challenge like, “How many smiles can you give out today?” The prompts also feature quotes from the book, so this journal would be best for kids who’ve already read the book or seen the movie. This kids’ journal will inspire your child to be kind 7. I Love Science This journal is tailored to kids who like to tinker, discover, and experiment. It’s from the same author as the bestselling (and gorgeous!) Women in Science book that features 50 profiles of famous female scientists. (The journal is geared towards girls, but I know of a couple parents who got it for their boys who love science, too.) The book includes inspirational quotes from famous scientists, fascinating infographics, and writing prompts like “What is a challenge you’ve overcome recently?” Many of the pages include just a quote and no writing prompt, so this journal would be the best fit for a child who feels comfortable with journaling without a prompt. 8. Rip the Page! For kids who enjoy creative writing, this journal includes writing prompts, notes of encouragement from famous authors, and fun activities for getting your creative juices flowing. This journal will definitely get your child thinking outside the box when it comes to writing and creating. I’ve also heard from some teachers who’ve used this journal to create their writing lesson plans. 9. Journal Sparks When your child is ready to move beyond the fill-in journal style for younger kids, this is the perfect companion to go along with their first blank journal. This collection of creative journal prompts includes ideas for both art and writing entries. Some parents enjoy using this alongside their child to journal together – and some parents just flat-out steal their kid’s copy when they’re at school or asleep. Pair this book of creative prompts with a blank, unlined journal like this beautiful leather journal that comes in several colors and sizes. This book of creative journal prompts pairs well with a blank, unlined journal 10. The Blank Comic Book This blank comic book is a fun twist on a blank journal that will spark your child’s creativity – the blank panels encourage kids to design their own comic book. This journal is especially perfect for kids who love comic books and graphic novels. I’ve also heard from friends that these blank comic books work well for a wide age range because preschoolers can draw a story without having to write words, and teens can get pretty detailed in their storytelling. Download my FREE cheat sheet as a bonus for joining my newsletter: 16 Miracle Phrases to Help You Reconnect With Your Child Your Turn What are your favorite journals for kids? Share in a comment below! Author informationKelly I’m a mom of four, a recovering perfectionist, and the author of Happy You, Happy Family. Parenting is hard enough without all the guilt we heap on top of ourselves. So let’s stop trying to be perfect parents and just be real ones. Sound good? Join my mailing list and as a bonus, you'll get 25+ incredibly helpful cheat sheets that will ease your parenting struggles. | Facebook | Pinterest | The post How to Boost Your Child’s Emotional Intelligence With the Best Secret Weapon appeared first on Happy You, Happy Family. 3 products which can enhance your kids wellness and emotional intelligence. You be the judge to choose the right one for your kid.  My gratitude to the author of this article: happyyouhappyfamily.com

[christinaengela]

Criticism. As writers, sooner or later we’re likely to encounter it. How we deal with it – either internally or externally – depends greatly on our personality, and also I suppose, on what sort of place we’re in at any particular moment.

Here are some of my thoughts on the subject.

So someone posted a nasty remark on one of your social media book shares, or left a shitty 1 star review and a harshly-worded comment for you on Amazon. You stare at it, re-read it a second time just to try and absorb any sense or usefulness in the words as you fight a rising tide of red anger surging up from your chest area.

Why did they do that? Was the book really all that bad? Was there really something wrong with your writing? How could they be so mean – don’t they realize I pored my heart and soul into this? Is what they said in any way helpful or – no matter how remote – possibly true?

There is a huge difference between someone being helpful (or trying to be) to a writer. “Perhaps you should’ve made the story longer? It was great – just too short!” or “You misspelled ‘bureaucracy’ on page 11!” are examples of positive criticism. My mom always used to praise my writing talent, but frequently criticized my choice in genre – she didn’t enjoy sci-fi – she suggested I write in more contemporary, mundane settings… in genres like suspense, drama, action and adventure! I used to counter with “but I can do that in sci-fi too!”

That sort of criticism is helpful, positive and constructive in nature – and they can be discerned on the basis of their intentions to help the writer to grow or improve their writing, not to break them down for it, or even to cause them to stop writing altogether.

There are numerous and even perhaps unfathomable reasons for people to criticize a writer or their writing in writing – by leaving nasty remarks, bad reviews and even by sending them hate-mail – and on the unhelpful side, they include everything from simple jealousy to disagreement with the writer or their statements, and even disapproval of their subject and the way they address or present it often form part of the motivation for it.

In the following example, a reader downloaded a FREE eBook of mine – a short story called “Death By Vampire”. They left a poor review and a rant on Barnes & Noble.

“This book was only 19 pgs. Had potential. ***spoiler seemed to have a lot of unnecessary information. Also the description of the blood diamonds didn’t make any sense, they are named for their color but the color is green? Needs some editing.” 2 stars – Anonymous

I know this person didn’t actually READ the story, because inside it there was a whole paragraph that EXPLAINED how the aliens called the green stones ‘blood diamonds’ because they had GREEN blood – but it “needs some editing” because he didn’t understand it? All this guy did was expose his illiteracy!

As to length, it was a free short story, but he obviously missed that part too.  Yet that story now has a 2-star review and a snotty comment from someone who obviously has problems with comprehension – and a narcissistic mean streak.

What can I take home from this? Not much – just that some people are basically mean-spirited and will make me the scapegoat for their own failures… but then, being part of an oft-persecuted social grouping blamed for everything from stock-market crashes to natural disasters, that’s nothing new to me. Should I take it personally? I’d like to think not – after all, what real value does unfair criticism really have?

In a technical sense, is there anything I can change or improve on the item involved? Were the words or sentences not clear enough? Were they confusing? Was a thorough spelling and grammar check done during the editing process? I honestly can’t see how I can make the story – or the facts of the story – any clearer without resorting to formatting the eBook using neon lettering, or replacing them with pictures to cater for the illiterate ‘reader’.

Moving on, negative reviews left at book sellers can and do damage a writer’s reputation – and in the long-run, their income. Reviews and ratings affect sales and distribution after all, mainly because readers will be more inclined to look at a book that has a bunch of 4 and 5 star ratings rather than a book that has one or many 1 or 2 stars. Let’s look at an example:

A few years ago I witnessed a writer falling under attack from his former small press, their writers – and everyone else they could rally to their cause. Lies and slander were spread broadly, and I personally witnessed calls being made for their cohort of cronies to ostracize him from the writing community and to even leave negative 1-star reviews on all his books! Other tactics and dirty tricks were employed against this poor undeserving writer, but this one is pertinent to my example. Suffice to say, that writer suffered a breakdown, has disappeared from social media – and hasn’t publishing anything since 2016. In that case it’s safe to say the bullies and haters won.

Any hostile criticism of our work as writers tends to have the potential to cause a writer to doubt themselves. Often that can also be one of the reasons why people leave nasty remarks – the writer or their work has (for whatever reason) offended them – and their intention might be to hurt them out of some feeling of vengeance or satisfaction. Some people, like the unfortunate author in my example are less resilient in the face of such attacks – while others, like me – well, I just don’t care for what the nasties say – anyway, I have more than enough fan-mail and great reviews to compensate. As far as I’m concerned, it’s water off a ducks back – and I’m a very oily duck.

Naturally, there are some things that spring to mind for every writer when faced with stinging and even personal criticism: are they right about me? Are they right about my work? After all, your writing might be utter crap laced with spelling and grammatical errors – and the story might make no sense, have plot holes big enough to drive a bus through, and your characterizations might be almost non-existent – right?

Are these critics giving you advice on how to improve your work? Is there anything of value in their ‘feedback’ you can learn from and use to produce a better story?

If the answer is no, and you’ve reason to believe they’re just being vindictive – such as making personal attacks and indulging in name-calling without giving any serious or pertinent pointers on how to improve your work, then their criticism is actually weaponized hatred intended to break you down! Let’s be honest – when someone criticizes your hard work, your ‘baby’, your pride and joy – it hurts a bit! Part of the answer – not the sum total of it – is of course to grow a thick skin.

In my particular case, I write in the science fiction and horror genres – as well as in non-fiction from time to time. While a lot of my fiction writing contains the usual sci-fi or horror elements, some of it also focuses on LGBT issues and presents these in a sympathetic and favorable light – which naturally draws ire and derogatory remarks from the prejudiced and bigoted who seemingly can’t resist leaving snotty comments on social media ads or shares of my work.

It’s not that my work is badly written or poorly presented – it’s that they despise the people I use as heroes and heroines in my stories and dare to explain and promote them in the face of their ignorance and hatred. I defy the established anti-LGBT stereotypes – and I flaunt it. It’s also that, once they do a little background check, they realize that I’m also part of that same group they’ve been programmed to despise! Add to that, once they confront me and I not only stand up to them, but also trounce them in a debate, that really makes them foam at the mouth!

How dare I? How dare I stand in the open, unashamedly writing about people they hate in a good positive way? How dare I not feel any guilt? How dare I even exist?

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In the below example, I held a free e-book giveaway contest in my Facebook author group in August 2016. I gave away a few books to contest winners. Soon after, the South African right wing ‘Christian’ (aka Levitican) community on Facebook went nuts about me promoting ‘demonic writings’, ‘homosexuality, sodomy and demon worship’! It was truly surreal!

The vast majority of the hate-mail I’ve gathered over the years – and remember the ones I’m showing you in this article are just since the advent of Facebook, from about 2016 or so – have been directed at me for sharing my books or writing or website!

Many of these people express negative ideas and emotions towards me because I’m transgender, a lesbian, an atheist – and because I’ve steadfastly refused to remain silent in the face of the overwhelming wave of hatred looming for numerous diverse minority groups in the world today. This provides one reason – albeit a big one – why most of my hostile critics and haters are what they are, or at least explains why they’re hostile toward me and to my writing.

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My advice when receiving this sort of hate-mail or harsh personal criticism is “take it from whom it comes” – which means, consider who the person is that’s criticizing you or your work, and what their real reasons are for doing so – and give it a value or rating. Is their opinion worth your time? Are they trying to be helpful – or are they simply being hurtful? Should you even take what they say seriously? Should you care? Most of the time I laugh at the voluntary idiocy, poor grammar and spelling in the hate-mail sent my way, and casually toss it in the pile.

I have a use for haters and hate-mail you see, and they’re too obtuse to even realize it.

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By far most of my critics and haters are religious extremist fanatics who engage in lunatic fringe politics and vent homophobic, transphobic and often racist language because they see me as more than just an enemy of their personal beliefs – but the personification thereof.

99% of the time, the people sending me hate-mail or criticizing me as a writer are attacking ME directly as an individual, not the worth or quality of my writing. I’ve also had the occasional odd-ball attack me using the fact that I’m self-published as though it means I’m somehow ‘illegitimate’ and not a ‘real author’, when all this does is reveal their ignorance about the publishing industry.

Here’s a clue, peeps – if self-publishing was in any way dishonest or dishonorable, I would have nothing to do with it. If was in any way, shape or form embarrassed or ashamed of self-publishing my work – or under the impression that it was in any way inferior to books by the big dogs, I wouldn’t be openly marketing myself or my writing as self-published!

It’s worth mentioning that within that same group of people who’ve sent me outright hate-mail, I’ve yet to encounter a single one who’s actually READ any of my books – they’re people who simply seized an opportunity to vent their hatred for me as a person because at that moment I represented the thing they hate.

In that light, this means that while my writing is good, even excellent, it is in their view ‘rubbish’ because what I write (or what I write about) contradicts their indoctrinated belief structure. To the folks who almost invariably misapply basic English words like “they’re/their/there” and “your/you’re”, I’m a ‘libral dirtbag’, a ‘libtard’, a ‘Christophobe’, a ‘commie queer’ and an ‘atheist fascist’ – and somehow inferior to them, not just because I’m part of the LGBT social group – but because I’m not afraid, acquiescent, silent or invisible.

I remind myself that these same characters tend to treat anyone more intelligent or in any way qualified, capable or talented than themselves – like scientists, doctors, artists – writers – and a variety of qualified professionals the exact same dismissive way – and I see them for what they are.

Over the last few decades of internet use, I’ve accumulated an archive of hateful remarks of all kinds, from people determined to convince me of the validity and value of their ignorance, to those who resort to childish mockery and blatant name-calling. (You can view it here if you like.)

I’ve always lived by the motto “if you piss off the right people, you’re doing something right”!

One fella wearing the crazy-pants ranted about how my children’s book on bullying, “Other Kids Are Kids Almost Just Like You” – aimed to teach children compassion for others – would ‘turn kids gay’ and that it was child abuse and I ought to be arrested!

So how do I handle hate-mail? Easy. I shrug it off, have a few good laughs – then save it, take screenshots of it – and use it as promotional material! In fact, I actually look forward to getting hate-mail these days!

After all, so many haters can’t be wrong, can they? 😉

I hope you’ve found this useful!

Take care and have a lovely day!

If you would like to know more about Christina Engela and her writing, please feel free to browse her website.

If you’d like to send Christina Engela a question about her life as a writer or transactivist, please send an email to christinaengela@gmail.com or use the Contact form.

Show your appreciation for Christina’s work!

All material copyright © Christina Engela, 2020.

How I Handle Hate-mail & Criticism As A Writer Criticism. As writers, sooner or later we're likely to encounter it. How we deal with it - either internally or externally - depends greatly on our personality, and also I suppose, on what sort of place we're in at any particular moment.

[seasonofthegeek]

Here’s the thing: I love writing fanfic. It makes me happy to write it, it makes me happy when other people enjoy it...I just love it. Something I’ve been noticing more and more frequently is getting comments correcting typos and grammatical errors. I’ve seen quite a few writers post about this before but I wanted to put my two cents in because I’ve gotten a few in the past week.

While I can appreciate that as a commenter, some may think they are helping an author out. “I see this mistake they missed. I should let them know.” That is good, solid logic and I totally understand it. Even further, I usually appreciate it. I remember @talvin-muircastle sending me a message that I had put “lips” instead of “hips” in a drabble, and believe me, it would have definitely changed the tone of the story if that had been left in, haha. Comments and messages like that are appreciated, honestly.

I suppose I want to show it from the writer’s view for a moment. I can only truly speak for myself, but I have seen other writers post similar thoughts. Getting an email notification that someone has commented on a story is exciting! Seriously, one of the first things I do in the morning is check my comments. They make me happy and are a nice start to the day. Sometimes that’s not the case though. Even when a comment is along the lines of “This story was great, but here’s some things you messed up on,” the first part of the comment may as well not be there.

I don’t want this to come off as me being whiny. I’m sure it will to some people and that can’t be helped, I suppose. I absolutely do not think I’m perfect. Holy cats, do I know that I’m not (spoiler alert: no one is). I mess up. I misspell things, I use the wrong tenses, I switch homonyms, I forget plot points. Even in well-known published works that have been poured over by editors, mistakes still get printed. It’s just the way it is. I churn out a lot of content and some mistakes would most likely be caught if I spent a little more time, but honestly, I just enjoy writing it. That may sound lazy or sloppy or something else less nice, but I’m doing this for fun and for free, and unless that changes, I’ll just keep trucking along.

The rambling point I’m trying to make is please be careful and courteous when commenting. I’m not saying you don’t need to point out mistakes because one, we all can learn from mistakes, and two, some writers want their readers to point things out (they usually post something in the notes at the top of a story). Simply try to put yourself in the writer’s shoes. If you had poured yourself into a story, and got a comment like this, how would it make you feel? Would you feel thankful or a little down?

There’s probably no good answer, honestly. No one wants to be told they did something wrong, even though we know we’re going to mess up over and over. This was just something on my mind and since this is my blog, I wanted to put it out there. Side note: this is absolutely not a cry for “we still love you and other people can suck it”-type comments. That’s not at all what this is about, and while I appreciate the sentiment, I only wanted to get this off my chest. <3

[anjanettexcordonia]

Bloodlines

**Trigger Warnings**

DARK DARK DARK

-NSFW/Mental Health/Violence/Rape Minimal fluff if any at all tbh.

***If you are sensitive to any of these please do not read.

Pairing: Liam x Celeste, Liam x Madeleine, Drake, Bastien 

Word Count: 4,874 (I know its forever long but its worth it in my biased opinion)

This is my first time writing any kind of fiction. I was inspired by all of you amazing writers! I received positive feedback on this chapter so I’m hoping you all like it too! Its very dark and very very twisted. I can not emphasize it enough.

**READ WITH CAUTION**

Excuse any grammatical errors or misspellings.

This will be a six part series. I do not have a timeline for when I will post. (I’m a mom & work full time)

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Pixelberry

Tags: 

@gkittylove99 @kingliam2019 @yourmajesty09 @cordonia-gothqueen @mom2000aggie @texaskitten30 @hopefulmoonobject

Part Two

Two weeks after his mother Queen Eleanor’s death, Prince Liam stood on the dais of the cathedral. looking up at his older brother Leo. “It’s a monumental day for Cordonia, Liam, you best behave yourself and no tears. Our people from all over will be watching your new mother become Queen” Constantantine’s lecture was on repeat in his mind. Leo looked down at Liam and offered him a reassuring squeeze of his hand. Their lives changed after that day. And they would never be the same. 

Ten years had gone by since Regina began her reign beside their father. They had learned they had a sister long before the death of their mother but she had been a secret. Celeste. And she was the apple of their father and step-mothers eye. 

“Drake, after our lessons today we should go down to the beach . I hear Max has found a cove with killer waves we can ride.” Liam asked Drake. They were on their way down to the classroom in the palace when they ran into Constantine. “Where have you been? I’ve had the guards searching for you Drake. Come with me, now.” Drake kept pace with Constantine, he looked back at Liam with a worried look etched across his pubescent face. 

Hours went by and Liam paced around his room waiting to hear from Drake. He had been texting him for hours with no response. He had gone to his father's study only to find it empty. Where the fuck is Drake? Leo had been in America for the last few years, Drake had become like his brother and now he was just ignoring him. 

Late that night unable to sleep, Liam tossed and turned in his bed. He texted Olivia. She had lived at the palace since her parents death under the watchful eye of the King.

“Liv, have you heard from Drake?” 

“You haven’t heard? Liv responded. 

“Heard what?” 

“Drake's dad is dead, some accident apparently” 

Liam was stunned. No wonder he wasn’t answering him. 

“Fuck what happened?” 

“I don’t know Li, they said there was a car accident.” 

Liam heard the doors to the royal quarters open and voices trailing down the hallway. 

“Constantine no one will ever find out. If Jackson had just minded his own business and stopped looking for Leo, none of this would have had to happen. He became a loose end.” Liam heard Regina snap at Constantine. 

What the fuck? Looking for Leo? Doesn’t make sense. Liam thought. 

Liam slowly opened his door to hear their conversation a little better. 

“If we had ended Leonardo like I had suggested, there would have been nothing for Jackson to find. This is your fault Constantine. He found his dossier he had on you too. He planned to turn you over for you sick perversions you have with that Nevrakis traitors daughter.” 

Olivia and my father? End Leo? What’s going on? I have to talk to Drake and Olivia. Where is Leo? I have to find out. 

Their quarters went quiet. 

Liam has been busy with studies for a few days. In his spare time he had tried to reach out to his friends. He searched for clues as to Leo’s whereabouts to no avail. 

He was at a dead-end. 

A year had gone by. Drake was gone. Olivia had denied Regina's accusation. He had seen Drake at Jackson’s funeral. He said he would be going to Texas with his mother and sister for a while. Olivia had moved back to the Nevrakis castle in Lythikos. At 17 she was able to regain her title as Duchess and rule her own Duchy. Max spent most of his time in Ramsford. Bertrand never let him stray too far these days. 

Time had passed as time typically does. Constantine had announced his abdication from the throne and announced Liam was now the crown prince and the heir to the throne. Celeste was pissed as usual. “The crown will never be yours Liam. You're a commoner like your whore of a mother. You're unfit to rule. You will bow to me in 3 weeks at MY coronation.” 

“Shut the fuck up Celeste. The sound of your voice makes me want to vomit.” Liam hissed. They were not siblings. Simply bound by half blood and they both knew it. Leo was his only sibling. If only he could find him. 

BOOM! 

Liam woke with a jerk. He groaned. He could barely open his eyes. Why is it so bright? Why can’t I move? Everything hurts. He heard a loud pop and a laugh. He recognized that laugh. He despised that laugh. Madeline. Liam tried to speak but nothing would come out. 

“Celeste, he's awake. It’s time my dear.” Madeline “Finally I thought he would never wake up.” Celeste mumbled. 

Liam heard the click of Regina's heels enter the room.

“Celeste, first things first we need to secure your throne. Have you prepared yourself?” 

“Yes Mother” 

Regina walked over to the bedside of the bed he was strapped to. He fought against his restraints but they were bound too tight around his wrists and ankles. Regina peered down at him with a grin he didn’t recognize. He and Regina we’re never close. He was all too familiar with her adversity to his presence in the royal family, she didn't attempt to hide it. 

“Liam, you’re a disgrace to this family. Your mere existence brings shame to the Rhys line. Your mother was a whore. And she deserved her death. Your brother was never meant to be King nor are you. You will meet the same fate as he.” 

“Now Celeste” Regina commanded. Regina and Madeline retreated to carefully placed chairs. They were far enough way but still able to view everything about to take place in the torture chamber. Liams hell was about to begin. 

Celeste walked over to Liam and climbed on top of him. Liam did not realize he was completely naked until that moment. Celeste hiked her dress over her head revealing her completely nude body. She grabbed Liams flaccid manhood and began pumping. Liam screamed and faught. 

“THIS IS SICK! GET OFF OF ME STOP TOUCHING ME REGINA MAKE HER STOP MADELINE PLEASE HELP” Liam screamed out. Tears were stinging his eyes. “Please stop, I'll do whatever you want” Celeste continues pumping his manhood until it was firmly erect against Liam’s will. 

“This is only the beginning Liam, if we let you go now you’ll become King. We can’t have you spreading lies about our sweet Celeste. Can we?” Liam was sobbing. Celeste mounted Liam and her core slid down taking all of him. She rode him with no emotion. Liam begging for her to stop willing his body to stop her. He realized her intentions while his body betrayed him and he released his seed into her. Liam let out a blood curdling scream when Celeste dismounted him. 

“You're excused Celeste. Go immediately and lay down. I’ll be there in a few minutes.” She turned to Liam as Celeste left the chamber. “You’ve planted the heir and fulfilled your duty as King.” she sneered. 

Regina mumbles something to Madeline and she left the room. 

“My Liam, My King, it’s my turn to do with you as I please. I will revel in your torture and fall from grace. You were always oblivious to my affections just like Leo. Greeting me as formal as any other lady at court. Truly sickening. So if you won’t choose me. I’ll take what I please.” 

Liam laid in silence staring up at the dimly lit lights overhead. He recognized this room. It was below the castle in a secret passageway he and Drake discovered as children. It was blocked off years ago he thought. Now he knew why. They were planning this for years. Had Leo been in this room? What had they done to him? 

“Madeline wait, I’ll give you what you want. Let me go. Untie me. Please. I won’t let any harm come to you. I can protect you.” He pleaded with her. 

“No you’re lying just shut up.” 

A tear fell from the corner of his eye as once again she took him in the same fashion as Celeste had. 

Liam saw this as an advantage. He started to participate in his assault. He pumped into her as fast and hard as he could while restrained. “There we go Liam I knew you couldn’t resist this pussy.” She moaned. “Fuck you’re so tight Maddie” he grunted. “Untie me so I can fuck you right, I need you.” Madeline complied and untied his wrist restraints. He flew up still pumping into her and twisted her hair in his hand and pulled her head back. He bit her neck hard drawing blood. “I want you from behind” he groaned in her ear. She reached his ankle restraints and untied them. As soon as he was free he slammed her down on the table. He fucked her hard and fast mutilating her womanhood. “Who’s your King?” Liam roared feeling her walls tighten around his cock.  “You’re my King” she screamed as she reached climax. 

“What happened to my brother Madeline?” Liam asked, breathing heavy still thrusting inside her as she came down from her climax. He realized this was his chance to get the information that he needed out of Madeline. She would give him anything at that moment. 

“I..I..” Madeline stammered. 

“Please Madeline” Liam begged. “Help me.” Thrusting harder. 

“He’s alive. He’s been admitted into Fydelia psychiatric hospital. He’s been there for 3 years since his mental break.” Madeline moaned. 

“Mental break?” Liam thrusted harder. “Tell me or I won’t give you another release My Queen.” He felt her walls tighten around his cock at his false words. 

“Drake's father had been searching for him. And they found him. Leo was able to tell him everything. He told the truth of Regina and Constantine. So Walker was silenced. I will receive the same fate if anyone finds out I told you. Call me your Queen again.” 

“I have to get out over here. I have to find him and expose what’s been going in the palace. I have to stop them.” Liam said through gritted teeth. A sudden fire coursing through his body. Anger and vengeance filling his veins. He wrapped his hand around Madeleine’s throat and squeezed bringing her to the brink of blacking out, her eyes wide as he continued pounding into her with angry force. He pulled himself out of her and spilled his seed on the table. 

“No you can’t. I can’t let you. I’m sorry Liam.” Madeline sighed. She knew she made a mistake and Regina will have her head on a pike. They heard a knock on the door. Madeline’s face drained of color. Shit. 

“Lady Madeline, are you finished yet?” Regina called through the door. Liam stood ready for a fight. 

“You have to put the restraints back on Liam.” Madeline whispered. “Just a minute, Your Majesty” she called out. 

“Fuck You Maddie.” Liam snarled. 

“REGINA!” Madeline screamed. She threw her dress back on as Regina slammed the door open.

“I see you found my dear nieces weakness, William. You.” Regina laughed.

“I will destroy you Regina. You will be charged with the highest of treason against the crown. I will have you drawn and quartered in front of all Cordonia! Liam roared at her. 

“Kneel to your Queen or I will make you kneel.” 

“Fuck you and my father.” Liam started to lunge at her. Before his feet left the ground he felt a a cloth cover his face and everything went black.

“You will kneel to your Queen Bastard.” Regina pulled a dagger from the pocket of her freshly pressed pant suit. She sliced the back of both of Liam’s knees. “The blood of the bastards have littered this place for far too long. Get out Madeline. Tend to Celeste. She will soon be carrying the heir to my throne.” Madeline left the room.

When Liam woke, he was back on the table restrained with a gag in his mouth. “Now Crown Prince William Constantine Rhys of Cordonia. You're awake. What shall I do to you?” Shall I slice your chest open and rip out your heart? “How can I inflict the worst pain possible for you to give up a country Liam? Ya know your brother was fairly easy. A few days of intense pain and anguish destroyed him. He never really wanted to be King you know. Forcing his abdication was quite easy. The resistance came when he realized you would meet the same fate as he.” Regina circles slowly around wielding the dagger in her hand. “All it takes is the smallest cuts in the most sensitive of places to break a person entirely.” She kneeled down and sliced the bottom of each of his feet from toes to heel. “You aren’t King, you will never be King. Celeste will produce your heir. She will take her rightful place on the throne and you will become a footnote in history. Her child will bleed Rhys from both sides. The child’s blood will no longer be tainted by the blood of whores.” She stabbed the knife between his ribs. Blood covered her hands and the floor around Liam. 

Liam was tortured for three weeks in the same fashion. Madeline never returned again. Celeste coming in beforehand to claim his seed & Regina following behind with brutal measures of torture. She electrocuted him with cattle prods. Beat him until he could no longer feel pain with whips and chains. He was numb. Small and large cuts, bruises and broken bones littered his body. He no longer had his golden blonde hair. She had shaved it completely to make him feel lesser than she. He was awarded one meal a day and 2 glasses of water. Regina said only to maintain his strength to give Celeste his heir. He was losing his hope and resolve. He knew no one was coming. He wasn’t King yet. The coronation was swiftly approaching. 

Liam lost all sense of time since being held in captivity. He no longer cared. He was ready to die. 

“Hello Bastard.” Regina spoke softly. “It’s time to prepare your abdication speech. I will bring a doctor in today. It’s time for you to rejoin the rest of the world. Your father would like to visit today.” 

Liam sat up. No longer willing to fight. The restraints no longer needed. 

“Yes my Queen.” She had won.

“Get dressed and clean yourself up. He will be down after dinner. He would like to speak with you about the coronation ball and what it means for you after. I don’t care much what happens to you, but your father and his soft heart for some reason… does.” She stomped out the door slamming it shut. 

Liam heard the lock click. He let out a long sigh. Suddenly the dams in eyes broke free and the tears flowed. Liam convulsed on the bed unable to control the sobs and screams coming from him. What had he done so wrong to receive this treatment? Why did his father not love him? Why couldn’t they just kill him? 

What seemed like hours later Constantine came blinding into the room. “My son” he said softly as he saw his youngest son perched on the side of his small cot. Constantine barely recognized him. 

Liam looked up at him not speaking a word. He opened his mouth but the words wouldn’t come out. “As you know Princess Celeste will be taking the throne. What I’ve come to discuss with you is your position in the royal family after the fact. You know you will not be allowed access to the...child. How would Duke of Valtoria sound? It’s quite generous and Regina has agreed. The conditions of silence still apply. I will even allow Leo to reside with you.” Constantine started matter of fact. 

“Where the fuck is he?” Liam and Constantine snapped their heads as they heard Drake’s booming voice outside the chamber door. The door crashed open and Drake charged through straight for Constantine not even noticing Liam. 

“You evil bastard. I will kill you, treason be damned. You deserve to die for what you did to her! What you did to Olivia! Raping and beating her into submission? Why because you were afraid of what she would do to you when she found out the truth? You’re a sick bastard” Drake screamed so loud Liams ears began to ring. His heart started to pound. 

“Drake what…” Drake didn’t give the King time to finish before he heard a loud pop. The bullet pierced Constantine’s heart and he staggered back and fell to the floor. “Now the cancer won’t take you out. Burn in hell Constantine Rhys Disgrace to Cordonia.” 

Drake looked up “Li” he whispered. “How, where….. I..I’m sorry.. He.. he hurt Olivia...oh my God..Li what have I done? Where have you been?” 

“Drake get me out of here before Regina comes back. HURRY! Constantine deserved it. I only regret it wasn’t me who pulled the trigger” Liam cried. 

Drake scooped Liam in his arms and ran out the door. He ran straight for Bastiens room carefully avoiding any possibility of anyone seeing them. He kicked Bastiens door open. Bastien sprung from his bed at the sight of Drake carrying a severely battered Liam. 

“Prince Liam, What happened?” He looked at Drake” We need to get him out of here.” Bastien yelled. Bastien called down and procured a SUV to get them away from the palace. “Bastien I shot constantine. He’s dead. We need to get in touch with Olivia.” Drake whispered. 

They reached the garage and got in the SUV. “We’re flying out of the country tonight. We have a few days before the coronation to figure out our next move.” Bastien said. Liam laid his against the window feeling exhausted. He felt like he hadn’t slept in days. A few minutes later they boarded a private jet headed to New York. On board was a doctor Duke Rashad had sent to join them. “Rashad will be our eyes and ears while we’re away. We will figure out a plan while you’re healing Li. What happened to you? I know I’ve been away but you could have called me.” Drake said with a hint of guilt in his tone. 

“Thank you Drake for everything. Have you heard anything from Olivia? I want eyes on her immediately. She should be in Lythikos.” Liam whispered. Drake noticed a change in his best friend. His eyes were hollow and empty. Emptiness he had never seen in anyone before. There was no emotion behind his eyes. His movements fluid and muscle memory. He was a shell. What had they done to him? Drake wondered. 

“Li what happened?” 

“Rrrr..Regina and Constantine hurt Leo. He’s in a psychiatric hospital in Fydelia. He was never in America. Constantine abused Olivia relentlessly and no one ever knew. They covered it up.” 

Liam looked away. He didn’t want Drake to see the tears threatening to escape his eyes. The lump in his throat tightened. He felt like he couldn’t breathe. His chest was getting heavier. His vision blurred and then black. He could faintly hear Drake yelling for the doctor onboard. 

“Li.. Li… wake up we’re getting ready to land.” Drake said as he gently shook Liam's shoulder. Liam sat up with a jerk. His eyes darted around the cabin. He didn’t know where he was yet. “It’s okay Li. We’re still on the jet. We will be landing at JFK in 20 minutes. Then you’re going straight to the hotel. The onboard doctor has already set up home healthcare at the hotel. They are fully equipped and we won’t have to worry about your location getting out.” 

Liam relaxed. “Thanks Drake. Sorry for passing out. Guess I was just exhausted.” He looked down to see an iv taped to his hand. “Fluids and antibiotics. Doc says you’re severely dehydrated and slightly malnourished. You have 3 broken ribs. They will heal on their own. Your stab wound needed stitches but it was in the healing stages already . It’s going to leave a gnarly scar.” Drake informed him. You must’ve been held for awhile.” 

Once they were in the suite in the hotel the doctors came in to check Liam’s wounds and set up his IV medications, Liam looked over at Drake, “thanks for finding me Drake. You saved my life.” Liam mumbled drifting off to sleep. “Get some rest Liam. I’m going to talk to Bastien.” 

After Liam drifted off into a deep sleep Drake went to find Bastien. 

“Bas, what are we going to do? How could this have happened?” 

“Before Jackson was killed, he had some intel that he shared with me. This was an ongoing plan to remove Leo & Liam from the throne. King Constantine and Queen Regina were planning this long before the late Queen Eleanor’s. We have intel that they were behind her death. Regina and Constantine had a traditional Cordonian Arrangement prior. No one could have foreseen she would orchestrate this outcome.” Bastien said. 

“We have to take them down and restore Liams rightful place as King. We can not let them get away with what they have done to Liam. What do you know about Leo and Celeste?” Drake asked. He was trying to figure out how to approach Liam when we woke up. He knew whatever Liam had gone through was extreme and he didn’t know who Liam would be when he woke up. 

“Celeste was part of the plan the whole time. I don’t know how deep her loyalty to the King and Queen run. But it’s evident she won't be in support of Liam. And Leo will be no help. He’s become a paranoid recluse inside Fydelia Psychiatric Hospital.” 

“I shouldn’t have left. I should have stayed to help Liam. I had no idea. FUCK!” Drake screamed. He slammed his fist through the wall of the living room of the presidential suite. 

“We need to talk to Liam. Find out what he knows. Then we will proceed with a course of action. We follow Liams lead on this Drake.” Bastien’s eyes meet Drakes and he gives him a sad half smile. 

Twelve hours later Liam woke. Best sleep I’ve had in a month. Maybe that’s due to the sleep aides. I need to talk to Bastien and Drake. Have they spoken to Liv yet? Liam thought to himself. Liam slowly got out of bed wincing in pain from the broken ribs. His feet are bandaged from the cuts Regina had given him. 

“Liam?” 

Liam whipped his around and spotted Drake. He was just waking up from the couch in Liam's room. “Drake, we need to get back home. Have you spoken to Olivia?” “Yea, Li she’s okay. She told me what Constantine did. She prefers to stay in Lythikos but will come here if we need her. We are heading back tomorrow but first we have to figure things out.” Bastien came in with a huge breakfast spread. “Your Majesty,” he bowed. “It’s good to see you awake and feeling better. You’ll need your strength so eat.” “Bastien,” Liam nodded his head, “I want to thank you for helping me and not betraying the crown. The traitors will be dealt with. I will see it to myself.” Liam said no emotion behind. Bastien noticed a change in the young prince. The spark of life seemingly snuffed out. 

A couple hours later everyone chatted and got ready for the day, Drake eyes Liam staring at his phone. “What’s up Li?” 

“When this is over I’m bringing Leo home. But not until it’s over. What Regina, Celeste, and Constantine did broke him and nearly broke me. Maybe they did break me. Celeste..and Madeline.. Leo probably thinks I had something to do with it. I should have known.” Liam drifted off. “Madeline? What happened Li?” 

He told Drake everything. Drake hung his head in sadness for his friend. Liam whispered. “In the name of the crown, in the name of an heir. Regina tortured me. I will kill them all. Constantine did nothing. When you came in that was the first time…”Liam choked, “that he came in. To offer me and Leo Valtoria in exchange for my abdication and silence.” “I will kill them all.” Liam whispered. Drake sat unable to speak. Not sure what to say, what could he say? His best friend was gone. They had stolen pieces of him. Drake could see the parts that were missing. 

“I’m so sorry Li, I shouldn’t have left. I should have stayed. Had I known….” Drake trailed off. 

“Stop Drake. It’s not your fault. I will take my crown and will show no mercy on anyone standing in my way.” 

“We’re heading back tomorrow, what’s the plan?” 

“Constantine is dead. The mourning period will last a month or so. I will take my rightful place. As soon as we’re back I want them brought before me.” Liam demanded. 

The next afternoon they landed in Cordonia. The press was waiting at the tarmac ready to scream questions about the King's death and Liam’s coronation. As they made their way back to the Palace to prepare for tonight’s coronation, Drake was on the phone with the rest of the Kings Guard. “Li, they’ve all fled the country. They are in England, Duke Godfrey’s duchy to be exact.” 

“Leave them. I will deal with them when they return. I do not want formal charges brought and I will need to do that to have them extradited. This is personal.” Liam sneered. Drake sensed a venomous tone. “Celeste and the… heir, if there is a child to speak of, will not be harmed until I find out if she’s pregnant.” 

They knew Liam re-emerging was the end of their sinister plan for him. The coronation went off without a hitch. His Majesty, King William Constantine Rhys was crowned King of all Cordonia. 

“Long Live the King” 

8 months later 

“It’s a boy, your majesty” the doctor spoke to the King. “He may suffer..” the doctor continued. “STOP” Liam shouted. “I don’t want to know. The child is not the heir and whatever affliction he suffers will be properly taken care of. The child will have the best medical attention. You will see to that Doctor. And Bastien?” 

“Your Majesty?” Bastien bowed and walked into the King's study, eyeing the doctor seated in front of Liams desk. 

“Hire a staff to care for the boy, we have designated quarters for him in the palace. Celeste may stay with the boy while he is nursing. Armed guards are to be with her around the clock. Regina is not to be anywhere near the child. I am this child’s father. Unwillingly albeit but not matter. He will not ascend the throne and I will have papers drawn up immediately binding his future. He is ward of the Crown.” Liam dismissed Bastien and the doctor. 

.

.

.

Six years had gone by. Liam became fond of the child. The child was the best kept secret in the palace. Celeste had remained living with the young boy in his quarters in the South Wing of the palace. She and Liam avoided each other. Liam fought the urge to wrap his hand around her throat and squeeze the life out of her every time he saw her. Leo was back living at the palace. He wasn’t the Leo Liam remembered. But he was getting better. 

Regina and Madeline had remained with Godfrey in England. Madeline was heartbroken when she was not the one to conceive Liam’s child. 

.

.

.

“Ready to go back to New York Li? I’m ready to partaayy before you get locked down for life? You’ll have to give up all the ladies you’ve been getting!” Maxwell squealed as they boarded the jet to Cordonia. One last hurrah before the social season began. 

Six years. Six years of fighting this hunger inside me. Maybe this trip I will give in. Maybe I can finally feel. He tried to satiate his needs with meaningless sex with hundreds of meaningless women. With these women he couldn’t let himself fully go. He had to control his need to rip the silky flesh from their bones every time they climaxed on him. Even multiple women at a time couldn’t bring him satisfaction. He needed a release. Six years of no release, it was becoming unbearable. Willing women weren’t enough. He needed to hear her scream. Her need for him. He needed to smell the coppery scent of her blood covering him. I can hear the demons inside, they’re telling me to let them out. They deserve to feel too. 

“I’m sorry I’m late, miss?….” 

“Riley. Riley Brooks.” 

Who is this beautiful blue eyed American? His cock twitched as he stared deep into the empty abyss of her eyes. Her eyes were identical to his. In that moment they both knew they would never let each other go. 

She would be his release. He would be her escape.

[notsoguiltykpop]

hEYO. just want you to know that you're my favourite fanficwriter out there and i really adore ur work. im just wondering if you have any tips for a new tumblerer (?) who wants to post what they write !!! im sry its rly late here so im getting a lil too energetic.

Hi! Aw thank you!! You’re so sweet!

As far as tips go, I’m not sure what to tell you. I’m just kind of a blob on the internet who’s figuring it out as they go along, but I’ll do my best! 

For me, sometimes I have to remind myself that I write for myself, otherwise it can get stressful. I love hearing other peoples opinions and feedback on the things that I write, but at the end of the day, I write stories for fun about things I like. It’s your blog, don’t worry about having to write a certain way or about certain things! It isn’t Eng101 where you have to fit criteria, do what makes you happy.

I’d say don’t worry about whether or not people like what you write, and write what you like, readers will come! While it might drive some of my readers a little crazy, I don’t worry about updating regularly either. Update when you can and have time, people are very understanding! That being said, some people write a chapter or two ahead of what they post, which I think can be a really good strategy! I don’t (bc I’m lazy) but it’s a good idea, especially if you do have an update schedule--that way, it gives you time to write while still updating in a timely fashion. A lot of readers like there to be a usual schedule (I do), but that doesn’t mean you need to have one (I don’t). It’s really just whatever you want to do!

Tags are really helpful for finding readers, and I find that the more specific (and concise) my tags are, the better. 

Proof reading is good (although I’m terrible at it) but don’t freak out if you post something and later realize there was a spelling mistake. Over time, you might find someone who wants to be your betareader, which can be really helpful! 

You’ll probably get some criticism (everyone does), but that’s not always a bad thing! Personally, when I’ve majorly fudged up the spelling of something, or written a sentence that simply does not make any sense whatsoever, I would prefer that people tell me! It can help a lot with growing as a writer--which is one of the main reasons I started this blog. Not only that, but I like to think that if I was to write something problematic, that my followers would talk to me about it and help me to fix and understand my mistake. I’d say be open to growing, but don’t take any of it personally. I misspelled “Ikea” recently, and when someone pointed it out at first I was like “how dumb can I be” but then I was really glad that they pointed it out (now I know how to spell it haha)! Don’t worry about things like that, everyone misspells stuff and makes grammatical errors (even my scary english professor). 

Some of the criticism might not be polite (and some of it might be downright rude), but I always try to remember that tone can be easily lost on the internet. Something that was meant as a joke can come across as rude, and sarcasm can be hard to spot. That being said, if someone is rude/disrespectful, you don’t have to put up with it. There is a block option for a reason, and while I haven’t had to use it yet (thankfully) a lot of people do. Generally, I’ve found that just talking to someone can clear the air--they’ll either tell you that what they meant wasn’t how it came across, or they’ll continue to be rude and you can block them.

If someone doesn’t like your writing, honestly it’s their problem, not yours. As I said, it’s your blog. Don’t let other people turn it into something that is stressful for you. I’ve seen it happen a lot, and it makes me sad to see that something so fun can turn into something so draining.

Take breaks from writing when you need to! I do all the time (haha... sorry). But seriously, even though I’m sure you already know this, make sure you take time for yourself and take care of yourself both mentally and physically. Your readers can and will wait. 

Tl;dr More than anything, the biggest thing I can tell you is don’t worry about it tbh. Go for it! And if you (or anyone else) have any more questions, I would love to answer them the best I can! I hope this was mildly helpful

Good luck with your writing, and I would love to read it when you post it!