#i love giving them very specific feedback and asking questions about their characters and stuff

[spiral-wizard]

my cousin has two 11 year old twin daughters and they are the coolest kids alive. they love dragons and warriorcats and stuff like that... i have a lil group chat with them where they send me stuff they're drawing and it's so awesome. yesterday one of them sent me a whole ass book she is writing, it's over 150 pages and i'm so stoked to read it!! leaders of tomorrow!!!!!!!

[nordidia]

Regardless of how much attention they got, what are three things you've written or drawn that you're most proud of?

oh i love this question...

so i think what i get most proud of are my long comics,, despite the drawings being simple, i think i put alot more effort into just finishing them than i do like. coloured pieces etc... doing full pieces is more leisure than struggling to finish a long ass comic yknow. especially if its mental health related, i put alot of effort into them

so i think the one im most proud of is the sunset duo comic about PTSD flashbacks the way i experience them.,. i never really saw people talk about how they are for me so i decided to do it myself

alot of people find comfort in it because they also have been longing for someone to talk about those kinds of flashbacks, where its not really pictures or specific memories, but more the feelings you felt during it. alot of people who have repressed memories have flashbacks this way it was very... cathargic. its the first thing that pops into my head when people ask about my emotion-comics. i think its my favorite

another one i really like is this one.

its my first deep comic like that, and it kinda kicked off something in me, knowing what i wanted to create. its kinda old now, and my art has evolved somewhat, ive been thinking of re-doing it sometime

alot of my comics that are like this are based on my own struggles, and i make them to deal with my own, hoping that posting them will make others feel less alone. i also base leo on my irl bff like 98% of the time, and this was one of them.

i think that it marks kind of "the first" of stuff that i've gotten feedback on that it has helped others, and looking back on it gives me alot of motivation to continue doing art

hmm third one i really love is this one, with april

i had this huge idea of going into detail about things, my own take on things. and i held that idea until i started drawing, and as i got to the end i realised: "wait.. i dont want to think about this. i dont want to have a take on someone's pointless suffering. i dont want him to have to remember it either. why do all comics have to elaborate on the struggling and then everything being okay? thats not how it works" and ended up completely re-writing it. i think it made it alot more in character too

at the time, i was in therapy. and we would often talk about what i do in my daily life and i would talk about the comics i make. and this was one she really liked hearing about, and she had a lot of praise for the way i ended it when i told her about my trail of thought

i hope this is comprehensible jdajkgfdsjk !!

i thinik. i like my art that includes leo .. is some of my favorite... i like writing him. he's very kind. he loves and respects raph alot, and i think he understands raph on a deeper level in some way. i cant explain it but. yueah!!! if i could have a fourth favorite it would be this one

[alienaiver]

Behind the scenes

the lovely @dira333 tagged me in this and its sooo fun!! the questions are so amazing and id like to give it my best with some in depth answers, since learning these facts about one of my favorite writers here was so fun !!!!! behind the scenes of writing is so good to share!!

Started writing: i think ive always been writing. i remember when we used to have one computer for the entire family in the early 00's and had little screentime, i set alarms to 4-5am (with no concept of what that Would Do To Me emotionally without sleep LMAO) JUST to get some time to write in peace. my first fanfictions i published was on a homemade forum page with a friend when i was 11!

Started blogging: ive had my tumblr since 2009-ish where ive been a rp'er over multiple times and published d gray man and no. 6 fanfictions in 2011-12ish. i was also active on livejournal before i found fanfiction.net !! but this specific blog was made in may 2021!!! the reader inserts came then :3

Followers: i actually JUST hit 300 two days ago!!! which is very exciting. i dont always look at the number, since it doesnt necessarily correlate with engangement, but its fun to see the uptick!!

Communication: i genuinely love love LOVE the social part of social media, and communications so important to me. theres nothing better than reblogs with comments you can bounce off of, asks, dm's and all that! sadly, my disability makes it so hard for me to have continuous contact and im 90% of the time the one to drop the ball when it comes to replying :(( thats why its extra important to me/special with the mutuals who keeps reaching out and dont have the same social expectations about replying. even if im unable to reply the day that i receive the message, it still brings great joy seeing the notif!

Likes: i dont mind them! generally its not that important to me whether or not my followers interact a lot. a like still means the world to me. of course a reblog is much better and engages so much more (+ boosts me!!), but theyre good for my soul, too!

Requests: i get very few requests :( i think i like them, but i havent gotten enough to actually get a feel on whether or not it kills my writing spirit? generally i get very excited to be able to deliver something and it gets me up from the bed to write, but i sometimes fear im not providing what they wanted! its anxiety-inducing in some ways, but i love a good little writing challenge !!

Writing: i loove love love love writing for hours at a time, hyperfixating on it. sadly, my cat snøfle is Very Jealous of both my laptop and pc. giving him a substitution sadly doesnt help</3 so my writing is often limited to specific times of day, and when he gets tired of my keyboard clack-clack-clacking, its time to put on some one piece while he naps on me! i wish i could write more works or just scenes on my phone, but it hurts my hands So Much, so i only write small one shots when im heavily inspired but snøfles in A Mood!!

genre wise im a fluffy type. maybe some hurt/comfort but always leaning towards comfort. id like to write more disability fics to spread both awareness and visibility, but i sometimes struggle with putting in my own disabilities and not make them too personal or too detailed for others to not relate. its an overthinking problem, so i often procrastinate writing them., bcos i fear itll be too niche! but i always get positive feedback (excpet for that one time with inked coffee lmao) so im not sure whats holding me back!!!

i always listen to music when i write, and it differs a lot. when i wrote the star and the earth i listened to a lot of medieval-inspired music, and made a specific playlist for that. but when i write on my modern au's or canon compliant bnha/haikyuu, anything goes!

i love putting in 'boring' every day stuff into my fics, or small scenes that dont necessarily advance the plot but just gives a feel of the characters.

speaking of snøfle ^ i am no longer allowed to write for the evening.... so ill start some apothecary diaries and enjoy a cold soda on this hot and humid evening !!! mwuah mwuah if u read this far thank you, and i love you. i love all of you <3333

no pressure tags as always but would love to hear the answers and get to know u all! @cup-of-fluff @true-deru @mirandabarma @illuminiscentboba @tetsuskei @threadbaresweater @krystalgaia @petriquors @ktsumu @moonbeamwritings @ohtokki

[slippinmickeys]

Hello I was wondering if you can give me advice to publish a Fic .. I am new on this and and I have no idea how this works or if I need to tag somebody... I also heard about beta's .. what Is a beta? Any feedback you can provide It will be much appreciated .. thanks!!

Hi! How cool that you have a story you’re willing to share. I’m so happy for you and those of us who’ll get to read it.

Before you publish, let me first answer your question about betas. A beta reader is kind of like an editor; it’s a person who reads your work before you publish it. Most betas will catch typos and grammar issues, as well as plot inconsistencies, etc. A good beta will point out instances when your characters are acting out of character, or when you’re not following canon (if you’re trying to follow canon). But fear not! Betas also highlight stuff they love and make you feel very warm and gooey. (There are also plenty of betas who will give you a read and just give you encouragement. When I beta — something I sadly rarely have the bandwidth for anymore — I tend to ask what kind of read the writer is looking for; deep dive pick-it-apart beta? feel good beta? typos only beta?) Beta readers are, in my opinion, absolutely essential to putting out good fic. And most of them are absolutely dear people who are only pointing out your mistakes because they want you to put out the best work possible. Don’t take anything personally. (A thick skin isn’t necessary, but helps.) If you don’t have a beta or two, get one. And if you don’t know where to find one and would like help, feel free to send me another ask, and I’ll reblog to help put out the call.

Now, onto your other question. How does publishing a fic work? I can only speak to how I do it, but goes a bit like this:

Once my story is finished and beta-ed, the first thing I do is publish it to AO3. (If you don’t have an account, get one! This process may take a few days.) I assume you read fic, so you’re familiar with tags, ratings, etc. Next is formatting. Use Rich Text rather than HTML (there are buttons at the top right). If you’re publishing from a Google doc, you will annoyingly need to remove extra spaces. You’ll get a feel for it.

Once it’s on AO3, I copy and paste from there to Tumblr. My advice is to use the desktop version rather than mobile—you won’t have to reformat. I don’t usually tag anyone, but blogs like @today-in-fic are great to get more eyes on your work.

From there I also post a link to the story on AO3 to Twitter, but that’s only because I have a fic/fandom specific account.

Let’s see, what else. I hope that was helpful. If you feel like I skipped steps or you’re more confused than when you started, I’m happy to clarify. Good luck and happy writing!

[angels-heap]

48, 69, 72, 74 for the fanfic writing asks ^^

[Questions from this post.]

48. Who is your favorite character to write for? Has this changed since you’ve started writing for that fandom?

I'd say I enjoy writing for Alyx and Barney more or less equally, but for different reasons. Writing Alyx feels more personally meaningful, but Barney's a little more fun (and arguably easier, since his speaking voice and mannerisms are more similar to my own). And despite the fact that I wrote that one Barney-centric fic back in 2012, I definitely did not (re)enter the HL fandom expecting to enjoy writing for him as much as I do now.

69. What are your favorite fics at the moment?

My AO3 bookmarks function as an eternal rec list, but if I have to be more specific, I recently re-read Promise by glitterbrain and it is still living rent-free in my brain. I also recently stumbled across About that Beer by Reiji_Neko_Mitsukai and I think it deserves a shoutout as well! We are so starved for long(-ish), character-focused, mostly gen HL fics that make adequate use of the more mind-bending aspects of canon, and this fic has all that and more.

72. What’s your favorite writing compliment you’ve gotten?

Hmm, I can think of quite a few that stand out in my memory, but all are equally cherished for very different reasons. <3 In general, it's wild (but very flattering) to hear that people still look forward to reading my new chapters/fics even though my updates have been inconsistent at best for the last few years. I also love when people say my writing made them cry. :)

(Now, on the other hand, if anyone wants to know about the worst feedback I've ever received on my writing, I have a very specific answer in mind.)

74. Do you have a fic you wish got a bit more love?

Yes, and I'm gonna cheat and give two answers for this one. As HL fics go, Deep One Perfect Morning is one of my favorites and I'm not sure why it never got as much love as my other freehoun stuff (not sexy enough, maybe?), so here it is if anyone wants to check it out.

I'm also very proud of Presque Vu (Disco Elysium), even though it was doomed to obscurity from day one for the crime of being a short gen fic with unappealing tags.

[chill-mcyt-art-reblogs]

💫🌻🌿🍉🎈💞🍭💎🎙️ (feel free to pick and choose!)

💫what is your favorite kind of comment/feedback?

honestly? Anything that'll let me infodump in response. When I can tell that someone was interested enough to ask a question. *especially* about ongoing fics.

Listen I could never write a mystery because the minute someone asked I'd tell them every plot twist and the bad guy's blood type.

and, of course, I love it when people leave essays in the comments. Like every other author.

🌻what makes you want to give up on writing? what makes you keep going?

I struggle with motivation. There's nothing more frustrating than *wanting* to do something, but your brain won't let you. You have you drag yourself kicking and screaming into something you *want* to do.... and after a while, it stops being fun.

The problem is, I really, *really* want to write. I literally think about my stories every single day. But sometimes there's nothing to do but relax, take it off my mind, and try my best the next day.

🌿how does creating make you feel?

it's a high. For writing at least. the rush of doing something I watched thousands of writers do since I was 12 and *I'm doing it.* Me. Little ol' me. *I'm* doing that. Forget kudos and comments and hits, the mere act of writing gives me a rush.

🍉in what ways has writing helped you process trauma and/or navigate through your own life?

It's served different purposes at different time. When I first hit the Rough Medical Times, it gave me something to do while on those long weeks of bedrest. I'm not joking when I say fanfiction saved at the very least my mental health.

Now it's more of a "no matter how bad it gets, you can get out. You can get your happy ending. Nothing's final for you." kind of thing.

🎈describe your style as a writer; is it fixed? does it change?

It changes all right. Depending on the story, my mood, what I read last - anything. Sometimes I feel more poetic, sometimes I feel more rough. I don't really think about it much, but it definitely happens.

💞what's the most important part of a story for you? the plot, the characters, the worldbuilding, the technical stuff (grammar etc), the figurative language

oh boy. I can't choose. I guess it would have to be grammer (for fanfiction only). Because I can read anything that scratches an itch AS LONG AS IT'S READABLE

🍭why did you start writing?

I've always been writing. I guess I just have a hard time finding specifically what I want to see.

💎why is writing important to you?

It's a lifestyle.

🎙️which one of your fics would you like someone to make a pod-fic of?

Published? I guess Sanctuary? Unpublished: the longsuffering untitled Phil-centric fic I'm so excited about

[space-specs]

I, T and X <333

Thanks for the ask bestie, this was very fun!!

I - Has tumblr caused you to stop liking any fandoms, if so, which and why

BBC Sherlock. I really wanted to watch this show when it was all over tumblr and all my friends were watching it back in like 2014, but I never got around to it. Eventually, people stepped back and were like "actually, so much about this show sucks so much", and I was just kinda glad I'd never actually watched it yet and now I won't. If I want Sherlock content, tbh, I'll probably just rewatch "Elementary, Dear Data" from Star Trek: TNG. Or finally finish the Enola Holmes stuff.

T - Do you have any hard and fast headcanons that you will die defending, about anything at all (gender identity, sexual or romantic orientation, extended family, sexual preferences like top/bottom/switch, relationship with poetry, seriously anything)

Duke Thomas cannot make direct eye contact with people. It gives him a splitting headache. Since eyes both absorb and reflect light, looking directly at someone's eyes creates a sort of feedback loop of light beams for him.

Cass is, in all actuality, older than Jason. However, because there is some ambiguity about her precise age, both of them frequently insist they are the older sibling of the two. They could very easily confirm who is older; they both refuse because they don't want to be wrong.

Steph is more of the common sense in the batfam than people give her credit for. Don't get me wrong, she is far from normal (she is vigilante, she grew up in Gotham), but she is the one with the wherewithal to, idk, solve her problems by actually talking to people. She's clever and witty and quick on her feet and actually some really good and really practical people skills.

Duke and Jason are both functionally immortal for different reasons. (Also, they are good brothers and DC needs to bring back the two of them getting to interact).

Tim doesn't call Bruce "dad" and probably never will. Not because he doesn't see Bruce as his parent, but because "dad" has some very complex connotations for him and he doesn't want to apply those to Bruce. More specifically, because good batdad is canon to me, Bruce is better than what "dad" means to him. (It’s also important to me that Jack does try to be a father to Tim and does love him. But loving your kid is not always enough. Sometimes you still hurt them).

There's definitely something I'm forgetting that I'm even more die hard about, but this is already more than I intended on writing for this one 😂 needless to say this is a fun question. (Also maybe putting this out will kickstart me writing the fics I have planned based on 3 of these)

X - top 5-10 characters who are yoUR PRECIOUS BABIES AND YOU WILL DIE DEFENDING THEM

Tried very hard not to just put every single batkid on this list but know that I would go to war for any of them I love them all so much.

In no particular order

1. Jason Todd -- listen, do I think his philosophy on crime should be applied to the real world? No, absolutely not. Has he done anything wrong ever? Also no.

2. Duke Thomas (bonus: the whole We Are Robin crew) -- if you hate Duke Thomas, meet me in Denny's parking lot. Something is clearly wrong with you and I will right it via blunt force trauma /j.

3. Tim Drake -- Catch me untangling the mess that is his fanon and canon characterizations and weaving a beautiful tapestry out of it. I see so many wrong interpretations about him and I am tired. Very carefully sorting out what should and shouldn't be kept from both fanon and canon every time I write him.

4. Cassandra Cain -- she has done nothing wrong ever and she deserves to be Batman. my favorite weirdgirl ever <3

5. Trevor Belmont -- my wife /p just introduced me to Castlevania and I did not expect to love it this much. Trevor is my babygirl and I would die for him.

6. Sypha -- I love her soooo much and I am dreading any potential romantic arcs to come about since she's the female lead because I really don't think she needs it. Please let her be cool af and single and not ruined in favor of the inevitable contrived romance, oh god.

7. Rise!Mikey -- I started my dive into tmnt content with Rise and then I tried to go back and watch 2012 because people said it was also good but they were so mean to Mikey 😭 I couldn't do it. He is like a squeaky toy to me.

8. Rise!Donnie -- I am captivated by his autism swag. Enough said. (Him and Mikey as a brother duo is so precious to me).

9. Razer -- Watch Green Lantern: The Animated Series if you haven't already. Do it. I promise you will not regret it. I won't say anything because spoilers but I have so much to say.

10. Talia al Ghul -- I am taking a knife to canon and carving out the parts I don't like because she is a good mom, goddammit!

Bonus: Koriand'r. I haven't read enough comics to know much about her, but I respect woman juice everyday for my favorite 6+ ft buff alien woman. (She should get to be huge and strong and I will fight for that).

[saby-chan]

So it happens that I am somewhat of a writer too and I’ve been thinking about something lately... Would you guys be interested in reading a Chichiya centric fanfic focusing on his life in the Borderlands before The Beach and the events of the manga/show (aka ante-Arisu timeline)? Cause I have this story I write for myself as a personal hobby of mine (I picked writing back up as a means to cope easier with stress during my mid-term exams this year and this fanfic turned into a project I am currently very dedicated to) and since I managed to complete the Prologue and up to chapter 5, I guess I could post it online if anyone would like to read it.

As a whole it would be like a spin-off of ‘What if AiB’s main character was Chishiya instead, the cynical man with no purpose in life?’, as he wanders these waste lands trying to find a way out, while he’s being pestered by the presence of another human being, whom Chishiya made the ‘mistake’ of saving their life in an extremely rare unusual moment of pity. Personality wise, I tried to combine TV-show!Chishiya with manga!Chishiya (with an additional touch of my own personal style of writing him that adds a little bit of spice) so I think he could come off as entertaining to the reader (Chishiya is my favorite part to write, ngl, trying to get into this man’s train of thought is a real experience).

For the sidekick part, it’s OC-based tho, so it won’t have reader insert, but the character I built specifically with Chishiya in mind to be complementary to his personality, meant to accompany him on his journey, could be relatable enough for the reader, for them to actually come to enjoy her (she’s not an idiot and if I were to compare her to a canon character, imagine a combination of Ippei’s pure hearted optimism and compassion towards humanity and selflessness and Urumi’s cunning skills of manipulation, although a bit toned down to fit a kinder person). She fits most criteria in this post, so for the people looking for something like this, I guess I got your back.

Genre wise there’ll be romance (coz I am a sucker for love stories and fluff and Chishiya needs a little bit of company in his life), but it’s very slow-burn (just to give ya’ll a mental image of what I mean, kissing won’t happen until like after page 180 or so), I also tried to add some action by creating my own games for them to partake in and, of course, there’ll also be comedy and fanservice too (a bit of everything I guess, but don’t expect much gore or detailed horror scenes).

So yeah, if anyone’s actually interested to read this thing, just let me know. This might not be the best way to describe and present the story concept to the public, since I suck at self-promoting my stuff, but I tried to add and summarize the general ideas. I’m still not sure if I should post it or not (hence this random post), but if there’s enough interest from others, I’ll post the prologue and chapter 1 as a test run, since I am open to feedback and opinions on the story. For anyone wanting to know any other details, my asks are a friendly open space for any and all questions (except hate, please don’t send any forms of hate).

Thanks for taking the time to read this post and let’s see what happens.

Yours, Saby

[birdmitosis]

You don't have to apologize at all! I just write a ton myself so I knew it'd end up being a long post 😂 And that's really sweet, I appreciate the feedback a lot! I love writing these characters so I'm glad that shines through <333

It makes sense that figuring out the player's actions and the decision-making processes is an enjoyable part of things! It can really give insight into the game for sure, so I'm glad you're getting that element translating for your friend!

Take the knife (essential)->ask all questions (hesitate?) ->try saving but doesn't bother to fully do it -> slay her (essential) ->persist (essential)

I won't lie, I'm always a little confused about how to get the Adversary vs. the Tower. I know some people say to get the Tower you give up during the fight, but sometimes there's actually no choice to make and she just gives you a complete beatdown and you can't really fight back and you get the Tower. I think there must be two main ways to get both of them, then... It seems like Adversary is if a)you let her know you're there to kill her but don't hesitate, or b)you choose to save her, then choose to slay her when the Narrator takes over and don't give up -- and then the Tower is if a)you hesitate before attacking her (drop the knife to talk etc.) then decide to slay her rather than try to save or leave her, or b)you choose to save her, then choose to slay her, then give up. I think. I'm going to have to do a bit of testing later... And yeah the more info I ended up getting on the mirror and the Voices and stuff the more I was like "...??" about how they work LOL. If you get the "A new and unending dawn, and everyone hates you" ending, Hero warns you that the other Voices are Not Happy with you and like straight up:

So like... They're definitely fully aware that you lied to them by this point and they've all been talking amongst each other without you knowing it somehow. I'm still not sure what to make it of it (except that "Voices get around." is VERY funny to me). Ohhh, I think I get what you mean by your question about what the Princess/Shifting Mound would be if we're in the mirror! Honestly, I am not a very visually-minded person (though I can fake it sometimes LOL) but I do love that water imagery due to the Shifting Mound talking in so much water imagery! I think imagery of us (the Protagonist and the Voices) as smaller "pieces" of something, and the Princess/Shifting Mound as water and/or hands putting it back together and holding us, but also the Long Quiet as something holding the Princess/Shifting Mound... That feels about right? I think? But I just really like your idea and think it would look incredibly cool and pretty! I'm always happy to talk about StP, and I'm enjoying our talk :D So any time! And also oh gosh, it is incredibly flattering that you'd want to draw anything from my fic!! 😭 There's nothing specific I can think of, I am mostly just blown away at the idea of any moments/scenes being drawn, aaahhhh 💖 Whatever you'd like to draw/end up drawing, I would love!

Quick question with a bit of spoilers for spectre route of stp:

And why?

[manonamora-if]

Supporting your IF Authors: A tutorial (?)

I had made a small tutorial back on @interact-if a few months ago. Here is the very extended version. Also this is a very long post.

Obviously, you are not forced to do every single one of those actions below (it would be hypocritical of me to say so), but it helps show the authors their readerbase care about their works. Most action only takes a few seconds to a couple of minutes.

Let me know if I forgot something or made a mistake!

Note: while this is specific to IF authors, it can also be applied to other creators.

TLDR: Engage with stuff you like. Lurking might be nice and easy for you but can be detrimental to your fav author. Sharing is caring, y'all! Also, please don't keep the base avatar, it makes us think you are a bot. Don't behave like a bot.

On this Hellsite.

Many ways to interact with the authors you follow. Some are very simple but not really effective. Others require a bit more effort but really goes a long way.

Likes

The easiest to do. Just one click on the heart.

Pros: - tells your fav author you like their stuff. - easiest thing to do. Cons: - It's pretty much just a bookmark function on this site. - The "algorithm" doesn't really care for it.

ALSO: don't feel weird about going through the archive and like old posts. You'll prob find some gems there. LIKING OLD CONTENT IS NOT CRINGY!!!

Reblog

Requires maybe 3 more clicks and some typing if you add comments/tags. Still relatively easy. Best way to share what you like to others. The only way a post appears on a dashboard.

Pros: - tells your fav author you like their stuff in a more ✨🌟personalised 🌟✨way. - helps their post travel this hellscape and reach other people who could like this content (see addendum at the end). - the "algorithm" likes it. - you can queue them for a later date/so you don't spam your followers. Cons: None (lol).

Notes: - do not reblog posts with a #don't reblog tag. - consider adding trigger warnings to your reblogs if the original one has some too. - TEMPLATE/ASSETS/RESSOURCE: always reblog those to help your neighbour. Who knows? One of your followers or your follower's followers might be looking for that. Also: good karma. - post doesn't fit your ✨aesthetic ✨? have a side-blog and put it there.

Asks

Needs a bit more effort. You need to think of words to write or picture to send. Also, can feel a bit nerve-wracking interacting with someone you look up to (they're like you, don't worry). But one of the most rewarding note for authors.

Pro: - you have a direct line of communication with the author, making it easy to ask questions, give feedback/comments. - you can positively impact their days with a few words. Yup. Seriously. - most authors really like asks, it's probably the most engaging response you can get from your readers. - you can asks stuff anonymously (unless the author has turned it off), we've all done it. Cons: - you need to think of words to say and muster the courage to press ask. - it might not available because other people abused it/were dicks in the author's dm.

Ask Etiquette/Advice

Be nice and respectful! Just because you have a direct/anonymous like to that author doesn't mean manners can be thrown out the window. They are like everyone: humans with feelings. Internet may make it difficult to see other people as... well people, but they are. Don't be a dick. A Hello or How are you? really goes a long way.

Ask questions about the project/process Interested in a particular part of the project or the authors' process? Ask about it! We love to talk about our projects and characters.

Feedback doesn't have to be complex/long. If you don't know how to put your feelings about their works into words, take a small aspect of the project and explain why it stuck with you. I really liked how you portrayed X's relationship with Y. That scene with Z made me feel V. Or you can be a bit more generic (still add a bit of yourself): Your writing is great! The UI is very pretty. The game is amazing.

Don't demand things. Duh. That's rude.

Don't spam. Even if they don't reply to your question right away. They may have a reason not to do it. Or they want to keep your post for just themselves. May be ok for positive ones (ask first).

Replies

This is fairly new on Tumblr (2021?). They're pretty much comments without rebloging. Great for giving feedback/sending love to a specific post.

Pro: - Yay engagement. - Another way to send your fav author love! Cons: - That's it. It's not visible unless you open the notes of a post. Unsure if it makes any difference in the algorithm. - it is not anonymous.

Other ways

A non-exhaustive list:

Create fan art : Always appreciated, we love to see your interpretation of our work and your OCs. Caveat: only if the author allows it. Ask the author if you are unsure.

Participate in Beta-Testing : Big part of IF it testing before release. Many authors will have a call for beta a few weeks/months. Consider rebloging that too.

Answer Poll/Feedback forms : Aside from Beta-testing, authors may post a poll or ask for feedback for a functionality/path. This is a great way for us to get direct responses. Consider rebloging that too.

Published Platform

There are many places where an author can publish their games. Below are the most used/known ones. You will require an account for most of those (it's worth it, I promise).

ITCH.IO

Itch has a lot of games.

A LOT of Games. To help your favourite game gain traction, you need to... engage with it! All ways are super easy and takes very little time too!

Play the Game

Duh. (Also I lied about the time it takes, that will depend on the game) Account not required.

Collection

You can add games/assets/whatever page on a collection (folder) to keep it as a to play later or share as a game you enjoyed. You can make those collections public and share it to the world!

To do that, click on Add to Collection (top left corner on laptop, bottom bar on mobile) and choose the collection you want.

Rate the Game

It's as easy as 1, 2, 3. Nope, not joking. 3 clicks and that's it. Ready?

Click on Rate this... on the top-left corner of the page.

Click on the amount of stars you want to give.

And click Submit.

Aaaaand that's it. Easy-peasy.

For Mobiles: the UI is a bit wonky and doesn't give you the option to rate a game. As such, you have 2 options:

put your phone in landscape mode: the feature will be at the top of the page (see below, I took a random game from the front page).

put the page in desktop mode (Chrome, Firefox) and follow the same description as above.

NOTE: This functions is not available if the game has been submitted to a Jam/Comp and said Jam is in its voting period! It will be available again when the ranking/votes have been released. If possible, consider voting for that game in the Jam/Comp as well.

Review the Game

Want to give your rating a bit more depth? Or you have a comment you want to give the author? Then add a review to your rating before clicking on Submit! Note: The review is only visible to the author.

Leave a Comment

You can leave a comment at the bottom of the game's page. Can be a few words, can be an essay, whatever floats your boat.

Don't know what to say? Take a small aspect of the game and explain why it stuck with you. EX: I really liked how you portrayed X's relationship with Y. That scene with Z made me feel V. The UI/Design is W.

Also, you get notified if the creator answers your comment!

Share the game

There is not specific button on itch to share a game. BUT: you can copy the page's link and paste it wherever you want to share the game! Easy-peasy!

Other ways

Follow the Author: to get updated on the game's process, bugs fixes or updates.

Like/Comment on/Share Devlogs: those logs have a Tab similar to the main page where the most popular ones are more visible. You can like the logs on that log's page or in your feed if you follow that author; share directly on twitter/facebook (or copy paste the link to whatever platform); or comment on the page (if available).

Interact in the Community tab: a.k.a. Itch's forum. Discuss, review or recommend games there!

CoG Forums

Specifically for CScript games posted on Dashingdon or posted through CoG/HostedGames. Used for feedback, coding questions, writing questions... for CScript games.

Authors can create threads where the game can be discussed by other users. The thread locks itself automatically after 60 days since the last comment or if the author requests it.

As far as I know (not my preferred platform tbh), there are no rating systems on CoG. Games with payable content can be rated on other platforms (can be seen at the bottom of the page).

IFDB/IF Community Forum

IFDB - Interactive Fiction DataBase

As the name implies, the website works as a sort of archive/database for IF works. There are over 11k games (ongoing/completed) listed. Reviewing and Commenting is fairly easy. You can also put a game on your wishlist or indicate whether you've played it.

Rating is a one click job: on the amount of stars you want to give. And that's it!

Reviewing looks a bit more complicated at first, but I promise it's not too hard! The review link will send you to another page, where you will be asked to enter your comments about the game, add a title and optionally tag it. When you are done, click on the preview button at the bottom of the page. You get to review how your comment will look before publishing it (see below)

You can also create polls or participate in one, join a club, browse other reviews and game listings, etc...

IF Community Forum

Very similar to the CoG forum, but is open to other programs (Twine, Inform, Renpy...) and all sorts of IF (text base, VN, parser...). You can find help for coding or writing, talk about games you like....

There are special categories to review IF games or recommend some to other users.

As with every Forum communities, please be mindful of the rules of said forum before posting!

Steam

Thank you @pomegranate-cuties for the reminder.

If a game is to be published on Steam, adding it to your wishlist will increase its visibility before and on release.

You have the possibility to:

leave reviews and comments (SUPER IMPORTANT)

post screenshot or fanart

create guides and walkthroughs for other users.

interact in the community tab

Other platforms

If the project is hosted on other platforms, simply check if their page allows for rating/review, and get cracking!

Other Non-Monetary Support

Share game with friends/other websites

Words-of-mouth is a great way to help a game get more attention. And if one person talks to another person who talks to another person... that's already 3 more players right there :D

Talk about your favourite IF with your friends, or family. Mention it to acquaintances or people who you think might enjoy it.

If you'd rather avoid sharing your love to people you know IRL, you can always post about it on other platforms than the ones above. Talk about the game on websites like Reddit (there are IF communities there, albeit not very large), Twitter (if it survives, lol), Discord Servers, Forums, etc...

Obviously, don't spam people. That might reflect badly on the author.

Do Streaming Parties!

This comes with the caveat of: with the permission of the author.

Doing Let's Plays of games or discussing IF works on streams might be another good way to introduce more people to games you enjoy. This can give a different life to the work, especially if you actually read the text aloud and do voices. This way it can let the work even speak for itself.

Platforms like YouTube or Twitch are relatively helpful to set streaming up. Though you may require some specific hardware to run it.

If you plan on streaming a game, do ask the author beforehand.

Monetary support

If you can afford it or if your budget allows it, you can consider supporting your favourite author(s) with real money! You may get extra content or special features (ex: alpha release) for doing so.

Below are a few ways I've seen being used, but the best way is to follow the author's links/preferrence.

Tumblr: Tips/Subscriptions

This is a new functionality (2022), where you can now subscribe or tip a creator for their posts.

Note: Tumblr takes 5% commission on subscription but 0% on tips.

Patreon/Tipee

I think everyone knows about Pateron by now. Tipee if the European version of Patreon. They work the same way.

Note: Patreon charged your account when you sign up and on the 1st of every month + takes 9-12% commission on monthly income. Tipee is 8%.

Kofi

Another tipping platform (with less fees for the creator). Also used often for commissions.

Note: Kofi takes 0% to 5% commission + 3-4% from the payment processor.

Paypal/CashApp/Venmo/etc...

Another way to tip your author or pay for commission. Commission depends per platform.

Pay as you want/Donation Button Itch

Some authors have left the option to pay as much as you want or have a donation button on their game's page. You can donate/pay for the game this was as well!

Note: Itch takes a 10% commission on each sale EXCEPT on Creator's day (2/3 times a year).

ADDENDUM

Reblog posts to make them travel.

The images above are the Reblog Graph (Tumblr Lab Function), that shows part of the 100-ish reblog the intro post for my game @crimsonroseandwhitelily got since last year (original is the small red dot) and the one for the 80-ish reblogs of this post as of this edit (22 Aug 2022).

In the first one: there are a few branches that made that post travel and reach users who do not follow me but may have read the post and played the game. In the second, even if it has less reblogs, it has longer branches, showing how much it has travelled on this website. Note: a shame they don't have a function with likes too... That'd be useful.

[iztopher]

9, 18, 21 (about whichever current game you wanna talk about), 30!

9. If you could change something about the RPG Maker engine, what would it be? Mostly it depends on the engine specifically - there's a lot of aspects about, say, XP, that I would love to see in later engines, or from 2003 and VX that I wish they didn't skip over for XP, etc.

As for overall... the later engines have done (depending on specifics) better about this with in-engine character generators, but I wish the default character graphics were less stereotypical. Most of the characters are pale, female characters have skimpier art, the faceset generators have very standardized faces and are needlessly gender-locked (and then are terrified of letting you make a girl that isnt Adorable or Gorgeous), and all of the sprites have the same body type, even in engines that have big enough graphics where they could really start to embrace variety and have a little more variety in stuff like height & weight distribution.

18. Which game mechanic do you think more devs should add to their own projects? DANGEROUS QUESTION to ask considering you live with me gdfjkgfldfkl Let people save whenever they want I beg you. It is a default option I do not understand why people are so obsessed with turning it off. It is so stressful and difficult for me to find space to play a game that doesn't let me free save, I almost never end up finishing them.

21. Why did you start this project? Inn Need: Game jam! I don't remember if it was Tei or Ji's idea originally, but it definitely was not mine XD It's a fantastic one, though!

away in the woods: I'm not out as aromantic in my broader life, and when I was younger the best expression I had of those feelings was not wanting in a relationship. But I now I am in a wonderful relationship I enjoy very much <3 but giving up the "I'm going to grow up to live by myself and never date anyone!" made me... really sad, because it felt like giving up an aspect of my identity that I couldn't otherwise articulate. So I decided to make a game based on it instead.

30. What kind of feedback is most helpful for you? I love when people tell me their favorite parts of something, how long something took them, and if they found anything frustrating or unclear!

[byliever]

Tbh, I kinda want you to answer all 20 questions 🤪 fellow writer always fascinate me

This has been sitting in my inbox for a while lmao

TJ, I love you, but there is no way in hell I'm answering every question. That's a LOT.

So, here's how I'll do this: I'll use an online random number generator to choose seven (cuz Byler) at random.

Let's begin.

What's a fic that took you to an emotional/dark/hard place? (#2)

I've had a couple. I've already talked about Snapshots in another ask. Desiderium was another. I wrote it and posted it on my dad's birthday, and so a lot of Mike's feelings and struggles with grieving Ted in that fic was self-projection (as are most of my fics lol). I even gave Ted the same birthday as him.

What fic are you emotionally attached to? (#3)

That's like asking a parent to choose their favorite child lmao. When you create something, you leave a piece of yourself behind in it. That's why there's so much you can tell about a person based on their creations.

Choosing one is physically painful lol

But if I had to choose one...

Orientation. It's the fic I wrote for Mike's birthday (which is also mine. How cool is that?!), so it's very Mike-focused. It's also marked by two significant (to me) "firsts."

It's the first time I included an appearance by Hopper, my favorite of the adult characters. I was so anxious to write him. What if I messed it up??!! But I seemed to have done an okay job, based on peoples' reactions.

It was also the first time I fully acknowledged to myself that if I wanted to continue telling the stories I wanted to tell, I had to alter canon. Up until Orientation, I had always had the thought in my mind that, in order for this to continue, I had to make a decision when it came to how I dealt with the ramifications of Season 3, namely the Byers moving and Hopper's "death".

So I just decided to say, "to hell with that." So, Hopper didn't "die" and the Byers didn't move. The Battle of Starcourt is still a pivotal event, trust me, without having the effect of essentially tearing the group asunder.

Orientation was the first time I dived into the directly post-Season 3 era, and I'm happy with it.

What fic of your own won't you read? (#5)

Ghosts. It's my second story and it's an absolute piece of shit. If I could delete one of my stories, it would be that one. I keep it up to remind myself of what happens when I try to work myself past burnout.

If you feel like suffering through an absolute literary abomination, give it a glance over.

What’s the best engagement/interaction/feedback you’ve received from someone who’s read your work? (#17)

I love and adore and want to frame every comment I ever get on a story. Every time someone goes out of their way to say that they liked a certain part or that reading a fic brightened up their day, I feel extremely happy.

I received an anonymous ask a while back from someone who told me that they were in a dark place and were feeling down that night, so they decided to read a couple of my stories, which made them feel a lot better.

That's the type of interactions I love. Writing my fics have gotten me through some really bad times, so if reading stuff I made helps someone through a struggle, that's the highest compliment.

Does anyone in your personal life know you write fics? if not, would you tell anyone? (#8)

Outside my family, nobody knows I write fics. By family, I mean my younger sister and my mother. Of the two of them, only my sister knows that it's specifically Byler fanfiction that I write, and neither of them have read any of my stories (and if I have anything to say about it, they never will lol).

What fic of your own do you read for comfort? (#4)

Rainbows and Revelations. That fic is pretty much pure fluff from start to finish, and it holds a very special place in my heart.

If you could write an ideal fic, what would it include? (#19)

See, this is an interesting question for me, but at the same time, I feel like it doesn't really apply to me.

All of the stories I've written are "ideal fics" for me.

That being said, there are two criteria that every fic I've written (and will write) must fit.

1.) It must have a happy ending. Call me a sissy, a sap, whatever. I don't care. I write married Byler. Part of that package is that you're acknowledging that, despite all the shit the characters have gone through or are going through at the moment, eventually, it ends. Eventually, there is peace. These characters do someday get to live out their lives undisturbed by supernatural bullshit. And so I always end on a happy note. I feel like lots of people (myself included) forget it too often, despite the fact that history (which is a collection of stories that remind us who we are) is always reminding us, but I want my stories to illustrate that basic truth: in the end, light/good always triumphs over darkness/evil. It may take a while to get there, but it will happen eventually.

2.) People need to learn something. If nobody is learning something and changing, there's no point to the fic at all. Whether that's Jonas and Maia learning how to word the ideal apology, or Max learning how to open up to and rely on people, somebody has to be learning and changing and growing. There has to be growth.

Whew! That was a lot of typing!

Thanks for the ask, TJ! You're the best!

[ecto-american]

4 and 5 for the ask game!!!

Fanfic ask game

4. Are there any writers that inspire you?

There are sooo many that inspire me. If you wrote a thing that I liked, you basically inspired me. But some specific people for specific reasons:

@darthfrodophantom was like the first author I ever personally read that had like deep ideas and headcanons and interpretation of canon. They had a lot of great ideas, and it was one of those that encouraged me to think deeper about what potential moments in canon had. I also remember essentially ripping off some moments of their stories as a kid (sorry!) because I just thought those moments were SO cool and interesting, and I wanted to explore those concepts myself.

@currentlylurking because we had just talked a lot, they were one of the few people I talked to semi regularly in earlier phandom times. For those who don’t know, I was mostly a phandom hermit who kept to myself until almost 2019, didn’t message or talk much to others (in part due to being shy, another part due to bullying, but mostly just the autism making me unsure of how to really approach anybody), and they were another person who had great ideas and concepts.

@kinglazrus because the quality of writing is SO good. Very distinctive writing style with a lot of just perfect tones and well written moments. One of those people that I’m convinced can write even the eyerollingly dumb prompts into something really moving and special that people won’t forget. Just has such a way of leaving a huge impact even if only using a small handful of words.

@sailor-toni because she’s just a really good editor. I’ve only read a handful of her stuff but as an editor, I’ve always seen her give really good, constructive, thoughtful and solid feedback and editing. Always seems to have really good resources or tips for anything ranging from being stuck to obscure facts needed. It’s really inspiring and cool to see somebody always so willing to put their whole heart into editing.

@ghostgothgeek is a very great motivator and is really good at dissecting women characters. As in, very good at giving life to women characters that aren’t Valerie and giving them a really good story. I feel like the phandom has a lot of issues related to sexism and not focusing much on women characters outside of Valerie, but I’ve seen a lot of it and double standards being called out by her.

@wastefulreverie give me your fucking ability to not only post a lot of content, but a lot of really good content that’s well written and has a lot of beautiful charm to it. Another person with a really unique style and great ideas.

5. What’s the fic you’re most proud of?

Definitely Broken Ectoplasm. It feels the most well thought out. I feel really proud that I was able to, in my opinion, provide a very realistic situation where Danny would be exposed to his parents (as I don’t believe Danny would really be opening to voluntarily tell them) and having Jack and Maddie experience realistic human emotions about this reveal, it not leaning into immediate unwavering acceptance but also not dissection rejection. They’re scared and confused and have no answers to the big questions and concerns they have, like “is Danny evil? Did he really do all those terrible things?” and “is this all my fault?”, but they ultimately love Danny more than anything and have guilt for how they treated him.

[gedankenspaziergang]

Diversmagazin Interview  Translation

Diversmagazin released an interview with director Sarah Blaßkiewitz and Head-Writer Jasmina Wesolowski today. Read it here in German.

Jasmina (she/her), DRUCK writer since season four and head writer since season six together with Jonas Lindt. In a writers Room with Paulina Lorenz and Raquel Kishori Dukpa (Jünglinge)

Sarah (she/her) director of the last four episodes from season six

I’m leaving out the general introductory questions.

Alicia: Can you talk about the writing process? And what’s the most important thing for you while writing and telling stories?

Jasmina: We especially wanted the profound exchange with young adults who represent our protagonists. For season six we had the challenge that we wanted to tell the lovestory of a Gambian-German girl and a Vietnamese-German girl, perspectives that aren’t represented in the writer’s room. That’s why we talked a lot to research partners, to make up for our lack of knowledge/ experience, but we also talked to the actors and actresses.

Alicia: Why do different directors work on DRUCK?

Sarah: We try to produce as much in real-time as possible. And of course, we have to pre-produce but still have to work [overlappingly]. While one director is already in the editing phase, the next one already starts to shoot. Another reason is of course, that this way, also in the writer’s room, there’s more space for diversity.

 Alicia: It’s similar to the writer’s room. You’re also dividing the writing of scenes between different people. … Are you working together with racism and LGBTQIA+ experts?

Jasmina: I think we all have blind spots and that it’s absolutely impossible to end up with a perfect result. It was an important first step, that the Jünglinge collective joined. They are big advocates for queer BIPoc representation in German media. They were always present for feedback loops and made all of us, crew, actors and actresses, participate in an anti-racism workshop. We were lucky to have the brilliant author and anti-racism trainer Arpana Berndt, who advised us on these topics. On top of that, we did a lot of research on different topics. I think now it should be the only way to produce movies and shows this way, with an intensive research phase. This way you don’t appropriate the stories of others and also don’t tell inauthentic stories or, in the worst case, use hurtful clichés/stereotypes. It was helpful and needed that Black perspectives were present also behind the camera – Sara as a director, but also in the social media team, make-up department or costume design. But we are also aware that more can be done.

Sarah: It’s important to me to highlight the make-up and costume design department. When I, an afro-German person, joined this project and met other afro-German women in those departments, who can relate to me, the character of Fatou and Ava, I was really glad. I can say from many years of experience that that’s not a given.

 Alicia: How about experts on LGBTQIA+ issues?

Jasmina: To talk a bit about the process: We were set on Fatou being a lesbian pretty early on, and that was already discussed in the earlier writer’s room, where that perspective wasn’t present yet. In the beginning, those were loose ideas, and we had to implement them with the casting. The casting team Raquel Kishori Dupka, Melek Yaparak and Angelika Buschina worked closely with the directors and contacted different institutions and specifically asked for actors and actresses who could be queer. At this age this is of course a super sensitive topic. You don’t want to force young people to [define themselves/come out]. It’s a huge challenge to handle that with care and it was extremely important that the Jünglinge collective was part of the casting process.

But also, apart from the casting process, we profited a lot from the queer people in the writer’s room in the cast.

Sarah: For my part I asked the authors and queer people “What would you like? What is nice? What hurts? What’s important? Or what have I never seen before?” And then I put those different experiences into the different scenes. On top you of course need common sense (?) to portray something that you haven’t experienced yourself.

 Jasmin: I just thought of a small really beautiful example: How Fatou was given these rainbow socks as a Christmas present. You immediately notice, that was the idea of a queer person who knows what non-queer parents give to their kids as gifts. The fans notice: Queer people were in the writer’s room. Or “Ah, these actresses know, what they’re doing.“ And those are the small things that make a difference.

 Alicia: For sure! In DRUCK you notice that queer people were part of this in really subtle ways, and that [resulted] in really nice fan-moments. I can confirm that.

Right now, the community is discussing the conflict between Mailin and Ava a lot. What role does that conflict play for you and what does it teach us?

 Sarah: I’m editing the last episodes right now, so I really feel it, also because you already see the reactions online.

For me, the conflict is important because it shows over a long period of time, that not everything is always only good or only bad. That it takes a lot of time, patience and confrontation to understand all nuances of that kind of conflict.

That Ava could be prevented to outright say what’s bothering her, because we’re talking about a really serious trauma of exclusion. How do you even tell people really personal stuff when you were bullied for years? And now we have that conflict, that seemingly takes forever, and you’re always asking yourself: “Why aren’t they talking to each other?” But it’s only in real time that you realize how hurtful this conflict is. How hurtful it is what they experience. What racism means, and also what it means to [deal] with that topic as a white  German girl. And I think it’s really important that everyone is going through that with this season. That takes time and sometimes hurts. And you don’t always understand Ava and you don’t always understand Mailin. When we really [dedicate ourselves to understand this conflict] then I think, we can experience what for example a person like me experienced their whole adolescence. I’m not saying I was bullied my whole adolescence, and maybe it wasn’t because of the color of my skin, but because of something else. But that went on for half a year. After being bullied in school for half a year you’re not up for school and your classmates anymore. And you don’t talk to them anymore. And if people realize that because of this season then I’m glad. I think it’s really touching that this conflict takes up so much space.

 Jasmina: I found it really interesting what you said about the nuances, because it was a real process for me to learn how many facets this conflict has. And especially that us white people, who grow up in a society with structural racism, have a particular idea about what racism means. And that’s not a detailed and uncritical perspective of that topic: As soon as you call me racist, I feel attacked and start defending myself.

The role that this conflict played for us was to show how incredibly exhausting it is as a Person of Color, to always have to deal with these problems and that there’s a kind of fatigue, that you don’t want to talk (or should want to talk) about certain topics anymore, especially if you have other things going on in your life on top of it.

On the other hand, we have Mailin, who has a strong desire to understand. She’s not aware of her privileges as a white girl. We want to take this journey together, when she starts to realize things and when she goes through different stages; until she understands, what it is really about. We also have an arc there that isn’t finished. Because in real life, you have to deal with some topics over and over again. We think it’s especially important to show that it’s not the job of Black people to explain racism to their white  friends. By now, they have all the resources to educate themselves and to talk with other white people about this topic, to unburden Black people.

 Alicia: That’s really interesting! The lovestory of Kieu My and Fatou is an important part of season six, which many queer young adults love. How is the relationship between Fatou and Kieu My representative for a generation?

Sarah: I can actually also see it in an older generation. When I send the cuddle clip of Kieu My and Fatou to my grandpa, he says “Wow, how amazing that a Viet-German and a Afro-German girl are lying in bed together, talk in German and are in a relationship.” This generation hopefully isn’t alone anymore, for example in the sense of: being the only Afro-German person in a small city. That changed and now we see it in that second and third generation. And that’s why it shows me something very real and beautiful.

 Alicia: Which scene are you really proud of and why?

Sarah: My favorite scene, and one I’m really proud of and that was really important concerning the pressure of school, was with the main character Fatou. It’s about a path of finding yourself from Fatou and a [Reinigungsmoment] with her brother. Two people, who know each other from the moment of their birth, are sitting together. When I read that scene I thought yes, I can relate, I can feel that, and when we shot that, a world opened for me. And that was partly because of the music, which was decided before we shot this scene. Then we shot it and it was fucking cold, but we shot it again and again but every time we really felt it like the first time. And when I now watch that scene while editing, it really is the perfect moment. Every facial expression is perfect, every reaction. And that’s that kind of truthful (?) moment you’re looking for as an actor, actress, director or author. When everything fits.

 (There’s a script for every social media part, What’s App Chats and ideas for social media stories. )

 Alicia: When can we expect the next season and what will it be about?

Jasmina: For now, DRUCK is finished and we have to wait how it will continue. Fingers are crossed and of course we’re hoping for a new season.

[Note by me: We‘re not gonna spiral, Jünglinge looked for more writers, Black writers, on facebook a while ago. Nothing is safe but they probably don’t want to make any promises]

[annab-nana]

Is There Something There - Tom Holland

During an interview that you were doing with Tom for Endgame press, some of the questions catch you both off guard and one leads to you two talking about something you’ve both been feeling about each other.

A/N: I’m going to be honest. I don’t really like this one because I already feel like I use a lot of dialogue as a writer and this is an interview so there is a lot of dialogue, but I also like the story here so that why I decided to post it. Also, it’s my first Tom fic so I hope you all enjoy and feedback is greatly appreciated!

Warnings: some curse words

Word Count: 4.1k+  

--------------------------------------------------

“I can’t believe you didn’t know who Obadiah Stane was,” you giggled with Tom as you two left the room you had just been in doing an interview to head to another one in a few minutes.

“He asked what an Obadiah Stane was, so I thought it was a thing, not a person,” he defended, his smile stretching as his words brought you more laughter.

“I’m sure Robert would love to know that his little buddy didn’t even know the name of the villain in the first Iron Man movie,” you teased Tom while he chuckled along with you. “But I will give you the infinity stones question. All I could remember was the reality stone and the time stone, but you rattled off the first five in a matter of seconds and then the last one came to your mind shortly after. It was impressive.”

“Thank you, thank you,” he stated sarcastically with a bow and a tip of his head. “You know what was funny? When you said Sebastian would be a bad baby name. That was hilarious,” he brought up before dying of laughter again at the joke you made earlier in the interview.

“Yeah, and I can guarantee you that he said my name too when they asked him which MCU name would be the worst as well,” you told him while laughing along with him.

“This is it I think,” the man who had been leading you to your next interview announced to you both before opening the door.

“Ladies first,” Tom said to you while holding a hand out to show you the way. You playfully rolled your eyes at the dork you had been paired with for the day as you walked into the room.

It was no secret that Tom Holland could not keep his mouth shut when he needed to. He just gets too excited and has to tell someone. He along with Ruffalo were terrible secret keepers and when it came to interviews, they had to do them with someone who could pay attention to them and catch them before they slip up. Benedict got paired with Mark and you obviously were with Tom.

“Good morning you two! I imagine you both have been very busy today,” the woman who would be conducting the interview asked when you and Tom walked over to her and got settled in your spots on the couch after you each shook her hand.

“Yes ma’am, we have been busy, but it has been loads of fun I would say,” Tom responded first while he got comfortable on the couch and stretched his arm to lay against the back of it before you nodded your head in agreement at his previous statement.

“Super fun especially since we get to do it together,” you spoke to the lady before meeting the dashing brown eyes of your partner for the day.

“She’s just saying that because she has to be with me. She actually hates me,” Tom teased while you rolled your eyes at him.

“I do not hate him. Does he get a little aggravating from time to time? Yeah, but I don’t hate him,” you played along with the boy’s joke as he chuckled lightly at you.

“Wait, y/n has to be with you, Tom?” the interviewer inquired, her eyebrows drawing together in confusion as to why you were forced to be with him. She probably thought it was a little weird that you, the actress who plays Guardian of the Galaxy Willa Adler, and Tom, the actor of Peter Parker who was also known as Spider-Man, were doing press for Endgame together. If she saw Infinity War, she knew you were both onscreen together a good bit in that movie, but still she most likely was wondering why you were not doing interviews with Chris Pratt like you normally were since he played your older brother figure in the past few Marvel films you have done.

“Well, yeah, someone has to be with me because I can’t keep my mouth shut and y/n is good at telling when I’m about to say something I shouldn’t, so she is here to help me not spill the beans on anything,” Tom laughed while a slight blush of embarrassment dusted across his cheeks.

“Yeah, I have been told I’m good at reading people and we’ve become really good friends lately, so I guess I better at reading him than some of the others. I don’t know. I think it’s funny that he has to be with someone, or he’ll spill all the information on everything,” you giggled as you responded to the question too.

“Oh well, I guess it’s good you two have been paired together and later on I’ll have some questions specifically for the both of you. Anyway, I spoke with Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan and that pair,” she paused for a chuckle, “They like to tease you two, don’t they?” As soon as she mentioned their names, you both knew where the question was headed and you and Tom both nodded towards the woman.

“Yeah, we have quite the rivalry with those two, don’t we?” Tom led the answer for you to continue.

“Yes, but it’s all out of love,” you reassured the interviewer while you all shared a laugh.

“It’s all love, for sure. I think it’s because we are the youngest and easiest to pick on because we take the jokes well and we’ll shoot them right back. I find it funny how it's them against us. We will tease them and they’ll tease us, but at the same time, we split it up and it’ll be me and Mackie going at each other, and y/n and Stan will pick on each other quite a bit. It’s like the big brothers teasing their younger siblings and they each have their favorite one to pick on. I love it. I find it so hilarious,” Tom told the woman, a chuckle falling past his lips.

“Especially the juice box joke,” you laughed. “That one is my favorite.”

“Juice box joke?” she asked, her emerald eyes dancing between you and Tom while you both wore huge smiles on your faces from all the laughing you both had been doing.

“Yeah, Mackie likes to joke and say that ‘I need my juice boxes or I’ll go crazy without them’ that I need the sugar or something,” Tom expressed using air quotes with his fingers to show Anthony’s words. “They say I need juice boxes and y/n needs water bottles.”

“Why’s that?” the lady quizzed at the second part of his sentence as a light laugh escaped her mouth. You audibly groaned, knowing which story was about to come up next.

“She forgets to drink water sometimes and then she’ll get dehydrated and when we’re shooting harder scenes or if there’s a lot of light on her and it gets hot, then it doesn’t end well,” Tom told the interviewer honestly before she looked to you to continue or confirm his statements.

“It was one time and I just forget to drink water sometimes. I’m okay,” you reassured before taking a sip of water from the glass next to you.

“One time?” the blonde woman inquired further. You loved doing these interviews, but at times the people conducting them tended to be a little pushy and don’t pick up on the hint that you don’t want to share this story. You knew she wasn’t going to give so you spoke.  

“Tell the story, Tom,” you instructed with a sigh before turning in your chair to face him better. His hand still rested on the back of the couch behind you and he brought it down slightly to rub at the top of your back and play with your hair a little, a friendly and comforting gesture that you were very thankful for at the moment as he was about to share one of your more embarrassing experiences.

“Okay, so you know that scene in Infinity War where the Guardians, Strange, Tony, and I are in that spaceship and the Guardians are coming at us because they think we’re with Thanos?” When she nods her head, Tom continues with the story.

“Well, that particular day, y/n forgot to drink basically anything and in the makeup and suits and stuff, it gets really hot. It’s the scene where Willa has Peter Parker in a chokehold and Peter Quill has a gun to my head. So, when we were shooting that, y/n has her arms around my neck, not tightly obviously. She’s not actually trying to choke me, but you can feel it, you know. So, as I said, she wasn’t holding me tightly, but I felt her arms loosen from around me before she was supposed to, and she leaned against me a little.” The interviewer let out a slight gasp before looking at you and you nodded towards her, letting her know his words were true.

“I turned my head and asked her if she was okay, but she just nodded her head. She didn’t say anything, just nodded her head, and right then I knew something was wrong just by looking at her. I turned around and grabbed her before she fell and sat down with her. Chris came as well and was checking on her while Benedict and Robert went to get help and some water. But we got her some water, and she was good to go shortly after.”

“That must’ve been scary for the both of you,” she commented while her widened eyes jumped from yours to the set of honey brown ones to your left.

“It was honestly one of the scariest days on set for me,” Tom added before looking to you, his fingers still switching from rubbing small circles into your neck and twirling your hair between them.

“I was in and out of it, so I don’t remember much. All I remember is leaning against him and him helping me down. It was more embarrassing to me and I hate thinking about it, but now I will never get to forget about it because Anthony and Seb won’t ever let me live it down,” you told the woman with a small laugh which she joined in on along with Tom.

“Your characters both have this relationship with someone older than you that you look up to, Peter Parker with Tony Stark and Willa Adler with Peter Quill. How was it for you both to do your death scene in Infinity War with those people?” she asked you and Tom. Tom looked to you for you to start off the question so you do.

“Both Willa and Peter have had it rough as far as a mentor or someone who can really help guide them in life because they keep losing them. Peter lost his parents when he was younger, then his uncle, and then he disintegrates in Tony’s arms. Willa lost a lot of people in a short amount of time. Quill and Willa were both taken by Yondu at different times for their own good to save them from their terrible fathers, so she didn’t have anyone to look up to on Earth. Then she lost Yondu and feared she lost Quill when things with Ego went down. Then in Infinity War when they are all trying to take the gauntlet off Thanos, she finds out that she lost Gamora, the only girl Willa has ever had by her side, so that breaks her even further. Then after the snap, she watches all of her found family turn to dust around her. She watches Quill turn to ashes right before she can get to him and then she tries to run to Nebula who is the only person she has left before she goes with the rest of them. Right after that, we watch Peter and Tony hold each other and Peter goes so the scene overall is a terribly sad one. It took a lot of emotion for both of us I think.”

“Yeah, like she said, both of them have experienced great loss. Peter is a little more used to it while Willa loses someone before she’s done grieving the last person she lost. She definitely had to put a lot more emotion into it, but Willa is also the kind of person who holds her emotions in. You can see in that scene she was talking about, Willa tried to hold it in when she found out about Gamora but started to break down as she saw everyone she loved dissipate into nothing. Peter was emotional of course and he didn’t want to go like he just saw everyone around him do but at least he went out in the arms of someone he loves and looks up to a lot,” Tom added to your explanation with his own.

“I would say that scene after the snap with you two is the saddest in my opinion. So, to lighten the mood a little, there is a lot of talk about the family feel that the cast has, and the people wanted to know if that is true?” she asked as she flipped through her cards.

“Yes!” you immediately agreed.

“Of course, we all get along and it is super fun especially in films like these where we get to be together. Peter got to be with Iron Man, Doctor Strange, and the Guardians of the Galaxy and it was amazing filming with everybody. I loved it, didn’t you?” Tom pushed the question over to you.

“Yeah, it was super fun. I always get to film with a large group of people, but I got to film with Chris Hemsworth and then later on with RDJ and Benedict and Tom. It was great to work with so many amazing people,” you commented while you shifted in your seat a little, trying to get comfortable again.

“Mackie and Stan are like our annoying older brothers as I said earlier,” Tom mentioned with a light chuckle.

“Yeah,” you giggled before continuing with his analogy. “RDJ, Evans, and Hemsworth are like the fathers, the founding fathers really since they’ve been there since the beginning. Umm, Pratt and Rudd are the funny uncles. Elizabeth, Zoe, Karen, Scarlett, and Danai are the cool aunts. And then you’ve got people like Benedict, Chadwick, Pom, Letitia, and Tom who are absolute sweethearts. Everyone is just super cool and fun and sweet, and we couldn’t ask for a better group of people to work with.” The lady awed at your words while Tom’s eyes softened at them.

“That was really sweet, y/n, and you are amazing to work with as well,” he grinned as he spoke which you returned him on as well while you nodded at him. His hand shifted down to your shoulder and he kept it there, something you didn’t mind at all. “Everything she said was spot on and everyone we get the opportunity to work with is awesome and they’re great people. I couldn’t have said it better myself.”

“Do you think your characters will appear onscreen together in the future?” the interviewer questioned before she looked up from her card to the both of you.

“Um, I’ll take this one,” you said to both of them, but mainly to Tom so he knew he wouldn’t have to add anything or spoil anything without knowing it. “So, Peter normally protects Queens, and Willa’s territory is all of outer space. In Infinity War, you saw that Peter’s experience in space wasn’t the best and Willa had a terrible life on Earth though she didn’t know it at the time because she was so young when Yondu took her. I don’t see them crossing paths again in the future if everything gets ‘fixed’ like everyone is hoping for, but if another space titan comes to destroy half of all living things or something big like that, then yeah maybe you’d see Willa and Peter onscreen again, but I don’t think it is likely,” you told the woman as she nodded her head.

“Marvel is full of surprises though, so you never know what is going to happen,” Tom added, earning a laugh from you since you knew firsthand how true the statement was.

“The fans love seeing you two together and you both clearly have good chemistry so what is it like working with one another?” the blonde asked before pushing some fallen hair behind her ear.

“I’ll go first,” Tom stated as he turned a bit in his seat and smiled your way. You playfully rolled your eyes, getting ready for him to completely roast your ass.

“She’s mean, a total diva, a drama queen,” he started listing off several false claims before busting out laughing at your pouting face. “I’m kidding,” he chuckled while he leaned over to grab your chin, forcing you to look at him.

“No, go on. I’m thinking about teaming up with Mackie and Seb and all three of us can rip you to shreds,” you sarcastically smiled at him before you dropped the grin and shot him a death glare.

“Okay maybe I wasn’t lying about the mean part,” he joked causing you to smile again. His brown eyes lit up at the sight and he finally continued with answering the question.

“No, but for real, she is amazing, as a person and as an actress. Every time I watch her, I am reminded of how phenomenal of an actress she is. You all have seen the gag reels of me and how I can’t keep a straight face if my life depended on it, but I watched her and the person she was filming with slipped up. She kept a straight face until they started laughing so she started laughing too. If that was me, I would’ve started laughing before anyone even messed up. And even when she’s feeling poorly, she performs so well. Y/n is so incredible to watch and work with. She is truly a great person and an even better friend. I’m glad we have each other to lean on when we get teased for being the youngest out of everyone,” he chuckled after literally just melting your heart. You leaned over to wrap your arms around his torso, his arm going around your back to rest his hand on your side.

“That was really sweet, Tom,” you whispered while giving him a little squeeze before pulling away from him. He did not remove his arm from around you though, so you scooted closer to make it more comfortable for you both.

“He may say my acting is good, but I’ve got to brag on his as well. He is so good at improvising and going with the flow of things. I am a very ‘follow the lines and stick to the script’ kind of person, but his improv makes his scenes and character so much better. That may be because he is basically Peter Parker in real life so when the cameras are rolling, it is truly interesting to see. He lights up any room he walks into and makes every day easier when we are working. He is a delight to work with and just generally be around and I’m glad we’re friends.”

“Thanks y/n,” he grinned down at you and you smiled right back.

“How is he like Peter Parker in real life?” the woman further inquired as she adjusted herself in her seat to sit more comfortably.

“For one, he is a major dork,” you started before snickering at Tom’s furrowed brows and stuck out lip.

“You just said all that nice stuff and then called me a dork,” he huffed and turned his head from you. He dramatically removed his arm from around and placed his hand in his lap.

“Oh, come on. You know it’s true,” you told him to which he sighed.

“Yeah, it’s true,” he gave in before nodding at the interviewer.

“So, there’s that,” you continued to answer the question. “He’s a little awkward, but in a charming and lovable way. He cannot keep a secret at all. There’s probably more, but that’s all I can think of right now. Everybody loves Peter Parker and everyone loves Tom Holland. I mean it when I say they are the same person.”

“So, there is a good bit of speculation of a budding romance between the both of you and the people want to know if there is something there,” she stated before playing with the rings on her fingers.

Before you could open your mouth to deny the suspicion, Tom grabbed your hand in his, interlacing his fingers with yours. A blush crept up on your cheeks when he placed his lips against the back of your hand.

“Do you want to tell her, babe?” he asked as he shot you a wink, the small act telling you it was a joke. The growing grin on his face told you his actions were false as well, but you couldn’t help how your heart fell that it was all a lie. You once again rolled your eyes at the boy who held your hand.

“You can tell her, sweetheart,” you giggled while Tom held your hand in both of his and you leaned your head on his shoulder.

“Y/n and I have been in a relationship for a little while now and that relationship has been completely platonic and we are just friends,” he laughed as he placed your hand back in your own lap. You would be lying to yourself if you said you didn’t miss the feeling of his hand in yours, but now was not the time to think about that.

“Yeah guys, we’re only friends,” you chuckled, making eye contact with the camera that was filming the whole thing while you lifted your head from its previous resting place on his shoulder. “Nothing more.”

Later after the interview, you and Tom are walking to the car that was going to take you both back to your hotel and the events of earlier kept circling through your mind. The way it felt to have his arm around you and you leaning into his side. You craved that feeling. His hand in yours and his lips pressed to the back of it. You wanted more of that. Just being with him, you strived to have more moments with him, but you always thought that it was because you were really good friends and you liked having his presence near. However, you feared that you were into something more that he was not going to be interested in.

“You did good with the whole dating joke. That was funny,” you giggled lightly as you bumped his shoulder while walking by his side.

“Hopefully, you didn’t think it was too funny,” he mumbled, his own eyes widening at his slight confession. Your eyebrows drew together in confusion and your feet stopped moving forward.

“What?” you spoke the only word that was running through your mind at the moment. Tom stopped walking as well and turned to face you.

“I kinda liked holding your hand and I kinda like you,” he stated sheepishly, his gorgeous brown eyes looking everywhere but at you.

“What are you saying, Tom?” you asked, knowing exactly what he was saying but you wanted to be sure. He stepped forward a bit and took your hand in his, interlocking your fingers just as he did before.

“I’m saying that I like you, y/n, and I want to be with you. We can just try it out for a little bit?” he asked more than stated.

“You mean we can try out being together?”

“Yeah, we can keep it quiet until we’re sure and then if you want, we can go public with it. I was not lying when I said I love working with you. It wasn’t because you’re great to work with because you are. It was because you are great to be with. So maybe we try this out and see how things work with us while we do press and see how things work after this when we are separate and doing our own thing. We can go from there and see if this is something we want to continue or announce?” he questioned nervously while his eyes finally locked with yours. The corners of your mouth turned upwards in a huge grin, happy to be hearing what you had wished to hear for a while now.

“I’d love to be with you, Tom,” you gushed, grinning ear to ear.

“Well, that’s great, babe,” he chuckled after using the nickname he called you earlier. His other hand slid around your waist, pulling you closer to him. You felt his breath fan over your lips before he closed the space between you two.

“But you know that Mackie and Seb are going to pick on us about this too right?” you reminded him when you pulled away slightly and he giggled.

“Yeah, we’re never going to hear the end of it.”

--------------------------------------------------

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[writingwithcolor]

Hi, thank you all so much for running this blog--I was hoping I could get your feedback on a Jewish MC. The crux of my question is whether I, a gentile, would be out of line depicting her experiencing internalized discrimination from her own father (who in my first draft was Catholic, but I think that will be changing to a TBD protestant denomination).

The backstory I have for her right now is that her mother is Jewish and places great value on the history and culture of being Jewish, but is not a particularly religious person. Her daughter refers to her as having sometimes attended events at a local reform synagogue and making note of the high holidays but she is, overall, not someone with strict religious observances of any kind, and for a long time she and her husband (raised Christian but deeply agnostic) raise their daughter on the idea that it's important to understand where she and her family come from but that how she ultimately pursues faith--whatever that faith may be--is up to her. Both parents introduce her to the stories and lessons they grew up with but don't pressure her to attend religious events, etc. unless she has a personal, independent interest in doing so. For the first 16 or so years of her life this is how she's raised and her family is stable and her parents seem deeply in love. So far beta readers from households with one Jewish and one Christian parent have told me this backstory seems fine to them, though I welcome any feedback you have, too.

What I'm most concerned about, though, is when she's a teen and her parents divorce. Right now I have the reason for their divorce as being that they fell out because her dad becomes a bit of a Christian zelot and becomes less and less respectful of his wife's religion and background as he gets deeper into this mindset. The reason he becomes like that is essentially that when 9/11 happens MCs mother, who grew up with the story of how her grandparents fled from the Soviet Union because of religious discrimination under Stalin, only narrowly managing to immigrate as far as the US before the breakout of WWII, powerfully empathizes with the people suffering from the horrible rise of Islamophobia we saw in 2001-2002. Her husband, on the other hand, does what I saw a lot of people in my family and community do and becomes increasingly religiously conservative as a reaction the percieved "threat" of the Islamic world. (This is all clearly identified in the book as his being in the wrong.) One of the ways this manifests is that he starts pressuring his daughter, the MC, to attend church services with him and become Christian. His rationale is that he just wants what's best for his daughter--to be "saved."

MC's mother has no tolerance for that crap, as she shouldn't, so they fight quite a bit going forward and eventually separate. Mom gets custody of the MC.

While her father never says anything openly antisemitic--implying those ideas but never stating them explicitly--he does respond to 16 yr. old MC basically asking him if he would still love her if she pursued her mom's faith by saying some bullshit along the lines of "well honey I just love you and want the best for you," as his answer. She never says to him that she's cutting him out, but after this moment she's never close to her father again and by the time the main narrative takes place 10 years later, she hasn't spoken to him since she was 21.

This backstory helps build a foundation for a lot of themes for the MC in terms of different ways alienation manifests in her life, how she trusts, and what we can and cannot forgive our parents for, so I like it from a narrative standpoint, but I would deeply appreciate your feedback on whether writing this kind of experience for a Jewish character is inappropriate for me to be doing. And, if not, do you have any suggestions on ways to modify this backstory, or would you recommend scrapping it entirely? Thank you so much.

Interfaith family broken up when Dad becomes a jerk and a bigot

A difficult situation definitely but I don’t have a problem with the setup. If this isn’t based on your own observations, it’s probably a good idea to get a beta reader with experience around bigots of the same stripe as Dad to make sure the awful stuff Dad says uses word choices and ideas that feel authentic. If that IS your experience I am so very sorry and I hope you have other wonderful people in your life to make up for it. 

--Shira This seems very well planned, and thought out. It's also very real, and will be an emotional read I'm sure. As long as your character isn't forced to give up her Jewishness because of her father, and provided that you are careful during fight scenes between the parents earlier in the work (to ensure that the mom doesn't end up seeming like the Shrill Jewish Woman stereotype), I think you are on solid ground. Good luck!

--Dierdra

Also, I just caught that you said "internalized discrimination" from her dad -- that's not what internalized discrimination means. Internalized discrimination is when someone is feeling negatively about their own group, because they've absorbed bigoted ideas from outside. Discrimination from someone who isn't yourself isn't called “internalized” even when it comes from someone as close as a parent. But that's just a little language correction.

--Shira

Oh no, this backstory is so sad! I hope your MC has a happy ending with some very mutually supportive relationships.

I agree that this shouldn't be a problem as long as you take care to avoid stereotypes on a more micro level in specific scenes. As for the overall idea, nothing jumping out at me. You've clearly put so much effort into creating a believable background for your character and its influence on her current psyche - that gives me confidence that you will write humanised characters rather than falling back on tropes!

Also, don't know if you knew this but something to note with interfaith families: if MC's mother is Jewish, she is a Jew in Jewish law. It doesn't matter what she believes or practises or how she was brought up. (I don't say this to invalidate patrilineal Jews or oppose anyone self-identifying the way they want, but just halachically. You should be aware that many more religious Jews will consider her that way.)

Good luck with your story! I would read this 😌

--Shoshi