#i swear I'm more creative than this xD

[beedreamscape]

For some reason, when I imagine them recording wbn, it's always in a small plain windowless room, empty wooden table with nothing but microphones before them, looking at each other expectantly like in Twelve Angry Men.

[thatfriendlyanon]

for your capstone asks !!!! 2 + 37

2. author's note: i'll share some facts about the manuscript's background/context/etc

okay! so!! four years ago i was in my final semester of university. to graduate with a minor in creative writing, i had to write & compile a "capstone" (aka senior thesis). your capstone had two components: an academic essay detailing your personal aesthetic* and then a body of your own creative writing. that second part could be Lots Of Different Things––people wrote portions of novels, compiled short stories, one of my friends did a children's book, etc etc. but with me being a poet, i made a poetry manuscript compiling a lot of the poems i'd written over the course of my four years at uni.

i had So Much Fun creating this manuscript, editing poems, compiling them, studying other poets' chapbooks to understand how flow & theme work As A Whole in a book rather than just poem-by-poem, etc etc. honestly i LOVE poetry collections and could ramble about them for ages, but the short of it is i graduated with a pretty polished poetry manuscript that could be ready for publication if i wanted to.

that's a lot of facts already so i'll skim over the whole Publishing Thing (i can expound on that more if someone else asks me this same question xD), buuut all that to say, the manuscript's been sitting in a folder on my laptop for the past four years and this past month i was suddenly seized with the desire to go forward with self-publication, sooo that's what i'm now doing!!! doing some final edits here & there and then hopefully getting it published in the next month or so :D

*not "aesthetic" as in, like, ✨me-core✨, but "a set of principles underlying and guiding the work of a particular artist or artistic movement" (oxford dictionary definition)

37. tenebrae

the fun fact about this one is it is one of the four or so poems in this collection i'm having trouble with and contemplating entirely revamping or cutting from the collection.

it started as a sonnet that i still really like, and then when i was working on the collection as my capstone, my professor advised i revise it to no longer be rhyming, since there aren't any other rhyming/strict-form poems in the collection. i did, and the resulting poem is Fine, but the original sonnet still feels like the poem's True Heart to me, if you know what i mean. so. now that i'm coming back to the collection solely for myself, with no need of getting this approved by a traditional publisher either, i may just say screw it and return it to its original sonnet form and let it be the only rhyming poem in the book and let that be what it'll be.

favorite lineees....i'm gonna use some from the original sonnet 'cause like i just said i don't love any of the lines of its Current Iteration xD the opening is my favorite bc i just had so much fun with the Sound Of Words & playing around with personification :D

I left the building burning to the sky: The flames a hungry dog that licked the air, The smoke a churlish tramp to passersby That stained the sidewalk, slurring awful swears

ask me questions about my poetry manuscript!!

[lunar-inkclipse]

…okay, so from what I’ve seen of Leo, it seems that the only reason he at all had friends back in college was because the Swap Institute staff talked to him, rather than the other way around XD (hey, just like canon Logico! Who, admittedly, was more quiet, shy, and socially anxious than aloof :P)

Seriously, I do NOT at all see this guy being easy to talk to. Paranoia, general aloofness (compare to his very friendly canon self :P), probably being kind of a jerk if the trend with logic-based characters is anything to go by…but hey, he managed to make some friends! Or, more accurately, they made him their friend, through the fabled method of “sitting next to him and talking whether he likes it or not” or, in one case, repeatedly breaking into his house :P

Oh yeah, Leo's friend circle happened because he was just adopted by the Swapstitute cast (one of these days I'm gonna think of a cool and creative name for it that deals with litigation) rather than them seeking him out. Compared to the canon, he is quite aloof, paranoid, maybe just a liiitle (maybe more than a little) stuck up and kind of a jerk. Not to mention, news about his past is pretty common knowledge- His moms were likely well known figures, and having the reputation of "Orphaned at 16 after his moms were murdered" doesn't make him any easier to talk to. So, how do you talk to a guy who's prickly from a distance and pushes you away up close? Well, depends on who you ask!

Seashell, for one, just kinda kept wearing down at Leo until he gave in. How did this work with Leo's paranoia? Not well, I'll tell you that much! But Seashell is smarter and more adaptable than he may seem, he did manage to pass the bar (without pulling a Midnight) after all. I think in his attempts to get Leo to fall for him, he probably would change his tactics a little and swear to protect him and stand watch . Does it work in seducing Leo? Nope. But hey got hired at the Swapstitute, so he did something right! (though, just, don't ask Leo to think too hard about why he lets Seashell hang around.) (Side note- Since it's a weekly thing, can you imagine if it was also a Sunday thing and Seashell got mad at Illogico for stealing his shtick because I can)

With the rest of the cast, they just kinda adopted Leo (And Leo eventually decided he wanted some more friends outside this one pre-med turned pre-law weirdo who keeps showing up at his house). He's slow to trust, but he does indeed make some more friends- I think Night and Azure were probably some of the first people he really grew friendly with in college tbh: With Night, I’m gonna borrow some more of your banger headcanons and say they helped Leo out with math- They probably sat next to each other in class and Night offered some tutoring, thinking that Leo could really use a friend. Leo’s much more oriented towards writing and research rather than calculations, so the extra help was really useful. In turn, Leo helped proofread Night's essays and helped them out in that aspect, making them one of Leo's first and closest friends.

With Azure, she and Leo were in a lot of the same pre-law and debate classes/clubs, so they just kinda kept meeting up and often were on opposite sides, as Leo would do the prosecution side of things, and Azure would be doing more defensive stuff. It was a rocky start to a friendship, what with Leo's more smarmy nature making him much more of a rival/combative towards Azure, but eventually he realizes he's a) being a bit of an asshole, b) he's actually kinda lonely and could use some more friends, and c) he and Azure are actually kinda similar with their ambitions and could get along pretty well if he swallows his pride.

And just as a bonus because Umber is a fave of mine, I think she and Leo became friends in law school. While Swap Umber is a criminal psychologist rather than a sociologist, she still wanted to understand law and criminality more, as well as the legislation that was involved in pleading insanity and the like, so she took a class or two at Leo's law school and they ended up becoming friends there, because Leo's corners were starting to round off a little bit by now, and she's smart enough to not start psychoanalyzing Leo until after a few months :P. Everyone else became friends with Leo through Night/Azure/Seashell introducing him to their friends and probably a group project or two. The cast all found him and adopted him, rather than the other way around. And honestly, having those friends is really good for him. With Illogico, he probably considered working up the courage to introduce himself to Leo at one point, because he was pretty cute, but upon sensing this guy had straight up Vibe Arsenic with his personality and the stress he put himself under, he promptly decided that was Not His Problem tbh. And Leo once considered introducing himself to the mysterious goth who- according to rumors- managed to deal with a so called "ghost problem" in the basements of one building, but the idea just seems stupid and he's too busy for much of a social (or romantic, even if said goth is very hot to him) life.

[hacked-by-jake]

Spoiler~~~~~~ Spoiler~~~~~ Spoiler

So, Can we know how you felt about the "side story" ending 👀👀👀

You can absolutely know that I was soooooo incredibly breathless!!!! That was absolutely a needed ending! And to be honest, I wasn't expecting that. I wasn't expecting they would put it there this clear. I thought the chat with ash was the little part for episode 1 and then they pulled this out and I absolutely freaked out completely.

I was absolutely stunned and I run around like a maniac because I couldn't believe it and I was soooo thrilled and wahhhhhhh.

You can get me with him. It's the truth. I'm a simply person.

Besides, I saw more Everbyte in this part. Not because of him, not because of the style we're used to due to duskwood. Because it was made with so much creativity and so smart.

I mean, giving us the end screen and than his favourite appearance move. It was amazing and I'm grateful they have this back to us. Very glad.

It doesn't make the other things disappear. But I think Everbyte still deserves praise for the good things. Especially since they now have the time do improve some things.

It was great. It was amazing. I was feeling exactly what I've missed before. Not because of Moonvale own story, I like the story as well, but the other things were in the shadows of everything else.

But with this... Damn, it was insane. And it was sooo early and I was sitting outside and I swear my eyes were bigger than Adams. 😂

Completely took my breath away. And come on.. Showing us his stuff??? You can't tell me this wasn't on purpose! They saw us freaking out about the fact that he took pictures for us. Just pictures of the mine. And we freak out.

And now they gave us this?? I won't let anyone tell me it wasn't their intention. But even if it wasn't, I don’t care.

This was a huge end and it made me incredibly happy 😭

And I was also so very glad to see Alan. I still love him as well. xD

So, thank you for this, Everbyte. This idea was great and we need more of this kind of style back!

And here again, if you're interested, my life reaction on Tumblr when I played the part. I think it shows how I felt. 😂

Thank you a lot for asking, dear Anon. There's so much negativity currently, and that's okay, but talking about the happy things is needed and a more than wonderful change. 💚

[dennydraws]

List 5 things that make you happy, then put this in the askbox for the last 10 people who reblogged something from you! get to know your mutuals and followers ( if you'd like to share, Denny )

Morning, Rivie!! :D Thank you for the lovely ask!! I got some time to kill before end of the work day! Let's see...

Art Store/Book Store/Craft Store - okay seriously I feel kinda bad listing it as number one but it's really my instant serotonin boost. Going into those stores, the smell of books, the art materials it just instantly pushes my mind into a creative mood! :D

The Sea - I live by the sea and I love looking at it, listening to it any time of the year. Something draws me to the blue and really soothes me even when the waves can be rough!

The Sun - I keep joking that I'm a plant but I really thrive when it's sunny and warm. Once Summer comes and I'm exploding with energy and as soon as Autumn passes, I'm about ready to hibernate. The sun is an instant serotonin to me.

Doing anything creative - That one is a bit broad! Drawing or writing, anything related to doing some kind of creative project or bouncing story ideas and world settings with friends fills me with so much spark!

My drawing desk - Ok I swear I have more personality than "that girl who keeps doing art things" but I really just love when I can sit quietly on my desk on weekends, get my cup o' coffee and open a sketchbook or pick my ipad and zone out and draw while listening to a podcast or something! I have been arranging and re-arranging my desk and even if it is a bit of a patchwork it is very comfy to me right now! Or as comfy as I could've made it xD;;

Okay that list was kinda boring... but my other picks were new sketchbooks, coffee and aroma candles and they sounded equally boring;; A lot of things make me happy, small joys that make the days better!

[griseldabanks]

Hmm, nobody sent any asks in....

What’s something new that you tried in a fic this year? How did it turn out and would you do it again?

In one of my Hank & Connor pieces I wrote for Let Me Count the Ways, I did something I've always secretly wanted to do, and actually censored profanity beyond skirting around it with things like "he cursed" or whatever XD Because it was a dialogue-only fic, I couldn't do that, but I also couldn't think of a way to have Hank not swear, because he was really angry in that scene. So I gave Connor a profanity filter :P I don't know if I'll have occasion to do so again, because it's a very specific situation, but I'd love to try something like that again. Much more creative than writing someone swearing up a blue streak.

2. How many fics did you work on this year? (They don’t have to be finished or published!)

If you count the things I've written for Tumblr, I think the number would be 19.

3. What’s something you learned about yourself as a writer?

Unfortunately, I've realized I'm not quite as good at taking constructive criticism as I've always tried to be. Especially not at night when I'm tired. But at least that also goes hand-in-hand with more maturity (I think), as I remind myself to take a step back and try not to take things so personally late at night, and maybe revisit them in the morning.

4. What piece of media inspired you the most?

I guess it depends on what exactly you mean by "inspired." If you're talking direct inspiration, then I'll have to gesture vaguely to the Captain America movies as usual, because watching those and listening to their soundtracks are always what I use to really get me going for my main WIP and remind me why I'm doing this.

But for just general inspiration that makes me want to be creative and write from the heart...I think I might actually say TMNT: Mutant Mayhem. It was just so well done, so unique, so full of heart and laughter and realism (which is especially surprising, considering it's about mutant turtles! XD). It's just popping with life and color and heart, and I want to create something with that much love poured into it.

5. What fandom(s) did you write for this year?

Captain America/MCU, Detroit: Become Human, FMA, Harry Potter, Jak and Daxter, LotR, No.6, Sherlock, and Star Wars

6. What ship(s) captured your heart?

STARON STARON STARON ALWAYS AND FOREVER STARON <3 Also Sam Wilson and the OC I created for him :3

7. What character(s) captured your heart?

Steve and Bucky as always <3 Also my darling OC Jake; I'm so proud of you, my son! T^T Ed and Al, Frodo and Sam, John and Sherlock, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon, and the new additions of Hank and Connor, will always hold my heart even though I don't spend as much time with them.

8. Did you write for a new fandom or ship this year?

Quite a few, actually! Courtesy of my Let Me Count the Ways ask game, I've now written my first fics for LotR (crazy, right?), Detroit: Become Human, Jak and Daxter, and No.6. It's also crazy that this year marks the first time I've ever written my favorite Star Wars character, Obi-Wan, even though I picked him as my favorite when I was eight years old @_@

9. What fic meant the most to you to write?

My Captain America fic Take Me In. It's my main WIP right now, and I actually finished the first draft this year! I've been working on this baby for five years, so this is EVERYTHING to me :')

10. What fic made you feel the happiest to work on?

TMI definitely gave me the most joy to write, but a lot of the time, it wasn't exactly fun :/ Maybe the happiest I felt was when I wrote the Obi-Wan & Qui-Gon piece for Let Me Count the Ways, because it flowed so easily and so well, even it was (bizarrely) the first time I ever wrote them. And I got to make them tell each other straight out that they love each other, hehehe :P

11. What fic was the most satisfying to finish writing?

TMI, obviously. It's not quite done or ready to post yet, but it's sitting there on my hard drive in a mostly complete form, sitting proudly as the longest thing I've ever written in my life...and maybe the best thing too? I can't wait to share this with the world! <3

12. What fic was the most difficult to write? Did you finish it?

I'm realizing most of these questions can be answered with TMI ^^' It has been very difficult to write, especially when I get into technical matters where I don't really know what I'm doing, even after all my research. I've also dealt with some massive burnout that makes writing feel like pulling teeth sometimes. But! I did finish it! I need to look back on this achievement every time the writing isn't flowing, to remind myself that if I could do that, I can do anything.

13. What fic was the easiest to write?

Hmm...probably one of my MCU prompts for Let Me Count the Ways. I'm so used to writing the FoxholeBros by this point, I have a pretty good idea of what they'll do or say in any given situation. Either that, or the Ed & Hughes Let Me Count the Ways one, because I could whip both characters out of my back pocket super easily.

14. What were your shortest and longest fics this year?

Pretty sure my dialogue-only Hank & Connor fic for Let Me Count the Ways was the shortest, at 610 words. The longest...heehee...TMI, at 386,363 words >:D

15. Rec a fic you wrote or posted in 2023

Here, have the one new fic I posted to AO3 this year, the most recent chapter of my FMA genderbender, The Other Side of the Coin. This chapter depicts the first meeting of Roy Mustang and the Elric sisters, as he tries to recruit two young girls to join the military and try to get their bodies back. Meanwhile, Lieutenant Hawkeye has a conversation with Winston Rockbell.

16. What were you go-to writing songs?

I have various playlists for whatever fandom I'm writing - usually the soundtrack, and depending on how much of a blorbo I'm writing, I might also have a playlist of songs specific to that character too. My go-to song for inspiring me to write TMI in particular is "Everything" by Lifehouse.

17. What were your go-to writing snacks?

I don't normally snack while writing, but anymore I almost can't write without a cup of tea.

18. What was the hardest fic to title?

Um...how about everything I've written for Let Me Count the Ways? ^^' I still haven't decided for sure what I'm going to do with titles once I get around to posting them on AO3.

19. Share your favorite opening line

"It was a beautiful April morning when Rose Gamgee's life changed forever."

From Rosie Runs to Rivendell, which I posted an early version of here but nowhere else yet.

20. Share your favorite ending line

"Bucky turned to share a smile with him, and Steve could see that all was quiet on the Western front."

From TMI...a;ldkgjsd;klfjdsklgfsdkflj I'm so glad I could make this line work :')

21. Share your favorite piece of dialogue

Hnnnnnnggggg if I try to pick something from TMI, we'll be here all day, so I'm just going to take that off the table. Please assume my real answer is something from that whopper. Instead, have this line I'm stupidly proud of from my first Hank & Connor fic:

“And the half-naked androids pole-dancing right in front of you had nothing to do with it.”

22. Share an excerpt from your favorite scene

I'm gonna have to veto TMI again for this, for the same reason. Besides, all my favorite scenes from TMI are chock-full of spoilers I don't want to give away, so yeah. Here, why don't we go with this moment from my Obi-Wan & Qui-Gon fic I'm quite fond of:

Qui-Gon was almost at the door by the time Obi-Wan realized he was leaving. Apparently, he'd said what he'd come here to say. “Master, wait!” Obi-Wan sprang to his feet. Pausing with his hand on the door, Qui-Gon looked over his shoulder. Nervously, Obi-Wan swallowed hard. He'd never said this to anyone, but when he instinctively reached out to the Force, it rang with the chimes of a hundred golden bells in his heart, and he knew it was the right thing to say. “I love you too, Qui-Gon. I always have. Even then.” Even when he was angry and hurt. Even when they were shouting at each other. Even when Qui-Gon left him on a war-torn planet. Even when their connection in the Force frayed and snapped, and it seemed pointless to hope they could regain even a fraction of what they'd once had.

23. Share the final version of a sentence or paragraph you struggled with. What about it was challenging? Are you happy with how it turned out?

I hemmed and hawed over this question for a long time before I remembered this paragraph from my Nezumi & Shion fic:

When Shion draped a blanket over him and tucked it gently around him, Nezumi never saw it coming. For a moment, he lay there, eyes closed, unmoving. But he couldn't ignore the soft scent of the worn fabric. A smell that reminded him of a stormy night. Laughter. A warm hand in his. Inexplicable, unbelievable, bewildering...acceptance.

The main problem with it stemmed from me writing a whole scene and forgetting what the dialogue prompt was, and then I had to go back and include it somewhere. So it took some work to make sure this paragraph went from being the end to transitioning into the bit of dialogue that started this whole thing -_-

24. What's something that surprised you while you were working on a fic? Did it change the story?

Ooof, this is a little spoilery, but it's the main one that's coming to mind. Suffice to say, originally I wrote a suicide attempt in one of my fics. Only after writing the whole scene, which had been planned from the beginning, did I realize I actually didn't want the scene to be about suicide at all. That had always been the plan, and it would make sense, but suddenly it became clear that much more interesting character development could come about otherwise.

25. What did you use to write? (e.g. writing programs, paper & pen, etc.)

I use OpenOffice for all of my story writing.

26. If you had to choose one, what was THE most satisfying writing moment of your year?

Hands down, writing the last scene of TMI and then showing it to my betas ^_^

27. Did you do anything special to celebrate finishing a fic?

After finishing TMI, I spent two weeks on vacation with my betas, and we got a cake to celebrate! ^_^

28. How did you recharge between fics?

I've been taking a break from any sort of scheduled or pressured writing since finishing TMI. We're getting close to the end of two months off, and I can see that it was exactly what I needed, because I was seriously burnt out. Hopefully I'll be ready to get back to work in another week and a half or so.

29. If this were an awards show, who would you thank?

*sniffle* I'd like to thank my besties, @rainintheevening and @sergeanttomycaptain, for having my back this whole year and encouraging me through to the end of the biggest writing project I've ever undertaken. I couldn't have done it without you!

30. What’s something that you want to write in 2024?

The actual end of TMI lol Well, I definitely want to write more Let Me Count the Ways. There will need to be something FMA to write for FMA Day. And I really hope I can start posting TMI and work on writing Take Me Beyond, its companion fic. I should probably also think about poking at some of my older fics I've been neglecting for too long.

fic writer asks

What’s something new that you tried in a fic this year? How did it turn out and would you do it again?

How many fics did you work on this year? (They don’t have to be finished or published!)

What’s something you learned about yourself as a writer?

What piece of media inspired you the most?

What fandom(s) did you write for this year?

What ship(s) captured your heart?

What character(s) captured your heart?

Did you write for a new fandom or ship this year?

What fic meant the most to you to write?

What fic made you feel the happiest to work on?

What fic was the most satisfying to finish writing?

What fic was the most difficult to write? Did you finish it?

What fic was the easiest to write?

What were your shortest and longest fics this year?

Rec a fic you wrote or posted in 2023

What were you go-to writing songs?

What were your go-to writing snacks?

What was the hardest fic to title?

Share your favorite opening line

Share your favorite ending line

Share your favorite piece of dialogue

Share an excerpt from your favorite scene

Share the final version of a sentence or paragraph you struggled with. What about it was challenging? Are you happy with how it turned out?

What's something that surprised you while you were working on a fic? Did it change the story?

What did you use to write? (e.g. writing programs, paper & pen, etc.)

If you had to choose one, what was THE most satisfying writing moment of your year?

Did you do anything special to celebrate finishing a fic?

How did you recharge between fics?

If this were an awards show, who would you thank?

What’s something that you want to write in 2024?

[mariequitecontrary]

Heya and Happy halloween friend!

May I get a tarot reading please?

From you, for me, a message from my blorbos? (did I do that right?)

((Spector also says Hi!! And Happy Halloween!!)

HIYA!!!!!! Happy Halloween to both my precious friends <3 I can absolutely give you a tarot reading from your blorbos!!!

Now, since you didn't say which blorbos exactly, we gotta see who's talking to us. We're gonna pull a few cards for them and see what they're like and you're gonna have to decide if you feel as if one (or more) specific blorbo's name connect with it!

After we have a blorbo(s) willing to talk to us, then we'll pull their message to you.

Instead of pulling all the cards, I'm shuffling until certain ones fall out are thrown out of my deck from your blorbos XD

...

Damn ok blorbo coming in loud and clear. You got two major arcana cards! (It's cool I swear)

Your Blorbo(s)

Strength, the King of Swords, the High Priestess

This blorbo is courageous, strong, patient, in a position of authority, loyal and filled to the brim with wisdom. Like they are literally Strength, the King of Swords AND The High Priestess! They are pure of heart and mind, are self-disciplined, and a keeper of vast, intuitive wisdom. (Maybe I'm reaching and I feel like the answer to who this blorbo is is SO OBVIOUS. Pleeaasee tell me who it is/they are!!!)

This b threw four cards at me, one almost immediately and then three all at once.

Ten of Wands, Six of Coins, Nine of Swords, Ace of Wands

This blorbo wants to tell you that you need to accept help more often. They understand that obligations can be burdensome and can way you down. Maybe you're taking on a bit more than you can chew or have the opportunity to do so in the future. DON'T do everything by yourself! Keep in mind that pay it forward kinda karma. People want to help you, help them out too!

This blorbo does not want anxiety to wrack you with indecision. They want you to be brave and jump into things! Let that spirit of creativity possess you and sweep you off your feet. Your blorbo is so excited for the decisions you'll make both in your general life and creative side. They're encouraging you to take this excitement with you and use it to fuel the flames of your passion!

If a blorbo comes to mind with this description and message, please let me know!!! Happy Halloween!