#i think i have the overall plot figured out but i need to plan some filler scenes and tie up the ending

[masonscig]

ok i know i have asks to answer but they will have to wait till later bc.......... rewrite

[celestie0]

ellie's beta reader application

hi friends!! i am looking for beta readers for my jjk fanfics :"0 i just reaaallyyy want to get back into writing n stuffs but have been struggling w motivation/confidence so i feel like having beta readers would make it nicer n easier aaa :'')

here are the stories that i'm looking for beta readers for, plus a little blurb about what the beta readers' role/input would be for each, but in general you’d basically be reading thru my chapter, leaving comments/notes w suggestions or reactions, and help me work out any plot-related struggles i may be having :)

please read all of the text below before sending me an ask

kickoff - looking for two beta readers

early access to drafted chapters. read through for clarity & prose. may run by some ideas by the beta readers, but for the most part i have the rest of kickoff set in stone!

in holy matriphony - looking for two beta readers

early access to drafted chapters, as well as my upcoming plans for the series. i have most of ihm set in stone as well, but may just need some help with making sure things flow well since the plot's a lil jumbled in my head!

around the clock - looking for two beta readers

early access to drafted chapters. i don't really have much planned for this series, so i would like to get some help w planning the rest of it! i anticipate 4ish parts, and i'm really just looking to have some fun w this one :)

if the world was ending - looking for two beta readers

early access to drafted chapters. i am kinda struggling with the overall plan i have for this series, as i have the first and last chapters mostly finished, but need help figuring out some of the in between

additionally, all my beta readers will have early access to any other oneshots, drabbles, mini series that i come up with down the line, and can also help me come up with additional plotlines/tropes from the ones i've brainstormed for those more independent works. there won't be any crossover for the series though, meaning that if you've been selected as a beta reader for "in holy matriphony", i won't be sharing drafted chapters/ideas for any of my other series to you

requirements to be a beta reader

must be 18+ years old

must be ok w spoilers for any of my works

must be an active reader of mine

must be proficient in english

must have a discord account

should not be a fellow fanfic author

must not share any of my drafted materials/ideas to others

how to apply

to apply, please first ensure that you satisfy the requirements listed above, and then send me an ask off of anon that answers the questions below (don't worry, i won't be publicly responding to/posting any of the asks to my feed, i just need your username so i can message you!)

i will close applications in 2-3 days!

beta reader application template

list your age:

how long have you been a reader of mine:

rank your preference of fics that you would like to beta read for (for example, kickoff > ihm > atc > itwwe):

for those who have listed "kickoff" or "in holy matriphony" as either your first or second choice, please briefly list 2-3 scenes from each series that are your favorite or were memorable to you (i just wanna make sure you're an active/engaged reader w a good understanding of the plots! the scenes can be briefly listed such as “hotel room scene” for kickoff or “kitchen kiss scene” for ihm. if both series are in your top two, please list scenes for each of them, but if neither are in your top two, then you can ignore this question):

anything else you would like me to know (optional):

please list your discord username:

and that's it! i will message you here on tumblr for further steps :) aaa i hope this is successful hahah and in general i'm really excited to more closely interact w some of you guys :'') i will make a lil discord group for us hehe. tbh getting beta reader(s) has been loooong overdue for me but i'm looking forward to it n think it will be good for me! much love <3 feel free to reach out w any questions :0

[le-trash-prince]

Kenta

Okay. It is once again time for me to talk about my number one little man. I was interested in Kenta from the very beginning, and at some point I realized that I was not going to be normal about him, but I really did not anticipate how much he would come to mean to me. I hope y'all have enjoyed witnessing my descent into feral blorbo state. It is not over for me in the slightest.

I want to say that Garfield really acted the shit out of this role, and the writers knew what they were doing when they cast him. His arc was so important to the overall plot, with his growth being pivotal to Tony's downfall, and yet he had a relatively small amount of dialogue to work with (although certainly not the smallest amount of the cast).

A lot of his scenes involve him standing in Tony's office, taking instructions, or even just simply observing. A lot of his lines are based around business deals and errands—rather than furthering his emotional development. He doesn't give big speeches, he doesn't talk about his feelings or his dreams, it's always just "I'm doing xyz for Tony, and I will never betray him."

Some of his most dialogue heavy scenes are in one stairwell with Pete and in another with Tony, which I think are extremely pivotal moments, both of which reveal a fear of abandonment.

But it's honestly when he's quiet that he says the most.

And I love that, I'm obsessed with it. I love that the whole fandom could insantly tell that he and Pete had something going on, just from the way they looked at each other. I love that the storytelling in his arc was so highly visual.

In the beginning, Kenta appears to be nothing more than Tony's lackey: quiet, intimidating, and actively complicit with what is going on.

But as we see him more and more, it becomes exceedingly apparent that he cares, so much. I know I am biased in saying this, but I do also pay close attention to what other people are saying about Kenta, and I know almost everyone has been waiting the entire series to see him stand up to Tony. The amount of acting that Garfield did with his eyes, while remaining such a stoic character, was insane.

Despite him repeatedly declaring his loyalty to Tony, despite the fact that he does not reveal any actions against Tony until episode 12, we feel so much of his inner conflict.

I think for me, personally, the aspect of Kenta's character that I relate to the most is his inability to speak up when he wants to. I've struggled with selective mutism my entire life, and there have been countless, countless scenarios where I've had so many things to say and no ability to say them. The more dire the situation, the more my words fail me. I have to spend so much of my energy constantly planning for potential conflict scenarios just so I can have the time I need to figure out which words to use. Because it can sometimes take months for me to figure out certain phrases. And because it is so painful to stay silent when you want to tell someone to stop. To stop fighting, to stop hurting each other, to stop hurting me.

So I was beyond moved and proud to watch Kenta finally be able to protect his brothers and quietly say the one thing he has wanted to say all along.

Don't hurt anyone anymore.

Don't hurt anyone anymore.

Don't hurt anyone anymore.

I will take some of the words that P'Chod gave to Garfield before they went into production. "It’s just you want to live in a peaceful house and be happy together.” All we want is peace.

I wish that Kenta had not been forced to kill Tony because I don't think he has ever wanted to hurt anyone. But I'm sure as hell not sorry that he did it. There will always be people who are unwilling to stop.

And I recognize that Kenta tried a peaceful method first. He gave X-Hunter what they needed to put Tony in jail, and Tony refused to give up. He was never going to be the kind of person who would simply surrender. To him, these people's lives are property that he is entitled to.

Here is an auto translation of something Garfield said about Kenta at the final episode screening.

"I already knew that Kenta would be similar to me, in that I'm someone who doesn't dare to express my feelings to the people around me, saying very little. So when I got the role, I felt… that it teaches us that as long as we dare to be ourselves and do things that make us happy, that's enough."

We may never know what happened to Kenta after Tony died, but I hope he is able to find his peace. I hope he is able to engage with restorative justice, and I hope he is able to learn what family really should be.

And I hope that someone, anyone, will give him a goddamned hug.

the first shot / the last shot

Thank you, Kenta, from the bottom of my heart, for showing us yours.

[nerdieforpedro]

The Intended determines their Meaning

Javier Gutierrez x plus size female reader

My blog overall is for readers 18+. MDNI

Word Count: 1271

Summary: Javier is following through on what his team has proposed optics wise. He’s bought her flowers to illustrate their partnership. The twist? The events of tonight lead him to follow a different plan altogether.

Warnings: Plots by PR teams, ghosts for dates, angst if you squint, bad jokes (did I write it if there’s not at least one?), Javi G being charming and adorable, honorable mention of Javi G’s orange/red shirt from TUWOMT (the debate of that shirt’s true color continues this very day)

Notes: An entry for @morallyinept ‘s Jett’s Flora & Fauna Challenge. I was surprised to have an idea for it but it turns out chatting with your friends in Discord gets the juices flowing. Plus my wonderful friend Grace came up with the initial idea and we each wrote our own versions. This one is mine. I looked up the meaning of the red peonies Pedro was holding in that shot of him and Dakota Johnson for “The Materialists.” I don’t know the name of the character so this said Javi G to me.

Main Masterlist/ Javier Gutierrez Masterlist

This was supposed to be their third date. She was everything that his PR team said he needed for optics right now. Not too young, an actress that people recognize if they think about it for a minute and she’s thin. It’s not Javier Gutierrez’s first preference, but she was nice and their teams worked well together. 

At least he thought she was nice until tonight. It’s an hour after they were supposed to have their date. No calls, no texts, no one from her team saying why she’s not here. He’d bought her an ivory vase with two full bouquets of red peonies in full bloom. He figured it would be a good move to bring these as both teams had agreed to make their relationship public after leaking a few photos on instagram. A curious financially beneficial union that should be a happy life.

Javi’s heart isn’t in this, but he’s beholden to the public eye and their opinions. He’d rather date women that had more substance to them, both to talk about and to them. 

He continues to sit and wait, not expecting her to come after this long. Should he just leave? He decides to check his phone one more time before finishing off his third glass of red wine. His eyes gaze forward and he sees her. Not the woman he was expecting, but a woman who he’d truly want.

She’s sitting at a small table that’s a mirror of his, her hair in a updo with small silver clips holding it up. Her dress is a deep violet, off her shoulders with a deep V exposing much of her cleavage. From what he can see, the dress may have an asymmetrical cut as much of her thick legs are exposed. Her face is downcast similar to his. She may have been waiting for someone too. Javi wonders if she was stood up as well. 

Hey, I don’t see a second place setting. Is she alone too? Maybe we can be alone together. If she would like, if the woman my team doesn’t want anything to do with me, doesn’t that mean I should find someone I would want to be with?

Javier asks the waiter to give her another glass of whatever she was drinking. It looked like a red wine, he wasn’t sure if it was one different from his. He watched as she looks very confused and is trying to tell the waiter that she didn’t order anything like that.

“Oh no ma’am it’s paid for. The gentleman over there sent it.” The waiter explains and points to Javier. He gives a small wave with a matching smile. She smiles back and waives but almost knocks over her wine glass. Thankfully, she catches it and none of it spills. She laughs at herself and apologizes to the waiter, he looked like he was going to cry as he had his hands raised like he was being robbed.

Well she accepted, I think I’ll go over. Say hello in person. She seems sweet and fun. God, I miss having fun. Dating was supposed to fun at some point.

“You’re too stunning to not have something of equal beauty with you at the table.” Gutierrez leads with as he stands opposite her at the table. “Order what you like hermosa. They’ll let me know the tab. Enjoy yourself.” His wide smile never left his face as she watched him walk over, and hand her a large bouquet of red flowers. They’re not roses, she’s seen them before and just doesn’t remember the name. 

“Thank you. For the flowers and the wine.” She stands and Javi takes a step back to see the rest of her: wide stomach and hips with the dress indeed has an asymmetrical cut that goes to the top of her thigh. Across her stomach is a rhinestone butterfly, the tops of the wings cup the bottoms of her breasts as he attempts not to stare. Her lips are a blood orange that reminds him of one of his favorite leisure shirts to wear when he’s home in Spain. Thankfully he was looking at her lips when she spoke so he would pay attention. “I didn’t want to eat alone. Did you want to sit with me? What’s your name?” 

“Javier Gutierrez, honored to make your acquaintance. May I know yours cariño (sweetheart)?” He extends his hand and she shakes it, unsure if it’s the wine or maybe that he just happy he’s not alone and she wants him to sit with her. He pulls out her chair for her to sit and pushes it in as she gives him her name in response. Once he sits, he gets settled and watches as she fixes her napkin back in her lap and takes another sip of her wine. Whispering “perfecto!” under his breath. 

They chat over their shared experience tonight of being stood up. It turns out, hers was a fifth date after a month of seeing each other casually. He had texted, saying he wasn’t going to come and that he would call her. She knew that he’d broken up with her then, but she didn’t want to leave yet. The fresh bread was tasty and so was the wine. Javier simply said that his date did not show up and it likely meant the same as hers, the relationship was over. He wouldn’t get into the PR and logistics, not tonight. 

She asked what kind of flowers they were and if it was really okay that she had kept them. Javier insisted, their original intended didn’t deserve them. Not only because she didn’t come but she likely wasn’t going to give him what the flowers truly mean. The other woman had bestowed a more detrimental theme of peonies by standing him up - shame.

“Someone who is willing to leave a person alone like this without explanation, would not give me a happy life.” Javi explains, she agrees and wonders if they have a different meaning for her. 

“I don’t know if I can give you a happy life either. We just met Javier.” Her nervous giggle informs him that his explanation may have been a bit serious given how they’ve come together. 

“For you bonita (beautiful), the peonies do have a different meaning. I was hesitant to come over to the table. It looked like you were waiting for someone too and I didn’t want to intrude but I also didn’t want to miss an opportunity either.” He asks the waiter for a bottle for the table and their soup arrives with more bread. Javier hands her the butter so she can put it on her bread. “I’m also still nervous that I could mess this up at any point. And please, call me Javi. It's been a while since I’ve met someone I’ve genuinely liked so I’m bashful.”

“Quite the charmer you are, Javi. You’re definitely not messing anything up. You’re not the only one who’s nervous. I’m having a wonderful time and we haven’t even made it to dessert yet!” They both laughed at her attempt at a joke and continued the evening. Chatting, eating, drinking and laughing. Relaxed and without a care for them both.

Javier Gutierrez could just be on a date with a beautiful woman, maybe have a second of third with her. Maybe show her his shirt that’s the same color as her lipstick. Maybe find out what movies she enjoys and if he’s seen them, does she like Nicolas Cage movies? If she does, he may just swoon.

So many things and possibilities.

Debaters of the true color of Javi’s orange/red/dash of yellow shirt 👕: @maggiemayhemnj @magpiepills @tinytinymenace @readingiskeepingmegoing @bitchwitch1981

@inept-the-magnificent @tinytinymenace @yourcoolauntie @rhoorl @megamindsecretlair

@soft-persephone @soft-girl-musings @saturn-rings-writes @604to647 @mysterious-moonstruck-musings

@trulybetty @alltheglitterandtheroar @connectioneverywhere @angelofsmalldeath-codeine

[corisanna]

If it's okay to ask, how far are we into ANAI's overall story at this point? About halfway? Less? More? Because the beginning of the story suggests there being 53 other resets, but I'm assuming we're not going to see them all. Sorry if this has been asked before.

Hmmmmm. It's kind of hard to say. Part of it depends on if you're measuring by time elapsed in-story, volume of writing to convey that, or some other metric. It also depends on whether I decide to keep or discard some plot threads as seems appropriate as I write, because I have always made adjustments as I go due to what I'm writing making me examine cause and effect more. There's also the fact that I'm tinkering with my original plans from almost ten years ago due to having further thought about it and figuring out different/quicker/better solutions to problems and things that require more support. I think I should have used a third variable instead of 54 to give myself more flexibility to be longer or shorter. Scolding 2015 Cori.

Timeline x+n+1 is taking a long time due to setting up so many details and framework. Timeline x+n+2 is also likely to take awhile. I think I might be able to montage/skip around timelines after that up to the penultimate or ultimate timeline taking longer again, but I have to see how things fall.

The thing about ANAI's original planning is that it was made as a loose outline with plot points that need to be reached through a landscape of details, but the route through them was not 100% set in stone. It was intended to be just something for me to play with kinda informally before it blew up in popularity. I'm trying to set the path more solidly.

[ckret2]

Actually, that other anon makes me wonder how that whole plot line will be effected when everything is edited for compatability. If it's not to spoilery would you be willing to share what you have in mind? Will it be a significant change?

Nah, barely changed at all. For the statue, only a couple small things will change:

In earlier chapters i'll insert a couple mpments of Bill thinking "i can get out of this if i can find my statue, wherever it is, and get my soul back into it"; that way in ch 44 i can change his outrage from "you knew [that it exists]?!" to "you knew where it was?!" with only slight wordinc changes; plus it'll punch more if people remember he was holding onto that as his guaranteed escape just to find out it doesn't work

MAYBE, insert a stinger line to the effect of "Ford tries not to feel guilty about the unicorn hair barrier he and Mabel put around the statue last year, since that's prob why Bill can't get into it but he's totally not about to tell Bill that." There's a few issues with that though:

We know ford wrote about this incident in a journal. It probably wasn't J1, 2, or 3, because they're probably mostly full. I wrote that ford's J4 got stolen by Shmebulock in the fall and he started writing J5 then; next summer Bill stole J4 from Shmeb and has been using it since. So this incident CAN'T have been written about in J4 or Bill would know about the unicorn hair barrier & that Ford knows where his corpse is. Did Ford write it in J1 or J2 before tossing them into the void? (Can't be J3, i think we're all out of Secret Lost J3 Pages thanks.) Did Mabel (and Mabel's brother) take a trip back to GF in the fall after Ford had lost J4, and that's when Ford & Mabel made the barrier? This is an annoying detail i'll need to resolve.

when Bill finds out about the unicorn hair barrier, obviously he's gonna wanna go back and break that barrier and try shaking his hand again; and like, that's just gonna result in exactly the same thing we already did in ch 44, with him trying to shake and being devastated it didn't work. We only need that scene once. It's not heartbeaking the second time, it's just tedious. Gotta figure out how to make it non-tedious.

I can't NOT have him try again though, because if I don't, then readers will go "ooOOoo the only reason it didn't work is because of the barrier, so we're obviously building up to the big moment where he tries again and this time it works!!" Which we aren't, obviously. My original writing plans never included the unicorn hair barrier because it didn't exist yet, i'm not building up to the reveal that the statue actually works.

And I'm not interested in making people think it'll work the second time, 44 was MEANT to be the It Totally Doesn't Work scene. A red herring is only a red herring if you put it there on purpose; otherwise it's just a dead fish distracting everyone with its dead fish smell.

So the barrier's annoying. I'll solve it when I get to it.

For the overall plot arc (not just the statue chapter), the only thing I need to change is rewriting "Bill's scared the Axolotl's coming for him because maybe he wasn't supposed to come back to the 21st century even though he wasn't told not to" to "Bill's scared the Axolotl's coming for him because he escaped Theraprism." Which is WAY WAY BETTER. Honestly I thought Bill's motivation for thinking the Axolotl was gonna Get Him was the weakest part of the eclipse arc, so I am deeelighted that the Theraprism gives me something so much more frightening to substitute in. It'll also give me an opportunity to begin working in some info about the Ax's own character & motivation that otherwise I wouldn't be able to include until way into season 2.

This will require me to substantially rewrite Bill's conversation with the Ax—for the better��I've already rewritten like 70% of it. And... basically rewrite nothing else.

That's it. A tiny tweak to Bill's wording in ch44, MAYBE throw in a single line about the unicorn barrier once I decide how I'm going to handle it in the rest of the fic, rewrite his conversation with the Ax, the end.

All the other edits will be fluff from TBOB plumping things out and tiny nudges toward better TBOB compliance—slide in a hint of medical trauma to Bill's refusal to let Ford call a doctor, make a mention during the chess scene that sometimes Bill used to let Ford win, that sort of thing.

[openphrase123]

What's your workflow for planning and then executing a long-term project, like the massive fics you write?

this is how i do fanfics And also original stuff and it's how i've been writing for like ten years (your mileage may vary though i think long project planning is a different kind of beast depending on the person.

also this is the same process as i have for making other media too but obviously with the language tweaked to fit the media (like this is how i plan and execute my game, too!)

have a scene or concept haunt me so thoroughly that i write a short speculative piece about it. if you get here and it's good but can't get past the next step, that's a sign it's meant to be a cool oneshot instead of something multichaptered

decide why i'm making it. what question am i trying to answer, what themes am i trying to explore?

write 2-3 chapters of it freeform style, not caring about where these scenes are going or how they flow into each other (for things that aren't fics, this can just be like. a small section of what it Is). if you're not feeling it here this is a sign to make the scope smaller and make the piece as short as you can tolerate it for. if you are feeling it, this is where you're figuring out the overall tone and style of how the wider work is going to go

figure out the ending. write the ending scene now if you have to. you can change it later but you need to know generally where you want to go

make an outline. how many sections do i need to get from the opening scene to the ending scene? what happens in each chapter?

for ME and how i post, if this is a fanfiction, write at least 25% of it before posting a single thing. or if nothing else write 3 weeks of updates.

start posting

vibe and write at least 3 weeks in advance. if you need a break you need a break. it's free fanfiction, people get it.

now, some creators will be like "whatever you write, take out 10% of it to be economical" this is the modern writer's equivalent of the devil talking. you need the fluff. you need the downtime. you need the epilogue. slow your fucking stories down. let people marinate in them. yeah if you're writing something short form or in a specific format you might need to take stuff out but if you're writing fanfiction or a novel or a game and there's no limit on how long it is. don't worry about spending a couple pages dicking around. every piece of human media from the dawn of time has had interludes, B plots, long meandering pieces of fluff... it makes the parts where the story Hits really stand out. inutile's tragic moments wouldn't be as effective if there weren't fun jokes or levity interspersed in between

that said you need to know when to stop adding shit. only put things in that you think you have a reasonable time to address fully and completely. you will learn this the hard way one day and i cannot teach this or stop you from making this mistake. i learned this mistake writing homestuck fanfiction when i was 13. but in my defense it's really easy to go overboard with homestuck fanfiction

panic because i'm like 90% of the way through and tired of it and start doubting whether the story was ever good at all and if this was wasted time

finish it. celebrate. wait like two months

reread my own work and say "this is sick as hell"

(if this is original work, this is where you start editing it. this is a different beast. i will not elaborate here. fanfiction is for fun and is at the same level as my original fiction drafts. on a rewrite everything will be more polished and purposeful)

repeat forever and ever as long as there are stories to tell

also. this one is just me because it's how my brain works. but ideally i work on two/three longform projects at once, so that when i get tired of working on one my brain will go "ooh shiny" and latch onto one of the other ones effortlessly. if you have adhd this will either work for you perfectly or it will ruin your life

[elviraaxen]

ive really been loving the pacing of your story and i enjoy the concept and the bits that have been released about the plot! youre doing really well, and i admire it greatly!!

ive been having trouble figuring out an overall plot in my own work, i just have character ideas and the vaguest idea for a storyline. i try to just write but then i usually end up taking a break (re: dumping it) because i don't have anymore ideas for how to complete the plot. i've laso been curious about how you go about writing for a comic (do you write then do thumbnails? do thumbnails then go back to figure out dialogue? a third thing?) so i was wondering if you had any advice or resource tips for writing? both for comics and for overarching plots, if that's okay

if you don't have any ideas tho, no worries. i was just curious. good luck with Felt World! i love everything that's coming out so far, thank you for gifting us it!!

Oh thank you so much!! I can't say I'm a comic book artist at heart because I really don't have much experience, I was only an illustrator for a short while and never wrote anything myself, but learning from past mistakes (i.e. I don't stick to plans), I've so far done this and it seems to work:

I'm one of those that don't like to plan strict layouts for the entire thing, because chances are I will not stick to it, so what I've done for felt world is just write a sketch for the overarching plot, the b-plot and c-plot, with rough estimates in what order I want the major plot points and settings to be. My current sketch looks like this;

(which is done in Miro) and as you can see there aren't that many plot points, because I want to have the wiggle room to come up with something on the spot. And also, my comic focuses a lot on interpersonal relationships, character development, and themes rather than the plot, which means it needs to be concise or else the comic is gonna take 6 million years to finish.

And now,, I think this might just be how I work, but I think it's easier to be creative when you have strict restrictions rather than all the choices in the world.

for me, personally, I restrict an update of 10 pages tops, because instagram only allows max 10 images per post! This means I have to 1) fit all I want to say in 10 pages, 2) it has to be concise or else I infodump on readers, and 3) I have to answer some sort of question within the update, or else I said nothing and I start over.

As for scripts, I tend to write one or two sentences of what's going to happen for the update, and then I get to thumb-nailing and sketching right away! I come up with most of the dialogue on the spot too.

And also, I think what's most important, is that you take your damn time! If you aren't immersing yourself in your own world, how do you expect your readers to do the same?

I'm very much a believer that the stories you are telling are something that comes to you naturally if you just sit with it and listen rather than demand that it makes itself known to you. When I brainstorm for felt world I quite literally sit in my bed and go "omg!! And then what? :0" TO MYSELF LMAO as if I'm not making everything up myself! I think that's extremely important that your story is engaging to you first and foremost!

And as for more practical tips

carry a notebook with you or use your notes app AS SOON as you get ideas to write them down! No you will not remember, lol.

set rules of what you're not allowed to do with your story so that you don't fall into lazy trope territory! You can do that when you brain storm, but finesse the story post brainstorm to just make it.. smarter.. if that makes sens For example, don't kill your gay characters, don't make sensitive men the butt of the joke, don't make your women fight over men (unless it's the point), etc.

set physical restrictions! For example, max amount of pages per upload, max amount of pages for the whole story, max amount of characters, etc.! That literally forces you to problem solve, which by definition is creativity! Like, oh you can't do this the obvious way? Do it the creative way! That's way more fun!

I could probably go on, but this is too long already! But I hope it at least helped somewhat!

[4m4zing-gracie]

Uzi Doorman: How unnecessary romance can ruin a character (Part 1)

This is no flack to Uzi, nor is it to any NUzi shippers (ship what you want, I may be an eNVy lover and I'm happy you got what you wanted, I just hate how it was handled in the show), but can we all just talk about how much the unnecessary romance subplot + the inclusion of it in the show in general absolutely butchered Uzi's character?

I hope to god this gets put under an automatic 'read more/expand' thing, 'cause this is gonna get long.

But in case it doesn't cue the obligatory 'read more'!

Thank you.

Now, I remember watching the pilot and loving the character and the premise, as well as the dynamics in the show. Uzi was one of the characters that stuck out to me the most and was arguably my favourite before that title was given to V in episode three. She was determined to murder the company as well as armies of their other killer robots to save her colony, even if she had no skills AND at the cost of her own life, and she is absolutely willing to take in the robots that are just as much victims in all of this as the worker drones (eg. N).

I overall like to think that despite her flaws, and what her spiteful personality seems to show and probably on the contrary to what she would claim if she talks to anyone about it, Uzi's a much better person than she lets on. Not the most altruistic obviously, but still better than most people in the show. Hell, she didn't kill V on the spot like she did with J, not only because her railgun was still charging, but also because she knew N liked her and doing anything to V would make him sad.

Uzi overall was strong, independent, and didn't take BS from anyone, and despite her abrasiveness was overall wanting the best for robotkind, even willing to team up with those who had been hurt by them to show them the light. And that is what drew me to her and made me like her.

Then comes The Promening. Uzi, who was terrified of N and what he, V and J could be just an episode ago, is meeting up with him again, and what does she do? Ask him to go with her to prom, all blushy-faced and everything, despite having been terrified of him a moment ago. No buildup, no episode dedicated to them making up and realizing that it's okay and they can figure out what is wrong together, just.... out of nowhere crush. And while you could argue that she still needed him there anyways because of the looming danger of whatever Doll and Lizzy were planning, it's still not necessary, and I hate how it continues to stay throughout the episode.

Ladies and gentlemen, your first indication that this next bunch of episodes gonna get long and arduous.

Up next is Cabin Fever. Not my favourite episode-- I mean, it's no Absolute End in terms of garbage-- but not my favourite either.

Okay, so Uzi's learned that the plot is thickening and that she has some kind of solver thing, and so does Doll. So now, she's trying to get some answers about what this thing that she and Doll have is by looking around the camp that her father recommended checking out.

We start with more unnecessary blushing (seriously, where the fuck did this crush come from)?! and then Uzi goes off to find the cabin where she might get answers. Unfortunately, no results.

We then get a moment between her and V. Uzi and V obviously don't see eye to eye (honestly, they needed an episode or a moment where they talk properly and get a better understanding of each other). Uzi wants answers but finds that V is some annoying parasite that only cares about herself and her stomach, and likewise V does not like Uzi, being jealous of her and not wanting her to get involved with the past, as V thinks she knows what is best for N and is trying to 'protect him' (which Uzi does not know why).

N and V are already getting along with the other campers outside, something Uzi envies because they rarely acknowledge her existence at best, or treat her like a monster at worst. In this moment, V is hammering the point home by saying how Uzi needs to stop 'being creepy' and that she plans to make the latter her next victim for sneaking around and snooping, and that N will move on from her. After all, if what she has said is true, the guy has made friends with rocks before!

Long story short, Uzi gets possessed by the Solver and goes crazy and eats people, and we see her almost about to kill V (something I doubt she'd do if she had free will, as it would make N upset). Only when N swoops in to save them both is when she manages to break free. Blah Blah Blah, N and Uzi have a moment, and they both hug it out together, and they crushily hold hands*, end of episode.

*- Uzi, you didn't need to do that because again, WHERE DID THIS CRUSH COME FROM?

FINAL THOUGHTS:

Apologies in advance for the jarring Picrew, but I needed something to convey my facial expressions rn because I don't have nearly enough unhappy drawings of my 'Sona to show it.

So, as I have mentioned before, I'm an eNVy shipper. And so with this info in mind, you're probably thinking "Well, she's probably making this post to justify why eNVy should be canon". And in another universe where I'm an even bigger bitch than I already am, maybe I would be. But... that's not why we're here. We're talking about how Uzi was utterly RUINED as a character.

So to start, she was great at first. Loveable character, rebellious, surprised her plushie wasn't the second one made because of her popularity.

But then this crush came out of nowhere and so I begin to fear for the future of the show. As I'm watching this, I am partially honestly going "who are you and what have you done with my Uzi?" because while it's good that Uzi is still focusing on the mystery to some degree, it seems that now she's also starting to obsess over an out-of-nowhere crush that has ZERO buildup or anything similar. For god's sake, N and Disassembly drones in general were the objects of her fears at the end of episode two!

I GET that the show is about Uzi and N's friendship, I really do. And I like shows that are buddy-centric. But why does this random romance bullshit have to be squirmed in, when the show was already perfect without any signs of it? Seriously, Liam, this is not how you take things!

Unfortunately, it's only gonna get more arduous from there. So uh... I dunno, "thanks for coming to my TED Talk, stay tuned and keep an eye out for a part two coming later"? I dunno.

[coeurify]

tips on writing fics? your stories always flow so well and have great details

hi! thank u sm this actually made me go 🥹. i might. not be the best for asking tips to be honest because im SUCH a procrastinator and a self critic with writing.

my biggest i suppose is getting down your drafting and outline routine (or lack thereof). having one can help, but do not force yourself to have a super detailed one if you aren’t big on planning. idk if this is controversial (i think more detailed outlines help for multi chap things) but a lot of times outlines make me feel trapped. for me, jotting down a few plot points i wanna hit and general vibe is enough to keep me feeling less critical of when things need to happen and how they need to be written. it makes me way less creative when i force myself to outline every detail etc. but having a general idea also makes it so i don’t feel stuck and not knowing where to go. other times i sit down on docs with no idea and get out 10k words in 2 hours. just depends👆 outlines work for some people and dont for others. just figure out a pre writing routine that helps get into the zone

also for detailing i am constantly editing and re-editing etc. its a boring part but you’re always gonna catch sentences you can make more detailed or descriptive after getting that first quick baseline draft down. i also listen to a shit ton of music while i wrote and look at pictures of what im trying to describe bc visualizing can be hard for me. sometimes when writing fluff or smut ill ask my roommate if a position makes sense (lmao)

read books and online writing blogs that help with expanding vocab or catalogs that help describe certain feelings ! :3 you can find a lot of those resources on tumblr !

overall i’m a pretty messy writer so idk if i can help all that much but writing is messy and that’s why it’s fun! don’t force yourself to try and write with outlines, without them.. through requests or tropes etc. just write how feels comfortable to you and practice practice practice. i have so many things i write that are just for me and my google docs bc im just practicing diff types of settings, time periods, etc.

[anogete]

Hi. Update of random shit in case anyone cares.

The scary test I was stressed over in the fall when I was posting my last fic? It was the CFP (Certified Financial Planner) exam. Yes, I passed it. The designation requires a bachelor's degree, so I had to go back to school to finish my last 10 classes. Then I had to take 7 more classes that are pre-reqs for the exam. Then I spent probably 700 hours attempting to cram everything you could think of related to personal finance (my god, there is a metric shit ton) into my head. The designation also requires 5,000 hours of experience in the planning field (which I thankfully already had). By the time I passed the test, I was no longer proud of the accomplishment, just relieved to have it behind me.

Work was intensely busy in November and December. I got little reading and no writing done.

I have a WIP featuring the Darcy/Rumlow pairing that has been languishing on my computer since 2020. To be honest, I've mosty forgotten what the conflict driving the plot was going to be. I think I was trying to tie it into the events of Wandavision. Took place after the show and had Monica Rambeau and Darcy kinda sorta working together and trying to figure out what, if anything, crossing the barrier that Wanda had thrown up did to them. Of course, Rumlow is alive and scarred and back with the good guys. And also really annoyed that his recent gunshot wound stuck him on desk duty watching the nerds complete their physicals as part of employee onboarding. Darcy doesn't want to have gym class with Rumlow, and Rumlow doesn't want to be there either but he's also kinda into the sassy brunette who tried to sweet talk him into passing her without making her run a mile. In the chapter or two I did write, the banter between Darcy and Rumlow was so fun, so I'd love to go back to it and try to move it along.

I got sucked into reading Draco/Hermione fanfic recently. Blame those damn Snow edits from the latest Hunger Games movie. Guys, I have never read those books or seen the movies, but blonde Tom Blyth is looking like the fanfic Draco of my dreams. How dare. This rabbit hole led to me deciding I needed to write a Dramione piece. It's maybe 6 pages and has gone nowhere even though I have a vague idea of the plot. My muse is struggling.

I found my old folder of all the fic I wrote in the past 20 years. There are still a couple hockey fics I haven't posted to AO3. There are also Anita Blake fics (I was a hardcore Anita/Edward girlie) and Harry Potter fics (don't cancel me but I used to write Snape/Hermione; NO student/teacher stuff though). I think I have an old Doctor Who fic featuring Nine/Rose (yes, I'm a Nine girlie). And a very old Forgotten Realms fic that paired Catti-Brie up with Jarlaxle. Look, I don't know. It was ages ago. With the exception of the hockey fics, I do not think any of these are of the same quality I've posted on AO3, but I've been toying with the idea of trying to clean them up and posting them so more of my work is archived together instead of spread over various fan sites. Does anyone have any interest at all in reading this shit? Like, at all?

I decided 2024 is going to be my book binding era. I bound isthisselfcare's Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Being in Love a couple weeks ago. I did all the typesetting with the help of some macros. Printed it, folded the signatures (the booklets that comprise the book), sewed them together with waxed linen thread, glued the text block together with some mull, and used chip board and book cloth to make the case. It feels and looks like a book, y'all! I could do a better job with lining the signatures up when punching the holes for sewing and with the measurements on the case, but overall I am pretty proud of it. If anyone is interested, I can link a nice tutorial series on TT and/or post progress pictures I took during my book binding experiment. I have to say, it's exciting to have the ability to put my fav fanfics on my physical bookshelf.

[canonizzyhours]

i don't think i'm the first person to say this but the big takeaway i'm taking from the canyon breakdown is that you should never try to make all your fans happy.

like it's pretty clear at this point what the deal with izzy was: in s1 he existed primarily to be the same kind of antagonist for ed the badmintons were for stede - a figure in ed's life who could externalize and reinforce his self-destructive beliefs. to the extent the writers had any plans for him after that, they involved the planned reveal we now know about that he was in the siete gallos, and i doubt they had nailed down anything very firm about how they meant to handle that. and, crucially, it's pretty clear at this point that izzy's sexual attraction to ed was never meant to be his central motivation. it's THERE, for sure, but it's there to be sort of an ironic twist on his explicit textual motivations of ambition and homophobia and toxic masculinity, a little spice added into the mix, not a climactic reveal of what he's really all about.

now this doesn't mean the writers had a firm plan that izzy COULDN'T become more important, or have a redemption, or what have you. the siete gallos reveal likely would have meant at least a season where izzy was a full villain, but even if they went that way, after that a redemption could have been on the table (although so would an unrepentant villain's death). they were open to taking him in lots of different potential directions in s2.

so say you're one of the writers. after s1 you find that not only did the show overall get a stronger response than you ever dreamed, this antagonist you wrote as a basically unsympathetic villain in s1 is an unexpected fan favorite and people are clamoring for a redemption arc for him. that's great! as a writer you love to hear that. you always want your characters to get strong reactions from the fanbase. and it's not like you specifically planned NOT to redeem izzy, it was always on the list of options. so you agree to throw out anything you'd still be considering about the siete gallos plot, since that would entail more villainy, and instead focus on redeeming izzy into a good guy over the course of s2.

now there's a small problem with that: if you do it, you're obviously going to have to kill him once the redemption arc is complete. that's clear, because in s1 he was written to have zero sympathetic character traits - even his "loyalty" isn't a positive kind - so in order to redeem him you're going to have to basically get rid of every personality trait that makes him interesting. at the end of the redemption arc he'll be a character who makes no sense to keep around. but, hey, that makes sense - you already meant for ed and stede to be comfortably in a relationship by the end of the season, so killing the character who exists to symbolize the internal issues that hold ed back from committing to the relationship completely works!

you know the fans are invested in the sexual aspect of izzy's feelings for ed, and that some of them ship them together. unfortunately, this is pretty incompatible with a redemption arc, since izzy's stalkery obsession pretty much exists to motivate him to do evil things and treat ed like his property, so you'll have to get him over those feelings. but you're careful with this: you make sure to write some dialogue into the first few episodes that alludes to that relationship and is ambiguous enough to interpret in multiple ways - "i have...love for you," "loved you best i could" - to throw a bone to the blackhands shippers before firmly closing the door on that arc and writing izzy as having gotten over those feelings.

it's going to be hard to redeem izzy in one season. you know his actions near the end of s1 were damn near unforgivable, because you wrote them that way. so you carefully break down what he needs to do to be truly redeemed. you make sure he suffers a lot near the beginning of the season, enough that it's indisputable he's been punished for what he did (and it takes a LOT of suffering to be sure it's an adequate punishment, considering). you arrange for him to be touched by the undeserved mercy he receives from stede and stede's crew. you devote a full episode of izzy time to showing he's over his homophobia and willing to openly do some gay shit now. you have him symbolically reverse every horrible thing he did in s1. all so it can culminate in a true redemption where this character who originally existed to force ed to stay blackbeard dies giving him permission to just be ed.

basically what i'm saying is at every turn the writers were trying to give the canyon as much slack as they possibly could while preserving the core of izzy's actual narrative role. they were never going to portray izzy as having been a good guy in season 1, or portray izzy's love for ed as being in any way redemptive instead of being a creepy selfish obsession, or treat him as a character who did not exist ultimately to symbolize ed's issues. they couldn't do any of that without it being a profound narrative betrayal of the izzy they set up in season 1. but within those bounds, they worked so, so hard to give the canyon as much as they could.

and the result is that the canyon's now much angrier than they would have been if the writers had just stuck with siete gallos izzy. at least then they'd have known early in the season they weren't getting what they wanted, instead of spending the whole month thinking they were being proven right only to have the rug yanked out from under them right at the end.

#393.

[robotlesbianjavert]

Why do you think the makima reveal worked while the afo-tenko reveal didn't?

let me share an anecdote of me reading chainsaw man as part one was rolling. upon the release of chapter 71: bath. man makima has been really hot and sexy but also very sketchy and ambiguous this entire series i wonder what she obviously has planned for denji. but look denji is prioritizing his friendship and care for power over deluding himself into thinking he can has a real chance with a woman like makima, as many teenage boys delude themselves into thinking. whatever she's planning it doesn't matter because friendship and found family trumps all! me reading chapters 81: paw & 82: always eat a hearty breakfast, as they came out. i'm ending it all.

like honestly, part of the reason that the makima reveal works so well is that it's much more integrated into the story. obviously denji is the main character focused on throughout the entire story, and his developing dynamic with makima is highlighted throughout. but my experience, as i followed the story, was so focused on thinking about "what does makima have planned" that i missed the enormity of what she'd already done.

not only do we spend more time with that dynamic, but it's also so well entwined with the overall ideas of the story. one of things i love csm part one for is how tightly written it is - fujimoto had a strong idea of what he wanted to do from beginning to end. while i'm sure there was some massaging and diversion throughout the actual creation, i think it's apparent that fujimoto knew what he wanted to do with the characters and what he wanted to say with the story. one theme that is present throughout is what quality of life denji desires, how the standards for a satisfactory life keeps escalating as denji has more life experiences, as he fulfills more goals and has to find something new to satisfy him.

and that's directly entwined with makima's plans for denji - to satisfy his idea of a happy life, escalate that standard, and break him by taking it all away. that's baked into his relationships with aki, power, pochita, everyone - it's the central conceit of the entire story. it's very on the nose, and also one of the most engaging takes on a protagonist's relationship with his villainous pseudo-parental figure.

and basically. we know that makima's intentions for denji are sketchy all along, but it's difficult to deduce what exactly her plans are. then you learn, it's so much deeper and more horrible than expected, and it actively enriches the story, it's organically thematic. the kind of thing that made me immediately reread csm from the beginning with this knowledge in mind.

in comparison to shigaraki, while one of the if not theeeee central character, is still an antagonist/deuteragonist. he is cruelly forced to split share panel time with deku and bakugou and all might and whoever else, and accordingly we spend a lot less time specifically with shigaraki & afo than we do denji & makima. this isn't a bad thing - look at how much discussion shigaraki and afo's relationship has generated throughout the years, because what matters is what details are shared about them and how. you can say a lot about a story with very little!

i think it's also a matter of how expectations for each plotline were set up - with makima and denji, you know she's plotting, but you don't really know in which direction, why, how, what, etc. the tidbits you can meaningfully speculate off of aren't enough to come up with something better than what fujimoto had planned. i had simply carelessly thought she needed denji loyal to her for Whatever reason, not that she was going to dig so deeper into what we as readers knew about his past.

in comparison to bnha. listen remember way back when a big selling point for bnha's writing was for how it apparently subverted superhero and shonen tropes without being a grimdark deconstruction like idk. the boys or something. ultimately the problem there is that bnha only gets so far into that subversion before snapping right back to the norm of those genres, ie rah rah heroes so cool villains so vile whatever.

so with afo and shigaraki specifically. like for one, we know from basically the start that afo fucked with shigaraki's history in one way or another. he knew tenko was nana's grandkid, he conveniently was around when tenko was wandering helplessly through the streets. and when we know that from the get go, there's only so much you can to that before it gets a bit much. in comparison to where the twist with makima is that she didn't directly impact denji's past, but has enough knowledge of it to manipulate him in the present.

so when we get the "afo is possessing shigaraki" plotline in the PLF raid is less "WHOA who could have seen that coming" and more "ugh. so we're going there?"

the care that denji also had for aki and power is also both 100% organic on denji's part, while still being intended by makima, which is meant to make her manipulations hit that much harder (and also why things got tripped up with power. denjipower real forever). while with shigaraki and the league we as readers are in this weird grey area? afo is trying to lay claim to all of shigaraki's choices and development, which extends ambiguously to his relationship with the league, but the closest we get to afo actually using this against shigaraki is him overloading spinner with quirks? which can still screw afo over - after all, spinner certainly didn't wake up kurogiri the way that afo intended! i am holding onto that! but it still leaves the league as "collateral" throughout the manipulations in comparison to aki and power.

also like. i just want to know more about afo & shigaraki's relationship. we see the sum of makima & denji's relationship throughout the series, but afo & shigaraki's is left to either backstory, vague implication, or comical evil in the present. it's not that the story needs to show us a bunch of sappy shit, but it would also hit harder if we saw more of that emotional enmeshment, more reason to shigaraki to trust and respect afo that wasn't Obvious Evil, to make that betrayal an actual betrayal rather than a. yeah of course afo, obviously evil and manipulative man, would do all of that.

and going back to expectations. it was just cooler when there was more subversive expectations. like afo doing the mentor sacrifice at the kamino fight, letting shigaraki and crew get away and accepting the end of his era in favour of shigaraki's, versus all might who was still struggling with letting go of his legacy and handing it off to deku, something affirmed when toshinori, in his all might get up, visited an imprisoned afo who by all accounts was cool with shigaraki doing his own thing. until he wasn't? idk.

i guess basically. where csm succeeded with the makima reveal is that it showed a clarity of vision and foreplanning. bnha failed because it didn't enrich what was already there, pounded on what was already apparent in in cartoonish ways, and every alternative interpretation of the relationship was more engaging and original, and it's basically a clumsy shortcut to some of the things that horikoshi wants to say but simplified so that he can push his rah rah heroes so cool agenda.

also makima was innately sexy through all of that. while afo is my chewable barbie doll. it be what it be.

i feel like i had more to say but i sat on this too long and when crazy. again, it be what it be.

[anulithots]

Ooh...So excited when I know that you are now a fan of Link Click, too.... Can I ask something from Link Click? What do you think are Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang’s greatest personality strengths and weaknesses? Why? What do you love about their dynamic? Sorry if you've answered these questions before.....

P.s

Also, can I ask your top fav characters and fav moments from the series (Link Click), if you don't mind me asking (again)....? Thanks so much....

KLDKJfdskj THANK YOU FOR THE ASK! I had answered it, wanted to save it for further thoughts... then tumblr wiped the post.

THENNN THIS SAT IN MY DRAFTS FOR WAY TOO LONG

I cry. Sorry this took so long!

BUT I Did handwrite some stuff down, so here we go!

(Just a note that while I proabably will analyze link click - how could I not - I won't try to do as much analysis as I did with Jujutsu Kaisen... because... well I did too much. Maybe burnt myself out? I hyper analyzed that to the point where it became another school subject... and LInk Click actually SHOWS backstory, so I don't' have to connect as many dots. )

CHeng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang's strengths and weaknesses.

Cheng Xiaoshi: he's empathetic, but so much so that it turns into impulsive decisions. Other than that, when he does have space and time to process his emotions, he's INCREDIBLY good at strategizing based on the factors of the environment + the emotions of those involved (Lu Guang will follow rules without being as adaptive)

Overall, I'd describe the Cheng Xiaoshi emotion pipeline to be this:

gets overwhelmed with strong emotions, especially when possessing someone or in a high stakes situation. In this state, he'll do reckless, impulsive decisions, oftentimes for the good of others... but he usually regrets it later

CXS has more time to sit with and process his emotions. He usually withdraws from the world at this time. (Post episode five, or after diving into the photo on his own, when he thought Lu Guang was dead)

He does his whole 'I have a plan thing' and it's ridiculously smart. He just needs time (and lots of it) to process his emotions.

Cheng Xiaoshi is also almost.. too trusting. He trusts others, empathizes with them, so easily feels and assimilates himself with others that he'll... probably get taken advantage of. (See season two)

He also clings to the people he has. This is neither a strength nor a weakness... it's both, it's a trait, and it will become either beneficial or a detriment depending on the situation, as is the case with a lot of character traits. The plot tests the flaws and benefits of a character. (Sorry small tangent)

CXS tries to prevent the same pain of loss from befalling anyone else/ people he possesses. He fears being alone (probably also feeds into his 'too trusting' + relies on Lu Guang thing. Neither are inherently flaws) and perhaps part of the reason he is so impulsive is because his parents left him so suddenly. He gets so stressed because he has to help them/save them, and he must do so immediately, before they leave him forever.

(See I'm analyzing but I'm having trouble with fitting CXS into the overall themes... hmmm.. I'll figure it out.)

EDIT: I HAVE THOUGHTS, I THINK I FIGURED IT OUT... MAYBE I SHALL LET THE THOUGHTS MARINATE MORE!!

Lu Guang:

I'm not sure if he restrains his emotions, has subdued ones, or if whenever he's around CXS he can act more 'low energy' because CXS is... a lot. /aff

(See Lu Guang sitting on the couch differences from when CXS is there versus when CXS is in a dive

Versus when he's alone:

*feet on the table*

*bouncing his foot*)

He acts like he's the level headed one, but he's far from it. Even in season one, especially in episode five (when he took a risk and it ended up backfiring on CXS) he can and will freak out the moment something doesn't go according to plan. And who often doesn't go according to plan?

Cheng Xiaoshi.

Lu Guang does his very best to... prevent against this. He means well. Pretty much every moment he's on screen is him trying to protect CXS.

He does keep secrets, but overall, I think he isss pretty open about what he thinks and feels (except for when it comes to CXS to his face... he'll gladly talk about it to Qiao Ling). In... I think it was episode six, he openly told Cheng Xiaoshi his reasoning for going back in time to deliver the messages in episode four... to alleviate the client (and prove to himself that it is possible) of regret.

As far as the 'strengths and weaknesses' go, for all the issues and benefits that happen because of him, it's really caused by his personality, his traits, that will be either useful or detrimental depending on the situation. LInk Click is wonderous at using the plot to fully explore the nuances of the characters, so none of their traits are 'black and white'. Very 'trolley problem esque' and up to the viewer to decide. *buzzes and explodes* /pos

In essence: Both CXS and Lu Guang are emotional idiots in their own ways (CXS's just louder about it /pos /aff) and QIao LIng is actually the only levelheaded one here.

... I need some more time and rewatches before I can fully analyze them well so that's that for now!

What I love about their dynamic

They both trust each other, and will break all of time and space (or not break all of time and space) for the sake of the other.

MOST OF ALL HOW'LL THEY'LL BREAK THEIR USUAL CHARACTER IF IT MEANS PROTECTING THE OTHER.

Like Lu Guang, for all the times he says that CXS cannot change the past, that he shouldn't interfere, caves if it means giving Cheng Xiaoshi solace. (Episode five when tried to help Cheng Xiaoshi save his mom, and in season two when he let Cheng Xiaoshi dive to allow police assistant guy - I forget his name - to give a flower ring to his wife)

For Cheng Xiaoshi, he'll resist his impulses and emotions, even if it causes him immense pain, to comply with what Lu Guang would've wanted. Epppiisooddee fivvee is a good example of this. (And of course... I think it was episode two of season two where Cheng Xiaoshi decided not to go back in time for the sake of Lu Guang's wishes). Cheng Xiaoshi 'gave up' on trying to save everyone in the town because of Lu Guang's urging, and even throughout all the dives he does, as early as episode one, he trusts Lu Guang.

Also, in a less dramatic sense, ... alll the little things they constantly do for eachhh other aklsjfkaslfklasjd fSCREAMSSS

Lu Guang checking on Cheng Xiaoshi during his nightmares, comforting CHeng Xiaoshi after the trauma that was episode five, the both of them constantly teasing each other, how comfortable they are in each other's presence. IT'S SO QUEER PLATONIC CODED I LOVE THEM SO MUCH.

Fav characters and moments.

(in the prev version of this ask I started listing out EVERY SINGE scene in season one and started going to season two... I love them all. I love them all so much I'm going to rewatch it again.)

But as of now I'll list them out and include some of my screenshot collection (it is growing heheheh)

In episode one where Lu Guang slurps his noodles to tease CXS after he couldn't eat his spring rolls

The moment in episode two where Lu Guang proclaims that the mission is hopeless and CHeng Xiaoshi says 'Just because you don't see hope doesn't mean there is none'

AND LU GUANG SMILESSSSS:

Also Lu Guang smiling when CHeng Xiaoshi says how he wishes Lu Guang could've tasted the noodles too. There's Lu Guang smiling at things Cheng Xiaoshi says, what more does one need in the world?

ANY MOMENT QIAO LING IS ON SCREEN IS IMMEDIATELY PEAK FICTION AND I SHALL PERISH ON THIS HILL

Like in season two where Cheng Xiaoshi is restrained and QIao LIng slaps the lawyer guy in the face (I'm slow with names and need to rewatch season two)

Honestly episode five is a masterclass in good writing. The moment where Cheng Xiaoshi's mom is singing to him, then it cuts to Cheng Xiao's mother dying is just... *sobs*

WHEN QIAO LING CANNONICALLY CALLS CXS HER BROTHER AND IT FLASHBACKS TO HER AND YOUNGER CXS AND lakjfalksfjasklfjaslkfjaslkdfj

Cheng Xiaoshi's backstory in general... it was either in episode ten or eleven... or nine??? I still have to rewatch up to there. Epsically because CXS's backstory was explored in really nuanced and explorative ways before the whole thing was revealed, which makes any rewatches 1000x sadder. It's such good writing holy herbs.

In episode... seven I think it was.... when CXS as Doudou punched the human trafficker and Lu Guang had a surprised pikachu face... peak fiction. How this donghua manages to make me smile and laugh then ugly cry and stare at a wall for the next few hours is beyond me /pos /sooo impreeessive the wriittttnggg.

Lesbian Noodle ladies were amazing. 100/10. Bring them back the trio needs happiness

Lu Guang wanting to go the funeral in season two with an IV and half formal clothes, half hospital gown. He's smart but in the 'I've memorized an entire Library but can't navigate a practical/social thing to save my life' sort of way. Love him for that.

Wang Juan. She has an Ivan (alien stage) haircut and she was great and yes I have another aesthetic crush shhhh

When the trio dressed up as the cartoon characters to reunite Doudou with his dad.

Cheng Xiaoshi arguing and bickering with Xu Shanshan. Then when he dives as her, he immediately makes her look bad and it's hilarious

In the 5.5 extra where Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang play video games against Qiao Ling and both of them lose.

Qiao Ling and CXS both beating up a bunch of people. Peak siblings

CXS and Lu Guang beating up Qian Jin (I looked up the wiki and it has character namess yessssss). Peak queer platonic partners.

Moments like these? IDK I just like the idea of them spending time together without necessarily needing to talk to each other, comfortable in the silence.

SCREENSHOT COLLECTION:

.... I reached my image limit *cries*

THANK YOU FOR THE ASK!

(and sorry it took me so long to answer it)

... now I want dumplings

[lover-of-mine]

So i was thinking earlier, and if you've been around here any length of time you know i think about that cemetery scene a lot, because narratively it's a very interesting scene because it changes the tone of their relationship in comparison to the rest of the show really, and it's a fascinating choice in the context of the episodes before. Even the whole point of the conversation happening at a cemetery where they're visiting someone who didn't die on their watch. But i have a tendency to look at that scene from Eddie's eyes because when you look at it along with all of Eddie's reactions surrounding Buck's death and the reactions Eddie was having to Buck's words, that feels like a breakup. It feels like we are watching Eddie's heart break in real time, yk? BUT Buck is very purposeful in that scene too. He's basically daring Eddie to say something but Eddie just thinks that he needs to agree. And if you look at it that way and think about it as Buck asking for a reaction, you can argue Buck feels rejected there too, even though Eddie thinks he's being supportive. They are saying things and they are being misinterpreted. Both of them leave that talk with different views of what happened. And that's VERY interesting with how strongly the show pushed Buck, Eddie and Chris as a family unity in the episodes before and, well, i dont really know how the show plans to recover from that. If they plan on addressing it at all. Like, that was a breakup. But if it's a breakup where both of them think they got broken up with, how do you come back? You need to acknowledge it in some way. Even more with the space that was put between the two of them. But it's a good thing because the space can be used for some individual growth they need to do in order for the relationship to actually work long term. Mainly Buck learning to deal with his own feelings and asking for things and Eddie stopping assuming he knows best and making unilateral choices for both of them with the "I knew you wouldn't" excuse (and Buck stopping letting him get away with it). And the only way they come back from it in a satisfying way is for them to actually acknowledge the fact that they are not actually in each other's minds and sometimes things will get lost in translation and that addressing them doesn't need to be a public blowout (I think there's a lingering thing about how the last time they truly were on different sides of an argument, things got completely out of both of their control). The only way to bring them back is to talk about why there's space in the first place. And well, I live in delusionland, I will always look at things in a narrative lens trying to figure out how does that further the plot in a way that gets them together. And if the cemetery is really supposed to be seen as a breakup of sorts, unless they are planning on perpetually separating Buck and Eddie's plots (which particularly, I think it's a dumb move, not even just as a shipper, but because they have a fascinating relationship no matter how you look at it and losing that would take a toll on the overall way to look at both of them), they will have to talk about it. That scene is too long and too purposeful to be the type of thing that will be ignored.

[ask-whitepearl-and-steven]

Have you written the entire plot of the AU ahead of time, or are you writing specifics as you go?

I have the main plot points and the ending figured out. However, the details of things change all the time.

For example, I always knew Steven and Earl would fuse and form Coral which would lead to a mirroring of Aventurine's fusion. But the details changed a bit. I initially planned to have them fuse at the end of season 3, when Jasper arrived. Then I held off.

The great chase of Peridot and Lapis also evolves as I go. I know the base of what needs to happen, but I am constantly rewriting the details of how to get there. Not all the details - some things are more solid - but many of them.

What happens with Jasper during the Cluster Arc and what will happen to her after is also changing a bit as I write and re-think the events and how everyone is affected. Overall the story isn't all that different, but I delete and re-insert scenes in my head all the time. I'm basically screen writing and editing constantly in my head.