#i think maybe it has something to do with my favourite aspects of stories are the fucked up dynamics among characters

[weregonnabecoolbeans]

I went to see challengers however long ago going in almost completely blind to what it was.

Someone please tell me why I haven’t stopped thinking about it since seeing it?!?

[redivia]

'I think it's time for bed' Ghost x Reader

Summary: Simon fell asleep on the couch after coming home from work.

Authors note: Heyy! So this is my first ever story. I never thought I would write anything let alone post it, but here we are. Also it has to be said that I don't have a beta reader so if you notice any errors or mistakes kindly point them out in the comments. English isn't my first language so I might have missed some errors. Have fun reading! <3 This is also posted on AO3 .

You were sitting on the couch together with Ghost, or how he wants you to call him, Simon. Outside you could hear the wind blowing through the leaves of various bushes and trees surrounding your joint home. Since it’s been getting colder, the wind was accompanied by some light rain. Not the kind of rain that leaves you drenched if you even think about stepping outside, but the kind that makes the nicest pitter patter noises on your roof. If you listened carefully, you could even, make out the water making its way across the roof and cascading down the rain gutters that ran along the side of your home.

Simon came home a few hours ago, seemingly pretty tired and ready to go to bed, but his face lit up and adorned a fatigued smile once he saw you. You welcomed your boyfriend home with a much-awaited hug and a gentle kiss. Together you ate dinner. During your dinner you made sure to make light conversation with him. Talking about how the weather suddenly switched up on you while you were walking home, or how there was a sale on your favourite snack at your local store and you were therefore indirectly forced to stock up again.

Dinner wasn't really anything that took tons of effort, but it was still as comforting as ever. A simple one pot pasta had to make do for tonight, but for Simon, he might as well could have been at a Michelin star restaurant. Having to rely on MRE's as his main source of calories during his time at work, has set his standards for food very low. A warm meal? With his partner? At home? He might as well be in heaven. Simon made sure to show you his gratitude in the form of cleaning up the dishes afterwards.

Which in all honesty, could have just been shoved into the dish washer and called it a day, yet he insisted on doing them by hand. Meanwhile you were sat next to him on the countertop and listened to him complaining about some new recruits that were trying to turn everything into a competition.

Being able to look at his face and watch his emotions flicker across his face while he was telling a story has always been one of your favourite aspects of your relationship. Simon swore a long time ago that he won’t be wearing his mask around the house, and you’ve been grateful that he stuck to his promise. The privilege of getting to see his face wasn’t something Simon granted to just anyone, and you are well aware of the fact. Making it even more special to you.

The story about the recruits ended in them trying to sabotage and deliberately throw other comrades off of the obstacle course. Some poor rookie had to get stiches because he fell off of the wall they were meant to jump over. But Simon witnessed how the recruit behind him gave the guy in front a not-so-gentle push, because the poor guy was moving too slowly for his taste. It goes without saying that Ghost delivered a long and proper talking to and maybe some extra rounds of running for the saboteur.

While his story came to a close, Simon had also finished the dishes. You both agreed that you only had enough energy left for a movie before deciding on heading to bed.

So that's how you found yourself and your boyfriend sat on the couch in your living room, watching whatever action movie that was currently running on the TV. You listened to Simon ramble and rant about how inaccurate basically every single aspect of the movie was. How they held the guns wrong, shooting for 5 minutes straight without reloading once, not to mention the amount of ammunition they would need to carry with them for them to be able to shoot as much as they were.

All you could do was listen to him with a small grin on your face. Only Simon would be able to pick apart some movie that was clearly produced in some warehouse in Hollywood, with a plot that never even saw the inside of a writer’s room. But of course, you supported your boyfriend in his strong opinions and joined him in his rant.

It must have been about an hour into the movie when you noticed Simon had stopped talking to you. You risked a small glance over at him and saw he was properly passed out. The stress of the day at work must have finally caught up to him. Taking the liberty, you turned down the volume of the TV just a couple of notches, making it so that the movie was now just background noise.

When you were designing the living room you deliberately chose a three-seater couch, ensuring that there would always be enough space for you and Simon to stretch out without hogging the space from the other. Leaning into his side of the couch, your boyfriends arms sat limply at his sides, his right hand placed on your thigh just above your knee.

Normally he would be stroking his thumb gently from side to side as a reminder that he was still there. Honestly you should have noticed that he was asleep once his ministrations ceased. You took a moment to admire how is face changed depending on whatever light flickered across the screen in front of the both of you. In your opinion, he looked the nicest in a subtle orangish tone, the warm light bringing out his faint freckles and blond lashes. Although the universe refused to grace you with your all-time favourite feature of his, his eyes. You would have to make do with Simon’s for once peaceful expression.

Peaceful, but not relaxed, you noticed. There was still a light crease between his eyebrows, even while sleeping he still seemed stressed. Thinking of possibilities to diminish his stress, you gently picked up the hand that was previously placed on your thigh, without waking him up. Simon’s large and warm hand lay limply in yours, and you started to gently massage his hand.

Running your fingers across his knuckles and the back of his hand. Making sure to appreciate every single small cut and faded scar along the way. You carefully turned his hand palm side up and started to massage the palm of his hand with both of your thumbs. The rest of your fingers were supporting what was now the underside of his hand. Your thumbs dug into the muscles of his palm running across all of the folds and creases, before moving to his fingers.

Feeling his fingerprints underneath your fingertips made it feel like he was your missing puzzle piece you have been searching for all your life. Two separate people coming together to make a whole. You couldn’t stop the smile that was now plastered on your face.

Glancing back at Simon, his eyebrows seemed to have relaxed a bit, but not enough for your liking. You had to take drastic action. You lifted your dominant hand to his face you stroked your thumb across the space between his eyebrows in hopes of completely erasing his frown. Your mission was a success, he stopped frowning.

However, he was now blearily blinking awake. The universe obviously had chosen to show mercy today and decided to grace you with his dreamy eyes once again. Your hand slid a bit lower, now resting on his cheek, your thumb still lazily stroking the side of his face.

With a small smile you told him: 'I think it’s time for bed'.

[once-upon-an-animation]

Some thoughts on Annabeth’s Character Arc

Before I begin, just want to say sorry about not being online much. I’m in a very busy period of my life and haven’t had the mental capacity to address all the responses I’ve gotten on posts and such. Will do that in the future.

That being said, I still enjoy writing, so today, I’m going to write a post sharing my thoughts on Annabeth’s character arc in the original PJO series.

For context, someone posted on Reddit that TTC was their favourite book in the original series because of Annabeth’s absence. The comment resulted in a discussion about why people didn’t like Annabeth’s character. I shared the extremely unpopular opinion that Annabeth’s character peaked in Sea of Monsters for me, and I didn’t really love what was done with her character from TTC onwards. Here’s why:

In general:

• ⁠I feel like her perspective towards Luke lacked a lot of nuance. I’m fine with her not thinking he’s completely evil, but it would have been nice to see her also consider all the harmful things Luke had done before the incident with Silena in TLO. It just felt like her POV was sweeping a lot of those things under the rug even though I know that wasn’t necessarily the intent.

• ⁠The Perachel thing would have been fine if there was an on-page apology. But the fact that there is none and it seemingly took Rachel becoming the Oracle and not being allowed to date Percy for Annabeth to finally stop hating her seems like a missed opportunity to have Annabeth address her pride and the way she acts towards others.

• ⁠On that same note, I have mixed feelings about Annabeth’s overall character arc in PJO. While I feel like her relationships with other characters in the story changed over time, I don’t always feel like she truly changed as a person. I mean, she ended up being right about Luke in the end, so it’s not like she had any major motivation to shift her perspective of the world, change her way of thinking, or work on her personality flaws. Given that her fatal flaw is hubris, I would have loved to see a character arc where her pride gets her in deep trouble and she has to confront it head-on by actively learning humility in different ways. She did that well in the first two books, which is why she peaked for me as a character in SoM, but it feels like TTC lost the rhythm and never picked it back up. I would have liked to see her acknowledge being wrong about the way she treated Rachel, and walking away from the war with a different perspective on Luke other than just “I was right all along”. It would have also been nice to see more people actually call Annabeth out on her BS. Someone other than Percy should have said something to her about her behavior. I feel like Chiron could have done it in a “loving dad who wants the best for you” kind of way. Thalia could have also done it.

Or maybe Annabeth gets a visit from Athena after BoTL, where they talk about the quest, the battle, and the stuff on Daedalus’ laptop, but Athena also expresses disappointment in Annabeth for acting petty and not recognizing Rachel as a useful addition to the quest. Maybe Athena reiterates that she doesn’t approve of Percabeth’s friendship, especially because it seems like Annabeth is letting her feelings cloud her judgement. Annabeth’s arc could have been about learning what true wisdom is. Wisdom and knowledge aren’t the same thing, and wisdom is so much more than just knowing facts and battle plans. Wisdom is about maturity, exercising well-informed judgement, and recognizing the truth about things, including yourself. Humility is a huge aspect of gaining wisdom and I think it could have been a great arc for Annabeth, given her fatal flaw. Her overall arc in HoO could have been a continuation of this, especially with what happens in BoO with Piper in that temple.

• ⁠I don’t really like the way her arc with her dad was resolved. The way the story is written in TTC, it seems to imply that Annabeth was to blame for assuming the worst of her dad/stepmom (which I know was probably not the intent, but it has that vibe). I think there was a better way to acknowledge that Annabeth’s parents do in fact care about her, but didn’t do the best job of showing it when she really needed it and made her feel like she needed to run away.

• ⁠There are tiny things that Rick adds into the way he writes Annabeth that make Annabeth seem kind of inconsiderate, like all the little moments of aggression , the fact that she keeps teasing Percy about Rachel even after everyone else has moved on, or in Crown of Ptolemy where Percy said that he “has a healthy fear of Annabeth because she’s kicked his butt plenty of times” and doesn’t feel like he’s allowed to disagree with her. I know it’s mostly supposed to be amusing, but it’s a little uncomfortable to read at times. It sucks because Annabeth is obviously supposed to be a kind person and in many ways, she is, but these moments don’t always make her look nice.

Whew. Sorry that this was long.

I chalk much of my complaints with Annabeth up to not having much of her POV in the original series. Then again, even if Rick decides to delve deeper into Annabeth’s story in the Disney series, I feel like he’s just generally not that great at writing female characters, so I don’t know how much he’ll be able to improve this. In addition, it feels like Rick has generally been losing sight of his characters and they feel less and less like themselves with every addition to his franchise. I’m genuinely nervous for Chalice of the Gods because I don’t know what he’s going to do with Annabeth’s character and I don’t know how much I trust him, lol.

[ceph-the-ghost-writer]

WIP Questions Tag

Rules : Answer as many (or as few) of the questions about your WIP as you can.

Tagged by @drawnecromancy! Read their answers for Le Prix du Sang here.

1. What was the first part of your WIP that you created?

Apophenia was originally a short story called "Dysthanasia" I wrote for an event on Ao3. Now Dysthanasia is the name of the series overall, and the story's a novel-length rough draft in the process of being rewritten.

2. If your story was a TV show, what would the intro song be?

Something short, instrumental, and spooky but with a touch of whimsy. Gotta have that little spark of fun or it'd wind up taking itself too seriously.

3. Who are your favourite character(s) and why?

I'm in love with all of them, but I have to stand by my protagonist, Isaac. He's a squishy human nerd, with no supernatural powers to speak of, but through being resourceful and more than a little lucky manages to survive awful situations. A lot of his characterization has to do with principles and compassion, but not quite in the soft or naive way readers might expect. His enemies repeatedly try to buy or break him, punishing him every time he does what he feels is right, but Isaac remains defiant, refusing to become jaded or take the easy way out. Is he destined to become a martyr? A monster? Stay tuned.

4. What other pieces of media could share a fan base with your WIP?

I'd hope The Vampire Chronicles fans would get into it. Maybe The Witcher fans, as far as characters relying on each other in an unjust world goes? Possibly readers of Octavia Butler, whose work I enjoy. I guess anyone who likes fictional organizations and the paranormal might see the appeal.

5. What has been your biggest struggle while writing your WIP?

Juggling all the backstory and worldbuilding that influences the characters and plot. So much happens before the actual story even starts. The death of Isaac's family. Renato becoming a bloodborn and his eroding loyalty to his sire. A cataclysm that reshaped the map. I'm doing my best to make these come through the text without hitting the reader with a wall of exposition.

6. Are there any animals in your story?

Living and undead! There's Renato's beloved goldfish, Tesoro. The elk, coyote, and bear Motley transforms into. Likewise the species of sharks that some of the good people of Eureka, Nevada can turn into. Or the livestock they raise, mainly sheep, goats, and chickens.

7. How do your characters get around?

Electric cars, horses, trains, or by turning into a much quicker animal.

8. What part of your WIP are you working on right now?

I think I'm almost halfway through the outline for the rewrite? Isaac is getting to know the supernatural locals of America's friendliest town on its loneliest road, and they him.

9. What aspects of your WIP do you think will draw people in?

Renato being a hot vampire, and there being different factions to identify with will probably lure some in. Hopefully they decide to stay for the characters, emotional arcs, and end of the world too.

Dysthanasia Taglist (Sign up or ask to be +/-): @thecyrulik @thatndginger @sunset-a-story @space-writes @scoundrelwithboba (feel free to consider this a tag for the game itself too)

Additionally @izzyspussy @wintherlywords @authoralexharvey @chauceryfairytales @autumnalwalker @revenantlore @captain-kraken @angsty-prompt-hole

Blank questions beneath the cut

1. What was the first part of your WIP that you created?

2. If your story was a TV show, what would the intro song be?

3. Who are your favourite character(s) and why?

4. What other pieces of media could share a fan base with your WIP?

5. What has been your biggest struggle while writing your WIP?

6. Are there any animals in your story?

7. How do your characters get around?

8. What part of your WIP are you working on right now?

9. What aspects of your WIP do you think will draw people in?

[kaylinalexanderbooks]

WIP Questionnaire

Thanks @buffythevampirelover for the tag! This game looks fun!

Rules: answer as few or as many as you'd like!

1. What was the first part of your wip that you created?

TSP: Lexi was! TSP started out as a school project, and we had to create a character sheet for our first person narrator! That was "Alexia" who is now just "Lexi" (but her full name is still Alexia).

SOTL: The concept! "School for fairy tale characters" was basically it. I got discouraged a bit when I found out this concept already existed, but that didn't mean I couldn't do my own take!

2. If your story was a TV show, what would the theme song/intro be?

My favorite types of intros for TV shows are original theme songs or very catchy instrumental music. 30-60 seconds is a good length. I'd hope that for TSP and SOTL. Hope this isn't a cop-out.

3. Who are your favourite characters you've made? Why?

TSP: My favorite characters to write for are Lexi, Gwen, Akash, Robbie, and Carmen. Lexi because the arc I gave her is an exaggerated version of something that speaks a lot to me. Gwen because I wasn't expecting her to be as interesting as she ended up being planned to be. Robbie and Akash because of how funny and sweet their dynamic is. Yes, I love them separately, but they're a package set. Carmen because she's just so damn interesting I love studying her under a microscope.

SOTL: I am barely into writing it, but it's Jack at the moment. Shocker, he has three chapters while Tierney and Úrsula have one each! But the reason is that he is average at everything, but he doesn't let that get him down! He's funny and relatable and a dork.

4. What other pieces of media do you think would share a fan base for your story?

TSP: Hm, good question. The only thing coming to mind right now is Young Justice (the cartoon). Starts out with this fun group of kids, becomes extremely dark. Ensemble cast. Sneaking around. Superpowers. Fight scenes. Drama.

SOTL: Insert fairy tale retelling here.

5. What has been your biggest struggle with your wip?

TSP: Juggling everything. The world building, I guess. Making all the characters distinct was something I struggled at for a while, but I'm getting much better at it. Trying to figure out how the world works is challenging, but I am having fun. But juggling all the moving parts to make it cohesive is a challenge.

SOTL: What is plot?!! Also battling my ambition to do every fairy tale ever. I'm gonna have to make a lot of background characters that will get their own side stories separate from the main series to get all that I want. I probably will do that.

6. Are there any animals in your story? Talk about them!

TSP: Yep! Alium has a lot of fantasy creatures, animal hybrids, and fun things I just made up. Custos the dragon is the only truly prominent one right now. He's a blue fire dragon and is adorable. I also have kitsunes. Animal hybrids include unibison, ferretsnakes, cowyotes, beaverducks. Things I made up include the elemental foxes and blue hedgehogs.

SOTL: Hofiwi is an anthropomorphic bear! She was cursed to be anthropomorphic, this is not a normal thing in this world. I love her and she's just planned at the moment. Can't wait to do more.

7. How do your characters get around? (ex: trains, horses, cars, dragons, etc.)

TSP: Hovercrafts, dragons, teleporting, trains, and some other power-based travel

SOTL: I'm still figuring this out no one has gone anywhere yet. Dragons or carriages would be cool. Maybe I can mix them with something modern to fit the setting.

8. What part of your wip are you working on rn?

TSP: World building! Specifically the power database since that will be the backbone for everything.

SOTL: Reading fairy tales... I need to do that more

9. What aspects (tropes, maybe?) of your wip do you think will draw people in?

TSP: Powers, diverse cast, queer/disability rep

SOTL: same as TSP but fairy tales!

10. What are your hopes for your wip?

If I see one (1) fanart between either my life will be complete.

This was fun!

Softly tagging @mk-writes-stuff @jezifster @blind-the-winds @little-peril-stories @sleepywriter00 @mysticstarlightduck @sarahlizziewrites @writernopal @gottestod-writes + anyone who wants to join!

TSP intro

TSP tag list (ask to be +/-): @thepeculiarbird @illarian-rambling @televisionjester @finchwrites - giving a slightly harder nudge than usual cause I really want to see what y'all have to say! Still optional obviously

Blanks below the cut!

1. What was the first part of your wip that you created?

2. If your story was a TV show, what would the theme song/intro be?

3. Who are your favourite characters you've made? Why?

4. What other pieces of media do you think would share a fan base for your story?

5. What has been your biggest struggle with your wip?

6. Are there any animals in your story? Talk about them!

7. How do your characters get around? (ex: trains, horses, cars, dragons, etc.)

8. What part of your wip are you working on rn?

9. What aspects (tropes, maybe?) of your wip do you think will draw people in?

10. What are your hopes for your wip?

[jasminewalkerauthor]

Author interview tag game

I'll be using my current wip, memoriam for this :)

What was the first part of your wip that you created?

I think it was a scene that happens pretty early on in Memoriam where Eleanor first meets Tallulah, the original version of Memoriam had almost a completely different plot and the only thing kept other than the characters is the residents ball.

2.If your story was a TV show, what would the theme song/intro be?

I want to say death by melanie martinez however i think White rabbit by Jefferson airplane fits best

3.Who are your favourite characters you’ve made? Why?

If we are talking strictly Memoriam I love tallulah with my entire heart, she is my favourite character to write for.

4.What other pieces of media do you think would share a fan base for your story?

I have been recently told Alice: madness returns is similar in vibe to memoriam, however my other series, the isles, is for the dnd fans.

5.What has been your biggest struggle with your wip?

Writing some of the moments when it's just Eleanors internal dialogue and mindset as well as some flashback scenes, at the core of Memoriam it is about Eleanors grief and her paranoia after getting attacked, which at the time of writing was something I was experiencing myself (the paranoia part, I am very fortunate to say that my mother is indeed alive and well) It is hard to write about someones healing process if you are not at that point in the same process yet.

6.Are there any animals in your story? Talk about them!

Lol there is literally a singular toucan mentioned in one paragraph and it absolutely baffles the characters as to why there is a toucan in a hotel.

7.How do your characters get around? (ex: trains, horses, cars, dragons, etc.)

An incredibly slow elevator with frustratingly catchy music

8.What part of your wip are you working on rn?

Currently in late stage editing, with my release date being set for October 27th 2024

9.What aspects (tropes, maybe?) of your wip do you think will draw people in?

The mystery of who is behind the lost souls of the echo hotel and the relationships between the main group.

10.What are your hopes for your wip?

That people re-read it and notice some of the hidden things that may not be noticeable on the first read.

Tagging (with no pressure): @illarian-rambling @mjparkerwriting @sugar-phoenix @writingamongther0ses @theunboundwriter

[lemonhemlock]

so, i'm going through your anti team black tag and living my best life, but one post in particular that you made got me thinking.

“george made damn sure rhaenyra’s bloodline sat on the throne at the end bc, if the hightowers won, house targaryen would have been reformed, and he couldn’t kill them all off at the end of the main series”

i'm pretty sure this might've just been a joke, but it makes me curious. do you think something like a targaryen reformation would be possible, hypothetically speaking? i certainly wouldn't mind it in a "greens win" AU scenario, but that's just me. i wanna know if anyone else sees potential in this. 💚💚💚

Hello, yes, this was mostly a joke, as it happens. 😅 (anon is referring to this post) To introduce another lengthy parenthesis, I remember at the time that some of the reactions to that post were in the range for "why doesn't anyone understand that the Hightowers are also feudal lords vying for their own interests and not some great reformists out to save Westeros", which... Listen. 😄 To put equitably, this fandom has a considerable issue with knowing when to level criticism and when to just treat banter as lighthearted horsing around and not take it too seriously. Something which even I'm not exempt from, I don't think. 🤷‍♀️

So, in the interest of making a meme, that post was kind of half-true in that it simplified a more nuanced concept (that was never an avenue that the author decided to explore anyway) for the sake of humour. I have, in the past, detailed my thoughts on House Hightower and what I think is their role in the wider narrative. This is based on the information we have on them presently. If I'm wrong, then I'm wrong. Who knows, maybe Lord Leyton and Melara plan on blowing Oldtown up for shits and giggles. We don't have to guess everything correctly - another aspect this community struggles with in their fandom wars and obsession with having the most correct, morally pure take.

Regardless, yes, the Hightowers obviously are a privileged family at the top of the social food chain, benefitting from the exploitation awarded by feudalism - a political-economic system based on vast inequality. Therefore, any type of reform they might be willing to undertake will be limited and not really something that significantly changes the status-quo. Just like the beloved, fan-favourite, and mostly confirmed "winners" - the Starks. A third element that our fandom has trouble accepting is the concept of incremental change. I feel like it would basically be a truism to point out that incremental change has been the most reliable vector of socio-economic evolution throughout human history. So, bad news for them, I suppose, but any superficial study of history will reveal that feudalism hardly collapsed overnight. Which leads us back to the idea that any small change, no matter how limited, does matter in the long run, because, as time passes, it will be compounded with another small change and so on.

Anyway, coming back to the question. Would Targaryen reformation be possible? Certainly! GRRM could have made up any story he wanted. Anything is possible if you plan for it and it makes sense within your worldbuilding. As it stands, the Targaryens are foreigners with a questionable culture, hailing from a land that used to engage in practices that even the feudal Westerosi found backwards, distasteful, barbaric or immoral: slavery, human sacrifice, incest, great feats of violence such as pillaging and conquering neighbouring lands for the sake of feeding their population to their volcano gods etc. The Targaryens also have fire-breathing monsters that, while not exactly enough all the time to prevent any rebellions from happening, are weapons that no one else has access to and that can cause a great deal of damage that no one else can replicate.

So, in order to "reform" and integrate, they would need to renounce all that. They would need to do it the traditional way. They do some of the work, but never go all the way. They accept the main religion of the land, but they don't let go of inter-marrying, because they don't want to lose their access to dragons. There are attempts to integrate, but, by the time of the events of the main series, they have returned to incest. Funnily enough, Aegon V plays a role in both - he marries outside of the family and has no dragons left, but his succeeding son and daughter marry each other and, eventually, Aegon decides that bringing back dragons is not such a bad idea after all. I do think that the symbolic weight of Daenerys having both her parents and her grandparents as brother-sister sets is laying the "dragon blood" metaphor thick - and that it holds more magical weight than any mathematical calculation of her actual watered-down Targaryen DNA.

In any such scenario where GRRM decided to go down a Targaryen reformation path, IMO it would have been thematically-relevant to ease into it via a marriage alliance with one of the oldest families in Westeros - a well-respected, rich house that also has close links to both the only centre of higher education and the main religious organization in the land. Hence the meme. :) But it doesn't last and the Targaryens go back to their dastardly ways eventually, that's the point of them in the story, because the author chose it to be the point.

[miru667]

Hi again, Miru! I need your opinion on something as an old onceling. Do you think there's still room for new oncelings to do an analysis of something in the movie, or maybe interviews, or maybe the fandom itself? Is it possible to find a way to output new content? I look through archives and it honestly feels like the entire movie has already been picked apart way back in 2012 - 2014. Your thoughts?

As we are all unique individuals who have gone through different experiences in our lives and no experience is the same, yes there can always be some new perspective that someone can bestow through their watch of the movie.

For example, in 2020, 8 years after the fandom began, @floooopafloooopa made several analyses on aspects of the movie that I personally had never seen anyone else delve into, and I was really impressed by them. My favourites include the one comparing Once-ler and Thneedville to Disney and EPCOT: [link] and of course the 85 page analysis comparing Once-ler to the Beatles and other popular people and aesthetics of the 60s and 70s: [link]

And another example, just recently I happened to revisit The Conservative Lorax video on YouTube from 2012: [link] and although I know many youtube comments are the most worthless comments in the world, I still found some interesting perspectives from people in the comments even in the past year, talking about capitalism. Here's a topic that really stayed with me: One person said "a real capitalist would replant to make a profit" and another said "a true capitalist would farm the trees instead of cutting them all down" to which others replied:

These comments were all made only within the last 3 years. I doubt these people have even seen the 2012 movie.

So now if you take these ideas and think about our dear Oncie...yes, he is still a dumbass for not thinking about maintaining his resources and then being shocked that he ran out of trees, but there are evidently people out there who would've instead called him dumb for not planning to immediately move on to capitalize on the next big thing, like air. Some people would've agreed that short term profits are the smart move! This, or the Once-ler should've moved on to synthetic fibres to replicate Thneeds, or that he should've planted GMO trees that grew really fast, patent them, then also patent the air they produce (and then we wouldn't need O'hare anymore). But we all know what genetically modifying truffula trees can cause... 🧟 haha. So the 1st comment up there has a point - the story really is more of a metaphor for respecting nature rather than trying to say something specific about business decisions.

And look! I just gathered and put together a mini analysis on the subject of "sustaining your resources vs how far the Once-ler actually could have gone in the other direction". In 2023! So yes, I believe there's room for more analyses.

Not to mention that concept art for the 2012 movie keeps gradually being shared over the years well beyond 2014: [link] I pretty much consider it new source content which can then spark new analyses, as well.

As for anaylses on the fandom itself...I would just advise to be careful and respectful if you're wanting to talk about anything from the past that you weren't a part of (having been in the fandom for only a month in 2012 doesn't count either, iykyk), since many past oncelings are still around even if they're not active in the fandom anymore, and it hurts to get misrepresented.

[i-can-even-burn-salad]

WIP Questionnaire

I was tagged by @writingmoth <3

And I am gonna tag, if you feel like doing it, @sarandipitywrites @starlit-hopes-and-dreams @little-peril-stories and open tag

Rules: Answer as many (or as few) of the questions about your WIP as you can (or want).

Well, I only have one WIP right now (the others are WIHs - in hibernation), so let's go with Sweet Little Lies.

1 What was the first part of your wip that you created?

Chapter 1. Lol. I write chronologically.

2 If your story was a TV show, what would the theme song/intro be?

I have no idea. Tempted to throw a dart at a list of my latest dance-related playlist. So far I have answered every music question with Dance Forever Tonight by Peter Hollens.

3 Who are your favourite characters you've made? Why?

This is a very short piece with 2 main characters, so?? But besides the obvious protagonist couple, I made up a silly little side char named Crystal for one scene, and I love them more than I should, and there is a non zero percent chance I will pick them up for something in the future.

4 What other pieces of media do you think would share a fan base for your story?

Listen, I'm gonna cry already if this one can get one fan who doesn't live in my pocket 😭

5 What has been your biggest struggle with your wip?

Being in the right mindset to actually write it. Chapter 1 took me from November to January, and I wrote the rest of it in February. Sometimes I just can't force it. That, and keeping it as short-ish and having to skip some scenes that didn't fit.

6 Are there any animals in your story? Talk about them!

Nope.

7 How do your characters get around? (ex: trains, horses, cars, dragons, etc.)

Mostly on foot, sometimes with a carriage, with a driver and all. Fancy shit.

8 What part of your wip are you working on rn?

The waiting part until I feel ready to do one last editing round, then I need to make an ebook.

9 What aspects (tropes, maybe?) of your wip do you think will draw people in?

I know the corner of this hellsite I am in, and I know the incredibly vast audience for straight romance without spilled guts or sex, so uh. I expect the only people outside my pocket will be looking for chars they know from Nuisance.

10 What are your hopes for your wip?

The same hopes as for all my stories. That perhaps someone finds something in there they were looking for.

template under the cut

1 What was the first part of your wip that you created?

2 If your story was a TV show, what would the theme song/intro be?

3 Who are your favourite characters you've made? Why?

4 What other pieces of media do you think would share a fan base for your story?

5 What has been your biggest struggle with your wip?

6 Are there any animals in your story? Talk about them!

7 How do your characters get around? (ex: trains, horses, cars, dragons, etc.)

8 What part of your wip are you working on rn?

9 What aspects (tropes, maybe?) of your wip do you think will draw people in?

10 What are your hopes for your wip?

[ryttu3k]

Oh damn that episode is shooting right to the top of my favourites for the season! Thoughts on Doctor Who - 73 Yards!

That was creepy as shit and I loved it :D Folk horror and time shenanigans (which also ties in marvellously well with this post from last week about her being a paradox baby - the whole episode is one!) and genuinely chilling, especially at the start where Ruby is just becoming more and more isolated from everyone else, and it's outright heartbreaking when that includes from her Mum. Like, ow.

A question: Where exactly did the Doctor go? There's like, this second story going on behind the scenes that never actually gets acknowledged - a fairy ring that binds 'Mad Jack' that the Doctor breaks, causing him to vanish. Except 'Mad Jack' is just some Trumpian despot, nothing actually paranormal about him. We know why the Semperdistans (the old lady) appears - she's Ruby, stuck in an endless warning not to step in the fairy ring, trying to avert the offshoot timeline - but where did the Doctor disappear to in the first place? Into Faerie, maybe? There's a whole other narrative going on!

The Mad Jack bit is curious, because he ends up not being that relevant in the end. Ruby and her Semperdistans are weaponised to stop him, but that isn't what stops that branch of the timeline - that only happens when Ruby dies and takes her Semperdistans' place, closing the circle (back to fairy rings again!). Did he have some other relevance, maybe to do with the ring itself? He's some sort of Fae creature himself or… something. There's a great comment on Reddit here:

'I think Mad Jack was an omnipotent entity, possibly of the Pantheon, and the Doctor accidentally let him into our plane. And Mad Jack did the smartest thing possible and erased him.

But Ruby managed to clock him and scare him into retreat using whatever aspect of herself which terrified Maestro a few episodes back.'

Another fantastic analysis here - the Semperdistans being a physical representative of Ruby's fear of abandonment. Ruby as being kind of… eldritch seems to be a running theme, too - she has that fear of abandonment because there is something Peculiar about her. Maybe that's just how the Semperdistans worked, because the story requires Ruby be abandoned and left on her own in order to place her at the right time to act, so that's the ability she has? Same with how she can only be perceived as someone with normal vision as seen from 73 yards away - that's what the story requires.

(Why the distance? She's running away from herself!)

This season so far has been an entirely new genre, we seem to genuinely be in the realm of fantasy and supernatural fiction now. I goddamn adore it. Definitely thinking something along the lines of Ruby's identity being something to do with the concept of paradox or even a part of the Pantheon herself. Being a foundling left on the steps of a church - the woman who left her there might not even be her mother, it could be Ruby herself in a closed time loop. Maybe she's a changeling?

Reminded sharply of Turn Left. Both RTD-penned Doctor-lite episodes that focus on the companion to brilliant effect, involve time shenanigans, dystopian British politics (thankfully averted, here!), and scary as hell in parts.

Where were the titles??

UNIT thought: focusing increasingly on paranormal stuff. Because of the Doctor invoking folklore? We're still tying back to stories being real. Also, Kate mentioned 'this timeline' specifically being structured around Ruby's event. Is she aware that she's in an offshoot?

Susan Twist spotting: the hiker who's the first to be driven mad by the Semperdistans. Interestingly, Ruby seemed to recognise her. Also interestingly, this happened in the erased timeline so she now no longer remembers that she recognised her… Also, Mrs Flood appearing, just to say, "Nothing to do with me!" - hmm, what does have to do with her?

Only major naff moment: showing that Ruby is now In Her Forties by having her wear huge glasses. Hilariously awkward. Oh Ruby that is not a flattering style.

Season ranking

As of s40e04:

73 Yards

The Devil's Chord

The Church on Ruby Road

Space Babies

Boom

[cobaltrequiem]

I meant to send this yesterday but as someone who has loved bioshock for years I’m genuinely very curious to hear your thoughts on the games if you’re up for sharing some of them

OMG HI sorry I didn't see this in my ask box! Thanks for the ask @sand-worms and appologies for the rambling ahead!

The first BioShock game is my favourite out of the whole series, but that's partially because I'm quite sentimental about it. It was one of the first "serious" games that I had ever played. I was a teenager and before that point I was only allowed to play "family friendly" games. BioShock was one of the first games I bought with my own money on my own console (a switch lite I saved up for myself), and it was wonderful. The way it wasn't afraid to be overtly political and it wasn't afraid to frighten or challenge the player. It didn't treat you like an idiot.

I soaked up every aspect of it. The gameplay. The setting. The area designs. The characters. The messages that it wore on its sleeve. And the story, god the story! I was completely transfixed by it.

I finished it in two days, and I still consider it to be one of my top 5 games of all time. I wrote an essay on it's themes for my higher english course, and still regularly think about it.

It is one of the two games ever that has caused me to have an epiphany about videogames, not as simply an enojyable experience but as art, and truthfully I cannot bring myself to replay it. My first experience with it was so thorough and meaningful that I cannot bring myself to replay it. I know it wouldn't be the same. You were beautiful and I can never play you again.

I played BioShock 2 shortly after, and was initially quite disapointed at it for not being BioShock 1. You could tell that the story was written after 1 and that bugged me. Its political messaging also didn't seem as pointed to me.

However, throughout the course of the game I grew to really appreciate it's differences. The personal connection between Elanor and Subject Delta was incredibly touching. The choices in the game felt more meaningful and gave it an aspect of replayability that the first BioShock game did not have. The gameplay aditions were also great! I loved using the drill in particular, it was an incredibly satisfying weapon to use. It's story about altruism also resonated with me despite the slow start and I thought the adition of multiple endings (that didn't hinge on "is murdering children bad?") was also great.

BioShock 2 only took me a single day to complete, I sat down for 10 hours and played it all the way through with very few breaks, and I do seriously intend to revisit it - I own a copy for the xbox 360 now which should be infinitely better than playing on a switch lite. Overall its a very well made game, it just doesn't hold the same place in my heart as the original.

BioShock Infinite haunts me.

It's a game that had so much potential. The religious horror. The game's aesthetics. Playing a character that talked and reacted to things!

I went in with high hopes and loved it initially. I had a very personal experience with it too, albeit in a very different way. When I was a young child my dad bought a copy of BioShock Infinite shortly after it released and I would sit in the living room while he played it. It terrified me.

I have particularly vivid memories of the scene at the fair, it was maybe one of the first genuinely terrifying things I'd seen in a piece of media. It was a foundational memory for me and is perhaps where some of my love of horror comes from as an adult because it didn't just scare me to the point of tears, it fascinated me. The gore laden glory kills and the mechanised patriots were similarly horrifying but I never stopped watching. There was something alluring about this game I shouldn't have been seeing.

I really wanted to like BioShock Infinite but just couldn't. The story at times seemed like an excuse to get you from one point to another, the fence sitting centrist politics were tiring, and it tried to do everything at once.

BioShock Infinite was not a good game, but it was mediocre in an interesting way and that has stuck with me.

It wanted to be a political drama. It wanted to be high concept sci-fi. It wanted to be religious horror.

The area design made you feel like you were going around in circles. Vigours had very little story or gameplay relevance making them seem like a pointless adition clearly only meant to imitate plasmids. It didn't feel like a BioShock game but despite all of that it had potential. So many different ideas went into it, so many interesting storybeats and scenes and themes went into it but it just ended up feeling muddy and convoluted.

I can pick out so many things I like about it, so many things that are interesting and could have been amazing but weren't

Not too long ago I read a post from someone on this site. Something along the lines of "a good game will stay with you for a week, but a game that's mediocre in an interesting way will stick with you for life"

My dad never finished BioShock Infinite, but I did. I still think about it to this day.

[galedekarios]

Do you think it's foolish to think that in the "and more!" we get a Gale fix for his kiss too? Or idk maybe a fix for Wyll's Act 3 romance scene not even popping up? Been wanting to finish the game, my 1st character romanced Gale and I am dead afraid to finish Act 3 with her in case the ending could be bugged with him too... and it makes me miss something.

Then I made a cleric to romace Wyll and he is bugged in Act 3 too...

I feel so let down by Larian at this point... I had a completely new window open with guides (so I won’t miss anything, and as a first time d&d type of gamer, I seriously still need the help with spells n such) and just closed all of them at this point today... I am so mad at them for treating every other companion so much worse than their lil babygirl Astarion (derogatory)...

i don't want to be a downer, anon. i really don't. but honestly? at this point, i'd just not expect much - or anything at all. and if i'm wrong, this way, we all can be pleasantly surprised. i know i would be.

but to be frank... i have been trying to give larian the benefit of the doubt for three years now. the entirety of ea my thought process had been that they need the feedback they asked for and time to refine the game after they take in the prob endless amounts of ideas and critiques that people had, that they have learned a lot of things from their mistakes of dos2 and strive to not repeat them, that they have their own statistics and numbers, which they must be using...

...only for the game to turn out the way it is now.

(and i do want to stress that despite it all - despite many, many, many criticism - i do adore aspects of it over any other game. i feel like i'm obligated to point that out whenever i'm being negative or critical.

it's my favourite game because it has my favourite ocs, my friends' ocs, and gale, who has become my favourite character across media, and some of the stories / arcs contained within it are beautifully done.)

[theink-stainedfolk]

WIP Questionnaire

Thank you @willtheweaver for the tag ♡

Since my ongoing WIP is WoS&L, I'll be taking that.

What's The First part of the WIP that you created ?

It was the first chapter, the descovery of the artifacts and manuscripts etc.

If Your Story was a TV show, what would the theme song/intro be?

I think it would be something giving off magical and mysterious vibes. Like the sounds of ocean with a flute and wind chimes. And do you know the sound of sparkles? Yeah that. And violin just like Luminary by Joel Sunny.

What are your favourite characters that you made and why?

I can't choose tbvh. I have been making stories since 5th grade and now i am about to go to college, so all the characters have a special place in my heart.

What other pieces of media your fanbase would share?

Honestly i don't know. Mostly i guess from enemies to lovers novels or anime and manhwas since most of my inspirations arise from there.

What has been your biggest struggle with your WIP?

Everything bro, everything. From names to the destination of the story, timeline and historical, political, geographical, economical accuracy to world building and character designs. EVERYTHING.

Are there animals in your story? Talk about them.

I do have them but I'd rather not talk about them since i have no recollection, inspiration or knowledge about it.

How do your characters travel/get around?

Since this story is placed in modern era, all the vehicles that are used today are used in it.

What part of your WIP are you working on right now?

The continuation of chapter 4. I just can't seem to get it right no matter how many times i write it. T^T

What aspects (tropes, maybe) will you think will draw your audience in?

Reincarnation, enemies to lovers, mystery, romance, historical (hopefully)

What are your hopes for your WIP?

My current and the most desperate hope is for it to be finished but i am so freaking lazy and inspiration is also very moody since it doesn't strikes when i want it to, it just does whenever it wants to. I just hope i get the strength and inspiration to write it and hope that people will give it and me some love and support ♡.

I'll keep the tag open but will also tag @cssnder @finickyfelix @sshawthorne @ascotwriting @agirlandherquill @leahnardo-da-veggie @illarian-rambling

[quietmonologues]

I haven't finished the show yet (just need to watch the last episode) but so far, I'll give the live action adaptation of ATLA a 7/10.

Long post.

To start with what I like about it...

I think the VFX is spectacular. Omashu, the Water Tribes, the Fire Nation palace, all the bending effects and fights are stunning.

Seeing all the characters come to life. The Gaang, but also the past avatars, the mechanist and Teo, the freedom fighters, Bumi, Zuko and the family, even Mai and Ty Lee. Aesthetically, everyone fit really well.

I enjoy (most) of the acting, but especially Zuko. I feel like Dallas captures the character incredibly well and his scenes with Paul as Iroh have been very fun to watch. I enjoy seeing more of Azula and getting into her psyche early on, and seeing more of Ozai has been enjoyable as well. Daniel Dae Kim is great. Ian and Gordan also do a great job of playing Sokka and Aang, respectively.

Merging the Jet stuff with the Mechanist stuff is an interesting way to cram as much of the story as possible without being too convoluted. The re-interpretation of The Cave of Two Lovers episode was a change I was iffy about but I grew to appreciate it. Instead of focusing on a romantic love, I liked that it was about familial love (between Sokka and Katara). I wouldn't be surprised if people didn't like that change, and I understand, but I didn't mind it. It didn't feel like the live action was hinting at Aang's crush on Katara anyways (correct me if I'm wrong).

Love the emotional aspects. Iroh and Zuko, Aang and Gyatso...it can definitely get the waterworks going.

In terms of what I don't like....

Something feels missing in this adaptation, and I think it's the tone. There's still funny moments but it's definitely a bit more somber than the cartoon. On the one hand, the original show does deal with heavy themes and it makes sense for the live action to emphasize that seriousness. Like, it made sense for a cartoon geared towards children to have a "lightness" to it, to have moments of goofiness and sillyness. But on the other hand, that lightness being interspersed between all the serious moments made the story of ATLA what it was, and I do feel that that is missing in the live action. I guess that's the downside to limiting a 20+ episode season into just....8 episodes. But the live action did the best it could.

I feel the same about the characters. The Gaang seem a bit more serious. But it's not completely bad, Aang still feels like Aang and Sokka still feels like Sokka. Katara is the one who sticks out to me like a sore thumb because she just...doesn't feel like Katara. No idea if it's Kiawentiio's acting or how she's written, but whenever I watch her, she just feels really flat and demure. Katara is a kind and compassionate character, but I do remember her being a bit more fierce. We do get that fierceness near the end but...I don't know, it comes off as stiff. And that's why I think Dallas as Zuko is my favourite, because Zuko was always a serious and somber character in the cartoon, so his performance in the more serious live action adaptation fits really well (it still would've fit perfectly if the adaptation was more goofy of course).

The pacing at times is bumpy. I felt this especially in episode 4. There was just...way too many things going on and they decided to throw in a couple flashbacks too. Like I said before, I liked that we got more Azula, but I felt like some of her scenes didn't flow well with the rest of the episode (episode 6 i think). We were following a straightforward plot, and then we just have a scene or two of Azula doing her trials and shooting lightning. It just made the overall episode feel choppy and disconnected.

I don't remember how the whole Suki/Sokka/Yue thing went in the cartoon, but yes I do think it's very weird that Sokka and Suki kissed in episode 2, and then he's kissing Yue in episode 7. Maybe in the cartoon it wouldn't be "that deep" but in a live action, it's kinda strange to me lol. I don't know, that's a bit of a minor nitpick I guess.

To me, Book 1 of the original show is the weakest season and my least favourite (it's still good). But if Netflix renews this, then I'm hoping Book 2 (and Book 3) will be much better!

Okay that's it, off to watch the last episode.

(also I do think you're lying if you say the movie was better)

[shmowder]

I have some more dessert headcanons 🍰 I doubt I can explain but it's just a feeling I have. Daniil would like Turkish Delight. Lara and Artemy both like fruit pies, best is blueberry for Lara and rhubarb (it's a vegetable but whatever) for Artemy (oh god I'm stereotyping based on colors again). Candy corn for Clara. Candy corn is divisive but I actually like it. I think Grief would like candy in general, maybe those little chocolates with liquor inside, and cinnamon flavored things. Big Vlad - mincemeat pie. Rubin - bread. Just bread. Red velvet cake for Katerina, meringues for Eva. For Aspity, those dirt pies made out of oreo crumbs, pudding, and gummy worms lol. I think Grace, Notkin, Sticky, and Murky would like those too :o)

There's probably some obscure dialogue that contradicts something there but oh well~

What do you think of Victor's animal being a tiger? I keep thinking Basset Hound and yes that's almost entirely because they both have a high likelihood of being found sitting on the floor by the clock. He's some kind of scent hound to me - more calm and deliberate than sighthounds, and once they have their mind set on something, focusing on it to the extent that it's nearly impossible to pull them away. But at the same time, I can sort of see the cat thing.

🐿️ anon

Your brain is big and wrinkly all of those fit perfectly omfg. "Rubin = bread" I LOVE IT.

Here's what I think their preference in sweets would be in addition to yours.

Eva

Turkish delight, Honey soaked rose baklava, kanafeh with sweer syrups. The intensely sweet desserts are her favourite, think heavy caramel chocolate cakes. She'd sample a lot of desserts from different cultures but those would be her comfort ones.

Victor Kain

The dishes he eats are an acquired taste that wouldn't appeal to most people. Think blue cheese and something along those lines. think bitter chocolate, coffee, and pistachio flavours. Traditional creme burlee and dark chocolate mousse.

I like to think that Khan abhors these flavours and desserts out of rebellion and only demands the most sprinkle filled bubblegum bonbon cupcakes for his birthday.

Maria, however, goes for flavour-rich desserts that explode in the mouth, something with a heavy taste and an aftermath of wine.

Yulia

Cheesecake, lemon tarts. Subtle sweetness with the spin of something different sate her appetit the most. French Vanilla chiffon cake for special occasions, a blueberry muffin with her morning light cream cappuccino.

Rubin

He's absolutely not a dessert person, so when the craving strikes, he would rather go for a baked good. Almond bread, rosemary-walnut brow butter cookies and biscuits, English muffins too.

Taya

Fairy bread cookies, strawberry shortcake, and orange puddings. Fruit based desserts with cream are her favourite. Peach pie and cherry jello. Sadly, most of these would only be found in the Capital, and exporting them into the town wouldn't come easily. The kin might adjust their recipies to accommodate her sweet tooth and include more fresh fruits.

--

For Victor's animal, I was surprised to learn it's the same one as Rubin! They both have tiger in their descriptions. Especially when Khan's animal is an adorable hedgehog. Oh my god, so cute. But it fits. He really does go hide in that spiky polyhedron whenever life gets too troubling. He also has the Kains and Capella ready to protect him.

It's because of Victor's animal being a tiger that I add the "predatory" lines in the story. The sharp claws hidden in his clapsed hands.

He's a tiger in the aspect of the danger rather than the ferality. His mind is as sharp as a tiger's tooth and his focus and patience when hunting a prey or a goal is unmatched. You never expect him or hear him, how he'll as stealthy as a tiger when it comes to mind games.

For Rubin, however, I do see the symbolism centring on the ferality instead. He's like a caged tiger, one with filed down claws and broken teeth. He used to be so sharp and had so much potential. He's truly a force to be reckon with, but the cruelty of life stole away his prime. He's overcome with grief and appears as a docile, tired predetor because of it, like a circus tiger not caring anymore and just jumping through the fire hoops of whoever orders him to. Which is why he is so quick to join the army, he needs a purpose, a mentor, an end goal, a firey ring to make him feel useful because nothing is more terrifying to an imprisoned animal than absolute freedom.

[space-writes]

wip questions tag

jumping on the excuse to do this from @ceph-the-ghost-writer (post here). it’s been a minute, but I really want to do this for claws honestly, as a little treat~

What was the first part of your WIP that you created?

The characters - Vivien and Rainier are based on the modern AU versions of Vizaeth and Pharaun from my Obsession fic series, so they were the entry point for the story. I guess also wet was kind of a first foray into the story; it’s Viz/Pharaun modern AU fic, but it sort of has the Vibes that later became claws.

If your story was a TV show, what would the intro song be?

I’d want it to be a dark cover of a love song, like the Happy Together cover by Filter I have on my wip-playlist. Something that originally is very sweet and loving, turned sinister.

Who are your favourite character(s) and why?

Vivien my beloved <3 <3 <3

He’s the main character, and I just love everything about him. He’s got the most specific worldview I’ve written (aside from Vizaeth) and he’s got very particular ways of seeing and interpreting the world that are so fascinating to me. His dichotomy of victim/villain is so juicy, and his high emotions make his reactions to everything 10x more interesting.

Plus he’s a transmasc nightmare murderboy, which is my favourite, AND he’s a scrubby little punk/goth kid. All around delicious.

What other pieces of media could share a fanbase with your WIP?

NBC Hannibal would have a fun amount of fan crossover, I think. Maybe Interview with the Vampire. claws has a lot of messy queers in it, i think those fandoms would have fun with them.

What has been your biggest struggle while writing your WIP?

Getting it drafted without worry too much about realism - resisting the urge to go research instead of write. It’s drafted now, and I have a lot of problems to solve with it now, so that’s the new struggled - fixing all the issues discovery drafting for the first time in over a decade has cause me :p

Are there any animals in your story?

Spiders! Lots and lots of spiders! Which is going to be so much fun to research for accuracy, because I don’t actually enjoy spiders very much in real life. I’m better with them than I used to be, but yeah. This is a very arachnophilic book and I…am not that.

How do your characters get around?

claws is in a modern setting, so they use contemporary transport - cars mostly feature. Rainier has a too-expensive BMW with a vanity plate because he’s That Kind of Asshole.

What parts of your WIP are you working on right now?

Currently it’s marinating, so next steps are: reading/devouring lots of Relevant Media to help with vibes, doing research for areas of the book I just kind hand-waved (some science things, aforementioned spiders, various medical bits and pieces…there’s a lot), and later re-outlining it for a neater first draft out of the messy zero draft I have right now.

What aspects of your WIP do you think will draw people in?

the fact that it’s messy queer horror about toxic love. judging by the comments on my wip intro, that’s the thing people seem to like! i do also hope that the characters will captivate readers as much as they’ve captivated me. i’d love for people to be as obsessed with Vivien and Rainier’s fucked-up deal as I am.

claws taglist: @belovedviolence @foxboyclit @coven-archives @noblebs @mjjune @revenantlore @sarandipitywrites @k--havok @asterhaze @verba-writing @indecentpause @bootstrapparadoxed (ask to be +/-) (and stealing from ceph, feel free to count this as a tag as well if you want to talk about your wip!)

no-pressure tagging @winterandwords @mjjune and @viscerawrites

Blank questions beneath the cut

CUT

What was the first part of your WIP that you created?

If your story was a TV show, what would the intro song be?

Who are your favourite character(s) and why?

What other pieces of media could share a fan base with your WIP?

What has been your biggest struggle while writing your WIP?

Are there any animals in your story?

How do your characters get around?

What part of your WIP are you working on right now?

What aspects of your WIP do you think will draw people in?