#i want some people to talk about this sci-fi craziness

[addhellandcurse]

this is handwritten credit scene description, roughly from left to right, columns up and down

- continuity of ancestral pilgrimage(?)

- dark mountains

- A falls behind. looses 1/T in the fog

- arc of the ??? loop

- HE KNOWS amulet's curse. the cracking of the fire/ice

- DEATH AT

- ? nation. the shadow ? the broken tree

- hex is sensitive(?) he feels more

- a reechoed sound. multiple reflections of the same sound

- her innocence naive keeps her safe unbeknownst to her

- pool of deception. vapour traps in lungs - initiates dream state paradox

- behind

- sacrifice

- crescendo

- cracks appear in fabric of reality

- his feet silent, creeping on the soft moss covered floor

- with amnesia(?) can't find A

- apartments having? the same energy

- generations

- A falls

- t/falaxian calendar

- dreams. something feels wrong. unsettled

- amulet's curse. cracking of the fire/ice

- mortality + grandeur. expansiveness and amplitude

- youren. unhinged

- space in valley. physical distance. parallel to

- parallel. mirroring

- secret of the dark mountains. youren's betrayal

- victory in the wing. ? finds out about her ? activity. the ground falls from under her feet - ?

- the boy betrayed. the tower keeper

- kidnapping part(?)

- the truth. what does the monster reek/reel/feel/keep? hex moment

[deadbaguette]

Day 3: Sci-fi ft. Sentient Robot!Artemis and Iphigenia and some AU ramblings once again!

(Everything for this month will be very quick and not rendered most likely! So please take my doodles <3 )

SCI-FI AU:

I’ve talked a little about this AU before :D BUT I will talk more about it now that I’m given the chance to LMAO

This piece is taking place during the Iphigenia in Aulis equivalent in this AU, where Artemis is demanding her as sacrifice to allow them to invade Troy. I actually do have extensive lore for this but I’m going to not elaborate on it here as much because I will do that as it’s own post when I flesh out/finalise the gods’ designs. But it boils down to: the gods require offerings (usually festivities, prayers, animal sacrifices, etc.) if they are to power your region/district. Different regions have respective gods that they tend to worship, and thus are in charge of powering the tech that runs in that area. 95% of the technology/anything in this world is connected to the gods, and very seldom are there physical things that are innately human. But basically, Agamemnon pissed off Artemis like in the epic cycle, but instead of your run of the kill animal sacrifice she demands Iphigenia as sacrifice. Artemis has stranded the armies by cutting off their transportation technology as well as a shit ton of other stuff. I will likely find a way to end this like in the Cypria where Artemis spirits Iphigenia away because that’s my girl ever Iphigenia ilysm

Anyways more lore for the AU in general! Troy is an INSANELY well defended city as is nearly impossible to hack into because it has such special protection from Apollo. So the Trojan Horse in this AU is probably more akin to the Trojan Horse Virus we have in the modern day 😭

Most people live on very normal lives, the ones with the actually cool cyber stuff are all part of military forces. There is a heavy mix of close quarters and long range combat, since the armour that the army wears is very effective against most long ranged weapons people will tend to take on close quarters combat.

Snipers are viable but very VERY difficult to train for. Because there are so few viable places to hit at long range, the things that snipers shoot might not even be bullets

I’m thinking again of the demigod children who are more robotic parts than normal human… Helen’s LOOKS very human but it’s almost too beautiful. And her robotic ability is her uncanny ability to imitate voices. When she was in Sparta she was part of the special spy forces often tasked with undercover missions purely for her voice imitation ability

I want flashy glowing helmets so you will probably get flashy glowing helmets at some point in the future.

I mentioned last time Odysseus was some sort of mechanic who was the best mechanic among the Achaeans. Well, throwing in Diomedes again he’s the tester for all of Odysseus’ batshit crazy experimental weapons and gadgets. A bomb that disconnects/powers off all technology in the blast radius? Sure it might disconnect 80% of Diomedes’ armour and weapons but this is Diomedes we’re talking about!! He’s gonna beat the shit out of you without his tech regardless lmaooo😂 the newest armour that might be slightly volatile? Sure, Diomedes will wear that shit and come back no matter how much that armour tries to kill him. A cyber horse that Patroclus didn’t have time to tame (adjust the code for)? Diomedes will ride that noble steed into battle

Below the cut are the prompts AND the last time I talked about this AU (extra information :D)

[deancaspinefest]

Another Kind of Memory

Author: FriendofCarlotta | Artist: Aggiedoll

Posting on Wednesday March 20

Since a traumatic incident six years ago, Castiel Novak’s face has been disfigured by a scar. He’s resigned himself to being someone people can barely stand to look at, let alone love. Except his heart doesn’t seem to have gotten the message. When Dean Winchester takes over the convenience store down the street from Castiel’s bookshop, Castiel falls helplessly in love with his new neighbor. To make matters worse, Castiel’s sister Anna is also interested in Dean. Believing that Dean could never love him, Castiel decides to help Anna win his heart instead.

Keep reading for a sneak preview!

“Hey,” Dean says. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. Just… wanted to say hi.”

“Oh. Hi,” Castiel says, one hand fluttering nervously down his face and across his hair in an attempt to ensure he’s looking presentable. The tips of his fingers catch on the ugly, jagged ridge of his scar, and he remembers that “presentable” stopped being an option six years ago. He clears his throat and arranges his face in the polite mask of a consummate customer service professional. “Anything I can help you find?”

“Um.” Dean looks uncertain now, as though it’s a question he wasn’t expecting — despite the fact that it’s easily the most predictable question one could be asked in a bookshop. “I don’t know. I was just gonna browse, I guess.”

This is the point in a customer interaction where Castiel would usually withdraw, because “I’m just browsing” is universal bookstore code for “leave me the fuck alone.” But Dean doesn’t give any sign of wanting to walk away. Instead, he simply hovers in front of Castiel’s armchair, eyes gliding aimlessly (and somewhat helplessly) across the shelves to his right.

“What sort of things do you like to read?” Castiel finds himself asking, because it’s impossible not to take pity on a grown man who is capable of looking so bashfully lost.

“Anything,” Dean says. One of his hands flies to the back of his neck, rubbing at it. There’s something terribly endearing about the gesture — perhaps the fact that it makes him look like a boy who’s been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

Belatedly, it occurs to Castiel that it’s his turn to speak. His prolonged silence appears to have made Dean nervous, because he’s speaking again, a little too quickly to be altogether natural. “I know that sounds stupid. Like those people who say they like all kinds of music — which I don’t, by the way, just to be clear. Big classic rock fan. Zeppelin, the Stones. Metallica too, which I guess is classic rock these days and fuck, that’s kind of depressing. But, yeah. Anyway. Pretty much anything. Love Vonnegut and Kerouac, but I’ve read just about all their stuff. I’ll read sci-fi, horror, mysteries… actually, I guess I should say I read all kinds of fiction. Non-fiction kinda puts me right to sleep. My brother, Sammy, he’s a big fan though. Crazy about true crime for some reason.” Dean blows out a heavy breath. He abruptly seems to realize he’s scratching at his neck and lowers his arm back down, fingers twitching as if unsure what to do with themselves now. “You probably didn’t need to know all that, huh?”

“No, this is helpful,” Castiel says, getting up. “I’ll show you the layout of the store so you can see which shelves you might be most interested in.”

Somehow, Dean’s shyness makes him feel more at ease. When he first laid eyes on Dean, he thought someone as handsome as Dean must be a smooth and confident conversationalist. But he doesn’t seem to be, and somehow, that makes it easier for Castiel to hold up his own end of the conversation.

Or maybe it’s just that Dean doesn’t know how to talk to someone like Castiel. He wouldn’t be the first one.

(continue reading on Ao3 on Wednesday March 20)

[cactuslester]

okay!!! oakland show post!

i had so so much funnnn it was the best night ever!!! i went alone and was pretty nervous because even though ive been to shows and concerts alone before, i'd never been to something that had so much "waiting time" like between the m&g and preshow & show, but truly everyone was so so friendly, and it was so easy to meet people and make friends in line, so if anyone is still wondering if they should get a ticket and are worried about going alone, DO IT. it's so worth it, and phannies are lovely <3

so the m&g! this is my first time meeting both of them so i was so nervous and so excited. the line moved faster than i was prepared for it to (sarah was at the front of the line making sure everyone had their cameras ready and knew what they wanted to get signed. i'm so face blind i kept thinking about how familiar she looked but didn't realize that was sarah until it was almost my turn lmaooo), but the actual interaction didn't feel rushed. i gave them the letters i had written for them. i had tried to get metallic green envelopes but couldn't find any, and i told them that, and dan immediately knew what i was talking about and pointed knowingly at phil lmao <3

i brought tabinof and a mini lesbian flag which was between the pages in case they'd have time to sign both and they did! while they were signing i asked my questions. i asked phil for book recs and he said project hail mary, which i think he's mentioned in a preshow before. he said it's space/sci fi and he really liked it. i asked dan his thoughts on this f1 season, and he said "i think it's been quite a good season! it started off and it was like 'max is gonna win everything' and then it was like 'no he's not 🤪'"

and then dan took our selfies, and i'm rly happy with how they turned out 🥺 so here's them being cute sans me lol

they are indeed really good at making you feel comfortable and just generally being very nice and chill. they sounded more british than i was expecting? which is crazy given i allegedly know exactly what they sound like having watched their videos for 12 years, but still, hearing it up close was still kinda crazy. they are indeed very spindly, im glad i wore platforms so i was at least a little bit taller than i usually am

i Did forget to ask phil my follow up question which was if he would ever do a book recs video/livestream, and i also forgot to tell them that the sappy shit and also some recs for boston food is in the letters, but w/e they'll read those sooner or later, and at least i rmred the most important things. oh also phil's blue eyed stare really is So intense, i can definitely see how his aura can be intimidating (but he rly was so sweet <3). dan is so teddy bear vibes though, not intimidating at all <3

i was towards the end of the m&g line, so after my m&g ended, preshow started ~45 minutes later. the energy at this preshow felt rly married and silly, it was so fun. they definitely have someone prune the phlit questions (but im not sure if whoever does it just grabs them randomly or if they actually read and pick which ones dnp read), since not all of my questions were answered. but i cant complain bc they answered two of mine, which i'll post the videos for tn. but i asked if they're digital hoarders, and they said no (liars), and then dan talked about how phil's desktop is disorganized. and i also asked about their fave recent horror movie, and they both said the substance, which i've been wanting to watch!

and oh my god the show itself was CRAZY. like even though i've been looking at spoilers this entire time, i still wasn't fully prepared (maybe i'll put my more spoilery thoughts in a reblog later). they were so energetic, and their stage presence is magnetic. i think it was a good night for them, as far as i remember, no lines were obviously Forgotten, and any tripping over lines was minor. the show had silly parts, it had serious parts, it was just so Them. you really can feel how comfortable and happy they feel in this new era and, like they talked about in the phukbang, that they feel that their audience is truly Theirs now. the show was so good i Did log onto ticketmaster and google flights to san diego after work today but due to flight prices and work, i fear it's not happening, but god i do want to see it again immediately 😔

finally, thank you to all the wonderful phannies i met!!! i had such a lovely time chatting w/carolina, esmeralda, orion, and winter, who aren't on tumblr 😔 and of course with molly @finalfeudfiend!!! we were seat neighbors, partners in phannie crimes for the night, and also they took my m&g video (mwah mwah tysmmmm molly <333). it was really so great to meet everyone, and all my worries about going alone were totally unfounded <3

here are the bracelets and photocards i got! the far left bracelet is from the vip merch bag, and the rest are from phannies, they say super amazing project, sister daniel, and father philip. i am sooo happy with my photocard pulls. the top row were from the pack that came w/vip merch, and the bottom row i got separately. impossible to pick faves really, but some of mine are of course uni hoodies, holographic hearts tongue out phil, phil looking so polite, and smiley peace sign dannie <333

and that's that! much love to dnp and phannies for making it such a wonderful night. having watched their videos for so long, it was so special to get to see and meet them, i had the best time ever <333

[bucketbender]

Analysis of Tervo throughout the seasons

I think the reason why I love SO so much is because the romance is not the reason you watch the show, at least at the beginning. For 3 seasons straight, the two characters who have so much chemistry aren’t in love. Or technically, they’re not together. Which makes sense, because they’re not supposed to be in love. They are shlorpians with teammate affinity.

(Note that I think the whole Valentine’s Day plot was a bit of a stretch, with teammate affinity being something that’s literally never been mentioned once. But you know what ? I can look past this. There are worst stretches in cartoons. Like the Simpsons.)

What makes their relationship so interesting is that, not only do they absolutely work even though they’re complete opposites (I know, that’s the point of the show), but they have been sharing that braincell ever since the first episode. Terry shows something Earth-related to Korvo, Korvo actually takes an interest because it fascinates him, they have fun and bond, it goes to shit, Korvo goes back to working, and repeat. They don’t have the best dynamic, yet their bond is strong enough to make it work. And it works because even in the first Season, they like spending time with each other.

S1 :

In season 1, Korvo spends most of his time on the ship. Half of the time, Terry is here to keep him company. He doesn’t do anything, he just sits there with a magazine or a Tiki drink and blabbers about human culture. And his inattentive and forgetful nature sometimes gets Korvo hurt when he fixes something. But still, he remains. Even though Korvo could and probably should banish him from the ship for their own safety. But the thing is, he actually likes having him around. Despite all his faults, Terry is sweet, and cares enough about him to stay in this boring ship to talk to him. That’s more than probably anyone has ever done for him, from what we’ve seen of their past.

As for Terry, he sees this guy who works literally all the time, and even if he usually shuts out anything fun, when Korvo does indulge him, they get into some crazy sci-fi action. He also knows his friend works hard, and does all of the chores, and cares for the whole family, even if he never expresses it directly. If you headcanon that he’s sapiosexual (« It is sexy when you know about the ship »), that also explains why Terry had some interest in him as well.

Even in the first season, even when they hadn’t shared a single kiss, they liked each other. (big up to the dumb ray episode that made people go nuts when it came out. We’ve come so far)

They’re not in love, but you can already see that Korvo will be the one to fall for his opposite first. Terry annoys him so much - and by grey gods, he endured more stupidity from his friend every day than my parents in a year. But he knows Terry genuinely chooses to spend time with him even though he could be boning humans literally 24/7. He chooses to stay in this boring ship with him to talk and just spend time together.

S2 :

They pretty much share the same dynamic in Season 2, except that now, they also share kisses sometimes. It’s not exactly a love kiss, at least not yet. It’s more of a way to say « I’m sorry » and « thank you ». It’s not often and it’s treated as a treat. Other than that, everything is the same. Terry keeps going around to have intercourse with humans and comes back in the ship to eat and hang out with Korvo. And… I have a theory. A SO theory. Remember this ?

It’s barely a 1 sec image of Korvo squinting while watching Terry vibe with a random human. It’s from the red goobler wedding episode.

And I think half of the reason Korvo… did what he did in that episode, was because he was frustrated with his relationship with Terry. Or rather, the lack of relationship he was wishing for. And so, there was this other being, that had a deep connection to him, and who he vibed with and who wanted him… and they boned. And Korvo told him they should get married. And their relationship worked for a solid 2 minutes.

I wholeheartedly believe this whole thing was much more about Terry than it was about anyone else. And if this has already been explored in like, 50 fics, I am sorry, and proud that I realized this by myself.

S3 :

Anyway, let’s keep going with Season 3. This one marks a huge change in their dynamic because it’s the year Korvo finally decides to put down roots on Earth. No more fixing the ship all the time, just occasionally. Thus, he spends the rest of the day with Terry or his family.

… Which makes him realize just how much time Terry spends with other humans, with whom he shares more than just hobbies. And it really frustrates him. Along with the Gladwell episode, he openly voices his jealousy this season. Maybe he even realizes that the "smooch on the lips" wasn’t just their thing, but that Terry did it with random strangers in the street ? In any case, he hates it.

(Small detail that even though Korvo craves something more with Terry, he’s the one who shows it the least. He tries to keep this "authoritative and strong and awesome" persona even when he just wants to rip Terry’s shirt off. My proof : « And then after that, we make out ? / Maybe. / That means no. / No ! It means… maybe. »)

This season also doesn’t show Terry having sex with anyone. In fact, it shows him being abandoned by his lovers who turned out to be psychos. Instead, he gets to share more of what he likes with Korvo and spends more time with him (the line, the skull bullet, tacos bell). And he’s obviously very happy with this new dynamic. Not only does Korvo listen to all of his stupid ideas, but now he actively participates in them. Gradually, he spends more time with his teammate and therefore, less with humans.

S4 :

Season 4 is the second best after Season 5, and not just because Dan Stevens joined the party. In season 4, Tervo don’t just smooch. They completely kiss and moan like sexy savages. They have sex twice on camera, even though we only see it once. Everything changes, but they still have the same chemistry they had in Season 1. Do stupid things, get upset, make peace, repeat. Then make out. That’s the difference. Korvo saves Terry in the stock-a-verse with « the power of love » and stabbing, and Terry tells a stranger he can’t have sex with her because he’s in love with his partner. *squint at the Valentine’s Day episode*

But then, after they "finally realize that they have love", they immediately get married. As if what Shlorp told them about their species was the only thing holding them back.

And then… oh boy. That’s some loving, horny rollercoaster we get on for Season 5. I had as many « awwww » moments watching it as I did watching WOY, but not for the same reasons.

S5 :

This time, their dynamic actually shifts. Korvo is more than ever the one doing the silly, stupid shit. And when he’s not spending his time beefing with a human, he’s with his family and/or lover. Tervo don’t argue about stupid shit anymore. They let it slide. And they truly, deeply love each other.

Korvo clearly shows it more, as he’s been dying to express his feelings (the skirt, the endless honey moon, the desperation to keep the what if device away). But he didn’t know if it was normal or even allowed to do before the Valentines Day episode. Now that he knows they can be in love and are, he doesn’t count the seconds, the pennies, the attention : it all goes to Terry.

I’m telling you, that pupa specialist is spoiled as hell every day. But he doesn’t love Korvo for his ways of always going the extra mile. He loves him for the same reasons he liked him at first : he cares for the family, he’s smart as hell, he’s dedicated. Yet he’s still so emotionally stupid. But it’s fine, he can be the emotional intelligence for the both of them.

I honestly wonder if we’ve reached the peak of their relationship or if there will be much more. Maybe in Season 6, we’ll see Terry sacrifice some things for Korvo. Maybe Zarck will kidnap one of the duo and they’ll spend three episodes getting him back. Maybe we’ll finally have the episode that explores Korvo and Terry’s past to understand their daddy issues. Or maybe we’ll have more Gravity Falls style shenanigans with the replicants. I don’t know which idea I’d like more, honestly.

Anyway ! Thanks for reading. That was some long analysis. I’m going to eat breakfast now. Toodles !

[greatyme]

i'd be interested in your recent movie list - it's nice to hear what people are watching 🥰

OOOHHH thank you for asking!!! This gives me the perfect excuse 2 talk abt some of my favs ty hehe <3 The genres, years, countries, etc. might be wildly different and there’s no particular order to what I’m gonna list but here we go:

1. The Spook Who Sat by the Door

Ivan Dixon; action/political drama; America; 1973

EVERYONE needs to watch this honestly… it’s probably my favorite film I’ve seen this year. The movie’s about the first Black man, Dan Freeman, to be trained by the CIA, who then quits and takes the techniques he’s learned to create a team of Black youths to fight for freedom and against racism. Even though it’s a fictional plot, the real FBI pulled it from theaters for being too radical, and it has indeed been described as “the only true Black radical movie ever made.” I seriously can’t recommend it enough

2. Medicine for Melancholy

Barry Jenkins; romance/drama; America; 2008

If you’re familiar with Moonlight, you already know this filmmaker. Medicine for Melancholy is Barry Jenkins’ first film, about the romance between Jo and Micah after a one night stand that takes place in San Francisco. Some things I like about it are the ways the city and its racial issues so heavily influence the characters’ relationship so much so that it essentially becomes a character in itself. Since this is Jenkins’ first film, the budget was smaller ($15k) and it has a different feel from his newer movies which I personally really liked

3. They Cloned Tyrone

Juel Taylor; sci-fi/mystery; America; 2023

This movie was released on barbenheimer day and was WAY BETTER THAN BOTH OF THEM!!!! When Fontaine, a drug dealer played by John Boyega, seemingly gets shot and killed, Slick, a pimp, is shocked to see him walking around the next day as if nothing happened. Together, Slick, Fontaine, and Yo-Yo, a sex worker, work to uncover what actually happened and find that it’s much bigger than they could’ve imagined. This is a FANTASTIC sci-fi film with some fantastic writing (a lot of great one-liners lmao) and all the actors do amazingly. Also, the title goes hard!

4. Bad Genius

Baz Nattuwat; thriller; Thailand; 2017

I literally watched this last night (happy birthday Nonkul!) lol. In this movie the character Lynn gets paid to work with her friends to help other high school students cheat on tests. When I tell you this had me SWEATING from stress. It was very entertaining, I really liked the way it was shot and how it consistently kept the tension up

5. Do the Right Thing

Spike Lee; drama/comedy; America; 1989

Taking place on an unbearably hot summer day, racial tensions rise between the Black civilians and the Italian owners of a pizzeria in Brooklyn. This is a v famous movie, directed by Spike Lee, and honestly many of the themes still ring true today

6. Sorry to Bother You

Boots Riley; sci-fi/comedy; America; 2018

Set in the Oakland, Cassius Green becomes a telemarketer and uses a “white voice” to do better at his job. But when his coworkers form a union, he decides to take a promotion instead, leading to unexpected consequences. I don’t want to spoil anything, and this is another famous movie that many people have probably already seen and have probably been spoiled BUT. there is a crazy twist. I really enjoyed the messages and craziness this movie had to offer

7. Marry My Dead Body

Cheng Wei Hao; comedy/mystery; Taiwan; 2022

I saw this with my friend on my birthday and honestly it could not have been a better way to watch it. A homophobic cop accidentally gets into an arranged marriage with a dead gay ghost. Is that not one of the best plot descriptions u have ever heard. It’s horror, it’s comedy, it’s gay, it’s a romance (TO ME! And like everyone else who watched it)… WHAT MORE COULD U WANT!! It gave me a similar feeling as Secrets in the Hot Spring & Pee Mak, two movies that somehow seem to cover So Many Genres & that I love sooo much (the former is my fav movie ever). I literally laughed so hard I almost peed myself at times <3

Other than that some other movies I watched & enjoyed this year are: Love Lies Bleeding (2024), Claudine (1974), Eve’s Bayou (1997), and Bottoms (2023). I don’t wanna make this too long so I’ll stop it here but I hope you enjoy these films too if you decide to watch any!!

[that-writing-raccoon]

MEET CHAOTIC PROMPTS

Alright, kids, listen up.

We’re all suckers for a good meet-cute. Don’t even try to lie to me. Like, yeah, they’re cliché, but, if done well, it can be really cute, hence the name.

Meet-uglies on the other hand can be super funny, and they almost always lead to enemies-to-lovers or rivals-to-lovers, even if just for a hot second. They’re great, too.

But here’s the thing:

I want more meet-chaotics. Not meet-cutes, not meet-uglies, meet-chaotics.

What do I mean by this?

Well, you know how crazy life can be sometimes? How wack shit happens, it makes a good story to tell your friends, and it makes you low-key question reality for a second? Yeah. Meet-chaotics are like that. How you met is just so weird and chaotic that it was a bonding experience.

Here are some prompts/concepts so you understand what I’m getting at:

“Normal”/Humor:

 “I’m an uber driver dropping off my last customer, and you and your friends(?) just jumped into my backseat right as they got out and yelled a variety of ‘DRIVE! FUCKING DRIVE!’ and ‘FLOOR IT!’ There are flashing lights behind me, but I panicked and stepped on the gas, and now you’re trying to assure me that it’s not what it looks like, but I’m too busy worrying that I’m a wanted criminal now.” 

Bonus points for found family and/or polyamory!

“I’ve had a really bad day, and it started to rain, so, because I’m dramatic, I blasted my ‘*insert playlist name here*’ and lied down on my sidewalk/lawn/driveway facing the sky, and you just drove by, backed up, and ran out to join me as ‘Chasing Cars’ by Snow Patrol was playing. I have never met you before, but I’m pretty sure we’ve bonded and might be soulmates.” (Yes, I got this idea from a TikTok. What of it?).

“I was walking my dog at the park when he got off his leash, and now I’m running after him through the park calling his name and yelling to ‘GET THAT DOG!’ You’re having a barbecue/family reunion/birthday party, and my dog sprints towards you, knocks someone over, and begins eating your food. You see me sprinting towards you and trying to catch my dog, but he’s faster, so now we’re both chasing my dog, and I may or may not be swearing words that’d make a sailor blush. Eventually, one of us or a random stranger catches him, and we finally stop, and, hey, sorry about that, but, wazow! You’re pretty cute.” 

Bonus points for anyone vaulting over a table or something.

“We’re on our way to class, and I just witnessed you run past me down the stairs holding a bunch of books, trip, roll down two flights, and roll to your feet and keep running like nothing happened. And, like, we didn’t talk, and I don’t think you noticed me, but now I can’t help thinking of you. Like, that was impressive, but are you okay?”

“We’re at a house party, and it’s gotten pretty wild. Music is blasting from the speakers, people are dancing on tables, stuff is breaking, etc. Suddenly, the music shuts off, and someone yells, “POLICE!” and everyone s c a t t e r s. It’s pure chaos. I trip while running outside and curl up in a ball to not get trampled, but then a hand reaches down and pulls me up, it’s you, and we run off together still holding hands. Who are you, again?”

Bonus points if this goes back to the uber driver prompt. 

Bonus bonus points if this couple is coming from the same place as the folks from the first prompt, so it’s same universe, but they’re completely different people having their own meet-chaotics running from the police ‘cause they were at the same party.

Could be any illegal/big crowd scenario. A concert, a protest, etc. 

Sci-Fi:

“We live in a world where superheroes exist. One day, I’m minding my own business in my own apartment when you, *insert superhero name here,* crash through my wall while I’m just lounging on the couch, mug of coffee/preferred drink to my lips, feet up on my coffee table, and laptop open on my lap. We stare at each other. You get up, apologize, and fly off through the hole in the wall. Little do I know, you feel bad about the whole thing and decide to try making it up to me, except every thing you try just descends us more and more into chaos.”

Bonus points if this ends up being enemies to lovers, seeing as the protagonist, Character A, would probably be hella bitter about not having the specific superhero insurance needed to fix their wall. 

Bonus bonus points if Superhero has to save A from x during one of their attempts to fix the situation. 

“It’s the zombie apocalypse. I’ve set up camp in a (mostly) abandoned town, scavenging to survive. One day, there’s an unusual amount of zombies in the road. Panicked, I start to climb something. When I’m about halfway up, I hear a weird noise, and look down just in time to see you and your friend whizzing by on a shopping cart down the incline- you in the basket and your friend riding on the back. You’re screaming/yelling and swinging a bat around. The zombies are too slow and uncoordinated to catch up with you. At the last second, you look up at me and we make eye-contact mid-me making at wtf face. It’s such a stupid strategy that I’m low key in love.”

“It’s an alien invasion. We’re all running and screaming for our lives. Suddenly, there’s a spot light, and you start being pulled up into a ship. You panic and grab something. For some unknown, ungodly reason, I try to help you. It goes as well as it sounds. Cue us both getting beamed up while holding on to each other for dear life.”

“We’re on a spaceship. There are so many people on board that it’s impossible to truly know or recognize anyone. I’m working or reading or what have you, when I so happened to glance up at my porthole/window, just in time to see you, who’d been fixing something on the outside of the ship, floating away and doing some space gymnastics with your lead and etc., and swimming, to get back to the ship. I do what anyone responsible would do and sprint off to the docks to get you back safe inside.”

Bonus if Floating Person is just doing the absolute most ridiculous things to make it back.

I have more, but I feel like this post is long enough. But yeah. Something something meeting someone in the most chaotic, stupid, and unhinged way gets to me. Like, we’ve all have shared moments with a stranger because we both witnessed something or been involved in something dumb or crazy. And usually it’s like, eye-contact or brief, awkward commentary, then at the end of the day you go home and it’s just a funny story that only you guys experienced. Something about it just speaks to me.

[theinstagrahame]

One of the best things about Crowdfunding is, stuff arrives even when you're cutting way back on spending. A *ton* of stuff arrived in the last month and a bit. Got a bunch of really neat projects in, and it's time to get hype about it!

Why these games rule, under the cut

The Revenant Society: Banana Chan is one of those names that immediately catches my attention when she's on a project. Actually, looking at the list again, the team for this game was stacked, it was a real All-Star Cast. But like, even without the powerhouse designers on the case, this just gets all the things I want in a game: Time loops, murder mysteries, trapped on the Underground. A PbtA game where you solve your own murder is, y'know, a pitch that'll attract my attention.

Hellwhalers: I saw this game coming up through design phases in the Plus One Exp Discord, and it sounded incredible. Using tokens and an old ship betting game, you're part of a whaling crew chasing Moby Dick into actual hell. Maybe Ahab wasn't crazy after all, and maybe we won't survive.

Xenolanguage: I might own everything Thorny Games makes now, because they make games about language. Folks who may not know me might not know that I *love* linquistics. Honestly, if I could repeat college, I'd put more of my time into Linguistics. But due to the linear nature of time, I'll settle for playing games about decoding alien language in a first contact situation. Sorta like that movie Contact. Which, I loved.

Mothership and Desert Moons of Karth: I read through the original version of Mothership a couple of years ago, and it's one I wanted to get more into. When I saw that there was a chance to pick up the full 1e boxset on KS, I jumped. I've also seen tons of people talk about Karth as a really awesome sandbox module for the system, so when I had a little cash on DTRPG from selling books, it was an easy pickup.

Inscrutable Cities: Possum Creek Games told me to back this, so I did (this is a joke, but I do love PCG a whole lot). In reality, I saw Inscrutable Cities on Itch a while ago, and the pitch grabbed me. I love reading solo journaling games (I still haven't found a way I like to play them, if I'm completely honest, but they're really neat reads). Walking through an impossible city is something I'd love to do, so, I have the book for it now.

Reap: Spencer Cambell makes bangers, and bangers only. I'm not *not* on a mission to collect all of his work, but Necromancers? Solo tactical board games, built on Rune? Sure. I'm in.

Luna: Spencer Campbell makes bangers, and bangers only. I also picked up another of his books this month. The Nova universe? Moon cultists trying to destroy the sun? Sure, I'm in.

3 Moonlight on Roseville Beach zines: I played Moonlight on Roseville Beach on my now-defunct podcast, and it's a game that I honestly think about a lot. The dice system was complicated, but in a really neat way that gave the players a ton of really interesting decisions with every roll. What part of my action succeeds? What kinds of complications am I opening myself to?

Anyway, R. Rook put together some characters, mysteries, and monsters for the game, and I really wanted to explore more.

Hiria, In the Margins, A Visit to San Sibilia: I mentioned earlier that I like the notion of exploring weird cities, right? Well, here's two games about that, and a cool bookmark RPG for reading. I listened to San Sibilia played in an episode of Friends at the Table, and it really captured my attention. The questions were fascinating, and they let the players flesh out a city we'd only heard of, but not seen prior to that game. It was a cool coda on a really fantastic and weird season, Sangfielle.

Grandmothership: The title alone had me, but Armanda Haller is a creator I keep an eye on, because she makes really rad stuff. This caught my attention because solving mysteries in a weird, Mothership-esque sci-fi setting, as nosy grandmothers, really just, gets me. I want to do that. I want to live that.

Holdfast Station: I've been watching Stonetop develop through its email updates. It's another PbtA game, but with a robust city-building and city development core loop that, is 100% my jam. (Low-key, one of my favorite games is Dragon Quest Builders 2.) This game takes that concept to space, which is 1000% my jam, in fact.

Spectres of Brocken: Aaron Lim is a designer I got into early on in my foray into games, and I do love Mech Anime. I am eager to see his take on Mech Anime, and I am really intrigued by the way this game handles playsets and worldbuilding as part of the game itself. Really can't wait to dive into this.

Lay on Hands: This is another of those games I've heard about, but never actually checked out. I know Alfred Valley better by reputation than by direct experience, but this is one of those games I hear people constantly telling people to check out. So, I'm gonna!

Penumbra City: Maybe 5 years ago, I read a novella by Margaret Killjoy about anarchists living in an abandoned city, and beset by assholes within their community, and supernatural horrors from without. The world kinda stuck with me, so when I saw she was working on an RPG not in the same world), I was curious to see what that would look like. I haven't cracked Penumbra City open yet, but I'm jazzed to do so.

These two fell off the pile for the big photo, so I forgot:

Deathmatch Island: I enjoyed the Hunger Games and Battle Royale movies a pretty moderate amount, but what really caught my attention here was the promise that players could also break the Reality TV Parody. The use of the Paragon system also caught my attention. After hearing one AP of Agon, I really wanted to see how that would translate into this, and it didn't take me too long reading it to go "Oh, okay, this rules."

Our God is Dead: What if you were a paladin or priest of a faith, and you found out your god was dead? What if you also had like, a bunch of people who really needed that god not to be dead, like this weekend? This sounds hilarious, and I am going to insert it into conversation often to see if people want to play it. Apologies to people who know me.

Eagle eyed viewers may have noticed a second Mothership box. What's that about?

It's a storage box for all my Mothership Zines so far... Except the two that are just slightly too big!

And, some fun comics/graphic novels:

Good Boy Paws: A friend of mine in comics put this together, and it looked extremely cute. A sweet tale of a good boi.

Wine Ghost Goes to Hell: Picked this up because the creator had contributed to Bugsnax, which is a game I enjoyed, and the concept seemed fun. Will have to check it out and report back!

[dve]

☕️ blood of eden

i think blood of eden is a really effective narrative tool that reflects the pervasive rot and violence john gaius’ empire has clearly inflicted upon non-house peoples societies and identities shown best through its fractured nature and the way other characters inside and outside blood of eden talk about BoE. blood of eden takes things too far it doesn’t take things far enough it’s an operational mess they’re fat cats they’re perpetually preparing for the worst hoping for the best in a world that no longer seems to want to allow them to do that etc etc.

they give us an interesting look into non-houser life from an angle besides “person living on a flipped planet” and i wish people didn’t take what john and the lyctors say about them at face value so easily because i think how you respond to blood of eden is reflective in some way of how you respond to resistance movements altogether, especially if you’re living + residing in the imperial core

+ very refreshing to read a book in the sci-fi fantasy etc genre that doesn’t cut corners with its obligatory rebel faction. i have more thoughts on this that I’ll share at one point I’m just thinking about all the sff i read as a teen that was like these resistance fighters are Crazy because they’re Too Mean about the imperial powers oppressing and destroying them! no kiddie gloves in that regard with blood of eden. honorable mention to seth dickinson who does this even better with even more nuance with the coyotes in the masquerade series

unfortunately from what I’ve seen over the years a good bite sized chunk of the fandom ignores all this in favor of making the same leftist infighting joke posts over and over or calling BoE terrorists (???) or making fun of the naming conventions of edenites when the naming is in fact a large part of the point the books are making about narrative history titles who gets to keep what who decides what is important why is it important to act against those deciders. anyways i love them i’d read a whole series about them. also we suffer and we suffer call me on tuesday when i am free

send me a ☕️ + a topic and i’ll share my thoughts on it

[loveblkwmn]

S U P A C E L L

everybody should watch netflix’s new show Supacell it was very good! honestly i was skeptical at first cause i don’t watch sci-fi movies fr so i really only pressed play because i saw an all black cast and some black romance and we don’t have nearly enough of that so i wanted to try to support and i don’t regret pressing play at all. i binged the 6 eps in one sitting lol it’s very good i love all the characters and am intrigued by them so i’m really excited to see more in next season. it starts a lil slow but as soon as it picks up it’s really good and you just can’t stop watching cause you’re just so into it lol. also i’m canadian so it was interesting to see the black south london culture and like lifestyle in this, and from what i’ve seen on social media it was done pretty well so i really enjoyed that aspect of the show as well. another great aspect is the fact that it brings awareness to sickle cell which mainly affects us. the way it’s incorporated in the show is very unique and another cool touch.

this first season felt so short that as soon as i finished it i ran to youtube to binge all their interviews and i fell in love w the cast lol they seem like a lovely group and their chemistry translated well into their acting (more specifically tosin and ade who play michael and dionne). they’re literally all so beautiful too like omggg it’s crazy. but it seems like they haven’t been renewed for a second season yet so i neeeed everybody to support the show by liking it on netflix and just showing love on every platform just to let them know we want more lol. like a bunch of the actors said, a show like this could really help open doors for black people in the film industry, it can help show that black people can tell multiple stories and can star in different genres so please, show it some love, let’s tell the film industry that we want more black casts in romcoms, sci-fi, horror and just any genre!

i would talk more about like my favorite scenes and everything but i don’t want to spoil anyone who hasn’t seen it yet lol but i will quickly say that my fav character is def sabrina like she’s beautiful, caring and protective of those she loves. i’m a big sister like her so i think that also played a part lol but i feel like there’s still so much they can do with her character like honestly we don’t know much about her so i hope we can learn more in the next season.

again, if you haven’t watch it yet, you need to! (you’re missing out on great tiktoks abt it too)

*if ur a writer pleaaaase watch and write use some good fictions i’m starving out here

[iamgonnagetyouback]

omg omg congrats on 1k!! i love your acc sm + you are so cool??!! i was so hesitant to send an ask lmao 😭

i want to request a snowmance(maybe with someone from harry potter) you are so creative?!! How did you come up with these ideas?!! anygays, i am an introvert, like very shy with people i don't know [ like its hard for me to even make eye contact with them ] but very annoying and clingy when i am comfortable with them. i have an attention span of a toddler XD i love to read books and watch sci-fi movies. my favourite subject is English and physics. I'm lazy but athletic at the same time (if that makes sense lol) and i love chase atlantic. i hate rainy days, insects, and seafood. hmm my ideal winter date would be, putting holiday lights together, ice skating, and stargazing <33

Oh my goodness, thank you so much!! You have me smiling like crazy over here (˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶) Hearing that you love my account and think I’m cool? I can’t even handle it! And don’t worry, I am so glad you sent this ask—it means the world to me!

ivy's 1k celebration ⛄️ navigation ⛄️ fandoms

ˋ°•*⁀➷ CEDRIC DIGGORY

Alright, I am SO excited to pair you with Cedric because oh my gosh, I think you two would be utterly perfect together! Imagine Cedric with that bright, warm smile of his, being so patient and sweet, totally understanding your shyness and making you feel at ease. He’d love the way you’re a little quiet at first but then turn into the clingiest, funniest, most adorable version of yourself once you’re comfortable.

And as for your winter date? Dreamy. Cedric would be thrilled to help you put up holiday lights, carefully handing each one to you, totally absorbed by how cute you look trying to get them just right. When it’s time for ice skating, he’d hold your hand the entire time, flashing you that heart-stopping grin of his, making you feel like you’re in some kind of perfect holiday movie. (´｡• ◡ •｡`) ♡

And when you two end up stargazing? Oh, he’d be the type to throw a blanket around your shoulders and pull you close, whispering all the things he loves about winter nights and you. You’d be cuddled up under the stars, and Cedric would be gazing at you like you’re the brightest light in his sky.

Cedric and you would be that winter couple, the one everyone talks about because you just look so incredibly sweet and happy together. (ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)ꕤ.ﾟ

[ronanlynchdefender]

I am thinking about the parallels between Evan "Buck" Buckley (911onABC) and Gideon Nav (The Locked Tomb), and I think them meeting would be hilarious.

If Gideon Nav joined the 118 firehouse, I think it would be very similar to Eddie's introduction. Buck would see this hot, buff woman and he'd be like "do I want to sleep with her? Do I want to be her?" like the confused bisexual he is. But then he'd hit on her and Gideon would be all like "sorry dude but my sword doesn't swing that way." And thus, starting a beautiful friendship that would drive the rest of the 118 crazy. Chimney would probably say "oh no, there's two of them now."

But seriously, let’s talk about the parallels between Buck and Gideon. They are both neurodivergent queer masculine adrenaline junkies who believe that love involves throwing themselves into dangerous situations and self sacrificing. Not to mention they are both super cheesy and hilarious as hell.

They are also coincidentally in love with repressed gays with religious guilt.

BUT aside from that, there is also ONE similarity that these two characters have that is SO HYPERSPECIFIC that I gasped when I realized it.

Both Buck and Gideon were born solely for the purpose of being used for parts. The key difference being Buck was conceived to save a life, and Gideon was conceived to destroy, meant to be a bomb.

It’s just so crazy to me that both these characters from two completely different pieces of media could have so many parallels.

So I think what this has taught me is that I (or someone) desperately needs to write 911xLocked Tomb crossover au.

I also need to know what other people think. My brilliant girlfriend brought up other points too. She felt like they would have more of a rivalry and that they have some other key differences like Gideon being more snarky than Buck and both being two different kinds of neurodivergent. She sees Gideon as more disorganized ADHD whereas Buck is more autistic-coded with his clipboards and checklists. Personally, I also see Buck as ADHD but then I think he could be coded as both. I also don’t remember if Gideon is more organized or disorganized in the books because she does have a consistent, repetitive routine on the ninth but interesting to think about.

So I guess if you’re a 911 fan who’s looking for a lesbian sci-fi fantasy than DEFINITELY read The Locked Tomb. And if you’re a gay book nerd who might be interested in a silly, goofy procedural drama about first responders then maybe 911 is for you.

[electricsynthesis]

lance - sorry to teenagers in fanon in 2016 but I don’t think lance would listen to the pop hits of the 2010s. I think lance is too hip for that. He is not listening to pop from 100~ years ago. (Or more, nobody can agree on when the show takes place & I think that’s beautiful). lance is listening to the billboard top 100. He’s listening to what people are talking about . I imagine their pop music as very synthetic, almost edm, with loud vocals over top of it. Less bass than we have in our pop music, more tenor. he’s into particular celebrities and while he likes their music, and he says it’s about the music, he’s more into the celebrities really than the music. he’s into his eras version of, like, Britney Spears. Because they’ve gotta have an edge to them. Some controversy. if they’re too squeaky clean he gets bored

hunk - whatever the sci fi future equivalent of melancholy, heavily vocal guitar indie music. the kind of music that’s more poetry than it is really music. Stuff made by underground artists. it’s all emotional, ranging from sappy to comforting to sad. he likes love songs about pining but they make him really emotional . He also likes pop music generally, soft hip hop and r&b. also atmospheric music. He strikes me as the type of nerd to listen to a lot of video game osts because of the sweeping orchestral vibes, but for some reason refuses to just listen to actual classical music. Feels too pretentious but then he just listens to orchestras perform the video game osts anyway so lol

pidge - god’s most annoying electronica. I think 100 years of sci fi future is going to make hyperpop one of the whackiest music genres and pidge is right there with it. She wants pitchy, bit-crushed squealing. she wants electronic shrieking. she wants voices autotuned to the point of nigh unrecognizability. I think she also listens to more normal electronica, which I think is more mainstream in their era. Stuff we would associate with weird youtube electronica is a whole cast genre. She’s really into it. She knows all the bands, all the subgenres, all the specific sounds of each one. Matt finds this so fucking annoying because she plays it out loud and he h a t e s it. After she joins team voltron lance gets to take over matts place here

keith - forgive me for this, but I do think keith listens to what WE would call numetal. But it’s like. Classic metal, to him. Og metal. Like I think he literally listens to linkin park. I’m saying that keith kogane listens to 100 year old music. He heard it all from his crazy ass paranoid conspiracy theorist father, who only uses analogue tech because he’s terrified of the garrison finding out about his fuzzy purple alien long distance wife and his alien hybrid child. so he plays like, breaking Benjamin cds on an old boombox. This is the only kind of music keith likes . He’s ok with modern metal but he prefers what we would call classic metal. he doesn’t like emo music

allura -

So I have really detailed thoughts on what constitutes “music” and how that may be defined for alien cultures in sci fi. I’ve thought about this extensively since I was 14 and the conclusion I’ve come to is that altean music is the most industrial, heavy, absolutely dark fast paced noisemusic ever conceived. Metal grinding against metal. Plates shrieking against each other. Dull thumping on thick glass. String instruments that squeak and squeal. sudden starts and stops. Heavy drums you can feel in your teeth. clanking. whistling. wheezing. All the kinds of noises you hear in altean music. coran prefers more “classical” altean music, which entails more drums and strings (of the shrieking variety). allura prefers the “modern” (of her youth) altean music, their equivalent to pop, which is more industrial & metal grindy.

She excitedly shows the humans some altean music only to find them absolutely repulsed. Just, like, they’re trying to be nice. But when I say industrial I mean like, a collection of noises that we wouldn’t even categorize as music. so they can’t help the just inherent misunderstanding. except keith, he fucking LOVES it. He goes WILD for it. Allura convinces him to actually dance to it and they just flail around wildly.

he tries to show allura the music that he likes but sadly divorced dad rock doesn’t do much for her. But through their & pidge’s combined efforts into the forays of Abrasive Human Music they discover that allura also really likes death metal

[ink-flavored]

Get to Know Your Moots Writeblr Interview

This looked fun, and I love answering lists of questions

Tagging: @foxys-fantasy-tales @noblebs @ceph-the-ghost-writer @auntdarth @damageinkorporated @srjacksin @wyked-ao3 @alesseia and anyone else who wants to do it!

Blank Questions for those who join me!

-

On the Tumblr Writing Community

How long have you had your writing Tumblr/Writeblr? A fast and loose estimate is fine!

I’ve been on Tumblr since 2014, but I didn’t make this writeblr sideblog until 2019.

What led you to create it?

Mainly because I crave organization, and I felt weird posting my fanfiction to a blog where I didn’t really talk about writing. Plus, I didn’t feel like anyone on my main would have been interested in hearing me talk about my original writing either, and even if they were, it would have been drowned in everything else I reblogged. I wanted to have a place that was 100% dedicated to writing to keep my blog topics more organized.

What’s your favorite thing about the Writeblr community?

I love talking about writing, for one, but I also love how many varied ideas you see in this community. There are SO MANY incredible WIPs waiting to be discovered here, of any genre you can think of, featuring ideas that make you salivate. The world-building some of you people have going on is fucking amazing, and I’m eating it.

What’s one thing you’d like your mutuals to know about you?

I love talking about stories, including yours! Come say hello if you feel at all inclined to!

Is there anything you’d like to see more of on your dash?

More people going crazy and/or stupid about their own stuff. Be your own biggest fan, and others will follow!

The kinds of writing I always enjoy seeing more of, in general, though: poetry (literally any kind of poetry), fantasy (high & urban), sci-fi (hard & soft), crime (bonus points if set during the Prohibition), romance, erotica (bonus points if kinky), detailed world-building (bonus points for fiddly politics, more bonus points if it’s inspired by other cultures than the generic European template), and any of these things in combination with each other!

What tips/advice do you have for someone who made a Writeblr today?

Reblog other people’s work if you want them to reblog yours, always send someone an ask if you reblog an ask game from them, don’t be afraid to self-reblog no matter how annoying you think it is, but most importantly, do whatever you want forever. Have fun.

Lots more under the cut!

WIP it Good

Which Works-in-Progress (WIPs) or writing projects are you noodling about, lately?

Mainly my [currently untitled] urban fantasy anthologies and Pride & Justice. My anthologies are getting outlined for my own make-shift “write as much as you can” challenge I’m doing in parallel to NaNo this year, and I’m basically always thinking about P&J at all times whether I like it or not.

How long have you been working on them?

My anthologies are only officially around… a year or two old, probably? I had the initial impetus to start them ages ago (like, closer to 4 or 5 years ago), but didn’t start working on them as an actual project until relatively recently. Hell, I didn’t have the idea for an erotic urban fantasy anthology until December 2023!!

As for Pride & Justice, it will celebrate its second birthday on August 9th! It’s the only WIP I have such a specific date for, since it originally started as a fanfic I did for AUgust2022.

Do you remember what inspired them/what got you started?

For my anthologies, I’ve always loved urban fantasy, but pretty much all the urban fantasy I could find growing up was lacking in some way (to me). Either the fantasy elements were pasted onto our already existing world—usually “in secret” or with some other excuse to keep the “regular people” from finding out—or it was a genuine fantasy world with more advanced technology, but always a detective story. Seriously, what’s with urban fantasy and detective thrillers? They’re cool, but there’s so many of them…

I craved something closer to a “slice of life” urban fantasy—what would a fantasy world with our current level of technology and manufacturing actually look like? How would people live, what would a city be like, how would things like magic change what a sufficiently advanced culture looks like? And then, of course, the crazy magical sex????? That’s the logic I’m working from with both my anthologies, a sort of “what-if” combined with a slice-of-life peek into urban fantasy lives.

For P&J it’s a lot simpler: the fanfiction I wrote simply didn’t want to be a fanfiction. It wanted to be something bigger, more original, with more room to breathe. I gave it permission to be itself.

How much time, in your best estimation, do you spend thinking about them?

All of the time. Forever. If I am thinking about something, it’s probably my WIPs.

When someone asks the dreaded, “What do you write about,” question, what do you usually say?

I reflexively answer “fantasy, and I dabble in sci-fi and contemporary fiction.” Sometimes I clarify I write both high and urban fantasy, because most people assume high fantasy. I usually also mention I write poetry, and sometimes I’ll mention my Magnet Monday schtick.

What do you want to say (if it’s different from what you do say)?

Well, if people could get really cool about me saying “fantasy romance and erotica” that would be neat. I think we’re still a little ways off from other people’s reactions not being 1) smiling stiffly but politely before changing the subject or 2) making a rude face before changing the subject.

Let’s Rotate Blorbos

Name any characters you created.  Side characters, protagonists, antagonists, characters who’ve never been written, the first original abomination you ever pulled from your ass; whomever you’d like!

List them all? We’d be here a while.

I have an OC Roulette that I spin when I need to pick a character at random for whatever reason, so I’ll just list the ones currently on it:  Pride, Justice, Kindness, Ollie, Sofia, Dante, Honesty, Lust, Xinya, Yu-Qi, Jao, Han Lao, Sita Zhai, Asim, Mira, Cahaya, Priscilla, Henry, Yvonne, Harlan, Hayden, Lenora, Teconia, Seraph, Park, Jamie, Kiran. And the OC Roulette list will surely expand as I come up with more blorbos.

Who’s the most unhinged?

It depends on how you define unhinged, I guess? Yu-Qi could be considered unhinged because she’s a God-Dragon who does not care much what you think of her and does literally whatever she wants, whenever she wants. Priscilla enjoys violence to a suspicious degree, to the point where her husband just sighs and shrugs about it. Honesty is an Evangelical Christian angel with the one and only mission to carry out God’s Word. Take your pick, really.

Who comes the most naturally for you to write?

Can I just blanket say “the protagonists”? Generally, I use the POV characters for a reason, and it’s because I find them the most comfortable to write. I very rarely write multi-POV stories, and when I do switch POVs, it’s usually for one very significant part that the regular POV character isn’t present for or something. So—Pride, Xinya, Asim, Priscilla, etc.

Do you ever cringe at them?

Honestly, not really. Sometimes I get nervous about people accusing me of self-inserting or whatever, but then I remember that those people are stupid and lame. Of course my characters are going to be at least a little like me—I created them. Some will be more similar than others, but I put a little bit of myself into everything I write, including the characters. And even if they were self-inserts, who cares? I can do whatever I want, and don’t need to cater to pissants.

How much control do you feel you have over your characters?  AKA, do they ever “write themselves,” refuse to cooperate, or do things you didn’t expect? To what degree? Are some less cooperative than others?

They fly off the handle sometimes. The most persistent example is from The God-Dragon’s Wife, which was supposed to be about a monogamous couple, but a prominent side character started hassling me to make it a polycule so she could join in. I am now rethinking the entire plot to see if I can make it work.

In general, though, I feel like my characters exist somewhere in between “totally under my control” and “completely unrestrained.” I can drop a character into a scenario and act them through it, and there are absolutely times where I go “nah that’s out of character,” and have to change something. But for the most part, it’s like… observation. If I have a good handle on a character’s personality, arc, and motivations, I can just watch. Wow, look at ‘em go…

Do you enjoy people asking questions about your characters? And do you have a preferred means of receiving said questions? For example, as Asks, as replies, as reblogs, as tag notes, as comments on AO3, etc.

YEAH!!!!! ALWAYS AND FOREVER!!!!!!

Honestly, no preferred medium for questions. Send me an ask, reply in a post, DM me, message me on Discord (if you have it), leave a comment on my website, whatever. I love talking about my characters, and if you also want to talk to me about my characters, well that means I love you too.

On Writeblr Engagement

What makes you want to follow another Writeblr account? Do you follow ‘em as you see ‘em, or take time scoping out the blog to make sure you align with its content? Do you follow based on WIPs, or vibes?

Usually I scope out a blog and see if their WIPs are interesting enough for me to want to see regularly on my dash. Sometimes I’ll see a post from someone looking for other blogs that post [x] genre or [y] content, and if they match up with what I do, I’ll skim their intros (if they have them). I don’t like horror, so I’m not gonna follow people who only post horror stuff. I really like fantasy, so I’m more inclined to follow people who post fantasy stuff. If I see a particularly interesting WIP, I’ll follow the person even if it’s not the kind of thing I normally read. It all depends!

What makes you decide against following?

Genres I don’t like to read and my personal squicks, usually. Maybe the WIPs didn’t grab me. Some writeblr blogs are also people’s main blogs where they post a lot of other non-writing things, and I usually don’t follow those since I’m here for the writing first and foremost.

Do you interact with non-mutuals often?

Sometimes! Usually it’s my mutuals who talk to me the most, so I interact with them the most. As a general rule though, if you talk to me, I’m gonna talk to you back, no matter what our following status is.

Do your mutuals’ characters occupy space in your noodle?

If I know enough about them, yeah! I have plenty of other people’s OCs floating around in my brain from time to time, especially if they’re a regular occurrence on my dash.

[waivyjellyfish]

How do the prisoners react to meeting the Dokuro family and finding out that Es isn’t human?

Sorry it took so long, real world catched me. And thank you for your question.

Well. Like a lot of normal people, I think. They was shocked. And it was difficult to understand it.

It’s kind of hard to react any other way, when right in front of your eyes a little girl(no) appears through a breach in the wall and easily blowing your 15-year-old warden's head. And then the warden recovers from that as if nothing had happened and drags you out of prison as if it were meant to, brushing questions aside like annoying flies with short "later".

I mean, yes, the Milgram prison is frankly strange, no windows, no doors, no calendar, and some strange thing in the form of a giant machine to extract memories, or strange, unpleasantly shrill mental walls that forbid physical aggression against the warden at first, and later against the other prisoners too. A strange warden with a mind of their own, who's always talking with a terribly clever horned rabbit. (Are these real horns or are they attached to the hat?) And with meaningful dialogue. But the only one side of the conversation can be heard, so who knows if they really hears the rabbit voice or they're got nuts long time ago. And the claim that this rabbit is the one who cooks all dish. Honestly, it sounds more like an excuse for not respecting kitchen hygiene than the truth.

All this is, undoubtedly, strange and resembles some sci-fi movie with elements of psychological horror. But not a fantasy.

And yeah. The warden themself is strange, but not so to suspect a monster in them. Everything can be explained, right?

Yeah, they're talking to the rabbit. It’s weird, but some people with pets do it too. The warden is obviously lonely. Don't you think?

Blood craving? Well, there are people who have a craving for blood, aren’t there?

Sharp teeth? Fuuta has that too.

Gender is unknown? Androgynes exist, dears.

Their bruises and wounds heals in an hour or two? Well the warden is 15, children are healing at a fairly rapid rate, and also there is a fairly balanced diet. So everything kind of fits together… (exept the fact that the swollen eye after Mikoto’s interrogation disappeared the next day. this is strange of course)

Sometimes they says with certainty something that people can’t do, like that it’s actually possible to cut something off for better regeneration or talking to the dead, or that metal is edible. Well, the kid has no memory of what happened with them before Milgram, only the prisoners, the talking rabbit and the books in their private room can connect them with outside world in some ways. They're very impressionable, poor child. And they seems to lack iron.

(As my friend jocked: -I thought you were neurodivergent. -Nah, I just isn't human)

So, of course, the prisoners were not prepared for it. Not for a very radical way of warden's regeneration, nor for a one-eyed(no) giant-girl with a tail, nor for a guy in his 30+ who looks like a 14-15-year-old girl. Not for the fact that a very small group who came after their child is going to smash the prison building brick by brick and catch everyone who was involved in it in less than two hours after they broke into the panopticon.

----

Talking about the future. Later, some of the prisoners even managed to integrate into the family, albeit a little voluntarily forced. But there is one thing. To join Dokuro, you have to take their crazy rhythm of life, which means a partial loss of human common sense. In addition, few people with a long connection with Dokuro remain ordinary people. Wanting to keep up with monsters is fraught with the fact that you can become a monster yourself, relative to your past self. And given their longevity and their work, it’s easier to change to not to die too quickly.

This family is stupid in everything, absolutely mad and at first glance has no brakes. The sense in their actions is very difficult to catch. The constant replenishment of the family by children picked up on worlds during work, the frequent reckless actions that would have led them to death, but not, hard training to go beyond. It’s exhausting. But it’s probably the most fascinating.

[lets-try-some-writing]

Do you have any tips on how to write good world building? You’re so good at it and I must know your secrets!!!

I've been doing this for a handful of years now, but I am no master so take all that I say with a grain of salt. What I do is generally calibrated toward my particular habits and tendencies. But with that said, I do indeed have some tips and tricks for you lot!

Find the Theme

Even if you know exactly what you want to do, my suggestion is still to find your theme. Are you trying to do some worldbuilding for something Sci-fi? Fantasy? Grimdark? Dystopian? or Modern?

Find what you are working toward, and then keep it close to yourself as you work. It helps keep me on track and sift through a lot of ideas that otherwise would break up the flow of the world I am working with. With that in mind, the example I will use going forward will of course be Transformers, which is technically part of the Sci-fi genre.

Locate the Subject

Now with your theme in mind, this is when you start trying to trim down things to find what exactly you want to focus on. This is arguably the most difficult part of worldbuilding. It's hard to not try and add lore for everything and anything, but seriously, calm down. Take time to find one particular subject to work with. It does not have to be as focused as a small law for a city somewhere, but you should choose a field in a sense.

An example of this would perhaps be, "Titans and their Origins on Cybertron". This is a subject wide enough to be played with but also not so specific as to end up being impossible to work with. You can get into the fine details later, for now, find your subject. If you start worldbuilding with a subject like "Laws of Praxus Bounty Hunting Crews" you could theoretically still keep working with it, but that can be a tad overwhelming considering how niche it is in concept and how little information there is on the surrounding subject matters.You need to start big and work inward bit by bit.

If need be, imagine it as making a pot. You need to start with a pile of clay and mold the shape. Then once you have it, you can begin decorating and going more in depth with adjustments and adornments. After that you can work outwards and make more things to go alongside it, but you always have to start simple, or at least specific. You could choose to talk about a city, place, time period, ritual, or anything of the sort. But try to keep your subject wide enough to be worked with but specific enough to have a frame to work within.

Find Inspiration

Once you know what you are aiming to work with, my suggestion is to find inspiration. Now for everyone this can come in different forms. What I tend to do is consume some media related to my subject matter and find appropriate music to get the brain cells working. With the Titan example I listed above, I would look at some artwork, maybe read up some other ideas people have had, or even just take a look at Sci-fi art. You never know what will get you inspired and ready to get creative. For music it’s the same deal. Find something that gets you thinking about your Theme. 

Now you may not even need to worry about this section if you already feel ready to roll, but if you ever hit a roadblock or can’t find your motivation, doing this may help. Sometimes all you need to do is take a look at what others have done and listen to some good music. 

Begin Conceptualizing 

Now this is the fun part. This is when you start going nuts brainstorming and coming up with IDEAS. There is no real method here, just thoughts. What I end up doing is coming up with a general idea, and then going down a rabbit hole regarding it. Ask questions, play with concepts, go crazy with ideas and imagination. This is the part where you essentially chuck law and order to the wind and play. Using my prior example, my thought process would go something like this:

Where do the Titans come from? 

The Well of Allsparks? No, they are too large. Metroplex was the size of a city, there would be no way for him to get out of there, meaning that Titans would need to start small.

Are they not native? In that case, how do they have sparks? They wouldn’t fit in properly and that’s a whole other rabbit hole.

Do they start out small and get large? If that is true, do they have a life cycle? Are they forged as normal Cybertronians and then just get bigger?

Are they part of the environment and grow like plants? Do they gain sentience later or are they essentially like the bots forged from hotspots? 

As you can see, I’ve played with ideas and messed with one part of the whole concept of  Titans. I picked a beginning, and at this point I would recommend not going too much further if your thoughts work like mine. Too many ideas will leave you overwhelmed, so try to keep them somewhat organized and neat, or at least categorized. Don’t dive TOO deep down the rabbit hole until you go through the nex part of the process, which I call the “World Reliability Test”. 

World Reliability

Now this is only relevant if you are not building your world from scratch. Or rather this applies if you have a world already set up with known laws and customs. So if you are building an original world, you should take into account what you have already established in this part of the process. And if you are like me and write fanfiction primarily, you should take into account already established lore to look over and either mess with, alter, or apply. REMEMBER: You do not need to stick to lore super closely if you don’t actually want to. It all depends on what you are writing.

Too much retconning and adjustment will leave your world feeling off, regardless of if it's original or not. So this is when you take your ideas, and you run them through the filter of “DOES IT MAKE SENSE” unless you intend for your lore to deviate from already established ideas. Using my prior thought process as listed above, I would consider the established lore and pick what I am going to agree with.

How are Titans formed?

Canon states that bots emerge from the Well of Allsparks, come from hotspots, can be cold forged, come from ‘budding’, or be built through the assistance of Vector Sigma. 

The Quintessons were known to create all sorts of monstrosities and lifeforms that could theoretically result in Titans being a thing. 

Fanon states that bots can be made biologically or through alternate means.

What continuity/rules will I abide by?

Aligned continuity (canon particular). 

In the Aligned continuity, Titans are known to have existed prior to Quintessons arrival.

Quintesson creation no longer applies.

Budding and Vector Sigma construction no longer apply.

Fanon biological creation no longer applies.

How closely am I going to follow canon?

Relatively closely but with a bit of creative liberty on my end. 

What are my options now?

Cold construction.

Emergence from the Well of Allsparks.

Hotspot forging. 

The thought process can go on forever, but essentially just make sure you don’t have an overpowered or absolutely insane mess of a concept that makes no sense whatsoever. You can get away with all sorts of crap if you play it right, but there MUST be a reason. At least if you are trying to make something that is not designed to be comedic. 

Get into the Worldbuilding

Once you have everything established, this is when you begin adding to your creation. Work through what you are making logically. The process differs widely from person to person, so these are just my tips and tricks to make your worldbuilding seem far deeper and richer than it may actually be. 

Add tidbits and lore. You want your worldbuilding to feel real and alive, but you also can’t be everywhere at once all at the same time, especially within the confines of a story. So make the people of the place you are working with interact with the thing you are worldbuilding. If you are discussing a city, describe the citizens and their behavior. Is the city colorful? Does the city have any unique oddities either in itself, its environment, or its population? Are there any little rituals that set it apart? Just dig into these smaller things when you can in order to bring everything together. It makes your work feel more realistic, or at least more acceptable to the human mind. 

Discuss how your subject affects the wider world. Those who look at your worldbuilding are going to want to know how your subject affects that which it interacts with. So if you are discussing a living forest, you might want to think about how it affects the locals. Are there locals? Do they have any stories about the forest? Has the forest left a mark? Does it have a reputation? Does it have any strange abilities that affect the land around it? Try to consider your subject and its influence. It need not be world shattering, but using my example, I would run down the thought process like this:

Titans start small and grow into their full size over time.

What do they consume? Does it affect those around them during their growth?

Do they shed their armor and is that used elsewhere? Or do they instead grow like organics in that their plating grows with them?

Do they have parents and loved ones who will miss them when they begin to grow? How does their growth affect others? Is it well received?

Titans find a location to settle before their growth completes.

Does this interfere with trade routes?

Are there those who wish to stop a Titan from settling?

How does the local ecosystem respond?

Titans eventually turn into living cities, even forming hotspots over time.

How do they gain citizens? Do their citizens come from their hotspots?

Do they raise the young that come from their hotspots alone? Or do they lure others in to help?

Why do they become cities at all? Is it biological? If so, why?

Are there different kinds of Titans? Are there only cities or are there other living structures?

You run down the list asking questions. As you answer those questions, your worldbuilding comes into play. Then all you need to do is pretty it up and make it into something readable. 

Final Note

From here you should take the ideas, questions, and answers you have created and put it into a format of your choosing. You can make it into a story or something more informational. It's all about preference. Worldbuilding is meant to be fun, so nothing I have stated above is set in stone. Some folks do it differently, but this is my general method. Consider the factors, take them into account, ask questions, create answers, and then put it all together. 

Oh and as a bonus, here is a little tip from my writing buddy @spreadwardiard:

“MAKE SCRAP UP.”