#i'm excited to finally share this idea!

[stars-owls-musicals]

Sanders Sides and Ever After High Crossover/AU

So, I am a huge fan of both Ever After High and Sanders Sides and have had brain rot thinking about a Sanders Sides EAH au.

So I was thinking about what fairytale characters each Sanders Sides character would fit as the child of, and then I got to thinking...

What if they were the younger siblings of certain EAH characters?

Because then, there's fun character and sibling dynamics galore.

So... here we go.

Virgil: Son of the Evil Queen, younger brother to Raven

Logan: Son of Snow White, younger brother to Apple

Patton: Son of Cinderella, younger brother to Ashlynn

Janus: Son of the Dark Fairy, younger brother to Faybelle

Roman and Remus: Twins, sons of one of the Charming's, cousins to Daring, Dexter, and Darling

All of our sander sides friends are first years, so while they are there for the Legacy Day shenanigans, they are not participating in Legacy Day themselves.

Also, I figured that their "destinies" would all work similar to the Charmings from EAH, namely that they are set to fill spare destinies. For example, Logan, Patton, Roman, and Remus would fill spare prince charming destinies, while Virgil and Janus would fill spare villain destinies.

Now, let's get into a few basics about the story that I want to establish.

Dorm assignments:

Logan and Virgil: After asking the Headmaster to have Raven and her room together for their Legacy Year, Apple also gets their younger siblings a shared room. Because I just feel like she would.

Roman and Patton: Before their first year at Ever After High starts, they're already friends, so they request a room together at school.

Remus and Janus: I don't plan on having them be close friends at the start of this story, but that changes quickly because I love their dynamic.

Relationships with their siblings:

Virgil and Raven are really close, and share some of the same tastes in music and fashion. Also they both like purple. They both also aren't big fans of their mother and prefer to not have her brought up in conversation. Neither of them want to be evil.

Logan and Apple do care about one another, but they aren't really that close. Some of it boils down to Logan feeling ignored in favor of Apple and her destiny as the next Snow White. There's other stuff piled into that whole thing too, but anyway. The two of them do both enjoy learning new things, and are able to bond over their shared interests in that regard.

Patton and Ashlynn, similarly to Raven and Virgil, get along really well. They both act like the parent of their respective friend groups. When they don't feel like they can bring something up with their friends, both Ashlynn and Patton seek out the other to express their frustrations about something or vent their feelings.

Janus and Faybelle used to get along when they were younger and really don't anymore. This is in part due to Janus being a rebel, as Faybelle sees it as him rejecting their villain heritage. Janus' actually reason for rebelling is hating Headmaster Grimm and the system of destinies. Faybelle doesn't listen to him though.

Roman and Remus get along probably better than they do in Sanders Sides cannon. They also are close friends with their cousins, Daring, Dexter, and Darling, because I think that would be fun. That being said, Roman is really the only one out of the two of them who gets along with Daring. Remus, Dexter, and Darling bond over not being total fans of their predetermined paths due to their Charming heritage.

Romance:

So far, the only romantic relationships I have planned for this au include Prinxiety, Dexter x Raven, Apple x Darling, and Ashlynn x Hunter (and other background Ever After High ships as well).

Friendships:

At the start of the school year, Janus and Virgil are friends, having both been pushed to the side by their classmates for having a villain heritage.

Roman, Patton, Logan, and Remus are a friend group as well.

During the beginning part of their first year (so basically, before Legacy Day) the six of them end up as one friend group by means of dorm room assignments, shared classes, and introductions.

Royal or Rebel?:

Virgil, Janus, and Remus are all rebels.

Roman and Patton are royals.

Logan isn't sure what he is.

They all end up on the rebels side eventually.

Anway yeah that's what I've got for now. Feel free to send asks about this au!

[justanotherfanfolks]

CHAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTT!?!??!?!?!??!?!?!?!?!?!!??!?

[perpetuallyfive]

the smell of blood on concrete [1/15]

Arcane, Vampire/Werewolf AU, Caitlyn/Vi

Summary:

One of the best things about becoming a monster is how much it changes up your pain tolerance. Vi can take even more hits than she used to, and it’s like she feels nothing at all — ever. Caitlyn can see the advantage in that, both financially and maybe some other ways too.

When you’re nearly immortal, you develop an eye for that kind of talent.

Or: werewolf Vi fights in the pits to finance finding her sister and vampire heiress Caitlyn wants to be the one holding the end of the leash.

Chapter Word Count: 7,417

Preview:

Vi is roused from her thoughts by a sudden sound, but she doesn’t react nearly fast enough. She hears the footsteps on grass just seconds before a voice follows, way too close to her ear. “You’re not a tourist looking to get bit, I hope.”

She doesn’t want to reward it with surprise, even if it’s what she feels —��even if a bloodsucker can sense the way her heartbeat races. Better to turn her head slowly with a wide grin in place. “Just looking for a tip on where the action is.”

The woman is beautiful, unnaturally so, but a lot of them are. Freckles splash over her pale cheeks. “‘The action’ is… vague. We run a lot of business out of Boston.” She doesn’t return the smile, but does give Vi a careful look over. “You’re a fighter?” She takes a long drag on her cigarette, lips curling thoughtfully.

“I’m glad you can tell.” Vi uses one booted foot to push off from the grave, standing with a calm and open posture. “It’s nice to know some of your kind have self-preservation instincts.” She’s nearly half a foot shorter than this woman, but it wouldn’t matter anyway. This time of night, if a vamp really wanted to put her in her place, she’d be fighting just to stay alive.

But that’s another fight she knows she’d win.

The vampire laughs, a low sound that rumbles a bit like thunder. “Oh, she’s going to like you.” She takes another drag. “My sire sent me to find someone… fresh.” She catches the ash off the end of her cigarette in her palm — doesn’t react when it sizzles — rather than flick it on the ground. Vamps are big on respecting graves.

Respecting the bodily autonomy of anyone else? Not so much.

“Look.” Vi hefts a sigh. “I’m no one’s blood bag, got it?” She could almost spit, but she’s pretty sure that would actually read as a bigger threat to the bloodsucker than anything she says now. “So make sure and tell your mistress of the dark or whatever: I’m not interested.”

[summercourtship]

𝖆𝖑𝖑 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓𝖌𝖘 𝖗𝖆𝖓𝖈𝖎𝖉 & 𝖉𝖎𝖛𝖎𝖓𝖊 | 𝖊𝖉𝖜𝖆𝖗𝖉 𝖓𝖆𝖘𝖍𝖙𝖔𝖓 𝖝 𝖗𝖊𝖆𝖉𝖊𝖗

[a stay to burn (only to drown instead) AU/what-if scenario that takes place after the events of the main fic]

“Months ago, you asked me to run away with you.” You said, trying not to tell yourself you were making a bad decision. You couldn’t even look at him as you said it, unwilling to see what his face looked like. Instead you focused on your feet and the stained wood floor beneath them. “Does the offer still stand?” “Do you want to be on the run?” With me went unspoken, even though you both could hear it. “I just need to… clear my head of the city.” You looked out of the water stained window and you could feel Edward’s eyes on you. “It’ll just be a small road trip. We’ll come back.” You weren’t sure if you were lying or not. or, road trip with edward. things go… well, as well as they could.

AO3 LINK | PLAYLIST

CHAPTERS:

chapter one: i Tried tO be gooD (am I no good?) chapter two: a dangerouS game (but one i wAnna Play) chapter three:

[crownedwille]

.

[melit0n]

What does Sleep, as in the deity, look like to you guys? Because as someone who's been around in the Sleep Token fandom for a while, I've seen a lot of different interpretations.

To me, Sleep doesn't really have a set, physical body outside of a person's (perhaps Vessel's) dreamscape. Afterall, why should something that dictates all the odd, horrifying, joyful and (sometimes) meaningful things that happen in your dreams be one thing? Sleep could be the shadow in the corner of your dark room you swear is moving, the tapping of rain as you're about to fall asleep, the creaking of the pipes inside your house/apartment as you slowly dose off at your desk, etc. Outside of a dreamscape; Sleep is only what you need it to be. Hence Its need for Vessel as Its mouthpiece.

However, in the dreamscape, I can see Sleep as a fish. Not a particularly alive looking one, per say, but the scattered remains of one. All bones, empty eye sockets (but are they truly empty?), rotting flesh and scales peeling off bit by bit etc. Specifically, a kind of deep-sea fish; like an angler fish, a sixgill shark or a Greenland shark. But! Along with its bones, Sleep has bioluminescent innards. Viceral that ebbs and flows in multi-colour fashion with each flick of Its tail.

The deep sea fish imagery mainly comes from the fact that the deep sea is almost completely unknown; many of the creatures down there are completely alien to us, like Sleep has supposedly become over the hundreds of thousands of years that It's existed. The deep sea, for the most part, is completely silent. Calm; the perfect place for a nap (if you can breath underwater of course).

It's the perfect habitat for the Unknown, odd and horrifying.

[seaofreverie]

Starting a challenge tomorrow where I listen to one TMBG album a day chronologically until my epic journey starts

[kyluxtrashpit]

And since today is my 7 year kylux-versary, I’m going to give the first tease of my upcoming (likely to be) final kylux fic

12 chapters, estimated final wordcount at over 50k, started in December 2019, and today I’m excited to show you a moodboard and reveal the title. Stay tuned for more teases as it gets closer to completion!

[smartzelda]

Everyone can rip the theory/prediction for season 3 that Nine brought Chaos Sonic back and he's just chilling in Nine's crystal fortress during the robot battle in the teaser out of my cold. Dead. Hands.

[offorestsongs]

i may or may not be making a Cinderella based RSA fandorm for Eliott because apparently i have no self control

[ghostzzy]

i'm doing it. go follow @z-alone cuz that's my edgy little pen name and that's where i'm gonna drop fallen later today!

[evil-ontheinside]

Michael turns mid-step at the sound of a new voice, gentle but with a sense of purpose that makes it hard to ignore. When he lays eyes on the person it had come from it feels like Themis decides to blow time in the other direction until it stands still.

It’s like staring at the sun.

[...]

Yes, it’s like staring at the sun, and while staring at the sun for too long makes everyone a little blind, it seems to have the additional effect of making Michael an idiot. An idiot who trips over his own two feet and lands face-first in a puddle of mud. Michael would rather drown himself in the dirty water and save himself the embarrassment than look at the sun ever again.

Life, as usual, doesn’t want to spare his dignity.

“Are you alright?” Michael wants to groan when he hears the genuinely concerned voice and hurried footsteps on the forest floor. 

[...]

Wow. That is a strong pair of arms. 

Michael's face feels like it's on fire.

"You look like you bathed in mud."

I really need to think of a title/tag for this au but yeah

[basilsunrise]

What if I allowed myself to post the beginning of the Tarlos AU I'm working on...as a treat...

TK is starting to seriously second guess his choice of careers. This is the third meeting today that he’s been shuffled to and his patience is starting to wear thin. If he has to listen to one more record executive tell him about the direction they think this next album should go, he’s going to stab himself with one of the hundreds of pens kept in stupid SONY mugs that sit in the middle of the same long meeting tables that are found in every room of this floor. He’d love to know what direction they think it should go after that.

He’s not even sure he wants there to be another album, much less the North American and European mega-tours they’re envisioning to support the current album. When he expresses this, however, he’s quickly placated with promises of whatever he wants while on tour and not so subtle reminders of contract this, contract that. TK rolls his eyes. What are they going to do? Arrest him for not writing another album? He’d like to see them try. Besides, writing the album isn’t the problem. He loves writing music. The problem is the sea of corporate bullshit that he has to wade through in order to produce something he’s actually proud of. As they start discussing expected profit margins for the next album, he groans. He pulls out a cigarette from the beat up pack in his pocket and flicks his lighter towards the tip as the executives at the table watch on in horror. 

The head executive clears his throat awkwardly. “Mr. Strand, I’m afraid you can’t smoke in here.”

TK takes a long drag off his cigarette before looking up slowly. He reaches over and slides the mug of coffee belonging to one of the nameless men in suits sitting across from him toward himself and then drops his cigarette into it. “My bad,” he deadpans. He looks over to his tour manager, Judd Ryder, and adds, “I’ll be out front waiting when you’re done,” before getting up and walking out the door.

[archaeren]

How I learned to write smarter, not harder

(aka, how to write when you're hella ADHD lol)

A reader commented on my current long fic asking how I write so well. I replied with an essay of my honestly pretty non-standard writing advice (that they probably didn't actually want lol) Now I'm gonna share it with you guys and hopefully there's a few of you out there who will benefit from my past mistakes and find some useful advice in here. XD Since I started doing this stuff, which are all pretty easy changes to absorb into your process if you want to try them, I now almost never get writer's block.

The text of the original reply is indented, and I've added some additional commentary to expand upon and clarify some of the concepts.

As for writing well, I usually attribute it to the fact that I spent roughly four years in my late teens/early 20s writing text roleplay with a friend for hours every single day. Aside from the constant practice that provided, having a live audience immediately reacting to everything I wrote made me think a lot about how to make as many sentences as possible have maximum impact so that I could get that kind of fun reaction. (Which is another reason why comments like yours are so valuable to fanfic writers! <3) The other factors that have improved my writing are thus: 1. Writing nonlinearly. I used to write a whole story in order, from the first sentence onward. If there was a part I was excited to write, I slogged through everything to get there, thinking that it would be my reward once I finished everything that led up to that. It never worked. XD It was miserable. By the time I got to the part I wanted to write, I had beaten the scene to death in my head imagining all the ways I could write it, and it a) no longer interested me and b) could not live up to my expectations because I couldn't remember all my ideas I'd had for writing it. The scene came out mediocre and so did everything leading up to it. Since then, I learned through working on VN writing (I co-own a game studio and we have some visual novels that I write for) that I don't have to write linearly. If I'm inspired to write a scene, I just write it immediately. It usually comes out pretty good even in a first draft! But then I also have it for if I get more ideas for that scene later, and I can just edit them in. The scenes come out MUCH stronger because of this. And you know what else I discovered? Those scenes I slogged through before weren't scenes I had no inspiration for, I just didn't have any inspiration for them in that moment! I can't tell you how many times there was a scene I had no interest in writing, and then a week later I'd get struck by the perfect inspiration for it! Those are scenes I would have done a very mediocre job on, and now they can be some of the most powerful scenes because I gave them time to marinate. Inspiration isn't always linear, so writing doesn't have to be either!

Some people are the type that joyfully write linearly. I have a friend like this--she picks up the characters and just continues playing out the next scene. Her story progresses through the entire day-by-day lives of the characters; it never timeskips more than a few hours. She started writing and posting just eight months ago, she's about an eighth of the way through her planned fic timeline, and the content she has so far posted to AO3 for it is already 450,000 words long. But most of us are normal humans. We're not, for the most part, wired to create linearly. We consume linearly, we experience linearly, so we assume we must also create linearly. But actually, a lot of us really suffer from trying to force ourselves to create this way, and we might not even realize it. If you're the kind of person who thinks you need to carrot-on-a-stick yourself into writing by saving the fun part for when you finally write everything that happens before it: Stop. You're probably not a linear writer. You're making yourself suffer for no reason and your writing is probably suffering for it. At least give nonlinear writing a try before you assume you can't write if you're not baiting or forcing yourself into it!! Remember: Writing is fun. You do this because it's fun, because it's your hobby. If you're miserable 80% of the time you're doing it, you're probably doing it wrong!

2. Rereading my own work. I used to hate reading my own work. I wouldn't even edit it usually. I would write it and slap it online and try not to look at it again. XD Writing nonlinearly forced me to start rereading because I needed to make sure scenes connected together naturally and it also made it easier to get into the headspace of the story to keep writing and fill in the blanks and get new inspiration. Doing this built the editing process into my writing process--I would read a scene to get back in the headspace, dislike what I had written, and just clean it up on the fly. I still never ever sit down to 'edit' my work. I just reread it to prep for writing and it ends up editing itself. Many many scenes in this fic I have read probably a dozen times or more! (And now, I can actually reread my own work for enjoyment!) Another thing I found from doing this that it became easy to see patterns and themes in my work and strengthen them. Foreshadowing became easy. Setting up for jokes or plot points became easy. I didn't have to plan out my story in advance or write an outline, because the scenes themselves because a sort of living outline on their own. (Yes, despite all the foreshadowing and recurring thematic elements and secret hidden meanings sprinkled throughout this story, it actually never had an outline or a plan for any of that. It's all a natural byproduct of writing nonlinearly and rereading.)

Unpopular writing opinion time: You don't need to make a detailed outline.

Some people thrive on having an outline and planning out every detail before they sit down to write. But I know for a lot of us, we don't know how to write an outline or how to use it once we've written it. The idea of making one is daunting, and the advice that it's the only way to write or beat writer's block is demoralizing. So let me explain how I approach "outlining" which isn't really outlining at all.

I write in a Notion table, where every scene is a separate table entry and the scene is written in the page inside that entry. I do this because it makes writing nonlinearly VASTLY more intuitive and straightforward than writing in a single document. (If you're familiar with Notion, this probably makes perfect sense to you. If you're not, imagine something a little like a more contained Google Sheets, but every row has a title cell that opens into a unique Google Doc when you click on it. And it's not as slow and clunky as the Google suite lol) (Edit from the future: I answered an ask with more explanation on how I use Notion for non-linear writing here.) When I sit down to begin a new fic idea, I make a quick entry in the table for every scene I already know I'll want or need, with the entries titled with a couple words or a sentence that describes what will be in that scene so I'll remember it later. Basically, it's the most absolute bare-bones skeleton of what I vaguely know will probably happen in the story.

Then I start writing, wherever I want in the list. As I write, ideas for new scenes and new connections and themes will emerge over time, and I'll just slot them in between the original entries wherever they naturally fit, rearranging as necessary, so that I won't forget about them later when I'm ready to write them. As an example, my current long fic started with a list of roughly 35 scenes that I knew I wanted or needed, for a fic that will probably be around 100k words (which I didn't know at the time haha). As of this writing, it has expanded to 129 scenes. And since I write them directly in the page entries for the table, the fic is actually its own outline, without any additional effort on my part. As I said in the comment reply--a living outline!

This also made it easier to let go of the notion that I had to write something exactly right the first time. (People always say you should do this, but how many of us do? It's harder than it sounds! I didn't want to commit to editing later! I didn't want to reread my work! XD) I know I'm going to edit it naturally anyway, so I can feel okay giving myself permission to just write it approximately right and I can fix it later. And what I found from that was that sometimes what I believed was kind of meh when I wrote it was actually totally fine when I read it later! Sometimes the internal critic is actually wrong. 3. Marinating in the headspace of the story. For the first two months I worked on [fic], I did not consume any media other than [fandom the fic is in]. I didn't watch, read, or play anything else. Not even mobile games. (And there wasn't really much fan content for [fandom] to consume either. Still isn't, really. XD) This basically forced me to treat writing my story as my only source of entertainment, and kept me from getting distracted or inspired to write other ideas and abandon this one.

As an aside, I don't think this is a necessary step for writing, but if you really want to be productive in a short burst, I do highly recommend going on a media consumption hiatus. Not forever, obviously! Consuming media is a valuable tool for new inspiration, and reading other's work (both good and bad, as long as you think critically to identify the differences!) is an invaluable resource for improving your writing.

When I write, I usually lay down, close my eyes, and play the scene I'm interested in writing in my head. I even take a ten-minute nap now and then during this process. (I find being in a state of partial drowsiness, but not outright sleepiness, makes writing easier and better. Sleep helps the brain process and make connections!) Then I roll over to the laptop next to me and type up whatever I felt like worked for the scene. This may mean I write half a sentence at a time between intervals of closed-eye-time XD

People always say if you're stuck, you need to outline.

What they actually mean by that (whether they realize it or not) is that if you're stuck, you need to brainstorm. You need to marinate. You don't need to plan what you're doing, you just need to give yourself time to think about it!

What's another framing for brainstorming for your fic? Fantasizing about it! Planning is work, but fantasizing isn't.

You're already fantasizing about it, right? That's why you're writing it. Just direct that effort toward the scenes you're trying to write next! Close your eyes, lay back, and fantasize what the characters do and how they react.

And then quickly note down your inspirations so you don't forget, haha.

And if a scene is so boring to you that even fantasizing about it sucks--it's probably a bad scene.

If it's boring to write, it's going to be boring to read. Ask yourself why you wanted that scene. Is it even necessary? Can you cut it? Can you replace it with a different scene that serves the same purpose but approaches the problem from a different angle? If you can't remove the troublesome scene, what can you change about it that would make it interesting or exciting for you to write?

And I can't write sitting up to save my damn life. It's like my brain just stops working if I have to sit in a chair and stare at a computer screen. I need to be able to lie down, even if I don't use it! Talking walks and swinging in a hammock are also fantastic places to get scene ideas worked out, because the rhythmic motion also helps our brain process. It's just a little harder to work on a laptop in those scenarios. XD

In conclusion: Writing nonlinearly is an amazing tool for kicking writer's block to the curb. There's almost always some scene you'll want to write. If there isn't, you need to re-read or marinate.

Or you need to use the bathroom, eat something, or sleep. XD Seriously, if you're that stuck, assess your current physical condition. You might just be unable to focus because you're uncomfortable and you haven't realized it yet.

Anyway! I hope that was helpful, or at least interesting! XD Sorry again for the text wall. (I think this is the longest comment reply I've ever written!)

And same to you guys on tumblr--I hope this was helpful or at least interesting. XD Reblogs appreciated if so! (Maybe it'll help someone else!)

[blackblood1872]

me, to myself: so it's pride month now, i should actually work on my Ace Alastor (friendship/vague qpp radioapple) fic so i can post that this month!

my inspiration: yeah ok but what about a gore fic instead???

me: why do i do this to myself

[sukunasweetheart]

Boyfriend kuna who has the pleasure of meeting your giant domesticated cat that looks exactly like him (but no one actually sees the resemblance except you..)

"That fucker is big. You sure it's not some wild feral cat?"

"Don't call him a fucker! And he's not feral... not anymore, at least."

Kittykuna seems indifferent to your cooing and doting as he remains in a loaf position, and something about the scene feels strangely familiar...

Kittykuna makes eye contact with sukuna - and then hisses.

"... i can see that he's certainly friendly."

"Oh, dont be like that. It took me ages to get close to him as well."

Kittykuna seems very protective of you. Whenever you're lounging about in the living room, he will curl up on your lap or in your arms, and make biscuits on your plush body while making eye contact with sukuna, purring. It mildly pisses him off, but he can't make it known that he's even remotely jealous of a cat.

They clash a lot, you often hear sukuna cursing under his breath and verbally chastising your cat, but their harmless beef and the way he will sometimes return with little scratches or bite marks on his arms make you laugh so hard. It takes a few weeks for them to warm up to each other.

It's very entertaining to watch kittykuna obscure sukuna's vision with his tail when he's lying down to watch tv. He takes his revenge later on by pretending to give him treats, only to hover it away from him. You have to intervene in the end, to scold him for teasing your cat too much.

Sukuna then comes up with a brilliant idea of getting a second cat.

"Don't you think it's a bit boring for him being alone in the house all the time?"

"Really? I don't know... he can be a bit territorial, I'm worried he won't get along with a new cat well."

"Never know 'til we try it."

And then, well, sukuna ends up bringing another cat home. Of course, you don't notice it, but she resembles you.

It takes time to properly and slowly introduce the new cat to your home and to kittykuna. They're both very cautious of each other at first. But you soon see the ice melting, with them gradually becoming comfortable enough to be in the same room, to sharing toys, eating meals together, and then finally beginning to groom each other.

In fact, you find that they soon become inseparable. You've never seen kittykuna become so clingy before. It's like every other day that you see him licking the other cat's fur in his arms, while it purrs contently with her eyes closed.

Sukuna seems proud of himself.

"What did i tell you? He was lonely."

"You didn't say lonely. You said bored," you correct him, crossing your arms.

"Whatever you say, princess."

Watching the cats be all lovey dovey makes him feel like doing the same...

Months later, it soon comes to your attention, that the newer kitty has gained a bit of weight. When you and sukuna take her to the vet (to kittykuna's displeasure) you find out that she is pregnant.

The gasp you let out is dramatic, and sukuna can only laugh as he shakes his head.

"The two of you have been up to naughty things while we weren't watching..." you tell the cats with your hands on your hips. You should've seen it coming, from the way kittykuna always seemed to mount the new cat possessively.

Though you are really excited to see the newborn kittens soon...

"Leave them be. In fact, don't you think they're good role models for us...?" Sukuna recites in your ear teasingly, deeply chuckling.

"I don't know what you mean..."

I suppose you're about to find out exactly what he means tonight...