#i'm gonna ASSUME the quality on this is gonna end up complete shit so click on it maybe lmao

[thegalaxyinapaperbag2]

*throws this half-assed shit at you and runs like it's about to explode*

[kushielsmercy]

Seen this one floating about a lot so here's my two cents.

Kudos are NOT the end all be all. That said, if I'm new to a fandom they can be a decent starting place. I rarely find sorting by bookmarks or comments helpful as those tend to be correlated most strongly to length, not quality.

Once I've relentlessly consumed the first 5-10 pages by kudos (assuming I'm working in a larger fandom) I then start getting real aggressive with "sort and filter".

I almost NEVER use the dropdown "search-works" page anymore. It technically has all the same functionality as the "sort and filter" sidebar you get when you click into a tag, but you have to know the nomenclature better. And I'm a lazy. So click into the fandom and/or ship tag, get the "sort and filter" box open, and off we go.

When I'm just hunting for "idk good stuff" I find the "exclude" box most helpful. I don't know what vibes I want, but I know it's sure not gonna be mpreg. So bing bang boom "mpreg" "modern AU" "second person" "reader-insert" "ooc" "AU- college" etc etc get yeeted right out using the "exclude tags" feature.

Is that unfair? Probably. I've read exceptions to the rule fics in all of the above. But we're trying to get to the good shit quick here and I know those aren't my cup of tea. Crossovers? Excluded. Word count? Max that bitch out at 300k GENEROUSLY. Complete fics only - to start. That one pairing I cannot stand? Goneeeee.

The next sneaky thing I do is that with the mindset that kudos aren't everything, but they sometimes have SOME correlation to quality and I've only got so many hours in my day, is I'll figure out when the fandom got hot. Then I'll "search by kudos" BUT set Date Updated "From" to ~6 months after the thing first popped off to try and eliminate some fics that wracked up kudos because they were first off the block.

Save that search. It'll get refined as you start to see what tags pop up in your fandom a lot, but it's an excellent starting point.

From there, it's just looking at summaries, tags, and giving most things that don't have the words "hijinks", "shenanigans", or "I suck at summaries" in the summary a chance.

There's no right or wrong way to sort, but given that we are real people with real time constraints I don't find the answer "do no sorting read everything!" incredibly helpful. So fwiw this is what works best for me!

Another AO3 thing I’m curious about, how do yall decide if something is good enough to read? Usually I follow a rule of 1 kudos for every 10 hits. One because it’s easy math and two it’s yet to fail me. Thoughts? Do you just go for it and pray it’s good?

[dykedykegooses]

i'm askin u every single even numbered question for the lesbian ask game

at least you didnt bother with the algebra this time, for which i am thankful

Femme or butch?

i’m more femme but i try to act butch sometimes and i just end up failing hopelessly. ‘look mom i know how to put air in a tire!!’ ‘peyton thats like… not even right’ or ‘oh SHIT look at that blitz!! that was cool’ ‘peyton that was a sack’ ‘oh’

Do you have a “type”? If so, describe it

not really, mostly just like… humor. if u funny we click

Plaid button-ups or leather jackets?

why not both?

no but seriously plaid tbh

Describe your style

um yes

converse, (ripped? sometimes) jeans, and whatever top i feel is appropriate for the Big Aesthetic today

Describe your aesthetic

yes

ive tried going more punk but its just kinda , not worked

my physical aesthetic is very adultolescent. i got chub and look like a freshman but ive been told i pass as a college senior so like

my Big Mood aesthetic is yes

Favorite article of clothing?

either my converse or my “”combat boots”” (theyre not and it makes me sound like an edgelord just saying that) (can you tell im gay)

OH WAIT I FORGOT ABOUT MY JEAN JACKET its like baggy and light and ive started sewing patches from my favorite bands on it (super punk right)

Favorite pair of shoes?

^^^

oh my black strappy heels, theyre surprisingly comfortable

Current haircut?

ive got a bleached bob rn

Any haircut goals for the future?

i kinda want a pixie cut bc i cant handle long hair however long hair is so PRETTY and wow

Describe the best date you’ve been on

iiiiiiiiii dont really know. ive been on very few. i have a Perfect Date in mind, and i guess my favorite was my first date with my ex. we had gotten back from a successful science competition (HAVE I MADE IT OBVIOUS IM A NERD YET IM A BIG OL NERD) and it was like midnight by the time we got back and we were both starving so we went to taco bell and just sat there talking and laughing and i know we were pissing off the staff, but we stayed til like two in the morning and we went home and honestly we both considered it a date but we didnt like… tell each other it was a date? if that makes sense? idk honestly im triggered

Describe the worst date you’ve been on

ugh oh god i went on a tinder date and this girl like in the DMs was like ‘hey do u smoke weed’ and im like ‘lol no’ and then like we made plans to meet up at a coffee shop and she asks me AGAIN if i smoke weed and im like……………. no and shes like ‘oh right lol’ well THIS BITCH sleeps through the time we were supposed to meet, completely stands me up, and then texts me back like an hour later and was like ‘omg im sorry i overslept!!!’ and it was like….. noon but ok so we meet up after my class and we just sit there really awkwardly trying to make conversation and she asks me AGAIN if i smoke weed im like ‘honey no i dont’ and we just talked about drugs for a while and when i left because i had to gtfo she like gave me an awkward hug and like i sent a text later that night bc im courteous and im like ‘hey i had a great time today’ (i didnt) ‘lmk if you ever want to meet up again!!’ and she just. ignored me lol.

Single? Taken?

im currently in a polyamorous relationship with myself and my anxiety

If taken, talk about your girlfriend/wife!

:)

If single, what are you looking for in a potential girlfriend/wife?

someone who’s able to make me laugh and deal with my bad ideas and will let me cook for her and wants to travel the world with me

Describe your dream wedding

its small. outside. maybe in a field or in front of a lake. i dont personally want a big ballgown, just a short white dress will do. lavenders everywhere. R A I N B O W  C A K E. reception where we slow dance to all the sappy romance songs. its great.

Do you want kids?

not really, but ive considered being a foster parent. i feel like im here to do good; i don’t want to have my own biological children, and im not sure i want to have the permanent responsibility of adopting a kid, but i feel i could handle fostering once we’re financially stable and have the room to accept children into our home.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?

spain, definitely. somewhere in the north. i want to have a small farm with goats and chickens and vegetables and i want to be away from this american mess.

Favorite lesbian movie?

well ysee…………. the only two explicitly lesbian movies ive seen have been ‘all about E’ and ‘blue is the warmest color’ and i didnt like either of the lmfaoooo i prefer watching lesbian television shows tbqh (or, most commonly, just rewriting all the female characters in my head to be sapphic sooooooo dont @ me)

Favorite lesbian novel/story?

i mean same as above, i dont read as much as i like to. however, i did read “georgia peaches and other forbidden fruit” and that was Really Good and i did read another that was slightly better, but i forget the name but it was about a pakistani (?) girl who was struggling to come out to her parents bc they were very traditionalist but she joins the theater and her like really elite school and the girl she had a crush on basically outs her and is a bitch about it and GOD i wish i could remember it because it was really good

Favorite lesbian song?

ummmmmmmmmmmm i just recently listened to ‘honey’ by kehlani and that was pretty good and pretty gay, but my personal favorite is ‘girls’ by beatrice eli bc holy shit what a Mood

Favorite lesbian musician?

i love mary lambert and beatrice eli.

What lesbian stereotypes do you fit into, if any?

ummmmm now that im thinking of them i cant think of any. i used to play softball and soccer? i love cats. i immediately start planning out the next five years of our lives together anytime im remotely interested in a girl?

Ever been assumed to be nothing more than a gal pal?

i mean………………. no

If a woman wanted to woo you, what would a surefire way to accomplish that?

well bake cookies w me and lets go for a walk & go out and watch the stars at night in the bed of a truck

Be positive! What do you like most about being a lesbian?

I LOVE LOVING GIRLS!!!!!! I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT BEING A LESBIAN!!!!!! GIRLS ARE FANTASTIC!!!!!!!! WHAT THE FUCK!!!!!!!!!

Are you more of a cat person or a dog person?

why not both

idk ive never had a cat but i know i lov them

Turn ons?

i.......... dont know

yes

im gay

Turn offs?

long nails youch theyre pretty to look at but i mean at what price

not having anything to talk about

putting yourself down like a lot (i went on a date w this one girl and that was all she did like the entire date like......... im sorry ? :(???)

Do you usually ask other women out or do you wait for them to ask you?

if im being honest i would love for someone to ask me out but since that is Very Unlikely, i tend to be the one to message first and initiate dates and stuff

What is your dream career?

i want to be a psychological researcher in the field of social comparative psychology how sick is that!!!!! just play with dogs all day and record whether or not they boop their noses on a screen

also i wanna be a farmer and a bookstore owner but thats Farther down the line like , when im 50

Talk about your interests or hobbies!

im honestly such a psych nerd i love psychology what the fuck!! its so interesting like ppl are weird man idk brains are weird

im also having a really big green day phase like billie .. he so smol... and also anyone who wants to bash warning or the trilogy can fight me ok those are like My Favorite Albums

im going to a concert in february to see declan mckenna, a Giant Meme

im getting a tattoo w some lyrics of declan’s actually its gonna be sick

What is the most attractive quality a woman can have?

yes

idk for me its being able to have quick, witty, skillful jokes i just love listening to girls talk and tell stories and jokes like wow im gay

also long curly hair? thats always a Solid Look

Do you love easily or does it take time for you to warm up to someone?

i mean. do we really wanna open this can of worms rn

too late, its open

i get those microcrushes where you like see a girl and youre like ‘WOW IM GAY DATE ME’ however once it comes to actually being in a relationship i throw my full weight behind it and worry that im being too suffocating or that im pushing my boundaries etc and ive been told that makes me come off really cold and uncaring so lol choose ur own adventure, you decide

Ever fallen for your best-friend?

unfortunately

Ever fallen for a straight girl?

can you even call yourself a lesbian if you havent

The L-Word: yes or no? (love it or hate it?)

i havent seen it, im such a fake lesbian

Favorite comfort food?

mac n cheese

or pizza

or cheesy potatos

OR CHEESY TOAST

scientific conclusion: im a fatass

Coffee or tea?

coffer

Vegetarian? Vegan? None of the above?

im vegetarian!! have been on and off for like two years now

Do you have any pets?

i have one pup sittin right next to me and shes the prettiest girl in the world

Early-riser or night-owl?

yes

idk i get up at like 9 which is early for me but not as early as like. 5. so

more like night-owl. thanks teenage hormones!

What is your sign?

pisces

Can you drive?

yes

can i drive well?

no

but i do have a sense of direction so thats cool

Who was your first lesbian crush?

tbh.................... my best friend, but i didnt realize it was a crush at the time

the first Gay Crush i had that i knew was a crush was on my close friend at the time, now my ex girlfriend

At what age did you know you were a lesbian?

uhhhhhhhhhh lesbian specifically, like 15-16. queer, i knew in like fall semester freshman year (so like 13??)

At what age did you come out (if you have)?

i mean, i come out to people all the time. first time i came out explicitly as a lesbian was when i was like 15 or 16 (actually i came out to a close straight friend and my ex and they both said ‘congrats’ like it was weird but very nice) and the first time i came out as queer/questioning was to my then-best friend at like 13 and i came out to my mom (involuntarily) at like 17? ish?

Are you crushing on anyone at the moment (celebrity or otherwise)?

yes im crushing on every girl simultaneously at all times

just kidding

(not really)

i dont really have any explicit crushes that i can think of im just really gay

Talk about how your day went

it was fine. got free froyo so that was cool. found out i made an A on my bio practical, so that was cool too. however, i wore a crop top and it was like 55 degrees out and raining so i looked like a total Idiot but yk follow ur slutty gay dreams amiright ladies

Talk about your dreams/aspirations for the future

most of mine are career-centric, but a few are personal.

i wanna go to costa rica in may, i wanna go to yale over the summer, i wanna go to NYC pride in june, i wanna go to spain after i graduate, i wanna go to grad school, i wanna be a psychological researcher, i wanna move to spain or england or hell even france, i wanna have my own farm with the woman i love, i wanna own an LGBT bookstore/library, i wanna just live a quiet life near the sea and not have to worry so much after a while.

Least favorite gay celebrity?

this is a weird one to end on, but iiiiiiim not sure i have one? i can tell you ellen page is probably my favorite, but i cant think of many i dislike so

[maqicool]

sorry if you've been asked this before, but i'm new to editing pictures with psds and such, so how do you make the doodles and put them onto the image?

OK, wow! I’ve never been asked this question before! I have no idea how in depth you want me to go, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. I’m gonna try to be hella in depth about how I do the doodles. I’m by no means an expert or advanced in anything related to photoshop and there’s probably an easier way to do what I do, but I don’t know it so here we go.

Short answer: I draw them myself using the paintbrush option. Long answer: well that’s what’s going to be under the cut. also note that i don’t save the psds of anything that i do for space, so i’m creating something new. sorry for the wait, please bear with me)

These instructions are not for rp icons or still icons, but they can still be applied. These icons will become gifs so they won’t be usable for profile pictures. If you want some doodles that can be used for still icons, I know  @astraeawrites (also a good photoshop-er with a crap ton of resources so check them out!) has a really good doodle png pack located here. (They’re not animated)

1st step! You’re gonna wanna put on some music bc you’re going to be here a while. 

I’m going to teach you how I make the dots, squiggles, the expanding thingy, and drawings. There will be four different examples.

2nd step! This is one of the most time consuming: picking images. 

You’re going to want to pick images that you can see an obvious “flow” to. It’s what I call it when I can see lines or places where I can add “action” (the doodles) You also want high quality images. Otherwise they will completely fall apart under your psd and become grainy and ugly and splotchy and blegh

3rd step! when you have them opened in photoshop (i’m assuming you know how to do this) you’re going to want to view timeline.

You’re going to want to hover over the window button and click the timeline button so there’s a check beside it. You’re also going to need the layers to have a check. It should already be checked, but just in case.

4th step! Click that create frame animation button at the bottom. That’ll prepare the picture to be made into a gif.

I went ahead and applied an old psd of mine. it basically isolated the red in the image. this is important because any doodles you make should be drawn above the psd layers. I’ll tell you how to do that

5th step! You’re going to need to create a new frame for every doodle you think you’re going to make. 

You’re going to click the series of lines in the righthand corner and then move your mouse up to new frame. You’re going to repeat this for as many frames as you need. Make sure you have the create new layer for each new frame option selected. it’s important because you’re going to be drawing on the layers, not the image. Do not make the mistake of drawing directly on the image. It will fuck up your entire life

6th step! Now that you have the layers you need, you’re going to need to arrange the order of when your layers appear. 

You click the little eye button to determine which layers are going to be visible on a certain frame. You don’t have to do it in the same order that I do, but I do mine in order. I’m very basic

7th step! Now you get to the doodling, and this is where the instruction tapers off. 

Make sure that the layer you’re drawing on is the layer you have selected. This is so important it’s not even funny. I’ve fucked up entire designs abd essentially rage quit editting because I get through some very time consuming work only to notice that I did it all on the same layer which means my doodles didn’t move. 

There’s going to be I’m going to teach you how to do the basic dots, but you can also just freestyle wing it because (as I’ve said) I do basic shit.  See that paintbrush icon? That’s gonna be your best friend, spouse, and lover. Enjoy

So you click the layer you want and make your paint brush the colour you want (white’s my default because it stands out more, but you’re only limited by the bounds of your imagination) You’re going to want to size your paintbrush. I do it by clicking the ‘[’ and ‘]’ keys. the [ makes it smaller. the ] makes it bigger. It offers better control and you can see the changes in real time instead of trying to gauge how you want it to look. 

After making your brush the right size, all you have to do is click along where you want the design to be. Remember to make sure each dot is on a new layer and frame. For instance: 

I’m drawing on the layer marked frame 2 while on frame 2. It goes on from there. (Don’t get tripped up on the history bar thingy showing. It’s just so that I can go back. you probably won’t need it for quick doodles because erasing won’t be a big deal.)

The end product was this for me:

My instructions were basic. I firmly believe there’s an easier way to do this, but I don’t know how. Using what I taught you, however, you can do a lot of shit. You can do squiggles, dashes, drawings go nuts. I have little to no artistic talent, so drawings aren’t my strong suit. I wish you all the luck in your photoshop adventures and don’t hesitate to ask me another question if you’re lost about something. I will help as much as I can if I can.