#i'm that one character in every fantasy book that's the last of their species

[wilderhyperfoxations]

"rare intersex variation"? actually, i prefer "limited edition intersex"

[bethanydelleman]

do you have any book recommendations beyond classic lit + Jane Austen? Love your blog by the way!

Thanks! I read/have read a ton of books. My favourite genre as a child was fantasy, but I read almost everything except true crime*, thrillers, murder mysteries, self-help, and biography. But I do sometimes read those, my favourite thriller is Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney. I'm going to start with children's books because honestly, I find so much imagination in that genre.

Children's/YA Books: Gail Carson Levine, specifically The Princess Tales 1 & 2, and Ella Enchanted, among others Jean Little/Kit Pearson - these authors have the same vibe to me. Willow and Twig is a favourite from the first one, The Guests of War trilogy and Awake and Dreaming from the other. They both write coming of age novels for girls, both Canadian. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs - I loved the whole trilogy (haven't watched the movie). The story being based around real antique trick photos is my favourite part The Echorium Sequence by Katherine Roberts - a trilogy of books about magical singers with blue hair and their interactions with half-human magical creatures Margaret Peterson Haddix, specifically Running Out of Time, the Shadow Children series, and Double Identity. Margaret Buffie, who writes stories about teenage girls and ghosts. Also Canadian, which I guess isn't that surprising. The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. Re-read it last summer and it's as good as I remembered. Roald Dahl, I really loved Matilda as a child, it's been fun to read some of these novels with my kids. Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar - and it's sequels. Amazingly quirky and funny stories about a class of students in a weird school

Fantasy: Mercedes Lackey, specifically the Five Hundred Kingdoms series and The Obsidian universe. I also loved the Elvenbane series, but due to the death of Andre Norton it may never be finished. I would advise caution if sexual assault is triggering for you, the ones I like are mostly free of it but that can come up in her other works. Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien - obviously. Also loved The Hobbit, have not read further The Broken Earth trilogy by N.K. Jemisin - the book opens with the triggering of an apocalypse. The world contains people who can control earthquakes A Baroque Fable by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro - this book is so hilarious but I don't know if anyone has heard about it Once Upon a Winter's Night by Dennis L. McKiernan - and it's sequels. This is a romance retold fairy tale series

Science Fiction: Michael Crichton - who spans a bunch of genres but I'll put him here. I've read everything he's written and I recommend most of it. State of Fear has not aged well. His books are very fast-paced and Timeline has one of the best enemies to lovers. Orson Scott Card - I am aware, but Ender's Game is a masterpiece. He also has this single novel called Magic Street that is a sequel to A Midsummer Night's Dream. I also loved Memories of Earth but it's been a while since I read it. I, Robot by Issac Asimov - short stories about artificial intelligence and how it might go weird

Graphic novels: Astro City by Kurt Busiek - superhero, but more focused on how living in that world would affect normal people Y: The Last Man by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra - every male on earth dies, except for one, and his monkey Fables by Bill Willlingham - after being attacked by an army of wooden soldiers, fairy tale characters and creatures seek refuge in a non-magical world (ours) Nimona by ND Stevenson - a villain gains a shape-shifting sidekick, but she is not what she seems Scurry by Mac Smith - post-apocalyptic earth, the main characters are all surviving mice. Best artwork I've ever seen in a graphic novel American Vampire by Scott Snyder- vampires have different traits depending on their home country, this is about the new, American species. Asterix and Obelix by René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo - a small group of powerful Gauls defend themselves against the Romans using a magical potion

Non Fiction: Stephan Pinker, I've read both of his trilogies on language and the brain. Trying to get through his huge book about violence The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat by Oliver Sacks - writen by a neurologist, fascinating book Doing Harm: The Truth About How Bad Medicine and Lazy Science Leave Women Dismissed, Misdiagnosed, and Sick by Maya Dusenbery - what it says on the tin

Toddler/Young Child Books: The Monster at the End of This Book by Jon Stone - I give you a 100% guarantee that if you read this book aloud, the kids will be fascinated. It is literally always a hit Robert Munsch - most of his books are amazing, but if you don't want to cry, DO NOT read the backstory of Love You Forever. The Paper Bag Princess was one of my favourites as a child. Little Critter - only the older ones, the new ones are religious for some reason. Just for You and I Was So Mad were favourites for my kids. Early lesson in unreliable narrators. Phoebe Gilman - Something From Nothing, the Jillian Jiggs series, The Balloon Tree... so many good ones! Really good illustrations too Little Pea by Amy Krouse Rosenthal - a book about a pea who hates eating candy. This book is fun to read and my kids loved it (I have the box set) The Book with No Pictures by B.J. Novak - kids love when adults have to do weird things I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen - perfect opportunity to do a lot of funny voices The Mitten by Jan Brett - a whole bunch of animals squeeze into a mitten. That's the whole thing. It's great. The Very Cranky Bear by Nick Bland - and the rest of the series. These are fun to read because they rhyme. Jonathan Stutzman - my kids LOVE Tiny T. Rex and the Llama series. We haven't read the others An Elephant & Piggie by Mo Willems - we have this entire series, they are a delight. An elephant and pig are very silly friends. Good drawings Dr. Seuss - be careful with him though, his books are quite long and can be hard to read, so I recommend waiting until your kids are a bit older. But The Lorax slaps and my personal favourite as a kid was The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins

Other: Still Alice by Lisa Genova - or any of her books really. She is a neuroscientist and her books are really interesting explorations of different disorders. Book is better than the movie Warm Bodies by Issac Marion - zombie Romeo and Juliet Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder - a novel that is also an intro to philosophy course Calvin and Hobbes - I own all of them, so excited for when my kids can understand them. I also love The Far Side, Zits, and the earlier Dilbert comics The Women in Black by Madeleine St. John - this book is absolutely charming. I saw the Netflix movie and then bought it right away.

*I avoid true crime because I have heard that the genre causes harassment to victim's families

General Note: I am aware that some of these authors are now considered controversial, some for more serious reasons than others. Sometimes flawed people make really good art. I mean, flawed people make all art because nobody on earth is perfect.

[whumpster-fire]

Okay so I was just on a road trip and I decided to start listening to the Wings Of Fire series on audiobooks and after finishing the first sub-series I gotta say I'm loving it so far.

What I Expected: Warrior Cats but with dragons.

What I Got: Warrior Cats but with dragons meets Underland Chronicles (levels of Going This Hard with the dark themes and gore and fucked up stuff) meets A Series Of Unfortunate Events (general competence and trustworthiness of most of the adults in these poor kids' lives for most of the series). Like, not that Warrior Cats doesn't go hard with messed up stuff, but this series kind of gives me Underland Chronicles vibes in the way that it does it.

The setting and premise: In A World Ruled By Dragons... that apparently used to have a human civilization that was destroyed by dragons in an apocalyptic event long go but that's not important right now, (humans are still around but almost completely irrelevant to the plot with one notable exception), the seven tribes (species) of dragons have been dragged into an utter clusterfuck of a war because one of the tribes had a civil war due to a succession crisis and have managed to drag nearly everyone else into it. An ancient quite recent prophecy made by some guy who is still very much around states that this completely pointless waste of life will be ended by five children born under a specific celestial alignment, who will have the power to decide the victor of the civil war. A cross-species secret society known as the Talons Of Peace with the noble goal of getting everyone else to stop doing WWI With Dragons decides that the best way to make the prophecy go smoothly is to raise the destined hatchlings themselves in secret and keep them safe from any of the parties with a vested interest in the war's outcome, until they are ready...

In other words a pretty bog standard "Chosen Ones" children's fantasy plot, but what I love is that from the very beginning of the first book, Wings Of Fire pulls absolutely no punches with the fact that the main characters are child soldiers, and the supposed "good guys" organization is not only pretty sketchy for acquiring five eggs under circumstances of varying legitimacy (read: definitely kidnapped at least two, one more supposedly abandoned, one sold by deadbeat parents, one supposedly donated for the cause but it's unclear) but also is just as guilty of trying to use them as pawns for their own political goals as everyone else, and are not even actually neutral in the war.

What I also love is that the DoD (Dragonets of Destiny) are the worst fucking child soldiers ever and this is largely because the Talons Of Peace are completely fucking incompetent and massively fucked up every step of the "grooming kidnapped hatchlings into child soldiers" process.

Failed at kidnapping eggs. Literally in the very first chapter one of the eggs supposedly predestined to save the world is killed. One of the main characters is the last-minute replacement and literally not even the right species that's supposedly specified by the prophecy (and has psychological issues because no one has let her forget it)

Assigned the very important task of raising the Chosen Ones and teaching them the skills they will need to save the world to three dragons who were utterly horrible with kids and didn't want the job. Left them to it with no oversight for years and years.

Decided to raise them isolated from the organization they're supposed to be loyal to, in a fucking cave, giving them literally zero real world experience with so many essential skills like, say, navigation, or flying in actual weather. The main characters literally had a "Puppy Mill Animals Seeing Grass For the First Time" experience.

Did not research / pay attention to the basic biology and culture of the species the kids belong to. One of them, Clay, spent his whole life being told he tried to murder his adoptive siblings when he hatched because the surrogate parents had no idea that for his species the first in a clutch to hatch instinctively helps break their siblings' eggshells for them. Another is from the aquatic dragon species which has their own sign / bioluminescence language they use to communicate underwater. She was not taught any of this despite one of the surrogate parents being the SAME FUCKING SPECIES AS HER. And also, y'know, the negative amount of effort put into every single parenting decision related to Glory.

Literally the only thing the Talons Of Peace actually succeeded at was making the kids bond to each other, but managed to instill less than zero loyalty to the organization they were supposed to obey due to being left to be raised in isolation by emotionally and physically abusive parental figures. Later, the guy who made the prophecy, after checking back in and discovering that one of the children was the wrong species, thought fixing this mistake by having her murdered and replacing her with another kidnapped child would in any way work. As a result the Talons Of Peace now have five Chosen Ones who have ditched them and wanted absolutely nothing to do with them and their plans. As of three books into the series they are still doubling down on the "kill and replace the more annoying members of the group" plan and still seem to think that the surviving members would somehow accept this.

I also think it's noteworthy that, like, most of the remotely competent and trustworthy allies the DoD have are other child soldiers that they have run into along the way. Like, at this point we have Peril (Skywing Queen's attempt at making her very own Azula), Anemone (magical prodigy small child on a leash), Deathbringer (Nightwing secret agent who Glory accidentally flirted with while in disguise within the first five minutes of attempting her own unrelated spy mission), Fatespeaker (one of the Talons of Peace's backup plan dragonets who they somehow put even less effort into than the main five). And, like, Clay's siblings who are also a bunch of kids fighting a war.

Also I don't know if this was Tui T. Sutherland's intent all along or if it was audiobook reader Shannon McManus's artistic license, but. Whoever decided to give the Nightwings - a tribe from an inhospitable island who act like they're smarter and more cultured than everyone else but are mostly a bunch of pompous idiots, who have a decrepit and useless royal family, notoriously inedible "cuisine," and a plot to colonize and genocide one of the other tribes for land and natural resources - British accidents is a goddamn genius.

[theographos]

Why Aliens feels off in Tales of Arcadia

Don't get me wrong, I really like Aja, Krel and Varvatos. I even think that 3Below was quite good, even if i'm not a sci-fi fan at all (i even managed to fall asleep in front of every Star Wars ever, and not with any other movie). But good doesn't mean good in terms of storytelling. Because after all 3Below is set in the Tales of Arcadia franchise, and let's just say they don't 100% fit in it.

So why is that ?

1. Trollhunters is based on a book, and the book doesn't contain any aliens.

Well from what I have researched the book doesn't contain any trace of wizards too. I will also add that I haven't read the original book, I just made some researches about its content on the internet.

For those who don't know, Trollhunters : Tales of Arcadia is a loose adaptation of a book written by Guillermo Del Toro and Daniel Kraus, called Trollhunters. It's an adaptation similar to How to Train Your Dragon : The characters are present, the surnatural/fantasy aspect of the book is also present but everything else is changed. I even saw that Steve dies in the book, so glad they didn't take that route.

And i'm not part of the people who screams and cry everytime there is any changes from a book to a movie, To be deeply honest with you all I studied Cinema and English litterature in highschool and my final projet for those two subjects was to talk about how some changes in book adaptations are a good idea.

But it just shows that writer did not have any basic material for it. They had to create it all from scraps, and I feel like the first season of Trollhunters was already out when they thought of aliens, so they decided to connect it howerver they could. Which leads us to our second point.

2. Aliens don't really have any deep connections with humans, trolls or wizards.

Wizards and trolls fought against Gumm gumms, wizards have created many magical relics that Trolls uses, and as we saw with Hisirdoux wizards have an habit of dealing with trolls species. The interactions are already present, they have a deep history between them, shares problems and common knowledge.

Aliens apparently shook hands long time ago on Earth and were gone for the rest of the time, so except an old memory forgotten by almost everyone, they don't really have a pre existing history tying them to the different races in the story.

Trolls and wizards are based on things we already know off. I mean we have countless myths and legends about them already, but there is a bit more to that.

Horseshoe are items to uncover if someone is a changeling, trolls love to eat socks, which ties into the forever myth of "why am I always missing a sock", you think that racoons made your trashcan fall but it could have been gobelins, is that a black cat or just a small dragon etc. You really have the aspect that you interact with the "underworld" on a day to day basis without being actually aware of, and that goes deeper than just "oh this random person is just a troll in disguise".

Aliens don't really have that, like no one except the army used alien technology before 3Below, and still it was in secret so we can't really copy that to our everyday life as easily as the previous examples that I made.

Earth is about Trolls, humans, demi-gods and wizards. And it also happened to have aliens once in a while, but nothing much about it. And that leads us to our last point.

3. The plot has no space for Aliens.

Since the whole story is about earth and the fate of earth, we don't really have space for Aliens in the plot (no puns intended). We can literally see that with the 3Below plot : gumm gumms are something completly unrelated to the plot, it just happens in the back while the main plot is happening. 3Below is more of a spin-off or a "What If?" kind of show than a continuation of the main plot.

3Below is an interlude, an easter egg for the fans. You barely see the main cast, the main cast barely acknowledge the presence of the trio in their own show.

See I wouldn't be criticizing it if it was considered as such in the franchise. A side-story that doesn't impact the plot, but for fan service it will appear in the final movie so that everyone has their conclusion.

But it's not the case, it is seen as an important part of the story by the studio. It has never been advertised as something else than an active part of Tales of Arcadia.

If they truly wanted something about aliens, it should have been as a side story, a spin off.

But as a major part of the franchise, it doesn't deserve its spot and you can feel it.

[aftertheradar]

so i've been rereading Artemis Fowl (series) again and even tho it was one of my favorite kids series I'm noticing some kinda weird or icky stuff that flew over my head before. Like damn if these books ain't just cyberpunk espionage magitek copaganda. Book 2 is literally about an ethnically motivated class uprising being put down by the police(who are framed as the good guys) because said racial minority/underclass is too violent and stupid to deserve better treatment in the prison system. and also too stupid and violent to have masterminded the plan for revolution themselves and needed one of the smart races to do it for them.

and any time there's a civilian presence in the book, they are depicted as either an antagonistic obstructive bureaucrat or a whiny caricature played for laughs. not totally sure if this is because these books were written while uncritically carrying over this kind of depiction that was historically the norm in its genres (police procedural), or if this is the author's own (conscious or subconscious) idealogical biases seeping in. might be both tbh.

anyway anyway the thing i actually wanted to bring up is that a really bizarre detail that stuck out to me during my re-reads is the way the different fairy races/species are characterized. there's 7(really 8) races/species of fairies who are disntint, and they have different traits and powers. So like there are elves who are good with magic, sprites who can fly, goblins (the aforementioned race that is too stupid and violent to be capable of organized protest) who can shoot fire etc.

Butt (foreshadowing lol) the one that was so weird to me is the characterization of gnomes, the last and arguably least of the fairy races in the artemis fowl series. they seem to make up the majority of the fairy population and a significant portion of background characters. bdon't get much screen time in the books because of not having any main characters who are one. They're sole defining characteristic?

Having enormous asses.

That's it. that's their whole thing. basically every time there's a gnome character depicted, the text goes out if it's way mention how dummy thicc the gnomes are and how their dumptruck rear ends take up too much room and keep blocking things and knocking shit over when they walk.

like there's also already a whole race of fairies (the dwarfs)whose whole thing is to be a never ending font of burglary escape techniques and fart jokes whenever the plot or author demand them. you would think having enormous asses would come in that territory, but no. it goes to the last group that we the audience don't really know or care about as much.

and i just don't really know what to make of that. that in coming up with fantasy races for his books, one of the most present but least prominent in tbe books' single defining and noteworthy character trait is having such fat asses that they block public pedestrian walkways (no really). i wish i knew what exactly the thought process behind (lol) that one was.

anyway hope i explained why it's so weird to me well, goodnight

[rollercoasterwords]

do you have any recs for scifi/fantasy? they are also my preferred genres, but i'm not fond of the type of scifi and fantasy that often gets recommended :') nothing inherently wrong with booktok, but we do not have the same taste...

yes absolutely SUCH a fun question 4 me ok let me. go thru my storygraph + pick some out...this list may get long...

sci-fi:

infect your friends and loved ones by torrey peters - novella abt a disease that stops humans from naturally producing hormones so that everyone basically becomes "trans." deals heavily w topics of transmisogyny

how to live safely in a science fictional universe by charles yu - time machine repair guy gets stuck in a time loop

the feverwake duology by victoria lee - a post-apocalyptic u.s. has split into various smaller countries. noam, living in carolinia, is the child of refugees who harbors deep resentment towards the government for its treatment of immigrants. a magic disease that kills 95% of the people who get it but grants the survivors super powers leaves noam as the only survivor in his community, and because his power is incredibly rare and potent he's recruited into an elite military school and suddenly forced to work for the government he hates

this is how you lose the time war by max gladstone and amal el-mohtar - this one blew up in the online sphere recently + so has had tons of people talking abt how they love it or hate it but! i really loved it. soldiers on opposite sides of a time war falling in love

severance by ling ma - story about a woman traveling with a group through a post-apocalyptic u.s. in search of a new place to live

the illuminae files trilogy by jay kristoff and amie kaufman - SUCH a fun series!! it has everything zombies parasitic aliens corporate conspiracy...the books are written in the format of files of collected evidence which is fun + funky; the plot essentially follows various characters who get caught in the crossfire when two corporations go to war over a planet. the first book centers on refugees from the planet trying to escape in a spaceship

villains duology by ve schwab - two college roommates crack the secret to getting super powers and team up to give each other powers; they subsequently become lifelong enemies

fantasy:

a history of glitter and blood by hannah moskowitz - in ferrum, fairies live aboveground and gnomes live underground performing the bulk of the city's manual + menial labor, with the tradeoff that every so often the gnomes will eat the fairies. the city has been functioning peacefully this way for years until the tightropers (a species who spin webs from their mouths) arrive under the guise of "fairy liberation." war between the gnomes and the tightropers breaks out and all but 4 teenage fairies flee the city--the story follows those 4 teenage fairies as they navigate the war. one of my absolute favorite books of all time!!

the last unicorn by peter s beagle - a story about a unicorn who inadvertently overhears a conversation about how there are no more unicorns in the world, so she travels out of her forest to find out what happened to all the other unicorns. another one of my favorite books of all time

the shades of magic trilogy by ve schwab - read this back in 2021 so it's no longer super fresh in my mind but i remember thinking it was really fun especially the 2nd book! somewhat standard fantasy series about a second secret london where magic exists and a girl teaming up with a magician to stop an evil threat, etc etc

the gormenghast trilogy by mervyn peake - (you only need to read the first two books tho tbh) very slow paced but gorgeous writing and such a vivid world!! the books follow an earl and his family living in the crumbling castle gormenghast after the birth of his son and heir, titus groan. titus is supposed to grow up and take over as earl, and various forces conspire to either assist or prevent him from doing so

teeth by hannah moskowitz - a teen boy moves with his family to an island purported to have magic fish that can cure any illness. the fish work and his terminally ill younger brother begins to get healthier, but things get complicated when the boy meets a mermaid who's trying to save the fish

howl's moving castle by dianna wynne jones - such a lovely book <3 quite different from the movie so even if you've seen it the story still feels fresh!

gonna cut myself off here but! hopefully there is something in here that u will enjoy :•)

[dei2dei]

Ideas: Gotta Catch 'Em All!

(look, I know one whole Pokemon reference and I'm gonna use it.)

I was tossing around ideas with @calypsid about writing events and coming up with ideas and how to write for big events - in fandom, for the monthlong ones especially, but also if you're someone looking at submitting original fiction to a themed anthology or to a zine, or when you just want to WRITE dammit but the ideas won't come. When the idea hutch is empty and the plotbuns won't come, when the creative spring is trickling or you're at the bottom of the well of inspiration, hope is not lost. We put our heads together and came up with a baker's dozen ways to get ideas and look at prompts to get new inspiration when you need it. So if you want 'em, jump below the cut!

Stop looking at words.

Look at art! Listen to music! Maybe what you need is some song lyrics to get your brain going, or art. Play Sudoku. Go to a coffee shop and watch people. Change your mental or physical environment and see what happens.

Prompt lists

Don’t limit yourself to whatever event you’re writing for! If it’s for a fandom ship week, hit up a themed month prompt list (such as Fluffuary, AUgust, or Whumptober). If you’re trying to think of ideas for a zine pitch, trawl prompt lists from fandom or creative writing websites. Mash the TVTropes random trope button until something clicks.

Tarot spreads

Even if you don’t read tarot on your own, you can find websites where you can do tarot readings. Treat it as a story prompt generator: pick three cards, one that is your protagonist, one that is their goal, one that is their obstacle. Look up the meanings. Go wild! You can use the cards for protagonists, antagonists, story arcs…

Lists

Not prompt lists - but every idea you can think of adjacent to a prompt. Tropes, colors, sayings, characters, types (e.g. species of apple, types of wildflowers, names of cocktails)...

An alphabetical list with an idea for each letter of the alphabet.

A list of 20 ideas, as close or as absolutely wild as you want.

A timed list (write ideas for 5/10/15 minutes). The first chunk may be easy, the last few minutes impossibly hard, but right in the middle where your mind is starting to stretch? That may be perfect.

Once you have a list of any flavor, start looking for patterns: that’s a sign your brain is interested in SOMETHING. What ideas/symbols keep showing up?

Look for unexpected intersections

Ideas or prompts may have unexpected links. Randomize your list! Consider resonances between different prompts; they may seem different in a different order. Pick a not obvious combination of two prompts and follow it to the end - what if you put together “pirate” and “arranged marriage”? Use a wheel spinning picker and see what two things the computer matches up.

You can also take a pair of commonly-associated opposites, pick out their most common stereotypical traits. Now swap them. 

Play with other media

Take characters from one piece of media, the setting from a second (hey look, a fusion/AU!). What resonates between them? Grab a non-fiction book about a topic you’re interested in and read that. Ideas might percolate from a number of unrelated sources into one Super Cool Idea.

Change the setting

Turn a sci-fi show into a fantasy setting, or vice-versa. Add monsters. Add gods; add gods with reality-bending dice; add gods with reality-bending dice who are malicious. Flip your characters' genders. Remove the concept of gender entirely. Send your characters to the dimension next door, where only one thing has changed. Or many things. Or everything. Take the characters out of the plot of your fandom, or replace them with side characters; what changes?

Change your mind

Take the prompt at face value. Or, treat it sarcastically. Subvert the trope - or don't subvert the trope. Write the thing you've always wanted to see, even if you think it won't work. Turn everything about the prompt on its head and look underneath for spare ideas. Come at it from every angle you can think of.

Other people

Talk to people about the prompt. Read Reddit or Tumblr conversations, even ones only vaguely associated with the prompt. Let your mind go in new and interesting directions. 

Cool words

Have you run across an awesome word you wish you could use in a story, or a turn of phrase? Write a story around that. Or if you have a list of cool words you keep anyway, flip back to it, see if there are any that might come together in a story.

Titles

If you have a title you've always wanted to use, let the title inspire the fic instead of the other way around. 

First Sentences

Just start writing first sentences, whatever ones come to mind. Don’t be precious about them; the goal isn’t perfect sentences, the goal is something to get your brain moving. Don’t worry about continuing the story yet! Try and get a bunch down without writing any more of the story. If one speaks to you and demands to be written, go back to it after you’ve got your list down.

Deconstruct a story you love and then rebuild it!

Retell a favorite story (or a hated story you thought you could do better). How did they do X? Why did you love (or hate) something so much? Can you do that with some of your ideas? Take out the main character and their sidekick; how does the story read with just the secondary characters? What if you add someone new? How would the story look different as a documentary, a chatfic, an epistolary collection?

Some Links:

The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (https://sf-encyclopedia.com/) - includes almost 15,000 entries for words associated with sci-fi. Scroll through, pick (3, 5, 7…) and shove them into a story. Or learn about new tropes/concepts/ideas.

Deep Water Prompts (https://deepwaterwritingprompts.tumblr.com/) - some Weird Prompts (several hundred) you can twist and interpret to your heart’s desire.

Kathleen Jennings’ short story “Some Ways to Retell a Fairy Tale” (https://www.tor.com/2023/11/08/some-ways-to-retell-a-fairy-tale-kathleen-jennings) is also a great list of ideas for ways to, well, retell any story.

[leahnardo-da-veggie]

Writer Questionnaire

Double tagged by @the-letterbox-archives! It's all under the cut cos this is looong.

Part 1

q1) is writing a hobby or way of life?

Creativity and imagination is a way of life. Writing's just my chosen method of expressing it.

q2) a journal full of writing notes or a clean, completed manuscript?

Completed manuscript haha. I'm not Tolkien, nobody's gonna wanna read my version of the Silmarillon.

q3) who (or what) is your writing inspiration?

Err- Real life, I guess? My dreams, too. I take what I see and make it into a story.

q4) which is worse: someone you “idolise” reading your first draft or listening to you sing?

My first drafts tend to be really neat, so singing. My singing's atrocious.

q5) has writing from someone else’s pov ever changed your own perspective?

Not for writing, but debating? Yeah, sometimes getting put on opp for a case where I'd rather be gov makes me see a whole new world.

q6) tumblr, ao3, livejournal, or ffn?

Tumblr. I like the community here :)

q7) ao3 wordcount, and are you satisfied with it?

Err- My AO3 contains things I would rather not share with this mostly family-friendly blog, but my wordcount's about 30k there. In total, though? 250k words or so.

q8) what movie/book/fic gripped you irrevocably?

Lolita, definitely. I read it as a 13 year old, then as a 15 year old, and as a 17 year old, and it still breaks my heart every time.

q9) what’s the highest compliment you could ever be given, and have you been given it?

The highest compliment would be for someone to say I made them cry/rage/laugh from my writing, and I'm pleased to say I once managed to send a friend into a fit of fury from my writing (it was Heroes that did it, mind you. She really hated Mara.)

q10) what defines your writing style?

I experiment a lot with styles, but I'd say I have 2 main ones. The more high-fantasy descriptive style, and something lighter and more fast-paced.

Part 2:

how long have you had your writing tumblr/writeblr? a fast and loose estimate is fine!

7months or so!

what led you to create it?

I wrote something I was insanely proud of, and felt the need to show it to the world.

what’s your favourite thing about the writeblr community?

The mutual interaction! So fun to watch my brain rot over someone else's OCs, and vice versa.

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

I'm a nice person, I swear. If I've ever accidentally upset any of you, just tell me! I'll try my best to rectify whatever I did.

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

Not more, but I'd like to see less politics. My life's stressful enough without that stuff

which wips or writing projects are you noodling about, lately?

I'm still dying from The Fae Prince, because holy crap that came out of nowhere and took my brain by storm.

how long have you been working on them?

I never work on projects for long, sadly. I just don't have the attention span for them! My oldest active project right now is Mind of a Mercenary, and it's 7 months old (I started it on New Year's Eve last year)

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

Yeah. Luna's been a fav of mine since I was a 14 year old, and I always wanted to tell her story. I felt I hadn't done it justice the previous two times I wrote it, so I tried again!

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

I only actually think about writing when I'm actively writing, haha. So about 2 hours a day?

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

Horror and fantasy! It's pretty easy cos I'm a stickler for those genres.

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!

Hmm... In order of species, Ina Angelborn, Kimael Angelborn, Isobel Angelborn, Hash Brown, Hans-el Ko-clan, Miphala Sa-clan, Cefalin Sa-clan, Katherine Tan (yes Kat's Chinese, get with the program), Michael Woods, Iraela Foundling, Ramaeria Foundling, Maizen Carver, Sonder Woods (no relation), Mara Ng, David I-forgot-his-last-name.

who’s the most unhinged?

Iraela would like to be first place, and Mara would like to think she's last, but I'm afraid first and last gotta go to Ina and David respectively.

who comes the most naturally for you to write?

Naturally, Hans-el, as long as I don't take too close a look at what I'm typing. Otherwise, Luna. Her inner monologue sounds an awful lot like mine.

do you ever cringe at them?

All the time.

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

That depends. The more I write about a character, the more they refuse to follow instructions. That's what makes Ina so damn hard to write. Woman's lived in my head for a good 15 or so years, now.

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?

I follow them as I see 'em!

what makes you decide against following?

Too much politics. I cannot express how much I hate to see politics on my dash. I have real life for that stuff. Also too much religion/ideology. The only things I tolerate on my dash are fandom, cats, and writblr stuff.

do you interact with non-mutuals often?

Occasionally? I mean, I do try to reach out to whoever I see in the community, even if I haven't followed them yet.

do your mutuals’ characters occupy space in your noodle?

My noodle is currently occupied by JavaScript, so no. But soon, I will have time to go binge everyone's writing again, and I will find my next obsession amongst my moots' writing!

Tagging @cowboybrunch, @theink-stainedfolk, @urnumber1star, @mundanemoongirl, and @gioiaalbanoart (open tag too!) Feel free to choose between part 1 or part 2, or even do the whole thing!

[barbex]

Books of 2024 (2023 or close to it)

@hoochieblues tagged me to list books and in that moment I immediately forgot about any book I have ever read. Did I even read a single book in 2023? But thank you for tagging me, I'll do my best.

“the game is to share 9 of my favourite books from the last 12 months, or 9 books on my tbr list for this year”

I'm tagging: @mareebrittenford, @dyrewrites, @tryingtimi, @tsuraiwrites, @midnightprelude, @lesetoilesfous, @tarysande

Let me list nine books I liked, I don't know if I read them all in the last 12 months, I just went to my Kindle and picked what sparked a good memory.

Band Sinister by KJ Charles M/M romance, regency historical Lots of pining and repressed feelings in this one, until it leads to wonderful sex and love. Kj Charles knows how to do it.

A Game of Hearts and Heist by Ruby Roe F/F romance, fantasy Fast paced and very sexy fantasy heist. So much sex that even I, certified smut queen, sometimes thought "Now? Really? Don't you think you're kind of busy right now?" But I enjoyed it a lot and there's two more books in the series.

Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree cozy fantasy with a little F/F romance, fantasy This book has started a whole new trend of cozy fantasy. This is a story about what happens if the barbarian warrior lady hangs up her sword and opens a cafe. The romance is not the main story. I would have wished for a bit more introspection from the main character but I know how difficult it is to write a stoic character who doesn't want to think about feelings.

The Calyx Charm by May Peterson M/M romance, trans main character, fantasy, magic Beautiful prose! Sinister magic, darkness and families at war. Two characters so very much in love, the transwoman loved and accepted by her lover. This is the second or third book in a series but I read another book in the series and it didn't feel all that connected. And the prose was not as pretty as in this one.

Unmasked by the Marquess by Cat Sebastian NB/M romance, regency historical The main character uses she/her pronouns but I read in an interview with Cat Sebastian that, would she write the book today, they would probably use they/them pronouns. But it really doesn't matter much for either main character, the main male character already falls for the nb character when they dress and act like a man. A high stakes regency romance with the expected societal problems and lots of love.

Taji from Beyond the Rings by R. Cooper M/M romance, science fiction This book is so good! Cultural differences between species making romance and connection dangerous, feelings, sex, and politics raising the stakes every minute. I read this book again right after I finished it, it was so good.

The Elf Tangent by Lindsay Buroker F/M romance, fantasy A fun story about a human princess who loves mathematics and an elven warrior, trying to stop a war from happening. Nerdy and clever heroes with a bit of enemies to lovers.

The Hidden Moon by Jeannie Lin F/M romance, set in historic China This is like book five of a series but that didn't hinder my enjoyment. A woman, too smart for her own good, trying to solve a crime in a time when women were not allowed to do anything, especially not investigate assassinations and talk to street scoundrels. Or fall in love with said scoundrel.

---

Phew. That was a lot. Happy reading.

[citrusreadstoa]

Reading The Burning Maze: Chapter 1 (SPOILERS)

"To Melpomene, the Muse of Tragedy / I hope you're pleased with yourself" Melpomene is laughing in the distance. She's very pleased.

"NO. I refuse to share this part of my story." Oki doki. *closes book* We're done for the day. Jkjkjk he's just embarassed.

"In these pages, only suffering awaits." I love suffering! Gimme more!

"across pits of darkness and around lakes of poison" We were lied to. The Labyrinth is not any less malicious than before. Does this sound like a tamer Labyrinth to you?

"Except that our cloven guide, the satyr Grover Underwood, did not seem to know the way." You think the satyr that is terrified of the underground knows his way around the underground? Y'all delusional. You want a Labyrinth guide, get Rachel. I'm assuming Grover will be of more help later on if and when they go into the Labyrinth again.

"The bumps of his horns were clearly visible beneath the hat." What happened to the rasta cap? I guess everyone needs a change of pace now and then.

"Like... cacti." Like saguaro cacti?! Like the cacti the Erymanthian Boar ate when it dropped the questing party off at the junkyard of the gods?! The lands of scorching death line is killing me, man.

"I just didn't think we'd be wandering around down here for two days." How can you be sure it's been two days? Percabeth got stuck in the Labyrinth for a couple minutes and a full hour passed outside. Please tell me you've been keeping track whenever you poke out into the regular world.

"Perhaps I was too brusque," BRUSQUE (adj.): abrupt or offhand in speech or manner

"And plenty of our own fires." . . . "Best not to talk about it... here." Grover! If we're all gonna die, we need to know so we can make the best of our last days on this Earth! Are the walls listening or something? Don't you dare tell me yet another shoulda-been-dead person is controlling this damn maze again.

"His expression turned wistful," Idk about you, but I would not be wistful about almost dying in a living maze where no one but the walls will hear me scream.

"perhaps coffee and lemon-maple cronuts" CRONUT (n.): (paraphrasing Wikipedia) Invented and trademarked in 2013 by French pastry chef Dominique Ansel, the Cronut is a doughnut-like pastry made from croissant-like dough, filled with flavored cream, and fried in grapeseed oil.

"I wanted to believe my powers were simply recharging." Storybook characters never catch the cold. Fantasy characters' powers are never "just recharging."

"I couldn't even remember the taste of ambrosia, or the names of my sun-chariot horses, or the face of my twin sister, Artemis." That is incredibly concerning. We're talking about something he ate every day, horses he saw and drove every day, and his twin sister with whom he grew up and spent time with -- all three of these every day for thousands of years. His memory deteriorates along with his powers? It's this bad?!

"across the corridor in front of us roared a sheet of yellow fire," Eyyy, cover art!

"But we've wandered into his part of the maze." The Triumvirate's part. The part that belongs to the third emperor. "SCREEE!" The cry of a giant fire-breathing basilisk, I bet. Or a giant fire-breathing cockroach. Serpents and roaches?

"Some sort of avian creature." Giant flying fire-breathing basilisks! Oh wait, the owls. Right. Owls on the cover.

"Grover whipped out his panpipe . . . Meg knelt before the seeds" Super Gardening Bros! Wahoo!

"using its thick black tongue" Do owls have tongues that long? "My sight grew fuzzy. My knees turned to rubber." Does it sap his energy by drinking his blood?

"Strix" That word means nothing to me. I know jack diddly squat about strixes. "Well, killing it could be a problem." Can never kill monsters these day. All endangered species this and invulnerable hide that. Back in my day, you just sliced its head off and that was that.

"giggle nectar" I'm sorry? You tellin' me that the divine equivalent of anesthesia is officially, professionally, and canonically called giggle nectar?

"K-killing the bird will curse you" So it's an arai-lite.

[mysticparadigms]

Book Review: The Coward by Stephen Aryan

Disclaimer: This is my first time giving a book review rather than analysis, so please bear with me.

Let me start off by saying that it has been a long time since a novel has last captivated me like this one does. This book is under the fantasy genre, and I originally learned about it when I went on a trip to a bookstore with my best friend and was half-heartedly perusing the fantasy section. I’m fairly picky when it comes to the fantasy content I enjoy. While Tolkien has basically influenced all of modern fantasy, media that follows his format of elves, dwarves, orcs, and hobbits have little to no appeal to me, especially considering the racist underpinnings of the orcs. I’ve become tired of novels that focus on having a Chosen One, some kid being the primary defense against evil, romances between humans and elves or fairies (although this one is a personal preference as I don’t like romances in general), and worlds where the nonhuman characters are made up of species that have become oversaturated in our current zeitgeist. Although I'm not immune to popular modern fantasy; I adore Adventure Time and Attack On Titan as well as every Studio Ghibli movie I've seen to date. With all of this context, I had low hopes while looking through the fantasy section that day, but the title caught my attention. I picked it up, read the back cover, and bought it, and it sat untouched on my book shelf for roughly six months. But this last week, I told myself that if I want to read The Priory of the Orange Tree, I have to read the other fantasy book I bought this year first. It took me three days to get through it all.

Politics and Religion: One of the things that I think makes Attack On Titan, for instance, so compelling is that while there is the aspect of "ah there are monsters trying to kill us and we gotta fight 'em" is how much politics there are controlling the plot and actions of the heroes. The Coward does this wonderfully. While we follow Kell Kressia on his journey, we are also given chapters following Reverend Mother Britak, who leads the church that exists within the Five Kingdoms (side note: while the religion is not Christianity, there are definitely some connections to be made and what I think is a striking commentary on the state of Christianity as an institution today) and is trying to enforce this religion following The Shepherd across the Five Kingdoms, using political tactics to try and achieve this goal. Every royal court we are introduced to within this universe has some sort of political tension of its own, often coming into conflict with the other courts. Following the politics and scheming was very enjoyable.

Semi-Original Species: I appreciated that the author didn't include species such as elves, fairies, vampires, werewolves, gnomes, orcs, etc. in the book, although one might argue that the Alfár are a type of elf. Regardless, I appreciated that and the creatures such as the Qalamieren and the voran. It was enjoyable learning about new sorts of species and reading about them from the perspectives of people who these creatures are normal to know about, even if they don't believe in them.

Subverting the teenaged Chosen One trope as well as the model of the Hero: This might be my favorite aspect of this novel. Instead of having these larger-than-life heroes, we're shown how heroes are flawed, and oftentimes more flawed as individuals than the average person. Even Kell Kressia, the savior of the Five Kingdoms who beheaded the Ice Lich ten years ago, struggles with the expectations this victory put on him versus his knowledge that he basically just got lucky. It wasn't his skill that helped him win, or some prophecy foretelling his victory, it was nothing more than a matter of chance. I liked how human this made all of the characters feel. I truly felt like I could relate to Kell because he struggles with the troubles of others' expectations of him versus what he knows truly happened, but additionally he comes home with what would likely be diagnosed as PTSD. Even a victory comes at a severe psychological cost.

Addressing the realities of how traumatizing these romanticized quests can be as well as the fragility of the body: There was no over-the-top gore, which I appreciated as someone who has recently become much more sensitive to it than I used to be. But at the same time, excessive gore wasn't necessary to drive home what physical strain the characters experienced when making their Hero's Journey. I am particularly intrigued by how the human body as an entity is portrayed in literature, and this book was perfect for such an interest. We were shown how humans overestimate the danger they can handle, and they don't understand that every hero we idolize is simply Just Some Guy who also can have wounds get infected, or bleed out from one (albeit deep) stab wound. While this made the fight scenes feel somewhat less intense physically than scenes where there is a lot of wounding of the main characters and killing is seen as casual, the psychology behind what the characters were feeling as well as the stress of knowing that it doesn't actually take much to get killed by a wild animal or adversary made the fight scenes intense in their own right.

Romance: As someone generally averse to the romance genre and dreads romance in fantasy books due to the advent of romances between humans and elves/fairies/werewolves/vampies/etc., I'm happy to say that this route was not taken in The Coward. There is mention of sex (for instance we have scenes where we're told two characters just had or are about to have sex, one character getting offered money for a sexual encounter but is denied, and one seventeen year old's sexual fantasy going horribly awry in a nightmare of his) but nothing that goes into detail. The main character hopes to one day have a wife and start a family, but this goal is portrayed more as representing the idea of having a "normal" and simple life, thus escaping the trauma of Kell's time as a "hero." It's hardly even mentioned that Kell would like to start a family and is not one of his actual goals he pursues but rather, as I mentioned before, symbolic of the sort of peace he wishes to achieve. There is, however, a side romance in the novel. But it's beautiful and doesn't dominate the narrative or even the goals of the characters within the romance itself. They are both fully formed individuals with dreams and fears and quirks and triumphs of their own, their romance just portrays the beauty of two lost souls finding refuge in a chaotic and lonely world. I enjoyed every scene that featured them.

My critiques: I wish that we had been given a clearer picture of how, in his first quest, Kell had defeated the Ice Lich. Or just their journey into the castle altogether. We know how a lot of the eleven heroes died, and I appreciate the author trusting that his readers are intelligent enough to piece together the story of what happened through the sporadic vignettes given, but I would've liked to hear about what happened with Kell after the last hero died, even if we saw it through a flashback he has within a dream where the maze is foggy in his memory and weren't given the exact play-by-play. On another note, while the book's climax originally felt like it could've been—for lack of a better term—more climatic than what we saw, I realized on reflection that the climax being as it was fits the story, its overarching themes, and Kell's disillusionment with The Hero's Quest perfectly. 

Overall, this book was amazing. After I finished it, I ran right back to the local bookstore to grab the final novel in this series: The Warrior. If you're looking for a fantasy novel where the "hero" is Just Some Guy and where the realities of the stereotypical Hero's Journey are presented as being traumatizing events rather than proud conquests, then this is the book for you.

[iseverelydislikeeveryone]

I cannot tell you the number of times I've questioned and found inaccuracies in real-world teachings based on me thinking "deeply" on fantasy stuff right.

So, I'm in my last year of high school as a science student. I've learned over an over in biology that a major criterion for defining species is that they must be able to reproduce to give birth to fertile offspring right. And that if the sexual organs just happen to be compatible, resulting in two different species breeding, then the offspring is sterile. Most popular example the mule. Okay, cool, makes sense.

BUT then I'm reading fantasty books, watching fantasy movies and I start hearing about this game called Dungeons and Dragons.

So then I start thinking about playing DnD, and I start thinking of the mechanics then WAIT!! People make characters that are Half Orc/ Half Human or Half Elf/Half Goblin (idk I haven't actually played the game yet, but I've seen story prompts and character cards like this). Does that mean if a character can be a hybrid , that every species in fantasy worlds are actually just ONE SPECIES.

(I've also read books where a character is ostracised from their community for being half enemy speciesnor smth)

But no, that makes no sense, so I start researching, and low and behold. THE LIGER, which is FERTILE. So what is real? What do we actually know?

Anyway, this is how I annoyed my Grade 7 Bio Teacher into telling me that the Biological Species Concept can not be applied to every species.

I then tried to argue that since we are being taught general rules and expected to apply these to EVERYTHING when in class, then we can't trust what we were being taught then (Brought up the I before E rule) and that we shouldn't be getting graded tests on knowledge that scientists are even sure about. Almost got an order mark for 'Disrespect'.

[jennawynn]

Chronotrek Diversion: The Expanse

On a new post for reasons, but a response to @jbk405!

I really enjoyed most of the Expanse. By the end of it, I found myself thinking in Belter Creole unwittingly and I dove head first into hyperfixation territory. In fact, the spree of reblogs I did a week ago or so was a result of me combing through the tumblr tag looking for meta and gifsets only to be very disappointed by the amount available. It's a shame it isn't more popular here.

There were excellent characters and world-building and it was exactly what I was looking for to base my idea of a sci-fi TTRPG in, and happily the Green Ronin RPG looks to be just as suitable. The Star Trek RPG seemed _too_ light.

I adored every tantrum Avasarala had and every swear word that left her lips. Amos was 100% character, and even Jim "Paladin in a universe that doesn't have paladins" Holden was enjoyable. Camina Drummer just got better and better as time went on.

Queer bonuses: There's a character who is introduced as the child of 8 parents in a MMMMMFFF split, so poly is legal and accepted (though there is heavy implication that it was more for legal/financial reasons than love reasons, it's still a positive). There's a queer woman in an unrequited love situation where it informs several of her decisions but never is treated like it's the worst thing ever or puts the other person in a bad light. The found family themes are strong.

The negatives... the last season is cut short and although they 'tried' to wrap up the main story points, it's not great. It definitely feels like it was a sudden attempt to make the best of a bad situation. Though tbh, I'm not sure I would have really enjoyed that last season (or three) anyway. The stakes kept getting higher and higher with each season through 3 and maybe even 4, and then it felt like it plummeted back down.

I haven't read the books, so I can't say for sure, but it really felt like they should have ended this series with the end of 3 and then used that to launch other shows in the same universe that could then utilize that plot device for various different genres and stories to be told instead of continuing to try to find ways to use the Roci's crew and the MacGuffin. Which, don't get me wrong, love the Roci crew, but there's almost an entire season where none of them are in the same room!

I mentioned it in the last chronotrek post, but this series has the same trope as Mass Effect (and at least one episode of Trek) where there's some ancient, long-dead species that existed and died out and few people know of them, but other than that, it's just humans. It's intensely political. It has has a lot of speculative fiction worldbuilding. I was reading the TTRPG core rulebook at the same time as watching the show, so I might have gotten a bit more lore and such from that than you might just watching the show, but I think it worked well. The logic of the show seemed internally consistent, which is something I usually find to be grating in fantasy and science fiction media.

TLDR: Good enough that I might watch it again in the near future.

[thelostfractal]

Paradox

This morning I woke up at five o'clock and wondered if I should get up. Before (what does that even mean, before?), I used to wake up at five o'clock every day. And I loved it ! Because I did it to write. The blue silence of dawn, the mystery between night and day, it's magical, damn it! I'm really nostalgic for those moments, now that I usually get up around nine o'clock. So, I seriously wondered what I should do, because lately (the after before), I haven't been writing anymore. It's been months, maybe a year, and if we thought about it properly (but do we really want to?), and didn't count the last gasps, maybe even two years. Whereas Before...

Argh!! It would be difficult to convey the joy, no, the ecstasy that used to fill me during those moments of pure creation, those flights outside of the world, that floating in the eternal, outside of time... So, is that all over now?

How can it be over? I asked myself. In my bed, eyes wide open to make sure I didn't fall back to sleep foolishly, I analyzed the situation. How did I start being unable to write at all? First, I finished college. A return to studying psychology, if you want to know. Go ahead, make fun, the nutjob studied psychology. Yeah well, if you knew who hangs around in those classes... Anyway. It took me a year to recover from those four years of studying, ‘cause it was so intense in terms of learning and rich in emotions. I'll detail it some other time if you want to talk about Freud. So, depression.

The seeds had been there for a while, they had probably always been there, but they got a huge dose of fertilizer to the face. Crying every night was still manageable, I was already familiar with it. Cutting myself, I did it briefly in high school, not as deep though. But the psychiatric clinic, I wasn't familiar with that. Boom! Meds, and I found myself on a month and a half vacation, far from everything, with my boyfriend. Everything was fine, you know. No brain, no thoughts, no creativity, and most importantly: no guilt for not having them anymore! Bliss!

And here we are: I wake up at five, wondering if I should get up to write and enjoy my life. The thing is, there should be a good reason to do it. To be sure. Oh, I forgot to tell you: I stopped taking the medication. So I had this argument with myself: if you get up, you'll find your reason! Inspiration doesn't just come on its own, you have to go after it, blah blah... and the other part retorted: if that reason existed, we wouldn't be having this debate, and I would already be in front of my computer! Because the rest of the analysis confirms it: I have nothing to write.

Abandoned projects, these past few years, are like an invasive species. The fantasy trilogy started in 2016? One and a half books done. The fiction started in 2020? Missing the ending. The pixel art video game started during college? Guess. The tabletop RPG based on the same universe? Special case: everything is there, or almost, except the players. Coding? Oh yes, I started learning how to code too. I wanted to create a character creation website for my RPG. Abandoned too, of course. The science fiction story outlined this year? Not even started. I'm starting to lose faith, you see. And what happened during the vacation? An urge to create a webtoon, believe it or not. So, and you'll probably understand, I don't have an ounce of ambition for this project. And even though I started a panel or two, just to test… I'm not going to give you an exhaustive list, you get the idea. I discovered a new feeling: the desire to stop something that hasn't even begun to avoid being disappointed by seeing it unfinished.

So, I was submerged by this ambiguous feeling this morning at five-thirty, eyes stinging with doubt. In conclusion, I could get up, continue a project or start a new one, force myself if necessary, and abandon it in three days. So what's the point? Eventually, I told myself that at least before, I had enthusiasm. And I can't remember which guru from my Spiritual Quest said that we should always, oh grand Always, follow our enthusiasm. It's a good way not to panic, and the general idea is that it leads us towards the things we're supposed to go to. So, I closed my eyes until eight o'clock.

[spectacularizm]

Shitpost Status 2: Nerd Emoji

More stuff about me except this time it's MOVIES AND SHOWS I LIKE YIPPEE Not only do I like every single adaptation of All Quiet, but I Loooooooooooooooooooooooooooove every frickin movie out there of Godzilla, I not only LOVE every Godzilla movie but OWN every Godzilla movie. I also own plentiful amounts of Godzilla merchandise, aswell as video games and even signed/autographed prints. Uhhh I used to be pretty big into The Office (Both the UK and US versions) but that's sort of worn down by now, still like it though. Favourite characters are Dwight, Jim, Gareth, and Andy. I'm a Warrior Cats enjoyer yes I know cringe but like no because Warrior Cats gotta be my fave book series in all of existence and what's not to love about kewl emo cats!?!?! That being said this is pretty useless but I REALLY like cats like I'm a cat person to the point where it should be a mental illness because I LOVE CATS and without cats I would die and I would not want to exist in a world without cats (I own 4 cats) and my favourite breed is the hairless cat because PINK ALIEN CAT BINGUS All Quiet obsessor but hey that's obvious!!! One of these days I'll get Felix to notice me smh Similar to Warrior Cats, I like Lackadaisy too, the pilot was AMAZING and I've read the entire webcomic thoroughly and I can say it is very much worth the read!! As a history geek, too, it's very intriguing with all the accuracies to the 20's!! I sooooorta like Helluva Boss/Hazbin Hotel?? It's pretty on/off tbh. Last couple of episodes have been great, I love the unique demon species and designs, I just hate the fandom, and the creator has a lot of drama around her, so I'm iffy. 90 Day Fiancee binge-watcher. Absolutely HILARIOUS drama on there. Y'all know Big Ed? C'mon, you gotta know Big Ed. White Chicks is my comfort movie and Idk why but it's great it's awesome and it's mildly offensive but it's funny I don't know how to explain it without seeming... controversial.

I love HTTYD. Except for the new one. Guilty Team America enjoyer. Guilty Goodboys enjoyer. Guilty Mallrats enjoyer. Guilty Jay and Silent Bob enjoyer. Guilty Yogahosers enjoyer. Guilty Jojo Rabbit enjoyer. I LOVE ZOOLANDER!!! BIG Comfort movie. I like dinosaurs teehee Jurassic World/Park lover teehee

I like Marvel n the MCU too (Hawkeye the best frfr) A really disturbing trippy movie I LOVED that is based on a real dude and a real story is Fear & Loathing: Las Vegas Also I dabble in horror movies a bit, E.G Clockwork Orange, The Mist, IT, Scream, Halloween, Terrifier.. I watched Boy in the Striped Pajamas.......... traumatizing experience... do not recommend for the light-hearted.... or anyone, for that matter. okay this is becoming too long now so Imma say this as my final message I LOVE 70's/80's/90's SHOWS!!! Like Soap, Fantasy Island, Red Dwarf (THE BEST.), The Waltons, Frasier, Cheerz aaand it's not an older show but it's based IN those times, The Goldbergs. THINGY: I am PRAYING. TO. GOD. That Felix or SOMEBODY will let us know if he's gonna be in another movie soon because I NEED TO KNOW AND I NEED TO SEE IT GRGRGRGRGRGGRYREHHAJNDAKJMDKJ Okay thats it bye might make more of these idk ily all no homo

[thedistortedfroggit]

Welcome, welcome, welcomeeee—back!! Yes, yes! He is indeed the homeless caterpillar man from the ever popular anime: My Hero Academia!!

Now, Why am I making a post about him? Whats with the sad blob? What're the weird fairy things? why is Aizawa sad, and whats the with the thing in the lower left corner?

Well, for the last question!—IGNORE IT!! It's not part of this topic! Now for the other questions,

I'm in the process of making an AU! Specifically one that revolves around an Aizawa Shouta's torment!

Thats alot of take in, isn't it? Lemme explain!! But first, a warning.

I've only done light research about the folklore and topics I've planted into this fantasy, quirkless world! I like it's premise as is, and it'll be kinda hard to make replacements since they're already so ingrained into the AU. so don't expect it to be accurate on how the fantasy creatures actually are, I just based them off a few lines from google results and wikipedia!

That being said, lets continue!

"Aizawa Shouta, An orphan (probably, I haven't figured out his lineage yet) young adult man who lives "alone" in the forest. A group of 20 spirits of seelies and will-o-wisps that live in the surrounding forest, haunt and torment the tired adult from his first week at his tree-cabin, to recent times!

A toxic relationship between the 20 and Aizawa grows. Normalized and with nobody around or willing to help him, he never knew a different environment. Despite the constant torment and jabs being 'gifted' to him, he treats them as a parent would. Their remarks of his 'curse'? The seelies' laughs at his mistakes? The wisps' pitying looks sent to him every which way? Ah, he doesn't mind. After all, it'd be rude to insult his guests."

...Wooh, quite the intro huh? Lemme break it down into bits to form somewhat of an overview.

Welcome, welcome! This is the Alternate Universe I often call: the Spirit Torment AU, or ST for short. Keep in mind this is still a Work In Progress, so things are subject to change! But I'll explain what I have at the moment.

From that lil intro, we get our starting cast! With Aizawa as the main character! ..thrilling. And yes! that group of 20 seelies and will-o-wisps are, indeed, class 1A of this AU! Don't fret, they won't be the only people that get the spotlight in here! I'm making progress on including some pro-heroes(mostly just the UA staff rn tbh), perhaps some villains, perhaps some 1Bs—and a possibility of a backstory substitute for the ever feared, ever loved: Nezu!

But that can wait 'till a future post. No, right now, lets focus on what I actually have for the ST AU! (at the time of writing this, I've managed to gather 29 words that come from the meaning of Aizawa's full name, in kanji, in different languages to string together a foreign-sounding name--atleast to me)

Our protagonist used to live in a small town far from the country's capital, yet miles away from the boarder. A generic, isolated community with similar beliefs and traditions.

Enter our tired, black-haired, younger-than-present protagonist! Into a quirkless world set in somewhat of a medieval era, although—not all is as our history books! Fantasy creatures, big and small, intelligent and feral. These are the creatures who are the only ones who are not bound by the rules of humans.

By the rules, of a magic-less body.

Yes, yes! Our magical fantasy creatures are able to use magic! Several factors depending on the species. A cluster of several of theses fantasy creatures litter the forest that the town neighbours.

Unfortunate for Aizawa, he was born different from his peers. A bad kind of different. From the creatures that scurry and survive in the forest, to our quaint town of magicless beings.

For a first in the town, when Shouta Aizawa was born, the small child with unique red eyes, instilled fear and uncertainty to those who knew of his trait.

With a word from a traveller on horse, The red eyed child became part of a town folklore: On the days the wind was ever so slightly chiller, when an ominous sense of danger wafts through the town—It shall be a sign Theia's descendent came outside his abode.

'Theia, the titan goddess of sight and the shining ether of the bright, blue sky. She was also, by extension, the goddess who endowed gold and silver with their brilliance and intrinsic value' or, that's how the story goes.

The descendant's tell-tale sign of his linage by his other-worldly eyes. A color natural to no man, woman or child. He wanders aimlessly around town, the people who the goddess so graciously gifted gold and silver to—yet only to be wasted on pubs, slaves and the like.

They say, to quell the descendant's growing fury: One must give back to the goddess by the descendant, must pay back a debt so long ago—no human would live to today, must graciously gift the descendant with shimmering blue hues of jewellery and gems of value, to the titan goddess of the sky's blue.

Breaking out of that rhyming fest! Yes yes, Aizawa's natural eye color here is red! Like how it turns when he uses his quirk?

And he got a town folklore made after him! Sure, it make him sound like some tyrant leader....but still! Also, now we know where he gets his income from! Sad he doesn't have much to actually do with it except buy groceries. ...what? Did you expect him to hunt the fantasy animals for food? or harm the forest for fruits? How rude!

Fun factoid! I actually came across that goddess while researching a bit for this AU! Found the question 'what deities are associated with blue?' The answer was given before! I'm not rewriting that just back scroll. Yeah, I didn't really look into her outside of that one question...

I don't really think it matters much in this AU, since I just needed an excuse for why the townspeople are ostracizing him or basically begging to be spared instead of just executing Aizawa. And it gave me an excuse to give the lil boy a source of income.

I found it a pretty great coincidence how she's the titan goddess of SIGHT, ya know, something Aizawa is known to need to activate his quirk?

Anyway, thats pretty much the most detailed thing I've got rn.

Moving onto the seelies and will-o-wisps, I read the seelies' wiki page, where a part caught my interest..

Appearently, in legend the seelies could be morally ambivalent and dangerous. Calling them 'seelie' similar to names such as 'good neighbors' could just be a euphemism to ward off their anger.

So just from that alone, I made the seelies in this AU more toxic and outspoken about it.

Now to will-o-wisps, I'll be honest...they weren't supposed to be added in originally until I thought that just having a roster of only toxic character would be a bad idea... So I added in the wisps.

...until I made them toxic too

Reading from the wiki again, in Urban legends, folklore and superstition.... will-o-wisps are typically considered to be ghosts, fairies or elemental spirits.

This is getting a bit long and I have school so I'll try to wrap this up quickly.

On how these spirits are toxic to Aizawa? Well, you've seen some hints throughout this post but I'll explain a little more!

The seelies, they're more of the outspoken emotions out of the slightly opposing sides of seelie and wisp. Emotions like anger or frustration, maybe mocks and taunts with laughter.

The wisps, while not meaning any bad intentions, still is toxic to an extent--or atleast not treating Aizawa properly. They're more of the sadder, subtle and worried emotions. Emotions like, as I said, sorrow and worry. Maybe with a hint of treating him like frail glass and underplaying most of what Aizawa does or dreams of.

I said before they're slightly opposing sides, not necessarily good and evil—its more of 'intent' or 'display' than that. But there will be times where a side would agree with the other Ex: "The wisps are right, you cant even do [ ] correctly. You're so useless! Pathetic!" "The seelies are right, you cant do a simple [ ] without getting hurt. You can't do [ ] or else you'd get yourself killed."

Anyway, I'm tired and maybe I'll make another post about ST!AU in the future

For now, have these bits of art as a thanks for reading this far!