#incredibly talented and creative fandom

[tazaryoot]

what do they put in arcane artists i swear because every single arcane fanart i’ve seen has been the most beautiful amazing showstopping masterpiece i’ve ever seen

[boethiah]

this may sound fucking weird but as someone in my late 20s i'm so continuously impressed with younger people in the tes fandom. esp people who only joined within the past few years. not only because they're insanely talented and creative (which they are, holy shit) but because watching their ideas and their art/writing evolve over time has been fantastic. the fanfic writing server has quite a few members in their early 20s and i'm constantly astounded by the lore they develop and the things they write. again, apologies if i sound fucking weird, but i derive a lot of joy from this.

[golden--doodler]

Geneuary Day Eleven: Keyboard/Candy

Linda: Ohh, Bobby, it's perfect!! Our Geney Zucchini's going to love these gifts for Christmas. You did so well. 🥰

Bob: Thanks, Lin. But, uhh, was it a good idea to give him both a noisy keyboard and a bunch of chocolate for Christmas?? I don't think we'll remember quiet for at least two weeks.

This is it. We made it guys. It's officially the last day of Geneuary!! This might be the most emotional I've been posting a piece of artwork. For this last piece, it *gasp* doesn't have Gene!! 😱 Crazy, I know. I decided to draw Bob and Linda along with Gene's signature keyboard and favorite candy, just to show how he got a love of Chunky Blast-Offs and his keyboard in the first place.

What a wild ride this month has been. Geneuary could not have been possible without the incredible support of everyone involved. I'd like to shoutout @drawthethingdoppelganger for making that beautiful, gorgeous graphic of all of the prompts for this month. And also for making that amazing Gene as Dolly Parton art.

I'd also like to shoutout @babsvibes, because her huge document on how to run a Ship Week was crucial in helping me run this month. I don't think I would've been able to do it without her document guiding me along (the only thing I wasn't able to do was have a separate blog, but we all know how that went ☠️). Babs was also technically the one who came up with the concept for Geneuary in the first place (both the name and having eleven prompts because of Gene being eleven).

I also must shoutout @unclefathersantateddy for being an absolute boss and making an extended Geneuary by making an entire page of Genes!! The final product is gorgeous, and I'm just in awe of their talent.

@br1ghtestlight was able to make two of the cutest fics for this month that everyone should go read!! One of them was a (sort of) collab with me.

@ratguy-nico reblogged almost all of my art with the sweetest comments, and his art for this month has been insane and beautiful. My favorite might still be the one with the Hot Dog family.

@dianadeadwing has also produced some of my favorite art this month. One of my favorites was the ballerina Gene she just posted yesterday. And of course, the one where Gene is hugging Bob 🥺❣️

I might've forgotten a person or two, but these are all of the main people I wanted to mention!! Thank you all!!

[ID]: Digital fanart of Bob and Linda from Bob's Burgers. Only their heads can be seen, and Bob looks more nervous, whilst Linda looks happier, with a huge grin on her face, and a heart next to her. A rather large keyboard is above them, along with a brown box with a spaceship on it. It reads: "Chunky Blast-Offs! Out of this World!"

[hopesallwegotleft]

☆ HAPPY NEW YEAR ☆

(Fireworks image sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

[bennidraws]

haha heyyy just a heads up, if s/erennedy is the only thing you follow me here for i kindly ask to back paddle and maybe hit da unfollow button bc to be quite frank, i dont vibe with the majority of the ship fandom here. i have no interest in the childish (and in many case quite literally, bc holy fuck. so many minors) community. s/erennedy for me is like the 10 people who i know are cool about it and i would like to keep it that way. i would very much like to cleanse my tl of certain posts that are beyond my interests and comprehension, so i unfollowed some blogs. its totally up to you if you vibe with my art in general and wanna stick around but if youre only hoping to see more of the spaniard and american blondie from me, well. reconsider. no hard feelings if that was the only thing you really cared about here, i get that 100% and maybe we'll see each other in another place, in another time. take care, be careful, internet is a rancid place, dont make stupid choices, youre probably too young to get your life fucked by a fictional character. love ya

[lamialamia]

Hearing about all the WIPs my mutuals are writing fills me with joy. GOsh I love to know all the talented people in my phone is writing and I'll get to enjoy all of it one day ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

[ongreenergrasses]

tog fandom is hell. absolute hell. but by gd we are creative

[000marie198]

I sometimes randomly come across something that blows me away with awe and I think

This fanbase is so fuckin' talented

[rivvyve]

This show is genuine gold. If you haven’t watched the trailer, you MUST!!!

Set to Black Parade, like come on this show was MADE for the 20-teens Tumblr Survivors

And look: if you’re scared of loving it and already knowing it’s cancelled, it’s YOUR views that can change that!! You know the worst outcome, but the creators and talent of this show that got screwed over deserve the views and the story very well may continue. It has fought its way through Max and made it to Netflix. So many reviewers called it “Tumblr-Core”.

"As with any show that gets canceled, it's always possible that Dead Boy Detectives will get saved. It helps that the show did do so well for its first and only season, not to mention the fact that it clearly has a dedicated fanbase."

-PopCulture

Genuinely can't express how heartbroken I am over the cancellation of Dead Boy Detectives after just 1 season. It's become such a source of joy and inspiration in my life even though it's been released only a few months ago.

It's been a light during sad and bleak times, and I don't know how to deal with the news other than by saying - tweet at Netflix. They don't care about tumblr, use other platforms to bug the absolute hell out of them. Be polite and don't make multiple social media accounts since it can make you look like a bot.

@netflix everywhere you can, email them, make noise wherever you can. Make #RenewDeadBoyDetectives trend on Twitter!!!

And please, if the show meant something to you, don't stop engaging with the fandom!! I'm truly emotionally destroyed rn, but I don't want to give up what this community has given me so far 💔

Support each other and let netflix know they've made a mistake!!

[fine-nephrit]

🥏 Where to find good XF fanfics

👽 On Tumblr

@lilydalexf has an encyclopedic knowledge of fics and continues to be an invaluable resource. You'll find a boatload of themed fic lists, individual rec posts and helpful answers to anon asks.

@txf-fic-chicks-blog seven years of almost daily recs, with well-written blurbs and a lot of fun, run by @kateyes224 and @piecesofscully. Look out for their themed days: "Casefile Monday", "Tumblr Tuesday", "Editor's Pick Wednesday", "Post-Ep/Missing Scene Thursday", "Novel Length Friday", "Smut Sunday", and the very cool "Because You Watched"

@msrlibrary a well-tagged library of MSR fics; each entry includes a short excerpt and a nicely chosen image from the show.

@201daysofxfiles a rewatch blog by fandom veteran @wendelah. Each episode in season 1-7 is paired with its own fic rec post.

@enigmaticxbee an aesthetically pleasing and neatly organized rewatch blog that is packed with great content, including excellent fic rec lists categorized by season, story type, trope, and more. Each episode guide sometimes features related fic recs.

@thatfragilecapricorn30 posts one fic rec every Friday, accompanied by a nice writeup.

@randomfoggytiger curates many fic rec lists sorted by often fun and creative categories.

@cecilysass has a google doc titled "fics I love", which is a fantastic fic list categorized by story type, complete with thoughtful blurbs. She's also shared two episode-related fic rec lists on Tumblr: here and here.

@pookie-mulder writes a monthly fic journal with good recs.

**self-promo plug** I post fic recs on my Tumblr blog @fine-nephrit under #nephrit's fic rec. Plus, I reblog others' fic recs that I come across!

👽 Rec Communities

XF Book Club: the best thing ever, an absolute gem that deserves to be preserved for posterity. During its run, 270 fics were recced and discussed in depth here. The community's intelligent and insightful comments on this blog are sometimes even more enjoyable to read than the fics themselves.

The Fic Filter (xf tag): well-curated selections with short blurbs.

Multifandom Het Recs (xf tag): a major rec site's xf section that offers nice "why this must be read" writeups. @het-reccers

Crack Van (xf tag): another major rec site with a big xf section, featuring endless recs and blurbs

Fancake (xf tag): another major rec community's xf section boasting an extensive thematic tagging system

👽 Personal Blogs

Emily Shore aka Naraht: meta essays, fanvid recs, fic recs—great stuff aplenty

Bad for the Fish aka Scarlet Baldy: fantastic fic list paired with highly enjoyable reviews and analyses of the fics she's read. @badforthefish

Ramblings of a Mind Untamed: reviews of a dozen or so classic fics

xxSKSxx XF Fanfic Recs: still active in 2024! @xxsksxxx

X-Libris: more of a fic library, this is the best place to download nicely-formatted ebooks of pre-AO3 oldies. What I love most is the incredibly detailed and extensive tagging system.

👽 Individual Rec Lists with good writeup

Character Manifesto - Dana Scully: a character analysis and 10 Scully-centric fic recs, categorized by "best of .." selections. Amazing format and choices!

Character Manifesto - Fox Mulder: same format as above for Spooky

bachlava's awesome fic rec essays, covering classic fics and slash fics

ShipRecced blog's classic MSR fics and newer MSR fics recs

luminary's 16-fic rec post

RivkaT recs fics and writers @rivkat

Anna Otto's favorite stories

Syntax6's rec list on her site, great rec list on Tumblr and FTF rec list @syntax6

👽 90s Old School Rec Sites

The Basement Office - Musea: a treasure trove of extensive fic lists with lovely written blurbs, recced by a group of talented writers from back in the day

The Other Side - Fanfic Recs from Beyond the Grave: a large collection of 'scary' or 'spooky' story recs with nice blurbs. Beautiful web design.

the Rookery - Favorite Authors: nice commentary on a list of classic fic writers

X-Files Fanfiction 101: an intro guide to fic categories and what to read for each

The Primal Screamers: a fun site run by a mailing list that hosts fic recs with blurbs, and a 'Coffee Talk' section full of delightful discussions of canon

Idealists Haven - Elemental Fanfic Archive: an archive with rec blurbs

Chronicle X: a large, well-organized archive with blurbs, plus a 'Can We Talk' discussion section of novel-length fics, plus a total of 46 author interviews. Simply incredible!

👽 Special Mention

The X-Files Lost and Found: a fic finder message board that is miraculously still very active today—How wonderful! Its FAQ page hosts a huge collection of well-categorized themed fic lists (not recs), including "Classics (or, Your Fanfic Education is Not Complete Until You've Read ...)".

Where do you find your next read? What did I miss? Reblog and share your favorites!

[connorsnothereeither]

Fable SMP has been an experience that has genuinely changed my life, in ways. I know I only came into it during the final season, but I was around before then too, and I adore this series, or project, or whatever you want to call it, from so many angles. First as a friend, and a fan, and finally now a collaborator, and a creator. I have gotten to work with some of my best friends, and made so many more in the process. It has genuinely been an honour and a privilege to work with so many amazing, talented, kind and creative people over my time in this space. I have learned skills and passions that I never knew I would, and it dragged me out of a creative rut I had been stuck in for a very long time.

I often joke around and talk about it as “the silly little minecraft story” and it is, to an extent, but it’s also so much more than that. It’s a story. Our story, that we got to tell, and that effected us and so many people in so many ways. One that had made me laugh and cry and that I have poured my heart and soul into. And now from the end I can look back and see how beautiful and elaborate and funny and heartbreaking this story is. I can see the creativity and the passion that everyone involved put into making it what it is. And from the end it is so… wonderful. It is something I am so incredibly proud of. I am proud to be a part of it, despite its ups and downs, and I so proud of the people who were involved. Who have made so much. I could not ask to have told this story with a better group of people, and I could not have asked for a better story to be invited into.

It has been a story, and an experience, and friendships that I am genuinely going to cherish.

It’s strange to consider this a goodbye to Fable SMP. Because in my mind it’s not, really. Fable isn’t gone. It’s not going anywhere. It’s still here. The story is there to be rewatched again and again, as many times as we want. I’m certainly not done stewing in this world and retelling it personally (just look at how much is left of Brink-) and I don’t think the fandom is either. Hell, I don’t think a lot of the cast are ready to leave it behind entirely. We’re still around. Fable is still around. We just get to view it in a different light. We get to look back on it, and immerse ourselves again, and see all that we missed the first time in the rush of flipping through the chapters.

So this is not a goodbye to Fable. But it is a thank you. A thank you to the cast, who made such an amazing story, made such an amazing environment to create in, and who gave me so many amazing opportunities. And it is a thank you, so so much, to the community, who got as attached to our characters as we did; played along with our silly games and codes; who encouraged me as I delved into this new way of storytelling for the first time; and who helped make the entire series what it was.

Thank you, truly.

- Connor

[sen-ya]

do people still do stuff like this in 2024?? Idc!! Thank you to all of those who have liked, shared, commented, and goofed with my silly little drawings these last few months!! I haven’t engaged in fandom in over a decade, and I feel so lucky to have found such an incredible community coming back to it. One Piece is a lot of things, and sharing the love and affection we all have for it really embodies the spirit of the content imo. My gratitude runs deep for these two idiot boys that have led me to be creative like I was as a kid and play in the metaphorical sandbox with so many creative, wonderful, unabashedly talented people. Okay that’s it thank u byeeeeeeeee

[helenvader]

Love Letter to the Fandom

I would like to gush a bit about the Rings of Power fandom, because it's been one of the best things that happened to me in the past two years. :-) ROP is the biggest hyperfixation of my life, and thanks to being in the fandom I met so many nice, smart, funny and incredibly creative people (some of them in person).

We truly are blessed when it comes to creativity: there are so many amazing artists, skillful gif makers, talented fanfiction writers. It's also been a pleasure to read all the great meta and exchange theories, ideas, or simple details from the show that I would never noticed if other wouldn't have pointed it out. Our community has also triggered my own creativity; and most of my stills / videos / fanfics would never exist if it wasn't for discussions with other fans. Let alone ending up where I co-organised two events with the lovely @queenmeriadoc. It has also re-awakened my interest in Tolkien. I have been a fan for 30 years, but had a long hiatus. It's great to be back. :-) THANK YOU so much for making my life brighter!

And cheers for the good times to come!

And if you feel like sharing your positive experiences in the fandom, please do so!

[saintsenara]

Hi, I just wanted to tell you that I absolutely love your metas! You’re not only clearly a very talented writer but also blessed with such great insight into these characters that my dopamine levels always jump to absolute heights with every new post. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and being a real gem in this fandom ❤️

Also, because I couldn’t find any post (or did I miss it?) about specifically Harry/Snape (without a third person added to the mix) I would love to read your thoughts on it. Either romantically or gen, after the war, where Snape lives. Thank you so much for indulging me :)

thank you very much for the [exceptionally lovely] ask, anon!

snarry is definitely a popular request...

... so let's get into it!

[and let's also get out of the way that i do not back snamione as a pairing. you can find out why here.]

while they're by no means my otp - and while i'll admit to preferring both snape and harry paired up with lord voldemort - i have long dabbled in a bit of snarry, particularly because it's a ship which attracts astonishingly talented writers. and - in particular - astonishingly talented writers who think really subtly, intelligently, and creatively about life and love and all the questions therein. i'm always really struck by the nuance with which both snape and harry are treated in so many snarry fics, and i much prefer that to the more one-note treatment each character gets elsewhere in the fandom.

and - of course - why snarry works so well as a ship is because it has such a solid justification in both harry and snape's canon characterisation - and because this compatibility is made all the more interesting by the layer of conflict caused by snape and harry's mutually antagonistic relationship. harry adores the half-blood prince - looks up to him so much, in fact, that he genuinely wonders if the man was his father - because they're intellectually compatible, have similar senses of humour, have similarly self-serving aspects to their moral codes, and have a shared reactivity and emotional volatility. the text emphasises this frequently, most explicitly when hermione tells harry in half-blood prince that he doth protest too much:

"He tried to jinx me, in case you didn’t notice!" fumed Harry. "I had enough of that during those Occlumency lessons! Why doesn’t he use another guinea pig for a change? What’s Dumbledore playing at, anyway, letting him teach Defence? Did you hear him talking about the Dark Arts? He loves them! All that unfixed, indestructible stuff - " "Well," said Hermione, "I thought he sounded a bit like you."

harry is also willing to acknowledge these similarities himself, sometimes. he empathises with - and even, occasionally, respects - snape well before the conclusion of deathly hallows, and - crucially - does this on his own terms. him refusing to dismiss his disgust at his father's treatment of snape in snape's worst memory in order not to make sirius or lupin feel awkward is incredibly impressive - and is something i don't think he gets enough credit for.

and since one of the things which makes me a member of both tomarrymort and snapemort nation is harry's instinctive understanding of how voldemort's childhood affected him and voldemort's understanding of how snape's childhood affected him, this is something i think provides a fascinating seam for authors to mine when writing about snape and harry together.

similarly, post-war, i think snarry is one of the best pairings for exploring how both harry and snape come to terms with the realisation that - no matter how well it all worked out in the end - they were both pawns in a larger game. i think that snape is, really, the only person in harry's life who could ever come close to appreciating what it means to have dumbledore send you out to [nearly] die - and i also think, because the man is always at the forefront of my mind, that snape is one of the few people in harry's life who can appreciate the fact that harry, as much as he also hated and feared him, was impressed by, sympathised with, and wanted to help voldemort.

snarry is also an incredibly compelling ship for thinking about power, and how both harry and snape understand it. i wouldn't care about the age difference, or the fact that snape and harry's acquaintance is established while harry is a child and snape is his teacher, even if the dynamic between them could only ever be heavily unbalanced in snape's favour, because these are fictional people. but i'm often struck by how interestingly snarry writers deal with snape being someone who views himself, inherently, as a supplicant - and who therefore ends up offering harry the upper hand in their dynamic [whether this is platonic or otherwise] despite the fact that he is the younger partner. snape's capacity for destructive devotion and self-subordination is one of his most fascinating canon characteristics - and snarry is one of the best vehicles for exploring this.

indeed, the canonical snape clearly regards harry as someone who possesses power over him. his complaints about harry being rich, spoiled, and arrogant make clear that he considers harry to be the second coming of the dynamic he had with james [with it never seeming to occur to him that this is an absurd thing for an adult teacher to think about their pupil], while his complaints about harry's fame are because he views harry as an inherent insider [someone with a pureblood surname and the money to prove it] to the wizarding world while he himself is an outcast. this can cause some exquisite toxicity - especially when snape, who tends to view every interaction he has though a win-lose lens and who becomes incredibly nasty in both victory and defeat, is proven right, having insisted to harry that the wizarding world won't like its golden hero getting railed by a tenuously-acquitted death eater.

but it can also result in something surprisingly beautiful. harry likes to save people, after all, and snape would - deep down - very much to be saved.

and one way he can do this is by offering snape the forgiveness for his role in lily's death which it's clear the canonical snape refuses to accept he might be entitled to. and, in doing this, the pairing draws out a theme which i am obsessed with - that there is a lost generation, whose ghosts haunt the characters alive in the canon timeline. no matter how negative his opinion on james and sirius and so on is, by virtue of knowing them, snape provides harry with a connection to a world he would be a stranger to otherwise, while harry provides snape with a mooring in the present which makes dealing with the weight of the past - and processing the fact that he's virtually the only person he knew as a teenager who's still alive - easier.

i also think that fucking your enemy's nephew is iconic, and snape and petunia meeting again in a scenario in which he's harry's boyfriend is a concept that sustains me.

[diana-bluewolf]

It’s this blog's first birthday! 🥳 Wanted to gather some of my fav drawings and thoughts about being in the fandom.

Being in a fandom is not always easy, but it is definitely worth it. 

1. It’s a perfect soft-skill trainer. It teaches me to focus on what I can control (like my reactions) rather than what I can’t (other people’s opinions). To be myself and not be ashamed of my interests. To stop overthinking and just enjoy the process. To accept imperfection as an inevitable part of any art…and myself. To stop comprehending the terms ‘self-indulgent’ and ‘cringe’ as synonyms. To prioritise my own well-being to avoid burn-out. And most importantly, not to cringe at my art I posted a day ago 🤣

2. It's a powerful therapy tool. I mean, have you tried to write an OC? Poor things, I don't envy them, but it turned out to be a perfect instrument to understand my own head's wiring better. It's like my subconscious is speaking to me through my OC's actions. I started this blog at one of the most challenging times in my life (let's just say that characters with external and internal scars appeal to me on a personal level. Not to be dramatic. Ok, I am, sorry, it's my only flaw), and it affected Chris severely, to the extent that I couldn't even imagine it would. But all the insights I got about myself via him are priceless. 

3. It’s the best source of inspiration. I had been in the art block for years, but seeing your guys cool art reignited my desire to draw. It was difficult (to say the least) to start posting amateur art about my MC on the blog that was followed for the screenshots of the popular characters, but I’m glad I did because, in another case, I would have never met some of my friends here. My art style is inconsistent as I keep experimenting, so some of my drawings are way better than others, but I’m still growing and proud of it. 

4. And most importantly, it's brought me together with some of the coolest people in my life. I'm so grateful to everyone who follows/followed me. Thank you so much for your support now or in the past, even if you just lurk. If you regularly appear on my notifs, I do recognise you and am very grateful. Even if I don't always respond - sorry, it's just because my social battery is often very low. I'm the most introverted introvert irl, even though I don't seem like one here. I'm training to overcome my social anxiety here, can you tell? 🤣 

Here I wanted to write something about my moots, but…Well, I have no idea how to continue whatever I had intended to write because just a thought of you all got me terribly overwhelmed with warm fuzzy feelings 😑 I blame you, guys 😤 So I will just write that I love you, but know this is an understatement.

Love this fandom, its creativity and all the incredibly talented and supportive people here. You guys are the best 🤗

[grogusmum]

It's Thursday of a very rough week here in Pedroville, within the Greater Tumblrtown Area.

I'm so sorry to see beloved moots step back from and even deactivate their blogs (but I understand, please do what you need to take care of you, dear ones).

Hate Anons, theft of art and fic, gossip and talking behind people's backs.

Pedro would be very sad. Of course, we know he backed off his socials because of shitty fandom behavior...

What can we do?

Not give a lot of oxygen to blogs, just looking to burn it all down.

SUPPORT ARTISTS AND WRITERS!

Remember, there are real people behind these blogs. "Big Blogs" or small.

And that we are here to be silly about Pedro with people who also want to be silly about Pedro. He's a silly guy, and that would probably make him happy. He is also incredibly talented, and yes, we want to talk about that, too. And I am also sure seeing sorry, knowing (he should never ever SEE!) people are being creative because he inspires it would also make him happy too!

As I said today is Thursday so it's HAZEL'S THRO-BACK THURSDAY FIC RECS DAY!!

So, in the name of community, shenanigans and love of writers who are an integral part of said community and shenanigans I will be compiling a fic rec list, and if there is any you want to send in, of your own or someone else's please do. I'll post around 5 pm (US-EST).