#inspired by a childhood experience haha.

[pocketdaan]

You've kept track of the characters on your kid's favorite show, but this one seems brand new!

^ without compression + chromatic aberration. Tried using an old indie animated kids show style! Ones with lineart rough at the edges, have choppy frames, and bleeding watercolors... I swear those exist 'cause I watched em, but I'm having a hard time thinking up an example lmao

As for the premise, like a Candle Cove thing 'cept some adults can still see it. Imagine a kids cartoon playing and one character is always digging at his pockets. Luckily for Pocketcat, his friendly attitude makes it easy to wave off! He's only looking for his keys promise.

[moeblob]

Huevember 22

Brent, the most expressive bard to ever bard.

[andreabandrea]

I absolutely don't mean this in a bad way, but I think a lot about how Pokemon is a power fantasy for kids. And I know this is obvious because it's a game for children, but let me ramble.

Think about it: you can go wherever you want, knowing you're safe because your Pokemon will protect you. In the later games, you can dress however you want and express yourself freely. You can connect with nature and communities of friendly kids and adults around you. You can make a meaningful, positive impact on the world. You can stand toe-to-toe with adults who, in real life, would ignore or even belittle you because you're just a kid. (And, of course, you have superpowered pets that love you.)

I think about how in the original games, Brock and Misty are presented as kids/young teens and become friends with Ash. But, Lt. Surge presents a difficulty spike-- if you chose Bulbasaur, you can easily sweep the first two gyms with it, but now you don't have a supereffective match up unless you plan more. I think it's meaningful, then, that Lt. Surge is portrayed a big, scary adult man and military to boot. In the anime, he's presented as being condescending and intimidating toward Ash. But, you as the player are able to overcome this intimidating man through the power of your Pokemon. The same can be said for people like Team Rocket and Giovanni-- Giovanni's original sprite in Red & Blue makes it look like he's looming over you, sneering at you.

It can easily be forgotten by adult fans, but you're seeing this world through the perspective of a child. Giovanni looming over you represents how it feels to be a child, powerless, and face an adult who's cruel to you. But you defeat him at every match up.

Satoshi Tajiri would go on to say that Pokemon was inspired by his childhood, in which he'd go out and collect bugs. Miyamoto would say that the first Zelda game was inspired by his childhood in which he'd explore the local area and caves and so on.

It makes me sad to think that, as the world becomes more modern, more urbanized, and (as parents tend to see it, at least) more unsafe, this childhood that inspired these classic games become further out of reach for kids. When I was growing up, I lived in a suburb full of concrete. I couldn't walk anywhere, and even if I could, my mother was too anxious to let me just go around unsupervised.

This is why getting the bike is such a big moment in Pokemon-- you can go so much farther as a kid on a bike! But, I also could only ride my bike up and down my boring street before running into a major street full of cars going 50 MPH that would have murdered me instantly.

This isn't a doom post. I still believe that we can repair the damage that capitalism and cars have done to the world. But, I think that in times like this, it's more important than ever for kids to have access to these power fantasies, these escapes from a world that they have no ability to fix, but still suffer from regardless.

Ironically, I think that when I play Pokemon now, I play it to feel smaller rather than to feel bigger, the opposite of how I played it as a kid. Now, it's comforting to escape from work and stress into a world in which your only concerns are walking to the next town, catching a new Pokemon, and maybe fighting a gym leader. The same can be said of any piece of media that someone is nostalgic for, but I think Pokemon feeds into it well because its design is so baked in the experience of being a child.

When I'm playing Pokemon, especially when replaying an old game, I still remember things like only saving in Pokemon centers so that my character could sleep there in a nice building, or imagining them setting up camp if I had to save and quit on a route. If I had time, I would feed my Pokemon some Pokeblocks or etc. at my little 'camp' so they wouldn't be hungry (which is why I felt like the cooking and camping systems from SwSh were so real for me, haha).

I don't think that there's a 'wrong' way to play Pokemon-- I know people enjoy competitive Pokemon, and strict challenge runs, and stuff. And I can enjoy that, too! But, for me, Pokemon is about childhood, you know?

[overgrown3d]

Who are you in their eyes? (PAC)

💭How does your friend, partner, crush, colleague, family member, or anyone in your mind view you? REMINDER! This is a general reading & purely their perception of you, take what resonates.

✨How to select your pile?✨

1. Slow your breathing, taking deep inhales. Focus on feeling present in your environment.

2. Looking from left to right, use your intuition to pick the pile meant for you (what you connect most with.)

3. Doesn't resonate? No worries! Pick another, it's message may be just right for you.

!!For Entertainment Purposes Only!!

Pile 1 -> Pile 2

Pile 3 -> Pile 4

🍃Pile 1 ;

Cards: 8 of Wands, Queen of Swords, Queen of Pentacles, King of Pentacles, 6 of Cups

The person in your mind could be someone from your past, perhaps a childhood friend, a classmate, or a family member. If not from your past, either you or them remind each other of a person you guys used to know, maybe they even perform a hobby you dropped, just something from the past. There is a lot of nostalgia here, and the reason why is because they possibly watched you grow up, or knew you from the past and reconnected again in the future, and they are shocked by how well you seem to be doing. The first thing I heard is "I'm so proud of you." They think you are somewhat of a go-getter, and most certainly financially stable. They perceive you as someone who invested a lot of time and effort in developing yourself. This energy feels so nice! They just think you're super mature, that you handle problems well, you're emotionally mature, etc. You just have your shit together, according to them. You may be able to "feel like a kid again", and overall have a lot of fun with this person, and they think the same. It's giving the vibe of "Wow, it's been that long, huh?" Overall, what they think of you is purely positive, and pretty lighthearted!

~~~~🍃

🍀Pile 2 ;

Cards: 3 of swords, 10 of swords, Page of wands, Queen of Pentacles , 8 of Swords

They think you're STRONG. From perception, they think that you've gone through something completely heartbreaking and life-changing, then brushed off your knees and got going again. They think you have such a strong demeanor, like I'm hearing "After all that?" They sense that you've gone through something transformative, like they see that spark in your eyes to use your heartbreak as a reason to strive. This could be letting go of old habits and past traumas. They are honestly baffled how you can keep going. They think you endured a lot emotionally, or resurfaced from a pretty dark place. You're pretty financially okay to them, or near the path to being there. This person could actually be someone that helped you as you were going through your struggles, providing an opportunity for you. You're like a go-getter, not settling for anything other than what you deserve.

~~~~🍃

🍀Pile 3 ;

Cards: Temperance, Page of Pentacles, 7 of Pentacles, 3 of Pentacles, The Emperor, Ace of Swords

The person you're thinking about may be a mentor, a teacher, or someone with experience and influence that gives you a lot of inspiration. I get very strongly that they passed down some intellect to you. They think you're starting out in a new field, but already low-key mastering it lmao. You're going to be pretty bloody quick to succeed. To them, you are pretty focused on yourself, perhaps focusing greatly on aligning your career to your passions, and working hard in all aspects of your life. I'm hearing "They have a lot of potential." so they view you as a person with a lot of skills and expect you to quickly master anything new. They think you are well-rounded and leading a pretty average lifestyle, actually. They think that you're certainly passionate, but not dreaming very big for your future. You're a balanced person in their eyes, very reliable. At first, they would think you're shy or socially awkward haha. They might even be shocked at your progress, like you'll outdo the master!

~~~~🍃

🍀Pile 4 ;

Cards: 2 of Cups, Queen of Pentacles, Queen of Wands, Wheel of Fortune.

While shuffling your cards, a bunch flew out super quick! This person would form a strong opinion of you upon first meeting you, and if you know this person closely already, they would be quick to answer if someone asks what they think of you. You are someone that would've stood out for them, even in mind. They perceive you as someone sociable, seeing you around other people very often. They think you have a stable income or can afford to be leisurely and have fun, and that you were born privileged. They think you're pretty lucky tbh, I'm hearing "They won in life". I'm getting a vibe that this person may be insecure about their assets, or at least need to develop themselves emotionally. They think they are out of your league, and that you are going to be veryyyy different from them, like a whole different level. They think that you've got good habits, they idolize you a bit imho. Looking past that, they think that both you and them have a lot to learn from each other. They think you're steady in life, while also fun-loving. This could be a romantic interest, but this also applied well for platonic relationships!

~~🍃 You reached the end of the reading, 'till next time!

[showtoonzfan]

Just want to preface this by saying i love ur analysis sm- u put my exact thoughts into words when i cant verbalise whats wrong with a particular writing decision 🥲🥲

Anyway, smth ive noticed is how... little time vivzie actually spends on writing or characterizing or fleshing out her characters.

Which has to be the weirdest thing so far bc every writer and artist ive met agree that its the best part of making an oc! Its so fun to think of backstories and tie that into their current personality and generally just figuring out random details to get to know your characters!

Like, my ocs are my best friends, i know everything abt them from their trauma and childhoods, to their favourite food and music.

But time and time again she proves that her characters are at best acquaintances... the fandom fleshes out the characters so well and with so much love and care and thought that vivzie herself cant do and its just sad.

Not even mentioning the hundreds of retcons and how characters will just change personality randomly or act out of character which results in the work feeling like a fanfic of itself. (Ironic considering some fanfics have better and more consistent characterisation)

It feels like shes making it up as she goes, instead of having an actual plan. Just shoving random ideas she likes or picks up from the much more creative fandom into the 2 shows without actually stopping and thinking abt the consequences or implications.

Theres so many decisions shes made that irk me so bad... the ideas individually have potential but they either dont fit the show or have to make huge retcons and result in the plot not making any sense.

Also, ngl but she has the worst case of tell dont show ive ever seen my god 😭😭 like... you realise you have to show things instead of just fucking singing it or having a character say it??? Or is that another thing that the fandom has to do so they can convince themselves that the show has good characters??

Atp idk how to salvage the show... i keep finding more and more plotholes and unless i literally turn my brain off and only focus on haha funny dick joke or pwetty colors, these questions keep popping into my head making it a painful unenjoyable experience.

Again, if the fandom has to justify your bad nonsensical hypocritical worldbuilding then you failed. Massively.

Anyway im very sleepy rn just wanted to rant a bit bc im a writer and artist myself and it pisses me off how someone gets their show on the air and still doesnt care abt putting in effort into their plot or characters beyond aesthetics and random ideas that dont go well together...

You’re speaking facts! And it’s honestly like..kinda funny too that people who have their own OC’s can flesh them out and deep dive into their arcs/backstories ect, yet a professional showrunner who’s had these characters for YEARS can’t even give the majority of her characters flaws or quirks, or even consistency, same goes for Helluva Boss.

Viv is a really good example at letting inspired writers know what not to do when making a story and characters so at least they have that lol.

[batbeato]

Sharing some Umineko stageplay EP4 thoughts/impressions. To comply with theater restrictions this will be text-only.

I really enjoyed the stageplay and you can watch the stream archive online for about a week here. You'll need to have a (international?) credit card:

The stageplay this time, instead of being one big performance split into two acts, is split into two separate stageplays: Untruth and End Me.

Untruth is slightly shorter than End Me, and is primarily about Ange (her time at St. Lucia, the first section of her 1998 journey) and also deals with the first section of the gameboard, pre-twilights/murders. End Me deals with the rest of Episode 4, including the Tea Party.

What stands out to me most in the cuts are:

No depiction of young Ange / Eva interactions

1998 Ange summons the stakes again while on a boat (iirc) to Nijima, rather than in a hotel room

Shortens the conversations with Nanjo's son / Kumasawa's son

Cuts out the conversation with the Witch Hunter

Sakutarou doesn't appear in front of Rosa during the fantasy sequences with MARIA killing Rosa

The 'loser flags' extended fight/joke is cut, though Krauss still beats up some goats

The Beatrice/Battler phone conversation is shortened

Battler's "test" is shortened to just remembering his sin (no "I love you, Beatrice", etc.)

Something of note about this stageplay is that it takes a lot from the manga version of Episode 4. This is notable because the manga version of Episode 4 is decently different from the visual novel, both in its ordering of things and in the emphasis it places on certain aspects of Ange's story.

The stageplay also lifts directly from the manga for inspiration: Battler with a blank face, child Battler holding Asumu's hand (Rudolf not included, with Battler to Battler conversation), the cubes with the episode numbers (I think they look silly but they did their best to make it work).

I feel like a lot of the complexity of Ange and Eva's relationship was lost in the stageplay, with much more focus on Ange's experience at St. Lucia, especially with regards to making the bullying there much more overt and physically violent. I don't particularly enjoy this change and appreciate how the visual novel primarily keeps the bullying non-physical and verbal.

However, they did add an extended Amakusa-Ange chase/fight sequence. Amakusa even princess carried Ange and used her feet to kick someone, haha. He also did a jump kick at one point. I also really liked this section of the chase where they went behind a panel, and they had the classic gag of coming out with the wrong person (one of the people chasing them). Amakusa had to go back for Ange and she slapped him. Adorable little interaction.

They even added a moment where Okonogi showed up in disguise (hat, glasses, even a coat...) to help out.

Since they didn't have a child Ange actor, they depicted one or two childhood Ange sequences with these tiny little puppets. They did have a child actor for Sakutarou, though, and he and Maria were so cute together... (They break my heart.)

Another really cute addition for Untruth was that for the 'Beato thinks Battler is super down and comes to cheer him up' sequence, they had the ensemble actors and Beato do this dance with golden pompoms. It was adorable.

For End Me, since they used One-Winged Bird for the opening sequence in Untruth, they actually used the original Umineko VN opening for End Me. It was incredible.

They also had more of Lambda and Bern showing up here and there and being really cute - the Lambdadelta actress absolutely embodies Lambda's pop-cute energy but can still be menacing when need be, and in the stageplay(s) they put more focus on Ange debating whether or not to accept Lambda's offer of remaining in an eternal game with Battler, which was a really nice touch.

Speaking of acting: both Ange and Beatrice's actresses are incredibly talented. I really love Beatrice's acting during the 'sin' sequence; she plays the Beatrice on the board, while they have a body double in the meta with her face turned away (not sure if lines are delivered by the Beatrice actress and played over the speakers, or prerecorded). On the board, you can tell she's completely heartbroken and desperate for Battler to remember. It's really incredible delivery.

Maria's actor also did an amazing job!! She had a lot of screentime this episode and some really intense and emotional scenes with Rosa (which made me tear up), but she pulled them all off beautifully. She also seemed happy about becoming a witch this episode, ahaha.

I believe the current Beatrice actress is leaving, so the curtain call/remarks were very emotional. The Beatrice and Battler actors even came out again (unscripted, I believe?) to say one last goodbye...

Battler also did a princess carry with Beato during the curtain call, it was really cute~

Overall though I had some criticisms of how they adapted the material, the actors were all incredible and it was wonderful to watch them act out this episode. I also found that with live actors, the Stakes were super lively and fun to watch, especially Mammon's dynamic with Ange. And the finale with Beatrice and Battler broke my heart.

[do-mkokoro]

[ IkeVil OCs p1]

Some Ikemen Villains OCs that I drew for my friends! I had fun with intepreting their vibes from what was described and picking the palette for the girls in accordance to their mamas’ designs~ Also some of them have curses and special abilities of their own.

(Artist note is the info I got from reading their stories, not actual word for word description from their mamas!)

More brief info about them below.

1. Stacy Matthews (mama: Miko)

-LI: Alfons Sylvatica

-Curse: The little mermaid - The little mermaid

-Artist note: She is a playful gal who likes cute things and is on a journey of healing after traumatic experiences, while being an occasional castle caretaker at Crown. I hope for the best in her story bc she’s been through a lot of emotional negligence and physical abuse from the past… She deserves all the love and care in the world. 🥲

2. Emily Morris (mama: Anna)

-LI: Harrison Gray

-Curse: none (actually the rare attribute here 🤣)

-Artist note: A police officer who’s also the childhood friend of Harrison, seeking to pursue justice for her dear friend’s sake. She used to be timid and shy, but the pain of having to see the one she loves suffer had encouraged her to become braver, so she can finally be capable of protecting him. Also the one who inspired me to step into the ikevil OC hole haha!

3. Sona Sibera (mama: Solona)

-LI: William Rex

-Curse: The pied piper of Hamelin - The pied piper

-Artist note: On the outside, Sona is the reserved and composed musician (hehe) at the same theatre as Liam. But she can also carry out Crown’s missions in the most efficient manner possible without unnecessary losses. However, as composed as Sona is, if one strucked a nerve, she can become merciless and cruel as a person can be.

4. Maya Syn (mama: Sy)

-LI: Liam Evans

-Curse: The snow queen - The snow queen

-Artist note: She is very adept at combat, and the curse of freezing her surroundings definitely maximizes the effectiveness of taking down opponents, even the guys at Crown aren’t a match. Despite the brute force and sheer power she has, Maya is fairly friendly and easy to make acquaintance with. That aspect made it hard to believe that she’s quite detached from almost all of her interpersonal connections.

[pnathaniellgsilver]

((WELP, SENSITIVE TOPICS WARNINH HAHA-))

Another Incredibox oc description

(obs they are from my original world, But they can be inspired by mods or even Incredibox itself, but in this case it's a big mix and my own messy lore lmao)

Mikael Albert Pierre

(Observation: This is an old design, and long before he died, or even before his brother took the necklace from him, But the description will be the current one-)

—Mikael Albert Pierre is currently a 36-year-old man, He is a ghost Polo who before dying was obviously a human, He is the older brother of Percy Albert Pierre (who is currently 34)

Its music icons are: Effect (whisper sounds ig), Melody (guitar) and Voice (3rd vocal in "alpha" v1/second vocal (his brother is the main)

At first Mikael may seem quite antisocial and shy, After all, as a child he never had so many friends (apart from his childhood best friend (and current best friend) Merlin Martinez), But knowing him well, he can be a pleasant person to be around, despite his dark past including the death of his fathers, possessions, Loss of control of his own body to a demon (Who's named Kahunna), r4p3s and even his own death.

Although Mikael does his best to have a good relationship with his brother (who is still alive and is now the current host of his old demon), However, his younger brother still has memories, albeit vague, of the abuse that Kahunna made him commit while he was possessing Mikael's body. Mikael swears he never meant any harm to Percy, After all, he loved his brother very much even though he didn't know how to show it correctly, Percy, upon seeing Mikael, often has flashbacks to the rapes and physical and psychological abuse he suffered in the past, which results in Percy not feeling comfortable in the presence of his older brother.

The reasons why Mikael was possessed were not by chance, This demon had already been persecuting his family since the 1870s, cursing each member as revenge for his death, most of the time using a necklace to have total control of his victims, The demon prefers to be called "Kahunna Kai", even though his name has the meaning of "protector of men" or something like that, ironically, he is the opposite of that, Kahunna uses their hosts' bodies precisely to abuse their bodies and others as much as possible, Making their hosts become alcoholics, smokers, murderers, abusers and in maximum cases even r4p1sts, Kahunna can have complete control of their host if they have a weak mind (like Mikael) and can even stay in their host's body for days without even resting, just feeding on the energy and bad habits. In most possessions, Its host becomes unconscious, and the demon takes complete control of its victim's body, And when he lets his victim become conscious again, the person experiences confusion, memory lapses, frequent panic attacks and/or insanity

Well, Mikael being a ghost, he can also transform into a human temporarily with the help of his best friend (Merlin, mentioned earlier) in which it is average witch, Merlin is also one of Mikael's romantic interests, so they tend to have a very strong connection and a healthy relationship even with trauma on both sides.

Well, I think this is the end of the post, questions and answers in the comments, if I remember something I will edit the post

((off topics: Sum Mikael drawings 🤌🏼))

[mangotangerine]

I got a question in a comment that I wanted to give its own post because I love yapping. Here is the question & the answer:

Do you consider your versions of Alastor and Vox as completely separate from their show versions at this point or are there parallels I'm missing?

tl;dr: yeah they're pretty much separate now.

I think this happens with with any non-canonverse AU, though, to some extent. Characters/people don't exist in a vacuum and removing the character from the context removes I think a core part of who they are.

So in removing Alastor & Vox from canonverse and into a modern human AU, I (and anyone else who does this) is cutting out essentially whatever their original (currently largely unrevealed to us as of Nov 25, 2024) histories/backstories are in both their time alive and in Hell. The further removed the AU is from canonverse, the more likely this is to happen.

My thought process for character development was essentially having to pick and choose which parts of their personality to bring with and build upon. I could've made Alastor a radio host and Vox a broadcaster and brought the media empires interplay into the modern age, but my main focus was on the whole murder husbands trope. I totally could've done that with radio vs. television, but it wasn't as compelling to me. A lot of people have done that already, which is great! I love seeing different interpretations of things, but I wanted to kind of explore it more from a... psychological/philosophical lens?

More below the cut:

If I'm going to make Alastor a cannibalistic serial killer, what would have been the catalyst for him to go from normal, non cannibalistic non-murderer to... what he is now, essentially. It would've been easy I think to just go with the whole "born evil" thing or lean into "sociopaths have no empathy" (both of which can easily be problematic) vibe but many murderers and serial killers are made, not born.

I could've gone with what I did for Vox—serious childhood abuse & general neglect—but I have to keep in mind Alastor's mixed-race identity and there are a lot of negative stereotypes it's easy to fall into because it's all around us in media (unfortunately).

So I made choices to directly subvert those stereotypes and provide a different representation that you don't see as often in media. Positive relationship with his father, happy home life for the most part, what would've been the catalyst for him to turn from well-adjusted to monster?

Also keeping in mind the location—if I'm doing a modern AU in New Orleans, I can't exactly avoid Hurricane Katrina, and the aftermath/effects of Hurricane Katrina are far more horrific than were ever reported to the general public, so I wanted to shine a spotlight on the real history there as well.

I gave him his job as conservationist and swamp scientist for easy body disposal, but it's also become its own thing now.

The first few chapters didn't really have this much thought put into them, but I think by chapter 4 or 5 I knew it was going to become way bigger than I had planned and started putting more thought into how these characters would've evolved.

So removing Alastor from his canonical context and into new context automatically essentially creates more of an "inspired by" type character, and the more he developed, the more independent he became from the canonical character.

I wanted to keep the intelligence and cunning, the cannibal/serial killer bit, and the asexuality—a friend described my Alastor as more demisexual and that hadn't been my intention, because I was sort of basing his asexual experience off of my own, so I guess that helped me figure out that maybe demisexual (still under the ace umbrella) is a better word for my own sexuality as well haha.

I also wanted to keep the general standoffishness. He puts on a mask in the show, and he does to some extent in INM as well, but they're for different reasons. In Hell he doesn't have to hide he's a cannibalistic serial killer, but in INM he does. His mask is more carefully crafted to hide that, rather than his nefarious intentions in Hell.

I accidentally made him kind of neurodivergent/autistic-coded in the process of crafting him (the autistic-codedness is more evident in WBGU than INM but still I think you can see hints of it in INM, especially as he grows closer to Vox), but neurodivergent just means divergent from the standard neurotype, and serial killers are pretty divergent when it comes to how their brain works and thinks.

It wan't intentional, I never thought, "Let's make him autistic!" so I hesitate to "diagnose" him, especially because (for better or for worse) neurodivergence and autism/adhd/etc are loaded words in society and people have a very specific image in their head when they hear/see that word, and Alastor might not fit that image for them. He's never going to go to an in-universe psychologist to get tested, so it's irrelevant.

If someone wants to HC him as that, or HC him as just a particularly neurotic perfectionist, both are equally correct I think. I'm a big "death of the author" proponent. Once you put something out there, it ceases to be fully yours.

My writing is like a two-way artistic experience. I have my own intentions and thoughts and I'm careful when I write to try to make sure I don't unintentionally say something I don't mean to, but the only thing I really have any control over are the words I put out there, and what I say my intention is, and beyond that it's out of my hands.

I love hearing theories and thoughts that people have for this reason—it's like collaborative storytelling in a way! If something comes off as WAY different from how I meant it, it's also a great signal that there's an area for improvement there that I can dig into.

UM anyway that got off topic.

Vox was easier to turn into a completely different character because we have even less information about him than we do Alastor, canonically. We don't know why he's in Hell, just that he's a goofy, neurotic radio demon-obsessed evil TV man.

I took sociopath + heavy mask/performance + rich + bisexual + silly goofy and built Vox from that. I made him a serial killer because murder husbands, and why the hell else would Alastor give that walking disaster the time of day if it wasn't a shared passion? Even IF his shirts are slutty.

I could've made him a dweeb (I mean I kind of did... he just, you know, grew out of it when he realized he wanted to be big powerful man), but I think I went for powerful and confident and bold because it was a good counterpoint to Alastor's quiet intelligence and I made him blond because my Vox in Accidental Bodyguard was blond. What says "American (Media Personality) and Capitalist" more than the blond hair, blue eyed stereotypical image of masculinity?

Then I gave Vox a white savior complex because I can't make him a blond haired, blue eyed, billionaire stereotype of American masculinity without acknowledging the white supremacist roots of that image (hence some of the tension between him and Alastor in INM).

This got really long, but I could blab forever about my boys.

In WBGU they're even more their own people, so much so that they'd kind of be unrecognizable if you didn't come from INM or if they had different names, so I don't anticipate that fic to get that much traffic despite all the effort and time I put into it.

I'm planning on taking the first half of WBGU (before we get to murder husbands bit) and editing it into its own original thing & see if I can get that published in the future, but we'll see.

Alas, the world is not ready for mainstream publications selling reworked brainfucking torture porn, so that must remain within Ao3.

[cnroth]

Fanfic Q&A

I was tagged a long time ago by @curator-on-ao3 and meant to do this later when I had time, but then I forgot. More recently, I was tagged by @strkamand, which has prompted me to actually do it this time haha. So thank you both!! 🩵 😘

1. Why do you write fanfic?

Short answer: Cuz it’s fun!

Long answer: I started writing fanfic in 2016 because I had spent the last year and a half clawing my way back to some semblance of sanity after a really shitty time in my life. We got Netflix for the first time and I found my favorite childhood show—Star Trek: Voyager. It was like a warm blanket in the cold.

I still remember playing Star Trek on the playground with school friends, inventing stories of ourselves as original characters on Voyager, and suddenly I had the thought—what if I actually did it? Made an OC that was actually complex and fleshed out and stirred her into the mix? Added more representation of mental health issues to the show? I also applied for grad school around this time with the goal of eventually working in the mental health field.

So I dusted off my old creative writing skills and began making fanfic as a way to share my ideas with other fans, explore ships and characters I thought were interesting and/or underdeveloped, or just enjoy playing with my favorite dolls while processing my own experiences, as well.

And here I am now, eight years later, still doing just that.

2. Which of your posted stories do you think about the most, even though the story is “finished”?

This is a complicated question, because the answer is and has always been the very first story I joined the fandom to share, and one that took me years to tell—the Far From Their Bones series. Technically, it is finished.

That being said, I may-or-may-not currently be working on something closely related to that… 👀

3. If you could give yourself fic advice from when you first started writing fic, what would that advice be?

I honestly can’t think of anything I’d say. I think that my fanfic journey, bumpy as it may have been, was what I needed to go through to become the writer I am today.

4. What’s your relationship to fic stats?

I rarely check them. Honestly, I post so rarely and a fair amount of my stuff is niche stories few people are interested in reading, my stats are probably shit anyway.

5. Is there a pairing or scenario or friendship you miss writing? If so, why? If not, why not?

The closest thing to an answer for this question is I suppose J/C. I used to be fairly prolific in that ship, but the community for that ship was eventually taken over by a few toxic people who manipulated other participants (especially newer ones) into a very narrow idea of what was acceptable as a J/C fan and shit-talked people who fell outside of that, and I ended up deeply burned. It took out my ability to read or write J/C for a long time. I’ve dipped my toe back in here and there since then, and I won’t say I’m done with that ship forever, but it definitely was a major pain having to grieve the loss of a ship that had brought me so much joy.

6. What motivates you to write?

Usually random story ideas that pop into my head when I’m trying to fall asleep at night.

Also, comments can sometimes prompt me to write more.

7. Why do you write for the fandom(s) that you write for?

I think that’s mostly explained above already. Someday, I might finally write the Hunger Games fic I’ve had in my head for many years, as that series of books/movies was also instrumental in my trauma recovery, but for now Star Trek: Voyager (and occasionally other Trek shows) is where I’m comfortable and inspired.

8. If you’re stuck writing a WIP, what do you do?

There are two strategies I use most often to deal with this:

One, making playlists of songs that fit the story in some way, whether through the lyrics or even just the vibe. Then I listen to that on repeat to help drive me into my other strategy, which is…

Two, I use imagery to develop compelling scenes in my head, mentally watching them and shaping them until I feel like I can write them down—even if they’re incomplete. In the end, I may end up dumping the scene, or changing it, or writing the most inspiring scenes first and filling in the gaps between them later, but ultimately the goal is just to get myself moving again.

9. What do you wish people knew about comments?

Comments prompt my brain to make more dopamine and serotonin. As a mentally ill person with a neurodivergent brain, that is HUGE.

I do my best remind myself that I’m writing fic I want to read, and that can often mean not many other people will want it like I do (or have the time to actually read it), but in the end getting comments lets me know I’m not alone and that my exhaustive efforts in creating fic are appreciated.

It’s also just like fucking Christmas morning when I see that email from AO3. Like, massive mood booster.

I also would like people to know that comments have, more than once, given me ideas and/or energy to write more.

10. Maybe there’s a question you wish had been on here. What’s that question (and answer)?

Not that I can think of 😊

I have no idea who has already done this, and most people I know who write have been tagged by the ladies who tagged me. If you have already done this, tag me in a comment on your post or something so I can read it!

And if you haven’t done this yet, consider yourself tagged!!

Let’s see ummmm @gijane-7702 @seema-unbound @cheile @caladeniablue @theredheadedcaptain @70thousandlightyearsfromhome anyone else who wants to join 🩵

[sinukiyo]

damn. I can't believe this story is over 😢.

I remember scrolling through ao3 looking for some Ken Sato fanfiction to until I stumbled upon your story and the the Kenji "Ken" Sato/Ami Wakita tag and I was like: people actually ship Kenji and Ami?

Me personally I was skeptical about the ship since it wasn't exactly the central focus of the movie even though it was kinda hinted at plus there wasn't anything to work with other than the nosy reporter digging into a famous sports star's secret life. and not many people cared for Ami as a potential love interest for Kenji (me included, haha.)

When I saw that it had over 2K hits at the time, and I was like: hmmm. is this story really that good despite the ship being not so popular in the fandom?

so I clicked on your story with little expectations of the story being that good but curious enough to see what you've cooked. after the first chapter, I was hooked. I found myself waking up at 4 in the morning my time everyday before going to work just to read your story.

I can't look or read a Kenji/YN or Kenji/OC fanfics the same no more coz of how good your story is. and what I've noticed from the few that I've read is basically writers retelling the plot of the movie but adding y/n or an oc in it who's another famous celebrity or a childhood friend or a personal assistant. that's why a lot of the times I prefer reading (and also writing) AUs instead of canon fanfics coz a lot of canon fanfics I've read tend to be a bit generic and predictable and a little too restrictive (that's just my opinion and personal critique.) And, at least, there's a bit more creativity and originality, and the writers get to place characters in different and unique situations. But Behind The Mask really blew my expectations for a canon fanfic, and I loved every single bit of it and it's one of the few canon fanfics I've read that doesn't feel restrictive, the characters are placed in different situations and there's some creativity while also playing around with the canon. And it inspired me to write my own Kenji x Ami fanfic lol.

I loved how you gave Ami her voice and made her feel real in this story. she's not just some journalist who's chasing after a story. she's also a person who has her own struggles, especially as a single mother having to deal with her bum ass narcissist of a baby daddy 🙄. I was like Ami's personal cheerleader throughout this story. And I loved how you wrote Kenji and Ami's relationship and Kenji's interactions with Chiho and Ami's interactions with Emi. AND OMG, WE GOT CHIHO AND EMI TO INTERACT 😆😆😆.

man.... I'm going to miss waking up early every day for this story 😩

Thank you so much for reading and for leaving comments everyday😭❤️ I’m going to miss writing it as well. It was such a fun experience and I’m glad a lot of people loved it.

[johaerys-writes]

Would Patroclus and Achilles in any of your modern AUs be willing to take a sex tape of themselves? And if they are/are not, why?

Ajshssgs okay first of all: anon your MIND 😩🔥 Thank you for blessing me with this ask, I had a really great time thinking of my answer for it 🫶

I honestly think that sex tapes + patrochilles go well in every universe that has recording technology LOL because like... Achilles is a shameless exhibitionist who has no shame when it comes to these things, Patroclus is much shier but if Achilles asked it of him I think he would do it ahah. I can totally see Disasters!Patrochilles experimenting with filming themselves a few years down the line, and I'm sure they'd both get a kick out of it. But I'm really not sure they'd ever share it online or anything like that. Achilles wouldn't care if anyone saw them, but Patroclus is much more private when it comes to his sexuality and his kinks. So yes for filming the tape, but probably a no on whether they’d ever share it.

I recently wrote a one shot with my pal @baejax-the-great which is a patrochilles threesome with Menelaus and is set in the universe of her fic Sweet Victory, which in turn is loosely inspired by Disasters. I feel like Achilles and Pat are much bigger sluts in this so they would totally both film the sextape AND share it LMAO (even if it was just to tease Menelaus while he's away 😌)

Also also I have another modern AU in mind (so many AUs 😩) that I've talked about before here, I totally intend to write it eventually I just need to iron out some details first haha so bear with me. So in this AU Patroclus and Achilles are estranged childhood friends that end up working together in the same firm, with Achilles as Pat's senior manager. Achilles is a BEAST when it comes to business, like completely ruthless, and Pat is at once scared of him and horny for him and has had a crush on him since forever, and things get even worse when he finds out completely by accident that Achilles has an OF account on the side and an IG where he's constantly posting thirst trap pictures of himself LMAO. A lot of messiness ensues 😏

So anyway, in this AU that I'm definitely totally writing Achilles would absolutely film a sextape with Pat and post it on his OF and Pat would be too whipped to ever say no lmaoooo

Thank you once again for sending this ask!! I had a blast answering it 💙💙

[shit-taster-connoisseur]

BOO!

Haha, Did I Scare Ya?

Anyways I Noticed That You’re Looking For Some Silly Questions, So Your Wish Is Granted Mate!

A Simple One Of Course, What Are Your Thoughts/Opinions About One Of The Villains Such as The Interesting Twins?

JXJDB sure did

These guys, are by far my favorite villians, also im sucker for sibling dynamics

Wished they were taken more seriously, but won't deny some of their episode were my favorites by far (especially OP T.R.I.P). Less because of the gags they thrown them in, but rather we do finally see glimpses of their own personalities cause up until then there rlly wasnt much on them besides them failing and falling out a whole damn window all the time xxbdj honestly, that calls into question how resistant these guys are holy shit

The sister(if anyone got any name suggestions for them plz tell so I can steal them too/j), is fed UP, and I love her for it, cause with the amount of shit she's face i'd go fucking insane too. I vote we should give her gun, all her problems would be solved/j but actually, i enjoy that she's a little shit, impulsive, arrogant, etc, but i think it kinda stems from a fear of failure because how else would they've been known as father's bestest spies? Sector V had knocked down a pedestal, and that fucks with her head, but then their failures began to pile up and now she's becoming increasingly desperate to prove that she's still somehow #1– in turn she because implusive, impatient, etc. Sbe 100% cares for her brother, so at the same time she feels like she's dragging him down, it all piles on. Maybe a vaca would do her some good.

The brother, I absolutely adore him – tbh I adore both of them equally. He seems more like the younger of the two in terms of personality, we seem always following his sister's lead despite how irrational it could be. His loyalty and compassion to her is something that kinda pushes him to being my fav twin spot, cuz well im a sucker for good brother characters. And despite his more "softer" attuide compared to his sister's, they're both evil and flawed equally on the same level ‐ mo manipulation or pressure(well kind), nah-da. As the brother is just as implusive, selfish, and arrogant, but he hasn't let their failure get to his head just yet – in turn, he has more clearer head than his sister, so he ends becoming a voice of reason than a leader.

(Readmore cuz this is long jdbdb)

It's pretty popular theory that they're delightful, which is something I think about a LOT when it comes to their characters. And a bit more headcanon here: their non-delightful selves are still conscious, as to me(inspired heavily by my SS au with a friend), being delightful serves as just a filter for kids. Kinda like you feel the urge to chuck a plate, but because you're delightful, it's like a parasite keeping your hands folded in your lap, controlling your behaviors and words.

And they both don't like that their delightful-selves are fighting against old comrades because they were probably ex-KND operatives. perhaps got caught during a mission in Father's mansion, and faded to obscurity in KND history. Either that, or maybe they were father's first delightful experiments? Before the DCFDTL? Maybe that's why they aren't as insync as the DCFDTL, cuz you'd think them being related by blood would strength that bond.

Honestly, i just want an AU where they're happy:))

More headcanons:

Lesbian/Gay solidarity and hostility

They are the entire Evelyn Evelyn album(or not idk, havent listen to it in awhile)

If they ever do end up being undelightfulized, they'd have vastly different asthetics out of spite. Not sure which ones yet

They'd marathon Saturday morning cartoons to get the full childhood experience!!

They consider the DCFDTL sort like cousins, a familial connection is there at least

They're presumed missing, so they live alone in a house bought by Father. They're able to split the chores usually, but the Brother is the better cook between them, so the sister just does the dishes.

Alternatively they also live in Father's mansion, but because they keep falling out of windows at comical heights, they're in bed rest planning their next schemes, therefore more out the way

If they got turned into animals, they'd probably be panthers or owls idk

(Lord save me it's nearly 1am on a school might xmsb)

[youraverageaemondsimp]

Any tips or something to start writing a fanfic?The truth is I have several ideas but I don't really know how to start. Thanks in advance for responding. I love your stories 💟

I'm not sure if I'm qualified enough to give professional writing tips yet but here's what I do personally:

I gather the ideas of what I want to write in a document first and choose which I feel as if I want to write more.

Honestly fanfics are just an elaboration of an idea, I mostly begin to build the world around it first, like let's say I wanna write an aemond x niece!reader fic, I decide which "niece" the reader is gonna be, whether she's aegons daughter (results in a big age gap between aemond and her) or rhaenyra's daughter and then decide what the situation between the greens and the blacks are like, whether I want it be canon relationships or whether I didn't want the whole usurping to happen.

From then on there I began to build the relationship between aemond and the reader, are they good friends? Or do they hate each other? Why do they hate each other? Any instance from childhood that caused them that? Etc etc

I think it's mostly just like, you have to begin writing first and then the flow will eventually come to you, I have been writing fics (with breaks inbetween) since I was 12 from wattpad, so it's a lot of error and trial.

You can take inspiration from how other authors start their fics, most of them begin with the world building before they get to the actual main part which was their idea, and I recommend reading a lot of fics and take note of it, However the way they begin it is also different, some start off with it directly and then deviate to how that situation occurred and build the plot around it, while some slowly lead up to it.

But honestly, the main thing is just you have to start it don't really overthink too much, and then you'll be put into a trance like state and at that point the story is just writing itself and you're just a vessel typing it haha

And you can also take inspiration from stories that aren't fanfics, like actual books that are written by famous authors and study how they write it too.

I'm not like a professional author, and the experience I have writing is mainly from wattpad 😭 as a kid, but then I didn't write for a few years and began writing again just last year.

And an additional tip I have is that if english isn't your first language, then you can google synonyms for the words you wanna use so you don't repeat them in a fic too often!

Once again, it's just personal experience of mine and not professional advice, I hope this helps 💗💗💗 sorry if this isn't the advice you wanted or for any typos!

And also thank you so much for liking my stories, it means a lot 😭😭😭💓💓💓💓

[moose-muffin]

It’s been a while, but after a lot of mulling it over I have an announcement for you all.

When I turned 13 I remember being so excited because I could FINALLY legally download tumblr and this account was born, or well, a different account that I ended up losing access to when I made a new email so THEN this account was born HAHA.

I will always be grateful for the love and support this community has given me over the years. I mainly used this blog as a means to make friends and talk about tickling without being the fear of being judged and it did that for me. Thank you all for being so kind. I had a blast making up silly headcanons for characters I enjoyed and loved that I could share them with others who found them just as fun.

I think I’ve realized though that my interest in tickling is not entirely SFW. For a lot of my childhood I assumed I was ace (I still do believe I’m somewhere on the spectrum) but I do know that tickling as a form of intimacy is not just platonic. I want to be able to explore the more NSFW sides of the community. And it wouldn’t feel right doing it on this account. I know that my time in the SFW tickle community has taught me so much. I know that community isn’t strictly for minors, but I also realize a majority are. And I want to keep it a safe space, just as kink communities are safe spaces for people 18+. In no way am I saying this interest can’t be SFW for those who are 18+, that’s valid!! For me, that simply isn’t my reality.

I don’t plan on deleting this account. It can serve as a time capsule of the experiences and the love that this community has to offer. Plus people do interact with my old posts from time to time and they were written as SFW, and I don’t want to take it away because I remember trying to look for niche fandom tk content and often finding nothing, so hopefully they continue to bring people joy.

I’m sure I’ll run into some of you on the other side, I don’t think I’m going to advertise my new account here just yet (it also isn’t created at the moment either HAHA). I’m not sure if I will share it here at all, so please feel free to reach out if you want to stay connected, as long as you are over 18.

To any minors reading this, I want to say I know it can be frustrating and it can feel like you’re being purposefully excluded from something. Kink communities are a beautiful thing, but the reality is there are sexual encounters that occur in those communities. And there is an age of consent for a reason, and while it may be different in different places, I feel strongly that 18 is the age that makes sense. Once you’re an adult, you’d be welcomed into NSFW communities with open arms, but these aren’t just rule for the sake of control, they serve an important purpose. They’re for your safety and also the safety of everyone in the communities as well.

I’ve felt inspired to do this for a while by some of the accounts around me. If you’re someone who’s also moved accounts, most likely you helped me realize I wanted to do the same thing. Thank you for setting a positive example and showing that it’s ok when things change.

If you’ve made it this far, thank you for reading! Tumblr is probably my favorite platform and a lot of that has to do with the kindness and also the setting and following of boundaries. Remember to read users intro posts before following and just because it’s the internet doesn’t mean you don’t need consent. (Minors cannot give consent for sexual encounters btw let’s not forget that please) Ok I think that’s about it. Remember to have fun and let yourself be weird and freaky. The world needs more freaks in all honesty. Fuck cringe culture too, do what makes you happy and take care of yourself and your friends. Good luck to each and every one of you!

[ohyespotatous]

Nisa!! how are you? this is just me popping in to give you a boop 💙 I saw your recent post, so glad you've been feeling better, I hope you're completely recovered soon!!

I also wanted to ask, what are some of your fav pieces of literature? I'd love to hear about a book or even just a few lines that have changed your life <3

hope you've been doing well!! lots of love ^=^

Oh my god, Meg!!! Hi~ *boop back 😻

I'm recovered now! Well, I might never fully recover; it's like my regular guest now haha. But I'm in a good state right now! And I'll try my best to keep fit for a long time :) Thanks for checking up on me! How about you? I hope you're happy and healthy always! Good luck with your internship and masters and everything!! 💪❤

Also, thank you for asking about my fav pieces of literature! This is my favorite topic to talk about. So... Uhm.. where do I start? :v

First, it's not easy to discuss literature without separating the works and the authors. Like other types of art, despite their marvelous works, sometimes the artists are not the best people. There's this prose that's close to my heart, but it was written by a problematic author, so it doesn't feel right to discuss it :(

But, if we talk about literature that changed my life, I think I should pay tribute to one of the first books I read. They inspired me to study hard and pursue my dream. It's called The Rainbow Troops by Andrea Hirata. I read it when I was 13 or 14. 

It's about the journey of ten motley students from a tiny elementary school in a rural area trying to pursue their dreams; and their two teachers. One of the teachers calls them the Rainbow Troops because they love to stare at the sky after rain and admire the magnificence of the rainbow.  

These students come from poverty-stricken families, and their school constantly faces threats of closure due to government officials, greedy corporations, natural disasters, and the lack of students' self-confidence. For most of us, school might be a struggle. However, for them, access to education is a luxury. One of the smartest students has to ride his bicycle 40 kilometers over a red gravel road to school daily. His sandals—made of car tires—burnt from pedaling for so long. 

I kept the money carefully in my pocket and never let go of it. Suddenly everyone looked like a thief. Money, indeed, has a cruel influence. – Chapter 40, My Promise to Bu Mus 

I was disappointed that so many intelligent children were forced to leave school for economic reasons. I cursed all of the stupid people who arrogantly acted smart. I hated those children of the rich who threw away their educations. – Chapter 46, His Third Promise

-

Gosh, the discrimination towards the lower class frustrated me! But their innocent childhood and the dynamic of rural life warm my heart. Their friendship and persistence in pursuing their dreams were also inspiring. 

But what I know for sure from my own experience at the poor school is that a hard-working life is like picking up fruit from a basket with a blindfold on. Whatever fruit we end up getting, at least we have fruit. Meanwhile, life without hard work is like looking for a black cat in a dark room with closed eyes, and the cat is not even there. – Chapter 48, Don't Give Up

I decided on my dream college right after I finished the book. Was I accepted to that school? Yes, in four years. Did I succeed in graduating from that school? That's a different story lol.

But anyway, it might not be the fanciest literature I've ever read, but it surely has a place in my heart. 

Sorry for the long answer >,< But thanks so much for the ask, Meg!!! It really made my day~ hehe 🐈💌🌿