#into the tags sections and i spent 5 minutes removing them

[levbolton]

Ooo good post! About “hikaru” I thought it was strange that if he was the lord brain snatcher why doesn’t he seem to remember replacing people before? And why didn’t he get emotions from snatching people before? Your post is making me think more that he is the brain snatcher but I had my own theory before that he was actually just being mistaken for it by the others.

Also I wonder if the brain snatcher only replaces boys since hikarus dad mentions that all the girls he rejected ended up fine.

You might actually be unto something with this. Maybe 'Hikaru' is not the brain snatcher, and just coincidentally shifted into the people world as the brain snatcher. you see, there's that six months space wher Hikaru wasn't neither the real Hikaru, but neither the real 'Hikaru'. (he keeps saying in the begining that he has memories of those experiences, but he has never experienced them, like the food or the movie, and i wonder if they really didn't see that cat at all in those 6 months that it reacts scared like that out of the blue, or eaten that tonkatsu or watched that movie they've seen 5 times) and then, the weird incidences start happening only during summer, so during those 6 months 'hikaru' was hidden inside the real hikaru's body would mean he wasn't there on the mountain to block this stuff (in case he is indeed responsible for keeping the yokais away)

tbh in my atheist opinion, he doesn't have memories of that because memories belong in a brain and not a soul. so once he changes bodies, and this brains, he doesn't move with the memories that stacy locked in thre previous host crane, he only occupies the next shell and makes do with what's there

there's something weakening the tori bareer, as they were talking, and thus the stuff kept on the mountain started to shift into the people world, but again, that six months space...

(also i don't really know what to think about who killed the old woman, i wouldn't say 'hikaru' bcs he seems innocent, but we've seen him capable to act violent, only holding back for yoshiki that he loves, also there's that sketch of him consuming prey in the oneshot so it's possible)

i don't know if the brain snatcher replaced anyone actually, they didn't go like "it's happening again", it's more like "it can happen but we must stop it" and now that it is happening those 4 men will most likely find out about 'hikaru' and do something abt him. (it can be possible that 'hikaru' kills one of them if that's the case)

maybe he didn't replace them as his father did not love them (he said he rejected them, so there aren't any feelings involved for him) unlike hikaru that cares for yoshiki

but really curious, maybe 'hikaru' is another spirit and not that big bad boy... although 'hikaru' has some sort of history for sure bcs otherwise yoshiki wouldn't have gotten that glimpse of flasback

[ffwriterbts]

Lunar- BTS Werewolf AU Part 5

AN: As I’ve said before, if slowburn BTS werewolf AUs that have springlings of angst, smut, and fluff, this is the story for you! Other than that, please leave a like or comment so I know you’re enjoying the story!! The sections should start getting longer as I keep updating :)

Also! Let me know if you want to be on a tag list for this story!

Word Count: 8k

Warnings: General angst; mental health issues; soulmate themes if you squint: seriously if you aren’t into angst don’t read this bc :)))) it’s angsty

Posted: 16 Jan 2021

Tag List: @happynightmareprincess

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When YN woke up, swaddled in the softness of Jimin’s sweater, with Yoongi’s hoodie balled up in her arms, the teddy that Hobi got her resting next to her head, the light was streaming through the curtains. The scents of the three boys swirled around her in a way that was so familiar, so calming, that she almost forgot that she wasn’t still with them.

Sighing, she rolled over, opening her eyes properly for the first time. A deep sort of disappointment settled into an ever-growing pit in her stomach as her eyes flitted across her own bedroom for the first time in months.

Sadness hits her like a wave, slamming into her with an unknown, unrelenting force that left her gasping for air.

Wimpers fell from her lips as she curled into herself, not wanting to get up. All YN really wanted to do was to do was seek out the same comfort she had been getting when she was with them.

YN buries her face in Yoongi’s hoodie, willing herself not to cry anymore. Rationally, she knew she shouldn’t feel so bad. She knew she shouldn’t be so hard on herself, shouldn’t let the pit of hurt and anger in her chest rule her actions.

But honestly, YN wasn’t thinking rationally. She wasn’t removing herself from her feelings like she had done for the entirety of her life. She wasn’t putting the reminders of the boys she had called housemates and friends for the past two months out of sight.

Instead, YN just squeezed her eyes closed, ignoring the gaping hole in her chest and breathing in the scent of the boys that swirled around her.

It was because of this deep pain that YN took almost two hours to rouse herself out of bed. It would have taken even longer, but eventually nature calls and hunger gnaws at you so much you have to eat something, even if you don’t really want to.

YN trudged her way to the bathroom, then to the kitchen. The small teddy that Hoseok had gotten her was held tightly to her chest as she stumbled around her house, the ever-so-soft material of Jimin’s sweater feeling almost scratchy against her sensitive skin.

She was cold. In fact the whole house was absolutely freezing, but she couldn’t bring herself to wrap up in a blanket or put on real pants. Looking through the kitchen, she quickly realized that she didn’t have much in the way of food she could eat without much hassle.

Shivering, YN ran a hand through her hair, grabbing a small bag of some snack food she had never seen before and stumbling her way to the study she found so much comfort in. Absently, she opened the snack, nibbling on it and tasting nothing.

Silently, YN thanked herself for setting up her laptop in its usual spot the day before. She knew the only thing that she’d be able to do for a while would be to write something terribly sad and angsty.

And that’s exactly what she did. She nibbled on the snack, which she eventually realized was one of the things that Jin and Yoongi had brought to her home on the day of the attack, typing away furiously as she tried to express the emotions that were swirling around inside of her.

She didn’t remember grabbing a bottle of water, but there was one on her desk when she withdrew from her typing enough to realize she was thirsty. She chugged it like she had never had water before in her life, staring vacantly at the computer screen. The words she had been writing for god knows how long swirled before her eyes as she realized just how tired she actually was.

She stood with a groan, her back feeling more stiff than it had in months. YN pulled the sleeves of the sweater down over her hands, picking up the teddy from its place next to her computer and clutching it to her chest again. She went straight back to her room, shivering as she slid her feet across the cold floors, longing for the warmth of another body to sedate the chill that seemed to have settled in her bones.

She felt like she was floating now, the same hole bleeding in her chest as the pain turns to a sort of uncomfortable numbness. Her whole body felt like it had just frozen in place with no room for emotions, good or bad.

Snidely, she thought about the way the boys would come to her with worry etched on their beautiful faces if they had been close enough to her that they could feel her emotions. As strange as it was to get used to in the beginning, having seven other people who could instantly tell when you’re having a bad day, YN actually really enjoyed feeling known like that.

She liked that they would ask her what was wrong and actually listen. She liked that they would shake their heads at her when they realized she just had forgotten to eat lunch and was grumpy because of that. She liked that each of them would approach her negative emotions differently, having their own ways to distract her and make her feel better. Whether it was because her injuries were particularly bad or because she just woke up on the wrong side of the bed, they were there to cheer her up in their own special ways.

They were bitter, the memories swirling around her head. YN buried herself under the blankets of her bed, cold settling in her bones as she held Yoongi’s hoodie to her cheek.

She thought of how Jin would sigh at her, shaking his head and telling her to go get Yoongi, the three of them were going to try out this new recipe that was too complicated for just one person to make. He never expected her to talk to him, but was always a sympathetic ear when she decided to open up.

She thought of how Yoongi had found her one too many times, sitting on the couch in his studio long after everyone else had gone to bed, typing away on her computer like it was the only thing in the world that mattered. He’d never say much then, instead clearing his throat and suggesting they both go to bed, closing the laptop with one hand and helping her up with the other. He’d give her a soft, gummy smile and open the doors for her, easily lifting her off her feet if she was having pain or trouble with her ankle. What she wouldn’t give now, to be carried to her room by Yoongi and told to get some sleep for once by the man who never seemed to sleep at night.

She thought about her energetic discussions with Namjoon about topics she really cared about, and how he would seat himself across from her in the library when she’d been reading for a little too long, drawing her out of her reprieve with discussion. His eyes would crinkle slightly at the sides, gleaming as his dimple was on full display at her becoming more and more passionate, forgetting whatever had been on her mind before, even if just for a few minutes.

She thought of how, whenever Hobi would notice her getting restless, he would ask her questions about what kind of music he should try dancing to next, or about what kind of interesting dances he should rope Jimin and Jungkook into doing with him. He would give that sunshine smile to her as she gave him ideas, making her feel like she really mattered.

She thought of how Jimin would try to curl his much bigger body into her lap, careful not to put too much pressure on her bad leg, just in case. He would snuggle her, usually half smothering her with praise and questions until she was laughing again. He would always plant a kiss on her forehead before he got up again, chattering away about how she “just needed some Jimin cuddles” with the biggest smile on his face.

She thought of how Taehyung would pick her up every time he caught her hobbling from room to room, chastising her in a half-joking, half-serious way for walking when they all knew she wasn’t supposed to be. Every time, her ears would get hot as she mumbled an excuse about not wanting to bother anyone or not really being in pain, even though it sent shots of agony up her leg every time she tried to walk until just two weeks before she left the house. Taehyung would just shake his head, his voice reverberating through her chest as he told her that he was her “trusty steed” and that he took his duties very seriously.

And she thought of Jungkook, the one she was closest in age to, who was still awkward around emotions. He would offer her up some of whatever snack he was having, and insist that they go play another round of whatever game he had decided was his favorite for the time being. He never asked what was wrong, or why she didn’t feel good, instead he quietly tried to take her mind off of it, which she appreciated.

YN cried herself to sleep again that night.

~~~~~~

The week passed torturously slow. YN was in a depressive spiral, freezing cold despite the warmth of her home, swaddled in blankets and clutching onto the things that she had been left like they were her saving graces. The boys felt disjointed, like they had a part of them ripped away and it made everything more difficult to do for them.

As much as it had pained them, they kept true to Namjoon’s plan and didn’t go anywhere near YN for the entirety of the week, trying to be sure that YN was what she seemed to be. If their week was any indication, they had found a lost Omega.

Yoongi, Jimin, Taehyung, and Jungkook had spent most of the week trying (and failing) to convince Namjoon to let them be the ones to patrol over where YN lived. Namjoon was able to see right through this though, telling them to stay away from there and that he would be the only one that goes over into that part of their territory until the week is up.

Begrudgingly, they listen. Though not without trying to convince Hoseok to do their dirty work for them, which he refused.

When it came to the week being done, they had their answer. YN had to either be one of the lost or she was able to pack bond, for whatever reason. Once Namjoon was fully sure that they needed YN with them, in one way or another, he rounded up the boys.

“You all know that it’s been a week since YN left us. And I think I speak for all of us when I say that this week has been absolutely torture.” Namjoon starts, pacing back and forth in the living room, looking at the boys before him.

“Right Joon, what have you decided?” None of them pay attention to who it was that said it, but they were all looking at Namjoon anxiously.

“We need her here. With us. She’s started the pack bond, even though we all know she couldn’t have meant to.” Namjoon runs a hand through his hair, pausing his pacing to stand in the middle of the room, turning to the six other men he called his family.

“Hyung, what are we going to actually do?” It’s Jimin who speaks up this time, shifting nervously in his seat.

“Tomorrow morning, be ready to drive over to hers. It’s almost an hour, because we will have to go around the forest completely, but we need to explain to her what’s going on and let her make the choice for herself as to what to do.” Namjoon takes a deep breath. “Jin can drive the one car, and Yoongi can drive the other, since they have both taken the drive before. But whatever happens tomorrow, we have to respect YN and her decisions.”

They all agreed, excitement building as they chattered amongst each other.

“One of you needs to come and help me gather some snacks to take with us in the morning, I know you guys will just be absolutely starving if we don’t have something for the ride.” Jin stands and smiles fondly at the three youngest, who smile sheepishly back at him. Everyone in the room knew that the comment was directed at them, especially Jungkook.

It was Jungkook who followed the elder into the kitchen, excitedly packing what seemed like enough snack foods to feed twenty people, thought they both knew that between the seven of them, they’d all be gone or close to it by the end of the next day.

~~~~~~

When YN woke up the morning the pack was coming to see her, something compelled her to get out of bed without the two or three hour upset lounging session she had been growing used to.

For the first time since returning to her home, she put on a pot of coffee and found some cereal that she wouldn’t mind eating dry. YN sat at her kitchen counter, wearing Yoongi’s hoodie like a dress, sipping coffee that was far too hot and way too bitter for her liking, crunching on cereal.

YN was completely zoned out, doing these things without thinking about what she was really doing. One hand was alternating between bringing the half empty coffee cup to her mouth or grabbing a few pieces of cereal at a time, the other clutching that teddy bear to her chest like it would fill the gaping void.

It was because of this autopilot mode that YN didn’t hear the knocking at her door until it was fairly loud. Confused and not thinking at all, she went and opened the door paying absolutely no attention to the fact that she hadn’t gotten dressed for the day yet and she was not dressed appropriately to be seeing anyone just yet.

She is met with the sight of Namjoon’s smiling face looking down on her, his deep and polite voice asking her if they could come in as the other boys stood behind him, clearly impatient.

“Y-yeah of course” YN’s voice is rough from not having spoken for almost a whole week, other than to let sobs fall from her lips. She shakes her head as she moves to the side, letting the pack into her home.

It felt strange, seeing the object of all of her emotions in the last week right there in her home, milling around the place in a curious fashion.

It is right then when she becomes fully aware of the fact that, not only is she clutching onto the teddy that Hobi got her, but she’s also not wearing any pants. Sure, Yoongi’s hoodie might as well have been a dress on her much smaller frame, but that didn’t mean she didn’t feel exposed as the seven men made their way into her home.

As comfortable as she was with them, she could never forget just how large they were in comparison to her. Or the strength that was so carefully hidden in their lithe bodies.

“Ehm- make yourselves at home. I’m going to get changed.” YN turns on her heel, ears hot as she hurries to her room, embarrassment rolling off of her in waves.

The boys, so used to being naked or close to it with each other because of the changes and the nature of their relationships with each other, honestly didn’t register anything weird with her appearance. They shot confused glances at each other as they watched YN retreat, but shrugged it off once they realized they could see her legs.

YN returned after a couple minutes. She had left the teddy bear in her room, and thrown a pair of leggings and Taehyung’s beanie on, taking a few deep breaths to steady herself. She couldn’t help the immense feeling of comfort at the knowledge the boys, her boys, were in her home again.

“Ah YN!” Hoseok is the first one to notice that YN had returned, giving her his sunshine smile. YN gives a little wave, standing awkwardly in the entrance to her living room and kitchen. She’s unsure of why they’re there, or what was expected of her, making her feel almost like a stranger in her own home.

It doesn’t take more than twenty seconds for Taehyung and Jimin to have her seated between them on the couch, each of them practically smothering her in cuddles from either side. YN is giggling before long, feeling like she was finally coming home. The two boys were being almost too loud as they exclaimed how much they had missed her.  

“YN!” Jin shouts from the kitchen, expecting to find at least a little bit of something in her fridge that he could whip up for lunch for all of them. He had a feeling that they would be there for quite a while.“Why is your kitchen empty? Do you not eat when we don’t feed you?”

YN feels her ears get hot again as she mumbles something about not having been hungry as Jin just scolds her more. As much as she hated the scolding, she couldn’t deny that she had missed Jin’s semi-parental attitude towards her. From their spots on either side of her, Taehyung and Jimin joke about how they’ll protect YN from the “fierce scolding” of Jin.

“Alright, enough Hyung. Boys.” Namjoon speaks, bringing the attention to him. “We are here for a reason, after all. YN, would it be alright if I talked to you? Privately?”

YN is quickly agreeing, trying her best to get up from her spot squished between Taehyung and Jimin without injuring herself.

“Would you like to talk in the study?” YN asks when she finally manages to escape, turning and walking towards it once Namjoon nods. For whatever reason, she doesn’t question the fact that Namjoon wants to speak to her alone.

They walk in silence until they get there, YN taking her customary seat at the desk and Namjoon takes one across from her after closing the door.

“What do we have to talk about that couldn’t be said in the other room? Is it bad?” YN speaks first, her voice hoarse as she avoids eye contact, fiddling with the end of the hoodie.

“Well, YN, it’s not necessarily bad, but it’s going to be a lot for you to process and understand, so we figured it would be easier for you if I were the only one here when I explain everything.” Namjoon answers smoothly, doing his best to assuage the fears he was sure YN had.

YN makes a motion for Namjoon to continue, looking anywhere but his face. Her ears were hot as it dawned on her just how put together the boys were, even though she was a complete mess. She didn’t like feeling like the only one that was affected, but to her, it was clear she was the only one feeling anything.

“Do you remember my first visit, when you were still on bedrest?” Namjoon gives YN a second to respond, continuing when he hears her give a soft hum in acknowledgement.

“Well, I told you then that you smell like an Omega, which is true. What I didn’t know then was if you were able to pack bond or not. Turns out that you most definitely can, and are probably one of the lost Omegas.” Namjoon pauses, watching YN intently as he waits for her to process what he had told her.

“Wha-” YN begins, brow furrowed as she mulls over what Namjoon had said. She knew what pack bonding was, what it meant. She knew that it was a connection far deeper than anything a regular human could experience. It was a family, a partnership, a lover, a best friend. It was special.  

“Is that why I feel so bad?” YN asks the question in a voice that is much softer than anything Namjoon had heard come from her before, and it breaks his heart.

“Now I can’t be sure beca-” Namjoon starts, pushing the glasses he had decided to wear up his nose as he begins an explanation that YN can just tell isn’t going to really tell her anything. She loved Namjoon, she really did, but he had a specific way of sugar coating things that left people without a grasp of the full picture.

“Joonie, please.” YN interrupts, wrapping her arms around herself as her head turns to the floor. The familiar name tugs even more at Namjoon’s heart, a lump forming in his throat as he sees just how much YN is really hurting. “Don’t sugar coat it. Did something happen? To make me feel so horrible?”

“We bonded. Or started to.”

“O-oh”

“Yeah.”

The room falls silent for what seems like way too long, neither person wanting to be the one to break the heavy silence.

“What does- what does this mean? For- For me?” YN finally speaks, thoughts racing. She internally cringed at the fact she kept tripping over her words.

She was grateful, in that moment, that it had been easy for her to pick up on the methods there were to keep the boys out of her head.

“First off we want you to come and live with us, permanently. We will care for you just like we did when you were hurt, but you won’t have to say goodbye. We will be there for you, no matter what. You’ll always be safe, always be cared for, always be taken care of. Omegas are always the most protected members of the pack, they’re the most vulnerable.” Namjoon’s voice is warm, almost too happy. YN can tell there's a catch.

“But?”

“But you won’t be able to live outside of the house that we inhabit. You’ll be a target for any other pack that wants to hurt us or find our weak spots, so you won’t be able to go anywhere without one of us, except for in the house.” Namjoon shrugs his shoulders as if what he said wasn’t incredibly shocking and wouldn’t greatly influence her decision to join them or not.

“I- What?” YN shakes her head. “You mean to tell me that I have to choose between feeling like someone ran me over a million times with a cement truck and stomped a hole in my chest, or always being targeted for murder?”

Namjoon doesn’t say anything, giving YN more time to try to process what was going on.

“And if I say yes, I won’t ever be able to go and do anything by myself? Or I might be killed?” YN’s voice is shaky as she speaks, and again, Namjoon doesn’t say anything.

“Can you give me a minute? Alone?” YN turns the chair back around and stares at her closed laptop.

“Of course. Yell if you need one of us, yeah?” Namjoon stands and walks out of the door, a sad smile gracing his face as he softly shuts the door behind him. He honestly couldn’t tell what YN was going to do, and as he walked away, he realized he hadn’t even mentioned the fact that they’d always be able to read her thoughts, even if she didn’t want them to.

He took off the glasses he had been wearing, running a hand over his face and pinching the bridge of his nose as he walks back into the living room area. Even though he’s expecting to be bombarded with questions, the boys don’t say anything as Namjoon moves into the kitchen, seeking the comfort of Jin without a second thought.

YN sat at her desk for a while, mulling everything over. She had always considered herself to be very independent, enjoying the ability to do things for herself, but she couldn’t shake how wonderful it felt to be taken care of. Sure, it wasn’t at all what she was used to, but she couldn’t deny that it made her feel loved.

Wanted.

Special.

And YN liked that, if she was being honest with herself.

But she also couldn’t imagine giving up her freedom. Giving up her walks alone in the woods, or her solo trips to town, or her trips to the city to go see this or that. The fact is, YN likes her time alone, away from everyone else. In the mansion, the only place she could go to get away would be her own room, which felt like she was a sad teenager again, hiding from her parents.

However much she wanted to just burst out with a yes as soon as Namjoon had mentioned staying with them permanently, she felt like she needed another perspective when it came to what her life would become in that home.

She didn’t want to make a mistake that would haunt her for the rest of her life, after all.

As much as it felt like the right thing to do, she didn’t want to intrude on what was already an established group, just because she didn’t feel good.

Especially not when they clearly weren’t half as affected as she was. Sure, YN had always known she felt things a little deeper than other people seemed to when it came to her friendships, but she didn’t realize just how fucked her emotions were until the seven men she had spent a full seven days crying over came back into her life, completely fine.

Deciding that she needed another opinion, she stood, quietly opening the door and heading towards the noise of the men in the other room. Purposefully, she stayed quiet and to the side, not wanting them to focus their attention on her just yet. She couldn’t deal with their attention being fully on her, not then.

“Yoongi?” YN’s voice is soft, sad. She was standing behind him when she spoke, causing the man to jump, twirling around to see what she needed. Sure, he had noticed when she entered the room, but he was not expecting her to be right beside him.

With a cough, he asked what she needed.

“Could I talk with you in the study? Please?” YN looks up at him with those big, innocent eyes of hers as she spoke in that same sad, soft tone. Needless to say, she could have asked for anything in that way and Yoongi would have lit the world on fire to get it for her.

Instead, he nods, motioning for YN to lead the way. She scurries back to the study, hoping that Yoongi will have some insights that will help her solidify if it’s the right choice or not.

Truthfully, she couldn’t think of anything else she wanted more than to go back to the way things were before this horrible week, but she also had to be sure.

YN takes a seat on the couch this time, watching with those same sad eyes as Yoongi closes the door. He sits down next to her, opening his arms as YN settles herself into his embrace.

If Yoongi was being honest with himself, he didn’t really understand why the youngest three liked physical affection so much until that first night YN had curled up beside him, sharing her blanket with him as she slowly ended up closer and closer to him. She claimed that she was “just cold” and that her burying her nose in Yoongi’s shoulder for half the night had nothing to do with the terrifying movie that Jungkook and Taehyung had decided was going to be the selection for that week’s movie night, but they could all see right through her.

After that first night, Yoongi would always open his arms to YN whenever they were seated next to each other, like now. Though usually it was more positive than it was in this moment.

Yoongi internally felt awkward as he heard YN sniffle sofly in his arms, though he couldn’t deny he wanted to hurt whoever had made her upset. Sure, he knew that it wasn’t rational, but he had always been protective of those he cared about, and YN was most definitely not an exception to that rule.

“It’s alright YN, I know this is a lot for you.” Yoongi speaks for the first time, his deep voice comforting YN in a way she had been sorely missing.

YN doesn’t speak for a long time. Instead she cries, burying herself in Yoongi’s arms. She had missed having him so close, having his scent to help calm her down.

“YN, darling, tell me what’s been going on, hm?” Yoongi moves YN off of him slightly, running a hand over her cheek to wipe away a stray tear.

“Are you sure you wanna hear?” YN’s voice is shaky, strained. The amount of unashurededness in her voice makes Yoongi’s heart break, and a sort of gross protectiveness come out in him that he hadn’t felt since the younger members of the pack had joined. As much as those three got on his nerves, he felt the same sort of protective love for them as he did for YN.

“Of course I want to hear. I’m always here to listen to you.” Yoongi’s voice is soft, careful. YN glances up, tears brimming in her eyes. When she sees Yoongi’s attention fully on her, his eyes searching her face to try to make sure he wasn’t overstepping and that she was as comfortable as she could be given the circumstances, those same tears spilled.

She takes a deep, steadying breath, leaning back away from Yoongi so she can properly look at him.

“It was horrible Yoongs. I felt like- like someone had ripped out my heart. Like there was a gaping hole where my stomach used to be. Like- like you didn’t want me. Didn’t care. ” YN shivered, eyes trained on her hands as she fiddled with the end of one of her sleeves, willing herself not to cry any more than she already had.

Yoongi notices this small nervous habit and takes her small hands into his much larger ones, rubbing a thumb over her knuckles in a way he hoped was soothing to her.

“I felt alone. I’ve never felt alone like that before Yoongi. Never!” YN sniffles, shaking her head. “I couldn’t eat, I either slept for too long or not long enough, and I was cold. It was so so cold. I didn’t feel like I’d ever be warm again.”

Her voice fades out now, sniffles coming more and more frequently. Yoongi took the pause in her speaking to pull her back into his arms again, instinctually knowing that she just needed to be held and reminded that he was there and that he wasn’t going anywhere.

Once YN had calmed down again, Yoongi held her at arm's length again, using the pads of his thumbs to wipe away the last tears from her cheeks again.

“YN, look at me.” His voice is soft, caring. He doesn’t speak again until YN fully turns to look at his face.

“I never want you to feel like that again. I’ll be here for you, we will be. What I felt this past week-” Yoongi pauses to shake his head, “-I wouldn’t wish that on anyone, especially not someone so fragile as you.”

YN can feel her ears get hot, wanting to say that she wasn’t fragile, that she could handle things. She wanted to tell him about all the terrible things she had gone through before, about how much she had dealt with all on her own, but she didn’t. The words died in her throat, because by their standards, by his standards, she really was.

“Do you understand what we are asking, by wanting you to come live with us? To be part of the pack?” Yoongi asks now, shifting the attention slightly.

“Sort of.” YN shrugs. Her fingers are back to fiddling with her sleeve and are quickly captured by Yoongi’s again.

“What are you concerned about? Hm?” He gives her that signature gummy smile of his, eyes crinkling at the edge when he notices how YN finally cracks a smile.

“I don’t want to lose my freedom. I can do things by myself, I don’t really need to be taken care of, really! I don’t want to become a burden on any of you. Or cause issues. Or put myself somewhere I’m not really needed.” She takes her bottom lip between her teeth, chewing on it absently as she watches Yoongi for his reaction. If there’s one thing she could trust, it would be Yoongi’s lack of ability to make anything something other than exactly what it was.

“I’m not going to lie to you, you know that. I don’t see the point in it. The way things were before you came back here, that’s about how they’ll be if you choose to come with us. There are only two things that will change.” Yoongi pauses, looking to make sure YN is paying attention properly.

“First, you will end up presenting fully as an Omega. When it comes closer to the time for that to happen, Jimin will have to be the one to explain it to you, seeing as he’s the one who has felt things as close to what you’ll go through. Second, you won’t be able to shield your thoughts from us anymore. If we want to read you, we will be able to. It’s not something we are looking to do, but the emotional state of Omegas affects the rest of the pack greatly, and that’s the way we have evolved to deal with it.”

YN swallows thickly, mind racing. She wasn’t going to lie, she had some, well, unsavory thoughts about the men that she had come to know so well. She really didn’t want all of those thoughts being common knowledge, especially not to the people they were about.

“You- You’re sure I won’t be able to shield?” YN’s voice feels sticky in her throat as she gets the words out.

“One hundred pre-cent darling, every thought that passes through that pretty brain of yours will be able to be accessed by us, if we want to read you. As our only Omega, your thoughts and feelings, your emotions, they will greatly affect all of us. We already feel what the others do, but with you, it’ll be ten times as intense. We need to be able to read you so that way we can always know what’s going on, what you want and what you need, without you having to explain it to us.”

“Oh”

“We already feel like we need to protect you, like you are our lovely little Omega. Once you’re fully ingrained into our pack, it’ll just be more intense.”

They fall silent, once Yoongi finishes speaking this time. He smiles absently at YN as she plays with his fingers, obviously deep in thought.

He had missed having her around more than he thought, if that was even possible.

“I’ll do it.” YN’s voice is so soft, Yoongi almost misses it.

“Are you sure?” Yoongi wants to make sure YN has really thought about everything before she says a definitive yes, even when he wanted nothing more than to squeeze the small girl into the tightest hug he could.

“Yes, I’m sure. I want to live with you. With all of you. I want to be your Omega just as much as I want you to be my pack.” YN tries to swallow the lump in her throat, willing herself not to trip over her words.

“I’ve never been more sure of something in my life.”

~~~~~~

The next two weeks were hectic, to say the least. Once YN had confirmed that she was going to be making the move from her own home to the mansion with the pack, there was a flurry of activity.

First, they had to decide who was going to stay with YN while she packed all of the things she would be needing. Like the big bad adults they are, the pack played a huge game of rock-paper-scissors for the privilege, with Hoseok and Jimin being the ones to end up winning.

After that game, the rest of the boys stayed around to help with whatever they could right then, but left in the late afternoon.

From then on, it was time for YN to go through and pack up everything she could to make sure she had enough stuff for living somewhere new.

She started with packing up things she didn’t want the boys to see, like her underthings and personal journals, before moving on to things that they could more easily help with.

Jimin was not a very big help, deciding that he wanted to cuddle one (or both) of the other people in the house instead of helping to pack and carry the boxes (and whining when he didn’t get his way). Both YN and Hobi found it to be adorable though, neither of them really minding the workload.

It was mostly deciding what YN would need for her everyday life, and what things she could leave in the home, just in case someone in her family decided to drop by unannounced. YN couldn’t offer up a real explanation for them, not without reliving years of trauma, so neither Jimin nor Hobi decided to push the issue when she fiercely insisted that they leave enough to make sure nobody would question that someone lived there.

Hobi would cock up an eyebrow when he felt the small prickles of fear from YN whenever he would go to put one too many of something in a box. He thought it was just plain weird that YN was so insistent on this one very specific thing, making sure to remember everything that she was doing so he could discuss it with both Jimin and the rest of the pack when he got the chance.

Jimin, whenever he felt the well of emotion swell up in YN, would do his best to distract her, telling her about this or asking her about that or pretending he needed a hug from her before he could do any more work. He would let angelic giggles fall from his lips as he drew the girl into his arms, picking her up and swinging her around until she felt happy again.

Neither boy pushed. They knew that YN would open up to them in time, and they didn’t try to pry into her mind either, even with the barrier that she had learned to keep up getting weaker by the day.

Every few days, the rest of the boys would show up and help with whatever they could for the day, be it moving boxes or sorting things or arranging this or that so it would look like someone was still living there. They all did their best to make sure that the transition between the house that YN had so many memories in and their own was a smooth one.

It was during this transition time that the boys fully realized two things they hadn’t really thought of before. On the lighter note, YN had an absolutely horrible sleep schedule and completely disregarded the sun’s appearances in the sky. The second, much darker, thing that they realized was that YN had hidden trauma.

What that trauma was? They couldn’t tell you, but they realized as she was packing that she was afraid of something. Again, she had very carefully hidden whatever it was she was so scared of, to the point that none of the boys knew what in the world she held such a deep terror for.

They decided among themselves not to bring it up though, deciding that YN would have to talk about it on her own. Even though they could feel her thoughts and emotions more and more with each passing day, they didn’t want to break the trust that they had built with her on the cusp of such an important move.

~~~~~~

And this is how things were when YN finally moved everything into the mansion. She had gotten everything settled into its rightful places fairly quickly, finding a system that would work well for her.

She settled into the routine of being in the house incredibly quickly, feeling almost as if she had never really left at all. It was hard to believe that just three weeks earlier she thought she was saying goodbye to this place forever.

In the mornings, or whenever YN decided to get out of bed, she would sleepily head down to the kitchen and grab one of the cold brews that always seemed to be in the fridge. She had always liked cold coffee more than hot coffee, so she was grateful to whoever kept the fridge stocked with her favorite flavor of cold brew.

From there, YN would carefully sip on her drink as she made her way around the mansion, looking for either Jin or Jimin. Both of them tended to stay in the house a lot, as neither of them had any sort of external job and neither of them went on patrol, if it could be helped. Whichever one of them she found first, she would either follow around until she was fully awake, or sit and watch as they did whatever they were doing at the time. YN would then go and find the one she hadn’t found the first time, repeating the process until she was satisfied that she was fully awake and ready to face the day.

At this point, YN would make her way back to the kitchen, stocking up on snacks and grabbing more coffee before making her way to one of the desks in the library. She’d spend the next few hours planning and doing research, hunched over the desk as she furiously types whatever it is that she needs to for the time, only taking small pauses to sip more of her drink or shove more of whatever snack she had grabbed into her mouth.

It’s only when the call of nature becomes too much to ignore that YN will stand and stretch out her spine, feeling stiff as she tries to pack up her things. Yes, she had found out early on that there were a couple maids that came in a few days a week, but YN couldn’t imagine leaving any sort of a mess for them if it could be helped and would clean everything she could whenever she got done with anything. Habits die hard, after all.

It always seemed to happen that one of the others would be getting home around this time, so YN would make her way into the surprisingly lush living room and curl up in some blankets and watch whatever happened to be on TV until someone caught her attention.

Usually, it would be Jungkook and Taehyung who returned first. YN didn’t quite understand why or what it was that they actually did, but they spent their days patrolling in the vast forest around the house. Jungkook had tried to explain it to her a few times, but she just never really understood what was going on.  

When the two youngest would get to the home, it was a 50/50 shot as to if they would transform from their wolf form to their human one, or if they’d hang out around the house as wolves. Either way, they would find a way to sit on either side of YN and just relax with her for a while. Sometimes they would talk about what they had been doing or cool things they had seen, and other times they just wanted to get some affection from their favorite Omega.

Eventually, Hoseok would appear and steal Jungkook to either work out or dance with, and Jin would come in to steal YN so they could spend their time cooking the evening meal together. Every single day, without fail,  Taehyung would grumble about how “the Hyungs took the fun ones” before going off to try and find Yoongi. And everyday, without fail, Yoongi would be found in his infamous Genius Lab, annoyed to high heaven that Taehyung had come in to “bother” him, even though they both enjoyed the interruption.

They always tried to eat together as a whole group, crowded around the table laughing and talking about anything and everything. As much as they would bicker and argue, none of them could deny the love and happiness they found in each other.

After their meal, they would break off into groups and do this or that. Sometimes they would go as a whole group to have a movie night, video game tournament, karaoke night, or something else that they could enjoy as a whole group (with the loser having to tidy up the kitchen and dining room). Other times, YN would make her way into the kitchen and start cleaning while the others broke away to do whatever it was they had planned for the evening. Whenever YN took it upon herself to clean up whatever mess was made, Hoseok would always come and help her, smiling and laughing with her as they got the place tidied up.

It was at this point that YN would slip away with her laptop under her arm, a water in one hand and her charger in the other, heading to the Genius Lab to work on her stories. Despite everything else, she still had deadlines to meet and a need to be alone sometimes, and she knew that Yoongi wouldn’t go back to the ever-so-private room until he was done doing rounds with Namjoon for the evening.

This gave YN about two and a half hours or so completely to herself, where she could be alone with her thoughts and feelings. She could feel the world she had built for her characters without the worry that anyone or anything would be there to interrupt her, could get deep into what the characters were doing and saying and feeling without worrying about what they boys would think of her and the world she had made. Honestly, it was incredibly freeing for her to be able to have that time and space where she was completely alone with her thoughts.

And when Yoongi did make his way back to his favorite room in their home, he fell into the habit of bringing an extra bottle of water with him for YN. The two would settle into a comfortable silence once Yoongi had settled in, both of them finding peace in the fact that the other person was in the room. Every so often, YN would ask Yoongi a question about this or that, or Yoongi would ask YN to give her opinion on a section of music, but most of the time the only sounds in the room were the soft taps of the keyboard and the even softer breathing of both bodies.

Eventually, one of them would end up looking at the time and mutter something about going to bed, which the other would ignore for at least another hour or two, when their eyes were heavy. YN would fall asleep on the couch without meaning to every couple days, which gave Yoongi the ultimate symbol to get them both to bed.

Yoongi would sweetly clean up the studio, making sure everything was off and where it needed to be and packing up whatever YN had brought with her, before he bent and picked her up, carrying her up to her room and tucking her in before making his way to his own room.

It was a simple, domestic sort of life that they all led, and they couldn’t of been happier with the way things were turning out.

[mvnvgedmischief]

unremarkable days.

summary: sirius black is trying to be a good man, a good brother, a good person. Sirius has a steady job designing book covers for a publishing house, a flat he never leaves, and a traumatized brother who was just removed from the custody of his parents. All in all, it's wildly unremarkable.

chapter:  5/?

characters: sirius black, regulus black, wolfstar, background marauders

tags: tw: canon compliant abuse, child abuse, social services, abuse, eating disorders

read it on ao3 here

read the last chapter here

words: 4.2k

Sirius felt his mind whirring, as usual. God, it was so hard for him to be normal, to cope with the stress and the frustration and the exhaustion. He didn’t know how he was meant to. He remembered just a month ago, when Alice told him he should take a parental leave. Six weeks off he could have had if he wanted them. But he wanted to keep his trajectory undisputed. It was a mistake, in hindsight. He didn’t know then just how difficult his parents would make things. He didn’t know then what he knew now. He would have said “fuck it” to his trajectory if he would’ve been able to sleep. After all, it was the only thing he really wanted. It was the only thing, other than Regulus’s safety. 

He knew that he couldn’t do anything about this Remus situation. It was too dangerous. If he did something, he didn’t want it coming out in court. If he didn’t, Remus would probably never approve a design again. At least, not from him. So he chose to do what anyone would in his position. He called Marlene and looped in Alice. The calendar invite specified the meeting would begin in twenty minutes. He had titled it “Team Touchbase: The Girls are Talking Shit Again” in hopes to lighten the mood. However, there was no way that it would work. Not with the conversation he was about to have. 

He found himself breathing deeply. Trying to muster the courage to do this. They would be upset. He was sure of it. Especially when it was something this earnest, this niche and close to his chest. But Sirius didn’t have any other choice. Not as far as he could tell. So instead, he made plans for all of the inevitable ways they would try to convince him not to do this. But his mind was already made up. There was no going back now. Not when he was already this committed to the decision. 

“I need to be dropped from this project.” He doesn’t even bother with pleasantries. “Alice, please take me off of this project.”

The scoff caught him off guard. In all the time he had spent working closely with Marlene, she had never scoffed at him. Then again, he’d never asked to be taken off either. “You’re gonna let one bad meeting get to you? It’s not that big of a deal, Sirius.” Marlene was looking at him expectantly. As though she expected him to realize that he was wrong and laugh about it. 

“They’ll all be bad. I need to be dropped from the project.” He stated it like a fact. Maybe because to him, it was one. He just kept repeating it because if he said it enough times maybe they would just believe him and drop him from this book, and this chaos.

“What happened in your meeting earlier? I feel like I’m playing catch up.” It really wasn’t fair to Alice that she didn’t know. But Sirius didn't feel like explaining. 

“Sirius wants to get dropped from the poetry book.”

“But—“ Alice paused. She looked like she was sussing something out. “But aren't those your favorite pet projects?” 

“Yeah, but—” 

“So what’s the problem? “ Marlene cut him off again, and Sirius was beginning to lose his will to do this. He knew he couldn’t just not show up to meetings, but it would show them he needed to be taken off this project. 

“Alice, I have so many projects right now where the author doesn’t hate me. I don’t really have the time to be on a project where he does.” He wasn’t even acknowledging Marlene right now, because she clearly didn’t understand. why he wanted to be taken off. And that was okay, he didn’t mind, as long as he could get off this project. 

Marlene and Alice were good people. They weren’t going to make him do this when he reminded them of how much he was doing, how much weight he was actually pulling. He was sure of it. 

“Bullshit. He doesn’t hate you.”

Well that wasn’t what he anticipated. 

Marlene wasn’t having this. She began to extrapolate on her point, and Sirius was only half listening. “He thinks you’re cool and intimidating, Sirius. He was trying not to feel small. It might not be your style to take that on, but he doesn’t hate you and you know it.” Marlene seemed really keen on keeping him on this project. Sirius wondered why for a moment, but he couldn’t be sure. He didn't know how hard she worked to put him on this account in the first place. 

“Marlene, I don’t know how else to tell you this, but,” he could feel his tone rising. He was starting to get upset. “I don’t have the luxury of time right now to redo the last week of work by myself. Especially when he wants it by today. I don’t have the fucking time. All because he doesn’t like me. I don’t have the time. Take me off the fucking project.” 

“I’m sorry what? What even happened in this meeting?” Sirius wished she had just been there. He wished she watched it happen, because the idea of going through all of the gory details all over again made his skin crawl. 

“Her,” It was probably unfair to place that much emphasis on the word, as though it was Marlene’s fault, “client told me to start over, and when I asked him for any feedback, he essentially told me that if I couldn’t figure out what was wrong with it that I should be out of a job.” 

“You’re being dramatic, Sirius! He didn’t say that! He just said that–” She paused, and Sirius assumed it was because that was exactly what Remus had said. “that you were the artist, not him.”

“Marlene, we don’t let our junior designers take project lead most of the time. I know you really wanted him on this project, but one of the reasons that junior designers don’t lead projects is because a team of two designers on one project is less likely to get bullied. Start cc’ing me on all your emails, I’ll be overseeing this project. “ Alice was speaking with conviction and grace, something Sirius knew he lacked.  He knew that lacking in that made him hard to root for, but he didn’t care. 

“Can I clear out my schedule from these meetings? I really don’t want to even look at them anymore.” He wished he didn’t sound like a kicked puppy right now.

“No.” Alice affirmed, “You are not about to let a client bully you out of your job. Besides, I’m overseeing this project, and this relationship. If you’re not there, there is no relationship.” She really had an air about her that made her hard to question. Sirius wished he had that. 

With that, the conversation was over. Neither Marlene nor Sirius look satisfied, but Alice has provided her mentee as good of a solution as he was probably going to get right now. And effectively Marlene got what she wanted. Sirius was still on the project. 

“Both of you, take the day to cool off. I’ll be getting in touch with the client later today to make sure that our client relationship terms are actually being upheld. Something tells me he didn’t read them.” 

Sirius nodded numbly. He felt emotionally tapped out. There was no way that this was going to work. How was he supposed to juggle all of this, on top of his already stressful life. So instead, he logged off, like Alice suggested. He was not going to be logging back on any time soon. He could practically guarantee that. 

Sirius found his way to the couch, with its ever inviting comfort. All of the coziness of falling asleep, none of the bedroom associated trauma. That was definitely a bonus. Falling asleep on the couch always seemed far safer than falling asleep in his bed. There was less likelihood of nightmares, less anxiety, less flashbacks. It was a wonder Sirius ever made it to bed. Today, he didn’t. He sat on the sectional, curling himself into a small ball in the corner, and turned on something low intensity. He put on a documentary series about penguins, which felt like it would be soothing, and before he knew it, he was asleep. 

He was lucky when he logged out of his email, it auto populated his Out of Office message. Or at least, usually he thought that. Today he would have rather died, then have that functionality turned on. Because he was sure it was what prompted Remus to wake him from his peaceful nap with a call. 

Well, peaceful was a strong word. It definitely had its own fair share of thrashing, but Sirius would take thrashing and nightmares he couldn’t remember over this phone call. He dreads it until he slides the accept call button.

“Sirius Black.” He begins, because what is there to say. His voice sounded thick with exhaustion. He could hear it.

“We need to get that meeting on the calendar.” Didn’t Remus know he could just send a calendar invite? This remote thing wasn’t nearly as complicated as he made it out to be. 

“I’m out of office Remus.” His tone was dripping with contempt. He didn’t want this. He wanted to sleep. 

“You’re always out of office. You never answer when i call you, it’s fucking nutty how hard I have to work to get you on the phone.” 

“It wouldn’t be if you could just check the google calendar or get your nose out of my business.” Sirius didn’t know he was feeling this spicy today. But apparently, he was enjoying controlled confrontation.  

“i don’t think that’s—“ 

“Stop asking people why I’m not in office. It’s none of your business.” He wasn't pulling any punches right now. He was going to get this man off of his back. “It’s fucking weird. I don’t know you.”

“I was just–“ Remus wasn’t going to get a word in edgewise. Sirius wasn’t going to let him. 

“And for that matter, it shouldn’t matter whether or not I’m remote. It seems to bother you so much, but you were the one who tried to put me on the project. You were the one who asked Marlene about it. I’ve been remote since before you got picked up, it’s not news to anyone else on the team. It’s weird that you’re so concerned with me.”

“You were the one who—“

“That was a big fucking mistake.” Sirius spit in response. Sure, he wanted to see Remus again when he had asked him on that date. But putting it all in perspective, he couldn’t do that. And he didn’t like that Remus was pressing everyone for the details of his personal life. He would rather cut this off here, not risk the court date and the details being aired out. Especially not since they could be used to take Regulus from him. He couldn’t risk it. 

“What was the point of it then? Why’d you ask me and then pull this?” Remus’s voice sounded small. Like he was going to cry. 

“I liked you until you started prying into my life. I don’t need more people running around trying to dig up information on me.” Sirius shouldn’t have said that. He felt it in his chest, but he couldn’t take it back now. He practically wants to scream, you could have just waited, I would have explained. But he could not do that, because it definitely wasn’t true. 

“Oh.” That’s all Remus said, before he clicked the phone off and hung up. 

Sirius didn’t have the time to think about that. He just didn’t. While six months ago he would have spiralled out of control thinking about what that short “oh” meant, but he couldn’t spend that time right now. Shit. What time even was it? He checked the time when his eyes began to focus again, and took a moment to try to collect himself. It was half past five, and he had no time because Regulus would be home from football in twenty minutes and Sirius needed to have dinner on the table. So he jumped off of the couch, and tore from the living room area into the kitchen. What was he even going to make? How would he even pull this together? 

He was moving at a speed he wasn’t sure he even possessed these days. He was running through what he could make mentally, trying not to come up with anything that would wear on him too heavily or signal a lack of effort to Regulus. It was a fine line that he walked every night. When food was too terrifyingly bland, too ashen in his mouth, and too overwhelming to his mind, how did he settle on something comforting for his brother? And on top of that, he needed to be quick.  He was running out of time.  He grabbed a jar of pasta sauce that he had made earlier in the week, and a box of spaghetti, and hoped that this would be enough. It wasn’t good enough to stand up to the chefs in the Black family home, but then again, he didn’t think Regulus wanted that anyways. 

When Regulus finally walked through the door, Sirius was almost done cooking. He had meatballs in a pan, the pasta was strained, and the sauce was warm. Maybe this would be enough. Maybe he would have done enough for them to just enjoy dinner, and have a normal night. 

“Hey, Siri.” Regulus looked calm for the first time in a long time. Hopefully tonight would be a good night. Hopefully they could have a normal meal, laugh and smile and have a good time. It would be nice. 

“Hey, Reg.” Sirius replies, putting together a bowl for his younger brother. He wanted so badly to just let things be normal. He puts one together for himself as well, and brings them over to the table.  If he needed to do it, he would. He didn’t want to be anything other than a positive force in Regulus’s life. He didn’t want to cause problems for him. “How was school?” 

Regulus looks up, god, when did his eyes start looking so sad. Where did the light he used to have in his eyes go? Had Sirius really missed so much  of his life? “School was fine. Kind of long. They sent me  to the  social worker today. Grilled me on what it was like living with you.”

Sirius felt his eyes go wide. Sure, it wasn’t surprising that they did, but still, it terrified him. 

“I told them everything was awful, obviously.” Regulus chuckled, and for a moment, Sirius’s heart dropped. However, in a moment, he was laughing right along with Regulus. Of course it was a joke. He hadn’t told them that, because he didn’t want to go back. Sirius was terrified of anyone taking Regulus, but Regulus seemed to be terrified of being taken away. At least today, he seemed to be. “I told them it’d be easier to get acclimated if someone stopped mum and dad from taking us to court all  the time.” That statement was smaller, more fearful. It was as if Regulus was afraid he had done something wrong. 

“Mate, I–” Sirius began, but Regulus stopped him, “Siri you can’t stop them. You don’t need to apologize to me.” 

That sentence could have made him crumble. It probably would have, if they weren’t interrupted by a knock at the door.  Sirius felt himself jump, and he watched Regulus do the same. God, Sirius wished they weren’t so fucking damaged. He wished that any noises that they didn’t know was coming didn’t startle them.  He wished they hadn’t been conditioned to be afraid for so many years. But then the key is clicking into the lock, and  Sirius is jumping up. He  doesn’t want this right now. He can’t do this right now. He knows it’s Jamie as soon as the sound of the tumblers click into place.  So he walked over  to the door with speed and a mission. He would keep them out of his home if he could help  it,  because he couldn’t do this tonight. They needed a calm night at home, a night of peace and family time, and Regulus was shifting uncomfortably  in the chair. 

“Jamie, you can’t  be here.”  Sirius began, before he even opened the door. 

“Mate, you didn’t come to the family dinner. We wanted to see you, so we came  to you,” James laughed and when Sirius looked around, it was the team. Including Remus. 

“No,” Sirius puts his foot behind the door,  holding it closed with only  his head poking out. 

“But Sirius it’s been forever since anyone’s seen you,” Peter called from behind him.  

“No, lads. Go home. It’s a school night.”  Sirius wasn’t budging. In fact, he was pleading.

“You don’t have a kid.” Remus called, clearly looking bitter. Sirius wanted to scream that he didn’t know what he’s talking about, because he didn’t.

“Go home, guys. You can’t come in. It’s a school night.” He repeated. They couldn’t. He didn’t want Reg to be so uncomfortable, which he clearly was. 

“Fine.” James looked irritated. Sirius understood why. He understood that he had forgotten the plans James made, but at the same time, he couldn’t juggle this right now. He didn’t have the time for all of this. He knew he had been MIA from his friend’s lives, but this wasn’t forever. It was just until he was done with all of these hearings. Just until his parents would stop. Just until Regulus felt more comfortable. Just until the chaos ended. 

Sirius returned from the door, and sat down at the table again. He didn’t really care to talk about it, but his brother looked so guilty that he felt like he had to. 

“They could’ve come in. I would’ve eaten in my room.” His eyes welled with tears, and he looked so deeply uncomfortable. 

“Reg, this is your house. Not theirs.”  Sirius responded with as much authority  as he could muster, but he definitely didn’t want to scare him. He didn’t want to seem like his parents, he didn’t want to behave the way that they did ever. It was a fine line to walk, and he knew it would get harder when he needed to put his foot down, be a disciplinarian in any way. But for right now, that wasn’t a concern of his. Right now he was much more focused on making this a welcoming environment. It needed to be comfortable for him before they could handle anything else.  

“It’s your house, you can have people over if you want.” Regulus’s voice sounded thick with concern, laced with guilt. Sirius was terrified that he was royally screwing this whole thing up. He wanted to be a good brother, a good guardian, a support system. “I don’t wanna cause problems.” There it was, the sentence before the crumble.  Sirius could see it coming, because it was like looking into the past. Regulus reminded him of himself so much that it hurt sometimes. 

“Reg, mate,”  he started, and then he stood up (and pretended that he wasn’t seeing stars). “You aren’t causing problems,” in just a moment, he was beside his younger brother and his arm was wrapped around the teen’s shoulders. “I’m so glad you’re here. All I’ve ever wanted is to get you out of there. I just couldn’t before. The council wouldn’t let me.” 

“But– but–” Reg was stuttering and spiralling, “If I wasn’t here they wouldn’t be taking us to court all the time, there wouldn’t be private investigators, you wouldn’t have to worry.” His words felt like burns on Sirus’s skin. It felt like a vice gripped his heart, and all he wanted to do was support his brother.  All he wanted was for everything to finally be okay. 

“Reg, look at me.” Sirius’s calloused hand gently pulled his brother’s shoulder to face him. “I want you here. I have wanted you here since I left. I missed having my kid brother around, alright?” 

“Oh,” Reg responded, but he had already become despondent and detached. He wasn’t coming back from the stress and the emotional turmoil tonight. Sirius understood. He had been like that when he first left. Hell, he was still like that. He didn’t have the energy to do for himself what he had done for Regulus, by getting him the best treatment he could, and making sure to keep him together. He was trying to do for Regulus what Euphemia and Monty had done for him. He knew that he wasn’t measuring up to them, but he was trying. He knew that he had taken for granted what they had done, he was re-engaging in behaviors that weren’t healthy for him. Things they had worked so hard to pull him out of. But he was trying, and he didn’t have the time to take care of all of those old behaviors that had flared up. He didn’t have the energy to work on himself, when he had all of this going on. 

Shortly thereafter, Regulus decided to go to bed. Sirius understood, it had been a lot of effort to go to school, and footie, and deal with the stress of Sirius’s friends showing up out of nowhere. And Sirius was thankful in a way, because he was about to rip into James for doing this again. He should know better. Within minutes, he was ringing James and seething. He can barely wait until the phone is done ringing to start going in on him.

“Jamie, you can’t fucking do that to me.” He began, “You can’t just bring people to my fucking house, especially not people who don’t know what is going on. I can’t have people over– they have a fucking PI looking into me, documenting everyone who’s here, when they’re here. I can’t have a bunch of people over on a fucking school night! They’re going to try to take him from me over the smallest fucking thing, let alone having several twenty somethings over in the middle of the week out of nowhere!” He was not even taking a moment to breathe, “How could you fucking do that to me? Why do you want to help them?  I can’t even fucking leave my house without being fucking interrogated about it every two weeks in court! You can’t bring people here!” He reached up to push his curly black hair out of his eyes, and he realized that he was crying. He was really caught off guard by it. 

James waited a moment, before responding. James was always much better about keeping his cool than Sirius had ever been, and if he was honest, Sirius appreciated it. He appreciated that James kept it together when he couldn’t. “Sirius, I didn’t know. I don’t want you to get him taken from you. I’m sorry.”

“Jamie they can’t do it– they can’t take him– I can’t let them–” Now it was Sirius’s turn to spiral. The anger had subsided, and all that was left was his fear. He was terrified that he was going to lose his brother again, and he couldn’t handle that. 

“Siri– a judge would have to be mad to take him from you.” While that might have been true, it didn’t quell Sirius’s fears. 

“They have so much money, Jamie. They have so much power. They can do whatever they want and get away with it. It doesn’t matter if it’s legal.” Sirius wanted to curl up into a ball and disappear. He was so terrified, and there was nothing that anyone could do to make this less terrifying. It was almost terrifying just how much power the Black family actually held. Sirius wasn’t sure that he could do enough to stand up to them. 

“I’m worried about you, Pads.” James let out a sigh, it seemed like this was a conversation he was dreading having. “You’re alone all the time. You never go anywhere. You’ve been lashing out at people— Pads, I can’t remember the last time it was this bad.” He sounded almost as terrified as Sirius felt. 

“I see them more now than I have in years, Prongs. I can’t handle this.” His voice is breaking. He was trying so hard not to lose it, but it hadn’t worked and it probably wouldn’t anytime soon. 

“You haven’t been seeing your counselor.” It wasn’t a question. It was a statement. 

“You don’t know that.” He was right, Sirius hadn’t been seeing his counselor. 

“Yeah I do. You’re online when you usually see her. Is it about the money? Me and Lil can help you out with money.” Sirius hadn’t expected to be called out like that. He didn’t have the energy to handle this conversation right now. 

“I can’t do this right now.” Sirius responded, “I’ve gotta go.” He didn’t really, he just wanted to be alone. He just wanted to not talk about it anymore, pretend everything was fine, dissociate for hours. That was what he wanted. It was completely unremarkable. 

[lesbianlovelanguage]

I’m Real (And I Don’t Feel Like Boys)

Harringrove for BLM prompt for the amazing @gideongrace who requested some asexual Robin and Barb. Hope you like it bb.

You can find out more about my HfBLM here, or a whole list of others who are contributing here.

--

Robin’s least favorite stereotype was that all band kids were hypersexual. Sure, band camp got a little wild sometimes, but more because of the weed almost all percussionists had on them at all times or the bottle of tequila the clarinets managed to sneak in. Not because everyone was sucking face and putting instruments in unsavory places. For fucks sake, band camp was even the first place she had ever heard the term asexual in her life. A euphonium player from California casually dropped it in sectionals, and after grilling her on what it meant, Robin had never looked back. It just clicked, like when she realized she could like girls. So, if anything, band camp was where she found out she didn’t have to have sex to be normal, not some month-long orgy.

But, here she was. The first bell hadn’t even wrung and some jock asshole was already giving her shit.

“I bet you know exactly what to do with that cute little mouth, huh Buck?” He leered. Robin tried to ignore him, instead focusing on Great Expectations, one of the summer reading books she hadn’t read. He wasn’t deterred though, instead leaning closer to get in her face as he smirked.

“Ah, come on. Don’t ignore me. We all know you band geeks are little sluts, let’s just have a fun time.” Before she could rip him apart though, a red-haired girl in a frilly blouse stepped between her and the mouthbreather. She was facing Robin, continuing the act that he didn’t even exist. 

“Oh! Hey! Just the person I was looking for! Did you do the homework for Mr. Jackson’s class?” Robin wasn’t even in Mr. Robinson’s class, had tested out of French 103 her sophomore year, but the look on jockhole’s face was enough to convince her to play along.

“Oh, totally. It was so easy, took me like ten minutes tops.”

“Lucky! Maybe you can help me with it at lunch?”

“Uh, sure. Study room in the library?” 

“Perfect.” And just like that, her mystery savior was gone, just as the bell for first period rang through the crowded halls of Hawkins High. All she saw was the look of pure fury on jockhole’s face as she scrambled to her first class. 

-

“This is stupid. She’s not going to be there. Get yourself together Buckley.” Robin muttered to herself as she headed for the library during lunch. She didn’t even know if the girl had the same lunch period as her, but she felt the overwhelming need to try, see if she could thank her for swooping in and rescuing her from a situation that would have most likely ended up with her in detention. 

Once she reached the library, she made a beeline for the study room in the back. It was empty.

Told you this was stupid she thought bitterly. She turned to leave and accidentally bumped into someone.

“Watch where you’re going, dingus,” she snapped before looking up and realizing who she bumped into. Of course it was the girl. Just her luck.

“My name is actually Barb, but I guess dingus works too,” the girl, Barb, said playfully. She was smiling a little despite Robin being a jerk and Robin felt her heart swoon. She hadn’t gotten a good look that morning, but Barb was cute. Not in a traditional way maybe, but Robin had never been one for tradition. But the intense smattering of freckles across Barb’s face, combined with the way her large glasses framed her eyes and made the honey flecks stand out made Robin’s face heat up a little and smile back. 

“Sorry about that. Did you- I mean were you…” Robin trailed off, unsure of how to continue, but wanting to find someway to get Barb to stay.

“I was serious about needing help with french, yeah. And your reputation as having a wicked talent makes me think you’re the perfect person to help.” Barb said smoothly. 

At least one of us is smooth. But there was no way she had a shot. Even if Barb happened to be gay, which was highly unlikely, she definitley wasn’t asexual, probably would sneer at Robin and call her delusional. But, Robin had never been great at self-preservation when it came to pretty girls, so she found herself agreeing to tutor Barb. She followed her into the study room and stood awkwardly as Barb sat down and started to unpack her french work. She looked up from her folder, black sharpie cursive labeling it as French 103, and raised an eyebrow at Robin’s nervously shuffling her feet by the door.

“Are you going to sit down?” Barb asked, not unkindly. 

“Oh,” Robin blurted out. “Yeah, sorry. Let’s see this homework.”

They passed the entire lunch period like that, Robin slowly working through verb conjugation and encouraging Barb everytime she messed up the pronunciations of harder words. With 5 minutes left, Barb began to pack up and looked over at Robin.

“Your accent is really good.”

“Thanks. My ears are kind of little geniuses,” Robin joked. 

“I believe it. You speak a bunch of other languages, right? And you’re in band?” 

“Yeah. I speak Spanish, French, Italian, and Pig Latin. I also play trombone.”

“Wow. That’s the slidey one right?” Barb asked, and Robin couldn’t help the small chuckle that slipped out.

“Yeah, it’s the slidey one.” 

“Cool.”

“Thanks.” Tension began to creep in as their conversation came to a stilted end, but before it could completely fill the small room, Barb spoke up again.

“Would you mind meeting again tomorrow? I just, you’re a really great tutor.” 

“Yeah,” Robin responded quickly. “Yeah, totally. Not like I have much else to do during lunch,” she confessed, thinking about how last year she had spent almost every lunch period hidden away in a practice room by herself. Even if Barb was straight, it was better than the musty walls and silence.

“You’re the best.” With that, the bell rang and both girls headed their separate ways.

-

Lunch tutoring became routine for the girls, after Barb confessed that her best friend, Nancy fucking Wheeler of all people, had been absorbed into Steve Harrington’s group and kind of left her for dead. 

Tutoring progressed into hanging out after school where Robin would bring over french films her parents owned, and then Barb returning with weird B-list horror flicks that they ridiculed together. 

It was during when the kids were climbing into an ice cream van during what was clearly a knock-off of It that Barb surprised Robin in the best way. She reached over and tangled their fingers together where they had rested next to the popcorn bowl. 

Startled, Robin looked over at where she sat and the confusion must have been clear on her face, because Barb simply shrugged and spoke in a soft whisper that was almost drowned out by the movie.

“I like you, I hope that’s okay.” Robin’s ears were ringing, heart in her throat as she bobbed her head dumbly. 

“Yeah, yeah. It’s great,” Robin confessed. 

“Great.” And just like that, Barb turned back and instantly began to make fun of the crappy special effects. 

The warm feeling stayed firmly in Robin’s stomach through the rest of the film, and only intensified as Barb walked her to the door.

“I hope you liked that,” Barb said softly, and Robin knew she wasn’t talking about the movie.

“It really was great, Barb. I, I really liked it.”

“Good. Could I take you to the movies sometime?”

“That sounds perfect,” Robin agreed, and quickly dipped in to press a soft kiss to Barb’s cheek before darting out the front door.

Barb’s smile stuck with her as she drove all the way home.

--

tag team: @lostnoise @gideongrace @stevefuckingharrington @a-magey @trashmouth-hargrove @catharrington (lmk if you would like to be added/removed from the list!)

[creativitycache]

ngl asking for people who self-identify as "antis" is already biasing your results because the term originated from fans being defensive over getting called out (eg the types who sincerely think fandom culture is ""puritan""). fair number of people started to use the term ironically and it might be evening out but overall the post calling for responses on the survey still comes off as something written in bad faith?

I wrote a rather long and involved response and then tumblr ate it. Goshdarn.

Fair warning, this is a hyperfixation and I’m coming off of a migraine so this may not be very cogent. Please read this in the over excited tones of someone infodumping about emulsifiers, with no animosity intended.

So, tl;dr and with a lot fewer links, I’m incredibly interested by your perspective that “anti” originated as a derogatory term.

As far as I am aware, the etymological history of the word “anti” being used pejoratively is coming from some very new debates.

I’m also noting that you had no feedback regarding the content of the questions themselves, which I would be interested in hearing as I am genuinely coming from a place without censure.

The term “anti” actually is a self-descriptor that arose in the Livejournal days, where you’d tag something as “Anti ___” for other like minded people to find. (For example, my cursory google search pulled up 10 Anti Amy Lee communities on LJ).

I’m a self-confessed old. I was back in fandom before Livejournal, aaaall the way back in the Angelfire days. Webrings children! We had webrings! And guest books for you to sign!

I’m going to take a swing for the fences here Anon, so if I’m wrong please let me know, but I’m going to guess you became active as a fan in the past 5-8 years based of your use of the term puritan.

There’s actually a HUGELY new debate in fandom spaces! Previously, it was assumed that:

a) All fandom spaces are created and used by adults only.

b) If you were seeing something, it’s because you dug for it.

These assumptions were predicated upon what spaces fandoms grew in. First you had Star Trek TOS fandom, which grew in 1970s housewives kitchens. They were all friends irl, and everyone was an adult, and you actively had to reach out to other adults to talk about things. (By the way- a woman lost custody of her children in the divorce when her ex husband brought up to the judge she kept a Kirk/Spock zine under her bed. The judge ruled this as obvious signs of moral deficiency. That was in the 80s! Everyone is still alive and the parents are younger than my coworkers!)

Time: 1967-1980s. Is Anti a term? No. Who is the term used by? N/A Is fandom space considered Puritanical? No.

Then, when the internet came about, it was almost exclusively used by adults until The Eternal September. 1993 was the year that changed the internet for good, but even years after that the internet was a majority adult space. Most kids and teens didn’t have unlimited access if their parents even had a home computer in the 90s.

This is the rise of Angelfire, which were fansites all connected to each other in “rings”. You had to hunt for content. If you found something you didn’t like, well, you clicked out and went on with your day because you’d never see it again unless you really dug. This was truly the wild west, tagging did not exist and you could go from fluff to vore in the blink of an eye with nothing warning you before hand. All fannish spaces were marked “here be dragons” and attempts were made to at least adopt the “R/NC-17″ ratings on works to some limited success, depending on webmaster.

Time: 1990-1999. Is Anti a term? No. Who is the term used by? N/A Is fandom space considered Puritanical? No.

In 1999 LiveJournal arose like a leviathan, and here is where the term Anti emerges as a self descriptor. Larger communities began to form, and with them, divisions. Now, you could reach so many fans you could reach a critical mass of them for enough of them to dislike a ship. The phrase “Anti” became a self-used tag, as people tagged their works, communities, and blogs with “anti” (NB: this is at far, far smaller rates than today). Anti was first and foremost a tagging tool used and created by the people who were vehemently against something.

You could find content more easily than in the past, but you still had to put some serious elbow grease into it.

In 2007, Livejournal bans users for art "depicting minors in explicit sexual situations”. The Livejournal community explodes in anger- towards Livejournal staff. The account holders/fans view this as corporate puritanical meddling. The outrage continues as it is revealed these bans were part of a pre-sale operation to SUP Services. SUP Services, upon taking over Livejournal in 2008, proceeds to filter the topics “bisexuality, depression, faeries, girls, boys, and fanfiction”.

The Great LiveJournal Migration begins, as fans leave the site in droves.

Time: 1999-2009. Is Anti a term? Yes. Who is the term used by? People self describing, seeking to create communities based off a dislike of something. Is fandom space considered Puritanical? No.

Where do fans go? Well, in the last decade, they migrated to Tumblr and Twitter (sorry Pillowfort- you gave it a good try!)

What’s different about all of these sites? Individuals are able to create and access content streams. These are hugely impactful in how communities are formed! Because now:

a) finding content is easier

b) finding content you dislike by accident is easier

c) content you dislike requires active curation to avoid

d) truly anonymous outreach is possible and easy (for example, you anon! Isn’t it much easier to go on anon to bring up awkward or sensitive topics? I’m happy you did by the way, and that’s why I keep my anons open. It’s an important contextual tool in the online communications world!)

Now the term Anti gets sprightly. Previously, if you didn’t like content, there was nothing you could really do about it. For example, I, at the tender age of way-too-young, opened up a page of my favorite Star Trek Deep Space 9 fansite and pixel by pixel with all the loading speed of a stoned turtle a very anatomically incorrect orgy appeared.

I backed out.

1. Who could I contact? There was no “message me here” button, no way to summon any mods on Angelfire sites.

2. If I did manage to find a contact button, I would have had to admit I went onto a site that wasn’t designed to keep me safe. I knew this was a site for adults, I knew there wasn’t a way to stop it from showing something. There was no such thing as tags. I knew all of this before going in. So the assumption was, it was on me for looking. (Some may have argued it was on my parents for not supervising me- all I can say is thank GOD no one else was in the living room and my mom was around the corner in the kitchen.)

But now? On Tumblr? On Twitter? In a decade in which tagging is so easy and ubiquitous it’s expected?

Now people who describe themselves as antis start to have actual tools and social conventions to utilize.

Which leads to immediate backlash! Content creators are confused and upset- fandom spaces have been the wild west for decades, and there’s still no sherriff in town. So the immediate go-to argument is that these people who are messaging them are “puritans”.

And that’s actually an interesting argument! A huge factor in shaping the internet’s social mores in the latest decades is cleanliness for stockbrokers. Websites can become toxic to investors and to sales if they contain sexual content. Over time, corporations perfected a mechanism for “cleaning” a site for sale.

Please note there is no personal opinion or judgement in this next list, it is simply a description of corporate strategies you can read during the minute meetings of shareholders for Tumblr, Twitter, Paypal, Venmo, Facebook, Myspace, Yahoo Answers, and Livejournal.

1. Remove sex workers. Ban any sex work of any kind, deplatform, keep any money you may have been holding.

2. Remove pedophilia. This is where the jump begins between content depicting real people vs content depicting fictional characters begins.

3. Remove all sexual image content, including artwork of fictional characters.

4. Remove all sexual content, including written works. If needed, loop back to step 2 as a justification, and claim you do not have the moderators to prevent written works depicting children.

I would like to reiterate these are actual gameplans, so much so that they’ve made their way into business textbooks. (Or at least they did for my Modern Marketing & App Design classes back in the early 2010s. Venmo, of course, wasn’t mentioned, but I did read the shareholder’s speeches when they banned sex workers from the platform so I added them in the list above because it seems they’re following the same pattern.)

So you have two groups who are actively seeking to remove NSFW content from the site.

A) Corporate shareholders

B) People are upset they’re seeing NSFW content they didn’t seek out and squicks them

Now, why does this matter for the debates using the term “puritan” as an insult? 

Because the reasons corporate shareholders hate NSFW material is founded in American puritanism. It’s a really interesting conflation of private sector values! And if Wall Street were in another cultural context, it would be a completely different discussion which I find fascinating!

But here’s the rub- that second group? They're not doing this for money. If there are any puritanical drives, it’s personal, not a widespread cohesive ideology driving them. HOWEVER! The section of that group that spent the early 2010s on tumblr did pick up some of the same rhetoric as puritanical talking points (which is an entirely separate discussion involving radfems, 4chan raids, fourth wave feminism, and a huge very nuanced set of influences I would love to talk about at a later time!)

These are largely fans who have “grown up” in the modern sites- no matter how old they actually are, their fandom habits and expectations have been shaped by the algorithms of these modern sites.

Now HERE‘s the fascinating bit that’s new to me! This is the interpretation of the data I’m getting, and so I’m out on a limb but I think this is a valid premise!

The major conflict in fandom at this time is a struggle over personal space online.

Content creators are getting messages telling them to stop, degrading them, following them from platform to platform.

They say “Hey! What gives- we were here first. The cardinal rule of fandom is don’t like, don’t read. Fandom space has always been understood to be adult- it’s been this way for decades! To find our content, you had to come to us! This is our space! This is my space, this is my blog! If you don’t like it, you’re not obligated to look!”

Meanwhile, at the exact same time, antis are saying “Hey! What gives- this content is appearing on my screen! That’s my space!  I didn’t agree to this, I don’t like this! I want it to be as far away from me as possible! I will actively drive it away.”

This is a major cultural shift! This is a huge change and a huge source of friction! And I directly credit it to the concept of “content stream” and algorithms driving similar-content to users despite them not wanting it!

Curating your online space used to be much simpler, because there wasn’t much of it! Now with millions of users spread out over a wide age range, all feeding in to the same 4-5 websites, we are seeing people be cramped in a technically limitless space!

Now people feel that they have to go on the offense to defend themselves against content they don’t like, which is predicated upon not only the algorithms of modern websites but ALSO talking points fed from the top down of what is and what is not acceptable on various platforms.

Time: 2010-2020. Is Anti a term? Yes. Who is the term used by? People self describing,and people using it to describe others. Is fandom space considered Puritanical? Depends!

So I, a fandom ancient, a creaky thing of old HTML codes and broken tags, am watching this transformation and am wildly curious for data.

Also...I uh....I can’t believe this is the short version. My ADHD is how you say “buckwild” tonight.

Anyways...um...if anyone has read to the bottom, give me data?

[erascrhead]

November Ice Breaker Tag Game

loI was tagged by the lovely @bnhastanning! I’m sorry this took so long - I’ve been procrastinating all of my work and i had to take care of it before did this but now? watashi ga kita motherbuckets.

November Ice Breaker

1 - What was the last thing you were really excited about? 

Not gonna lie, things are a bit bleak at the moment, but I suppose I was very happy because I did really well on my last lesson test in my Japanese class and I raised my cumulative grade by a whole percentage! I am not very good at it but if I do decently for the rest of term I think I can make my way up to an A-, which would be really cool!

2 - What do you wish someone taught you long ago? 

Don’t be so singularly focused on your goals and responsibilities that everything else is removed from your life. Most of my middle and high school career, I was focused only on achieving what I needed academically and extracurricularly, and pushing myself beyond what I really could handle, that I ended up overworked and lonely. If it puts it into perspective, in my 10th grade year, I not only had multiple people ask me if I had taken a semester away because I had spent so much time hiding in the library, but I literally gave myself an ulcer from stress and taking on other people’s responsibilities because I had painted myself into a position where I was never allowed to refuse. While I did get to achieve beyond what I ever could have dreamed of (and I’m really proud of myself for that), theres a lot of my adolescence that I have a sort of phantom nostalgia for, and that’s something I really regret. 

Your life needs to have balance to it. Make sure you find that early on, and understand how to equally prioritize your own well being with what you want and what other’s want from you.

3 - What are some of your guilty pleasures? 

Not doing the reading for class lmao. As someone who never once skipped the reading until I graduated HS, skipping some of the reading in college, when I end up having around cumulative 500 pages per week is quite nice. I wish I had something less goody-two-shoes but I do nothing and also have zero (0) shame.

4 - What topic could you give a twenty minute presentation on without any preparation? 

There’s a couple of different things I could talk about in differing qualities ranging from classical ballet scores to a linguistic breakdown of a hamilton song, and of course I could go off about bnha for a long time, but I’m gonna go with a fun one.

My most fun answer is that I could talk about racism and race correction in Harry Potter for like three hours. Black Hermione is god tier fanon, and JKR’s attempts to race correct her make me really frustrated, not only with the problems with the action itself, but as well with the nonchalance she attempted to do it with. I have a bit of a ‘cheat’ on this one, because last year I wrote a ~5000 word academic research paper on the subject. I was already really passionate about it before that though (that’s why I wrote it in the first place); the only difference now is I can spit out narrative and numerical facts™ off the cuff, and my argument would be better organized.  

5 - What scene in a movie or tv show gives you goosebumps every time you watch it? 

I don’t really have an answer for this, which is kind of sad but also hilarious considering what my parent’s jobs are. If I had to pick something, I don’t really have a scene in particular, but the movie Amadeus (the extended directors cut edition) is one of my favorites that leaves me breathless in the best of ways. 

6 - What were some of your favorite holiday traditions growing up? 

One of my favorites is that every year since I was little, my mother and I would pick out either 1-3 new ornaments for our tree. I remember being little and walking into the Macy’s Christmas section and just being dazzled by the lights, and typically, we would pick out some white and gold porcelain birds. As I got older, are choices started coming from more small time shops, like a kiosk in hawaii or a small knick-knack shop near the place where we occasionally ski in the winter. For me, it’s really the act of going and picking out something beautiful with her that’s really nice.

A newer tradition is that every year I bake chocolate-chip bread pudding in a dutch oven. I am, unequivocally, the best baker in the family both immediate and extended, though not the best chef, and this became a hit around the time I was 15. It’s just really fun to make -- I like to belt out to Christmas songs while I bake. 

7 - What book had the most significant impact on you? 

HARD QUESTION. There’s a bunch of different ways I could answer this: the impact on the way I think, the first chapter book I read on my own that helped me discover my love of reading, my favorite example of intricate world building? I have a lot I could say. The direction I’m going to go for is the impact on my writing, and the one of the first books that really made me marvel at the beauty of words, just as they are. My two runners up are The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller and We Are the Ants by Shaun David Hutchinson, but my final answer is Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz.

Representation aspects aside (but also, yes!), this book was one of the first books that made me feel emotion for the words themselves. It’s more of a character study than it is plot driven, and as a kid who grew up loving action adventure fantasy novels, I think that’s one of the reasons it really stood out to me. I pulled an excerpt, just to give the gist:

I stared at the reproduced mural in the book -- but I was more interested in his finger as he tapped the book with approval. That finger had pulled a trigger in a war. That finger had touched my mother in tender ways I did not fully comprehend. I wanted to talk, to say something, to ask questions. But I couldn’t. All the words were stuck in my throat. So I just nodded.

One of my favorite things now is to play with words, to roll them around on my tongue and isolate their melodies, placing them in them in rhythm to a beat only I can hear, and I think that this was the first book that showed me how to do that.

8 - What weird thing do you have nostalgia for? 

So I went to a small school for all the way up until college; about 45 kids in my sixth grade class, 22ish in my homeroom/main class. There were four kids, including me, that had an aptitude for math, and understood the lessons without being taught them, and so what my teacher would do is give us the homework packet for the week and send us out to the outdoor benches next to our classroom to complete it during the period. We, being 11, would goof around Monday through Thursday and do the entire packet in the Friday period and then turn it in. Not the best teaching decision (i wish i had been taught the next year’s material tbh) but that’s not the point.

It was just a year, but those periods felt so untouchable and surreal and innocent. I remember, the school was so quiet, and it was just us, and we were just kids who were getting away with not learning math for a whole year, and it felt like the greatest victory in the world. 

9 - What's a problem you have, that might be entirely unique to you? 

I don’t know how unique it is, but the intensity with which I currently need to pet a dog is unparalleled.

10 - What are two of your favorite snacks? 

I literally eat an apple with peanut butter on a daily basis I cannot emphasize this enough i am, a slut, for peanut butter. 

There’s also this specific Costco Brand trail mix that I literally have eaten so much of that I got nauseous. We love Kirkland Signature™ up in this house.

That’s all! I’m tagging @kicheetah @teamstevesass @stark-tony @bakugox @rabbitproduce @pixie-witchery @joeytrlbiani @queenangst THOUGH NO PRESSURE and also anyone else who wants to! Have fun!!

[all-sortsofthings]

Downton Abbey Opinions

tagged for this (thanks @herladyshipsnope )

1. When did you start watching Downton Abbey?

Must have been 2016 I think?? The whole series had been completed and I’d heard about it obviously, but had never really thought it would be my thing (I now cannot believe I ever thought that). Once I had started though, I did become immediately hooked.

2. Favourite series?

One is the best, but season two has got to be my favourite. Mainly because of the PINING. (And the red mess kit oh dear lord). I also love a wartime period drama and that scene with m&m at the train station was just beautiful and I’m not going to go into why but I’m guessing most people following me will know. The Christmas Special was also fantastic. For reasons I’m sure most people following me will completely understand. 

3. Team Upstairs or Team Downstairs?

It’s team upstairs for me, they seem to have the most compelling story lines (in my opinion) although I think they do need each other to make the show work.

4. Favourite Downstairs character and why?

I do like Anna (I am a bit iffy about the Anna/Bates relationship but hey ho) but I think I’d have to say Thomas. Now let me clarify I didn’t like him at all at first, but one of the only things I liked about the last seasons was his character arc. When more time was spent developing this character he became more human. Plus he was adorable with the children. When George was “cheering him up” gets me every time.

5. Least favourite Downstairs character and why?

I’m not really sure. Ethel sort of annoyed me but I did feel terribly sorry for her in the end. I didn’t properly watch s4-6 if I’m honest so there might have been someone in there that I hate with a burning passion but as it is I honestly don’t know.

6. Favourite Upstairs character and why?

This is hard for me because I do LOVE Matthew with all my heart but I think I’ll have to say Mary, by a hair, purely because she was more fleshed out as a character (and bearing in mind I never properly managed through s4-6, I only know what happens) and because I’d never really seen a character quite like Mary before - or since. A lot of the time period drama writers like to make their female characters (especially the upper class ones) very sympathetic to modern audiences by giving them righteous modern values and Mary did not exhibit this. She is upper class, she doesn’t want to marry poor because she likes her lifestyle and although this makes her unsympathetic to a lot of audience members (amongst other things, I’ll admit) they are also things that make her a good, well written, realistic character of her time. I could go on — hell, I could write whole essays on this topic — but I’ll stop for now.

7. Least favourite Upstairs character and why?

Oh gosh. I don’t like to dislike people but if we’re talking about who I liked least then probably Cora? Edith? Actually scratch that, I never had a huge problem with Edith it was more hardcore Edith supporters that I disliked (the same people who would always complain that Mary was unfit to complain about her lot when she was so privileged who would also then feel acutely sorry for Edith without seeing their own hypocrisy. Also the fact that Edith revealed the Pamuk scandal, which in my opinion is much worse than anything Mary ever did to her - yes including s6... but Edith grew as a character and that’s important). So Cora then. I never warmed to her as much as others mainly because of her behaviour towards her daughter after the whole Pamuk affair, and with Richard Carlisle and encouraging Mary to keep her operation secret from Matthew was also pretty weird. I also thought blaming Robert for Sybil’s death was rather unfair. But although I have these gripes I don’t actually dislike her all that much, I just like her less than the others.

8. Do you ship anyone?

Oh yes. Very much so. Matthew and Mary belong together. Anyone who thinks differently can fight me.

9. Favourite quote?

Everything Maggie Smith says. Legend. But I suppose: “War has a way of  distinguishing between the things that matters and the things that don’t.” Because I think it’s probably quite true. Shout out, though to “There’s nothing more ill-bred that trying to steal the affections of one’s dog.” 

10. Scene that made you cry?

Oh good lord. Definitely the scene at the train station and a huge section of the fifth episode of series two. I cried when Matthew proposed (that was, and will remain, the most beautiful proposal ever.) I actually didn’t cry when Sybil died although I was upset - but mainly because I’d been expecting it. (A period drama with three sisters, you know one of them is going to die by the end. Two of the sisters have conflict and the other one is so well loved that their loss would pack the biggest emotional punch but without removing potential friction. She was always going to be one who would die). I refuse to acknowledge the last minute or so of S3 CS as well as the remainder of the series, really. As we all know, it ended terribly happily with George’s birth and that was just it. The End Done. When Thomas was beaten up was very sad, and I cried a lot during the whole hormone treatment debacle, especially when he slit his wrists. That was heartbreaking

I’m tagging anyone who wants to do it... which I would recommend because I found this very cathartic

[justablogjs]

Love Nikki: I wish I'd known when I stared

In Game Clock/Server time In Game Currency Level Types Momo's Tips + Memory Style Types Free Diamonds Facebook Diamonds Stylist Arena Suit Recipe Tracking Deconstruction/Workshop

In Game Clock

At the very bottom left hand corner is a clock, it displays the date and time according to the Love Nikki Server. Any and all times found within the game (such as the Association Co-op or Neighbourhood Tea Party times) refer to this clock. Your local time may be very different, make sure you know how far out the Love Nikki Clock is to yours, because the end of Events are listed in the Server's Time.

In Game Currency

Stamina used to complete levels Gold Coins used to buy certain things, common currency Diamonds Used to buy things, rarer currency, used for Events – the bane of a player's existence, Hoard Them!! Star Coins Used to buy recipes, materials and dyes, rarer currency

The levels in the Mystery house, Dream Weaver, Association and Competition stores all require special currency which can be earned within by doing draws or pulls. (The two “Rooms of Mystery” have daily free draws, while the other four are free every 2 days.

Level Types Maiden Easy levels with no attempt limit, cost 4 stamina to do, You can auto-complete 1 [or up to 10 if you have the stamina and the V-Level for it (I believe it's V4)]

Princess Trickier, 3 free attempts per day, or pay diamonds for more (available extras depend on you 'V Level'), you can auto complete 1 [or up to 3 if you have the stamina and V-Level]

Levels are divided up into Chapters, Maiden Levels must be complete first before the Princess equivalent can be attempted.

Momo's Tips + Memory

After the tutorial stretch of level 1 Momo will start giving tips on how to get passing scores for each level (or S-rank). You can see these even before you start the level by tapping the little diamond-square on the level panel.

If Momo suggests an item in both normal and S-rank tips (especially if you don't have that item) it is likely a special requirement for the level.

Once you're in the level, Momo's tips can be found above the skills Icon at the bottom left of the screen, which is above the 'go fight' arrow icon.

Across from these Icons are the “Search”, “Suit”, “Background”, “remove” and “Memory” Icons

Search can let you see you clothes based on which tag and style they have, or you can search them by name. (By name is fastest when applying Momo's Tips (which will look hideous), but you don't always have to type the full name to find an item, some words appear frequently in item names, other words are much rarer, figuring out how best to search is up to each player.)

Suit lets you automatically apply any complete suit you've accepted the reward for in the achievements book. (If you haven't accepted the reward for completing the suit it won't show up in the list.)

Background just changes the background which has no baring on the final scores but is good fun in Free Dressing or Starry Corridor, while Remove automatically removes all clothing and accessories.

Memory has two options: “Best Score” and “Last Suit”. These are only available after the level has been completed the first time. Best score will automatically dress Nikki in the suit which earned the highest score for that level no matter how long ago it was, while Last Suit will put on the last thing Nikki wore to the scoring even if it failed miserably.

Style types

Gorgeous/Simple, Mature/Cute, Warm/Cool, Elegant/Lively, Sexy/Pure

There are 10 (2 lots of 5) Style Types used on all pieces in Love Nikki, but each suit will only contain 5 of them. The 10 tags can be divided in 2 (As shown above by the / marks) opposing lists, no suit will have two opposing tags (for instance you cannot have a piece that is Both Mature and Cute.) These Styles have ratings C, B, A, S, SS, and are what the Giftys (the little orange maybe bird things) score each level.

In addition there are 44 Style Tags which include things like “Modern China”, “Rock”, “Rain”, “Goddess”, “Gothic” - these are separate from the Style Types above and only appear on a few pieces, there are some levels where these Tags are important for your score and whether you use pieces with the correct tag can affect whether or not your clothes count towards your final score.

Level Tips

After the first several levels in the first stage, an icon labelled “Momo's Tips” will appear

Free Diamonds

Do Your Dailies!!! I cannot stress this enough, always do your dailies, you can earn an easy 53 Diamonds per day doing your dailies.

Dailies can be found on the right hand side of the screen up top, the open book icon labelled quests

- If you are saving for a stamina event you can do your “Complete any 5 quests with S rating” in Maiden and earn back what you've spent in stamina while earning 15 points for your dailies.

Vote in the Competition, every ten votes you do, you can get a prize, just tap the tiny picture of a gift box at the bottom of your screen. Prizes in the box include a few diamonds, or a crystal rose (currency for the competition store), or a couple hundred gold coins, or some stamina.

voting can be time consuming, but it is okay to farm by selecting one side and tapping the vote button slowly until you're out of votes if you're after the free stuff (we've all done it, anyone who's said otherwise is being less than truthful.) You get 30 votes max which recharge slightly faster than stamina, so you can get 60-90+ in a day which is an easy 6-9 prizes

Participate in the competition, this pay out can vary wildly and only comes twice a week when the competition ends, but it is free diamonds so even if you slap on whatever is at the top of your list and damn the theme: do it

Long Term Event: Daily Lucky Draw. The Balloon Icon on the right hand side of the screen about midway down, right hand tab and scroll down. This is a lucky draw event which can give a few diamonds, a couple hundred coins, stamina or star coins.

Long Term Event: Stage Bonus: the first time you complete each (most) stage(s) in the Maiden and Princess levels you will receive a prize containing (two of the four following:) Diamonds, Coins, Stamina or recipes (These recipes are generally used to complete the Stage specific suit and are occasionally needed to pass one of the levels in the stage.)

Achievements: completing certain tasks enough times earns you free diamonds and gold coins and occasionally suit pieces – Achievements are the golden medal between Quest and Event Icon.

Facebooks Diamonds

If you link your Love Nikki account to your Facebook page you can get some free suit pieces during certain events (Like the new wishes during the Frozen event or the Frost Flutters suit during the Miku event.

you can also earn about 15 additional diamonds per day through 'shares'.

You can actually get these without linking you facebook page, In the 'Change' tab of the competition, in both the Free Dressing and Go Home sections you can share for 2 Diamonds a piece, the first time you complete a level per day and win you can share for another 2 diamonds plus about 500 additional gold coins. When you do a level and get and 'F' for the first time each day you will see a 'help' button where the 'share' button normally is and '2 diamonds' under it, it isn't asking you to pay 2 diamonds to receive help, it is a share button like the other and will give you the 2 diamonds plus additional gold coins for subsequent shares.

When you raise your score (typically in a Maiden or Princess level, but Stylist Arena works too) enough to get a higher rank than you previously had (for the first time each day) you can share for a whopping 5 diamonds.

The easiest way to do this is to do a level in the Stylist's Arena, because of the way the rankings there work, just a single win per day should be enough to raise your rank for the Diamonds.

Stylist Arena

During that win you can also share for 3 star coins

Stylist Arena is the bane for many a player for a few reasons.

Reason 1: The Brief – each round has a Theme, but the Theme doesn't actually mean anything, what you're looking for in each Theme description are the words that match the style types

Reason 2: Momo's estimates – Up the top of the screen, each opponent is gauged by Momo and given an estimated score, you can use this to find an opponent you can beat by hitting 'Next' on your opponent's image but Be Warned: Momo's estimate Does Not take Skill usage into account so his estimate can be Under by as much 15,000 points (I personally try to never face an opponent who's score is over 45,000 and prefer to find opponents with scores Under 40,000 because I can't recall my score averages off the top of my head and I find it safer to fight a weaker opponent I can definitely beat than risk losing my streak. There's no penalty, it's just super frustrating, especially when you're trying to complete Arena Streak Achievements.)

"Finish ASAP" will reuse whatever your highest scoring outfit was in previous attempts and complete the battle in even less time than it takes normally, and you don't have to waste those few seconds tapping through rewards or rank up animations, which is awesome if you've forgotten to do your Arena battles until five minutes before the day 'resets'.

Like the Styling competition you get diamonds at the end of the season as well as a small bounty of Star Coins, these are used to buy Recipes, materials and dyes. (You can also get those from an association, but you're better off using the Star coins and saving you Association currency for the evolving outfits whose pieces are available at random when the store refreshes each day.)

Suit Recipe Tracking

Just below your Personal Icon at the top right hand corner is a small Icon called Guide, Selecting one of the three target spaces and select change to select a suit from the achievements tab (you can search by name or by origin type (level evolution/ from the store/ from a recipe etc) once selected the Guide will show you not only how many pieces of clothing you need to make the suit, but any recipes, material or dyes. You can deselect various pieces to show how much you need for a specific piece. When you have enough to construct the clothing piece, the Guide will let you know with a little 'go make' tag across the piece.

Deconstruction/Workshop

In your Workshop is the tab “Decompose”, which lets you turn excess pieces of clothing to coins (gold and Star), materials for customising, and Reconstruction Materials.

There is a small selection option “select extra clothes” near the top right hand corner which will select any clothing/accessory/makeup item which can't be used for a recipe, quest, evolved or customised. The list will always show 1 less in the tally of each item since it only displays duplicates of items, there will always be a piece left in the wardrobe.

If you want to throw in some of the recipe/quest/evolution/customizable clothes, you will have to do that manually. (I would suggest items which are only used in customisation, and leave yourself at least four since there's typically only four colour variations at most.)

There's a key up the top under the “Decomposition” banner to tell you what the symbols mean for the 'useful' clothes.

Spending Real World Money and closing thoughts IF you plan on spending real money on your Love Nikki Account, I would suggest ensuring your account is 100% linked to your Facebook page or you run the risk of losing your account if anything happens and the Devs will not (have never to my knowledge) refund lost-account money.

You do not have to spend real world money if you don't want to.

If you have the money, if spending it on Nikki won't hurt your finances and this is what you want to spend it on, go right ahead.

If you have the money, if spending it on Nikki won't hurt your finances and you don't want to spend it on Nikki, or if you don't have the money to spend, then don't that's fine too.

I spent a year playing before I spent real world money on the game, because until I hit the year mark, I wasn't sure I'd be playing it for very long.

Love Nikki is not Pay to Win, it's not even Pay to Play. Lately the Devs have been making Paying Players bleed for the extra suits and that's not okay, but pay or no pay:

The only way to play Love Nikki wrong is to not have fun.

If you're having fun then it doesn't matter how long it takes you to complete a level or stage or whether or not you do the Events in any percentage.

And yes, sometimes the most fun we have is having a go at Momo or crying theatrically at chapter 15 and then refusing to read any lore afterwards because you're too emotionally scarred to ever allow yourself to become invested again... ahem... moving right along!

Nikki's Info

Nikki's Info is an independent site which is honestly a godsend and if you find yourself struggling to complete a level, or if you want tips on how to do good at Stylist's Arena, I definitely recommend checking it out. I have an account over there, and I keep my wardrobe (manually) updated (the cloud doesn't like me) which means I can see a level and how to get the best out of my wardrobe.

If anyone has anymore tips they'd like to add please do (or if my information is no longer valid because updates or I've misremembered something, please tell me.)

[ahnsael]

Two years later, the last physical remnant of the trouble I got into is going away tomorrow.

The DMV removed the restriction from my license today (it was a three hour wait, which I didn’t expect going in the middle of the week at opening time, but I’m glad I got it done -- I could have done it a month ago but was nervous about the process of getting these last loose ends tied), and after a couple games of phone tag between the manufacturer of the device and the auto shop which services it to finalize approval on both of their ends, tomorrow I get the ignition interlock removed from my car.

Now there’s just the SR-22 insurance for two more years before I can go back to regular insurance (but the SR-22 isn’t much more expensive than the regular version anyway).

We have a guy at work who’s mind isn’t in it lately. Because he just his FOURTH DUI. His third was a legal battle (three in seven years becomes a felony and involves prison time and there was a question as to whether it was from the occurrence of the first one or the sentencing and the court gave him the benefit of the doubt but then he did it AGAIN two months later). I don’t see how you don’t learn your lesson after the first one. And even if not then, the punishment is more severe for subsequent instances. So he’s looking at a lengthy prison sentence this time.

I got 48 hours. Well, technically 62 days, but 60 days were suspended pending my completion of other court-ordered responsibilities like both group and individual counseling, DUI school, a victim’s impact panel (in which victims of crashes caused by drunk drivers told their stories -- including some VERY graphic images), being under the watch of “alternative sentencing” for a year (basically that meant zero drinking, random tests to see whether I had had anything to drink, home visits to see if I had any alcohol around, all of which punishable by either a day in jail or kicking in the entire 60-day suspended sentence), having an interlock installed in ANY car I might drive for a year after reinstating my license (I only drive my own so I only needed the one, at $67 per month which from what I’m told is a pretty good price; I’ll have to pay “$50-$60 or somewhere around there, I’m not entirely sure” tomorrow when I get it removed but it SUCKS for people with no credit/debit card because it’s literally the ONLY way you’re allowed to pay, keeping low-income people without a card from being able to fulfill that obligation and that order does NOT expire a year from sentencing, it expires one year FROM WHEN YOU REINSTATE YOUR LICENSE and you can’t reinstate your license until you have the device installed -- I had to show the DMV the installation paperwork last year), and SR-22 insurance (including Statement of financial Responsibility -- that’s the SR part) for three years.

At one point as I talked to the (actually very nice) DMV lady today she asked whether I still had the device installed or whether it had already been removed. She framed it as a way to say “Show them this temporary license which shows no restriction and they’ll be able to remove it” but I’m guessing it was a “gotcha” question, as removing it before having the restriction removed from my license would have violated the restriction of my license. But I bet they get people saying “My year was up last week so I had it removed,” therefore getting themselves in more trouble (I was actually half-expecting them to want to see it in my car, maybe punch some buttons and get my latest statistics as far as “has he had any violations since the last time he had it serviced and we were sent his data?” but that didn’t happen...I also had the original installation paperwork and the original court order in my jacket pocket just in case, since I had to show both when I reinstated my license, even though they scanned them at the time -- when I first reinstated my license they forgot the restriction so I had to go back and have them put it on). I’m also wondering whether the three-hour wait was intentional, since most people are there for renewals or new licenses or to change their address or register a vehicle, and those of us in the “C” group broke the law, which was why we were there. Kind of makes me feel like they were testing our patience to see if we gave them attitude about seeing SO MANY people who got there after us called first. But I was as nice to the DMV lady as I would have been had I waited 10 minutes, and by the end the lady next to her behind the counter was complimenting my Genie tie (Genie from Aladdin -- I went there straight from work this morning so I was still dressed up from work).

An interesting aside...I shave my head, but have a beard. I asked the lady, pointing to the gray under my chin, “At what point to I change my official hair color to gray?” (the color listed on the original police report). She said it was basically up to me, and that I could even put “bald” if I wanted to since I shave my head, but sometimes the hair grows out a bit between shavings and I want to make sure I’m in compliance. But I pointed to my eyebrows as evidence of the “brown” that I put down, and she accepted that. She said switching to “gray” is pretty much up to me as long as SOME of the original color remains, but then we shared a laugh about people with completely gray hair who put down “black” as their hair color (that was when I pointed out my non-graying eyebrows as evidence that while I do have some gray in there, it still is mostly brown).

She also laughed when I said the only “stat” that had changed in the past 13 months since reinstating my license was my weight, which I upped by 15 pounds for honesty’s sake. She said she NEVER would have done that, but then I said that I used to be about 35 pounds more than I am now, so I’m pretty good with where I’m at and would rather be accurate on a REAL ID-compliant license -- even though weight fluctuates, the weight I put is my average these days.

And after I got a little worried about phone battery after playing cell phone games for an hour, I then spent the next two hours *almost* finishing Rolly Crump’s book “It’s Kind of a Cute Story,” which I hadn’t picked up in so long that the Kindle app had updated and completely forgotten where I had left off (I only realized that I read two chapters that I had already read when I came upon a section that I had highlighted). I’m about halfway through the last chapter now. The Kindle app takes a LOT less battery than playing a game that has to communicate with the internet (especially since the DMV’s WiFi was worse than Disneyland’s as far as reliability, which is kind of saying a lot).

But anyway, other than the (only slightly) higher insurance bill for the next two years, all of this kerfuffle will be behind me tomorrow. No more breathing into my car before I can start it. No more worrying that “I bartended this morning, and I spilled some on my pants...will the interlock pick that up and fail me? (it happened a couple times, as did using an alcohol-based window de-icer this winter and then having the fumes from the can in the car when I tried to start it; I learned to leave the can outside the car after using it, but there are “rolling tests” where they are trying to see if you drank after starting the car and have six minutes to provide a passing same of breath and so I would have to pull over, remove the can, and then re-take the test to make sure I didn’t get COMPLETELY locked out -- I did have violations based on this, but found out a week ago when I emailed the DMV that it takes four consecutive months of such violations for the terms of the interlock to be extended, even if I had to air out my car before I could successfully start my car at the time).

After those violations, I was worried my time was going to be extended, so I was SO happy to receive a reply from the DMV last week telling me that they had looked at my records, and I was good to get the restriction removed. I had thought ANY violation would result in “more time with this thing in my car.”

And on the WAY to the DMV...I ran into a problem I’ve run into a couple times in the past couple months.

Ever since getting the interlock serviced in December, I’ve had issues with it rebooting itself.

Now, if you turn off the car with a pending test, that’s another violation. And the thing would tell me to breathe into it (it’s actually more throat-humming with this device -- it prevents someone taking a lungful of fresh air and then breathing in to beat it; humming in your throat means air from INSIDE of you is going through and it can detect alcohol you maybe thought you could hide).

So there have been times I’ve driven to work, parked, and just before turning off my car the interlock would ask for a “rolling test.” I couldn’t just turn my car off. That would be a violation, which the DMV would hear about. But if I picked the device up and it went blank as I blew into it, then said “Initializing,” I learned NOT to turn the car off (the hard way, when I got a violation for it). Just sit there in the parking spot, engine running, and wait for it to ask for a test again.

On my way to the DMV today, though, the device wanted a “rolling test.” Which I expected. The first “rolling test” can be 5-10 minutes after starting the car, and subsequent tests come every 45 minutes to an hour (and you have six minutes to provide a breath sample before you are locked out). When I drove to Disneyland in September, I can’t even guess as to how many tests I had to take as I drove, to make sure I was still sober.

But today, it asked me to re-test. I did. I heard the tell-tale “click” by my left knee that tells me it just sent a signal to the car that it’s okay to restart if I shut it down. But instead of “PASS” on the screen, the screen was blank. Then it said “initializing.” Then it asked me to test again with a beep. I did so. This time, it not only made the click on my ignition switch to turn it on, but said “PASS” -- fir about a half-second before going back to “INITIALIZING.”

When it came back up, I only had two minutes and 30 seconds left to provide a sample. I thought, “If this thing keeps resetting itself, I’m going to get a violation on the way to the DMV for permission to remove this.”

Fortunately, on the third try, the test was passed WITHOUT the device restarting itself (I am SO glad to get rid of this thing because it’s been doing this a lot for the past two months and while I’m passing the tests, it doesn’t always KNOW that I pass the tests before rebooting itself).

But at 10:00am tomorrow, I get this thing OUT of my car. If it’s anything like the installation, I’ll be there for about an hour. Which will still beat my wait time at the DMV today. I’ll probably finish Rolly Crump’s book and then either play some video games on my phone or start something new to read, like the continuations of the book which I’ve already bought.

But video games are more likely -- this shop, as I’ve seen personally and heard from other customers, does not only good work, but QUICK work, so I don’t want to get too into reading and then be disappointed when they have it done.

[wholelottatiffy]

Fic Questions Tag

Thanks for the tag love <3<3 @namesonboats

Seeing as though I’ve seen everyone else on my dash do this I’m going to tag a couple people who I haven’t seen in a hot minute. @kaeltale @pinkatron

ao3 name:  WholeLottaTiffy

fandoms: Witcher (posted), I write a lot mainly for practice and for myself mainly in Witcher, and Fallout, I’ve been dabbling in Legend of Zelda recently as well. Honestly, if I’ve watched a movie, a tv shot, read a book, played it, I’ve probably written something in that universe tbh

number of fics: 5 (posted), too many to count that aren’t posted and probably never will be

fic i spent the most time on: Forging Destiny (current fic)

fic i spent the least amount of time on: Currently my unnamed Fallout 4 fic I may or may not post (it’s been only 2 days)

most hits: 1123 

most kudos: 46

most comment threads: 26

most bookmarks: 5

highest total word count: Forging Destiny is sitting at about 32,000 words and still in progress, so between posted and not posted it’s that one

favorite fic i wrote: Forging Destiny 100%, close second would be my unnamed Fallout 4 fic which is why I’m on the edge of posting it and not posting it eventually

fic i want to rewrite/expand on: Trust Me - I had written fanfiction years and years ago but stopped and left tumblr. Coming back, I wanted to write again so I had a ton of fics written as practice and this one was the first of my Saska x Regis series. I actually started re-writing it just for fun but then got super busy so I had to stop. I would love to rewrite it fully, and give it all the love it deserves for getting me back into writing again.

share a bit of a wip or story idea you’re working on: Fic title: Forging Destiny

"It's another illusion. Nothing more."

"And that is why you can't remove your gaze from it." Eredin, once completely behind her, kneels down and leans closer to her, whispering into her ear. "You know all too well that it isn't an illusion. Your eyes give it away." Looking at her, he takes in her features. Extremely light hair with different shades of gray and white hair cascading over her shoulders and down her back in waves, pronounced facial structure, and just behind her hair he can see sections of her ear, mangled, pale scarring and obvious trauma marks. Going to move her hair back she immediately snaps back away from him as much as she can, glaring at him.

Fic title: Unnamed Fallout 4 Fic - Involves my OC Liana Carter, possibly with a pairing of Nick Valentine and/or Hancock

The minute they get outside, Dogmeat is eager to greet them, Liana leaning against one of the outer walls of the Fort, tears beginning to fall down her cheeks. “So much for talking to him…” she says, Nick leaning up beside her, hands in his pockets. 

“Yeah, so much for talking… listen, I know it seems bleak now, I know it seems we’ve run into a dead end, but we haven’t. Just a roadblock.” She wipes the tears away before shrugging her armor off, putting on his armor, thankful she ended up shooting him not in the torso. “Fits ya well, strangely enough.”

“Yeah, the man was well protected let me tell ya.... Nick I… you’re a synth, so I was curious…” she takes the piece she got out of Kellogg’s head out of her pocket, handing it over to him. 

“Where in the hell did you get this? Kellogg?”

“Yeah.”

“Well this… hm… if this is what’s left of his brain we may actually have a shot… I know someone. Dr. Amari over in Goodneighbor. She may be able to help us out with this.”

[lykaonimagines]

Positive (Part 4) - Loki x Reader

oOnce again, thank you to everyone reading and liking this story! ^_^ This part is broken up into two sections at two different intervals of the pregnancy. There will be more parts, since I keep expanding what I had originally intended with the story. So I have no clue at this point when it’ll end, there’s still a few things I want to do :P Starting the next part as we speak so hopefully it will be up this weekend!

Anyways, enjoy! And let me know if you want to be tagged :) 

Paring: Loki x Reader

Part #: 4

Word Count: 1,914

Description: A mutant member of the Avengers finds out she’s pregnant with her boyfriend Loki’s baby, are they ready for this?

Warnings: Pregnancy, some angst, suggestive themes (really nothing much), and violence

Part 1      Part 2      Part 3      Part 5

Part 6

(Gif isn’t mine)

-16 Weeks Pregnant-

“And exactly what are you doing there?” Loki asks as Y/N tries to peek into the room adjacent to theirs.

“Oh you know, not much, just looking,” she states, deciding to look at Thor who is standing next to him instead.

“Darling,” Loki sighs walking over to her, wrapping his arms around her waist as he back her out the door. “I thought you were told that under no circumstances were you to be in here?”

“But-“ she begins but is interrupted by his lips on hers, a pleasant hum filling her body as he pulls away. His distraction works for a moment, before the sound of Bucky’s disgusted gagging noises remind her. Her cheeks instantly go red, and she pushes away from Loki. “I’m just trying to help, and I want to see how it’s going…”

He smirks as he backs her further out into the hall, “Well I thought we were under the agreement that it was to be a surprise for you, and I would rather you not be around fresh paint and trying to assemble furniture in your current state, love.”

She fixes her face with a pout as she looks up to him, hoping to change his mind, but quickly laughs at the sight before her. “You have a little bit of paint,” she reaches to wipe the bridge of his nose with her finger, “Riiight here.”

“Oh do I now?” He asks with a smile. “I wonder why.”

“I have no clue,” she answers innocently. “You won’t let me go in the nursery.”

“Never you mind that,” he says before bringing his mouth close to her ear. “Seeing as I’m a mess, why don’t you join me in the shower later to make sure I clean up to your expectations.” He lightly nips her ear, and pulls their bodies flush.

The contact pulls a soft groan from her before she manages to work out an answer, “Hmm that sounds like a good plan, can’t have you slacking in personal hygiene now can we?”

“Exactly,” he smiles leading her out to the kitchen. “We’re nearly done as it would be anyway. Maybe later I’ll let you in on your surprise.”

“I’d love that,” she replies looking up into his blue-green eyes with a smile. “I’m glad we stayed here.”

Loki rolls his eyes looks to the map of the tower laying out on the counter. “I would have preferred a nice secluded place to call our own. But Stark makes a hard bargain.”

“Well a room for us and one for the baby, and a large pool of willing babysitters I think will be a blessing when the time comes,” she replies with a laugh.

“Possibly,” he remarks, carefully pressing one hand to her growing belly. “This little one is going to come out practically drowning in love and affection.

-

“Are you ready?” Loki asks Y/N, his hands over her eyes as they stand in the new nursery.

“More than ready!” she exclaims. “I want to see what you’ve done!”

“Well love, I’ve done the best that I could by my own talent and memory,” he says as he removes his hands.

Y/N gasps as she’s met by a mural of Asgard behind the baby’s crib. The whole room is blue with glowing stars including the ceilings beyond the one wall. She steps forward to carefully touch it, running her fingers down the palace. “It’s beautiful.”

“Well our little prince or princess should know what home looked like,” he whispers. “It took me long enough to see it that way again. But now that it’s gone… “

“You miss it?” She fills in for him, reaching for his hand.

“I do,” he replies. “It was beautiful, and it’s where I spent most of my life.”

They stand silently for a few minutes holding hands before she says, “I didn’t even know you could paint. A man full of surprises.”

“That’s what I do best,” he replies with a wink.

“Well I suppose you deserve a reward for all your hard work,” she says.

“Oh really?” A gleam in his eye appears. “And what would that be?”

-

“Gods,” Loki shudders, a groan drawing from his lips. “That feels so damn good.”

“All I’m doing is massaging your back Loki,” Y/N responds with a small laugh, her fingers exploring along the small scars on his back as water runs down them both.

He turns to her finally and wraps his arms loosely around her, pressing his forehead to hers and staring into her eyes. Her smile lights up, and once again he can feel it. That pang in his heart. The sight of this beautiful woman he loves, looking back at him with those same feelings reflected in her smile, her eyes, her gestures. Letting herself be this vulnerable to him, naked and wrapped in his arms as the water runs down their faces. Her wet hair sticks to her face, and the last of her makeup washed away. Her belly swelling with the presence of the child they’ve created together. Beautiful. “Have I told you that you make me the happiest man in all the realms?” He murmurs.

She turns her head up to presses her lips to his, “How are you this romantic sometimes?”

“Sometimes?” He smirks. “All sorts of Asgardian romance novels. Are you practically swooning for me yet darling?”

“Well your plan failed,” she replies sticking out her tongue to touch his nose. “I was swooning from the second you stepped into the tower in that black suit, because damn.”

He grins, “Love at first sight hm?”

“It was something at first sight. Can’t say it was my heart talking though.”

“Brat,” he whispers before kissing her once again.

“Your brat,” she corrects him happily.”

“Exactly,” he presses more kisses along her jaw before prompting her to turn so he could wash her back.

“So, I’ve been thinking,” she begins as she relaxes into his touch.

“Of?” He prompts.

“Names for our child.”

“Oh really? And what would those be?”

“Weeell,” she stalls for a moment. “I was thinking… I thought for us, we should go with a character from Shakespeare.”

“Hm, I’m interested. Go on,” he says with a smile.

“For a boy, I was thinking Lysander. Or Lucio,” she responds leaning back into him. “For a girl, Lavinia or Luciana.”

“That’s a lot of L’s there, any particular reason?” He asks.

“Well he or she is going to be either Lokison or Lokidottir,” she says confidently. “And I like the alliteration.”

Loki goes silent behind her, not quiet sure what to say. He just pulls her into his embrace hugging her back, and places his chin on her shoulder. She can feel his heart racing as she puts her head against his chest, and turns her head to kiss his cheek.

“Do you not like them?”

“I love them,” he answers sighing into her ear. “It just… it suddenly occurred to me.”

“What did?”

“Lokison, Lokidottir,” he says softly. “My son or daughter, baring my name, a part of me. I’m really going to be a father.”

She gently pulls his hands down to be flat on her belly where a small kick greets them, “And he or she loves their daddy already.”

-24 Weeks Pregnant-

“ABSOLUTELY NOT,” Loki now yells at the top of his lungs. “You are not going with us!”

“Like HELL I’m not,” Y/N yells back charging past Loki in her now much snugger Avengers uniform.

“You can’t be out fighting for your life when you’re pregnant!” Loki insists grabbing for her wrists, which she quickly avoids on her path toward the kitchen.

“You act like I’m going out on a suicide mission alone Loki,” she responds back, pulling on her fingerless gloves.

“You shouldn’t be going out on any mission accompanied or otherwise,” he growls still following her.

She finally comes to a halt and spins to face her boyfriend, “I’ve gone on barely any missions since I’ve been pregnant Loki. Hell I have barely even touched junk food. Or do any form of physical labor. Or been around the painted nursery. Or have more than one cup a tea a day because of the terrifying caffeine. I can handle one mission!”

“Well pardon me trying to care for our child,” he crosses his arms defensively.

“I know you are! But…” she sighs and rubs her eyes. “I love that you care so much, but we, me and the baby, aren’t that fragile. We can handle one mission. It’s just an in, interrogate, and out. And you’ll be there with me, along with a squad.” She reaches up trying to uncross his arms as she gives him puppy-dog eyes.

His shoulders drop, allowing her to grab his hands as he sighs, “Stay by me at all times?” It comes out as barely a whisper, already regretting his words.

She smiles widely at him stepping up onto his boots to give him a quick kiss, “Everything will be fine love.”

-

Things didn’t go quite to plan. Not that they ever did when it came to Avengers missions. Y/N cringes as a freshly sliced body goes flying past her. The cabin was far more protected than any of them had expected.

The team had split up to approach from different angles, Y/N was now back to back with Loki. His daggers and magic sending their opponents flying and dropping dead faster than she could keep track of with her own self occupied with stabbing the ones in front of her with her telekinetic energy swords.

“Just in and out,” Loki mocks in a high pitched tone as he sends another enemy flying.

“I also said it would be fine, and thus far we’re doing just fine,” she responds taking down the person in front of her. “And isn’t exercise good when you’re pregnant?”

Loki rolls his eyes, grabbing her arm behind him and swinging her in a circle to slash the enemies all gathered around her, “This is hardly what the books had in mind I assure you.”

“Some yoga in the morning, some light murder in the afternoon, and a nice jog in the evening right dear?” She shouts back as he sets her back down.

He looks to her for a moment, her eyes shining in the heat of battle, a big grin, and her hair flopping out of place as she tries to smooth it. Practically glowing before him, he can’t stop himself from pulling her into him and kissing her passionately. “My queen,” he winks letting go of her as they hear Captain America shout for them near the cabin.

“We’re all clear guys, lets get in there before he tries something!” He yells gesturing toward the door.

Y/N lets her energy weapons disperse before sliding her hand into Loki’s as they go to catch up, a quiet hum coming from her.

After a moment, a harsh wind blows up from behind them, and her hand drops from his. The air now suddenly eerily quiet.

“Y/N?” He says as he turns, his heart stopping at the sight in front of him.

Y/N struggles to stand with a large sword now protruding from her abdomen, her eyes wide with fear, and a man behind her grinning at him.

“Whoopsies,” the man says, kicking her off his sword and flat onto the ground. “That’s gotta hurt.”

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Just the one picture this chapter since it took a little bit to put together, sort of the general idea I had for what Loki would choose. As to why he can paint, I just figured that could be a hidden talent he’s had :P 

P.S. Please don’t hate me for this part, I love you all :$

Part 1      Part 2      Part 3      Part 5

Part 6

Tag List:

@ihavenofilter @zombiefied-gay-ghost @talinalani @chloe-skywalker @shanetoo @shitty-imagines-95 @roryomxlley @afangirlamongotherthings @servamp-addict @moonfaery @thefallenbibliophilequote @arielletheavenger @lucacangettathisass @draconicyeet @i-love-loki-its-unhealthy @tokoyamisstuff @whennoonethinksyoucanyoumust @ximi27 @throughartistseyes  @islaylivesinshire @ink-and-starlight  @starfox-92 

[michaelandy101-blog]

13 Reasons Your Website Can Have a High Bounce Rate

New Post has been published on http://tiptopreview.com/13-reasons-your-website-can-have-a-high-bounce-rate/

13 Reasons Your Website Can Have a High Bounce Rate

It’s a question asked on Reddit and Twitter every day.

It makes the shoulders of online marketers tense up and makes analysts frown with concern.

You look at your analytics, eyes wide, and find yourself asking; “Why do I have such a high bounce rate?”

What Is a Bounce Rate?

As a refresher, Google refers to a “bounce” as “a single-page session on your site.”

Bounce rate refers to the percentage of visitors that leave your website (or “bounce” back to the search results or referring website) after viewing only one page on your site.

This can even happen when a user idles on a page for more than 30 minutes.

So what is a high bounce rate, and why is it bad?

Well “high bounce rate” is a relative term, which depends on what your company’s goals are, and what kind of site you have.

Low bounce rates – or too low bounce rates – can be problems too.

Most websites will see bounce rates between 26% to 70%, according to a RocketFuel study.

Based on the data they gathered, they provided a bounce rate grading system of sorts:

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25% or lower: Something is probably broken

26-40%: Excellent

41-55%: Average

56-70%: Higher than normal, but could make sense depending on the website

70% or higher: Bad and/or something is probably broken

The overall bounce rate for your site will live in the Audience Overview tab of Google Analytics.

You can find your bounce rate for individual channels and pages in the behavior column of most views in Google Analytics.

What follows are 13 common reasons your website can have a high bounce rate and how to fix these issues.

1. Slow-to-Load Page

Google has a renewed focus on site speed, especially as a part of the Core Web Vitals initiative.

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A slow-to-load page can be a huge problem for bounce rate.

Site speed is part of Google’s ranking algorithm.

Google wants to promote content that provides a positive experience for users, and they recognize that a slow site can provide a poor experience.

Users want the facts fast – this is part of the reason Google has put so much work into featured snippets.

If your page takes longer than a few seconds to load, your visitors may get fed up and leave.

Fixing site speed is a lifelong journey for most SEO and marketing pros.

But the upside is that with each incremental fix, you should see an incremental boost in speed.

Review your page speed (overall and for individual pages) using tools like:

Google PageSpeed Insights.

The Google Search Console PageSpeed reports.

Lighthouse reports.

Pingdom.

GTmetrix.

They’ll offer you recommendations specific to your site, such as compressing your images, reducing third-party scripts, and leveraging browser caching.

2. Self-Sufficient Content

Sometimes your content is efficient enough people can quickly get what they need and bounce!

This can be a wonderful thing.

Perhaps you’ve achieved the content marketer’s dream and created awesome content that wholly consumed them for a handful of minutes in their lives.

Or perhaps you have a landing page that only requires the user to complete a short lead form.

To determine whether bounce rate is nothing to worry about, you’ll want to look at the Time Spent on Page and Average Session Duration metrics in Google Analytics.

You can also conduct user experience testing and A/B testing to see if the high bounce rate is a problem.

If the user is spending a couple of minutes or more on the page, that sends a positive signal to Google that they found your page highly relevant to their search query.

If you want to rank for that particular search query, that kind of user intent is gold.

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If the user is spending less than a minute on the page (which may be the case of a properly optimized landing page with a quick-hit CTA form), consider enticing the reader to read some of your related blog posts after filling out the form.

3. Disproportional Contribution by a Few Pages

If we expand on the example from the previous section, you may have a few pages on your site that are contributing disproportionally to the overall bounce rate for your site.

Google is savvy at recognizing the difference between these.

If your single CTA landing pages reasonably satisfy user intent and cause them to bounce quickly after taking an action, but your longer-form content pages have a lower bounce rate, you’re probably good to go.

However, you will want to dig in and confirm that this is the case or discover if some of these pages with a higher bounce rate shouldn’t be causing users to leave en masse.

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Open up Google Analytics, go to Behavior > Site Content > Landing Pages, and sort by Bounce Rate.

Consider adding an advanced filter to remove pages that might skew the results.

For example, it’s not necessarily helpful to agonize over the one Twitter share with five visits that have all your social UTM parameters tacked onto the end of the URL.

My rule of thumb is to determine a minimum threshold of volume that is significant for the page.

Choose what makes sense for your site, whether it’s 100 visits or 1,000 visits, then click on Advanced and filter for Sessions greater than that.

4. Misleading Title Tag and/or Meta Description

Ask yourself: Is the content of your page accurately summarized by your title tag and meta description?

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If not, visitors may enter your site thinking your content is about one thing, only to find that it isn’t, and then bounce back to whence they came.

Whether it was an innocent mistake or you were trying to game the system by optimizing for keyword clickbait (shame on you!), this is, fortunately, simple enough to fix.

Either review the content of your page and adjust the title tag and meta description accordingly or rewrite the content to address the search queries you want to attract visitors for.

You can also check what kind of meta description Google has generated for your page for common searches – Google can change your meta description, and if they make it worse, you can take steps to remedy that.

5. Blank Page or Technical Error

If your bounce rate is exceptionally high and you see that people are spending less than a few seconds on the page, it’s likely your page is blank, returning a 404, or otherwise not loading properly.

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Take a look at the page from your audience’s most popular browser and device configurations (e.g., Safari on desktop and mobile, Chrome on mobile, etc.) to replicate their experience.

You can also check in Search Console under Coverage to discover the issue from Google’s perspective.

Correct the issue yourself or talk to someone who can – an issue like this can cause Google to drop your page from the search results in a hurry.

6. Bad Link from Another Website

You could be doing everything perfect on your end to achieve a normal or low bounce rate from organic search results, and still have a high bounce rate from your referral traffic.

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The referring site could be sending you unqualified visitors or the anchor text and context for the link could be misleading.

Sometimes this is a result of sloppy copywriting.

The writer or publisher linked to your site in the wrong part of the copy or didn’t mean to link to your site at all.

Reach out to the author of the article, then the editor or webmaster if the author can’t update the article post-publish.

Politely ask them to remove the link to your site – or update the context, whichever makes sense.

(Tip: You can easily find their contact information with this guide.)

Unfortunately, the referring website may be trying to sabotage you with some negative SEO tactics, out of spite, or just for fun.

For example, they may have linked to your Guide to Adopting a Puppy with the anchor text of FREE GET RICH QUICK SCHEME.

You should still reach out and politely ask them to remove the link, but if needed, you’ll want to update your disavow file in Search Console.

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Disavowing the link won’t reduce your bounce rate, but it will tell Google not to take that site’s link into account when it comes to determining the quality and relevance of your site.

7. Affiliate Landing Page or Single-Page Site

If you’re an affiliate, the whole point of your page may be to deliberately send people away from your website to the merchant’s site.

In these instances, you’re doing the job right if the page has a higher bounce rate.

A similar scenario would be if you have a single-page website, such as a landing page for your ebook or a simple portfolio site.

It’s common for sites like these to have a very high bounce rate since there’s nowhere else to go.

Remember that Google can usually tell when a website is doing a good job satisfying user intent even if the user’s query is answered super quickly (sites like WhatIsMyScreenResolution.com come to mind).

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If you’re interested, you can adjust your bounce rate so it makes more sense for the goals of your website.

For Single Page Apps, or SPAs, you can adjust your analytics settings to see different parts of a page as a different page, adjusting the Bounce Rate to better reflect user experience.

8. Low-Quality or Under Optimized Content

Visitors may be bouncing from your website because your content is just plain bad.

Take a long, hard look at your page and have your most judgmental and honest colleague or friend review it.

(Ideally, this person either has a background in content marketing or copywriting, or they fall into your target audience).

One possibility is that your content is great, but you just haven’t optimized it for online reading – or for the audience that you’re targeting.

Are you writing in simple sentences (think high school students versus PhDs)?

Is it easily scannable with lots of header tags?

Does it cleanly answer questions?

Have you included images to break up the copy and make it easy on the eyes?

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Writing for the web is different than writing for offline publications.

Brush up your online copywriting skills to increase the time people spend reading your content.

The other possibility is that your content is poorly written overall or simply isn’t something your audience cares about.

Consider hiring a freelance copywriter or content strategist who can help you revamp your ideas into powerful content that converts.

9. Bad or Obnoxious UX

Are you bombarding people with ads, pop-up surveys, and email subscribe buttons?

CTA-heavy features like these may be irresistible to the marketing and sales team, but using too many of them can make a visitor run for the hills.

Google’s Core Web Vitals are all about user experience – they’re ranking factors, and effect user happiness too.

Is your site confusing to navigate?

Perhaps your visitors are looking to explore more, but your blog is missing a search box or the menu items are difficult to click on a smartphone.

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As online marketers, we know our websites in and out.

It’s easy to forget that what seems intuitive to us is anything but to our audience.

Make sure you’re avoiding these common design mistakes, and have a web or UX designer review the site and let you know if anything pops out to them as problematic.

10. The Page Isn’t Mobile-Friendly

While we know it’s important to have a mobile-friendly website, the practice isn’t always followed in the real world.

Google’s index is switching to mobile-only next year.

But even as recently as 2018, one study found that nearly a quarter of the top websites were not mobile-friendly.

Websites that haven’t been optimized for mobile don’t look good on mobile devices – and they don’t load too fast, either.

That’s a recipe for a high bounce rate.

Even if your website site was implemented using responsive design principles, it’s still possible that the live page doesn’t read as mobile-friendly to the user.

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Sometimes, when a page gets squeezed into a mobile format, it causes some of the key information to move below-the-fold.

Now, instead of seeing a headline that matches what they saw in search, mobile users only see your site’s navigation menu.

Assuming the page doesn’t offer what they need, they bounce back to Google.

If you see a page with a high bounce rate and no glaring issues immediately jump out to you, test it on your mobile phone.

You can identify non-mobile-friendly pages at-scale using Google’s free Test My Site tool.

You can also check for mobile issues in the Search Console and Lighthouse.

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This can work in reverse too – make sure your site is easy to read and navigate in desktop, tablet, and mobile formats, and with accessibility devices.

11. Wonky Google Analytics Setup

It’s possible that you haven’t properly implemented Google Analytics and added the tracking codes to all the pages on your site.

Google explains how to fix that here.

12. Content Depth

Google can give people quick answers through featured snippets and knowledge panels; you can give people the deep, interesting, interconnected content that’s a step beyond that.

Make sure your content compels people to click on further.

Provide interesting, relevant internal links, and give them a reason to stay.

And for the crowd that wants the quick answer, give them a TL;DR summary at the top.

13. Asking for Too Much

Don’t ask someone for their credit card number, social security, grandmother’s pension, and children’s names right off the bat – your user doesn’t trust you yet.

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People are ready to be suspicious considering how many scam websites are out there.

Being presented with a big pop up asking for info will cause a lot of people to leave immediately.

The job of a webmaster or content creator is to build up trust with the user – and doing so will both increase consumer satisfaction and decrease your bounce rate.

If it makes users happy, Google likes it.

Don’t Panic

A high bounce rate doesn’t mean the end of the world.

Some well designed, beautiful webpages have high bounce rates.

Bounce rates can be a measure of how well your site is performing but if you don’t tackle them with nuance, they can become a vanity metric.

Don’t present bounce rates without context.

Sometimes you want a medium to high bounce rate.

And don’t try and “fix” bounce rates that aren’t actually a problem by slowing down users on the page, or preventing them from going back from your site.

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That makes a more frustrated user, and they won’t return to your content again.

Even if the number superficially goes down, you will have earned a lot worse than a “bounce.”

5 Pro Tips for Reducing Your Bounce Rate

Regardless of the reason behind your high bounce rate, here’s a summary of best practices you can implement to bring it down.

1. Make Sure Your Content Lives Up to the Hype

Your title tag and meta description effectively act as your website’s virtual billboard in Google.

Whatever you’re advertising in the SERPs, your content needs to match.

Don’t call your page an ultimate guide if it’s a short post with three tips.

Don’t claim to be the “best” vacuum if your user reviews show a 3-star rating.

You get the idea.

Also, make your content readable:

Break up your text with lots of white space.

Add supporting images.

Use short sentences.

Spellcheck is your friend.

Use good, clean design

Don’t bombard with too many ads

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2. Keep Critical Elements Above the Fold

Sometimes, your content matches what you advertise in your title tag and meta description; visitors just can’t tell at first glance.

When people arrive on a website, they make an immediate first impression.

You want that first impression to validate whatever they thought they were going to see when they arrived.

A prominent H1 should match the title they read on Google.

If it’s an ecommerce site, a photo should match the description.

Give a good first impression

Make sure banners don’t push your content too far down.

Make sure what the user is searching for is on the page when it loads.

3. Speed Up Your Site

When it comes to SEO, faster is always better.

Keeping up with site speed is a task that should remain firmly stuck to the top of your SEO to-do list.

There will always be new ways to compress, optimize, and otherwise accelerate load time.

Implement AMP.

Compress all images before loading them to your site, and only use the maximum display size necessary.

Review and remove any external or load-heavy scripts, stylesheets, and plugins. If there are any you don’t need, remove them. For the ones you do need, see if there’s a faster option.

Tackle the basics: Use a CDN, minify JavaScript and CSS, and set up browser caching.

Check Lighthouse for more suggestions

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4. Minimize Non-Essential Elements

Don’t bombard your visitors with pop-up ads, in-line promotions, and other content they don’t care about.

Visual overwhelm can cause visitors to bounce.

What CTA is the most important for the page?

Compellingly highlight that.

For everything else, delegate it to your sidebar or footer.

Edit, edit, edit!

5. Help People Get Where They Want to Be Faster

Want to encourage people to browse more of your site?

Make it easy for them.

Leverage on-site search with predictive search, helpful filters, and an optimized “no results found” page.

Rework your navigation menu and A/B test how complex vs. simple drop-down menus affect your bounce rate.

Include a Table of Contents in your long-form articles with anchor links taking people straight to the section they want to read.

Summary

Hopefully, this article helped you diagnose what’s causing your high bounce rate, and you have a good idea of how to fix it.

Make your site useful, user-focused, and fast – good sites attract good users.

More Resources:

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Image Credits

All screenshots taken by author, November 2020

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[thehikingviking]

Mt Darwin (13,831 ft), A Day Hike via Lamarck Col

My main goal for the 2020 Sierra Challenge was to day hike Mt Darwin. Day 6 had the group heading towards the Socialite, which shared an approach with the standard route to Mt Darwin over Lamarck Col. I had wanted to climb this emblem peak for over a decade, but was discouraged by the class 5 summit block rating. Many of my hiking companions and acquaintances assured me that I would have no problem with the summit block, and even went so far to call it class 3-4. My interest was further amplified after a quasi failed attempt earlier in July. I ran our group into the ground on a backpacking trip to Evolution Basin and Mt Goddard, and we didn’t have enough juice to finish off our trip with a Mt Darwin summit. On our hike out, I considered returning a month later during the challenge, and studied the route from a distance. I also read through many detailed trip reports, but in the end I was still unsure if I would be capable of completing such a strenuous day. A month later I found myself in the best physical condition I had ever been in. I participated in days 2-4 of the challenge, allowing me to acclimate and get my legs underneath me. I then rested on day 5 to hydrate and recover. Even after all of my preparation, doubts lingered. I told Asaka that I could possibly be out for over 20 hours, and may even face the reality of having to bivouac. I had a little panic attack the night before, but I eventually found peace while watching the sunset before bed. The next morning, I woke up fresh. I made it to the trailhead by 4am, parked at the hikers parking lot, then followed a headlamp up the road ahead of me. This turned out to be Iris. I had studied Matt Yaussi’s video of their day hike to Mt Darwin, and was greatly concerned because it took them over 17 hours back in 2017. They had both been faster hikers in than me in the past, so I expect to take even longer.

She reassured me that they were extremely slow that day, and spent a lot of time waiting for others who were doing a day hike to Mt Goddard. We waited at the bathroom at the end of the road and soon we were joined by Mason, Tom Becht and Tom Grundy as well. We stuck together maintaining a solid pace up the dark trail. I settled in right in the middle of the pack. I remember the stars looking extra bright that night. Chatting with the group was enough to keep me distracted as we made our way up the steep trail. Last time I was here I was struggling with a heavy pack in the heat of the day. Now I felt like a leaf floating up the mountain with a breeze. After several miles, it dawned upon me that I was keeping up with hikers whom I once viewed as superhuman. I was seeing the fruits of my labor and a sense of euphoria filled my being. It was a beautiful morning and my body was feeling great. Lamarck Col came into view sooner than I expected, a familiar sight from not loo long ago.

A young trail running couple, not part of the challenge, showed up out of nowhere. They said they were on their way to Scylla, a very formidable objective. They climbed some talus slopes to the left of the pass. I considered saying something, but I figured they were probably off to tag Lamarck Col Peak as a bonus peak. They ended up missing the col by accident, and at the end of the day they didn’t make it all the way to Scylla. There was a little less snow than the month prior, and we were able to avoid it altogether by staying on the rocks to the left. To my surprise, I had made it to the pass in under 3 hours. I had budgeted 4 hours to reach the pass, and while I wasn’t that tired, I took a short break to soak in the beauty.

The others dropped down towards Darwin Bench while I waited for Bob Burd to catch up down below. I asked if he knew of anyone heading to Mt Darwin. Christine was signed up for Mt Darwin, but she broke her collar bone going over Haeckel Col earlier that week. Bob cheerfully replied that Zee and his friends were going for Mt Darwin, and the young trio showed up shortly after. Fearing that I would be much slower than them, I got a head start and subsequently descended the other side of the col. Bob and I chatted for a while, but slowly separated as we took our own routes down towards Darwin Lakes.

When viewing the map, it appears easiest to sidehill as much as possible to avoid unnecessary elevation loss. However, I found it was easier to simply drop down to just below the 12,000 ft contour. Sidehilling was loose and tedious while a more direct route was across solid granite slabs and grassy ramps.

After dropping over a thousand feet, I regained what was just lost by heading towards the toe of the much receded Darwin Glacier. I stopped at a very nice tarn here to fill up water. I looked around for Zee and his friends but they were nowhere in sight. I expected them to have caught me by now. After a break, I continued up the moraine, avoiding the icy glacier altogether, wondering if I could get to the the start of the scramble without stopping to put on crampons.

I was wise enough to aim for the notch ~100 meters to the left of the lowest point in the ridge. There was one lingering patch of ice that blocked the route.

While short, the patch of snow was extremely steep and icy. It was just enough to get someone in trouble. I sat down on a rock and put on my crampons.

I crossed the patch with relative ease and just two minutes after putting them on I was already removing my crampons. Still no sign of Zee and his friends; strange.

Now began the start of the class 3. There was a lot of loose rock and dirt, and the exact route wasn’t apparent to me. I think I initially went too far left, and found myself on some steep dirt. I got off this as soon as I could across a very loose horizontal pitch. This was hard class 3, and one should be very careful here. I was encouraged though because while I was dealing with these challenges, my elevation was getting higher and higher. I was relieved when I made the notch. Across Evolution Basin was Mt Goddard.

Back to the northwest was Mt Mendel.

I was a little on edge after that sketchy section. The ridge ahead of me didn’t look simple, but I expected it to be relatively straightforward.

What I found was some more class 3. I was very rhythmic and methodical, placing focus on each move. I took in the views of Evolution Basin and Mt McGee below. The Socialite and The Hermit stood behind Evolution Lake.

I knew I was getting close when I was of equal height with Mt Mendel, which stands just a hundred feet lower than Mt Darwin.

I was encouraged when I attained the summit plateau, but remained humble knowing that the exposed summit block lay ahead.

As I approached the edge of the plateau, I secretly hoped that a earthquake or simply erosion had knocked over the summit block. I crossed the rounded plateau and sure enough the summit block was still there in all its glory. I knew exactly what to do. I had to drop from the plateau to the small notch in between where I stood and the summit block. Form there I would descend a dirt chute to the left, then reclimb another chute up the eastern side of the summit block.

Rather than take a break and give myself time to think about it, I went straight for it. I dropped my backpack, only taking my phone and a couple pieces of webbing just in case I needed to hang onto something.

I dropped down to the notch, then further down the chute to the left. There was a lot of steep dirt but I felt in control. So far, so good.

I started climbing up the final chute. There was a large chockstone in the way. This stumped me for a second, but I found my way up and over by stemming around it. On to the next challenge.

The next few moves were class 3. The exposure was not so bad, and the climbing was pretty easy. Just a little more to go.

Finally, the last move. While exposed, there are extremely good holds and the rock is solid.

I heaved myself up with little difficulty. I would call it class 4. To the northeast was Mt Tom Ross. I didn’t know it at the time, but Sean King spotted me on Mt Darwin from atop this peak.

To the southeast were Cloudripper, Mt Agassiz, Mt Winchell and North Palisade.

To the south were Mt Haeckel and Mt Fiske.

To the southwest was Mt Goddard.

To the west were Mt McGee and Mt Henry. My red backpack remained on the plateau.

To the northwest was the tip of Mt Mendel.

To the north were Mt Humphreys and Mt Tom.

I was very satisfied with my time of 6 hours and 20 minutes. I had a solid chance to make it back down several hours before I expected.

I had lunch waiting in my backpack so I figured I would take my extended rest once on more solid ground. I took in the exposure all round me. The one move of class 4 was easy to downclimb with solid holds.

I even felt comfortable enough to follow the Evolution Ridge a short distance to see the famous traverse first hand.

Standing over here also gave me a different perspective of the summit block.

The technically hardest part of the whole climb was the chockstone. I dropped back down to the notch and made it back to my backpack. I had my lunch then began my way back towards the west ridge. I was still a little concerned with the down climb back to the Darwin Glacier, and I wanted to put this behind me. I took parting glances at the summit block on my retreat.

My eyes traveled down the length of Evolution Valley to the hinterlands in the distance.

I thought about climbing Mt Mendel, but I still had to reclimb Lamarck Col, so I played it conservatively, figuring I could climb this on a future challenge.

Now I turned my focus to the class 3 downclimb. Slow and steady wins the race, I thought to myself.

Descending from the notch took a lot of focus. As I approached the Darwin Glacier, I spotted several people beneath me. It was Zee and his friends.

I did my best to not kick any rocks down on top of them, which was a difficult task that I was barely able to pull off. I was surprised to see them so far behind. Zee told me that they took a wrong route. They all made it across the icy section with no crampons, which was most likely easier now that the sun had time to soften it slightly. Zee asked how much further he had to go, and wondered if he could still make the summit. It was still before noon and I figured he could make it in an hour, so I encouraged him to continue. I warned them that I was scared to death that they would inadvertently kick rocks down onto me and I advised them to be extremely careful. To their credit, not even a pebble fell. I learned later that night that while his friends stopped short, Zee made it to the summit.

I crossed the sliver of glacier without crampons by kicking steps into the hard snow. The talus rock field beneath the glacier was extremely loose and tedious. I took a long rest at the tarn, basking in my glory.

I knew reclimbing Lamarck Col would be tough, but I still had some energy left. I took my time to hydrate, then headed back towards the Darwin Lakes.

I followed a route similar to my ascent route. Again, I dropped low towards the Darwin Lakes, but not all the way. I picked a gentle route up sandy patches and granite ramps.

I started free styling in Spanish to pass the time. I was surprisingly good at it. As I got higher I started singing some of my favorite reggaetón songs. I looked down and noticed a lone figure gaining on me. He must have enjoyed the concert. I met this individual at the col. He was a Canadian named Sayer and he was on his return from Mt Darwin as well. He failed to reach the summit via an alternate route, saying that the loose rock and steep dirt sections sketched him out.

I had service here and let Asaka know that I was ahead of schedule. Sayer was willing to accompany me on the hike down and I was happy to have company. I saw another lone hiker heading towards Lamarck Col Peak. I wondered if this was Sean King, since I just received his text message from earlier saying that he could see me on the summit of Mt Darwin from Mt Tom Ross. I considered this bonus peak myself, but I had started to miss Asaka and Leif, and I wanted to get back as soon as possible.

Sayer and I chatted all the way down to Lower Lamarck Lake. I remember this section being much easier than what I experienced back in July. Cooler weather and a lighter pack made a world of difference.

I stopped to take a swim at the outlet of Lower Lamarck Lake. Sayer continued on and I promised to stop by his campsite on my way out. As I swam, I was accompanied by a Swede in a speedo. Now refreshed, I continued the remaining distance towards North Lake. Sean King caught me with one mile to go, and we hiked out together comparing our achievements. He filled the stat sheet by climbing 5 peaks around Lamarck Col. I found a reserve of energy and jogged out to the trailhead at the very end. I finished the day hike of Mt Darwin in exactly 12 hours and 30 minutes. I drove back down to Bishop to pick up my family, then returned to North Lake where we cooked dinner and drank beer with Jim and Bob Burd, Sean and Scott King, Evan Rasmussen, Sayer and his girlfriend. It would be a late night for some of the other challengers. Most of the hikers still had not returned by the time I left for my motel in the dark. My main goal for the Sierra Challenge was a complete success, and I earned another rest day in Bishop.

[krestmarketinggroup-blog]

How to Turn Low-Value Content Into Neatly Organized Opportunities - Next Level

Posted by  jocameron    

   Welcome to the newest installment of our educational Next Level series! In our last post, Brian Childs offered up a beginner-level workflow to  help discover your competitor’s backlinks . Today, we’re welcoming back Next Level veteran Jo Cameron to show you how to find low-quality pages on your site and decide their new fate. Read on and level up! 

   With an almost endless succession of Google updates fluctuating the search results, it’s pretty clear that substandard content just won’t cut it.

  I know, I know — we can’t all keep up with the latest algorithm updates. We’ve got businesses to run, clients to impress, and a strong social media presence to maintain. After all, you haven’t seen a huge drop in your traffic. It’s probably OK, right?

  So what’s with the nagging sensation down in the pit of your stomach? It’s not just that giant chili taco you had earlier. Maybe it’s that feeling that your content might be treading on thin ice. Maybe you watched Rand’s recent Whiteboard Friday ( How to Determine if a Page is “Low Quality” in Google’s Eyes ) and just don’t know where to start.

  In this edition of Next Level, I’ll show you how to start identifying your low-quality pages in a few simple steps with Moz Pro’s  Site Crawl . Once identified, you can decide whether to merge, shine up, or remove the content.

     A quick recap of algorithm updates  The  latest big fluctuations  in the search results were said to be caused by King Fred: enemy of low-quality pages and champion of the people’s right to find and enjoy content of value.

  Fred took the fight to affiliate sites, and low-value commercial sites were  also affected .

  The good news is that even if this isn’t directed at you, and you haven’t taken a hit yourself, you can still learn from this update to improve your site. After all, why  not  stay on the right side of the biggest index of online content in the known universe? You’ll come away with a good idea of what content is working for your site, and you may just take a ride to the top of the SERPs. Knowledge is power, after all.

  Be a Pro  It’s best if we just accept that Google updates are ongoing; they happen  all.the.time.  But with a site audit tool in your toolkit like Moz Pro’s Site Crawl, they don’t have to keep you up at night. Our shiny new Rogerbot crawler is the new kid on the block, and it’s hungry to crawl your pages.

  If you haven’t given it a try, sign up for a free trial for 30 days:

   Start a free trial 

  If you’ve already had a free trial that has expired,  write to me and I’ll give you another , just because I can.

   Set up your Moz Pro campaign  — it takes 5 minutes tops — and Rogerbot will be unleashed upon your site like a caffeinated spider.

  Rogerbot hops from page to page following links to analyze your website. As Rogerbot hops along, a beautiful database of pages is constructed that flag issues you can use to find those laggers. What a hero!

  First stop: Thin content  Site Crawl > Content Issues > Thin Content  Thin content could be damaging your site. If it’s deemed to be malicious, then it could result in a penalty. Things like zero-value pages with ads or spammy doorway pages — little traps people set to funnel people to other pages — are bad news.

  First off, let’s find those pages. Moz Pro Site Crawl will flag “thin content” if it has less than 50 words (excluding navigation and ads).

     Now is a good time to familiarize yourself with  Google’s Quality Guidelines . Think long and hard about whether you may be doing this, intentionally or accidentally.

  You’re probably not straight-up spamming people, but you could do better and you know it. Our mantra is (repeat after me): “ Does this add value for my visitors?”  Well, does it?

  Ok, you can stop chanting now.

  For most of us, thin content is less of a penalty threat and more of an opportunity. By finding pages with thin content, you have the opportunity to figure out if they’re doing enough to serve your visitors. Pile on some Google Analytics data and start making decisions about improvements that can be made.

  Using moz.com as an example, I’ve found 3 pages with thin content. Ta-da emoji!

     I’m not too concerned about the login page or the password reset page. I am, however, interested to see how the local search page is performing. Maybe we can find an opportunity to help people who land on this page.

  Go ahead and export your thin content pages from Moz Pro to CSV.

  We can then grab some data from Google Analytics to give us an idea of how well this page is performing. You may want to look at comparing monthly data and see if there are any trends, or compare similar pages to see if improvements can be made.

  I am by no means a Google Analytics expert, but I know how to get what I want. Most of the time that is, except when I have to Google it, which is probably every second week.

  Firstly: Behavior > Site Content >  All Pages > Paste in your URL

       Pageviews - The number of times that page has been viewed, even if it’s a repeat view. 

 Avg. Time on Page - How long people are on your page 

 Bounce Rate - Single page views with no interaction 

  For my example page, Bounce Rate is very interesting. This page lives to be interacted with. Its only joy in life is allowing people to search for a local business in the UK, US, or Canada. It is not an informational page at all. It doesn’t provide a contact phone number or an answer to a query that may explain away a high bounce rate.

  I’m going to add Pageviews and Bounce Rate a spreadsheet so I can track this over time.

  I’ll also added some keywords that I want that page to rank for to my Moz Pro Rankings. That way I can make sure I’m targeting searcher intent and driving organic traffic that is likely to convert.

  I’ll also know if I’m being out ranked by my competitors. How dare they, right?

  As we’ve found with this local page, not all thin content is bad content. Another example may be if you have a landing page with an awesome video that’s adding value and is performing consistently well. In this case, hold off on making sweeping changes. Track the data you’re interested in; from there, you can look at making small changes and track the impact, or split test some ideas. Either way, you want to make informed, data-driven decisions.

  Action to take for tracking thin content pages  Export to CSV so you can track how these pages are performing alongside GA data. Make incremental changes and track the results.

  Second stop: Duplicate title tags   Site Crawl > Content Issues > Duplicate Title Tags  Title tags show up in the search results to give human searchers a taste of what your content is about. They also help search engines understand and categorize your content. Without question, you want these to be well considered, relevant to your content, and unique.

  Moz Pro Site Crawl flags any pages with matching title tags for your perusal.

     Duplicate title tags are unlikely to get your site penalized, unless you’ve masterminded an army of pages that target irrelevant keywords and provide zero value. Once again, for most of us, it’s a good way to find a missed opportunity.

  Digging around your duplicate title tags is a lucky dip of wonder. You may find pages with repeated content that you want to merge, or redundant pages that may be confusing your visitors, or maybe just pages for which you haven’t spent the time crafting unique title tags.

  Take this opportunity to review your  title tags,  make them interesting, and always make them relevant. Because I’m a Whiteboard Friday friend, I can’t  not  link to this  title tag hack  video. Turn off Netflix for 10 minutes and enjoy.

   Pro tip:  To view the other duplicate pages, make sure you click on the little triangle icon to open that up like an accordion.

     Hey now, what’s this? Filed away under duplicate title tags I’ve found these cheeky pages.

     These are the contact forms we have in place to contact our help team. Yes, me included — hi!

  I’ve got some inside info for you all. We’re actually in the process of redesigning our Help Hub, and these tool-specific pages definitely need a rethink. For now, I’m going to summon the powerful and mysterious  rel=canonical tag .

  This tells search engines that all those other pages are copies of the one true page to rule them all.  Search engines like this, they understand it, and they bow down to honor the original source, as well they should. Visitors can still access these pages, and they won’t ever know they’ve hit a page with an original source elsewhere. How very magical.

  Action to take for duplicate title tags on similar pages  Use the rel=canonical tag to tell search engines that   http://bit.ly/2i0iYt8   is the original source.

  Review visitor behavior and perform user testing on the Help Hub. We’ll use this information to make a plan for redirecting those pages to one main page and adding a tool type drop-down.

   More  duplicate titles within my subfolder-specific campaign  Because at Moz we’ve got a heck of a lot of pages, I’ve got another Moz Pro campaign set up to track the URL moz.com/blog. I find this handy if I want to look at issues on just one section of my site at a time.

  You just have to enter your subfolder and limit your campaign when you set it up.

     Just remember we won’t crawl any pages outside of the subfolder. Make sure you have an all-encompassing, all-access campaign set up for the root domain as well.

  Not enough allowance to create a subfolder-specific campaign? You can filter by URL from within your existing campaign.

     In my Moz Blog campaign, I stumbled across these little fellows:

   http://bit.ly/2i1CZPM 

   http://bit.ly/2i1CZPM-10504 

  This is a classic case of new content usurping the old content. Instead of telling search engines, “Yeah, so I’ve got a few pages and they’re kind of the same, but this one is the one true page,” like we did with the rel=canonical tag before, this time I’ll use the big cousin of the rel=canonical, the queen of content canonicalization, the  301 redirect .

  All the power is sent to the page you are redirecting to, as well as all the actual human visitors.

  Action to take for duplicate title tags with outdated/updated content  Check the traffic and authority for both pages, then add a 301 redirect from one to the other. Consolidate and rule.

  It’s also a good opportunity to refresh the content and check whether it’s... what? I can’t hear you —  adding value to my visitors ! You got it.

  Third stop: Duplicate content  Site Crawl > Content Issues > Duplicate Content  When the code and content on a page looks the same are the code and content on another page of your site, it will be flagged as “Duplicate Content.” Our crawler will flag any pages with 90% or more overlapping content or code as having duplicate content.

     Officially, in the wise words of Google, duplicate content  doesn’t incur a penalty . However, it can be filtered out of the index, so still not great.

  Having said that, the trick is in the fine print. One bot’s duplicate content is another bot’s thin content, and thin content can get you penalized. Let me refer you back to our old friend, the  Quality Guidelines .

  Are you doing one of these things intentionally or accidentally? Do you want me to make you chant again?

  If you’re being hounded by duplicate content issues and don’t know where to start, then we’ve got more information on  duplicate content on our Learning Center .

  I’ve found some pages that clearly have different content on them, so why are these duplicate?

     So friends, what we have here is thin content that’s being flagged as duplicate.

  There is basically not enough content on the page for bots to distinguish them from each other. Remember that our crawler looks at all the page code, as well as the copy that humans see.

  You may find this frustrating at first: “Like,  why  are they duplicates?? They’re different, gosh darn it!” But once you pass through all the 7 stages of duplicate content and arrive at acceptance, you’ll see the opportunity you have here. Why not pop those topics on your content schedule? Why not use the “queen” again, and 301 redirect them to a similar resource, combining the power of both resources? Or maybe, just maybe, you could use them in a blog post about duplicate content — just like I have.

  Action to take for duplicate pages with different content  Before you make any hasty decisions, check the traffic to these pages. Maybe dig a bit deeper and track conversions and bounce rate, as well. Check out our workflow for thin content earlier in this post and do the same for these pages.

  From there you can figure out if you want to rework content to add value or redirect pages to another resource.

  This is an awesome video in the ever-impressive  Whiteboard Friday series  which talks about republishing. Seriously, you’ll kick yourself if you don’t watch it.

  Broken URLs and duplicate content  Another dive into Duplicate Content has turned up two Help Hub URLs that point to the same page.

  These are no good to man or beast. They are especially no good for our analytics — blurgh, data confusion! No good for our crawl budget — blurgh, extra useless page! User experience? Blurgh, nope, no good for that either.

     Action to take for messed-up URLs causing duplicate content  Zap this time-waster with a 301 redirect. For me this is an easy decision: add a 301 to the long, messed up URL with a PA of 1, no discussion. I love our new Learning Center so much that I’m going to  link to it again  so you can learn more about redirection and build your SEO knowledge.

  It’s the most handy place to check if you get stuck with any of the concepts I’ve talked about today.

  Wrapping up  While it may feel scary at first to have your content flagged as having issues, the real takeaway here is that these are actually neatly organized opportunities.

  With a bit of tenacity and some extra data from Google Analytics, you can start to understand the best way to fix your content and make your site easier to use (and more powerful in the process).

  If you get stuck, just remember our chant:  “Does this add value for my visitors?”  Your content has to be for your human visitors, so think about them and their journey. And most importantly: be good to yourself and use a tool like  Moz Pro  that compiles potential issues into an easily digestible catalogue.

  Enjoy your chili taco and your good night’s sleep!

    Sign up for The Moz Top 10 , a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don’t have time to hunt down but want to read!

http://bit.ly/2i1D0mO

#leadgeneration #socialmediamarketing #articlewriting #internetmarketing #seo #bestlocalseo #blogpower #lagunabeachseo #newportbeachseo #huntingtonbeachseo

[wickedbananas]

How to Turn Low-Value Content Into Neatly Organized Opportunities - Next Level

Posted by jocameron

Welcome to the newest installment of our educational Next Level series! In our last post, Brian Childs offered up a beginner-level workflow to help discover your competitor's backlinks. Today, we're welcoming back Next Level veteran Jo Cameron to show you how to find low-quality pages on your site and decide their new fate. Read on and level up!

With an almost endless succession of Google updates fluctuating the search results, it’s pretty clear that substandard content just won’t cut it.

I know, I know — we can’t all keep up with the latest algorithm updates. We’ve got businesses to run, clients to impress, and a strong social media presence to maintain. After all, you haven’t seen a huge drop in your traffic. It’s probably OK, right?

So what’s with the nagging sensation down in the pit of your stomach? It’s not just that giant chili taco you had earlier. Maybe it’s that feeling that your content might be treading on thin ice. Maybe you watched Rand’s recent Whiteboard Friday (How to Determine if a Page is "Low Quality" in Google's Eyes) and just don’t know where to start.

In this edition of Next Level, I’ll show you how to start identifying your low-quality pages in a few simple steps with Moz Pro's Site Crawl. Once identified, you can decide whether to merge, shine up, or remove the content.

A quick recap of algorithm updates

The latest big fluctuations in the search results were said to be caused by King Fred: enemy of low-quality pages and champion of the people’s right to find and enjoy content of value.

Fred took the fight to affiliate sites, and low-value commercial sites were also affected.

The good news is that even if this isn’t directed at you, and you haven’t taken a hit yourself, you can still learn from this update to improve your site. After all, why not stay on the right side of the biggest index of online content in the known universe? You’ll come away with a good idea of what content is working for your site, and you may just take a ride to the top of the SERPs. Knowledge is power, after all.

Be a Pro

It’s best if we just accept that Google updates are ongoing; they happen all.the.time. But with a site audit tool in your toolkit like Moz Pro's Site Crawl, they don’t have to keep you up at night. Our shiny new Rogerbot crawler is the new kid on the block, and it’s hungry to crawl your pages.

If you haven’t given it a try, sign up for a free trial for 30 days:

Start a free trial

If you’ve already had a free trial that has expired, write to me and I’ll give you another, just because I can.

Set up your Moz Pro campaign — it takes 5 minutes tops — and Rogerbot will be unleashed upon your site like a caffeinated spider.

Rogerbot hops from page to page following links to analyze your website. As Rogerbot hops along, a beautiful database of pages is constructed that flag issues you can use to find those laggers. What a hero!

First stop: Thin content

Site Crawl > Content Issues > Thin Content

Thin content could be damaging your site. If it’s deemed to be malicious, then it could result in a penalty. Things like zero-value pages with ads or spammy doorway pages — little traps people set to funnel people to other pages — are bad news.

First off, let’s find those pages. Moz Pro Site Crawl will flag "thin content" if it has less than 50 words (excluding navigation and ads).

Now is a good time to familiarize yourself with Google’s Quality Guidelines. Think long and hard about whether you may be doing this, intentionally or accidentally.

You’re probably not straight-up spamming people, but you could do better and you know it. Our mantra is (repeat after me): “Does this add value for my visitors?” Well, does it?

Ok, you can stop chanting now.

For most of us, thin content is less of a penalty threat and more of an opportunity. By finding pages with thin content, you have the opportunity to figure out if they're doing enough to serve your visitors. Pile on some Google Analytics data and start making decisions about improvements that can be made.

Using moz.com as an example, I’ve found 3 pages with thin content. Ta-da emoji!

I’m not too concerned about the login page or the password reset page. I am, however, interested to see how the local search page is performing. Maybe we can find an opportunity to help people who land on this page.

Go ahead and export your thin content pages from Moz Pro to CSV.

We can then grab some data from Google Analytics to give us an idea of how well this page is performing. You may want to look at comparing monthly data and see if there are any trends, or compare similar pages to see if improvements can be made.

I am by no means a Google Analytics expert, but I know how to get what I want. Most of the time that is, except when I have to Google it, which is probably every second week.

Firstly: Behavior > Site Content > All Pages > Paste in your URL

Pageviews - The number of times that page has been viewed, even if it’s a repeat view.

Avg. Time on Page - How long people are on your page

Bounce Rate - Single page views with no interaction

For my example page, Bounce Rate is very interesting. This page lives to be interacted with. Its only joy in life is allowing people to search for a local business in the UK, US, or Canada. It is not an informational page at all. It doesn’t provide a contact phone number or an answer to a query that may explain away a high bounce rate.

I’m going to add Pageviews and Bounce Rate a spreadsheet so I can track this over time.

I’ll also added some keywords that I want that page to rank for to my Moz Pro Rankings. That way I can make sure I’m targeting searcher intent and driving organic traffic that is likely to convert.

I’ll also know if I’m being out ranked by my competitors. How dare they, right?

As we've found with this local page, not all thin content is bad content. Another example may be if you have a landing page with an awesome video that's adding value and is performing consistently well. In this case, hold off on making sweeping changes. Track the data you’re interested in; from there, you can look at making small changes and track the impact, or split test some ideas. Either way, you want to make informed, data-driven decisions.

Action to take for tracking thin content pages

Export to CSV so you can track how these pages are performing alongside GA data. Make incremental changes and track the results.

Second stop: Duplicate title tags

Site Crawl > Content Issues > Duplicate Title Tags

Title tags show up in the search results to give human searchers a taste of what your content is about. They also help search engines understand and categorize your content. Without question, you want these to be well considered, relevant to your content, and unique.

Moz Pro Site Crawl flags any pages with matching title tags for your perusal.

Duplicate title tags are unlikely to get your site penalized, unless you’ve masterminded an army of pages that target irrelevant keywords and provide zero value. Once again, for most of us, it’s a good way to find a missed opportunity.

Digging around your duplicate title tags is a lucky dip of wonder. You may find pages with repeated content that you want to merge, or redundant pages that may be confusing your visitors, or maybe just pages for which you haven’t spent the time crafting unique title tags.

Take this opportunity to review your title tags, make them interesting, and always make them relevant. Because I’m a Whiteboard Friday friend, I can’t not link to this title tag hack video. Turn off Netflix for 10 minutes and enjoy.

Pro tip: To view the other duplicate pages, make sure you click on the little triangle icon to open that up like an accordion.

Hey now, what’s this? Filed away under duplicate title tags I’ve found these cheeky pages.

These are the contact forms we have in place to contact our help team. Yes, me included — hi!

I’ve got some inside info for you all. We’re actually in the process of redesigning our Help Hub, and these tool-specific pages definitely need a rethink. For now, I’m going to summon the powerful and mysterious rel=canonical tag.

This tells search engines that all those other pages are copies of the one true page to rule them all. Search engines like this, they understand it, and they bow down to honor the original source, as well they should. Visitors can still access these pages, and they won’t ever know they've hit a page with an original source elsewhere. How very magical.

Action to take for duplicate title tags on similar pages

Use the rel=canonical tag to tell search engines that http://ift.tt/2vLlcAU is the original source.

Review visitor behavior and perform user testing on the Help Hub. We’ll use this information to make a plan for redirecting those pages to one main page and adding a tool type drop-down.

More duplicate titles within my subfolder-specific campaign

Because at Moz we’ve got a heck of a lot of pages, I’ve got another Moz Pro campaign set up to track the URL moz.com/blog. I find this handy if I want to look at issues on just one section of my site at a time.

You just have to enter your subfolder and limit your campaign when you set it up.

Just remember we won’t crawl any pages outside of the subfolder. Make sure you have an all-encompassing, all-access campaign set up for the root domain as well.

Not enough allowance to create a subfolder-specific campaign? You can filter by URL from within your existing campaign.

In my Moz Blog campaign, I stumbled across these little fellows:

http://ift.tt/2xw5RBL

http://ift.tt/2i18byE

This is a classic case of new content usurping the old content. Instead of telling search engines, “Yeah, so I’ve got a few pages and they’re kind of the same, but this one is the one true page,” like we did with the rel=canonical tag before, this time I’ll use the big cousin of the rel=canonical, the queen of content canonicalization, the 301 redirect.

All the power is sent to the page you are redirecting to, as well as all the actual human visitors.

Action to take for duplicate title tags with outdated/updated content

Check the traffic and authority for both pages, then add a 301 redirect from one to the other. Consolidate and rule.

It’s also a good opportunity to refresh the content and check whether it's... what? I can’t hear you — adding value to my visitors! You got it.

Third stop: Duplicate content

Site Crawl > Content Issues > Duplicate Content

When the code and content on a page looks the same are the code and content on another page of your site, it will be flagged as "Duplicate Content." Our crawler will flag any pages with 90% or more overlapping content or code as having duplicate content.

Officially, in the wise words of Google, duplicate content doesn’t incur a penalty. However, it can be filtered out of the index, so still not great.

Having said that, the trick is in the fine print. One bot’s duplicate content is another bot’s thin content, and thin content can get you penalized. Let me refer you back to our old friend, the Quality Guidelines.

Are you doing one of these things intentionally or accidentally? Do you want me to make you chant again?

If you’re being hounded by duplicate content issues and don’t know where to start, then we’ve got more information on duplicate content on our Learning Center.

I’ve found some pages that clearly have different content on them, so why are these duplicate?

So friends, what we have here is thin content that’s being flagged as duplicate.

There is basically not enough content on the page for bots to distinguish them from each other. Remember that our crawler looks at all the page code, as well as the copy that humans see.

You may find this frustrating at first: “Like, why are they duplicates?? They're different, gosh darn it!” But once you pass through all the 7 stages of duplicate content and arrive at acceptance, you’ll see the opportunity you have here. Why not pop those topics on your content schedule? Why not use the “queen” again, and 301 redirect them to a similar resource, combining the power of both resources? Or maybe, just maybe, you could use them in a blog post about duplicate content — just like I have.

Action to take for duplicate pages with different content

Before you make any hasty decisions, check the traffic to these pages. Maybe dig a bit deeper and track conversions and bounce rate, as well. Check out our workflow for thin content earlier in this post and do the same for these pages.

From there you can figure out if you want to rework content to add value or redirect pages to another resource.

This is an awesome video in the ever-impressive Whiteboard Friday series which talks about republishing. Seriously, you’ll kick yourself if you don’t watch it.

Broken URLs and duplicate content

Another dive into Duplicate Content has turned up two Help Hub URLs that point to the same page.

These are no good to man or beast. They are especially no good for our analytics — blurgh, data confusion! No good for our crawl budget — blurgh, extra useless page! User experience? Blurgh, nope, no good for that either.

Action to take for messed-up URLs causing duplicate content

Zap this time-waster with a 301 redirect. For me this is an easy decision: add a 301 to the long, messed up URL with a PA of 1, no discussion. I love our new Learning Center so much that I’m going to link to it again so you can learn more about redirection and build your SEO knowledge.

It’s the most handy place to check if you get stuck with any of the concepts I’ve talked about today.

Wrapping up

While it may feel scary at first to have your content flagged as having issues, the real takeaway here is that these are actually neatly organized opportunities.

With a bit of tenacity and some extra data from Google Analytics, you can start to understand the best way to fix your content and make your site easier to use (and more powerful in the process).

If you get stuck, just remember our chant: "Does this add value for my visitors?” Your content has to be for your human visitors, so think about them and their journey. And most importantly: be good to yourself and use a tool like Moz Pro that compiles potential issues into an easily digestible catalogue.

Enjoy your chili taco and your good night’s sleep!

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don't have time to hunt down but want to read!

from The Moz Blog http://ift.tt/2yd2O5i via IFTTT

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How to Set Up Google Analytics: The Complete Guide (with video)

If you have Google Analytics set up on your website, you are one of the tens of millions of websites using the most popular analytics tool on the internet. This post and video may help you confirm that it’s set up properly.

If you don’t have it set up, you are just 52 clicks away. Here’s your complete guide on how to set up Google Analytics quickly for the most accurate reporting possible.

Let’s answer a few basic questions and then go into the step-by-step instructions. But first, here’s the complete video:

How does Google Analytics work? What does it track?

Just now, when this page loaded, a tiny bit of Javascript was triggered. It talked to five tiny cookies on your device, then it reported back to Google and stored the information in our Google Analytics (GA) account.

Through this clever combination of Javascript and cookies, Analytics tracked that the page was viewed.

It doesn’t know who visited or what they looked at. It doesn’t know how long they were on the page unless they went to another page and triggered the Javascript again. There’s a LOT that Analytics doesn’t track.

By default, it doesn’t track anything except when pages load. So any “non-pageview interactions” is not tracked unless you use “event tracking.” But that’s a topic for another article.

Here’s a quick list of 16 types of clicks that aren’t recorded in Google Analytics.

There’s a lot it doesn’t know. But it’s still a good way to track visits and visitor behavior. And how much does it cost? Nothing. Google Analytics is free.

So let’s get GA set up right! And for fun, let’s try to do it all in 52 clicks. Easy peasy, right? Let’s go.

But first…

The Analytics JavaScript needs to be on every page of your website, in the <head> section of the code.

For years, marketers added GA tracking code using a plugin in their content management systems. Today, the best way to add (and manage) the code for Google Analytics (and every other tracking tag) is Google Tag Manager.

You put the Analytics code into your Google Tag Manager (GTM) container, and add the GTM container to your website, usually by using a plugin. You can find details here.

1. How to set up goals in Google Analytics

When a visitor takes an action, they “convert” into a lead, subscriber, registrant, job applicant, donor, etc. Each conversion is a success for the brand and the website. But because websites are built in different ways, Google Analytics doesn’t know what success looks like. So we have to tell it.

Here’s how to set up each type of conversion as a goal in 12 clicks:

Note: We’re going to create “destination” goals, which are thank you pages or receipt pages for ecommerce. If visitors who take actions see a thank you message, rather than a separate thank you page with it’s own URL, setting up goals won’t be so simple. You’ll need to set up event tracking. There are at least 14 other good reasons to have thank you pages.

Click the gear icon in the bottom left to go to the “Admin” section

Under “View” in the right-hand column, click “Goals”

Click the big red “New Goal” button at the top

Enter in the name of your goal. For example: Contact Lead or Newsletter Subscriber

Under “Type” select “Destination” then click “Continue”

In the Goal Details section, enter the web address of your thank you page. Notice the suggestion under the field. Don’t enter the full URL with the domain name. Just enter the address of the page, such as “/thank-you”

Under “Value” switch the toggle to On and assign a monetary value to your goal, even if it’s arbitrary. Setting a $1 value for each goal is perfectly fine.

Under “Funnel” switch the toggle to On.

Enter the page name and URL of the contact form (ie “Contact Page” and “/contact”) then under “Required?” switch the toggle switch to “Yes”

Click “Save” and you’re all set!

Note: All kinds of things can be set up as goals in Analytics. For example, a visitor spent five minutes on the website or a visitor visited three pages. I recommend against creating these types of goals unless you have a strong reason to do so. If you create lots of these less important goals, your overall conversion rate becomes meaningless.

2. How to filter out traffic from yourself

Visit your site and that visit is recorded. You’re in your data. But you can filter yourself out by telling Analytics the IP address of your office. This is especially important for low traffic websites, where traffic from the website owners may be significant.

Here’s how to create a filter in Google Analytics in 11 clicks:

Click the gear icon in the bottom left to go to the “Admin” section

Under “View” in the right-hand column, click “Filters”

Click the big red “Add Filter” button at the top > “Create new Filter”

Name your filter (ie “Chicago Office”)

Now set the three dropdown menus… Change “Select Filter Type” to “Exclude” Change “Select source or destination” to “traffic from the IP addresses” Change “Select expression” to “that are equal to”

Now enter your IP address into the box If you don’t have this memorized (who does?) find it just by searching Google for “What is my IP.” Just copy and paste that number into the box.

Click “Save” and you’re done!

Once complete, the filter should look something like this:

To confirm the filter is working, go to a deep, rarely visited page than look at the Real-Time report. See a visit to that page? If no, the filter is working.

Once in place, Google Analytics will forever be more accurate. You can do things like test your contact forms without affecting your conversion rate.

Note: An IP address filter only works if the IP address of your network doesn’t change. If your office or home network doesn’t have a “static” IP address, then your network is grabbing a new IP every time you connect to the web, and the filter won’t work.

Also, if you move offices, change internet providers or reset your router, your IP address may change and you’ll need to update your filter.

3. Exclude traffic from known bots and spiders

Why exclude traffic from robots and spiders? Because they aren’t your target audience. They aren’t even human. There are a lot of bots out there. The IAB/ABC keeps a long list of them. By default, Google Analytics tracks them as if they’re people. I think that’s weird.

Here’s how to get the known robots out of your data in 3 clicks:

Click the gear icon in the bottom left to go to the “Admin” section

Under “View” in the third column, click on “View Settings”

Scroll down toward the bottom to “Bot Filtering”

Check the box next to “Exclude all hits from known bots and spiders”

Click “Save”

That’s it. Your data is now more accurate.

Tip! Before removing bot traffic or filtering out traffic from your office, make a new View called “Unfiltered” so you can have something to refer back to if necessary. Once traffic is filtered within a view, it can never be changed.

4. Setting up Site Search

That little search box on your website is a nice way to help visitors find things fast. But it’s also a powerful listening tool for you. If you set up the Site Search reports, you’ll learn what people are looking and if your site is missing important content.

Here is how to set up the Google Analytics Site Search report in 7 clicks:

Step 1: Click the gear icon in the bottom left to go to the “Admin” section

Step 2: Under “View” in the third column, click on “View Settings”

Step 3: Scroll down to the “Site search Tracking” section. Switch the toggle to “On”

Step 4: Now enter your “Query parameter” into the box.

To find your query parameter, search for something using your search tool and look at the URL of the search results page. It will appear just before the keyphrase you searched for.

For example, a search for “Analytics” on this blog, shows this in the URL: https://www.orbitmedia.com/?post_type=post&s=analyticsSo for this site, the query parameter is the letter “s.” Other common query parameters are q, search_term and keyword.

Don’t see a query parameter when you search your site? If so, you may have “path based” programming behind your site search. You’ll need to set up a fancy advanced filter to see what people are searching for.

Step 5: Leave the box next to “Strip query parameters out of URL” unchecked and leave the “Site search categories” toggle off.

Step 6: Click “Save” and you’re good!

Once complete, it should look something like this:

Once set up, you are minutes away from discovering if content is missing from your website, if something is hard to find and if your navigation labels are confusing. This report is also a gold mine for new blog post topics.

Related: How to analyze the Site Search reports.

5. Connecting Google Analytics to Google Search Console

Google Search Console (GSC) is the sister tool to Google Analytics. It’s a valuable source of search-related insights. But the reports are a little harder to read, so it’s nice to connect the two so you can see the GSC data right there in your GA.

Once connected, you’ll get a set of reports in the Acquisition section. These reports show you the performance of your website in search engines. If these two are not connected, these reports are blank.

Assuming you’ve set up GSC and verified ownership, here’s how to connect Google Search Console with Google Analytics in 9 clicks:

Step 1: Click the gear icon in the bottom left to go to the “Admin” section

Step 2: Under “Property” in the second column, click on “Property Settings”

Step 3: In the “Search Console” section, click the “Adjust Search Console” button.

Step 4: From the dropdown, select the Search Console view like to associate with your Google Analytics account.

Note: If there is no dropdown, click “add” which will send you to GCS. As long as you’re logged into an account with access to the GSC property, select the relevant account then click “Save.” Once you get the Add association popup, click “ok.” This should take you back to Google Analytics.

Step 5: Click “Save.”

Once complete, the data won’t appear immediately. Check back later to find insights and then do some amazing blog optimization. If you’re in a hurry, all the same data is waiting for you in Search Console.

6. Adding Campaign Tracking code

This isn’t a one-time setup task. It’s an ongoing behavior. But it’s as important as everything else on this list because it makes your data more accurate and more meaningful.

Some of your actions are designed to drive traffic to a specific page through a specific channel. These are called “campaigns.” It could be an email, an ad, an affiliate link or any other effort.

If you do a little extra work while planning them, you’re Analytics will be a lot more useful. If you don’t, the visitors you worked so hard for (or paid so much for) are mixed in with everyone else.

For example, if you send email newsletters, but don’t track that traffic using campaign tracking code, you can’t see them separately. Those email visitors may appear in direct or referral traffic. Not good.

But if you add campaign tracking code, all of those visitors can be tracked separately and every one of their conversions can be attributed properly.

The difference is the campaign tracking code (aka UTM tracking code) on the links in the emails. The link is the same, but there are three bits of information added to the end: source, medium and campaign name. So a link like this without tracking code:

https://website.com/article

…gets the extra UTM tracking codes at the end

https://website.com/article?utm_campaign=nov-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter

It’s the same link, it’s just telling Google three things about where the visitor came from:

Medium

Source

Campaign Name

Here’s how to add campaign tracking code to a link in 7 clicks:

You can do this from any URL Builder. Google, of course, has provided one of these, but it’s not the easiest to use. Here’s a nice URL Builder created by Raven Tools.

Enter the address of the landing page for the campaign into the URL field

Enter the source: this is the specific origin of traffic (newsletter, twitter, facebook)

Enter the medium: this is the specific marketing effort (fall-special, marketer-recruiting)

Copy the new URL with the tracking code appended.

Paste this URL into the campaign, wherever you are creating the ad, the post or the email

Tip! Always use lowercase letters. The source, medium and campaign will appear in Google Analytics exactly as you typed it here.

Once complete, all traffic from that campaign will be tracked separately. You can see how engaged those visitors were and if any of them converted. Here’s what the campaign report looks like for a brand doing email marketing.

Learn more about how to track campaigns, here is a helpful article from our own Amanda Gant.

Warning! Never add campaign tracking code to a link on your website. If you do, the true origin (source and medium) of the visitors who click on this link will be lost, because the campaign tracking code information will override the original source. This makes your Analytics less accurate. And it’s unnecessary. The flow of your visitors is available in other reports.

7. Creating Annotations

The final step! Let’s add a little note to indicate that we’ve made changes to our Analytics. This way, anyone who looks at this account later can quickly see what happened.

Why did traffic go down? Oh look, this annotation says a filter was created.

Why did the conversion rate go up? Oh look, this annotation says that a new goal was set up.

Annotations help your data tell stories. And that’s really what Analytics is all about: answering questions, finding insights, telling stories.

It’s just a little note that you attach to a date. It appears under the timeline of all reports.

There are five main reasons to add annotations.

Website change: updated an important page, added a feature, redesigned

Analytics change: changed or added a filter or goal, excluded a query parameter, etc.

Advertising change: turned ads on or off, started or stopped recruiting, etc.

Email sent: sent a newsletter or promotional message

Press hit / Influencer mention: Someone loves us today!

Here’s how to add an annotation to Google Analytics in 3 clicks:

Step 1: Click on the tiny arrow on the tab below the timeline to open up annotations

Step 2: Click “Create new annotation” in the top right corner

Step 3: Choose the relevant date and type your note

Step 4: Click “Save”

Over time, your account will have a lot of these little notes. So here’s a tip for making them easier to scan through: start each type of the annotation with a few standard words. Use the bolded words from the list above as a simple naming convention. It will make things easy to scan through and find later.

Better data forever

We did it! We set up Analytics in 52 clicks, but who’s counting?

Your actions today determine where you will be in a year. Your Analytics setup today determine the quality of your data and insights next year and forever after.

Analytics is more than a scoreboard, it’s a decision support tool.

Do it well and your data will tell you better and better stories over many years. The outcomes of your actions will be clearly visible. That worked! That didn’t…

Do it poorly and you’ll be doing a lot of wondering, digging and detective work. What happened? Is something wrong with this report?

Ready to do some deeper analysis? Here are some next steps:

Source: https://www.orbitmedia.com/blog/how-to-setup-google-analytics/