#is this too niche classic student? maybe

[phanrooikat]

dan ranting about phil's ankles was so homer core. like. you cannot tell me this wasn't dan 4 that entire segment

[didherodown]

Okay so I dont think I've ever done this before, so here it goes

*ehem*

didherodown's Phandom fanfic recs

(if the author has a tumblr I tagged them :) )

*quick note, most of these are ao3, however some of them are ff net*

Ghosts in the Closet by @myaibou

an excellent post cannon fic, that deals with grown-up Danny and his family and everything slowly falling apart

Cold Hands by @tourettesdog

a DP x DC of Danny/Tim, reveal fic. short and sweet (with a lil trama and angst dashed in there)

Face to Face by @dp-marvel94

Danny gets separated by the ghost catcher and has to deal with the side effects of being literally split in two

Treading Water by @breynekai-tfc

a mer!danny fic, you don't understand guys this is soooooooooo amazingly done

Heroes About by @healthysharkshealthyocean

a DP x Marvel crossover that features Spiderman, Deadpool and of course, Danny, based on the comics by @the-stove-is-on-fire

Vacation Crashers by @impyssadobsessions

a DP x DC in which the Fentons are camping when Batman literally crashes onto the scene

Shift by @captain-ozone

AU where the Fentons are Chicago-based, and everything up to the Pariah Dark incident happens there, but after the battle (and an unwilling identity reveal) the "thin" spot in the ghost zone shifts to Amity Park, and the Fentons move there to deal with the ghosts, and Danny meets Sam and Tucker for the first time

Phantom of Truth by @haikujitsu

a classic Danny is captured by the GIW, and who do they get to study this high-level specimen? The leading Doctor in her field Madeline Fenton (mind the tags, it's a dark one!)

Shadow of a Doubt by Haiju

a direct sequel to Phantom of Truth

Trust Your Instincts by @peachdoxie

in which someone is placing ectoplasmic bombs around the city, and Maddie turns to an unlikely ally to figure out what exactly is happening

the all too literal ghosts of your past by @glowstick-blood

in which adult Danny gets shunted back in time to exactly one week before the portal accident (dun dun dunnnnnnn)

Maybe We'll Find Each Other by DP_Marvel94

a one-shot of full ghost Danny getting turned half-human by the portal opening

Robin's Egg by @arzuera

a DP x DC in which Damiean while on patrol finds an injured Danny about to retreat into his core, and agrees to keep his core safe

Exposed by ADraconicScribe

in which someone anonymously submits a story to the local news that the ghost boy is in fact only half ghost, and is hiding among the students at casper high

Danny Phantom and Astro Boy Crossover By: Jaylina

as the title suggests, its a DP x Astro Boy crossover. There have been odd tears appearing in the ghost zone, and Danny gets sucked into one and trapped in another dimension where the ghosts have been taking over robots and wrecking havoc (I know this one is a lil niche, but I love it so much I had to include it)

Roughing It By: Haiju

Danny and Maddie go camping, but after a ghost attack (and some Vlad shenanigans) Danny is stuck in ghost form, Maddie is injured and they find themselves in a tenuis alliance

[hockeyisforthegays]

if jjk were influencers what would they influence. i think yuuji would be some fitness person and nobara could do smth with sewing/repair/plushie making but idk

this is more of a general social media/content creator au and less specifically "influencer" but.

pondering this pondering this. upon thought idt yuuji would be posting about fitness actually, because like, yeah hes strong and all but its mostly natural strength? hes actually kind of a couch potato. i think he would be like a movie reviewer actually and unintentionally amass an army of fitness bros who keep asking about his nonexistent routine (todo is this) (also its either like joint review show with junpei or junpei is his mutual) ill also repeat naomhan here and agree that yuuji has big twitch streamer energy so there's that too. (now MAKI is a fitness grindset influencer for sure...)

nobara i think would be a beauty/fashion content creator like it seems too easy to say so but i do think if she were gonna chase clout thats the avenue she'd take. i think what would eventually make it big for her would be like. 'get ready with me,' doing her makeup while roasting the SHIT out of someone for... some reason. she accidentally pressed record while gossiping with someone off frame? someone wrote in her comments asking for advice in dealing with some huge jerk? she's reading AITA posts? either way the first time was not particularly meditated, but blew up so she kept doing it and its her niche now. her disses are just too hot

is megumi a booktoker.... no he hates attention he has a private tumblr blog where he posts his book reviews that get 3 notes (1 like and 1 reblog from yuuji and 1 reply from nobara) and hes happy that way. as far as anyone can tell. either that or something about animal care. if this is an AU then maybe he's the reluctant face of some wildlife rescue's social media page. i think thats cute. he was just a volunteer in the bg of a bunch of insta pictures and the internet made up lore about him & hes just stuck with it now

gojo is the most classic #influencer type like just posting pics of whatever insane over the top dessert or opulent scenic vacay vista and all his followers are just there cuz they wish they had his life. or they wanna fuck him. one of the two

yuuta is a small time vlogger - it's basically just a video journal, doesnt have a big following - inumaki is a twitch streamer OF COURSE, panda is writing rpf. this is canon.

ijichi has like a aesthetic studyblr/organization and productivity type channel. VERY popular HUGE following. yaga craft channel. shokohime has a baseball podcast shoko is her indulgent co-host who knows far far less about baseball but they play into that well. all of the kyoto students listen to it.

nanami has the worlds driest advice podcast that has 1 regular listener. nanami only bothers to record and post episodes when that 1 listener sends in a question. the listener is yuuji.

suguru has a cult.

[phoebebuggers]

modern party high school/college headcanons that will maybe kind of end up in my text au if i ever go back to it

mike is a tote bag user and a letterboxd fanatic!! he listens to alternative rock especially weezer but he's not a music elitist he likes pop and stuff too. he still plays dnd and i feel like he probably reads like classic fantasy book bro books u know (brandon sanderson, GOT, LOTR, prolly also like steven king and stuff which the rest of the party also like.) cat person. he is such a film bro it's obnoxious and he has to shove his letterboxd account down your throat every 5 minutes after meeting you. says he's bitter and evil but would do anything for his friends (canon.) video essay watcher. dirty-ass pair of falling apart converse at the end of their life begging for mercy that he refuses to replace. ADHD diagnosis.

will loves thrifting and coffee shops and museums but not in a performative pinteresty way he just genuinely likes these things. had an art hoe aesthetic phase around 2020 and will never live it down. subverting all gay stereotypes by not knowing anything about gay/stan twitter and being happier for it. kind of a music elitist ('can i see your spotify wrapped??') but not as much as jonathan who he learned from. still loves the smiths, the cure, etc but i think he would also be into modern indie nowadays. i feel like he would have a huge chapsticks/lip balm collection bc his lips are chapped all the time and it's just like a running joke atp. major art kid draws all the time we been knew listens to podcasts while he does art. goes to therapy

lucas is still kind of a jock but i'm kinda anti jock lucas because he will never truly fit in with them he will always be a nerd first!!!! still plays basketball tho and runs cross country (all men who run cross country are a little bit unhinged and free.) wears a hairtie on his wrist in case max needs one. kind of matches will's evil music complex from the other side with objectively good music def likes tyler, brent, frank, SZA (max likes the same their music taste kind of bled into each others.) very good social media presence like color coded feed, highlights, pinterest worthy pics etc (digital camera user.) likes to cook. chronic notes app list user. wanted to be a youtuber as a kid. type of guy to say "um, guys, that was awkward!" etc etc and everyone clocks him for it

dustin is a reddit user but not in a weird incel way in a genuinely helpful and knowledgable way. he also wanted to be a youtuber because he fucking loved matpat as a kid. he also would love the green brothers. a sneakerhead. keeps his keys on a carabiner (max tells him he looks like a lesbian.) also very up to date on pop culture like max is, probably quotes that one baron trump suitcase video daily among other things. does a few very good very niche impressions. i feel like everyone in the party is a good student but dustin is definitely the best a genuis future engineer or smth. he's the friend who always has those party games but can't read a cards against humanity card without laughing (max has to read for him)

el knows it's trash but loves reality TV (real housewives) and also glee. probably volunteers a lot. she was probably like the most boy-crazy fictional man/celebrity obsessed tween but ended up being bisexual/questioning lesbian. chronic story liker and responder so everyone thinks she's in love with them but she's actually just really nice and maybe doesn't 100% understand the social cue. she was also in theater because i want her to be her own genre of nerd maybe not in big roles because i don't see her as someone who loves being the center of attention but in ensemble. type of person to make goals like "try a new type of apple every week for a year".

max is up to date on tiktok/internet memes and kind of speaks fluent reference. probably watches real housewives and dance moms with el (will will join in occasionally for glee.) she also thrifts a lot of her clothes and has very cool style in kind of an idgaf what anyone else thinks way. huge flannel collection. does stage crew. i know she skateboards in canon and she still would but i feel like she would also do roller-derby or like speed skating or something. similar music taste to lucas but also a swiftie from a young age. had a panic at the disco phase and did crazy 2020 eyeliner (it's not a phase, mom) and will never live it down. keeps a journal. goes to therapy

bonus:

mike and max never shut the fuck up during class and always have to whisper something objectively hilarious to each other/one of their friends while the teacher is talking

will el and max have a book club where at least someone lies about having read the book every month and they spend the whole meeting gossiping and eating snacks

will forced them all to get airbuds and airbuds reacts mike listening to mcr with mildly disappointed faces and cat emojis

mike and dustin had a phase where they were really into like conspiracy theories and UFOs and cryptids and stuff

lucas bought a stanley cup with no shame because 'it's so functional'

el is an ex-larry

[kaija-rayne-author]

Dragon Age Veilguard 7th review in series

Obligatory I'm not an asshole disclaimer. You can skip to the cut if you've read it.

Something came to my attention. I need to make it crystal clear that I utterly love the diversity in DAV. It's fantastic. I'm also a heavily left leaning, non-binary, queer as fuck reviewer, editor, and author.

I'm on media blackout while I play this, so I'm only getting second-hand info on how awful it is right now in the DA Fandom. Please be safe and take care of yourselves. Arguing with incels and white supremacists is completely pointless. They sea lion worse than an actual sea lion. Your mental health is important.

Though, every single time the anti-queer brigade comes out for a new DA game, I sit there thinking 'have you bozos ever played any DA game, like, ever?' My guess is nope.

52 hours in, 50 hours playtime

Part 6.1 is here.

Massive spoilers for Veilguard

Another long one. And it's largely negative.

So. What to say. Well, the first should be I called it on Illario being the crow traitor. At least, at this point in the game. (He just broke Zara's neck to keep her from telling Lucanis his name. Presumably.) They could throw a plot twist in there and have Illario be innocent but acting squirrely to bring out the actual traitor. That would be interesting. But to be completely honest, I don't think the writers are that skilled. The plot of 'jealous younger cousin/family member seizing power and betraying everything to do it' is a classic trope.

It's also as stale as the package of crackers I keep meaning to throw away. They really went with that? I think my eyes are in danger of rolling out of my head. And digging them out from under the dresser is just so awkward and uncomfortable. Have you ever washed eyeballs? They’re squishy.

Can we mention plot holes? I took Emmerich with me for the crow mission. Why exactly didn't he do his 'corpse whispering' to get confirmation that Illario was/was not the traitor? Even if you didn't take Emmerich, they could've easily taken the corpse to him, but nooooo. That would've made sense! Especially because there's then a scene of Emmerich whispering a corpse about the hand of glory. They sooooo needed to take all that back to the drawing board and tighten it up a lot.

But I've said before that they need better editors. Honestly, even though I don't particularly want to work for Bioware given their history of firing useful, skilled people... maybe they do need me. Or someone else as exacting as me and good at editing. Cause much as I hate to critique another editor? Whoever edited this isn't very good. Whoever edited DAI wasn’t very good either. I'm a far better editor. It's a niche, nit picky sort of field. You have to care about the details and you have to dedicate yourself to it. It's a field where you need to constantly be learning. Things like, say, how locks work. You can have advanced English degrees, you can be a phenomenal writer, and still suck at editing. Because it's so very specialized if you want it done right. Whoever their editor is shouldn't be editing games professionally. There's obviously too much to keep in mind to tie everything together. (Honestly, autistic and auDHD people like me make phenomenal editors if we enjoy words/stories and get into it.)

I have no personal grudge against their editor/s. It's just my professional opinion that they need an editor with more skill.

Also, whoever drew that hand of glory probably should've looked up what one looks like. They went for an Addam's family vibe and that's just... not a hand of glory. I'm a witch and a student of witchcraft history. I should know.

So, a hand of glory is an actual thing.

This is how one was made.

"It must be cut from the hanged body of a criminal (usually a murderer) on the gibbet (usually a roadside gibbet); dried in nitre, pickled in the urine of man, woman, dog, horse and mare; smoked with herbs and hay for a month or dried under the sun during the dog-days; hung on an oak tree for three nights running, then laid at a crossroads, then hung on a church door for one night while the maker keeps watch in the porch.

The candle part had to be rendered from the fat of the same criminal you got the hand from. It’s usually the left hand, but could also be the hand that murdered. Images from the period when people believed in them vary on how the candle part worked but one of the more common is the whole hand dipped in the tallow rendered from the criminal until it was stiff like a candle. Then the tips of the fingers would be lit."

They did get what they were supposed to do correct, though.

Good idea? Yes. Bad follow through.

The name is bastardized from the French word for mandrake.

As usual, better editors needed.

Did the Weisshaupt quest. I'm not sure if that's the end of act 1 or half way. I'm leaning on end of act 1 given the way the plot is shaping up. It was a fun enough sequence. If a bit loud. I also like it when the heroes fail in stories. Because that's realistic. We fail. We pick ourselves up, and we keep trying.

I've said it before, and I can't claim authorship, I'm not even sure who used it first, but 'hope gets kicked to the floor, beaten the shit out of and still spits out blood, maybe a tooth, picks themselves up and says, 'bring it, bitch".' Hope isn't gentle. Hope is ready to throw down.

Can I just say that Zimmer was a fucking mistake on the music front? He's been phoning it in for ten years and he absolutely did for DAV. It's a shame when the soundtrack for DAI was so stirring and just... fucking epic. DAO's too, for that matter. (The OST for DAI also helped tie the world together.)

It's like someone decided to toss the collections aspect (which was a large part of the fun for me and many others, including collecting enough stuff to make fun armour) without even remotely understanding what those collections did for the story. Big mistake in my professional opinion. In any story, you need little things that tie all the big things together. DAV doesn't have the small threads tying the big bundles of yarn together. It's just... not good.

There are parts of the game I do legitimately like, but they're far outweighed by the sheer dumbassery.

I am still so utterly flabbergasted that they nerfed rogues so much. Why in the world would you take a good half of what makes playing a rogue fun and just toss it? Why even bother to have a rogue class at all? They’re just a light skirmisher in DAV.

They Legolased my elven rogue and I'm not happy about it.

Don't get me wrong, I love Legolas, and he's an elven warrior, good with his bow and dual weild, and that's basically it? (He’s a lot more in the books, but I'm thinking movie Legolas. He’s not even a rogue in the books.)

As a rogue in DAV, there's no traps to set/disarm, you can't pick locks, you can't sneak or hide in shadows, it's just ridiculous to even call them rogues. Oh, but you can hit the locks! Someone has been watching too much hollyweird. Hitting it hard works, right? Of Course the lock just breaks.

Y'Know? I'm not a locksmith, but I know a decent amount about picking locks and how they work because I'm an author and like to know how stuff works. Hitting a lock? Makes it less likely to actually open. I really really wish whoever made that decision many hours of disappointing game play in a class they love. Because that's what they gave me and other rogue lovers in DAV. It just fucking sucks. Are the rest of the classes this bad? I don't think I have the stomach to play this again as my second favourite class to find out (mage).

I think I figured out what DAV is missing/what's bothering me the most.

A lot of things are more streamlined, better designed, I do have to give them that. But they took it waaaay too far. They've streamlined it to the point of boring mediocrity.

There's very little to collect other than codex entries. Which are fine, barring the massive number of editorial issues in them. Even if they really aren't answering any of the burning Lore questions I've wanted answered since I started playing these games.

But there's nothing else to subtly tie the world and story together. I've mentioned it before, but the mounts you could collect in DAI were gifts from different peoples and cultures. That tied the world together and to Skyhold.

Same goes for the Warden memories, and all the other little collection bits. It made an intricate, beautiful tapestry of DAI. DAV is a poorly woven bedsheet. With plot holes you can stick an arm through.

DAI had issues, every game does. Some of those issues I'm glad to see fixed in DAV. And overall, they took a lot of the fun out of a Dragon Age video game with the over zealous streamlining of DAV.

And I'm not sure if I'll ever get over the 'rogue who isn't a rogue at all' issue.

I played around with the decor part, and honestly, why did they even bother? You could completely customize Skyhold to how you wanted it. That was great fun for me. In DAV? You can put mementos on shelves and change the central statue, that I've found so far.

The Lighthouse is pretty cool, but it floats unconnected from the world, and it really shows. There's just... nothing tying everything together. Not to mention the complete retcon of, 'oh, living beings can't go into the fade unless they're mages, and even then it's dangerous to the point of suicide.'

Yes, the Inquisitor went into the fade in DAI. It was either that or splatter on the ground, and they barely survived it. And you had to leave a companion behind as the price of getting out. In DAV they live in the fade (without consequences that are clearly spelled out in the Lore). People are strolling into and out of the fade like it's a shopping mall. Y'know, the fade that's supposedly chock full of blight? According to the actual game I'm playing?

It's like the different departments and different writers never once talked to each other. And man, does it show.

I think the only section where they must've communicated well is, again, backgrounds, scenery, and environments. That is literally the only thing holding this game together and making it feel even remotely like Dragon Age.

And that's just sad. They had so much material to work with from the Lore and the previous games... so much, and as far as I can see? They've ignored most of it.

And I know a video game can't do everything, but my elf has Dirthaman's vallaslin. Dirthamen is the twin soul of Falon'Din. There's a puzzle in Arlathan that is a bunch of owls, and my Rook dopily says, 'guess someone liked owls'. Oh, you mean the brother Evanuris whose mark you wear on your damned face? Really? Really really? JFC. So, yeah, they're probably not going to do shit about figuring out anything to do with the Vallaslin. Which in both my personal and professional opinion would've been a very interesting thing to write about. What happens in a culture when they find out they've been wearing slave markings. Do they all get rid of them? Do they have interesting discussions and quests about figuring out the meaning of old and new? Of old things that might’ve been bad at one time, but have a completely different meaning now?

I dunno. This game just isn't great so far.

Goddess. I hate writing negative reviews of Dragon Age stuff. I utterly love the previous games, the world, the Lore.

Y'know, the Lore they've decided isn't important and brushed under the rug? Talk about disappointing. I was so hoping for some answers to all the burning questions I've had for years about the Lore.

And I'm dreading the end of Solas and Inky. I don't think it's going to be remotely what my Romance loving heart will think is even close to a happy ending.

Weekes tweeted at me that 'there's a suggestion of a happy ending' for Solas and Inky. And that gave me some hope, because Tresspasser left a few things dangling in good star-crossed lovers fashion. But unless Inky and Solas end up, 1. Alive. 2. Together. 3. At peace or close enough to it... it's not a happy ending. I'm afraid Weekes, who isn't a Romance writer (I am) has a very different definition for 'happy ending' than me, most Sollavellans, and Romance readers in general.

A HEA (Happy Ever After) or a HEfN (Happy Enough for Now) is a staple of Romance.

Something can't be considered Romance as a genre unless it has two things. 1. Focus on the romance/relationship of the characters. 2. An HEA/HEfN. In each book/story/piece of media, not even the end of the series, in every installment, Otherwise, you can't even market it as Romance without violating stores terms of service and risking having your account taken down for misrepresentation of what you're selling.

I swear to Gods if we get some Romeo and Juliet sort of ending for Solas and Inky, I'm boycotting Bioware for life.

Romeo and Juliet is not a fucking Romance. It's a fucking tragedy. If we get a tragic ending in any fashion, for Solas and Inky? I'm just absolutely done with Dragon Age. Them being together with a chance at happiness is all I want. (Honestly, I desperately want the intimate scene we were denied in DAI too, and I don't think that's too much to ask for either.) One intimate scene and a HEA. Let them retire someplace out of the way so Solas can grow flowers and play music and paint. Inky can do stuff she loves, and they love each other. The parameters of how exactly they do that don’t matter. They could do literally anything as long as they're alive, together, and with the same chance of happiness any Romantic couple/group has.

That is the only type of ending that won't have me boycotting Bioware for life. Especially after the lackluster showing of DAV.

I saw the title of one news article (on steam, I'm trying to stay as blind to this game as possible to provide a fair review that are just my thoughts). And it said something along the lines of 'The best fantasy game released this year.'

My immediate thoughts were, 1. Had whoever written that actually played this travesty? 2. How much was the writer paid to say that, and 3... what? Is DAV the ONLY fantasy game release this year? Cause that's the only way it's the best.

8th in series here.

[quidfree]

i love the old married couple portion of your follow up to sober ii (melodrama)! outsider povs just tickle the brain, especially in tsh where the characters are so just disconnected from normal society. out of curiosity, have you thought any more about how students/peers/other people view francis and richard throughout that au?

i love that portion too i think the idea of them as this long established couple (for all intents and purposes, altho they may have deviated from certain aspects of a nuclear family monogamous relationship) is so funny & interesting. like sober ii already does so much legwork from canon and then the followup even further so by the time we hit middle age it’s a free country for what is allowed.

you’re right in that the tsh cast are deep weirdos to anyone normal interacting w them. i think they have naturally changed somewhat by the time we reach them in that portion bc for francis he’s now (gag) middle class and sort of domesticated / for richard he’s like.. in a long term relationship w a man (it’s funny they have reverse things to get used to) & plus yk there’s the whole thing where they’re both deeply troubled individuals with abusive childhood drama and bad relationship history so probably sticking it out together has done some healing / good down the line. so in some ways they’re a little more Normal mentally. but that said they are still weirdo murderers with terrible personalities who would both annoy and enable each other so not that normal.

talking abt how they go from sober ii to where we see them in their 40s is a separate post so in terms of outsider pov specifically i’d say they do kind of stick to themselves (codependent freaks) but like in the neighbourhood / on campus / in montreal classics circles they def have relationships and certain uhh reputations that go with them.

richard’s students are a fairly niche group so i think as a whole they tend to like him- if nothing else he’s genuine in his love of the material and he’s attractive and kind of reserved so he’s probably at his least annoying / cringe / questionable when teaching despite his inner monologue. he probs has bad timekeeping (cf his flop job at hampden) and pretentious grading but generally okay. we know he comes across much more sane and sound to people who don’t know him well (very tartt, we love). and then they don’t know francis at all apart from Maybe as f. abernathy the classics translator guy. so realistically to the students they’re actually quite a cool addition to the student rumour mill. i think over the years there have been random glimpses of them but never anything interesting until the fic incident, or similar ones that make it obvious professor papen has what seems to be a boyfriend. then everyone is ‘literally obsessed’. i don’t know if anyone ever IDs them as witnesses to the hampden murder-suicides on a true crime podcast and then gets excited about their tragic backstory and inspiring romance, but that would be fun.

professional peers see more of them obviously, but they do still keep to themselves a lot. richard’s colleagues’ opinions vary depending on how much interaction they’ve had with him and in what context, bc he definitely has beef with administration and some colleagues whose courses he doesn’t respect. he’s professionally respectable though. francis is a fairly lowkey presence in translation- he got initial buzz from the julian student clout but he only sporadically networks. he definitely has culture friends who gossip amongst themselves about him vanishing from boston so close to the wedding and no one hearing from him until his book got published. alex from NY wants to fuck both of them but finds them annoying as talents and good in small doses as friends. most of that author circle is at least a little jealous of them as a couple, maybe because they flourish when amongst people they can close ranks on.

in terms of other canon charas… some of that feels like its own post too. judy does not particularly get why richard is into francis but she thinks they’re a hot item and she overall likes them and their weird little bohemian* lifestyle (*misrepresented). she thinks they’re a good match. charles would not have very nice things to say. i think he’d think richard ‘fell for it’ with francis. his own complicated relationship with francis would predispose him to think they weren’t a genuine item. if he saw them down the line as an established couple he would probably just find it funny. and camilla… she’s sort of like “good for you crazy kids”. like it’s completely random to her but it tickles her nihilistic brain. later esp if she’s around them in person for some reason she’s just completely on board with it and has a strong fondness for their relationship bc it’s like, this one weird positive thing to have come out of the whole hampden disaster, AND it’s taken a lot of the strain out of richard’s relationship to her even though he never especially lets go of his camilla-shrine. richard’s naturally Very Embarrassed about being in any way datey with francis around her but it tapers off with age/habit despite his best efforts. francis on the other hand perversely enjoys making richard uncomfortable around camilla. guess which one she enables.

[according2thelore]

tag game!

thank you for the tag, @pookeenpie!

charlotte:

Do you make your bed? absolutely not—I always run out of time in the morning 💔

What's your favorite number? 8! it’s very round and symmetrical so it’s a vibe

What is your job? I’m in sales ✊

If you could go back to school, would you? no—I’m finally free 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️

Can you parallel park? nope! I learned how but promptly forgot that wizardry—idk how lizzy does it 😭

A job you had that would surprise people? I worked at a luxury spa for a hot second 🧎‍♀️

Do you think aliens are real? yes, but not in a flying saucer way—maybe microorganisms?

Can you drive a manual car? no (dean would be ashamed)

What's your guilty pleasure? I love the apple snail egg crushing tiktoks….too niche?

Tattoos? only one really fresh one—I got it with lizzy a few weeks ago!

Favorite color? pink!

Favorite type of music? gay girl pop 🤩

Do you like puzzles? after wresting with a 1000+ piece one this week…no 💅 (yes)

Any phobias? any of the creepy crawlies, being in the middle of nowhere, sleep paralysis, home invasion, carbon monoxide poisoning…I could go on lol, I’m an anxious gal

Favorite childhood sport? gymnastics (I was awful at tumbling but loved burrowing into the foam pit)

Do you talk to yourself? yes, but only if I’m upset ☹️

What movies do you adore? the eras tour movie is on at all times now that I don’t share a living space with lizzy 🤭

Coffee or tea? coffee runs through my veins 🧎‍♀️

First thing you wanted to be when you grew up? a fairy or a mermaid 🧜‍♀️

lizzy:

Do you make your bed? yes! i try to everyday.

What's your favorite number? 18 or 54. long story.

What is your job? pestering charlotte

If you could go back to school, would you? i am in school now! i'm getting a degree that rhymes with schecoming a schmocter

Can you parallel park? yes! charlotte has been in the car with me while parallel parking, so she can attest to my deftness and skill. my old car was pretty damn long and i had to park that puppy everywhere.

A job you had that would surprise people? hmm...TA? my students said i was pretty great!

Do you think aliens are real? yes but mostly just like amoebas and things...if we got something bigger then it's not in this solar system.

Can you drive a manual car? ...naur... :(

What's your guilty pleasure? none of my pleasures are guilty? i don't think? i play the ukulele and that has a lot of Cringe Culture pointed at it right now so maybe that?

Tattoos? i got my first one with charlotte like two weeks ago! :) no, they're not matching ones.

Favorite color? red or yellow! they are happy colours :)

Favorite type of music? i gotta go indie or folk? but i can pretty much listen to anything and like it except extreme metal, jazz, or most post-2001 country

Do you like puzzles? yes!!!!! i LOVE puzzles!!! i listen to audiobooks and use a puzzle app on my phone. but my favourite types of puzzles are word puzzles--i tear up a crossword.

Any phobias? spiders and the unknown void of death. wahoo!

Favorite childhood sport? i only ever hated the sports i played as a youth. so i'm going with dodgeball? or volleyball?

Do you talk to yourself? yeah sometimes i'm writing a scene in my head and i say dialogue out loud on accident. but if i'm alone sometimes i'll narrate what i'm doing.

What movies do you adore? It's A Wonderful Life (1946), The Road to El Dorado (2000), Your Name (2016), Pride and Prejudice (2005) [i know i just alienated some people there], Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013) [but really all of AOS], and Notting Hill (1999) [i could go on forever i love movies]

Coffee or tea? tea! mostly black tea--green tea makes my tummy hort

First thing you wanted to be when you grew up? probably a princess or astronaut? or pop star? the classics.

tagging: @animangalover15 @pregnancykink @majordemonblockparty @samisadeangirl @incesthemes

as always, this is completely optional! <3 just for fun!

[leafkingofbirds]

Hmm what about modern TCH? Like what do you think their modern professions would be, their styles, how they would act. I can already picture the mc being a nurse or doctor but I would like your take on that.

Also I feel like we should have gotten like Jack/Longclaw cause throughout the book I was like "damn are they really going to romance each other?" And then it never happened lol

-💜💜💜

how funn!

Gotta admit, the moment you said you saw MC as being a doctor or nurse, I had an image of MC being a Claire Fraser character, going "back in time" to a more primitive Fae world with all her modern-day knowledge, and them thinking she's a witch for making people wash their hands or trying to explain germ theory. LOL

But! Assuming they're all in a modern AU with no magic...

Kieran: I can't see him working for a living, lol. He inherits a multibillion dollar company from his parents but doesn't do any actual work, he just shows up to board meetings sometimes. He lives in a very private, very tasteful mansion in a remote area with a very small staff, because he hates being around people and he just wants to be in nature and by himself. Also, he's getting his private pilot's license because he loves flying. He only wears the finest, most expensive clothes by a designer no one's ever heard of, tailored perfectly, but they're also very understated and classic. Even his casual clothes are tailored. Money means nothing to him because he has an endless supply of it.

Oleander: Kieran's best friend from college. Either an adjunct humanities professor working on their PhD, or a law student about to take the bar. Was cut off financially from their rich homophobic family for being gender nonforming, so lives in Kieran's mansion and Kieran pays for their schooling. (Kieran expects Oleander to repay him by being his personal lawyer or PR person so Kieran doesn't have to deal with the public.) Mentors trans youth in their spare time, and maintains a niche fashion Instagram page with lots of "dos and don'ts." Still wears a lot of vests.

Jack: He's like...hmm, he works as maybe a server or cook in a restaurant and he HATES it, has big dreams of fame and fortune. A city boy who pickpockets and cons rich business men for extra cash 0 but is rarely caught because he can lie so well with a straight face. Keeps trying to encourage his coworkers to form a union and that's part of why he can't keep a job long. But he keeps getting hired back because he's fast and efficient, even if he doesn't have any people skills. He wears eyeliner, black leather jackets, with lots of earrings and a chain necklace passed down to him from his mother that he never met, and he's very mysterious and emo about it if anyone asks. He's the lead singer and songwriter of a metal band that's trying to get off the ground and they're actually pretty popular small-time. He has a ton of admirers and fans, but he's too laser focused on his career to notice any of his groupies.

Longclaw: Like Kieran I think she is a nepo baby, but she doesn't seem to realize it because all her time is spent helping charities for kids and animals. She has her own cooking/gardening/design talk show a la Martha Stewart and her designs are praised as being very classic, feminine, and welcoming. She can go out in public and not be recognized because she doesn't wear makeup and wears simple (but feminine) clothes from Target or The Gap. Most of her estate is dedicated to all the stray animals she adopts, because she can't help but take home any poor animal she meets, and she has a whole team to take care of them and find them homes. A literal ray of sunshine in human form. Universally beloved.

MC is either a hardworking newbie resident doctor or underpaid, overworked nurse serving an impoverished area. Maybe an ER, or a nursing home. They live in a basement apartment and have a huge amount of student loan debt. Most of their clothes are from thrift stores and they live in jeans and a t-shirt. They're still working their way up in the world but are praised at work for having exceptional bedside manner and getting to know their patients on a personal level, which has sometimes led to them catching some clue that more experienced doctors miss and helps to turn their treatment around.

Anyone that I missed??

(God this makes me want to write this AU where MC runs into Kieran after some emergency (car accident?) and treats them without knowing who he is, then he demands they come work as his personal on-site medic or something?? Anyway haha.)

Also yeah!! If Longclaw had stayed Fae (and I kind of wish she did, her human form is GORGEOUS) I could totally see them being together, or at least being friends. Longclaw is very motherly and Jack never had a mother, so maybe they wouldn't work romantically. Also there is the issue of him having killed Sir Monty. But! He'd still like her very much because she's the opposite of every Fae stereotype he knows, and Longclaw physically can't hold a grudge for long!

But, if they got together and had kids, it would make the royal families related by blood 😬 idk how that would work haha

Thanks for this diverting ask! 😁 Lmk what you agree/disagree with haha

[dandelionsindistress]

Diving Deep Inside "Earth"

Review by Daniella

Have you ever heard of Tere Liye? Maybe you haven’t, well, you’re in the right place! Tere Liye is known for his series “Earth” a.k.a. Bumi consisting of 11 consecutive books. The book “Earth” kicks the series with its rich green and gold-adorned cover. The book itself is 14 x 20 cm wide and stands with 440 pages. And it expands the horizons of fantasy as it is intertwined with science fiction. The book shares the story of a 15-year-old Raib who finds herself in a heated war of worlds. Always the teenagers who find themselves in ominous other-worldly situations, yes?

Cover design and typography

“Don’t judge a book by its cover.” Who are we kidding with this phrase? If a book doesn’t catch my attention then it doesn’t need my attention. “Earth” has an enticing cover art, embellished with cats, bears, cityscape and the moon. These are key elements to the story and you’ll only realise they hold significance as you read. The gold adornments contrast the rich dark green of the background, making the title pop out. It would’ve been fancier if they added a picture to recap each chapter to make it less dull but text will do. The text also has an easy-to-read font, nothing too fancy but nothing too basic. It has a standard font size as well so it doesn’t tire the eyes.

Characters

There are three main characters you need to be familiar with: Raib, Seli, and Ali. They are students who find themselves bound together by an uncanny coincidence. This specific book of the series is written down from Raib’s point of view. Raib herself is a run-of-the-mill teenage girl with loving parents who are unaware of her powers. She isn’t the type to take risks–a scaredy cat even–although, she does gain confidence along the way. However, she is easily annoyed and hot-headed as you will read from her monologues. Seli, on the other hand, is her childhood best friend, who also turns out to possess powers. She mainly stays baffled throughout the journey but doesn’t keep her mouth shut to ask questions. And last, we have Ali. Ali was described as highly infuriating from Raib’s point of view. Despite that, he is surprisingly intelligent and cunning and has a niche skill at learning languages as fast as 24 hours. There are numerous other side characters, all with rather unusual names: Tamus, Ilo, Vey, Ou, etc. Most of them are crucial to the story and are the ones to re-appear in the second book.

Plot

The plot is reminiscent of other fantasy books eg. Harry Potter, The Land of Stories, etc. The classic storyline of teenagers casually finding out they belong in another world. It began with Raib slowly getting suspicious of her surroundings and trying to control her powers. After a series of uninteresting events, Raib, Seli, and Ali get trapped in a building and witness foreign creatures wrestle each other to death in search of them. This leads them to get sucked into a portal. Now, this is where it gets interesting. We see as they try their best to navigate through the foreign land which eventually brings them to an elder. Here they learn about the true strength of their powers and the history of the worlds. 

The rest of the story pulls you in to watch as they use their varying strengths to help the foreign land free of jeopardy. This part of the story is full of immense suspense and tension. If you’re weak at the heart, you might want to skip through the fight since most of the characters end up getting harmed. But thankfully, it has a happy ending. They managed to win against the blood-curdling creatures and got to go back home to their original world. This isn’t where it ends for them though, they have 10 more books to go!

Landscaping

What I love about this book series is how the landscape is planned out. It is a fascinating concept that I have never seen anywhere else. The theory is that there are 4 different worlds of different advancements simultaneously living in the same physical planet body. So all natural features such as mountains, rivers, and cliffs can be found in the same spots within all 4 worlds. In addition to that, because of the different technological advancements, these worlds occupy different spaces. For example, “Earth” inhabitants reside on land, whereas “Moon” inhabitants reside hundreds of metres underground as well as above ground.

If you're looking for an easy fantasy read, "Earth" is for you. It has all the emotions you can think of. Happiness? Panic? Fear? Anger? It’s all there. The characters take you on a magnificent rollercoaster ride on a journey of their lifetime. The book displays the perfect teenage angst and bond. It was pleasant to see their growth and maturity within a week’s time. The author definitely knows how to suck you in for hours on end. And who knows you might end up reading the whole series! 

[unreal-unearthing]

Thanks for tagging me @daisyssousa - i found this languishing in my drafts folder after like month :/

Are you named after anyone? Possibly? A story that I was named after the guitarist from my dad's favorite band was told to me as a child and to this day it's become such a part of my family mythos that no can remember if it was a joke or not. (Alex Van Halen of Van Halen)

When was the last time you cried? Yesterday, i think. I was a reading a book , The Heat Will Kill You First by Jeff Goodell - an excellent nonfiction book about the dangers of heat as our climate gets hotter, and there was a very moving chapter about the author's interviews with the loved ones of a man who died of heatstroke.

Do you have kids? Nope, not even a pet.

Do you use sarcasm a lot? maybe too much?

What's the first thing you notice about people? I don't really know? Vibes, I guess.

What's your eye colour? Brown.

Scary movie or happy ending? Happy endings! I love reading horror but i'm a scaredy-cat and can't watch scary movies.

Any special talents? I'm a classically trained pianist and vocalist.

Where were you born? North Dakota, unfortunately.

What are your hobbies? Writing, reading a truly absurd amount, listening to music and podcasts? But like many AuDHD folks I have a graveyard of abandoned hobbies - crochet, cross-stitch, baking, etc.

Have you got pets? Nope!

What sports do you/have you played? I used to be a dancer? My parents signed me up for just about every free sports clinic for kids offered when I was kid because they wanted me to lose weight so i've played probably every sport under the sun for at least a year. I like tennis, i guess?

How tall are you? 5'4"

Favourite subject in school? Social Sciences like history and geography! And fun fact, but while I was in college my mom went back to school to get her teaching license and now she is a middle school social sciences teacher.

Dream job? Related to the above, I'm currently in a poli sci PhD program, and am planning to be a college professor. Dream would be to be a writer. There's a lot wrong with academia but it's also not a half-bad way to get a stable salary to research and write about your niche interests while also teaching/mentoring students, which I enjoy, so.

[masongrizchel]

The Low-cost Scientist: Episode 2

Unemployment, Underemployed, and Blue-collar Job

The low-cost scientist received a text message a week ago. He expects ten text messages where he dropped his resume at some prestigious school around the metropolitan. His regard to his self is high. Some of his friends and classmates labeled him a late bloomer since this is the only time he has access to wifi using his phone and downloading advanced materials that he found exciting and necessary. He imagined how advantageous it would be for him to have this accessibility. He might have taught himself everything he needed help understanding, or the instructors failed to deliver. That is the reality of where he is going and where he went.

The magnificent instrument 'android phone' served as his library and his access to information. It is the same instrument where he received one message out of 20. Today is the day of his interview. He arrived while carefully walking in an aisle full of unfamiliar ambiance. It is his first time witnessing a community where it is entirely different from his standard view. He is applying as a secondary teacher at a prestigious Chinese school. The buildings touched with classic and modern Chinese architecture. The kids' lives were too focused on math, and it occurred to me (maybe this is on end). Their entire lives revolved around academics and how to get higher grades, which seems to be their only problem. I overheard a group of students discussing quadratic formulas as if it were their dinner last night and their breakfast this morning. The kids are too fantastic.

While recalling years back in his childhood, the talk is more on how to escape the cleaners' schedule first day in the morning and how to score with their crushes, where they were obliged to walk for one and a half hours to be at school since the family can't pay attention to your needs. There's no pressure. There are no expectations. You hear many words from disappointed people around them, which labels some children more problematic once they achieve adulthood.

Returning to the walk, these cloud of thoughts and negative vibes establishes envy of the low-cost scientist. He walks passing to the group of students discussing mathematical equations and formulas. Then passes to the group of students sharing books they have read. And many more. It is a niche for students who were not having any issues academically—those who made to be great. Looking at himself, the low-cost students approached the glass door of the school directress. Full of negative vibes -nervous, envious, and full of what-ifs.

The low-cost scientist enrolled in an MTAP program during his elementary days. It is a Saturday math class that focuses on the mathematics enrichment of students. Most of the students came from different sections; we can call them the cream of the crops. They were selected based on their mathematics exam scores. However, there was one chosen out of pity. He is a low-cost scientist.

A short back story: The low-cost scientist (in grade 6) was mocked by one of his classmates due to his crumpled uniform and hanging by a thread backpack. He snapped and strangled the bully, and their next subject teacher witnessed this. She interfered, and both kids asked to be in the guidance office. The teacher hears the story and where the low-cost scientist is going. The teacher had seen how promising this kid was. He writes a highly remarkable essay. From that point forward, the low-cost scientist is the favorite of this English teacher. She enlisted him in the feeding program, trained him in the writing camp, and added him to the list of students to join the MTAP. And yes, out of pity.

The door opens, and the principals welcome the low-cost scientist.

'Have a seat.' she said.

Tell me about yourself.

[ethanhuntfemmefatale]

hugs you. thank you it makes me happy to know people might be interested in this idea it's close to my heart. also incidentally people calling me mr floral wallpaper is my favorite thing in the world so thank you for that too<3

if you guys haven't figured it out by now every time you poke me i rant....there's a lot on my mind when it comes to this au...you have been warned. in depth and lengthy discussions of classical music below

gonna try to keep this as far from a personal dissertation as possible...

to start maybe I should talk about why exactly I say ethan is classical violinist core. He's not just any-classical-violinist core, he's got a specific personality that fits well into a certain niche of the classical world.

I think this is probably true of a lot of really intense narrow fields of expertise that require training from a young age (ballet, Olympic sports and such) but there is a particular personality type that occurs in classical music, especially in the highly competitive solo instruments of violin and piano. Let's call it the "recovering prodigy" type. These are the people who grew up with their whole life centered around their career in music. When they become adults, they generally end up exhibiting this specific personality type. Neurotic and perfectionistic, with a charismatic personality and a loner streak. Adrenaline junkie people pleasers, who see themselves as both sub- and superhuman. I think that part of why Ethan exhibits this so perfectly is that in some ways he's an allegory for TC--who very much suffers from this syndrome, my deepest sympathies. In any case that personality type fits Ethan to a tee, in a way that a lot of AU roles for him wouldn't. There aren't a ton of jobs that do to the human mind what being an agent of the IMF does, lol. But classical music is close. There's a priesthood element to classical music that echoes the IMF--the devotion, the isolation, the disconnect from "normal society." (I have a habit of calling non-musicians civilians.) There's also certain elements of hierarchy to classical music that mirror the IMF. Such as: kids work one-on-one with teachers from a young age, and the student-teacher relationship is kinda like an agent and handler dynamic in the level of dependence and trust that's involved.

Getting out of theory and into some ideas. This is all initial stuff, not totally figured out yet. Ethan meets Jim and Claire at a summer festival as a kid. He's probably fourteen? His family had to give up a lot financially to get him this far. (Music is fucking expensive, folks.) He's a hotshot young player, already made his mark in the national competition circuit and probably participated in one or two international competitions. But his dad is sick, so money is becoming a real issue, and things are looking bleak for his future. Jim takes an interest in Ethan, which is insane. He's a renowned violin teacher at one of the world's top conservatories. (His young wife, Claire, is a pianist--the two of them teach together, Jim coaching the students, Claire accompanying them.) At the end of the summer, Jim offers Ethan a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. In order to make his career possible despite his family's financial difficulties, Ethan will move to Washington, DC, live with Jim and Claire and take lessons until he's old enough to apply for college.

Things go badly.

When Ethan meets Nyah, he's not with Jim and Claire anymore. He has a crappy studio apartment in DC with his best friend/love of his life Luther who's a virtuoso pianist. He's grown his hair out, taking a gap year while he tries to figure out college applications and pay rent. He's at an international competition, probably abroad--there are no good violin competitions in Australia or I'd set it there. They're probably eighteen at this point. Nyah is a spectacular player. Ethan's not at his prime anymore, but still good enough to catch her attention. They make out about it. Nyah beats him, Ethan accepts defeat with grace, it's a positive experience overall. He never sees her again.

Ethan gets to college--not sure who his teacher would be at this point. An easy placeholder, he doesn't want to idolize anyone. Luther's there, and so is Benji. Benji's also a pianist, but he's a different kind than Luther--he wants to be a chamber musician, and he's in the student accompanist program. Luther fucking hates playing sonatas. So Ethan works with Benji. Learns a lot about opera and video games and also how well two artists can fit together. Despite all this, Ethan is at his lowest point with music. Thinks it might be the end of the road. (This is something that happens to most all musicians, especially the ones who had a "prodigy" upbringing--there's a period of time where you question fucking everything, and it usually happens in the first or second year of college.) He's not practicing, he can't even look at the violin some days. He's changed also from the sheltered kid who Jim and Claire met over the summer. For example, he's gotten really into fast cars and jumping out of planes. One of the times he jumps out of a plane, it's with Julia.

ok im gonna stop it there or im just going to be summarizing the entire plot of the fic that is growing in my head but that gives you an idea of what im imagining. I also just keep thinking about what kind of music ethan would really connect with--one of the first ethan hunt related thoughts I had after watching MI1 was "oh ethan hunt is kinda stravinsky rite of spring coded" and I do think ethan would like stravinsky, I'm assigning him l'histoire du soldat fan, but mostly I really like the idea of him playing Schubert. Something that's delicate and sweet but really about this very potent darkness. I think Ethan has this fundamental emotional misdirection that would make him connect more with pieces that are not openly angry, that conceal their feelings. Late Beethoven maybe. Barber? potentially. He'd probably play a lot of showpieces and OH

i just got derailed by the idea of him playing waxman carmen fantasie. i need that to be real that would be soo badass and thematically resonant of him. (the most difficult of all the carmen fantasies, it's based on an opera so Benji would love it and play it with him, and it's all about sexual manipulation and violence and powerlessness and fate.)

I also really like the idea of Ethan dabbling in orchestral work, I think he'd like the responsibility of being a concertmaster although I think it would probably get old for him fast. There are some orchestral works I would love to see him play...he could be concertmaster while Luther performed rachmaninoff concerto no 2....he could do don juan.....

sorry im just nerding out at this point. anyway

that was probably way more than you bargained for. but those are a few of my thoughts. <33

ohhh classical music ethan au. how I love you. If I wrote you it might destroy me from the inside out

[roosterbruiser]

As a liberal arts major I absolutely need some Faye and Bob hijinks. I do if I’m projecting when I say that I feel those two would make it a habit to lovingly torture their profs. Or maybe they’re the quiet kids? I just started my semester this past week and it’s already kicking my ass.

and as an English major, I would absolutely agree that we need Faye and Bob hijinks!!

and girly, I also started my semester last week and I am also getting my ass kicked!! we are all in this together and I BELIEVE IN YOU!! you can do this!!

canonically, they met their senior year and I feel like there would be a mutual sadness that they didn't have more time together! but I can see a situation happening where Bob was way, way too shy his freshman year to do a bunch of the traditions freshman were supposed to do. for example, maybe all freshman are supposed to swim in a fountain on campus after dark. it's not technically allowed, but everyone does it. and when Faye hears that Bob hasn't done this, she's like, "oh, Bobby. you're in for a treat."

and she makes Bob go to campus with her in the middle of the night--they're both still in their day clothes and he's so nervous about being caught that he is nonstop chattering about jail time for trespassing. she gets in first, dunking herself while she's fully dressed and he watches from the sideline completely overcome with anxiety. but then she promises that everything will be okay and he finally get comfortable enough to put his glasses aside and hop on in! and what do you know? they have so much fun together! and they don't get caught, much to Bob's relief!

I feel like Bob was socially awkward in college so he didn't make a whole lot of friends in all of his classes. but becoming friends with Faye really opened his world up. he's more comfortable going around campus when she's there: saving a seat for her in class, going to poetry readings in their best turtle necks, meeting at coffee shops, thrifting for books, going to bars, maybe even letting her help him get ready for some dates here and there!!

in terms of how they act in class: they're definitely their professor's favorite students. not just because they always add really insightful dialogue to whatever novel they're discussing and they've collectively never gotten anything less than an A on any assignment they've turned in, but because they're not ass-kissers. I'm projecting that their professors are kind of like my professors where they like to razz their students a little bit and are overjoyed when the students can razz them back! before he was friends with Faye, Bob was definitely the quietest kid in class who turned in great papers but never spoke. but now that he's friends with Faye, they both kick their feet up and make the professor sweat a little bit when they veer the conversation towards the homoerotic undertones of whatever classic lit book they're on.

if Bob is running late to class because Faye just reallyyyy needed that almond milk latte, Faye will stall the professor for a good ten minutes after class starts. and if Faye is ever running late because her car broke down or because she had to drop Maggie back off at the airport, Bob is more than willing to start a discussion that he knows will take the professor an eon to get the class back on track.

they are definitely the it-people of their major and are very popular within their niche little group! they're the full package for English majors: smart, nice, funny, non-pretentious.

okay I literally have to ask.........how cute would it have been if Bob and Faye were college sweethearts? ugh. be still my heart!!

[andromedasstarship]

are you free tomorrow?

pairing - spencer reid x gn!reader

warnings - nothing! just a sweet & cliche ‘first meeting’ story  :)

summary - midterms are coming up and all the good cafes on campus are filled, maybe the sweet looking curly haired guy in the back will share his table with you?

a/n - for my valentines day oneshot series! 'every table is full, but i really need to study, is there any way we could share?'

-------

Stressed, was a simple way to explain the current state you were in. The semester had snuck up on you, moving faster than you had ever expected. As the fifth week was coming to a close, you were getting dangerously close to the storm of midterms you had waiting for you in the sixth week. And you desperately needed to study. The only thing stopping you- surprisingly not your own procrastination-, was that it seemed as if the rest of campus was also in the same predicament as you. 

This was the third cafe on campus that you had entered that was absolutely filled. 

Your eyes scanned around the room, hoping to catch someone in the middle of packing their things. Nope. You considered circling back through the other two cafes you’d just been in or maybe even just going off campus. Except you couldn’t justify wasting more time by circling the same few cafes over and over, nor could your college student budget justify paying for coffee when you could just use your allotted campus cash. 

Just as you were about to give up and leave- begrudgingly deciding that studying in your room would have to be good enough-, you spotted a man sitting alone towards the back of the cafe. He sat at a large table with plenty of space; even though he had one of the largest stacks of papers you’d ever seen one individual possess. 

You weighed your options, internally debating if it’d be worth potentially hurting your pride by asking him to share the table and getting rejected. Seeing as the other option was definitely hurting your pride by hovering the same cafes like a hungry park bird, you tightened your grip on your tote bag and started walking towards him.  

Whatever he was reading must’ve been exciting, as his focus didn’t stray even for a moment nor did he notice you at all until you were right up against the chair across from him. You awkwardly cleared your throat to catch his attention, giving him a tiny wave when he looked up at you. 

“Hi!” 

“Hello?” 

“I’m really sorry to bother you, just every table is full and I really need to study and I know it’s not the best, but could I share this table with you?” You asked anxiously, holding your breath as you waited for his answer. 

As he opened his mouth to respond, you quickly added. “I swear it’ll be like I’m not even here!”  

He gave you a ‘please calm down’ look and you felt some of the weight dissolve from your shoulders as he nodded his head. “Take a seat, no worry at all.” He told you, adding a kind smile as he looked back down at his stack of papers and pulled them closer; giving you more room at the table. 

You let your bag fall off your shoulder and hit the ground with a thunk, relieved to no longer be carrying the physical weight around. You clasped the top of the chair in front of you, leaning towards him just so. “Thank you,” you said, giving your best gracious smile, “let me get you a coffee or something?” 

He looked almost shocked- or was he flustered? you weren’t sure-, quickly shaking his head in response. “No! You don’t need to do that at all.” He assured you, but you weren’t so quick to back down. 

“It’s the least I can do, please?” You pressed, giving him a very exaggerated pleaaaase look, “with all those papers you must need some serious caffeine.” 

You thought he was going to continue this little back-and-forth with you, but you watched as his body relaxed ever so slightly, signs of what you hoped was him conceding. “Just a black coffee.” 

"Just black?" You countered, raising your eyebrow, leaving it unsaid that he was just choosing the cheapest drink they had.

"Room for cream? I'll fix it up myself." He replied.

----

From the line, you had your first opportunity to really give this guy a look. The papers in front of him had sucked him back in as soon as you stepped away from the table; meaning you weren’t too worried about him catching you in your little…, creeping moment. The student population was large, but it was still small enough that you found yourself repeatedly seeing the same strangers. Yet, you’d never seen this man before. And you were sure you would’ve remembered this man, had you seen him before. What? He was undeniably attractive. There was something about the way his hair just perfectly curled around his face that made you just want to reach out and ruff- that’s weird. Even his little sweater-tie-button up outfit was doing it for you. Maybe today won’t be so bad. 

The line moved quickly and you found yourself carrying the two drinks back over to the table in under five minutes. You set his cup by him, taking care to put it away from the massive stack of papers. You set your cup down next, sliding in the chair diagonal from him. 

“You know,” you started, hefting your bag up into the chair next to you, “I never got your name?”

“Thank you,” he quickly got out, holding up his coffee as he did so. “I’m Spencer, uh…, Spencer Reid.” He told you, a faint red creeping up from under his collar. 

You gave him your name in return, a bit distracted as you pulled more of your things from your bag. From the corner of your eye, you saw him hold his coffee up again, nodding his head towards the cream and sugar station before walking off to fix his drink up properly. 

In his absence, you pulled out the rest of your books, debating which subject you should tackle first. You were glad you were finally towards the end of your college career, meaning the majority of your classes were specific to your interests rather than a four hundred student gen-ed; not that it made you any more excited to study for this exam. 

When Spencer came back he set his coffee down with a slightly shaky hand. “Did you know coffee is actually classified as a fruit?” He asked, as he slid back into his seat against the wall. 

“I didn’t know that.” You replied, shaking your head. 

“The coffee bean itself grows on a bush and they’re actually the pit of a berry, which is what makes them a fruit. They come in two main varieties, green and red.” He rambled, as if reciting from some magic book stored in his brain. As soon as he was done he clamped his mouth shut, remembering how most people reacted to his ramblings. 

You raised an eyebrow at him, but your face didn’t show any signs of annoyance. “Big coffee fan Spencer?” 

“Big fan of facts.” He corrected, giving you a sheepish smile.

“Oh yeah? Well you seem pretty smart then, which class should I study for first?” You asked, holding up two of your textbooks.

He looked at both books curiously, trying to take a guess at what your major might’ve been. He pointed at the one in your left hand. God’s, Monsters and Mortals. 

“Are you an…, English major?” He guessed, wondering if the book was some supplement for a unit on the Iliad. Not to mention the other book you held up was quite literally called ‘Literature Through The Ages’. 

You shook your head, putting the book he chose down on the table while you returned the other one to your bag. “Close! Classics,” you said, giving him a sheepish grin, “I know, it’s a bit niche, kinda ridiculous, but there’s something about how we immortalized memories of ancient times through literature that are just fascinating. There’s something about the lessons of the past that I think a lot of people are ignoring today, ya know?” You replied, quickly closing your mouth before you’d go on some incredibly long tangent about your interests and studies. Didn’t you say it’d be like you weren’t even here?  

“No, no!” He hurriedly said, shaking his head. “Understanding the lessons and patterns of the past and how they’ve morphed humanity today? That’s cool!” He assured you. 

“Well what about you, Spencer Reid? What’s your major, you must have some horrible professors, if that stack of papers is the norm.” You joked, liking the way the corner of his eyes crinkled as he smiled. 

“I’m uh…, a professor here.” He responded, his face cringing ever so slightly as he watched your mouth drop open simultaneously as your eyes nearly fell out of your head. 

“You’re a…, professor?” You repeated, extremely confused as to how someone who looked only a few years older than you was somehow employed to such a degree. 

“Just a visiting one!” He clarified, clearing his throat. “I’m on a sort of, uh, sabbatical from work.” 

“Isn’t a sabbatical when someone gets away from academia?” You countered, smiling to show you meant no actual aggression. 

“Big fan of facts, remember?” He repeated plainly, but you caught the joke in it and you smiled wider at that. 

“No offense Professor, but you look a bit young to ya know, be one.” You said, hoping he’d give his age in response. 

“I’m 29.” Ah, only four years older than you. 

“29 and already a professor at a university like this? What, do you have like 20 Phds. or something?” You asked jokingly, laughing a bit as you said so. 

“Three actually.” He replied, a mix of shyness and pride across his face.

Your mouth dropped back open again, trying to wrap your mind around the man in front of you. “What are you? A genius then?” 

“By some standards, yes.”  

The two of you fell into a comfortable silence after that. Him paying special attention to each paper he graded- you wished all your professors cared about student work the way he seemed to-, while you were busy deciding which parts of the taught units were the most important. 

After what you imagined was nothing short of four hours you felt your head begin to throb and your eyes were starting to go fuzzy. In that time, the two of you had downed at least five coffees each, going back and forth over who paid for them. You had managed to create an individual study guide for nearly all your upcoming exams and a quick glance told you that Spencer still had a few papers left. Unbeknownst to you he could have finished those papers hours ago, even with the in depth comments he entered into the computer for each one; there was just something about you that drew him in.  

He wasn’t sure whether it was the funny unfiltered comments you’d make sporadically while you worked or the way you actually seemed to be interested in every little tangent he had gone on whenever one of his students brought up a particularly good or amusing point in their papers’. His therapist had recently recommended that he engage in conversations with those not already well acquainted with him and it seemed like the world had lined up perfectly to put you in front of him so soon after. 

You loudly slammed your textbook shut with a groan and let your head fall against the table. “Why does academia have to be so boring?” You asked rhetorically, bringing one hand up to pinch the bridge of your nose. “Is it some requirement to get published? Your work needs to put college kids to sleep?”  

“The works that you’re reading are quite literally ancient, in their defense. The term ‘academia’ itself comes from the school of thought taught by Plato himself in ancient Athens.” Spencer explained, putting down the paper he had been grading. 

“And now, all these years later I have to suffer because Plato was such a bore.” You sighed dramatically, rolling your eyes. 

“You said you were studying the downfall of Icarus weren’t you?” He asked, once again unbeknownst to you, he remembered everything you had said today. “It’s one of my favorites of ancient Greek mythology. The power of the mind of man, yet how quickly that very power could be taken away if man oversteps. Really makes us wonder if we’ve overstepped as humans yet, if we use Icarus’s fall, quite literally from grace, as a lens for other devastations we’ve seen across history then-” 

“Spencer, are you free tomorrow?” You asked, effectively cutting him off. 

He looked a bit like a fish, the way you had stopped him mid sentence and his mouth hadn’t yet closed. His eyebrows turned up, head tilting with them. “Tomorrow? The 14th?” 

“Yeah, are you free tomorrow?” You repeated, holding back your nerves. 

“Oh.” He said, eyes going wide as you assumed he finally connected the dots, “Oh!” 

You were about to speak again, retract your question completely before he could reject you, suddenly wondering why you decided to go out on whim like that at all. But he beat you to it. 

“Yes, yes I am.” 

------

happy valentines day (almost) i love yall!!

tagging a few people who asked + a few mutuals i think might like this (no pressure!!) - @hqtchner @ssahoodrathotchner @kylorendrip @feverdreamreid @homoose 

permanent taglist - @sunflowersandotherthings

[bonvoyagenoona]

yuugehn said 08

this made me think more on intentionality & why it’s so interesting & comforting… i do agree that it starts with what you said about feeling reassured that things are under control, but i also think we can take it farther?

at its most basic layer, the intention of art is to express, but it’s also to provoke a reaction – however, we never know what reaction will follow until it’s out there. ideally, the reaction is that it resonates & resonates strongly with people. you, as a writer, put all of your intention into your novels & one shots & drabbles, but then you just let go. it’s so scary, honestly.

you put all your faith in the universe guiding you exactly where you’re meant to be. then you get likes, you get comments, & you get essays from readers (like myself) who do strongly resonate with you. now the intention blooms. & this is the part that’s most beautiful – serendipity & things harmoniously coming together in unforeseeable ways. it is very comforting.

yes to both about always thinking about deeper meanings and taking stock of our lives! my therapist says i think too much too often lol. i can’t help it when there is so much to think about.

maybe it helps us process our feelings more by feeling like they’re being expressed in different ways. i tend to attach vivid (not often visually, but emotionally) memories, just as you have strong memories attached to sleigh ride.

but listening to our reflective artists is a good way to check in ourselves & how we feel day-to-day…like when if i want to listen to jhene’s “drinking & driving”, it’s because i’m feeling lost & seemingly on the verge of hopelessness & desperation.

Agh what a beautiful description! It does feel like serendipity, doesn’t it? Maybe because it feels rare? Maybe because it’s always unexpected? And on provoking reactions, yesssss! It’s so interesting to think about what brings those reactions as well! The vivid memories, trying to capture everything, from the little moments of life’s musicality that you mentioned before, to the big, grandiose themes... All our shared experiences, our shared thoughts, feeling that connection... The sheer joy of realizing that others have the same observations or questions! 

You noted how scary it might be to post, but honestly, the posting isn’t really scary for me? I’m usually laughing because I’m being silly as fuck lol, or it’s thrilling (classic Aries) because I get to preserve sensations and ideas while getting to revisit them and process them with generous people like you who are interested in doing that sort of thing, while also making space for new sensations and ideas! You mentioned the universe guiding us. Isn’t it amazing that we get to explore it like this, all together?

ahhh, you know sms?! i feel like video games is still a niche industry so whenever non-industry folks recognize the studio, i’m like whaaa. i’m unfortunately not as exciting as a designer or in a role that’s musically related…i’m on the recruiting team & my greatest professional joy is in working with students!

Yes! When I told my brother that you had mentioned it, he said, “OK, that’s fucking rad” haha. And OMG you do such amazing, important work! There’s nothing more incredible than getting to be a part of someone’s formative years, working with them to harness their potential and talent and getting to see them bloom. And in a dope-ass industry as well? That’s so wonderful! Celebrating you for that, in addition to all the other awesome things!

ah i loved reading about the inspiration behind inside out! oh the joys & woes of parenting…i must also prepare myself for the moment my little one’s childhood joy matures into…idk, something. we’ll find out when we get there, i guess!

Ahh, you have a little one! My heart!! Well, if these little notes we’ve shared are any indication, your little one is incredibly lucky to be yours. More smiles, more joy, more laughter, and more celebrations of you, friend!

[superlinguo]

Practical advice if you want to start a podcast

I wrote a post for the RED team at La Trobe with some general advice for podcasting, but I’ve found there are some recurring questions that I get about setting up a podcast. This post is here to answer those questions.

If you’re not interested in starting a podcast, but want to listen to more linguistics podcasts, I’ve got a list for you!

I last updated this post in June 2021 - if you find this post a few years after this you might want to search for some more up to date specs. I’ll continue to update this from time to time as new questions (or answers) come up.

Picture your audience

Before you make any decisions about your show, know who it is for. Your topic might be incredibly niche and have an audience in the hundreds, which is very different to a potentially larger but less engaged audience. See the classic blog post from Kevin Kelly on the power of 1000 true fans. Knowing your potential audience, where they hang out online, and how they’re likely to support you, will help your decision making. I have a self-guided slide set for refining your project before you start working on it. It’s also ok to know who you don’t want as your audience, and make choices that don’t actively include them. Do this early and clearly so people aren’t disappointed. For example, having a show with clearly noted explicit language selects away from young kids and their parents.

The length and format of your show are a product of your aims

I personally like shows in the 25-35 minute range. But, having said that, I love Shortwave, which regularly clocks in at 10 minutes, and I’m disappointed when an episode of You’re Wrong About is less than an hour.

Know your audience and the level of depth you want to explore a topic in. The frequency of episodes and the amount of time you have to prepare and edit will also affect how long episode end up. Record a few episodes first and share them with people you trust will give you good feedback.

The best interviews are conversations

Good interviews are just conversations that are intentionally lopsided, and good interviewers make the conversation feel like it’s not lopsided. Do your homework, write out some questions, and then take a step back and actually listen to the person you’re interviewing.

Anyone who has done even a few interviews has already faced most of the questions you first think of. There are some fixes for this: push through your initial brainstorming, think about the specific angles on their topic that are most relevant to your audience and (again) listen to what the person is telling you. Like many podcasting skills, good interviewing takes practice, and you can practice by staying curious about humans you interact with in any area of your life, not just your podcast guests.

Use the best mics you can, but don’t over-invest

You don’t have go and buy the fanciest tech. If you have access to a studio, great! If you don’t, then decide what your budget is. When we started Lingthusiasm, Gretchen recorded into her phone, because we were running the show on no budget and had no idea if we’d stick it out more than 6 months. When we started making money we got Gretchen a Zoom H4n to match mine. It’s still not the fanciest, but it’s rugged and adequate, especially if you make sure you’re in a closet with some blankets. Do I regret the earlier episodes of Lingthusiasm don’t sound amazing? Not as much as I would have regretted investing hundreds of dollars in a podcast that had 4 episodes.

Edit your show

Even a light edit will make the show easier for your audience to listen to, and show respect for the people you interview. I know people believe there’s an aesthetic of authenticity that comes with not editing, but all podcasting is a performance. Editing is a politeness to your audience.

Editing means a very wide range of things. You can do full production editing, including the addition of music, multiple different voice-overs and voices reading parts (e.g. getting someone else to read author quotes to bring them to life) and additional sound effects. Or you might just edit out the start and end of the recording, and any false starts and errors throughout the show. A lot of the pauses and fillers we use in conversation are designed for an audience who is in on the conversation and can reply, and can feel like they’re holding up a conversation when you’re a passive listener like a podcast audience. Many of the best conversational podcasts are given an edit to make them easier on the ears.

I use audacity to edit

Audacity is free to use. It takes a little longer to learn than something like GarageBand, but once you know how to use it, you’ll be much faster at editing. I appreciate that it has stayed pretty much the same since I started using it almost 15 years ago.

Get your levels right

Once you’ve edited your show, making sure there aren’t too many loud laughs, or your two hosts aren’t unbalanced in loudness. You’ll also need to make sure your podcast isn’t too loud or soft compared to others in people’s list. You need to regularise it. A lot of podcasts regularise to -16 LUFS. A few other numbers bounce around (-14, -18), but this is what we use and no one complains.  Audacity can’t do it. You can process a certain number of hours of audio for free each month using the web-based Auphonic. It’s great. 

There’s lots of great free music to use

You want to look for music that has a license that’s free to use. Even if you don’t plan to make money from your podcast, make sure the license includes commercial use so you don’t limit your future options. SoundCloud and YouTube have lots of options, as does Kevin MacLeod - who has created royalty-free music in a massive range of genres. 

Web hosting is different to getting your show on iTunes

We use SoundCloud to upload and share our audio. It’s fine. I have no complaints. Once you’ve uploaded a few hours of audio you’ll have to pay annually for a pro account. Anchor seems to be a good new competitor, it’s free - I assume they make money off people choosing to run ads on their podcasts. You then generate an RSS feed, which is the thing that points all the podcast players to the place you’ve uploaded your recording. You’ll then have to add your show to major podcast platforms (Apple Podcast, Google Podcast), smaller ones will pick it up from there.

It takes a few days for your show to get picked up on all the podfeeders

Launching a podcast is a bit of a mess - it will go live on your hosting site but then you’ll have to set yourself up with iTunes, Google Podcast etc. and that can take a few days to update and populate. The sites that are popular, and the process of linking into those spaces, changes often enough that you should just google advice when you’re ready to launch, and give yourself a few days. This is part of why some podcasts launch a short ‘episode 0′ or a trailer, it gets the show set up.

Transcripts should be one of the first things you fund

Not every podcast has the time or funds to make transcripts. I do think they’re important though; for people who can’t or don’t want to listen, for discoverability and for your own record when you can’t remember when you talked about a specific story. If you have any time or money and want to be taken seriously at all, this should be one of your earliest priorities. This is even more true for educational podcasts, where a transcript ensures all students can appreciate the content of your show.

You don’t neeeeed a website, but it’s handy

You can run a show using a hosting platform and some social media. Having a website does allow you to add more information about the show and yourself. The Lingthusiasm page has grown over the years as the show has; we made a page for our liveshow events, we provide a list of episodes by topic, information about our Discord community, and our marvelous wall of supporters. The website was much more minimal when we started, but compared to just having a SoundCloud it gave the show room to grow.

You probably want socials, but be selective

You need to make your podcast discoverable by people who are likely to be your audience. Social media is one way to do this, but it’s better to be actually engaging on fewer social platforms than overextend yourself. Focus on platforms that are the intersection of where your possible fans are likely to be and where you enjoy being.

Funding a podcast takes time, and takes work

There are three main revenue streams for podcasts: advertising, crowdfunding and merch. A fourth option is institutional support (through your university or business), but then you’re beholden to the funder. Whichever revenue options work for you, think about them and plan towards them early. Part of that is making sure your podcast gets in as many ears as possible. Most successful podcasts spend as much, if not more, time on marketing, audience engagement and business planning as they do podcasting (it’s just not very glamorous to admit that!).

Choose whether each episode can stand alone

Some podcasts build a narrative over multiple episodes. Others allow listeners to jump in at any point and listen in any order. Whatever you choose, make this clear to your audience. This choice is going to influence a range of choices around what information to include in the opening and closing, how topical to make the show, and how you promote your podcast. 

Seasons are a great structure to keep a podcast manageable

Regardless of whether your show runs in a sequence, planning a season with a fixed number of episodes allows you to take some time off, to maybe change some things that weren’t working, or to step away from the project with a podcast that hasn’t been left hanging.