#it also makes me upset for the other artists out there. especially those who hate reposts more than me

[talentlesshuman]

Hi, sorry if this ask is misguided, but I was seeing your art twice on my feed and realized @ communist-hatsunemiku had reposted your art from Twitter and didn't see any indication that you had given permission. I would want to know if it was my art, so I apologize again if it's nbd 👋

Nope! I didn't give permission. I'll go ahead and start reporting the post, if anyone else wants to join me i greatly appreciate it :)

Edit: I've decided to send them messages before i send the copyright infringement report (i'd like to avoid putting my irl name and address out there whenever possible, since filing the report might have the work and my identity stored in a 3rd party website). under the cut is screenshots of my messages to them

[flanaganfilm]

Mr. Flanagan, I’d like to ask a question and I deeply hope that it does not offend or upset you. I am strongly considering canceling my Netflix subscription due to their new password sharing policy. However, Midnight Mass is one of my favorite shows of all time and I know it isn’t available on DVD, and I’m also profoundly anticipating your take on my favorite Edgar Allen Poe story. So I wanted to ask your take on people accessing your work through, uh, other means. If it’s something that’s offensive to you or will harm you or the other people who work so hard on these shows, I’ll happily keep my Netflix just so that I can keep supporting your work. I respect you far too much as an artist to do otherwise.

Again, I really hope I’m not upsetting you by asking this question. Thank you for everything, and I hope you’re having a great day!

(NOTE 6/4/2024: I'm editing this entry because, well over a year since it was posted, some journalists dug this up and used it to create click-bait headlines that are misleading, out of context and artificially combative. While I was of course disappointed over the years that Netflix opted not to release my work on physical media, I never experienced any hostility or aggression in those discussions, and I sincerely regret the manner in which this post was used in the press this week.)

Hi there - no offense taken whatsoever, in fact I think this is a very interesting and important question.

So. If you asked me this a few years ago, I would have said "I hate piracy and it is hurting creators, especially in the independent space." I used to get in Facebook arguments with fans early in my career when people would post about seeing my work on torrent sites, especially when that work was readily available for rent and purchase on VOD.

Back in 2014, my movie Before I Wake was pirated and leaked prior to any domestic release, and that was devastating to the project. It actually made it harder to find distribution for the film. By the time we were able to get distribution in the US, the film had already been so exposed online that the best we could hope for was a Netflix release. Netflix stepped in and saved that movie, and for that I will always be grateful to them.

However...

Working in streaming for the past few years has made me reconsider my position on piracy.

In the years I worked at Netflix, I tried very hard to get them to release my work on blu-ray and DVD.

It became clear very fast that their priority was subscriptions, and that they were not particularly interested in physical media releases of their originals, with a few exceptions.

While companies like Netflix pride themselves on being disruptors, and have proven that they can affect great change in the industry, they sometimes fail to see the difference between disruption and damage. So much that they can find themselves, intentionally or not, doing harm to the concept of film preservation.

The danger comes when a title is only available on one platform, and then - for whatever reason - is removed.

We have already seen this happen. And it is only going to happen more and more. Titles exclusively available on streaming services have essentially been erased from the world. If those titles existed on the marketplace on physical media, like HBO's Westworld, the loss is somewhat mitigated (though only somewhat.) But when titles do not exist elsewhere, they are potentially gone forever.

The list of titles that have been removed from streaming services is growing.

I still believe that where we put our dollars matters. Renting or buying a piece of work that you like is essential. It is casting a vote, encouraging studios - who only speak the language of money - to invest more effort into similar work. If we show up to support distinct, unique, exciting work, it encourages them to make more of it. It's as simple as that. If we don't show up, or if they can't hear our voice because we are casing our vote "silently" through torrent sites or other means - it makes it unlikely that they will take a chance to create that kind of work again.

Which is why I typically suggest that if you like a movie you've seen through - uh - other means, throw a few dollars at that title on a legitimate platform. Rent it. Purchase it. Support it.

But if some studios offer no avenue for that kind of support, and can (and will) remove content from their platform forever... frankly, I think that changes the rules.

Netflix will likely never release the work I created for them on physical media, though I'll always hold out hope.

Some of you may say "wait, aren't The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor available on blu-ray and DVD?" Yes, they are, because they were co-produced with Paramount, and I'm grateful that Paramount was able to release and protect those titles. (I'm also grateful that those releases include extended cuts, deleted scenes, and commentary tracks. There are a number of fantastic benefits to physical media releases.)

But a lot of the other work I did there are Netflix originals, without any other studio involvement. Those titles - like Midnight Mass, The Midnight Club, and the upcoming Fall of the House of Usher - along with my Netflix exclusive and/or original movies Before I Wake and Gerald's Game - have no such protections. The physical media releases of those titles are entirely at Netflix's discretion, and don't appear to be priority for the studio at this time.

At the moment, Netflix seems content to leave Before I Wake, Gerald's Game, Midnight Mass, and The Midnight Club on the service, where they still draw audiences. I don't think there is a plan to remove any of them anytime soon. But plans change, the industry changes.

The point is things change, and each of those titles - should they be removed from the service for any reason - are not available anywhere else. If that day comes - if Netflix's servers are destroyed, if a meteor hits the building, if they are bought out by a competitor and their library is liquidated - I don't know what the circumstances might be, I just know that if that day comes, some of the work that means the most to me in the world would be entirely erased.

Or, what if we aren't so catastrophic in our thinking? What if it the change isn't so total? What if Netflix simply bumps into an issue with the license they paid for music (like the Neil Diamond songs that play such a crucial role in Midnight Mass), and decide to leave the show up but replace the songs?

This has happened before as well - fans of Northern Exposure can get the show on DVD and blu-ray, but the music they heard when the series aired has been replaced due to the licensing issues. And the replacements - chosen for their low cost, not for creative reasons - are not improvements. What if the shows are just changed, and not by creatives, but by business affairs executives?

All to say that physical media is critically important. Having redundancy in the marketplace is critically important. The more platforms a piece of work is available on, the more likely it is to survive and grow its audience.

As for Netflix, I hope sincerely that their thinking on this issue evolves, and that they value the content they spend so much money creating enough to protect it for posterity. That's up to them, it's their studio, it's their rules. But I like to think they may see that light eventually, and realize that exclusivity in a certain window is very cool... but exclusivity in perpetuity could potentially limit the audience and endanger the work itself.

[creatingblackcharacters]

FAQs!

I go by Ice, she/her pronouns 💕. In case you had any of these questions, here you go:

1. "Why'd you make this page?"

I want to make the creation space- fandom to professional- more inclusive for people that look like me.

It is very disheartening when you really like something, and you see that oh! It's going to include a Black character! And then you get that character and... They're subpar. Especially in comparison to the usually white characters that have so much thought put into them. You accept them because you REALLY want that rep, but... We deserve to wholeheartedly accept our characters too, no ehhs about it.

I wanted to challenge myself, using my amateur art skills and my teaching skills, to convey to creators how that makes us feel, and little things they can do to more intentionally create their Black characters. There's more to us than adding to a diversity quota.

2. "So you aren't even a professional?"

I got 27.5 years of being a Black person on my resume 🤣 jokes aside, I am a self teaching artist. It's only been about a year for me. My more specific goal here is to use my skills to convey a perspective change towards Blackness, not necessarily a "how to do". If you want to learn the specific how-to's of drawing Black characters, there are Black artists all over Tumblr and the web that can show you. I actively encourage you to go check them out and support them, it's a great way to learn as well as to support our community!

3. "But if you're not a professional, why should I trust you?"

Well, again, because I don't have to be a professional to recognize when supposedly Black characters... Don't look like me 😅. Or, in writing, don't have any thought about me behind them. I could show my 87 year old Grandma some art and she'd recognize the issues.

But also, I personally believe that if you start from the foundations thinking about intentionally creating your Black characters, it'll make it much easier for you moving into the future. I am holding my hand out as a Black peer to HELP YOU! There are professional video games and art pieces and projects out there with poorly designed Black characters. The concept clearly needs to be introduced to the people somewhere before a million dollar project is release 🤣 But I can't talk to the people at the AAA studios. I can talk to you!

4. "I don't think race matters/should matter."

Alas, it does, everything we do is affected by our beliefs unconsciously or not- but I'm not going to waste my time and argue with you. This blog isn't for you 🤷🏾‍♀️ this blog is for those who want to take that first step to be better, both as creators and as people. 👍🏾

5. "Do you support AI?"

Not in the arts. Learn how to draw and/or write, it's very fulfilling.

6. "Do you answer asks?"

I do! However, this is a lesson based page, more than an ask based page. If I think your ask can be answered by one of my lessons, I'll refer you to that lesson. If it's an ask that's relevant to something coming up, I will answer it, but you will find more detail in the lesson coming up! I'm only one person doing this, and I can't answer every singular scenario. Also, keep in mind, if you ask me my opinion on something, I will be fair, but honest!

7. Will you be turning on anons?

Okay: right now, we've earned Anon Office Hours Wednesday 12:30pm thru Friday 6:30pm EST!

Most of this is due to the nature of what I'm discussing. Historically, these topics (and how race is relevant) upset some people, and it can get unsafe. Personally, I have no intention of allowing racists, or those who will take my advice in bad faith, to hide their faces. If you want to hate me, speak with your chest 😤👍🏾

The other part is that it is not a bad thing to ask questions! I did create this blog to be a learning opportunity. So long as you are kind to me and send me asks in good faith, I will be kind to you and reply in good faith. I'm also pretty sure I have the option to answer privately, so if you don't want your question posted publicly, You can say that.

If I get more questions, I'll update this!

[nostalgink]

Due to some past trauma from previous fandoms, I'm not particularly one to engage in fandom related discourse anymore, but when you not only name-drop me, but continue to perpetuate lies about not only me, but also my friends.... that's when I'd rather "clear my name" than allow for a nasty rumor to circulate when I know it's out there.

I want to go through everything that went down in order as best as possible. Even though I’ve spent so much time on this receipt post, truly this issue was something very small, the root of the issue lies with CookieRuby herself, given she decided to continue to create and perpetuate lies and rumors about myself and others. I know she will most likely continue to make up whatever she wants to have happened to obtain pity from those who do not know the context, but I thought that if she was going to do so regardless, I might as well let everyone know mine and my friends’ side of things. Because sadly I got some very worried and confused messages wondering if the statements were truthful. Hopefully this reassures most that they are in fact not.

I also would like to say while I am deeply upset that someone would lie about me like this and continue to emotionally manipulate, then double down on it all… I still do want to say that if you know people who act as such to please help them get the help they need. The timeline of this basically showcases us interacting at 3 points ever, but its obvious in her own obsessive world she has created, it has been brewing with her much longer. Which all of this is genuinely concerning and I hope she gets help. Despite my anger.

In the beginning

I believe I knew about them prior to them joining the old Darkwing Duck RP server I used to be active in back in 2022. If you know me, I follow practically every artist in the fandom. Especially as the fandom loses traction and there are less and less of us actively creating works. So naturally I followed. I even found her oc interesting. I mean why wouldn’t I? Magentus, while more of an oc now than he was in the past, at the end of the day still is my sona so to speak. I love seeing others put themselves into their own work in their own ways. Unfortunately once I got to know them, their attitude towards others when it came to their oc soured my interest.

In a lot of her posts, she makes claims towards my friends and I (as well as I suppose vague unknown other “harrassers” prior to us. I only put it in air quotes because the amount of lying she does, ironic I know, makes me question the validity of anything she says.) that we actively hated and made fun of her for disliking Drakepad. As you can see in the screenshots provided, that is exactly the oppposite.

I also want to mention the screenshots here are an anonymous friend’s server that I used to be active in. In the screenshots provided by Soy, it refers to their old server. Though I believe there is a point in our screenshots where one is referenced in another. (I am currently not looking at them, so I can recall which is referenced in which.) I wanted to make sure there was no confusion with that. These were provided to me by Drake. I could not find them on my own. This was her asking about playing her oc initally. and some stuff I didn't screenshot previously I think?

On Soy’s Side of things

Initially I had another draft of this whole rant, but because of these screenshots I got so peeved that I spiraled into a mad disorganized rage due to the ridiculousness of all of this. So I thought it would be best to rework my words into a more composed response. Personally I had read the first set of messages after they had happened, but when it comes to the discord screenshots, these were new to me. We were all suspicious of her potentially using an alt account on tumblr to ask as a “friend”. Because while I cannot say the same for my friends, I had online friends when I was young who pulled very similar stunts to continue to emotionally manipulate me into remaining their friend and under their thumb. I do not fuck with that sort of behavior anymore. And to note from Soy they said that they had joined their old dead DWD server and immediately dmed them. The obsessive manner of her continuing whatever game she thinks this is is a genuine concern and big alarm sounding that she needs to talk to someone. She is older than me, but I have already dealt with extremely similar people in my preteens, so it’s sad to see someone being so immature like this. (I hit the 30 post limit so the screenshots will be in the reblogs for anything missing)

responses to tumblr posts

Starting with the post that finally prompted this response, I want to cover my personal opinion of each thing mentioned. Unfortunately as you will see, I do not have proof for my own ponytown run in personally, but if you read all of the messages provided, you can probably tell who’s more truthful considering it’s a 1-0 with me having evidence and her none. You’ll notice she remains vague when she can, which is most of the time.

First we need to all heavily note that this was a supposed dream. She is her character Hannah in her dream, alongside Drake. Soy, an anon, and myself appear as “hooded people” in her dream and do an incantation on her in order to curse her to not be with Drake. I suppose this causes a curse that forces Drakepad to be real in her dream? Then we say quotes she is claiming we said. I will get to that in a moment. This is a summary so that if she deletes the post linked, you still have me explaining it. (I wrote this last night, unfortunately as of right now while I was acquiring links she did in fact delete the post. Likely because of my warning post from the other day. So she is stalking my account still.) Then her own oddly crafted happy ending where the spell is broken and she gets her ending of support.

Now I’ll cover the “quotes”

“Drakepad is the only true ship”

You will here her claim people saying this to her often. In reference to my friends, such claims have been proven false. We supported her opinion despite our own. Even comforting her and letting her know its awful for anyone to try and pressure her over such a simple difference in taste. Also adding the fact we supported her oc x canon even though she could not RP it in the old server.

“Darkwing DENIED YOU” with her claiming it is something I said to her in Ponytown.

I will go more in depth in exactly what I said in ponytown further down, but I never once said this. She insisted that my opinion was that her oc x canon was not valid. I was Negaduck in game, then I specifically swapped to my Magentus pony and stated how hypocritical it would be for me to say such a thing. Then proceeded to let her know, though I was annoyed, that it’s alright for her to not ship something she does not like, but continuing to bring up that you hate a ship to people you know don’t mind it or even ship it themselves is rude. Then she proceeded to do something I can only describe as something I am seasoned to as the son of an emotionally inmature mother. Again I will elaborate in the ponytown section.

“She gaved me PTSD by her DrakePad hate. And with her tumblr post who HURTED my friends saying we “FORCED” Drakepad on our server she lied.” Which was aparently what Soy said.

I cannot speak to how soy feels completely on this, but I know they did not develop post traumatic stress disorder from this. Nor have they said this quote if you could not guess. I believe the friend was the one in the screenshots between them and soy on discord I shared above. Again, I do not trust that these are her actual friends. This is not to say she couldn’t potentially have friends who agree with her, I just don’t trust her truthfulness especially with said discord dms. But you as the reader can make your own opinion on that. From what I was told by Soy, they joined (I believe after they realized they couldn’t do oc x canon with our Darkwing in the old server, which was his choice to make.) and asked if they could do darkwing x hannah. Soy and others kindly let her know that they were working on a drakepad relationship, but saw no problem in doing dw x lp x hannah. She accepted I think? But regardless then returned to our server to both brag about how someone finally let her, but soon ranted about how uncomfortable poly stuff made them. Some of this is word of mouth, but you can see other parts referenced back above.

“You deserve no friends.” by an anon

Again, I question the validity of this claim, but assuming someone actually said this to her this is horrible to say to someone. Back in 2020 I dealt with prosh*ppers in a problematic fandom harrasing me because I outwardly was against their adult x minor ship. Unfortunately if you know what fandom I mean. (keep guesses to yourself, I don’t want to bring it up in public.) You know it’s very popular unfortunately. I was sent death threats and people telling me how unworthy of friends, love, or anything they could throw at me. I would never say this to another nor condone saying this to another. Even if CookieRuby is in the wrong here. Everyone deserves the chance to have friends and flourish as a person. I’m angry but I’d never wish such a thing. And while I’m at it I would like to suggest to you as the reader that if you are considering doing such a thing don’t. Block her, move on. It’s not worth it. I’m only here right now to give context, then I’m done. I do not want anyone going after her. I’m just here to show my receipts, not to harrass her. I’d just prove her point if I did that. I’m not that sort of person.

And I was shown her speaking about her inferiority complex. I do not have one, so I cannot speak to how true this is, but considering this was March 2023...it seems despite her admitting this, she has obviously continued to lie about people. So I don’t know if she has that complex, but she is a chronic liar at the very least so there’s that I guess.

Ponytown run ins

The provided screenshots below are from before what I’ll be describing to you. I had to re-listen to a voice note I sent after this. It’s all I have besides the discord message of me realizing it was her. I do not want to attach it just because I keep my voice to myself most times. I’m shy gang.

Starting off I was just finishing my Magentus pony. For a while they had a color palette I had just chose myself without reference and I was finally giving them their reference colors. I was returning to the darkwing rock circle I was hoping to start a darkwing pony hangout at, when I saw a Darkwing pony approach. Now, I don’t know if this was coincidence of perhaps she knows about the hangout from my story. Considering she has alts, she probably was checking my story, but that is speculation. I immediately am eager to friend them because of their pony. But of course the first words from her are “why do you have me blocked?” my mood immediately changes as it hit me that someone had told me prior she had an account. Likely due to the incident in the other ponytown screenshots. I ask to confirm if it’s her and she says yes.

So I simply put that she cause discomfort to my friends and I and that I use the block liberally. During this I am scrambling to try and block her on ponytown too, but unfortunately my block list is too full because I have been blocking Dream SMP ponies left and right. So I decide maybe here is where I can put my foot down on things. I also mentioned a side thing about how the old server I was in had a policy about posting over people, but she seemed to focus on this more. (I do not recall if this was enforced at the time, but still it was focused on way more than the main issue I was bringing up.) I mentioned how she’d post over others. I told her that it wasn’t my main point and to forget that and move onto the main issue. I explain to her as adult as I can back to her Drakepad issue that “You were being rude to people because you could get your ship. We tried to be nice and I just blocked you because I didn’t want to deal with that [anymore].” and the only thing she got from that was me saying “rude” I suppose so she responded saying “oh so I’m the toxic one?” and boy have I heard this one get pulled on me before. It’s giving emotional manipulation. I calmly reply “That is not what I said.” I said something else that I couldn’t recall, though likely just me restating what happened, then she said “well I guess I’m sorry-” I was on a call at this time with my boyfriend while he was on break as this went down, so I began speaking to him irl. I guess I did not respond to her in time because she continued with the classic backhanded comment of “Since everyone wants me to apologize anyway” or something to that effect. It was in that way that someone who does this wants you to just accept the apology even though it was not a meaningful one. She does not have to apologize, no one is making her, but that was her attitude about it. I thought I’d just end it off there with a joke to myself so I didn’t lose it. I went “I have a mother, I can be emotionally manipulated at home, I don’t need this game from you. Bye.” and logged off. Honestly there is when it actually got personal. Somewhere in the middle she insisted what I had mentioned earlier with us hating oc x canon and drakepad and all that and that statement from earlier still follows.

I even have a later note worrying there would be a post on her tumblr, but I checked once and there was nothing so I thought maybe she had gotten over herself…..we are here now so nope. Also this was 2/2/2024 for timeline’s sake.

I was transcribing from a voice note, so if it seems like there are any holes in that ask me, I’ll try to fill in what I missed.

Misc

Lastly here are things I did not know how to organize into the rant. As well as some people making mention to their experiences with her in reply to my Instagram story. I swore I would get all I could and I meant it.

And anyways thank you to those who actually took the time to read all of this mess. I don’t know how I did drama back in the day this has truly been so exhausting to write, but it was important that I did. Honestly despite my anger this is really dumb to have to make, but I do not like being lied about. I especially don’t like my friends also being lied about. And again just block her and do not engage. I do not condone harassment of any kind. I am going to go sleep as I finish writing this. This was a tiring experience. She’ll probably continue but now I am satisfied knowing we’re all on the same page.

[period-of-nocturne]

just wanted to say i loved your tags on the shinonome siblings post you just reblogged. so insightful! these two make each other better in their own backwards ways—akito who doesn’t want to end up like ena, beaten down and lost without her passion, and ena who wants to be a better sister for him…

i think there’s something to be said for how ena is the eldest, and also the “problem child” of the family. akito has learned to mediate and protect because of her, and i think in a perfect world where we actually focus on the shinofamily dynamic in-canon, there would be some guilt there. both of them were forced to grow up fast, but akito especially, since ena was stuck in the same place for Years without maturing. aghhh

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah thanks ! I haven't touched pjsk in months but somehow those two still live in my brain it's worse than a disease

And definitely. She's the older sibling but it's like Akito tried to become his older sister's older brother at some point. Or maybe he didn't really tried and it just kind of happened. But in both case Ena would hate this with all her heart because 'How Dare He I'm Supposed To Be The Older One Here! Anyway bring me cheesecake thanks' or something like that.

It's funny to think it happened around the time Akito has his growth spurt too. And also terrible for Ena because it makes it worse. One day he was just her baby brother and the next he's taller than her. And on top of that he's stealing her bigger sibling role and handle her while she's being a messy capricious mess who snaps on him when he didn't deserved it.

I frame it as Ena being upset at Akito because it's probably how I'd pretend to react in her situation - And she could do the same too - but we all know she'd just be pissed at herself in reality. She'd just hate being stuck here as a total mess, snapping on her baby brother who never did anything wrong and never refuses her anything despite how much he can complain about her, and looking at him becoming the responsible one, taking care of her instead of the opposite and progressing towards his own dream. And he probably didn't told her what's going on in Vivid Street, too. And she probably saw his frustration build up more and more each day without knowing why. And in the state she was in where you don't think rationally and hate yourself so much, when someone is upset and you don't know why and you already feel like you failed them so much you then to think it's all your fault. Granted, she probably added onto it when snapping on him, but it wasn't just that. There was much more going on than just that.

Anyway I'm not sure where I'm going. I think I read the word 'guilt' and thought of Ena immediately because of course she must feel terribly guilty for everything she did back then even if she'll never outright say it or not before another year manifesting for Shinonome event 2 if it still hasn't dropped.

Oh and yeah the way her father and teacher talked to her at the time, implying she wasn't ready yet or not serious enough, or too emotional (ofc men had to put down a girl for being too emotional too. Of course.) to become an artist and actually improve when she was just a TEENAGER. tiskkzkalktkfjabnt'tlzkdkgkfkek. Stupid teacher blaming a 14 years old for seeking attention. As if it was an extremely weird, uncommon and unacceptable teenager behaviour. As if she wouldn't grow out of it later without all of your stupids inputs of jaded depressed old artists. Arrrrgh.

I start rambling again. Never get me started on the Shinonome I'm unstoppable. I could even keep going but I'll stop here and shorten it to : You're so right you totally get it

[bookwyrminspiration]

Call me out if I’m wrong here, but I feel like sometimes, when you’re in this fandom, there’s a lot of contradictory?

I feel like not that long ago people were upset that others were saying they didn’t like something, so wording changed.

I do believe that we should be honest on whether or not we like something (while being kind/gracious about it), but that might be the reason why some people are more nervous to just come out and say it?

Again I may be so incredibly wrong; I’ve been dipping my toes in and out of the fandom for a while now.

I think you have a valid point. There's a lot of people in the fandom, and we have different opinions, some of which contradict each other. Sometimes one view dominates, then the other. We vacillate and change, which is only natural.

Regarding the recent wording change, I'm not sure what specific thing that was in response to--there was some conversation in the vein of "if you don't like it, why are you here?" Which was more in response to the overwhelming negativity the series has started to accrue with the long interims, its current direction, and fans getting older. The sort of "people don't want to hear about how much you hate the thing they love." Even if you've established yourself as a fan of it previously.

Which I think can coexist alongside simply saying you don't like something. I can say the new cover isn't really hitting for me without tearing it apart and making those who really enjoy it feel bad, you know? I don't mind it, understand why it's like that, and appreciate Jason Chan's artistic prowess, but that doesn't make it interesting to look at.

But you're right, there's been this push to justify why you dislike things, at least in online spaces. So it's harder/makes people nervous to say "I just don't like this." Myself included. Instead it's "this was rushed" "this was last minute" "Shannon's publishers are pressuring her" "her editor's are pressuring her" etc.

Which, again, is entirely possible. Writing and publishing is hard; it takes a lot of work and pleasing the industry isn't easy. But there are points where--I think--people approach it with bad faith.

To use the cover as an example again, a lot of people are saying it's rushed. Possible. But is there a history of rushing covers? Not that we've seen, all the others have been spectacular, detailed, and thorough. What would they gain by rushing it? They could meet deadlines sooner, have something to share with the audience since we're in a weird period. But they could also damage their marketing with a subpar product, especially given the series' popularity. Why do we think the cover looks rushed? Its simplicity, its different mood. But, again, Shannon said that was intentional. There's Keefe's appearance, which is really hit or miss for people. I don't think Keefe not looking as attractive as people imagine/want is a result of rushing, but because there's an impossible standard for him as The Boy of the series. And so on and so forth.

The point of that being we've come to this conclusion, I think, hastily. While book 9.5 wasn't the original plan so of course timelines change, I don't think S&S has a history or motive to rush. There's already an established precedent for delays when necessary, the cover came out later than others, and there's (i think) a solid, purposeful reason the mood is different.

Could I be wrong? Absolutely. But the rapidity of the conclusion and with how much it feels we've been outsourcing our dislike the past few years I'm started to feel a little skeptical. Boy who cried wolf kinda thing. Was it rushed again, or do we just not like it? Feels like a slapstick explanation without further examination

And of course you don't have to analyze everything, but some things are a bit more complex, you know?

Point is: I think we're overusing these explanations (pressured, rushed) and at this point if we don't delve further into it it starts to lose its meaning. There is an argument for being rushed and pressured! But without getting into it, I can't tell if we're thinking it through or just avoiding saying we don't like something for fear of judgment/reprisal.

[pumpkinsy0]

Honestly I’m js not having the whole not historically accurate thing especially when ppl put on ethnicity hcs and all like

Oh that’s not historically accurate to have these types of immigrants in Tulsa Oklahoma in the 1960s-

Bruh who gives a fuck abt historically accurate this is fucking fictional let’s make it interesting 😽😽

Side note I also especially fw those who have immigrant ethnicity hcs and give it a backstory as to how they ended up there like how u did w the shepards /ily😍

But like even w/o a backstory to them getting there imma still eat it up either way

to be fair w these specific cases, i can understand a little bit more, u just want a little bit of historical realness in the 60s and im not gonna judge u for that, HOWEVER i will start judging u when u start full on hating on other ppls interpretations bc thats so STUPID, u can be disappointed or upset, sure, but dont go out on a witch hunt being a dick about it, ESPECIALLY bc realistically, these characters DO NOT have canon races and can be switched around as we’ve seen w the outsiders musical cast vs the movie cast

at the end of the day a fandom space is made for fans to come together and express/exercise their artistic liberty, if u dont like that or cant grasp that, fandom is just not meant for u at all, bc thats what its all about, ESPECIALLY if ur on fucking tumblr, like be so serious

MANY people were moving from their countries into the us and there isnt a fucking border around tulsa going “this is the main immigrant group here, so u cant move here unless u r that”, just bc it wasnt recorded doesnt mean there wasnt other immigrants

if anything, bonus points for u if u work around that and still ground urself in historical accuracies to make these characters a minority immigrant group, it was fun for me to do, im sure its fun for others

and ily2 anon im glad ppl love my haitian immigrant shepards<3333

[theliterarywolf]

RE : Welcome Home r34.

My position is that disregarding Clown's wishes is shitty, but also this is the internet and porn of things that get popular is kind of inevitable. You can mitigate it by politely asking not to, and most will listen. But R34 artists are kind of a stubborn contrarian bunch (especially if they hang around places like 4chan) and telling them no even in the tactful way Clown did would probably just spur them to go "Nyeeeeehhhh fuck you I won't do what you tell me" And what makes it worse is that such a position becomes easier to justify if you're someone who's had to put up with a decade plus of "RULE34 IS BAD!!!!! THINK OF THE CHILDREN!!!1!! I DON'T CARE IF YOU TAG IT SO THAT I CAN'T SEE IT JUST BY STUMBLING UPON IT, IF YOU SEXUALIZE MY BLORBO YOU'RE A PEDOPHILE!!!1!!11 BRONIES ARE RAPE APOLOGISTS WHO ARE ALSO PEDOPHILES AND STOLE A LITTLE GIRLS SHOW AWAY FROM THEM BECAUSE MUH SOGGY KNEES!!!! ANIME FANS ARE EVIL ALT RIGHT PEDOPHILES!! FANS OF JAPANESE MADE VIDEO GAMES ARE PEDOPHILES!!!!1 PEDO PEDO PEDO PEDO PEDO REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Like I don't think it's *okay*, I'm just saying that this is highly disappointing, but unsurprising.

See, so this is the exact mentality I was thinking about when I answered those first few asks.

Because, you know what? You're right: the internet is the internet and certain people are just going to do whatever the hell they want either way.

However, I'm going to bring up a few portions written by myself and others that kind of lean into my ultimate attitude on situations like this.

'Read more' because this turned into a doozy.

First and foremost, this portion from Absolmon's reblog of one of the earlier posts:

"I also think there’s a world of difference between a small time creator wanting to retain some control of their characters vs a billion dollar corporations character. I remember when JaidenAnimations made an statement saying she was upset by all the porn made of her avatar character, especially with her collaborators and people rushing out to make even more of it. The fact that Jaiden is ace and has a well known history of body image issues just makes it even more skeevy. "

This portion from a conversation I was having with Marquis de Glad:

Marquis - I dunno... Is it any different than all the people who make Rule34 of Elizabeth from Bioshock Infinite despite the creator not liking it? Or is that something you dislike as well? Mind you, I know basically nothing about this entire thing other than what you've posted, so it's possible I'm missing some context

Me - Well, I'm of the mindset that 'not liking' =/= 'please don't do this' I'm sure that Hasbro doesn't like all the MLP smut out there, but they never actually said 'please don't create this'. Another example would be how Martin Freeman's wife was talking about how she didn't like all the porn of her husband's characters people made that she kept finding when wanting to show their kids their dad's work... But she never said 'please don't do this'

And then, finally, from an ask I just answered:

"No one wants to think about the creators of their favored IPs anymore. They just want to be given the shiny new ball to treat (or mistreat) in any way they see fit for a while before dumping it to the wayside a month or so later to do it to something else. And if, heaven forbid, you get a creator who dares to want to have some matter of agency with how people engage with their creation, well...

'Why do you hate people having fun?'

'Well, I'm just going to do it anyway.'

'So... Anyway, these characters are now mine because the creator is obviously shitty and doesn't know them as well as I do'"

However, one other thing that I think a lot of people aren't remembering in the conversation around this issue is the notion of boundaries. And not just the boundaries creators are justified in setting for themselves, but the boundaries within fandom itself.

Because, going back to the whole rhetorical reenactment you had up there, there was a time when NSFW creators used to be able to lock up their work behind certain tags so that creators and minors wouldn't have to see it unless they took it upon themselves to sniff around. Remember things like Steven Universe smut being tagged as 'Stephen Galaxy', MLP smut having the nickname of 'Clop', or even people trying to recreate that effect in the Cookie Run fandom with tags like 'NotSafeforCookies'.

On the opposite end of this (the boundary established for NSFW to exist in so that creators and minors wouldn't have to see it), then, it would be understood that Creators and Minors wouldn't engage with said content.

Is the picture that I'm trying to establish here clear? Because while we can talk about 'respect a creator's boundaries' until the cows come home, some people will just not want to do that. Especially in the current fandom-space where NSFW is being demonized more and more. However, we are currently suffering a pandemic of people either refusing to tag properly or purposefully tagging their work with the most popular tags so that it is basically guaranteed to go outside of its intended audience.

And that is why, in a conversation that should only center around a creator becoming overwhelmed by how people are treating and feeling justified to their creation, you keep having people bring up fanpol and proshippers. Because that boundary being trampled on by both sides of the equation is what will continue to cause situations like this.

[hecku-luna]

30 Day Danganronpa Challenge but April is pretty far away and I can't slowburn for shit so here we go!!

(Spoilers for the entire Danganronpa series, obviously)

1. HIMIKO!!!

2. Either Teruteru, Kazuichi, or Haiji. Genuinely awful people. (Hifumi is disgusting too, but at least he tries(?) to keep it to 2D only. I guess.)

3. All of them!! Yes, ALL of them!!

4. Definitely gotta go to Gundham. Considering he's one of the only good ones lmao

5. If she didn't get killed off in the first fucking chapter, Kaede would be an absolute lock. But Shuichi's good too, at the very least compared to the other protags. I would say Komaru too, but she called Haiji's creepy ass tendencies "attractive," so...

6. I had to think for a good minute about whether I could reasonably say I like any of the other characters that fit the antagonist mold than the obvious and overplayed. But. Fuck it, it's like they say! It's always Junko!

7. CHIYOMIKO!!!!!

8. Straight ships in general tbh, but ESPECIALLY involving Hifumi, Teruteru, Kazuichi, or Haiji

9. You could not pay me to care about the interactions between two men

10. If I HAD to pick a favorite straight ship, gun pointed to my head and bombs strapped to my family and loved ones... I guess Saimatsu isn't the worst. Can I go now, Jigsaw?

11.

12. See #7 UwU

13. V3. As long as I pretend chapter 6 doesn't exist

14. CHIHIRO!!!! 🏳️‍⚧️

15. HIYOKO!!!! 👘

16. HIMIKO!!!! 🪄

17.

18. It's kind of a tossup between Ultimate Programmer and Ultimate Artist, as those are THE most important things to my goals of creating my own video games

19. Probably Gundham's for the emotional weight of it. There's just... something about seeing the Four Dark Devas of Destruction's reaction to the execution of their master that made me sad the first time I saw it.

20. If this is like favorite OST overall? Probably V3's anyway? But if we're talking favorite song... LET'S START THE KILLING GAME!!!

21. HIYOKO IN A HEARTBEAT

22. Gundham's, for the reasons listed in 19. He's also the only guy in the SDR2 cast that I can confidently say I like, so that also had part in it

23. The DR3 girl with the Pikachu hoodie and homophobia in her eyes

24. ALL OF THE GIRLS HONEST TO GOD. But surprisingly enough, I think I'd go with Hiyoko first and foremost cause I can see us starting so much shit together lmao

25. I'm gonna assume this is weak as in relating to the narrative, so I'm gonna go with Kurokuma. Like, did he even do anything? At all? I mean, it's been a while since I've sat through UDG, but I genuinely do not remember him contributing to anything besides half-baked comic relief

26. Gonna get controversial here. My candidates are Makoto, Ishimaru, Hajime, and Keebo. Whichever one makes people the most upset, that's my pick

27. Oh, y'all are gonna hate me for this one. Himiko. She had some GROWTH, she went through some SHIT, and she still lived to tell the tale. To any of y'all who say she didn't deserve it, I hope your favorite character in Kodaka's next project gets killed immediately.

28. Okay this one was actually easier than i thought it would be. Ibuki for sure! She lives and breaths the 2000s, how could I not wanna dress like her every day if I had the option?

29. Again, HIMIKO!!!

30. I'm starting to think there's a theme here...

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

And with that, my Danganronpa opinions are out in the open for the public to scrutinize every last detail of! Here's my faves made in Pony Town as treat for making it this far ^w^

[redmirrorshard]

I'll probably delete this later... but I just wanted to come on here to vent a little bit. So please be aware. THIS IS A VENT. I AM SAD AND EMOTIONAL AND UPSET AND I WILL SAY THINGS THAT MAY SOUND HARSH. PLEASE KEEP THIS IN MIND WHEN READING AND DONT READ IF IT WILL MAKE YOU UNCOMFORTABLE!! (TL:DR at the end)

You have been warned

When I got into TWST probably two years ago now, there was so much room and potential for wonderful fan interactions and creations. And I have had wonderful interactions with wonderful people from this fandom and I will continue to treasure those I've met through it.

I love everything about TWST. The lore, the characters, the art, the story. It means so much to me as a piece of media and is a huge inspiration to me as both an artist and a writer. Idia in particular speaks to me on personal levels and he has become one of my favourite characters in all of media.

TWST has also taught me about love. Love for who you are despite what others think. Familial love (blood or no). Love between friends. TWST has taught me about bravery, protecting those you love, sticking to your ambitions, sacrifice and surprisingly cooking and food heh. TWST has also made me laugh like a maniac in the way only one other piece of media ever could (aha I'm so funny).

I was aware, however, that it would have it's issues just like any other fandom.

For one, I was VERY aware of Yana's rocky history as a creator. I knew she was controversial from the start and anything she created would subsequently also be very controversial. In the end, while I do disagree heavily with some parts of the media and I knew Yana could have done so much better with other parts (cough-leona event- cough), I think she did a great job overall. You can tell how much love and dedication went into creating TWST and I'm eternally thankful to her. Thank you, Yana-sensei.

For second...

I feel that you should be allowed to create and say whatever you want, but also take responsibility (to a certain extent) for the thing you created. For instance, if I make a piece of art and post it on the internet, that is my responsibility. I could choose NOT to post the piece of art (nasty comment, offensive joke etc etc etc but you get the idea), but I chose to do it anyway. Now, I can't completely control what people will do with the art (comment/post etc), but I still chose to post it. Same with this post. I CHOSE to post this, and I am ready to take responsibility for this post. If you're not ready to accept responsibility for your post, DON'T POST. As simple as that. (But alas nothing is ever simple)

There is a sore lack of responsibility it the TWST fandom (in any fandom, really, but this is about TWST specifically). Maybe less so here, but definitely so on other platforms.

People throw around nasty and downright hurtful jokes and comments like it's confetti, but cry and whine that they're innocent when called out about it. This is especially hurtful to the smaller, less represented groups in the fandom who create content they want to see. My advice? If you see something you don't agree with,mute,block and report if necessary and just move along. No one is forcing you to interact with what that person is making. A lot of hurt and asshole-ery would be avoided if people followed this simple rule.

I've also seen people throw hate to younger artists or members of the fandom and this always upsets me. TWST is especially prone to having a younger audience due to it being a Disney property, and that's FINE. Leave them be. They're not hurting anyone.

And finally, the amount of misinformation and misinterpretations of the TWST characters floating around is practically insulting. I've seen so many just plain wrong interpretations of a character or a line and I'm frankly sick of it. There are so many hard working and dedicated translators working their asses off to translate the game and put it on the internet for free. (Note: I am eternally grateful to the EN translation team for doing their absolute best on TWST EN. While it's still a solid translation, it has several big flaws and misses a lot of character nuances. I'd still recommend anyone getting into TWST to read the JP translations along with EN)

Here are my go to, feel free to add your own:

-TWST Wiki/Miraheze (always. These people are powerhouses)

- YuuRei (Twitter and YT). They make excellent analysis and translations.

-Shell_BB (YT)

-Otome Ayui (YT)

So, in closing... (TL:DR)

The internet sucks. People suck. Get used to it. Protect yourself and your mental health and move along.

TWST has flaws, and that's FINE.

Respect eachother

Take responsibility for what you say or post

Kids will be cringe. Leave them be. You were cringe too.

Read. Please. I beg of you.

SUPPORT THE PEOPLE I MENTIONED. THEY'RE WORKING THEIR ASSES OFF FOR US, THEY DESERVE THE WORLD.

Anyway, thanks for reading all that and sorry for the long vent. A cookie and a hug for you.

Now go forth and have a great day/night on purpose!!⭐🩷

~shard

[withered-rose-unbreakable-lotus]

"Most JP bands treat their foreign fans as non existent." was sth I shouldn't have found today but it's not like i dunno. I just didn't wish to hear it rn. However I will say this, because it's been bothering me for years.

While fc stuff is sth most western fans dislike (including myself) and just accept it's sth common in Japan so they choose to ignore it, it is still unfortunately one of the biggest incomes for the bands. Whether it is available for global fans or not and whether we can be part of it or not (financially i mean), I think it's good to put that into perspective too. If it wasn't for this "politic", some bands would have disbanded way earlier than they did. Also do consider that some bands, regardless of whether they have an fc or not, do not favor one or the other. It's rare I know but it happens. Like yeah fc members get extra stuff release-wise, special lives and some even get to go on a trip with the band (not all bands do the latter one though let's be real) but as a whole, the band doesn't ignore its non monthly payers. That is very important to consider before feeling like "unless i'm paying a heavy load, i am not appreciated enough".

Another thing I'd like to point out is that, yes these people are artists and artists depend largely on people's emotions but being an artist is also a job. So we can't really be mad that these people use every method in the book to earn money. Paying the bills isn't the only thing they use money for. They need money for their costumes, mvs and tour expenses. That is a lot of money guys and if you think buying their cds and merch alone is enough you are wrong. Especially if the band isn't independent, the biggest percentage of their products' income goes to their company, not them.

As for my last point and the view of Japanese artists towards foreign fans, I'd like to point out a type of experience I've read more than once from jrockers and that is "moving on from the bands". It is really hard for a small band, or a band with fans under 20k anyway, to imagine themselves making fans outside of their immediate environment. Sure, some can argue the insecurity lies in Japanese culture as a whole, but with the years I've come to realize it's more than that. Bear with me. There are bands who are not interested in expansion abroad, sure, but you will be surprised how many actually ARE interested. The problem lies in the fact they can't trust it. Either because they themselves have never left their country before or cared to research how other cultures act, they know what they know based on word of mouth and stereotypes, OR because they met foreign fans at their lives, got excited about it and then said fans had to go so, because they had no visual proof those fans were still there, they believed they were forgotten by them. I also met a fan living in Japan a couple of years back and she confirmed that for me, that many jrockers have this fear of being forgotten or not being relevant for long. They do everything in their power to keep their relevance going so they can't depend on things they can't see and confirm they are loved on the regular, because that's a lot of anxiety to take in. They prefer focusing on what's there, cause if their venues don't fill up there, then no matter how many fans they have abroad they won't be able to sustain their dream.

So yeah before you get upset at a band for how they earn their money from fans or how they act towards different types of fans, put yourselves in their place. What would YOU do to keep your dream going and not having to live a life you hate. There lies your answer. They are not hollywood artists. They don't earn royalties from interviews and commercials the way hollywood people do, so they will never be able to quit the fc method or having to manipulate emotions a bit to keep their shit going. I'm not a fan who is able to pay often and yet every jrocker I tried approaching was really patient with me. And I personally appreciate that. Sure it's part of the business to be polite, but having had a bad experience too, among the good ones, I can tell you that won't hold an arsehole back when you find him.

[themsource]

Hi! I'm new to fandom and I am going around asking different creators if they have any advice for me if that's okay

First off congrats, that's really awesome that you've discovered a passion for something enough to engage in the fandom space! ❤ I hope you have a wonderful experience in whatever fandom you're joining ^^ (If it's UT—YAY! XD lol)

Anywho, sure I can give some. But uh, it'll be derived from what I've experienced and won't be pretty. There's nothing guaranteeing you'll experience it at all as I have but still it has some stuff I wish I'd been told before getting heavily involved and learning stuff the hard way.

Placing it below a cut so people can easily avoid reading if they wish.

Be careful who you interact with. (People that frequently bad mouth others—make callout posts with no hard evidence.) And don't take someone's word on a person's character as truth.

You could become a victim of callout posts/drama no matter if you've spoken to the person or not. If it's someone you've been talking to a while or have only been kind to in interactions. Unfortunately people can be quick to jump on anything that has the slightest possibility of being taken negatively and spin it that way even if there's no ill intent or maliciousness behind it. Or they can paint you as negative just because.

You will face labels such as "Problematic" or "Toxic" to name a few, and once you get associated with those you'll see that a large portion of a fandom can and will blacklist you over it for their own mental safety, and/or to avoid potential drama you carry with you by probable association (such as "my idol creator hates you so I will too so they don't dislike me." or "I heard from someone that you think people that like this shipxship are stupid, and I like that ship so no bueno." Etc.)

Things I've said that people have called me "problematic" to my face for over the years:

"It's entitled and selfish for a following/fan base to get upset because the creator wants to explore a new genre the fanbase isn't comfortable with or used to, especially when they've labeled and warned so it can be avoided. Those aren't real fans or supporters."

"I ship Frans."

"The content you make doesn't matter when it comes to fiction. It's not real and neither are the characters. It's dumb if someone judges you over it."

"I don't believe hearsay without proof." (Twitter drama for example about someone)

"Denying where an idea comes from just so you can feel valid and good about yourself is wrong, especially if you're wrong in what you thought you knew and just don't want to admit it."

"I just wanted to be a Hufflepuff."

"I love pinapple on pizza."

"He said, she said, is a political debate. Because all it is is throwing words and accusations around without any evidence to back it."

"Chara is evil."

"Fluff is nice but sometimes you just need really dark unhinged stuff to balance it out otherwise it'll get bland."

"You can like content and not like the creator. And vice versa. I will always separate the art from the artist."

"I don't believe in the term 'problematic' when it comes to fiction."

"Toriel was just as much in the wrong as Asgore was."

There's probably more but these are the ones I was made aware of.

Other labels that have been pushed on me because of what was said above that fall under "problematic": P*do, Weirdo, Freak, R*p Apologist, Transp*be, and Exclusionist just to name a few.

Though none of those labels remotely align with my personal views and stances. It won't matter to a lot of people though if you've been "warned" for with those labels used. This world currently is very "Guilty until proven innocent" instead of "Innocent until proven guilty." Which means it'll be very hard or impossible to change someone's mind especially if they were "warned" by a friend.

You'll also find a lot of people will isolate and detach from you if you disagree on something such as how you view a certain creator or their work, so a lot of the time people will keep their mouth shut just to fit in or to not experience rejection, or will go so far as to say things they don't mean to appear as if agreeing. This is called an "echo chamber" and if you don't fit it, you'll likely get booted. Be prepared for people to maybe DM saying they agree with you, but ultimately not speaking up for fear of backlash for themselves. If someone does speak up? Cool! That's an awesome person and you are lucky to have found them.

So am I problematic given the examples above? To some maybe, others no, some definitely yes, and everyone has the risk of being viewed that way too. Thankfully just like most things in this world though, online you'll find not everyone will share the same viewpoint or opinion. You will undoubtably find at least one person that won't care how others label you.

I have a really small, really closed, friend group. There are six people I know for sure are lifelong friends that I've made through fandom. They took the time to get to know me, listened to my views even if they disagreed and did so amicably (as I've done too), and if there was an issue always talked to me about it. Six may not seem like much but you'll find a smaller number of people who truly understand you vs a crowd that you have to say the "right thing" or make the "right content" for is so much more fulfilling.

The golden rule is something I try to live by: "Treat others the way you want to be treated."

And the best way to determine that is through interaction. If they reciprocate the golden rule that is a positive indicator that they might be safe to interact and eventually open up to. It's best to decide for yourself what a person's character is like and if they're safe rather than having others decide for you by word of mouth, including the very person themselves because you'll find a lot of people in fandom tend to have terrible self confidence.

Unless there's hard proof like an admittance or gloat that someone can provide, then oh boy—the block button is a friend.

Personally, I've learned it's best to just post your stuff, give someone a like or reblog here and there, and answer any legit asks if they're received to try avoiding unnecessary conflict. But that's just me.

Don't get involved in "picking sides". (You're with us or against us nonsense)

This is a quick way to get you avoided and blacklisted because you'll either disturb someone's echo chamber or you'll be seen as a drama mama when people are here for content and fun, not the latest issue or gossip going on.

The world isn't black and white, and that includes the issues and viewpoints in it. It's shades of grey. By viewing it as black and white you leave no room for nuance, and people that use the "with us or against us" arguments so vocally expect 100% percent compliance or none. You're not allowed to agree on one thing pertaining to a topic but disagree on another thing on the same topic because then "you're adding to the problem".

Now this isn't to scare you into thinking that you can't trust someone you want to be friends with by opening up to them with your opinions. No, please do, that's how friendships are made, but if you feel like there is the slightest risk they'll drop you like a sack of potatoes then you probably shouldn't. It's 50/50 gamble sometimes. And if they do well they weren't your friend to begin with and you're better off without them. Bizarrely some in the "with us" camp believe having you around with a viewpoint they can't stand will somehow influence them in a way they don't want. Which is honestly just ridiculous to me because that eliminates the principle of free thought and will.

So I advise just enjoying the content you see and making it yourself if that's what you want to do. Don't turn yourself into an advertisement board for free harassment from those who actively want to pick a fight and make you look like a bad person somehow on top of it. Some get joy out of just destroying people.

Ignore the trolls

Every fandom has trolls. People who like to give shit and bully just for fun (for them) aka harassment. This can include "kys" messages or other negative things in your inbox from anons, comments on your post bashing a ship though it was clearly marked so it could be avoided, etc. These come in all ages and demographics, from minors and yes even from grown ass adults in their 40s and up. Sadly trolls can't be avoided no matter how popular you are or how wholesome the stuff you engage with is. You could be a mute virgin nun and still be attacked for something.

The only thing you can do is ignore them. If they get bad, really bad like do doxing (the exposure of your real identity), report them. They've been around since even before the invention of the internet and will be around even after.

Don't take being blocked or muted personally.

Some just block or mute to avoid content they don't like, and with how algorithms work on certain websites just you liking something without reblogging or sharing can make it show up on their feed, especially if you share mutuals or are gaining traction in a tag or whatever. This doesn't mean they dislike you personally.

And if you find someone does block or mute you over a comment you made recently or what have you, still don't get hung up over it. Chances are you probably wouldn't have a very productive conversation in the first place. Unless it's a case of misunderstanding since online text boxes can be too limited to get your meaning across, then I rec either reaching out a quick message via an alt to clear it if you truly care enough about the person.

But don't ever try to not be yourself just to please someone. If after talking they still want nothing to do with you based on differences in views, drop it. It'd just stress you out in the long run to linger over it.

And if you make an honest mistake, sometimes people will hold that against you, but it's best to just let that go too, because not everyone will hold that against you, and given time a few will get over it and even see where you were coming from after the anger dies down. Mistakes happen and they will happen. You can't hold that against yourself. Tagging can be confusing, the wrong word could be used when describing something, etc.

Just stay calm, take a deep breath, and compose yourself before you react. It's a mistake, not the end of the world. Let people block that need to block, don't take it personally because odds are they're hurt just like you are, apologize where you can, and just try to do better.

In the great words of The All-American Rejects, move along.

Don't do DNIs if you can help it (Do Not Interact lists)

I don't recommend having DNIs, I see it as a bar to what could otherwise be a good friendship so long as you simply tell them your boundaries.

DNIs can be taken as a red flag by some that if you see anyone that fits the labels you choose for your list that you automatically see them as a bad person, regardless of nuances or discussion, and that you'll likely target them for harassment if you come across them in a mutual's post or share a space for a community event. Obviously this is for the mundane labels, I've seen people list "Apple Lovers" (yes the fruit), and Vegetarians, to name a few.

I'm not saying that people who use DNIs will harass, just that I've seen it happen and have been targeted over it too as have others.

Seriously harassment can and will happen from anywhere, it's the internet, better prepared than not though.

But if you really feel you need one to feel safe. Please make sure you research the true meanings and definitions behind the labels you select. Otherwise people will stare out of confusion, or block you over more misunderstandings.

Have fun

Create and curate, for you.

Make the type of stuff you want to make or engage with without fear of judgement. Be shameless in what you enjoy because that's the only true way you'll enjoy being in a fandom. People will judge you anyways, no matter what, so don't get hung up on it.

Out of my friends there's some that absolutely loathe some of the content and ships I enjoy, so they don't follow my socials to avoid that content, but they still encourage me to be happy and to keep "doing me" with what I write or draw, because they know my character isn't reflected in my consumption. And the right people will see that with you, and encourage you if you're honest and happy with yourself even if they may disagree with it or not.

This is the most important bit of advice I want to give. Given the other stuff I know it may seem overwhelming but trust me it really is worth it in the end once you find a rhythm, and pretty soon after enough time you'll find yourself roiling your eyes over the other stuff when you've reached a place of comfort and contentment. Because once you have that none of the other stuff matters. Ultimately that's what every decent person strives for in a fandom. It may be easy or it may be difficult to reach but it's possible.

No one can hurt you when you're having fun and you're happy with yourself. Words will roll off like water on plastic after a point and trolls/bullies will largely disappear if they realize their name calling and words can't hurt you or sow doubt.

You also won't feel as lonely if you don't receive interaction on something once in a while because you'll still feel the joy from having made it. That's another thing, don't join a fandom just for attention and validation from others. That's the number one way to find disappointment and to end up dropping from a fandom in the end other than simply losing your hyper fixation after a while.

With that I wish you luck! Sorry if this was long winded ^^ and please don't take this as a be all end all guide, this is all just personal opinion and interpretation meant to help. (I also am terrible at discussing my thoughts cohesively and accurately so I apologize if anything is confusing.)

I hope you live your best fandom life, I'm rooting for you. ❤

[kylievershion]

Intro

Hey! I'm Kylie. I'm (16-17)I can sometimes be shy, and distant, and I can be aloof

...I'm also overly sensitive.

Cookie Run Fandom: @intothehandsofthehumanchild

Wip fanfic: https://www.wattpad.com/1417396275-multifandom-escapade-part-1-the-ribbon-encasing

I LOVE GETTING ASKS :3

(Do not spam like/reblog unless we are close (Mo and Caramel have a pass to this))

(I love getting tagged! (Tag me in stuff about Espresso/Black Raisin/Esclair/Galeem & Dharkon and I make out with you /JOKE)

…Please don’t tag me in tag games though. I don’t like them.

@cherrylimon is my partner <3 /p

@vnillatree MY RIVAL WHO KEEPS SETTING ME ON FIRE /INJOKE

@caramelarrrow & @ruikasakinnie MY FUCKING STALKERS HELP ME /injoke

Au List~

Oc List~

Interests/Blorbos

About me? Well...

I am a very weird person and I’m African-American :D

I am She/Her but I don't care if you call me They/Them.

I am obsessed with Cookie Run, Cuphead, and Pokemon-

My triggers are Trypophobia and Piercings/Needles in general </3

I curse like a sailor so if you uncomfy about it tell me!

Preferred name(s): Kylie, Kye-kai/Kyekai/Kai/Kye

Mutuals can call me Espresso

And VERY close friends can call me Kyliai.

Birthday: July 1st

I only art trade with friends and mutuals.

Mutuals can ask to tag anything. Such as cw/tw: (topic) (or the classic "(name) dont look" tag)

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My other social media:

My Discord? ....uhhhh....ask me.

My artfight?: https://artfight.net/~Kylievershion

My Youtube?: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqeoxwU7k10GANjNQXXxodg

Other tumblrs!

Into the Hands Of the Human Child (Cookie Run AU): @intothehandsofthehumanchild

Ask Poke & Cookies (Cookie Run + Sona): @askpokeandcookies

Ask Random Fusions: @askrandomfusions

Ask Cookie Run Ocs (Shared with @cherrylimon): @croc-ask-blog

Cookie Run Oc Incorrect Quotes (Also shared with @cherrylimon): @incorrectquotescookierunocs

Raised Au blog (Shared with my good friend Purrshadow!): @achaossandwich

Purrshadow's au blog that I manage :3: @askcorruptedcookies

Vent blog(ONLY INTERACT IF YOU’RE GOING TO HELP) @kyliesrantsandvents

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If I did anything that upset you/made you uncomfortable PLEASE TELL ME! The last thing I want is to hurt others, especially my friends :<

Also, I am... the most sensitive person ever so please be careful...I get upset/mad pretty easily... :<

You have every right to block me for whatever reason. But again, if I did something that hurt you/made you uncomfortable, I'd appreciate it if you'd let me know.

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BEFORE YOU INTERACT CAN YOU PLEASE...

...ask before giving art/writing criticism?

...not ask me for requests?

...not ask for my real name/number age?

...not spam like my art unless you won't reblog it?

DNI if you are (Go touch grass and take a shower):

Proshipper/Comshipper AND Antishippers, you all can be abusive and there’s a thing called the block button. Start using it.

Pedo/Map or whatever they call those sick fucks.

Transphobic

Homophobic

Ableist

Like Incest/Rape

Zoophile

Pro-life

18+ blogs obviously. I've had a few 18+ blogs follow me even though I'm a minor.

If you make NSFW or not that's not my problem. But please keep it away from me.

Zionists If you support Vivziepop. That woman is beyond vile.

If you support/create AI art. You need to realize how much that hurts real artists.

If you spread Anon Hate. Only shitheads do that.

Basically, if you're a jerk and here to piss me off.

If you like the 12 Lost Cookies more than I do /JOKE

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD PLEASE BEHAVE

If I block you, it's because you either did something wrong or I have a problem with you. I'm not petty. I just don't want to deal with people's shit. It's simple.

(userbox by @/sweetpeauserboxes)

(Userbox by @/chronicallylav3nd3r)

(userboxes by @/tazmaboxed)

TAGS!(I'm not good at it):

Kye-kai speaks what?- text

Kye-kai reblogs -reblogs

Kye-kai answers- answering asks!

my art- …my art

[morethanwords0475]

March TC Challenge

1. If you could change one thing about your TC, physical or personality-wise, what would it be?

I don’t know, sometimes it sounds like he hates life a little? I’m not delusional that everyone must love their job, but it hurts whenever he expresses too much relief that a holiday is finally coming up, or, especially, when he doesn’t have to teach us for whatever reason (like when we eventually go on exam leave).

2. Are they “your type”, or was falling for a person like them completely unexpected?

I think he is my type in that he’s beautiful, teaches really well, and is super good to our class, but last year I actually didn’t find him that attractive so he probably wasn’t exactly my type, appearance-wise, not when T was still here.

3. If they were an ice cream flavour, what would it be?

I think he would be a fruit flavour that is naturally sweet with a hint of sourness.

4. Imagine you have a whole weekend to spend with your TC. What would you guys do?

I would love to walk his dog with him, go out and eat something nice, maybe have an afternoon coffee date and read together, walk around the lake and just talk…

5. What’s their biggest talent?

Not sure about talents – teaching?? I know my man used to do music though 🥰

6. Be honest: would you guys be a power couple or not?

Probably not 'power' in the traditional sense, but I just feel like we’d probably make each other better people and that’s good enough for me.

7. If they knew about your feelings, would they confront you about it or ignore it?

He probably suspects by now, I think if it got too obvious and was making him uncomfortable he might confront me about it. He’d try to be indirect and gentle about it, though it would definitely be scary.

8. Are they a good singer?

I am very curious, I love his slightly hoarse, raspy voice, but idk if it would sound good singing.

9. If you could choose an outfit that your TC had to wear every single day, what would it look like?

This is very difficult to choose, my inherent love for white shirts says that, plus a vest maybe, though I also love seeing him in casual clothes like hoodies.

10. Are they more academic, artistic, or athletic? What about you?

Incas Lily is probably 70% academic, 10% artistic (we don’t get to see his artistic side so it’s hard to tell), and 20% athletic (he works out more than do sports), I’m probably 75% academic, 15% artistic, and 10% athletic.

11. Do they inspire you as a person?

So much, he is so much goodness and cares about genuine things and forms solid connections with people, he is so good and so loved.

12. Are they an early riser or a night owl?

Early riser most likely, he said on school nights he usually goes to bed at like 22:30 (I wish TAT).

13. Have you ever made each other angry or upset? If so, how did you reconcile?

I’ve always been good in class even before liking Incas Lily so I’ve never made him mad, and he only gets a bit upset at people who don’t listen or do work. There must have been times when he was annoyed with me but didn’t verbalise it, though. I was upset with him for making fun of subjects I like – other than Biology – and felt hurt, we kind of reconciled when he conceded the value in some of those subjects after I pressed him on it.

14. Do you ever find yourself imitating them, either consciously or unconsciously?

I definitely don’t imitate him as much as I did T, the only things I can think about is subtly adapting his sense of humour or hand gestures. I did steal his way of drawing bullet points, I don’t remember ever seeing another teacher draw it like that.

15. What do you think their love language is? What’s yours?

This is extremely hard to tell, not least because I don’t even know if Incas Lily is in a relationship, let alone seen it displayed at school. I would guess quality time and acts of service will probably be high for him. Mine are physical touch and words of affirmation - the latter works very well with having a TC, the former not at all.

16. Have they taught you anything that isn’t school related? Valuable life lessons, insights on how you feel about yourself, etc.?

That time we had a talk about my mental health and stuff, he tried to boost my self-perception and made me see some of the maladaptive thought patterns I had. Especially when he was helping me prepare for my interview, we mostly focused on questions about myself, he helped me think of some of my qualities that I didn't know I had or couldn't admit to. Occasionally hearing his opinions on life during our lessons has also been very valuable.

17. What would they have to do to make you lose feelings for them?

I think anything that compromises his basic identity as a 'good' person, a good teacher – in terms of like moral standards and being a decent human being and all that. That’s the core of my attraction.

18. Are they introverted or extroverted? What about you?

His MBTI is introverted, but he is definitely quite social with many teachers as well as students. He seems more extroverted than me, I’m probably the more introverted of extroverts.

19. Who’s more likely to start rambling about their interests while the other listens?

He’s done it sometimes in lessons and I always love it, I also do on some occasions when talking about the subject I want to major in. 

20. Do you feel guilty about having feelings for your TC?

A bit, sometimes, he’s so good to us it feels like I’m preying on that kindness. Like, he deserves a normal life without some girl semi-obsessing over him, although I mostly don’t actively inconvenience him with these feelings. At least this time he’s not married (😭)

21. Are you insecure about them liking another student more than you?

Always. I always said I loved T before any of his other students did, but I didn’t have feelings for Incas Lily until a year after he started teaching us, so I’m sure he likes a lot of other students better than me. I might be getting the highest grades in my class, but he doesn’t just want grades. Man, and I’ve seen him have really casual dynamics with some of the students a year or two below us and it sucks.

22. What kind of hairstyle would you love to see them in?

His current one is super pretty, it's curly and thick and frames his facial features beautifully. I miss when the top was dyed silver, though, that was the utmost beauty.

23. Do you think they trust you?

We don't ever really get into an emotional level of trust, but for any academic setting he must do. He let me self study a unit, he said he thinks I'd never be able to cheat, and he let me finish up an experiment alone in his lab when we were still doing experiments.

24. What’s the most comedic moment that’s occurred between you two?

It's hard to say, but it was quite funny when he used to give me quizzes for his lower year groups to do, especially when I sometimes get inexplicably caught up in them.

25. Have you ever drawn them or written about them to vent your feelings?

I write about Incas Lily often – usually in diaries and on this blog, sometimes in imagines.

26. How do you feel when you’re around them? Are you so nervous that you can’t concentrate, or do you just feel happy that you get to spend time with them?

I used to almost always be really happy around him (he was my comfort teacher before I really had romantic feelings), it turned into nervousness maybe a few months back, and now a mixture.

27. Do you guys have any inside jokes?

There's one where I told him off for not teaching us something and it comes up in exams, but I think it also annoys him a little.

28. Do their morals, principles, or political views align with yours?

Maybe less so than it was with T, but with basic things like political inclinations, support for gender equality/the LGBTQ+ community/etc., being pro-choice, we are very similar on.

29. Have you ever tried to get over them?

Some days when it gets really bad, like during Mocks in January or sometimes this month, I have wondered whether I should or am meant to get over him, but it's so hard when seeing him makes my heart clench every time.

30. If someone nice your age showed up in your life and you caught feelings for them, would you move on from your TC?

We have so little time now, I doubt I could catch feelings for someone my age or move on from Incas Lily. Hopefully, I will after I go to university.

31. Have you ever said or done something that, in hindsight, might have been hurtful to them? Have they ever done the same to you?

Like for the inside joke, I (jokingly) complained about him not teaching us something, which might have been a bit hurtful, but I have truly tried to always be careful and good around him. I was hurt when he made fun of some of the subjects I like, especially during times when I was feeling really tense, and I do wonder whether he knew it affected me, even though it was all done jokingly.

[septembersghost]

I know this seems minor but I’m so proud of myself for banning myself from fauxmoi in the last few months. I saw their reaction to Taylor going out with friends pre-Matty and knew it was heading a bad way. And even when they liked Taylor the way they easily dehumanized other people just really made me feel uncomfortable. It’s done wonders just staying on tumblr and not giving in to reading negative opinions that aren’t even made in good faith. It’s just better for my mental health to look at the quilting subreddit instead

I saw their reaction to Taylor going out with friends - that was what sparked the beginning of this, before the news about m*tty, and it's so strange how that "proved" her selfish evilness to them. i don't love staged pap walks either, i wish that culture was different and that nobody felt like they had to participate in it, we know that back in the day they took a toll on taylor's well-being, but the reaction to that was way out of proportion.

fauxmoi was unfamiliar to me until all this happened, i knew it existed but didn't frequent it (and again, not judging anyone who does! i read the news/teatime thread on popheads, that can turn into gossipy snark too, there are just some boundaries to me between what's okay and what isn't), same for popculturechat, and there's always a built-in sort of cynicism in gossip spheres, i get that, but i found myself overwhelmed and quite taken aback by how vitriolic they really are and how easily they fall into bashing people. taylor is quite reviled there, but she's FAR from the only one (also sad/interesting how they perpetuate a lot of those things they claim to hate the media for doing to women...?). i fell into the trap of reading it while everyone was upset and discussing what was going on, and it stressed me far more, looking at it now i realize how much worse it was making me feel and how it was upping my anxiety. like i've said before, i don't think gossip is "bad" by default, humans are curious (and nosy lol), and we're interested in artists and public figures, and we like being informed and sharing stories. everyone gossips with their friends. the point is boundaries. once it crosses into dehumanizing people or violations of privacy and their lives, that's when it's troubling, and a lot of the threads there get into that territory of bullying and crossing lines and unvarnished hate. idk.

(swifties are guilty of this behavior too, especially when they start attacking people for perceived actions against her, including her exes. it's not good.)

i'm glad you found a better balance and are taking care of your mental health! it's not minor, you can be proud of yourself for that!!! working on that myself, the last couple of months have been rough. i think it's looking brighter here on tumblr, though!

[gongedtornado]

updated introduction cuz i’m cool like that.

hiii welcome to my little hidey hole where i post art and scream all the time :3

be sure to scroll to the bottom or at least read the DNI + things i need tagged. thankssss

you can call me any of the following: silas / yarida / goose / kazzy

i use he / it / any + neos. though please try to refrain from using exclusively they/them on me. not that i really mind but i like a bit of variation :3.

20 and mixed filipino babeyyy !!

artist and professional shitposter . you can count on me to start a silly little doodle as a joke and put in wayyy too much effort into it lol. you can usually find these posts under the tag #shartposting

BE WARNED - I MAY POST BODY HORROR FROM TIME TO TIME.

I YELL AND SCREAM AND SWEAR A LOT. ALSO I’M NOT WELL IN THE HEAD. my textposts for when i scream is #kazzy caws. my more vent related tags will be under #kazzy complains. (feel free 2 mute that. no hard feelings)

PRETTY PLEEEEAAASE use tone indicators when talking to me. i can’t read tones past text for the life of me

i’m incredibly socially awkward and typically busy, overwhelmed, or generally burnt out. i promise i’m not ignoring you or hate you or any of that- i’m just trying to get by lol.

IF YOU NEED SOMETHING TAGGED DON’T BE SCARED TO ASK . i’ll obvs tag things like eye contact, g0re, etc.

this is a big one BUT IF I DO SOMETHING WRONG PLEASE TELL ME AND DON’T BE VAGUE ABOUT IT THANKSS. /srs

here’s more of my tags and whatever

#kazzy caws - text posts where i scream my thoughts into the void

#kazzy complains - text posts where i complain about shit

#kazzy scribbles - art posts

#shartposting - shitposts

I LIKE PATAPON A NORMAL AMOUNT. (<- HAS BEEN FIXATED ON THE SERIES FOR OVER 2 YEARS.)

little shop of horrors

paper mario

plant related characters (ie: audrey ii, petey piranha, potbelly from msm, etc)

stone story rpg (PLEASE PLAY IT ITS SO GOOD)

all tomorrows

DND (I FUCKIMG LOVE DND BRO)

just some things i would prefer of they were tagged for the sake of my sanity. just use “silas don’t look.” or “sdl” work fine lmao

roblox doors game (more specifically the visuals pleeeeaase)

generally upsetting or uncanny images. especially ones with heavy eye contact.

knack (playstation game)

posts with transphobia in them

h*zbin/h*lluva content + anything v*vziepop related

i don’t feel like making a specific section for this one but here’s some other things i’d advise you to avoid doing around/to me. thaaanks

do NOT refer to me as “smol”, “smol bean”, a “cinnamon roll”. anything of that at all. (if it’s for a joke go for it, but dont make it repetitive or a habit.)

do not refer to me as a child either- especially if you’re younger than me. i might sound a little whiny here but it genuinely rubs me the wrong way and i actually just hate it all around. 😃 don’t treat me like a child- in fact just avoid infantilizing me. please

please don’t call me “sister” or “mom”. i’m being so serious.

don’t come into my dms if i don’t know you- asking for art requests and such. i’ll just straight up block you.

(trigger warning for s/a mentions here.) if you joke about s/a or find it funny to make fun of such- just block me. i don’t want you here and you disgust me and so many others. thanks

i’ll also include the ask to follow below the dni stuff. dni/dnf will be red while ask to follow will be orange

basic DNI criteria

pr*ship/zo*philes

dream supporters

fetishizes trans/nonbinary people

ai ‘artists’ (lmao imagine not being able to pick up a pencil)

those who continuously use the excuses “it’s just fiction”, “it’s just a drawing”, and “erm it’s the internet. things happen” yall are annoying as fuck

She Who Will Not Be Named (you know who you are.)

He who will not be named (I don’t care if you want to make ammends. I don’t want to waste my time on your stupid loser baby ass.)

YTTD (Your Turn to Die) fandom

those with the intentions of befriending for free art

v*vziepop dickriders.

under 15.

if i generally just get bad vibes from you, i’ll just block. lol

applying this to the he/she who will not be named- if you’re thinking “is it me?” then it’s likely not you. /srs

ASK TO FOLLOW

irls. how and why did you find my tumblr huh? huh? do you wanna fight. do you wanna go to the dennys parking lot and fight there? huh? weenie (/JOKE)

h*zbin/h*lluva enjoyers. current mutuals are fine- i would REALLY REALLY prefer if y’all asked before following first?? i know not everyone in the fandom isn’t awful, but it’s just for my own sake. 🙏🙏

people that primarily go by the names “clyde”, “nadia”, “aspen”, “azzy”, or “marcel”. im sure yall are nice people or whatever but its moreso for the sake of my sanity :3. i also likely wont interact with you much but its whatever

dms are usually open unless i specify not to dm me.

commissions are closed off for now

i don’t do art requests. LOL sorry

art trades are always good! i take a long while on them though. srry

tagging/mentioning in a post is fine. kinda the same rules with the dms.

rp is kinda ehhh. i kinda only do it with closer friends tyyyy

okay cool you made it to the bottom thanksss enjoy ur stay lol