#it's wayyy more immersive this way

[kisstheloststars]

anyone else think the upcoming sp game looks like...ass?

[coffeebeanwriting]

Reasons your Novel Might get Rejected

Thinking of publishing traditionally? Here are some reasons why a publishing agency might reject your book. Don’t let any of these reasons keep you from writing, but rather help you strengthen your craft!

1) Your target audience is unclear. Are you writing for middle-grade boys or adult females? Suburban single mothers or war-enthusiast who love everything weaponry and explosive? Of course, your story can end up appealing to multiple categories of people (take Harry Potter for example). But if you know who your prime reader is, you’ll be able to use the correct language, voice, and reading level for them.

2) Your query letter or synopsis is lacking and doesn’t hook the agency. A query letter and synopsis are two different things presented to an agent or publishing company. You must be able to properly sum up your  book in an interesting way for an agency to want to peruse your novel. You have to pique their interest.

A query letter is a brief summary used to capture the attention of an agent/publishing company. A sales pitch one might say. It typically contains your story's main hook, some details about the book (genre, similar books, etc.), and some facts about yourself. If the query letter is successful, the agency will go on to read your synopsis/pages.

A synopsis is a summary of your entire book from start to finish and what happens in it (including character arcs and plot). This is all done in less than two pages.

3) Predictability. It may be predictable characters, or the plot itself. Either way, predictability isn't good. What's the point of reading a book if you can already predict the events? Conflict is the heart of all stories and if your book lacks conflict/stakes, it can become predictable. Give your characters inner conflict just as much as you do physical. Make it difficult for readers to know what your character will do.

4) Your story starts way too early. From what I’ve researched, a huge reason why books get declined is that they start wayyy before anything happens. You’re revealing tons of background information or your character is doing pointless things when they should be approaching the inciting incident. The inciting incident is the scene that launches your character on their journey and should happen sooner than later! 

5) You aren’t balancing showing vs. telling. Contrary to popular belief, a novel should have a bit of both (but... probably more showing). If you spend every scene in extreme detail, you risk slowing your story down. If you tell everything, you aren’t immersing your reader.

6) You’re spending too much time in Act 1. A story consists of three Acts. The beginning, middle, and end. The rising action/set-up, the middle/climax, and the resolution. Don’t spend too much time in Act 1 setting things up. You’ll want to properly pace your story so that it doesn't drag on too long before hitting the heart of the story.

7) Simply... bad writing/grammar. Also, consistent POV is important. This one is self-explanatory, but if you care about what happens in your story, you should also care about the grammar and prose! Typically, hiring editors is a step you must do before taking your novel to a publishing agency.

Instagram: coffeebeanwriting

[nottragic-stilltoothsome]

I read a very interesting post (that i have unfortunately lost, cause i dont remember the author's url and tumblr decided to refresh) about how Tav feels like an afterthought in comparison to Durge.

I love how Tav is a fully blank character, because you can make any backstory plausible (and while ofc some things you will have to imagine for your Tav), there is nothing in game that contradicts any character story you want to tell. Durge is definitely more immersed in the story, but for a lot of people character creation is a very significant element of enjoying an RPG. Ofc, you can make your Durge take different paths, but ultimately their past is set and you can't play a ran-away aristocrat or an orphan turned hero.

Tav has less dialogue options and is less immersed for this reason, but, to me at least, it doesnt feel like they were an afterthought. Tav is still a very good main character, not the special, chosen one, but a 20th-century-esque everyman protagonist who cant turn away from the problem nonetheless (which is like, imo an important requirement for a good story).

I'd enjoy the game wayyy less if i had to be Durge, so i m personaly really glad they added Tav too.

(In no way i want to argue or bash the opinion of the original poster, just to kinda share my own view on the matter, i m really sorry i couldnt comment it on the post itself. I just find it fun to talk about how differently I and the original poster feel about Tav, but each to their own)

[breaded-boi]

ngl i mourn for kids now because holy shit the toys do not have the same amount of detail or paint or anything nowadays. (with some exception, like i have no clue how MGA sells lol dolls for 20 bucks with the detail involved) the designers do the best they can but there's only so much you can do with modular plastic molds and stickers. i had a way better my little pony castle when i was 6 than the kids get now. like ok look at this.

This was the flagship g5 castle playset. and they try with nice molds, modular pieces, and leaning into a design that doesn't need much paint, right? The interactive bits are fun. But compared to what we used to have...

the motherfucking g3 celebration castle. The river, steps, climbing flowers, trim, rainbow-- all of it is painted detail. The inside does go with mostly stickers but that moat piece in particular is lovely. I may grab some more examples but my point is, the designers are still good, it's just wayyy more expensive to get stuff like this manufactured nowadays and it's sad that I idolized someday working in a toy industry that just does not exist the same way at all anymore. And I get if you may prefer the new design since the old castle is a little younger-skewed, but my point is the level of detail here is completely different between the two sets and both were suppose to be the "fancy deluxe birthday/christmas present" option for their respective generations. More examples--

I wasn't born in time to have clamshell polly pockets, but like.

The 2000 jungle pals set. Almost everything is colored!! the immersion is so good and the fact that it's a little fold-out house its so fucking cute. The gradient on the leaf canopy. there are modular pieces but the painted details bring it alllll together.

I didn't have this one but the little trees. the chair. come on. come onnnn

The modern polly, this is the most expensive set listed on mattel's site right now. And everything is either a separate mold or a sticker and i dunno like they try and it doesn't look super bad but it's not at all as immersive. they seem to push the interactive/moveable pieces to try and make up for the loss of immersion but its not the sameeee :( not to mention im honestly not a huge fan of the way they're pushing this particular palette of purple/teal.

This is an older set, and it uses similar colors to much better effect. even with hardly any painted detail the objects they choose to populate the scene with are tailored to that chunky look. Imo if you aren't going to paint a piece, molded detail can be a double-edged sword. the door and furniture in the modern set look much more like just chunks of plastic to me compared to the little food court chairs or the shrub in this one, because the pieces do not call attention to details that seem like they should be colored. There isn't much paint on this one, but if the floor flowers or the ferris wheel were just one solid color it would definitely hurt the appeal ykno?

now, littlest pet shop. im gonna take a second to spotlight the REAL old lps toys before the bobblehead style really came about because I had these as a kid (had a relative with an antique shop, these were before my time and I was lucky) and they are. just. the small amount of painted detail paired with good color choice really makes these work (had to take some of these from ebay listings, it's hard to find good pics)

The duck pond. Painted details on the trellis!! and the magnetic wand you could use to make the ducks swim 🥺 The swan pond is even more beautiful

Even some of the less detailed sets from this era still have enough painted detail on at least one part to help it feel less like just a hunk of plastic.

I don't dislike modern toy design, but it makes me sad. And obviously, I don't know anything about the working/manufacturing conditions at play here and no painted detail is worth compromising on good conditions. It's just wild, looking back. Kids today don't know what they lost :/

[headlessstar]

finished watching all the mk games' story modes and characters' arcade prologues and endings.

astounding how even with the phenomenal production value, sheer artistry on display, and more or less good script writing, the nrs era games were such a bore to get through. maybe mk9 is the exception as that one had a tighter story with an ending that capped off on what the opening showed.

still, it feels like mk has lost that charming experimental feel it had in the midway era. even with the mixed results those games had, they never felt identical to each other. each one offered something that the others didn't have.

it feels like the nrs era, following the success of mk9, just stuck with that formula for the story presentation and over time exacerbated its flaws.

seriously, at point i was just skipping gameplay sections just to get the cutscenes (and tbh those cutscenes got WAYYY too long) and when that happens, when a viewer/gamer doesn't feel immersed enough to engage with the game as a game, then there's something seriously wrong in the formula.

not that it's all bad, there's a reason these games became so beloved by the casual audience.

mk9 was good for the most part, even if it had many unnecessary fights, weird power scaling, and the antagonists being all losers in these fights (I'm still not over stryker's chapter like damn why did they have him beat reptile, mileena, kintaro AND ermac back to back that's ridiculous if they wanted to introduce him like "you have much potential" like nightwolf says maybe just have him beat one of them. now I can't even take them seriously).

mkx did a good job with the introduction of so many new characters, even if I couldn't bring myself to care about any of them. it also reduces the feel of some fights feeling unnecessary or over misunderstandings that mk9 had. unfortunately, this game negated the whole point of having a reboot in the first place, placing us right back in messy, consulted storylines and too many characters and subplots that the overall story loses focus. i still think the lin kuei mission/test was the perfect set up to introduce frost to the kombat kids team as she would bring an interesting dynamic to the team.

mk11 is where it hits rock bottom for me, not only is the story too long and slow-paced, especially with the addition of aftermath. it's just... it's nothing. i struggle to think of any positives besides the amazing visuals and character designs. this is where the series become too concerned with making a movie-like experience rather than a video game one so that might also influence my feelings on it. the handling of characters like scorpion's death and sindel's retcon left me feeling too bitter to appreciate their subplots. even noob saibot's appearance didn't excite me as much as I would have thought :\

mk1/mk12 was much more entertaining than 11, it had the tall order of introducing a new continuity/setting and the re-imagined characters, and I feel it did okay for the most part. it still had most of mk11's issues but they were limited due to the smaller caste. too bad that the story caught fire and fell flat on itself when it entered the multiverse segment of the story. it was unnecessary and only trivialized the current story further. it would have been better to just have it be two timelines, liu kang's and shang tsung's, and have the final battle be between our heroes (the characters whom we spent the whole story building) and shang tsung's timeline counterparts. maybe this way we would have less awkward stair fights with surreal character abominations.

overall, it was alright. i just hope in the future they abandon the one or two characters per chapter formula as it's more detriment to the story than anything else. maybe also stay away from special forces, like man I know racism is a given with these games since the begging but all these references are making me cringe every time.

[toujokaname]

Game master / Episode 12

Author: Akira

Characters: Mayoi, Kohaku, Aira, Hiiro, HiMERU

"Since you've all heard it, you're now all cursed, there's no escaping it. My condolences."

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[ Read on my site for a better viewing experience using Ois~su ♪ ]

Season: Winter

Location: Secluded Village

Mayoi: You'll... rue... this... daaay~...♪

Kohaku: ...gh?!

Aira: BWYAAAAAGHHH?!

Hiiro: Ohh, nice reaction.

Kohaku: ...Got me. All I could manage was brace myself as quickly as I could...

They said we'd rack up points for interestin' reactions, but it's trickier than it sounds, even if you're keepin' an eye out for it.

In that regard, I should learn from Rabu-han and HiMERU-han's example.

HiMERU: Hah? HiMERU had no reaction though?

Kohaku: Why're you tryna act tough for no reason? You're gettin' weak in the knees. You're surprisingly vulnerable to unexpected events, ain'tcha, HiMERU-han ♪

HiMERU: More importantly... What on earth are you up to, Ayase?

Mayoi: Ah, yes. Since I'm a "scarer"—I thought I'd try pretending to be a ghost for now!

Hiiro: Hehe. You really did look like a ghost. It looks like you're floating in mid-air, but how are you doing that?

Mayoi: Oh, if I spoil the trick, it might not be scary anymore, but... You see, I've coated the wires suspending me with black paint to render them invisible.

Hiiro: So, if Mayoi-senpai shines a flashlight on himself, combined with the darkness, it creates the illusion that he's floating. That's amazing, it's like a magic trick!

Aira: Ugh, seriously? I get it's Mayo-san's role so there's no helping it, but can you quit doing such abrupt things? My heart can't handle it!

Mayoi: I'm sorry, I'm sorry... Ah-choo!

Hiiro: Oh, are you cold after all...? It's not exactly the right season for a test of courage. Or rather, it's still winter, right?

Mayoi: Yes... I'm freezing. Nights are still quite chilly.

But more importantly, aside from scaring all of you, I have other duties to carry out.

Everyone, I thought I'd regale you all with a little ghost story to liven up the test of courage.

Fufufu. Let me tell you a terrifying tale about this Amagi Village, whether you want to hear it or not...♪

Hiiro: Fumu, sounds like the real deal.

Kohaku: Yeah, in movies and stuff, they tell ghost tales before the test of courage. Makes the whole thing even spookier.

Aira: No wayyy, this is kinda seriously scary... It's just some stupid festival plan, everyone needs to chill out...

Mayoi: Aah, you're so cute when you're scared, Aira-san...♪ I want to scare you even more...♪

HiMERU: What about the ghost story? HiMERU would rather not stand around and freeze, so could you hurry up and get it over with, please?

Mayoi: Ah, yes, I'm sorryyy...

Well then, umm, ehem, ehem ♪

This is a tale Rinne-san shared with me, a true story that transpired in this Amagi Village—

Aira: *Gulp...* K-Kohakucchiii... Could you, like, hold my hand?

Kohaku: Fine by me, but ain't we supposed to be enemies?

Hiiro: I'll hold your hand, Aira!

Aira: Let's just stick with Hiro-kun... You hear people throw around "This is a true horror story" like it's nothing, but hearing it in person is seriously frightening, you know...?

HiMERU: Being on the actual location, the feeling of immersion is remarkable.

Mayoi: Fufu. By the way, this is a story that, once heard, bestows a curse upon you.

Since you've all heard it, you're now all cursed, there's no escaping it. My condolences.

Aira: Ah, then I won't listen! Lalala~! Can't hear youuu!

Mayoi: That won't do. I'll press my mouth against your skull and let my voice resonate directly into your brain...♪

Aira: Unyaaaah?! That's so cruel~! Mayo-san, aren't you supposed to always be so gentle?!

Kohaku: C'mon, ain't it a tad overboard to be quakin' in your boots before even hearin' the story?

HiMERU: The atmosphere alone is scary enough. Well, HiMERU is not scared, but speaking in general terms.

Mayoi: Fufu. As you're aware, this Amagi Village remains concealed from the public at large.

However, during that particular incident, the media, driven by their vigor, breached taboos by introducing cameras into this village.

Aira: Uuughh, this totally matches our situation... Scary...

Mayoi: Naturally, a terrible disaster befell them!

Aira: Could you quit it with the sudden yelling?!

Hiiro: Since the story's not progressing, Aira, could you dial back your reaction performance...?

Aira: It's not a performance! I'm genuinely freaked out! Uuu, I'll cover my ears so you guys listen to the story for me!

[ ☆ ]

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[yusuke-of-valla]

wait im confused whats the whole yellow paint thing about?

Ok so basically Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is the latest game to use yellow paint on rocks to indicate that this area is climable and many people on Twitter are big mad about it because...

Well it's one of those things that's like referring to a lot of different things but pretty much people hate it because they think it's obvious and immersion breaking or it's a sign the devs are lazy/think the players are stupid/too dumb to find a more "natural" way to say "hey this cliff is climbable" or whatever

Most of the discourse seems to be on Twitter and aside from a couple of articles I don't feel like going digging, because frankly I could not care less.

I mean I guess if you think this is a sign the developers hate you and think you're dumb, that's not the case and you should maybe see someone because you're taking something wayyy too personally (and I take things really personally too so I'm not judging but genuinely that's not healthy)

but beyond that I do not care about this issue one way or another and I have literally not even noticed it until I started seeing articles and videos about it

[nyxofdemons]

OHHHHKAY I FINALLY WATCHED THE FIRST EPISODE OF HAZBIN ON YOUTUBE AND . HM. HM. MANY MANY THOUGHTS HEAD FULL

okay okay. please dont hate me. i was underwhelmed

LISTEN I CAN EXPLAIN. the first thing that stuck out to me was the,,,, dialogue? in some scenes its GREAT but initially i was sort of jarred by it, i feel like it's going wayyy too hard on the exposition at the cost of immersion. it just feels noticeably clunky in scenes

the SECOND thing, i both LOVE and dislike the music. i love like 65% of happy day in hell but vaggie's sudden interjection, plus the sequence where the background changes and charlie is like rolling along with all the random sinners singing felt. aghhhh i don't have a new word a lot of it just feels CLUNKY to me !! help !!!

i DO enjoy the characterization, from the get go a lot of it seems very very clear and tightly written. alastor remains my favorite character and the implications of vaggie making a deal with him have me MAJORLY intrigued i am SO curious about their dynamic in particular .

i. fucking. LOVE. ADAM. OH MY GOD HES GREAT. his speech style his outrageous personality HIS TAKEOVER OF HAPPY DAY IN HELL MADE ME SOOO EXCITED, THAT WAS THE BEST PART OF THE EPISODE TO ME. ive seen criticism of him as 'uhh the writing is so dumb and lazy if the angels behave just like the sinners' but i literally dont give a fuck he is ENTERTAINING (and if i wanted to be serious about it i COULD say something about the juxtaposition between the angels and sinners seemingly having the same brand of humor but being WILDLY different in terms of worldview and philosophy. the angels who are self-obsessed and think theyre the greatest things to ever exist vs the sinners fully embracing themselves as the WORST things to ever exist, and charlie somewhere in the middle. oooooh i just KNOW this is gonna be a whole thing for my brain to chew on)

okay okay im sure theres more i could say but . hhhh. brainworms only. i think my official stance, for right now, is that i am fully optimistic that the rest of the show is gonna be awesome, but, as for right now... i think i actually preferred the youtube pilot to this first episode. i enjoyed the set design more, the character animation more (it feels stiffer in this one?? hazbin pilot and helluva boss both have a way more BOUNCY feel to them, i think, and i just adore it; i felt like it was missing from this one a bit), and most ESPECIALLY the dialogue. i way preferred the dialogue in the pilot than in here.

i DID absolutely love the expectation subversion of adam and lilith, though. that they eagerly wanted to share the gift of free will with humanity, rather than trying to orchestrate a cataclysm on purpose. i really enjoyed that.

(also, my final note: the voice acting is... okay. to me. i feel like some of the voices are sort of forced, and no matter how good he is, i am sorry, but i can NOT reconcile that voice with husk's face and design. it just feels so jarring every time he opens his mouth like my brain is struggling to connect that that's where this voice is coming from. im sorry mr david)

[videogamevvizard]

I wanna talk about Deltarune now so I will, yaknow cooling off after my anger of souless advertisement games with the opposite of that.

So, like two nights ago I was talking to my pal my bestest friend who will be the only one to see this post most likely about the Deltarune snowgrave or "Weird" route. In this conversation I had a shocking realization that the snowgrave route is simular to IRL glitching and game mechanics and that the weird routes are, EXTREMELY not meant to happen both in game and out parralleling IRL glitching as well. Allow me to explain.

First it was the fact that in Snowgrave a lot of important cutscenes and things just. Didn't happen. I know this is explained in the plot directly but it does also parrallel with actual game glitches irl and how they mess with the flow the game itself, causing some important cutscenes and whole parts of the game to mess up/not happen at all. This isn't the only time snowgrave parrallels gaming tactics, as my friend pointed out how it also includes "grinding up" a new character on your team.

This also fits in theme with the character Noelle, since shes the one your grinding and she cannonically has a love for both scary glitches games (which is what snowgrave is) and using the grinding tactic on her own catz playthrough. Maybe these parrallels were chosen because of this?

In general with snowgrave, and all weird routes im expecting, theres a theme of not meant to be happening with how things get skipped and messed up and not to MEANTION Ralseis behavior towards it. I'd go as far say the general theme of "Not intended to happen" extends out of the game as well, of course in an unreality and immersive way rather then the game being fuckin haunted or something, based on the one time weird routes gets slightly acknowlaged and the many MANY times it doesn't.

In a QNA at the realease of the first chapter of Deltarune, Toby states:

But! After chapter 2 came out, specifically all the snowgrave stuff happening, the Steam page for Deltarune changed to this:

(thank you to my friend for the SCSHs)

This is, what i believe to be, the only time snowgrave is SLIGHTLY acknowlaged irl.

So this has been my horrible rambling about how the Weird routes and how they are very very "NOT intended to happen". Once again I am NOT claiming that the snowgrave routes arent actually meant to happen irl, its just like that in a cool unreality and immersive way to make the experience wayyy more spooky and cool. So in summary, snowgrave parrallels cool game glitches, Toby is pranking us. Feel free to correct me or add on anything I'd love to hear all of your thoughts :).

[selfundiagnosed]

why is it mean for someone to tell you you should get help? you're obviously in a lot of distress and should see someone about it for your own mental health...these 'patterns' you're leaning into are only exarcerbating your mental condition. but if you want to embrace your psychosis and go completely off the rails i guess that's your prerogative

to insinuate that a.) i dont know about my own mental state & wellbeing and you need to “tell me” because the psychosis makes it so i cant notice how it affects how i function every single day of my life b.) i need to delete my socials because of what someone else did to me to put me in this state c.) you somehow have any idea whats going on in my life, if im being treated, what symptoms im experiencing, that I legitimately cant tell ~whats real~ d.) noticing patterns doesnt mean im going off the deep rail LMFAO is all the stupidest shit ever.

for future reference, how you and the other anon are approaching someone you perceive as experiencing active psychosis is going to put people in active psychosis in danger to themselves. its funny to see random anons tell me what im experiencing and what i need to do about it to fix it when its evident from how this was approached you don’t actually care about me you just want to make yourselves feel like youre above me for whatever reason. “but if you want to embrace your psychosis and go completely off the rails i guess that's your prerogative” and “Deactivate your TikTok, delete the app and go see a psychologist” are sooo condescending. yeah deleting an app is absolutely gonna fix this problem. a diagnosis ive had since i was 15. stupid shits idek what to say like are you both actual tiktok teenagers who think they know everything about everything because get off my blog you suck so bad lmaooo sooo condescending. Im completely capable of making my own decisions im 22 lol i dont need tumblr anons i cant see telling me to do shit im doing already. i have a psychiatrist. ive been seeing him for years. i have a therapist. i saw her after my psychosis got retriggered. i know i am sick! i literally cant leave my house! when i do… i freak the fuck out! for HOURS !!! my family and friends all know how deeply this affects me and i promise you none of them have said this shit to me the way you and the “other anon” did. i stopped socializing, i havent made any new friends, i cant trust the people i do know im not close to anymore. i promise you i know WAYYY more than you about how it impacts me way more than you. my socials are the one open window i didnt put curtains on. i completely control what you all are able to see theough leaving this tiny window unclothed for the internet to look into my life. i dont need random people to see my jokes on my blog about my delusions and tell me its a delusion like im being very tongue in cheek about all of my delusional posts. i absolutely believe them but im making fun of myself for how crazy i sound.

i really have not a clue why youd think this is an appropriate way to approach it but it leads me to believe youre a tiktok user who probably thought the dude that manipulated his way into a famous persons house while she was manic was a Good Idea because clearly she wouldnt get help. lmfao its bad in so many facets. imagine if i was fully and completely immersed in my paranoia and delusions of being a targeted individual (which is the root of everything im experiencing right now): ask yourself how would you feel YOU felt targeted by a higher entity and now random anonymous people are telling you what you’re experiencing and how youre treated everyday isnt real and youre crazy. like to us its so very real and no amount of rationalizing makes it better. i have only small interactions every once in a blue moon these days that makes me think i could be okay and that im not being targeted and then every single day multiple times a day its shown to me continuously. this included! you and the “other anon” should really reevaluate how you talk to people in severe mental crisis because this is like the exact opposite of how you should react to seeing someone delusion posting or whatever and it shows me you dont know a single loved one with who experiences this shit.

in the future, fucking look into how you approach someone struggling. if i wasnt as lucid in my psychosis or in touch with reality you genuinely could have put me in danger. im going to send you and anyone on my blog watching me like im a circus act off with this so you never put anyone in my position in a state of self harm. but if youre too lazy to click on the link im showing you anyways

[a-moth-to-the-light]

Comeback Celebration: Current Top 10 Fromis_9 Songs

I've enjoyed quite a few fromis songs since I first came across the group in 2020, but I didn't realize just how much I like their music until I decided to try drafting this list and got overwhelmed by the sheer amount of contenders there were, even with their pretty small discography! We love them here <3

1. 22Century Girl

I wouldn't have guessed this would make top of the list when I started, but now I can't imagine putting anything else in this spot. It does soft and sweet, it does lush and layered, and I think this song established their group identity perfectly!

2. Feel Good

A fun but stylish song that's taken to the next level by super immersive production, and it's even more important to me because it was my introduction to the group!

3. Airplane Mode

The soundtrack of my junior year back when it came out--I WAYYY overplayed this one, and it somehow still hits me right in the heart when I listen to it, which I think is the best endorsement of the song I can give.

4. Love Bomb

Probably the most iconic fromis, and for good reason! That central melody is like otherworldly levels of wonderful. It's guilty-pleasure pop that's too well-made to let you feel all that guilty, really.

5. Mulgogi

Nostalgic right on the first listen. A little bit too muted to make it any higher, but it does the soft, lowkey sound so well! I'm sure this is my most-listened song from My Little Society, so it has proved itself against some really intense competition!

6. DM

This deserved all the hype it got on k-tube last year; it's a fruit tea at the perfect amount of sweetness (which is 25% btw).

7. Weather

My bias song!! I don't think this is their best when it comes to any qualities I can articulate, like production quality or melody, but the personal connection I have to it really shouldn't be underestimated. I'm like the weather :)

8. Pitapat (DKDK)

No words, it's just a girl group classic! I can't imagine not loving this one.

9. Hush Hush

WAY too catchy to be legal. I really like this wispier side of their vocals!

10. Stay This Way

Definitely DM part II, but hell, the trick worked on me! The melody is seared into my brain, and I don't think I'll ever be sick of it.

[theliterarymess]

I dnf’d at 24%. It wasn’t bad, but for what the plot was, 43 chapters was wayyy too much. And if I had to read Xander’s dumb ass boundary pushing flirting again I would’ve punched something

On a more positive note…

The lore for this series is really interesting! I think this will be a really enjoyable read for fantasy lovers. The magic system is really simple to understand, the world building is fantastical yet also realistic enough that it’s easy to immerse yourself in. I really liked the way Cecilia was able to engage with the spirits around her.

Out of the two potential love interests, I definitely preferred Rainer. BUT I’ve gotta say they both annoyed me too much 😆. Therefore I’m Team Cecilia all the way.

I do think a lot could have been taken out of the book to make it shorter. The dialogue, particularly Xander’s, was at times a little too unrealistic and cringey.

[blushinghrt]

hot take on supermassive games

on terms of enjoyment, the big five games ranked: (some spoilers)

5) Little Hope - I hated the 'big twist' it felt lazy. the characters were meh, their dynamics were annoying, and I never really connected with the story. The environment was almost too detached.

4) Man of Medan - I was so excited when we saw the prologue, I loved Joe's character and I felt sympathetic towards him in our limited time with him. the rest of the game fell kind of flat for me. the plot progression was clunky and again 3rd act twist didn't do it for me.

3) The Quarry - I see the attempt, but I feel like the supernatural 'surprise' was wayyy too obvious like with Until Dawn you didn't even know what the FUCK a wendigo was (I liked the fact it was more obscure and not an overplayed creature). I never felt ANY tension or horror in this game unless it was like cheap scares. I hated the 'don't breath' sections I wish they kept the stay still or heartbeat portions: those induced so much more stress than that stupid mechanic. The dialogue felt off and it was so awkward for the most part, the acting was iffy from time to time. The game was just so blah.

2) Until Dawn - I loved this game. It had me SO emotionally involved: I felt the stress, the panic, the relief, the horror, the grief, the joy. The characters had depth and were constantly change my opinion of them, which is what I love- characters that evoke emotion. The storyline was hidden but just hard enough to the point where you could pick it apart but stay interested. The graphics were wonderful and the environment was immersive. beautiful game and iconic.

1) House of Ashes - Obsessed with the game. There's so much action which is what differentiates it from its competition. Other games shy away from combat and try to leave it to be the climax of the plot, but HOA is constantly fighting. It's also super refreshing for the characters in a Horror game to be trained for life-threatening situations, like they aren't making stupid decisions or being helpless when the enemy appears. The dialogue felt meaningful and beautifully moved the plot along. The characters are ALL appealing like not a single character is a throw-away antagonist. There's comedy, conflict, intimacy, and vulnerability. The characters are realistic and all charming in their unique ways. The dynamics present between the main cast make you route for them. Bonus: The graphics in this game were by far the best in my opinion and personally, I think this cast has been supermassive's hottest actors and models.

[tbzxnight]

Thank you anon for requesting sunwoo 🙏 he has been turning my brain to absolute mush lately 🥴 and you write so fucking well I cannot tell you that enough. It's so realistic that it immerses the reader and makes you forget about everything else and I am so glad you're here on Tumblr writing for my ult group who deserves the world ❤❤

honestly same and all the videos from his fancalls aren't helping at all, that boy is wayyy too flirty for his own good.

Also, awee this is one of the nicest things anyone's ever said to me - thank you and I love you so much for saying all that. It makes me really happy that my writing makes you feel that way bc that's exactly what I hoped it would do! I'm even more glad you're here and yess, they do deserve the whole world and then some ❤️

[anothertimdrakestan]

Batfam Reactions To Watching Avatar The Last Airbender

req: “Hi I was wondering if you could write the boys reactions to watching Avatar: The last airbender for the first time?” (anon)

YES! THIS IS TOO CUTE!

- long story short, Dami got hurt during patrol and to make sure he didn’t sneak out the entire family had to settle in for a movie night

- you made the epic recommendation to watch ATLA and yall basically binge watched it for a week while Dami healed, here are each of the boys reactions

Damian

- this mfer grumbled that it was stupid and gave Katara shit for being a bad waterbender at the beginning, especially the first episode

- he was hardcore crushing on her at the end specifically her fire nation outfit and that she learned how to blood bend, he’s a simp for powerful women what can i say

- during the first season he was pretty stoic and annoyed, blame it on the painkillers

- second season he was gettin’ into it, flinching with the epic fight scenes, calling himself the batfamily Toph, he let a rogue tear slip during leaves from the vine and no one noticed but you and Dick

- he got extra cuddles that night

- he lost his fucking shit during appas lost days- like full on screaming about appa and burrying his head in your chest while you quietly tell him appa will be okay

- he denies all of this too this day though (of course) but he loved it, and you’ll hear him humming leaves from the vine when he thinks his comm is off now on patrol

Cass

- she wasn’t really paying attention to the show at the beginning,  more soaking in the family bonding moment and spending each night sitting next to a different person to understand more about them

- she liked watching tim because he gets really into it but steph is also a fun watching buddy because her reactions are sooo intense it’s like watching a movie watch a movie

- a month after showing Cass she came up to you with all these epic fan canon ideas for the future or the past, talking about what the avatar state meant and spewing crazy little facts you thought no one noticed

- turns out it’s her comfort show now, she watches it to remind her of Jason’s shitty sex jokes, Dick’s screeches, you’re silent tears, Babs failed plot predictions, and everything else from the week were for one you were all just kids

Tim

- For some reason I just think Tim’s seen it before

- he’s your buddy for laughing at his sibling’s reactions when you both know what’s coming

- the giddy smile he gives you before Katara does the epic water frozen save on Azula or Aang yeets into the avatar state

- him and cass are your lore buddies, you’ve all got all these crazy awesome ideas about the plot and what-not

- Tim crushes on Zuko hardcore, like that scene where he throws off his robe Tim’s cheeks are completely flushed, eyes stuck to the screen and you’re dying laughing

- sometimes you’ll come into the batcave and tim will be working while ATLA plays in the background and you’ll both silently rewatch it together making little quips about a funny moment from when the family watched it together it’s all so wholesome

Steph:

- Steph is a Sokka simp and you can’t tell me otherwise

- she’d pass out when his hair is down and everyone would roll their eyes

- she’d buy a boomerang for patrol and bruce would give a hard no but you can find her throwing it at shrubbery when bruce is out

- She also thinks Tai Lee is adorable and deserves the world

- “EVERYONE SLEEPS ON THE NON BENDERS OKAY SUKI COULD GET IT”

- “steph you came into my room at 5am for this?”

- steph honestly just says the thoughts we all have, when watching she’s totally immersed and falls for all the jumps and scary moments- her and dick are constantly being told to shut up while you die laughing at their reactions

Jason:

- dick basically had to chain him to the couch to watch at the beginning, he’d claim he had better stuff to do but eventually he’d be the one dragging people to the couch for the next episode

- would develop a bromance with zuko in season three

- convinced he’s a firebender and plays with wayyy too many lighters for a week to bruce’s concern

- thinks Mai is hot as fuck but claims he wouldn’t date her “cuz bro code” with his new imaginary best friend

- Roy comes by actually asking if he can meet zuko that’s how much jason talks about him it’s so cute

Babs:

- she’d slip in and out of watching while doing research or helping bruce during patrol, so she’d always sit next to you while you refreshed her during the episodes she caught

- she’d think aang was adorable and would try to convince dami to shave his head and get an arrow tattoo cuz he’d be cute

- she’d be the one to bring everyone water and sandwiches from alfie when you’ve all been binging for hours

- everyone needs a babs when they do a 3 season binge in a week, everyone say thank you babs RIGHT NOW hehehe

Dick:

- he’d be the one who got everyone there and he’d love being surrounded by his family

- granted, it was painful at first, giving constant death glares to dami and jason when they tried to get up and trying to get you to reveal plot secrets while you giggle, but in the end he was loving it

- he’d be crying 24/7

- when Mai and Tai Lee attack Azula and give the speech about loving Zuko more than Mai feared Azula he’s be screeching “GO OFF QUEEN YEAH SIS” while everyone tells him to shut up

- he’s a cabbage man stan and I love him for it

- his favorite season was season 2 because he loves toph because she reminds him of his siblings and he likes bumi and is convinced he’ll be a bumi when he’s older even though everyone tells him he’s such an iroh

- Dick would look back fondly on that week, surrounded by family who wasn’t fighting and could each have their own personality highlighted while all being together, he’d forever be thankful you brought up the idea : )

Bruce:

- it was a tough week for bruce, he hadn’t actually been alone on patrol for a long time

- it made it all worth it when he got to tiredly plop onto the couch with his kids

- he wasn’t watching the show he was watching them, the way they were invested in the show but also still took the time to bond even if they didn’t quite know it

- he got the best sleep of his life that week, passed out on the couch while his kids cuddled him, his white noise was Tim screaming at Damian and Steph babbling about Sokka, it was truly perfect. They were his family : )

I hope you enjoyed!!! Love you!

[haechanniesunflowers]

NCT U's reaction to you bonding with another NCT member, making him feel left out/jealous (From Home line)

Notes: guys hear me out, NCT 2020 still feels unreal. I love them so much they save me everyday I'm so thankful for OT23.

Taeil

Your relationship with your man is built on trust. He knows you love him and only him to death so he doesn't understand why you laughing at Johnny's jokes made him angry. He feels stupid for acting weird and ruining the fun. He's embarrassed when you confront him. "I know you love me and I love you too, I just overreacted" he says. "oh Taeil, it's okay don't be so hard on yourself. I'm sorry I made you feel like that, I'll be more considerate next time" "thanks y/n" he smiles.

Yuta

He's screaming internally, eye twitching. He wanted to spend time with you but you're here giving Taeyong your opinion on his unreleased track, him finding your points very valid. He's very possessive about you and the guys know that. Taeyong immediately noticing Yuta's uneasiness and asking him about his opinion. He participates and it seems like he's okay now. At least that's what everyone thought but he's having a heated make out session with you later that night, his jealousy clearly showing.

Kun

No no no, don't give in to your feelings Kun, think logically, he thinks when he feels anger and insecurity taking over. You're oblivious of your boyfriend's feelings, playing a board game with Winwin having way too much fun. He wants you to be happy but he feels selfish about it, he wants you to enjoy such moments with him only. He's a smart and patient guy and is able to calm himself down. He talks about it later. "I'm sorry Kun, we'll play something you can participate in too and in the mean time, I'll teach you the games you don't know about" "I love you so much".

Doyoung

He's very fussy, wanting your attention. But you're really interested in the story Jaehyun is telling. "y/n let's go for a walk" "later Doyoung, so Jaehyun what happened to the kid who hid in the janitor's room?". Doyoung sees you're clearly immersed in your own conversation so he pouts and wants revenge, two can play at that game y/n. You're begging for his attention later. Checkmate.

Renjun

"yah! y/n we're supposed to watch adventures of Moominvalley" "can we watch it later, I really want to bake a cake with Jeno" "canwewatchitlater, NO" "omg Renjun it's a cartoon, we can always watch it another time" "bake a cake another time, it's Moomin time right now" he says and you huff. He senses you're uninterested in the cartoon and makes an I'm done face. "y/n bake a cake with me, then can we watch this?" you instantly sit up and clap "yesss".

Haechan

He doesn't like you playing video games with Jaemin and is very obviously jealous. Jaemin is only teasing him at this point. Haechan isn't gonna let this happen, not in front of his salad. He stands in front of the screen making you and Jaemin scream. "get out of the wayyy" "no, y/n give me attention" "omg Haechan MOVE" that's it, he unplugs the game, making you annoyed. You slap his thigh "what? You want to sit in my lap? Why didn't you say so?" he says wiggling his eyebrows "bitch" you say. "that makes 5 of us". "hey!" Jaemin says. "what? why me?" Jeno asks. "what did you call me??" Renjun says walking towards Haechan, ready to throw hands.

Chenle

He's not the type to show his emotions and he really trusts you. You know he won't tell you what's bothering him and will suffer silently so you're always careful and considerate about his feelings. Hence you talking and laughing with Renjun, ignoring his question he just asked, won't get a reaction out of him and you will never know that he felt jealous. Sad.