#jatp details

[stellarspecter]

jatp discord profiles – template by @seaoftr

[doverstar]

"I mean, no offense, but if you gotta haunt somebody, why's it gotta be me?" "I'm not haunting you, dude! I'm not even dead. I don't know how I got here, or why I'm like this. Look, it's a long story, but...let's just say what I do know is, we have a connection."

Visuals For My Fics: Luke and Julie from Caught in the Coruscate

[1mnobodywhoareyou]

That's what Christmas means to me

1707 Words | G Rating | Julie and the Phantoms AU

Luke kicks open the door, his keys hanging from his teeth and hands overflowing with bags from the grocery store. “Guys?! A little help?” he calls, words a bit jumbled as they form around his clenched teeth.

Alex appears at the end of the hall and lets out a soft chuckle, “you know you can take multiple trips, right?” He grabs one handful of bags and takes them into the kitchen, leaving Luke to remove his keys from his mouth and redistribute the remaining bags.

“You say that…” Luke replies, trailing after Alex and setting the bags onto the counter.

“How did you even get the door unlocked?”

Luke jazz hands as he answers, “magic!” He’s met with a fond eye roll as they both work on putting the groceries away. “Why’s it so quiet? Where’s Bex.”

“Uhhhh,” Alex hesitates. “You should probably just see for yourself.”

Luke quirks an eyebrow at that but leaves it and finishes up, tying the bags into bows and depositing them in their bag of bags under the sink. 

“Does any of this need to go next door?” Alex asks and Luke shakes his head.

“Nope, not this time. We both know I’ll be here pretty much full time for the next two weeks anyway.” It’s their collective Christmas break and they officially have no responsibilities outside of their strange little family until the new year. “How scared should I be to leave the kitchen?” he wonders.

“I think you’ll be ok. Maybe. It’s everyone else I’m worried about.”

Luke cocks his head with a look of combined confusion and curiosity but opts to simply go into the living room. He’s met with what can only be described as a Christmas explosion and can’t help the laugh that erupts out of his throat. Boxes and totes are open throughout the space, they have a half built tree, decorations trail from box to box and beyond. Reggie and Willie are both wrapped in tinsel and garland, each topped with an elf and santa hat, respectively.

“It looks like you let a two year old loose at the north pole,” he says once he’s regained his composure.

“They kind of did,” Alex chimes in from behind him.

“Where IS Bex?” Luke asks again. 

“Exploding Christmas wiped her out. She fell asleep,” Reggie explains as he works to detangle some beads.

“Ah! Explains the quiet.”

“Mhm,” Alex hums as he moves over to where Willie is, taking the newly fluffed branches and working to add them to the tree. 

“Gonna help or stare?” Willie directs at Luke after a moment.

“Oh, I’m gonna stare. Y’all got yourself into this mess. I’m just here to enjoy it,” he flops onto the couch and props his feet onto the ottoman in front of him, exaggerating his movements obnoxiously. He’s in the middle of reclining back and putting his hands behind his head when he’s hit in the chest with a mass of shimmer.

“You’re going to help,” Reggie tells him, matter of fact. “Detangle those.”

Luke obliges, trying to find the end of the string of baubles that had been thrown at him. “Bex did all of this?!”

“No, they came out of the bin like this. I’m displeased with past me,” Reggie explains.

Luke hums in acknowledgement and continues his task. 

“We’re listening to me when we pack shit up this year,” Alex states.

Willie groans, “ugh, but taking everything down and winding it up to be packed away is so tedious.”

“Future us will thank me,” Alex insists. “And you’re telling me that this,” he waves his arms around the space, “isn’t tedious?”

“Point, Alex,” Luke says and Willie responds by sticking their tongue out at him.

The four of them into their tasks, letting a comfortable silence surround them. Alex and Willie get the tree built and lit while Luke and Reggie successfully untangle everything that had needed it, building neat piles of decorations. They’re just able to start wrapping the tree with garland when they hear a small voice from behind the couch.

“Unca ‘Uke! Unca ‘Uke!”

Luke drops what he had been holding and turns to greet the toddler, crouching down to scoop her into his arms as she runs up to him, “hey, Peanut! You sure made a mess with your dads, didn’t you?”

She squeals as he spins her around. He settles her onto his hip and turns back toward the tree. Bex looks toward it and then back at Luke. “Why don’t we let Daddy, Papa, and Nomy do the boring stuff and then we can help hang the pretty things when they’re done?” He directs a questioning look his friends’ way for confirmation and they nod. 

Bex excitedly agrees, pushing away from Luke so that he sets her down. She leads him to one of the bins that hadn’t already been emptied and digs into it, pulling out some of their other decor. 

Luke offers a small chuckle, taking everything she hands him. “Yeah, we can put these out while we wait.” He trails behind her as she sets out the decorations throughout the apartment: singing animatronic snowmen wind up in the doorway to the kitchen, a dancing snowman is set just outside her bedroom, Luke guides her to place the doormat in the entry hall, and various bells are placed on the first doorknobs she encounters. When they return to the living room lootless, the others are almost done wrapping the tree. 

“You know what we’re missing,” he directs to Bex.

“MUSIC!” she cheers and he laughs.

“Yeah, you know what’s up. Music! You gonna help?”

She nods vigorously, “I help!”

Luke digs through the various boxes until he finds what he’s looking for, their small record collection of Christmas music. He calls Bex over, not that she ever drifts far from his side when she’s around, and her eyes widen in excitement. 

“I pick?”

Luke nods, “yeah, you pick. What should we listen to?”

Bex sifts through the records, as gently as she’s capable of considering her age, pulls out a bright purple album and hands it to Luke who can’t help but laugh.

“When did we get Cee Lo Green’s Christmas album?” 

“Probably Willie,” Alex mutters. 

“Yep! That was me,” Willie readily agrees, “I saw it at a thrift store last year and couldn’t not.”

“Sounds about right,” Luke laughs as he walks over to the record player, letting Bex lead him through the process and stepping in where she needs help. “We’ll get you rocking properly one day,” he tells her softly as he places the record on the turntable.

He was apparently still loud enough to be heard because Reggie coughs out a laugh of his own, “you have her trained on how to properly handle records and operate the record player, what more are you wanting from her?”

“Luke’s in charge of potty training, by the way,” Alex chimes in from the other side of the tree before muttering an addition, “the only person she’ll actually listen to.”

Willie and Reggie utter grunts of agreement, still battling their ongoing bitterness at her very obvious preference for the only one of them who was adamant he was not parent material.

“I’ll laugh my ass off if she grows up refusing to listen to what you like,” Willie directs back toward Luke. 

Luke makes an affronted sound as he scoops Bex into his arms, “she would NEVER!”

She giggles at him as he tries to help form her hand into devil’s horns. “Rock and roll forever! Right, Peanut?”

“Ro’ ‘n roll!” she agrees heartily.

Alex sighs before moving them on, “we’re ready for you.”

“Hear that, Bex? We’re up!”

The five of them work through the various ornaments and candy canes, letting Bex place anything that isn’t fragile where she can reach and the others trying to counter balance her heavy hand through the rest of the tree. They fall into various song and dance breaks as Cee Lo Green plays in the background meaning that their task takes them significantly longer than it might otherwise but none of them mind. Their little family is just happy to have this time together.

When they’ve finally finished with the tree, Reggie crouches down to hand Bex the star. “This is a very important job, Munchkin. Can you handle it?”

Bex nods vigorously, taking the star from Reggie.

“OK, Daddy is gonna lift you up cuz he’s the tallest. You just have to put it on the very tippy top!”

Bex nods again. “Tippy top!” she confirms before running over to Alex who scoops her up and leans her toward the top of the tree. She gives placing the star her best effort but Alex has to help smush the branches together so it settles on nicely. Once they’re satisfied, he props her on his hip as he steps back, letting Willie plug it into the strand of lights.

“You ready? Alex asks Bex and she nods. Luke makes his way over to the switch for the overhead lights and Reggie takes his position at the outlet behind the tree. They are almost in sync as the room goes dark, only to be illuminated by the lights of the tree.

“Ooooohhh!” Bex coos as her eyes widen at the sight.

Willie and Reggie make their way over to where Alex and Bex are, crowding in on either side of them and Luke digs out his phone to take a picture. 

Willie tugs on the hem of Alex’s sweater, pulling harder when they get his attention so that he leans down for a kiss. 

Bex watches them intently, impatiently speaking up when they separate. “Kiss Bex!”

The adults laugh and they each pepper her face with kisses of their own until she’s squealing and pushing them away.

“Merry Christmas, family,” Reggie says wistfully as he takes everyone in.

“Merry Christmas, Reg,” the others echo back.

“Merry Chrismus, Papa!” Bex cheers, reaching out to him. He takes her from Alex and wraps her into a tight hug. It takes less than a moment for three additional pairs of arms to join the hug and they relish in the short moment of peace and togetherness they’ve allowed themselves.

[legolasghosty]

"i hate you" "there's people coming" and now they're making out

for Boggie cuz... y'know. :D please?

Ooooo okayyyy! Hehe I love these two, I don't get an excuse to write them nearly enough!

Bobby ducked into an alcove and let himself fall back against the wall, trying to get his breathing under control. This wasn't how this was supposed to go. Nothing about tonight was going right.

In, 2, 3, 4, out, 2, 3, 4...

Having someone on his arm tonight was supposed to get people to leave him alone. Sure, Bobby had known it wasn't a permanent solution to the constant nagging over his upcoming ascension to the throne and his lack of a partner to sit beside him. But he'd expected his family and the court to be too relieved that he was showing serious interest in anyone to tear into any issues about who his 'partner' was.

In, 2, 3, 4, out, 2, 3, 4...

"Hey, you okay?"

Bobby flinched away from the voice, one fist clenching around the edge of his tunic. "I'm fine," he said, tone flat.

"Well I guess I'll just come be 'fine' with you then," Reggie said, a hint of sarcasm in his voice as he slid into the alcove across from Bobby.

Bobby forced himself to meet the eyes of his friend and 'partner'. Reggie was sweet, too sweet to be dealing with this disaster of an evening. Bobby should never have dragged him into this. He'd barely known the man for two months, for heaven's sake!

"Sorry, I figured you were someone else," he forced out. "Are you okay?"

Reggie shrugged. "I'm alright, nothing I haven't heard before."

Bobby felt his shoulders tensing all over again at the thought of anyone talking down to Reggie like that at all, let alone often enough for him to be so accustomed to it. He wondered just how far away Reggie was from. It must be within the country. Bobby could likely have a whole squadron of guards there in under 48 hours, ready to destroy anyone who dared to hurt the angel of a man before him.

"I'm sorry," he said. No reason to voice any of his true thoughts. "For my family and for dragging you into this."

Reggie inched closer, fingers brushing against Bobby's knuckles. "Hey, I knew what I was getting myself into. It's all good."

"No, it's not!" Bobby snapped. "No one should be saying those sorts of things about anyone, but I knew they would and I still brought you here."

"They're just careful because they care about y-" Reggie began.

"No they don't!" Bobby interrupted. "They tear into everyone they see as 'lesser', regardless of how good that person is or isn't. They enjoy it. They don't care about me, they just care that I'm the one who's going to be sitting on that throne next year."

He felt like he was going to tear his clothes with how tightly his fingers gripped them, but he couldn't seem to stop. The words kept slipping from his mouth. He couldn't turn it off.

"I mean, why the heck do you think I haven't dated anyone? There's never been anyone that I cared about enough to make it worth the pain my family would cause them. Sure I'm interested in someone every once in a while, but 'interested' isn't enough to keep anyone around after them. I might as well just die alone and childless and let the kingdom pass to someone who isn't as polluted as I am."

He finally stopped, breathing hard. Reggie was just staring at him. Bobby waited for him to run. That was the only logical thing to do. But the young knight didn't budge.

"What would it take for you to let someone in?" Reggie asked finally.

Bobby blinked hard, trying to make sense of the question. Hadn't he just said that was what he would never do? What he shouldn't do? But Reggie's face is so open and curious, how can Bobby deny him an answer?

"I guess I would have to love them," Bobby responded.

"Then what does that mean you feel for me?" Reggie asked, voice soft. "If you would have to love someone to bring them here, what does that mean for us?"

I love you, Bobby wanted to say. But he couldn't. He couldn't subject Reggie to the pain that was the life he was trapped in. The people he was surrounded with. The constant nagging and prodding and needling to make everyone else happy. Reggie was good. He should be free. And this was never real to begin with.

"I hate you," Bobby said, the words catching on his lips like the jagged lies they were.

Reggie's eyes flashed with something Bobby knew he despised, though he couldn't fully read it before it was gone. Then Reggie's gaze darted past Bobby's shoulder and panic took over his expression.

"People coming," was all the explanation Bobby got before Reggie was crowding into his space, hands cupping his jaw as the knight's mouth met his.

Bobby tried not to melt into the kiss. It was just a performance after all. But Reggie's lips were warm and his hands were gentle and Bobby couldn't resist the urge to twine his own arms around the other's waist, pulling him closer. Reggie let out a pleased sound and Bobby was helpless against the desire to run his tongue over the knight's lower lip. And when he was allowed entry into his mouth, there was no stopping him.

He knew it was wrong. But it felt so good, so easy, so freeing to kiss Reggie. The guiding motions of the hand sliding up into his hair reminded him of riding through the fields, both of them spurring their horses to go faster and faster as the wind yanked at their clothes. The soft moans that passed between their joined mouths were sweeter than any symphony Bobby had been forced to sit through as a child. The steady weight pressing him against the wall was the best kind of drowning. It urged him to let go, to sink, to forget the world of before.

And then it was gone. Bobby couldn't breathe. Reggie leaned back, glancing past him.

"They're gone, sorry about that," the knight said, his voice hoarse.

"Don't you dare apologize," Bobby managed, still struggling for air.

"You said you hated me," Reggie pointed out softly. "And then I kissed you."

Oh yeah. Bobby said that. He should say it again. For Reggie's sake. But he couldn't. Not with all the memories if their adventures together at his fingertips. Not with his gentle words rolling over him like the tides. Not with the phantom feeling of their bodies entwined consuming his thoughts.

"I don't," Bobby admitted before he could stop himself. "I don't hate you. I should, but I don't."

A smile lit up Reggie's face, small as it was. "Yeah?"

"I want you to be safe," Bobby sighed, "and safest would be away from me. But I don't know if I can be okay with that."

"You don't have to be," Reggie promised, grabbing his hand. "We can make this work."

"It's not going to be easy," Bobby warned. But the war was already lost. They both knew it.

"I love a challenge," Reggie joked, like he had the first time they met.

This time, it was Bobby who kissed him first. It was softer than before, more honest. A promise to try. And Reggie kissed him right back, sealing the deal. Well this was a terrible idea. But Bobby couldn't bring himself to care.

[paulmescvl]

@pranpats

(insp)

[writerownstory]

remembering how cool I felt when I realized the vest Julie wears during Finally Free is the same one (but with a lil extra detail to it) that Rose wears in episode 1 when she meets the guys

WAIT STOP THE INVISIBLE STRING OF ROSE WEARING THE VEST WHEN SHE MET THE BOYS vs. JULIE WEARING IT DURING THEIR FIRST OFFICIAL PERFORMANCE AS JATP !!!!! 🥹

[swanimagines]

Hi! Can I get Luke Patterson + Where Do Broken Hearts Go by One Direction? Thank you!

A/N: I've missed writing for JATP 💖 Yet another innocent victim of Netflix's murdering spree. I have no idea why I've constantly pushed my JATP requests back because these are super fun! This is kinda a sad one though because of the song, sorry. The dice chose this request out of the ones I had inspiration for on that moment because I couldn't choose, but the next one of my JATP wips will be fluffier. It doesn't have a schedule yet though 😅

A reminder that this is the last oneshot-sized song based fic. From now on, all oneshot requests require a proper plot. Check my "request types I write" page for details if you wish to request a oneshot.

WHERE DO BROKEN HEARTS GO

You never really moved on from Luke.

It wasn’t really because of lack of trying. Over the years, you tried — Lord, how you tried. Your friends set you up on dates, you went to speed dating events whenever you were invited to come along, you even briefly dipped yourself into online dating when it became a thing. Every time, it ended the same. A nice dinner, maybe a movie. And then came the part where they wanted more. Where they wanted to meet with you again. Where they wanted to know you better. Where they — maybe — had developed a crush on you.

And you just… couldn’t. You felt nothing for those people. So it always ended the same way, a polite smile and a rejection, explaining that there’s nothing wrong with them, but you can’t feel the connection the same way they do. Sometimes you learned afterwards that the man who had been interested in you turned out to be a dream boyfriend for someone lucky, and your friends jabbed you a little, telling you that you could have been that person if you just had given him a chance.

It hurt, even though you agreed that clinging to your childhood sweetheart after 25 years was stupid. But you never got to say a proper goodbye. When you had seen him for the last time, you had felt annoyed because he cancelled your second anniversary date because of an Orpheum gig practice. You had tried to hide it and pretend to be happy, but Luke had seen you weren't as happy as he expected, but he promised to make it up to you later. Still, it was such a small thing, you had been so angry at yourself afterwards because the gig was a huge opportunity, a chance of a lifetime, yet you had voiced your disappointment about your cancelled date like a petty child.

Well, you were a teenager, strong emotions with disappointments like that were normal. But… still. You felt so horrible after.

25 years had passed from their death, and something changed.

Items misplaced. Your favourite vinyl record had somehow traveled from your shelf to the player without you even touching it. Your Sunset Curve shirt was on your bed one morning as you woke up. A scent of deodorant in the kitchen, and you swore it was the brand Luke always used. You hadn’t smelled that for 25 years, and now it just… came to your nose all of a sudden.

Every time something strange happened, you closed your eyes and told yourself that you were just tired and stressed. The boys’ death anniversary was coming up again after all.

And after a few days, the strange occurrences stopped just as quickly as they started.

But then, something happened. Good Morning America had this segment of a girl named Julie, who played with some Swedish boy band, and they were somehow streamed as holograms to play with her at first but had now come to the States for a proper tour. You didn’t pay much notice to it at first, the TV was on in the background while you did dishes, but then… one of the boys sang.

And you recognised it immediately, and had to run to the living room to confirm.

Luke. Along with Reggie and Alex.

And they didn’t look a day older than they did when you last saw them.

How?

The segment went through in a blur, you barely heard what was said, you just stood there with a towel in hand, wondering if you’re becoming crazy, or if this is a dream.

As days went by, it became clear that it wasn’t a dream. And you knew you couldn’t just stand by, you had to find them. You had to find Luke.

So, when you caught an ad for one of their gigs, you snatched a ticket and made your way to the venue a few months later.

You felt ridiculous standing there, in the middle of teenagers and young adults, snapping selfies of themselves and gushing how cute the boys were, while you were there, feeling so out of place. You hadn’t gone to gigs for years, it felt so foreign now. And to be honest, you started having second thoughts. Would you even see Luke? What would you say to him?

What could you say to him?

You stood there throughout the whole gig, just staring at Luke, before they left the stage and you hurried forward to catch one of the staff members.

“I need to get to the backstage,” you told her, and she raised her eyebrows.

“Meet-and-greets were sold out weeks ago, and unfortunately—”

“No, I… I know them. From… before. Please, they want to see me.” You hesitated, but then told her your full name. “Tell Luke Patterson I’m here. If he says he doesn’t know me, then I’ll go. But please, just go ask him, tell him my name.”

She stared at you for a moment longer, clearly hesitating whether to believe you. You knew it was probably weird to her, maybe even creepy, a middle-aged fan potentially obsessing over a teenage boy. But finally, she sighed. “Fine. Wait here.”

You let out a breath. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”

She disappeared around the corner, and you could almost hear the blood rushing through your veins from how quick your heart was beating. It took only a few minutes, but you felt like it was hours.

You still didn’t fully believe this wasn’t some crazy dream. Or maybe you had died yourself and this was the afterlife? Or you were in a coma and this was a dream. You remembered reading about a man who hit his head and dreamed about a full life while being unconscious, and when he woke up with paramedics around him, he was left mourning after his wife and kids who had never existed.

You weren’t sure if you wanted this to be that kind of phenomenon. On the other hand, you wanted nothing more than to meet Luke one last time, tell him everything you wanted to say before he died, and maybe finally be able to move on. But on the other hand, you weren’t sure if you would be able to take it, your life had moved on while he had been frozen in time. You weren’t sure if you would be able to let go of the memory of him. You weren’t sure if your broken heart would finally find its way home after all.

“Alright, you may come backstage, I will personally see if they do recognise you as you say. No funny business, alright?” a deep voice interrupted your thoughts, and you met eyes with a bulky security man who fumbled with the lock of the gate before opening it.

“Of course not,” you murmured, and slipped through the gate before he locked it again.

You followed the security guy through a narrow hallway, catching glimpses of staff members doing something, but your eyes were fixed forward, your heart thumping faster and faster.

Finally, you stood in front of the dressing room and the security guy glanced at you before he knocked twice.

“A visitor for Luke,” he called out, and you heard steps from the other side before he pushed the door open and gestured you to enter. You hesitated, glancing between the door and him, before you managed to force yourself to step forward.

You stood at the door for a good minute, taking the sight in. None of the boys didn’t notice you at first, probably exhausted after the gig. Alex had a towel over his shoulders, Reggie was tuning his guitar, and… Luke laid on the sofa with his arm over his eyes.

“Luke,” you squeaked out, making him groan and stir, before moving his arm just enough to look at you.

He stared at you. You stared at him back.

Then, he jumped up, gasping your name, which prompted Reggie and Alex to look up as well.

“Yeah,” you said with a nervous laugh. “I saw a video of you in Good Morning America, and—”

But you were cut off when Luke basically ran to you, wrapping his arms around you. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered against your shoulder. “For everything. For not being there. For leaving you like that.”

You shook your head, pulling away from him. “No, I’m sorry. I was an ass that day, I was jealous of your fans, because you had a practice booked for the Orpheum gig, and—”

He cut you off again, “No, stop. I understand.”

You swallowed, feeling Reggie and Alex stare at you, before Reggie spoke up. “You look… different.”

You couldn’t help but laugh again. “Well, 25 years can do that to a person.”

Reggie blinked, then slapped his forehead. “Oh. Right.”

Alex suddenly jumped up. “Oh! Oh my gosh, wait a second. Now I see it. Holy crap. It’s you, isn’t it?”

Luke laid a glare on his friend. “Of course it’s them, they haven’t changed that much.”

“Haven’t changed that much?” Reggie echoed. “Luke, they’ve aged, like… beautifully, don’t get me wrong, but still 25 years! It’s not like time froze for them, like it did for us.”

You kept grinning, you had missed the boys and their silliness. “Thanks? I guess.”

You were quiet for a moment, before Luke cupped your cheek. “Don’t care about them, I’d recognise you everywhere.”

You averted your eyes from his and sighed. “You guys look just like you did back when… that happened.”

Luke laughed this time, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, the perks of being a ghost. Or, well, whatever we are now.”

Ghosts?

“So, you came to my home and haunted me?” you asked, frowning.

He hesitated, but then shrugged. “I wouldn’t say I haunted you, I tried to leave little signs. But I needed to see you.”

“But… why did you wait for 25 years for that?”

Luke sighed, gesturing towards the door at the back. “Uh, our singer, Julie, found our old demo disc from her attic a few months ago and it just… somehow brought us back? We weren’t here as ghosts or anything else before now, we weren’t able to see the world change after… us. We thought that it had only been an hour when we came back.”

Reggie smirked, pointing at Alex. “So basically Alex here cried for 25 years straight.”

Alex scoffed. “It was still only an hour for us!”

You were quiet again. “So… what does this mean for us?”

Luke closed his eyes for a moment. “I… don’t know. When we realised how much time had passed, I thought… I thought maybe it’d be better to stop coming by your house. But I still love you, and want to be with you.”

Alex cleared his throat, making you look up at him. “Uh, hate to interrupt, but maybe we should give you two a moment?” He grabbed Reggie by the arm before the other boy could protest, and they both slipped out of the room.

The words started spilling out the moment the door clicked shut. “Luke, I’ve carried you with me all this time. You were my first love, and no one else ever came close. But this… this isn’t something we can just pick up again.”

Luke was quiet for a moment, and then nodded slowly, his hands falling down from your cheeks. “You’re right. We can’t.”

You felt a tear slipping down from your eye and wiped it off. “So… friends?”

He smiled a little, though it was awkward, disappointed, rigid. “Yeah. Friends.”

You knew it was a bittersweet ending for your love story that had been so dreamy and storybook-like all those years ago, but it was better this way.

Requests are open! FANDOM LIST | PROMPT LIST(S) | RULES (READ!!!)

[legolasghosty]

98 plz

Woohoo, start of chapter 6 baby!

“Okay so let me get this straight,” Bobby sighed, rubbing at his eyes as if that would help with all the salt water still dripping from his hair. “Your dead mom left you a supposedly dead robot, which is now not dead and is leading you on some kind of treasure hunt around the city?”

Julie winced. It sounded pretty insane when he put it like that. Though she could probably blame the expression on Alex’s fingers in her hair if anyone asked. Hey, he’d promised her braids and the way the strands were sticking to her neck was driving her crazy.

“Pretty much, yeah,” Luke answered. He was leaning back against one of the wooden pillars that supported the pier above them. He seemed way too awake and excited for what must be pushing 3 in the morning by now. “Cool, right?”

(Send me a number and I'll write that many words on my WIP and show you!)

[mouse-fantoms]

I WILL NEVER NOT GET OVER IT BC LOOK:

JULIE’S LOOK IS SO FABULOUS like the badazzled lil jacket that adds a bit of sparkle to the look and the way the cut of the dress is, is so cute on her and she of course has her lil sneakers WITH THE PURPLE LACES to match her purple dress we love the coordination.

PLUS!!! I will never get over how she has blue, pink and red strands braided into her hair on the braid side to signify the boys and the last time her hair was like was in I Got The Music when she was performing it in her daydream WHICH that song is all about how happy Julie is to have music back in life and she has the boy’s colors in her at that “performance” bc she already considers the boys to be intertwined in her life (*ahem* braided) even though she just met them, and in Stand Tall those strands are a homage to them bc they have helped her and each other so much since meeting one another and this is the last performance where (supposedly bc that’s what they think they need to do for the boys to cross over) they will be a band, she wears those strands to signify the impact they’ve had in her life in the short time they’ve known one other by being braided into her hair.

Also Caleb’s suits for the boys:

You have to admit the man has style when he dresses people. Like he knew what colors to put them in. Also the lil skull on Luke’s bow tie really fits for him bc we’ve seen previously the skull imagery he has on his shirts so idk that’s just kind of fun. I love too that when he forcibly poofed them not just in the suits but like made their hair look neater like he went “you guys are about to perform on my stage I need you boys to look your best���.

Also it was probably lucky that Caleb …kidnapped.. then and put them in these suits bc I mean… they probably didn’t have any fancy clothes with them at the garage so they probably would have just shown up to Orpheum in their normal clothes which would have made them underdressed compared to Julie (which I feel like they wouldn’t mind ya know).

But then their suits when they’re out of Caleb’s grasp:

It’s such an interesting detail to include the difference of how they’d wear the suits when they have control. Like how their hair when they’re on stage with Julie is now “messier” than what Caleb had for them bc they now have control over their own performance compared to before when Caleb made them perform for him. Their suits here, match more with their own style. Reggie’s suit without the jacket has those black sleeves which is reminiscent of his leather jacket, Luke ditches his suit jacket bc the vest underneath has no sleeves which is obviously his look (he also adds the tie… thing… on his bicep which is a piece of fabric he always has with him for every single one of his outfits (most of the time hanging out of his back pocket)), this is the only one I’m like really doing an over OVER analyzing of it bc I can’t think of any other reason to give to Alex’s suit look choice, Alex keeps his pink suit jacket bc it’s reminiscent of his pink hoodie and he unbuttons the white shirt bc it’s more his style to be comfy rather than put together.

I love their fits there’s a reason it’s my header 💀

I think we as a society got over how good the bands fits were in the last ep of Julie and the phantoms

[mahuhumaling]

JATP Season 2 Wishlist

that i wrote in my notes app back in:

and realized i never posted it here? tbf i'm rarely on tumblr. but because i really miss them rn i want to share my ✨ brainrot ✨ that i had back when i thought they were getting a renewal.

Carrie Wilson

she was my biggest flaw in Season 1. I wish her "redemption arc" is fleshed out more in Season 2; give her either more context & backstory to validate her reason for unnecessarily antagonizing Julie, or screentime to properly address how she's just projecting an emotion completely different into bitterness and anger into Julie's recovery

show particularly her earlier dynamic w/ Flynn and Julie? Maybe as Flynn calls her out, we'd get flashback glimpses prior to Rose's death (maybe even Double Trouble temporarily being Triple Threat 👉🏽👈🏽)

for some reason i'm picturing a scene where she's in her dance studio (she has one in their mansion, of course) practicing some of her Dirty Candy routine when she keeps messing up and not in the right mindset to keep dancing. i feel like the best (maybe easiest but whatever) way to guide the audience into her artist mind is to make her be a perfectionist. in frustration, she blows up for a minute before slumping onto the ground and reminisces her fun times with Julie & Flynn

also when you have her develop, please don't make her lose her femininity and the bubblegum pop music, it's great

Old Songs Resurfacing

it'll prove how detailed & thorough you are as a screenwriter if you pay off the songs mentioned in Season 1 in passing to be actual songs in Season 2

Unreleased: Get Lost, Long Weekend, Crooked Teeth, My Name is Luke, and if that riff from the scene in EP. 5 that spurred on the Bobby reveal isn't from one of these songs, add that too

Demo Album: Late Last Night, Lakeside Reflection, In Your Starlight

Willex

imagine your queer couple gets to have their first kiss first than your het main couple, not only will that settle Madi & Charlie's statements about being uncomfortable in doing a kissing scene and maintaining the priority of Juke's emotional over physical relationship, it would also make an powerful statement

Reggie's Character Arc

i know that he initially had an arc that involved a romance with Flynn but because of the ages of who they casted, they scrapped it and didn't have time to rewrite the scripts for him as filming neared, so they have time to adapt to how jeremy portrayed him for season 2: a lovable dork who craves familial love

since there's a possibility that lifers can now see the boys, maybe some found family trope for Reggie and Ray Molina?

he has pretty much formed a parasocial relationship with him at this point

so why not instead of a love interest, Reggie can have his character arc develop & we see his family before thru flashbacks and paralleling those in the current times because he sees Ray as a father figure

picture this: it's raining, Bobby opens the garage door to the sound of knocking, the boys find Reggie soaking wet and out of breath when he tries to say he doesn't know where else to go then the boys immediately figure out another fight in the Peters household happened. Reggie tries to talk again when Alex (because even though they're the airhead-sarcastic duo, they know they love each other) runs up to hug him and tells the other he doesn't have to say anything

cut to a freshly showered Reggie, quietly watching tv with Bobby, Luke, and Alex in the garage, eating whatever

also a solo acoustic country song, pls. just to make him happy

The Aftermath of the Deaths

for both the boys and Rose

we get parallels about how Bobby dealt with trauma and grief to Julie

like, the reason why the clothes are still in there (are to have costume changes for the boys) is because Bobby immediately moved out of the house (therefore also the garage) and left the clothes there because he couldn't bear to burn it, or visit the boys' houses to break the news to their families and return the clothes, or donate it somewhere so he just...left it. it would make for a more solid reason (for costume changes) and an emotional context as to how Bobby really tried to forget them because it was "easier."

it would also make sense why Carrie and Julie ended up friends. Rose probably was there for Bobby when they discovered what happened at the alleyway, so they stayed friends over the years and had their respective families but still kept in touch, (bonus points if absolutely nothing romantic happened between them! yay to normalizing platonic male-female relationships) and why Rose would immediately think of Bobby's three late bandmates to send for Julie when she was on her deathbed

Bobby never really "moved on" (because grief is a really complex thing). it's showed that he has a therapist and everything, and this could definitely have some aftereffects on his daughter. Carrie growing up seeing her father be this amazing rockstar but a negligent father and only showing love in ways she doesn't need (like riches and fame and connections to the music industry) because he's actually a really lonely man on the inside and no one can see that except for Bobby's spouse and Carrie. it'd explain why Carrie is spoiled, and other negative character traits that Carrie has on the surface

it's even why Bobby changed his name to Trevor: 1) Bobby is so closely associated to Sunset Curve and it's an absolute pain to be reminded of that every day, 2) it's a stage name and artists really do get that

More Worldbuilding

they already had some pretty creative concepts/ideas in the first season, so why not expand/expound on them a bit more

the instruments are attached to their souls that's why the boys at first can only touch them, like how Willie's skateboard and helmet are attached to him

which is why when they attach themselves to the world of the present, they gather up energy and focus on touching tangible things like the picture frame

this may follow the logic toward the end where they are finally able to touch Julie because she has become attached to their souls. emotionally.

More Creative Collaboration

i believe in the principle that when a story is finally released/published/told to the world, the world shares it. this is also visible in film/tv where when the scripts are finished and actors receive them, the story becomes part of theirs to work on. which means that they have some sort of autonomy over their characters' motivations, a chance to be heard of their ideas and pitches, and why some certain scenes wouldn't work, etc etc. it doesn't just become the director's story nor the screenwriters'.

the actors' ideas such as Perfect Harmony and their solos from Nothing to Lose are great because they let them in. they took risks, and it paid off incredibly well. more of that please. have them be a part of the writing process, (also the story), but never forget what made the music production great in the first place. be coherent and don't be like others that let too many hands work on one piece—it will lose its sound, its identity.

Julie Knowing

that Nick is possessed by Caleb. ohmygOD. hear me out.

the same S1 ending will play somewhere in 2x01, but it will be revealed that Julie was watching through the window the entire time and when she opens the door to receive the flowers, that last look she gives him is actually her scheming.

determined to get Nick back, imagine The Promised Neverland's level of mindgames Julie could play with Caleb because we already know our girl's smart

Free Willie Willie's Freedom

since the boys feel indebted to Willie's help, they insist on helping him too with getting rid of Caleb's stamp

maybe through his connection with Alex? or maybe Willie's family or friends who are still lifers (which is unlikely but either way). he needs to be saved !!

Song Sequences Ideas

juke counter melody duet like Rini's "Even When/The Best Part," Shane & Mitchie's "Wouldn't Change a Thing," or dodie & Jon Cozart's "a love song/a non love song"

emotional carrie ballad paired with lyrical hiphop choreo

willex song - i absolutely have no idea where this could go directionally but maybe alex on an acoustic guitar with a really soft sweet tune

reprises of S1 songs but in the complete opposite of their original style (the fandom's lonelier All Eyes on Me version, i see u)

nick guitar solo - just because Sacha actually plays, idk how it'd fit in to the plot yet but hey

Nothing to Lose (Reprise) - back in the '90s, a producer manipulates Bobby to sign a record deal to become a star but on one condition: disassociate himself with Sunset Curve, to which he first declines until he slowly gets persuaded. (sort of like Todrick Hall's So Lucky to Be You meets Lyn Lapid's Producer Man)

"So how about it, Bobby Shaw? Do we have a deal?"

"Trevor."

"I'm sorry?"

"Call me Trevor Wilson."

i'm pretty sure someone made an animatic with this idea too but i cannot for the life of me find it !!

7. Season 2 starts the same way as Season 1 does before the opening song plays

Black screen that reads a text "Hollywood 1995"

a pan down to the Orpheum's overhead sign that reads "SUNSET CURVE SOLD OUT"

cut to the interior with Rose finishing up her cleaning when a stage manager calls out: "Sunset Curve!" to which Bobby abruptly stops his pacing back and forth to look up. he and Rose look at each other. music swells until...

cut to him running onto the alleyway, "are they still not finished eating? those gluttons are dead to me i swear—" he cuts off his own words when he sees the boys getting dragged onto stretchers. but we, the audience, don't see it. just a close up of bobby as the ambulance lights reflects his face. rose comes up behind him, still clutching their t-shirt.

[i honestly have no idea if Bobby should get on stage because it just proves Luke's theory of The Orpheum's opening bands eventually becoming big & successful so it'll explain the Trevor Wilson fame even though at first he only did it for the boys, or if he shouldn't because according to the article Julie googled he ran away immediately after they were pronounced in the scene] but either way, this is how the opening starts.

then it progresses to Rose and Bobby respectively having children so they could parallel each other blah blah

8. Julie plays a simple song on the piano while the guys watch her in awe

Storytelling through Props

let's dive deep into Rose's luggage/suitcase and use the props to head for Julie's emotional attachment with them

they already did it with the wardrobe: Rose wears the black leather vest in the pilot while Julie wears the same thing in EP 6

add depth to the characters' relationships like us finding out Julie's multilayered necklace is actually a gift from Carrie or something

SOYON ANN YOU'RE A GIFT FROM GOD. Bobby's necklace is present in both young and old!him

**Rose in flashback scenes should be wearing clothes we've already seen Julie in Season 1 just for greater effect.

The Bobby Conflict

definitely needs to be brought up again by Season 2; they only discarded somewhere in the middle because more pressing matters like the boys' existence blipping away was pushed to the forefront of the story

however, The Bobby Conflict changes. it'll be cleared up that he was offered a record deal as a solo artist by a manipulative producer. and given that the poor boy is only 17 (too, maybe), he agrees. what he doesn't know is the contract's fine print: giving up Sunset Curve's royalties

that information clears it up to the audience and the band, so the conflict becomes this: Bobby's Survivor's Guilt. god wouldn't that be so good tackling that in a kids'/family show.

[chickwiththepurpleguitar]

Help me out y’all

Can’t promise this will work, but in my experience there’s nothing like other people’s expectations to get me out of a slump.

I’m trying to catch up on my 2024 goal of writing an average of 500 words each day. I’m currently caught up through November 27, which makes me 8,000 words behind, and I have 17,000 words to write before the end of the year. Ideally, I’d like to write 14,000 words by Christmas Day so that I only have to write 500 words each day while on vacation (cause somehow it’s way easier to read on vacation than write in my experience).

But I have no motivation or inspiration to work on any one project and my usual “quantity over quality” tricks aren’t working anymore. So that’s where you guys come in!

Please send me prompts! They can be as vague or specific as you like. They can be a pairing (romantic or platonic) and a word, a line of dialogue, an entire fleshed out concept, etc. Even better if you give me a desired word count to hit! I’ll write for Julie and the Phantoms or The Bright Sessions. I can also do crossovers between the two. Plus I have 4 main OCs I’ve been really vibing with (8 if you count the main characters of the novel I’ve been sort of writing forever) so let me know if you’d like to hear more about them and I can also use them to fill prompts/insert them into JATP or TBS fics/etc.

You guys have always been so awesome at helping me find more fun things to write, so I’d be really grateful if you could help me finish out this crazy goal! And obviously I’ll post whatever I write so you get to read :) asks and DMs always welcome if you want to discuss anything in detail! (And if you already sent me a prompt, I promise I’m working on those first).

Thank you so much in advance! Feel free to share.

[abloodycrow]

Could write paragraphs upon paragraphs of the costumes in JATP.

How once Julie's discovered her colour she starts wearing stuff that brings all of their colours together? The butterfly shirt, her jumper in Unsaid Emily.

The fact that purple is not only Julie's colour but it's also Caleb's colour, because the boys have those two as their options. Julie or Caleb.

The fact that the tiny blink and you miss it detail of Julie wearing the leather vest jacket in Finally Free being the one Rose wore in the first scene.

Luke's mom wearing blue when Julie visits them :)

I've already talked plenty about the boy's suits which I still love and adore.

[mouse-fantoms]

I’ve always thought of it as a couch that’s in an alleyway, especially bc of all those posters behind them advertising stuff (plus Luke’s own missing person poster) leads me to believe it’s in an alleyway. Also bc in that scene you can hear the street around them kind of clearly they must be a couple feet away from the street.

Plus also it must be an alleyway bc a bystander must have been the one to call an ambulance for them bc they realized these guys were not 😳 doing the best most likely

Okay this might sound stupid but I was rewatching Julie and the phantoms and I really wanna know where the guys died. Like they’re sitting on a couch eating hot dogs. Where is this couch. Are they in some type of building or do they just have a couch out in the alleyway. I’m so confused and I really need to figure it out for a fic I’m writing. Pls help

[innytoes]

Hehe, more jatp fai au thought?

Okay but The Boys Vs The Internet...

-Before Reggie got sucked into the fairy realm the internet was just starting to be big. You know homeboy went to the library and joined obscure Star Wars forums and webrings and such.

-Luke is not interested in the Internet and Computers. He is still getting used to the television. He has no use for MORE weird future things that involve screens. (Also google keeps passive-aggressively correcting his Ye Olde Spellinge with 'did you mean ...' and it annoys him.)

-That is until Carlos shows him how to find music on Youtube.

-He is VERY UPSET to learn that in Reggie's time there was a channel that played music videos all day but now it's mostly 'Reality TV'.

-Reality TV is not real reality. The future is weird and he's too scared to ask what a Snookie is.

-Alex likes watching dance things on The Internets, as well as soft-spoken ladies explaining how to make or bake or draw something. Just hearing soothing English helps him feel safe (he's not in the fae realm anymore) and nap.

-Willie, of course, is the first to discover what the Internet Is For. Aka funny cat videos and porn.

-He stalks up to Ray with the laptop he got the boys and plonks it down and accusingly says: YOU SAID PEOPLE DIDN'T DO REVELRIES HERE.

-On the screen there is an orgy playing. At top volume. Ray accidentally full-screens it while trying to turn it off.

-He has to have another very long talk with the boys about pornography, realistic expectations, exploitation, consent, privacy, internet safety, and how to avoid getting viruses. (Though his advice just kind of leans to 'just don't... please... for my sanity...')

-Willie is very concerned their computer can get sick and goes to the smartest people he knows (Flynn and Julie) to ask how he can look at The Pornography without getting the computer sick.

-Julie nopes right out of that conversation and Flynn cackles but does give him a quick rundown of 'don't click on that' and 'don't download random shit' and also 'the nice gentlemen wanting to chat with you just want your credit card details, you have enough pretty boys already'.

-Willie already knows giving out your name is a Bad Idea from living with the fae... not giving out his (non-existent) credit card details is not too hard.

[zerolostwalks]

Fic writer asks:

4, 11, 16, 24, 44, 70

(there are too many great questions!)

Thank you thank you! They are really good questions!! (found here)

Long post is long so there's a read more cut. (Question 16. (How many fic ideas are you nurturing right now? Share one of them?) gets especially long because I decided I want to discuss all my WIPs.)

4. Where do you find inspiration for new ideas?

This is a wonderful question, and honestly it depends. Some ideas definitely are me reading or watching something and forming an AU around that. Sometimes it's listening to music and a vibe strikes me that I am like I must write a story that fits this vibe. Other times, I'll be daydreaming and a single scene will pop into my mind and haunt me until I write it down which usually leads to creating the world and circumstances to allow that scene to happen. Sometimes I get an impulsive (in the cases of my darker angstier stuff intrusive thought) and my brain is like wouldn't that be messed up? (Like Crash Pad, Ch 11 solely happened because I built the backstory for the POV character and brain went, you know what't be really screwed up?)

11. Link your three favorite fics right now

Oh geez. But there are so many good fics!! At this moment the immediate top 3 that jumped in my head were:

-It's a supernatural delight by @invisibleraven (JatP fic) -Trip of My Life (Every Time You're Touching Me) by @daintyduck99 (JatP fic) -Prince Charming's Jacket by hitechlatte (Rise TMNT fic)

16. How many fic ideas are you nurturing right now? Share one of them?

So most of my fic ideas are in some WIP phase. (I'm serious when I saw I need a focus schedule to help me out) We Run Together - This next chapter is all Reggie being all anxiety riddled because Cam and Bobby take him shopping . . .still not sure if we're gonna get to the plane ride this chapter or next. Bobby's first since turning and Reggie's first period. . .it's a miserable affair for the two of them. I have this mental image of them during a layover just sprawled in the waiting away noses shoved in some sort of fast food bag or peppermint bag fighting off the queasiness of being trapped in a metal tube with a bunch of people, including young kids. . Hello Baby June, Goodbye Heart - I keep going back an reading what we have for the next chapter and all our notes. I don't know how much Ash is ok with me gushing about details bu I'll just say the stuff we've got planned it's literally that meme of "give me fic. 'you have to write it.' no write only fic." A lot of of my JatP wips are on rotisserie skewers in my brain right now, rotating, coming into view, reminding me of their presence, enticing me to work on them. And they ALL have moments that I am like, you were the scene! The reason I started this fic in the first place and I still haven't gotten to you yet!! . Crash and Burn - Gotta get through this last chapter of Crash Pad, which is gonna be fun. But then Glowing Embers!! Aaaah, the Donnie POV side of Crash Pad!! Especially Ch 9-11 of Crash Pad like I am at that point of must write this that I have worked myself into a frenzied state where writing is no longer possible . Finally the Donnie Double AU - This AU has so much angst potential. Right now I have two planned fics for it. An unnamed one where Mikey goes after the Donnie Duplicate to try and coax him back to the lair. Only instead he sets him off. And like I said, it gets angsty. The Donnie Duplicate 1000% believes he is OG Donnie, it is hardwired into him, no amount of evidence is going to convince him otherwise. Also hardwired into him is the belief that the only way to get his life back is to kill the entity that stole it from him i.e. OG Donnie. Which leads me to the second planned fic Meant to Be(working title, it may change). This is the reader insert(possibly OC) led fic. Essentially the premise is Donnie Duplicate runs into MC, and initially begins clinging to them out of an 'I just lost my entire support system' desperation that turns into a really unhealthy obsessive possessiveness. When I say it is pulling a lot of vibes, especially the planned ending, from Meant to be Yours from Heathers the Musical I ain't lying. In fact most of the vibe songs I am pulling for this lean into dark and angsty feels. Straight up have been listening to a song called Stalker's Tango on a loop for planning parts of this fic

24. Worst writing advice anyone ever gave you?

Hmmmmmm, this ones tough, if it was bad advice I most likely purged it from my mind. The thing is sometimes what is great advice for one person and their way of writing may be terrible advice for some one else. Like even the write daily advice, I think this is great advice. But it needs to be tailored to some extent. When I got back into fic writing I worked myself to the point where I am now needing to reevaluate my expectations of me and my writing. Because I can no longer keep up with the way I wrote a few years ago. The same advice I would have thought was great then would kill me now.

44. What mistakes do you keep making no matter how many times your beta corrects you?

This question would be easier if I had a regular beta XD. Personal mistake of my own that I keep noticing, I don't let the story breath enough.

70. When asked, are you embarrassed or enthusiastic to tell people that you write?

I have no hesitations telling people I write. I might not always discuss what the stories themselves are. But the brilliant thing about fanfiction is I don't have to, I can just talk about the joy of exploring the characters outside of canon, exploring how they would behave in different circumstances. At my sister's wedding a couple years ago, most people didn't even care about the what I was writing, more on the how I found the time. Because this was when I was in peak production mode, where I was slowly burning myself out with the sheer amount of writing I was doing without pacing myself at all.

[zresources]

yet another gif coloring tutorial

Okay, so, I posted a coloring tutorial for one of my moots a few years ago on my main, @zackmartin (I believe I've since deleted it) but that was the technique I was using when I started making gifs 7ish years ago, and I’ve since updated my routine so I decided to post a new tutorial with my new technique.

I'm going to show you how I achieved this:

I'm using Photoshop for this. I'll try to make this as detailed as possible so it's beginner-friendly, but you do at least need to know how to make and export a gif. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out! just be aware, this tutorial really image-heavy

A few notes before I begin: 1) this is like, the bare minimum most basic way to color a gif. This is what I’d be doing if I was giffing a scene and that’s it. If you’re interested in different coloring styles (like my suite life episode series) then let me know! 2) When coloring gifs with POC, you need to make sure not to change their skin color by making them too light, too orange, too yellow etc. The JATP source blog posted a masterpost of different tutorials to teach you how to color gifs in different ways (like with the pastel coloring for instance) without whitewashing/orangewashing POC. But, honestly there’s a ton of tutorials out there that show you how to avoid this if you do a little digging. NO EXCUSES! 

Anyway, let's get started! Before I do the coloring, I ofc make my gif, crop it, set the frame rate, resize, and sharpen. (you can find my sharpening tutorial HERE)

I. BRIGHTENING

(as a quick note, I don't focus much on London's skin tone during this stage, because I'm going to fix it during later steps)

The first thing I do is white balance using a curves layer. To do this, I click the little circle thing in the toolbar below the layers, and then click curves like so (you'll do this every time you want to add a new layer):

And then I click the bottom eyedropper tool on the left-hand side:

Then I click the lightest white part of the gif. (I’m not sure how to explain this well, but it basically white balances that spot to make it pure white. Like, if I clicked on the gold part of London's bracelet, then the whole gif would turn out really blue because it would be trying to white balance the gold) (hopefully that makes at least a little bit of sense)

Anyway, there’s a trick I use to find the lightest part of the gif; hold down the option key (or alt if you’re on windows) and while you’re holding down the option key, drag the little white arrow on the right-hand side:

(i apologize for the quality of the screenshots, tumblr keeps destroying them :/ let me know if I need to clarify anything)

Then I use another curves layer to do the same thing with but with the blacks. So, I add another curves layer, and then click the eyedropper tool at the top this time:

And then I click the darkest, black part of the gif. You can use the same trick by holding the option/alt key and dragging the triangle on the left-hand side:

Next, I add a levels layer. I drag the middle lever thing to the left, and the left lever to the right. (I don’t usually touch the little lever thing on the far-right, but it’s really up to personal preference. I learned to color gifs by basically messing around with settings, so I’d recommend doing the same and just seeing what you like best):

Finally, if I want to go even brighter, I usually add a brightness/contrast layer. I typically turn up the brightness a bit, and turn down the contrast. But, since I brightened a lot with the curves and levels, I usually don’t go that far. These were the settings I used for this particular gif (even though I'm going to share most of the settings that I used, I wouldn't recommend using the exact same ones on your own gif as it'll really depend on the scene you're using):

II. VIBRANCE

Now I add a vibrance layer. I like my gifs to be bright and vibrant, so I usually turn up the vibrance, and turn down the saturation a bit. These are the settings I used for this particular gif:

And this is what the gif looks like so far with just brightening it up a bit and adding vibrance (it might look a bit too bright right now, but I'm going to fix that in later steps):

III. SELECTIVE COLOR

Now, I add a selective color layer. The reds and yellows typically affect skin tones, so this is where I'll start to fix London's. These are the settings I used for this gif (I usually wouldn't change all of the colors, but this is just one of those situations where they happened to be present in the scene I'm giffing):

IV. HUE/SATURATION

now I add a hue/saturation layer. I typically turn up the master saturation to +10 and the lightness between +3 - +5 regardless of the gif. Then if I still need to fix skin tones, I'll mess around with the reds and yellows. These are the settings I used:

V. PHOTO FILTER

Next, I add a photo filter. I usually stick with the default one, I keep the layer set to normal, and I turn the opacity down to 25%:

VI. B&W GRADIENT MAP

finally, I add a black & white gradient map, and I click the little box to reverse it:

Then I set the layer to soft light and I turn the opacity down, between 10% - 20% depending on the gif:

A lot of times, I'll stop here. If I'm satisfied with the way the gif looks, and London's skin isn't too pale/orange/yellow etc, then I could just add my watermark, export and be done. But, there a few other optional steps I might take if I'm still not quite happy with it.

VII. OPTIONAL

Usually the next thing I'll add if I've decided to keep going is a color balance layer. It obviously does as it says, helps balance out the colors, but some gifmakers also like their gifs to have like, a reddish tint or a bluish tint or what have you, so this can help with that too. I wanted to balance out the reddish/yellowish tint, so these are the settings I used:

and this was the gif before the color balance:

and after:

And if I want to play around with the colors a bit more, or fix the skin tones further, I might add another selective color layer or a hue/saturation layer (or both, depending).

Rarely, I might add an exposure layer. (I added one to this gif for the purposes of this tutorial). These are the settings I used for that:

And if the gif came out a bit too bright, I might add another brightness/contrast layer, except this time I would turn down the brightness and turn up the contrast (again, I did that with this gif for the purposes of this tutorial).

And, that's pretty much it! This is my finished gif!

Like I said earlier, I pretty much learned how to color by messing around in photoshop, so I would really recommend playing with the different layers and settings for yourself, as well as checking out other coloring tutorials and other gifmakers methods and see what you like and what you don't. And finally, the best thing you can do is just,,, practice. I've been gifmaking for about seven years, but I feel like I didn't really become decent at it until this year

Again, If you have any questions let me know! and feel free to tag me in your creations! #userzackmartin 💕