#just sci-fi stories like that are my thing-

[dimetrodone]

I know you're pretty familiar with a lot of guys on here, what Tumblr blogs would you recommend for reading alien worldbuilding? I'm looking for inspo for my own stories, thank you!

I’m very biased since they are my friends, but @jayrockin @iguanodont and @charseraph have some of my favourite alien stuff on this site.

I do strongly recommend not just looking at their work for ideas for how to write or come up with aliens tho. Nothing wrong with inspiration, but try to take inspiration from a wide amount of places. Look into scifi fiction books or games or movies with a wide range of takes on the topic, even sci fi with “boring” human-like aliens can still be full of interesting ideas it explores. Take inspiration from things that arnt just science fiction, a lot of great sci fi bleeds into other genres. Research the subjects you want to explore, whether that be biology, or history or engineering or chemistry or physics.

As someone with a biology bias myself, try to look into a wide variety of organisms to take ideas from rather than exclusively sticking to popular tetrapods or the occasional cephalopod and hymenopteran for ideas. Even something “boring” like red algae you will find exciting things like needing to go through 3 different cycling generations to reproduce. You don’t even need to make alien red algae, there is nothing to stop you from making a species of alien cat-lizards or something that just happens to have a 3 part alternation of generations.

The more you learn about nature the funkier you can mash bits and parts of it together.

[agalychnisspranneusroseus]

Insane how long the plugs are like those things are going into her BONES. Not literally bc what use would that have, but she definitely has ports and stuff in there, possibly connected to her nervous system. Gosh this kid is the definition of whump.

I legit can't stop thinking about the implications of what the core did to Marcy's body and how that is likely to do irreversible things that she will be affected by for the rest of her life. Like obviously the mental scars alone will be devastating, but I can't stop thinking about how the human body is just. Not compatible with being the host of an ancient being. Along with the fact that she was 13 years old and her body wasn't even done growing. And we still have no real idea what happened to her while she was possessed, because I doubt the core would stop whatever actions it was doing when Marcy's body felt pain or exhaustion. She was stabbed through the chest, kept in a tank for a long time, forced out, put in an electric chair to force the ancient being into her brain, and then had her brain and body modified to accommodate it. I understand the tank probably healed her a bit and she had the strength of her calamity gem, but genuinely there is no way she just walked away from all that and was physically fine. Disabled Marcy is REAL

[ckret2]

Seeing tidbits about this character called VENDOR in your asks and while I know nothing about THEM, I do wonder why THEIR pronouns are THEY and not IT?

(I just know that I leap at the chance to give artificial/manufactured sentient creatures it/its pronouns as a little extra oomph of alien-ness, another step of removal from what most sentient creatures recognize as identity. So maybe I should answer my own question and say 'personal taste')

(Also any news on updates for the Ao3 version? I'm an Ao3-only goober I'm sorry if you've answered this question before)

I have another nonhuman character in the same plot arc who uses it/its pronouns—a sentient storm cloud—and it got added to the story first so I gave it pronouns first. And I wanted to shuffle up which pronouns each character uses, so the next genderless character that showed up got they/them.

I had to write the plot arc I'm currently posting to tumblr out of order—usually I'm 15+ chapters ahead of what I've posted, but my plans for this plot arc were completely upended by TBOB (it's a plot about the aftermath of the massacre of Bill's dimension, so like, you can imagine how it'd be really easy for TBOB to upset things), which means instead of writing chapters 15 weeks ahead, I'm writing them like 1 week ahead and editing them like 2 days ahead. Also, this plot arc has a lot of convoluted sci-fi worldbuilding and politics, and writing it has felt like trying to give birth to a Jeep.

So because of this plot arc specifically, there's no spare time left in my life to edit chapters for AO3. So unfortunately it's probably gonna be a few more weeks. Once I'm back to chapters I've already written, I hope to have time to edit and post to AO3 again.

[sapphicflower-ao3]

what are ur personal favorite fics? i can be a bit picky and have a hard time finding fics but i love ur writing and i feel like we might have similar tastes based on that :3

i'm sorry it took me like a week to get to this!! i wanted to compile my faves and write notes for each of them... and i went overboard LOL. but thanks so much omg, i'm flattered that you would trust my taste based on my writing!

these are all bkdk obviously :)

i. 'In Case of Fire' - passengerside

post-canon // complete // 11K // E

an absolute MASTERPIECE!!! this author has become a recent favourite of mine, i love the way they incorporate little details into their work and make the mundane so beautiful.

highly recommend all of their other works, especially 'Pacemaker'! so freaking beautiful and fun and the lead up to the confession was a genuine holding-my-breath moment

ii. 'Sun Hands' - yesthisisnarumi

snowboarding AU // complete // 5K // T

i've re-read this one so many times it's SOOOOO good! so fun and so classically bkdk it's insane. everybody say thank you OP for giving us the rival olympic champions to lovers story we needed

iii. 'all that you ever wanted from me was sweet nothing' - maxisnotokay

UA compliant // complete // 11K // T

i dont usually read a lot of whump but this was brilliant, im a sucker for this specific trope and for LOVE CONFESSIONS YEASS!!! obvi it has a happy ending bc i wouldnt have it any other way. a good length too :)

iv. 'Spinnin' On Our Feet' - sage_and_cinnamon

High School AU // ongoing // 47K // M

UNDERRATED AS FUCK and my favourite ongoing fic right now. i usually dont read jock x nerd AUs but this fic is so brilliantly funny and charming and heartwarming and it blew all my expectations out of the water and then some. i've been following it for ages and it's been on hiatus for a good while, but it updated recently and when i tell you it was the best day of my freaking life...

v. 'In Perfect Rhythm' - chalk

Band AU // complete // 50K // E

yes how surprising, a band AU fic in my faves list. anyway shut up, chalk is literally godlike in their writing and this fic was SO FUN and scratched all the itches. nothing gets me going more than awkwardly endearing izuku n rockstar katsuki

vi. 'Last Days of War' - antisora

Pacific Rim AU // complete // 44K // M

GENUINELY ONE OF HUMANITY'S BEST PIECES OF LITERATURE???? fuck. i never have the proper words for this fic, but it is SO gripping and the worldbuilding is so tight and their relationship development is so good and the CLIMAX OF THIS HAS BEEN MORE EPIC THAN HALF THE BLOCKBUSTERS I'VE SEEN. i beg you to read this even if you have never watched Pacific Rim. or maybe go watch the movie and get EDUCATED and then read this! i'm begging you, dear reader!!

vii. 'Ingenium' - crandberrycrush

Astronauts AU // complete // 85K // E

guys i love sci-fi sorry lol. this one is another brilliant fic. OP put so much blood, sweat and tears into research and it shows, it is just very intelligent and the plot itself is HEART RACING and GUTTING and THRILLING. there's a lot of POVs and it really fleshes it out, tho ofc bkdk is the main thing. happy ending obvi! it is the space/astronaut drama that i love and adore, just BKDKified now!

viii. 'The Magic in a Mirror' - totallyrottentomatoes

Magic/Circus AU // complete // 80K // E

oh how surprising, a totallyrottentomaoes fic in my faves list. anyone who knows me knows that i rec this fic all the time. it's one of my all time favourites, if not my favourite of all time lol, and it's really because of the writing and the imagery and the characterisation and the relationships b/w all the characters. it's all just so well done and MAGICAL. no joke, if i could print and bind a fic into a book, it would be this one. no notes. perfection. caters to my tastes so specifically. i could go on about this fic forever but i'll shut up for now

also highly recommend 'The Distance Between Suns' by this author - it's a high fantasy epic with TIGHT AS FUCK worldbuilding, brilliantly written, the romance is BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN, the payoffs are amazing, etc... this deserves to be published and revered

ix. 'Battle of the Bands' - roadtripwithlucifer

Band AU // complete // 168K // E

look i know i always rec this fic, i just can't help that it's like my favourite thing ever. roadtripwithlucifer and totallyrottentomatoes my BELOVEDS. the humour in this fic is so fucking yummy and brilliant, the writing is gorgeous in typical roadtrip fashion, the stakes are gripping, the climax is thrilling, the romance n yearning is INTENSE, the sex is hot as hell, the ending is so satisfying, just..... the whole package.

and while you're here, read other roadtripwithlucifer works like 'Nothing Else Fills' if you feel like destroying your heart :) an angsty and beautifully written time-travel-to-save-my-kacchan-gone-wrong war AU fic. i love OP's works but her more recent fics (eg. after battle of the bands) have had some of her best writing. i adore it when you can feel how an author has poured their soul into their work, you can always feel it in a roadtripwithlucifer work and it's just the cherry on top

x. 'Scar Tissue' - Loriqod

canon-compliant // complete // 18K // E

loriqod is another author with a characterisation that i fuck with so hard... this one was so full of that Yearning and Tension that i so vibe with. bonus points to the plots focus on bkdk's scars like yes pls more of that <3

anyway i might make a part 2 some other time, these are just the ones i grabbed from my public bookmarks. i have a lot of private ones and some of them i forgot to make public oops

hope u find smth u enjoy!

[writeouswriter]

I love how ominous such basic names like "The Organization" or "The Institute" or "The Initiative" or "The Facility" or etc. are when placed in like a shady sci-fi context, like there's no reason for them to sound that suspicious, but without elaboration, it's like here is a place where they are doing things™ and I am like ooohh, because the blank state, the refusal to give you any more detail makes you think they're hiding something on purpose and leaves the darkest corner of the imagination left to fill in the rest.

[antianakin]

It's really depressing that the only real Jedi centric and Jedi positive show in existence is written for preschoolers, while many of the more "adult" shows are edgy and about morally ambiguous or straight-up evil characters. As if lessons about being kind and selfless are somehow not important or relevant to adults just as much if not more than they are to children.

It feels like characters who are unambiguously good are seen as only enjoyable by the very young and adult viewers will only actually appreciate characters who are cruel and selfish (and the requisite "tragic backstory" that always goes with it to help excuse their cruel and selfish choices).

It's just really sad and disappointing.

[rowanisawriter]

wip wednesday

thanks @swordbisexual i’m going to inflict original work upon you… ok technically it is bible fanfic, some adam and eve type of short story with a horror twist, but it’s original too………… omg … sorry……….. @carnalapples @shadoedseptmbr @giliath @bharv let’s see what you’re working on no pressure….

.

The request is to awaken. She hears it like a whisper in her ear. One moment, there is nothing, just an echoing blackness that is comforting. And then, she opens her eyes and looks down at her reflection in a pool of water.

These are the details: there is a pool of water. There is a reflection in it. Eyes and a nose and a mouth. Hair that falls around the shoulders, long and curly and brown with dimensions, many browns, many curls. Bare shoulders, a soft curve to them, a narrowness. She leans forward to see more. Hair falls down over the chest. Skin is like bronze. Hands are flat against the ground before the pool, fingers threaded through long blades of grass that shoot up and out of powdery soil. She lifts one hand and looks at the palm, then at the nails, curved and a little long, and very clean despite the darkness of the soil at her knees.

“Very pretty,” a voice says, different from the voice that woke her up. There’s a man behind her, watching her watch herself.

“Thank you,” she says. The words materialize in her mouth. She lets them out without hesitation. She has no reason to hesitate.

[azure-clockwork]

How Does it Feel to Read Classic Sci-Fi?

Orson Scott Card: Two of the most interesting books you’ll ever read if you’re willing to look past a handful of things. And then you find the planet of Chinese people who worship having debilitating OCD. And the Mormonism. And the fact that the author is wildly homophobic and ought to read his own books.

Robert Heinlein (or at least the Wikipedia Summaries): I guess that’s a neat concept—oh, it’s a sex thing. Um. Gotcha.

Ray Bradbury: Man, I gotta read this thing for class huh. Well here’s hoping it’s good! *three hours later* oh. that’s why he’s famous. this will stick with me forever and I will never look at the phrase ‘soft rain’ the same again. christ. And then repeat 3x.

Isaac Asimov: Wow, this is such an interesting concept! I wonder how the exploration of it will influence the plot! Wait, hey, are you going to add any characters? Any of em? No like, with character traits other than ‘robot psychologist’ and ‘autistic’ and ‘woman’? None of em? No, ‘detective’ isn’t a character trait. Those are all just facts. Aaaand now I’m bored.

Ursula K. Le Guin: Hah, get a load of this guy! He’s never heard of nonbinary people before. Lol, what a riot; how dumb do you have to be to comprehend that these people aren’t men *or* women actually? Oh, wait, what’s happening. Oh shit, it was about society and love and learning to understand each other? And now I’m crying? And perhaps a better human being for it??

Andy Weir: Alright, this guy’s a really good writer. Funny, creative, knows so much engineering stuff…ooh, a new book! …I guess he can’t write women. Well, he wouldn’t be the first sci-fi writer…ooh another new book! And it’s more engineering problem solving and—wow. It’s not just women he can’t write. Please stop letting your characters talk to each other.

Lois Lowry: Oh, I remember this being fun when I was a kid! Wouldn’t it be fucked up to not see color? …upon reread, it would be fucked up to have your humanity stripped away, replaced with a tepid, beige ‘happiness’ for all time. Yeah.

Tamsyn Muir (let me have this ok): Haha, “lesbian necromancers in space” sounds fun. Lemme read this. Oh wow, yeah, this is right up my alley. OH GOD WHAT. NO. FUCK. OH SHIT WHAT IS EVEN HAPPENING AND WHY IS IT REFERENCING THE BOOK OF RUTH AND HOMESTUCK BACK TO BACK!!! AHHHHHHHHH!! Now give me more please.

[telesodalite]

With Krok now on my mind, it's reminded me of like, the whole deal of him coping with the loss of his squad by believing they'd just become separated? Because that bit is such a fascinating aspect of his character to me.

It's vague in a way that doesn't totally confirm whether he truly 100% deluded himself, or if he just kept telling himself that to try and distract from the truth and memories he didn't want to face.

(Which, for some reason this pisses Misfire off? Which implies something really interesting there about Misfire and his own coping mechanisms and issues that we don't get much of a peer into unfortunately.)

Anyway, I spent way too long thinking about it when I was reading through the comics. And it's like, did studying battles and strategy play a part in this delusion/lie?

Like, you're a being that lives for millions of years, in the middle of a war spanning those millions of years. So, at some point, surely those battles are going to start to blur together. So you've got that, and then you go and face a frankly horrifically traumatic fight that quite literally rips the people you cared about most, and felt responsible for, apart.

Presumably, Decepticons aren't the greatest at handling shell shock and other such side effects of war. So they just take this freshly traumatized mess of a dude, take him off the front lines and plant him on a warworld to aid the fight from a more comfortable distance.

With all this, the mind is bound to be fickle when faced with such sudden loss and change. But Krok obviously did his job there, or at least he was very knowledgeable on history and tactics beforehand.

Either way, he studied battle after battle, went through records of fight after fight, planned for what's next and reconsidered what had already happened. Hundreds of wins and losses.

So did it get jumbled there? In having a head full of battles, did some of them blur and mix with the one that took everything away from him? In trying to solve the failures of past battles, did he try and find where a victory could've been had against the wreckers that day? Did he find a solution that would've had his squad still whole and alive?

From there, did it slip into delusion, or a desperate lie to keep himself going?

I feel like his "mental health matters" moment was an interesting insight into it and possibly the average soldier's rough outlook on trauma. But it was still very surface level I think, but I guess going too deep into the why's and how's wouldn't have been important until maybe the Scavenger centric comics that uh, never happened :/

[oopsallmabari]

sorry i'm gonna whine on combat some more (acknowledgment that this is a me thing) also assuming based on this that we won't be able to control companion actions during fights? like. for the new type of combat does it make sense to only/mostly rely on NPC AI for fighting and hopefully that does help me if i SUCK ASS at combat but. :( i liked the prev games' combat mostly because i could usually auto-hit in some fashion it was just a matter of me being strategic about technique and insta-pausing to reassess/move out the way

there is at least some combat pausing for rook and i'll def reserve final judgment till i play i just. what if we made video games for people like me who like story but are bad at gaming :((((

[wickedhawtwexler]

yeah it's important to create a character who's flawed but likeable, realistic, interesting, dynamic, etc. but the most important part of creating a character is asking yourself: will the people of www.tumblr.com go insane about them?

[pcktknife]

I'm curious, what are your thoughts on honkai star rail?

i dont like it as much as genshin but i think its funnier than genshin also theres a little rabbit conductor on a space train so it gets points for that Also also kafka and natasha are hot

[meat-pvppet]

Sigh starts writing a story with demon characters and hell as a setting with worldbuilding based on demonology

[themidnightcircusshow]

@heartofstanding tagged me in this meme months ago and unfortunately it took me this long to get to it because I had a mild crisis over how long it's been since I've read a novel, let alone one that I loved 😅 so this is nine of my favourite novels (not books, because if I included manga/short stories/comics/etc this would be giant)

0The Picture of Dorian Gray -- Oscar Wilde// Pyrrhus-- Mark Merlis//The Scarecrow--Ronald Hugh Morrieson//Unnatural History--Kate Osman//Tunnels of Blood--Darren Shan//The Coffin Dancer--Jeffery Deaver//Hero--Perry Moore//Frankenstein--Mary Shelley//One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest-- Ken Kasey

[courageisneverforgotten]

snow white looks bad this, moana 2 that. the real question is who in the world wanted a live action mufasa or lilo and stitch movie

[smol-blue-bird]

my toxic trait is that I have about eleven thousand story ideas bouncing around my head at any given time, but I'm never happy with anything I write, so most of them just die in my documents folder