#just to. suggest the idea of a dialogue. but i don't really enjoy writing comics with text very much.

[theokusgallery]

now how about pet names they use 🥺 (referring to nick and sunny)

im assuming that nick uses them at least a little based off one of your comics

That IS a thing I've thought about before ! A lot !! Unfortunately I don't draw a lot of comics and therefore there aren't many written traces of the way Nick or Sunny talk — Tosteur (@tosteur-gluteal) has drawn a bunch of Arsenic-related comics, though, and since we talk about Nick a lot he tends to be very accurate with characterization :] You'll find them if you scroll down the '#fanart' tag

Nick tends to use kind of old-timey or formal nicknames. The way he talks in general is very formal, so sometimes he might sound like he's straight out of a Jane Austen novel when just... talking casually in practice. He calls Sunny things like dear, sweetheart (sunshine is an obvious one), love... But you won't catch him dead calling Sunny "babe"

Nick uses a lot of nicknames and pet names and tends to use them more than the person's actual name (most of the time it's because he doesn't care for the person, only for the abstract concept of a lover). He calls Sunny "dear" more than he calls him Sunny, on average, though it's not like he never uses his name, either.

Sunny's more of a nickname person himself, rather than a pet name person. The name "Nick", or even "Arsenic", is kinda his thing at the start, since Nick went by Basil before meeting him. Sunny's not a very verbally affectionate person, so he doesn't tend to use pet names very often, and when he does, he feels quite awkward about it.

[rebouks]

Hello! Do you have any suggestion for someone who wants to start storytelling on simblr? Thank you <3

Hiii nonny! I'm a lil honoured you'd ask me this ngl 😳 Have some rambling advice ❤ (using the word advice lightly here - please believe me when I say I'm winging it)

General writing advice:

DO THE THING! Seriously, just start!

Tell your story because you enjoy it. If you're not enjoying it, think about why n' switch it up.

Try and avoid comparing yourself to others. Easier said than done, but it'll only lead to self doubt and demotivation, so quit it!

Personally, I'm not a planner.. but it can be useful to have something set out to begin with, even if it's as simple as an idea or a basic beginning/middle/end kinda deal.

Any writing advice you come across out there is simply that, advice. Take it with a grain of salt and just do you.

Give your characters depth. No one's perfect, and we're certainly not black and white. We all make questionable decisions sometimes, but we're not defined by singular actions. A villain and a hero are equally boring without a decent backstory. Maybe it's not your thing, or it's boring.. but digging into psychology can really help with this one. I kinda find it interesting anyway ¯\(°_o)/¯

Regarding the above and backstories, don't bore everyone by spelling it out at the beginning.. we probably don't need to know. Drip feed us it bit by bit so we can figure out the why and the how behind every character slowly, it's way more interesting and engaging. No one needs to know all the facts from the get go.

Think about the why behind everything. Say someone steals some money, why did they do it? Did they have no choice? Was it to feed their family, or their drug habit? How does that make them feel? Were they bullied or forced into doing it? Did they do it for the thrill, if so.. why do they need that rush? So and so hates the snow, why? Do they just prefer warm weather? Does it make it harder for them to do what they enjoy? A bad experience? Why why why, all the time!

This one's gonna sound a bit weird, but bare with me here. Try and think in terms of but and consequently, instead of and then. For example.. X happens, consequently Y happens. Or your character was gonna do X but Y happened so consequently they've gotta do Z instead. It makes for a more interesting set up rather than a bunch of scenes with little correlation. A happens and then B and then C etc etc.. boring! Consequences have actions!

Similarly to the above, don't rush! Sometimes X and Y have to happen before we get to Z. Take romance for example, we all love a good slow burn. Those big pay off scenes are worth a little patience.

If you're having trouble piecing things together, try and keep the above two points in mind. If you need to get to Z but don't know how, just think about what has to happen before you can get there.. aka X/Y. I do this one all the time because I don't plan much.. so I'll get an idea but I'll have to piece together a bunch of other shit happening in the background first before it makes sense to end up there, y'know?

Split your story up into chapters/arcs, especially if it's a big 'un! It'll make it easier to plan/manage.

Don't worry about plot holes too much. Planning can help you avoid 'em but meh, you can always figure out a way to explain or cover 'em up later.

General Tumblr advice:

Okay, so first things first (I know, I know.. it's been said a million times and it's bleh but) you've gotta do it for you. Make a story YOU want to tell in YOUR way. Screenies and dialogue, sure! No dialogue? Sure! A few screenies and a bunch of prose underneath, sure! Comic/manga style? SURE! Do whatever you want, it's your hobby. It's SO important that you're enjoying yourself, whatever you decide to do.

DO THE THING! (again ahaa) Try not to hesitate or worry about what people may or may not think. I know it's hard putting your shit out there and you might be insecure, but take the leap! It'll be worth it.

If you want engagement (ew - I hate this word lmaoo but this is social media after all) you've gotta give what you take. Other people enjoy you interacting with their stories and characters just as much as you do.

Notes matter.. we wouldn't be putting our shit out here if they didn't, but try not too get to hung up on them, especially not at first. You might be shouting into the void for a while; it can take time for people to find your stuff (that's where the above comes in ⚆_⚆) Also take quality over quantity, it's always nice to have a few avid readers/commenters/mutuals.. and they will come!

Have fun and be awesome!

[grogusmum]

You know how some museums (especially small ones) only ask for a donation. They suggest the amount that would help them best keep the lights on, pay everyone who needs paying and grow, if everyone who came in gave it...

but you can choose to give less or more, or nothing at all. We assume that those who don't give any or much have circumstances that make it such... because if they could support something they use and value, they would, right? Not to would be shitty. Because if everyone had that attitude, the doors would eventually close, or the museum's ability to put up new exhibits would dry up.

Did you know that it can be true that creators need to remember that they create for the joy of creating AND that interactions with those that consume those creations inspire more creating, at the very same time?

That our value isn't the tally of our followers or notes and at the exact same time, and it is good form for those that consume our creations to show that we are valued by them when they interact (especially reblogging since that is how posts thrive on Tumblr).

There are definitely note and follower counters out there. But I am telling you, every writer, artist, blogger, gif maker, etc that I know is interested in engagement for two reasons, and it's not to have the most notes, it's because we are a community. They want to talk about their art, and they don't want it to languish unseen or unread.

We are brimming with thoughts and ideas, bits of story that didn't make it into the final draft, and inspiration for a comic or drawing that we are dying to be asked about. More than praise, we want to know what hit your heart just right. What made you laugh. Cry. Yearn.

I write for myself, sure, but I remember who enjoys certain fics and think of them when I am writing the next chapter or one shot with their favorite character. I smile when I come upon some dialogue this reader will think is funny, or when I happen on a part that will make that reader melt...

This is why I share it with folks. Otherwise, it can just stay in my docs, or journal, or whatever, and I wouldn't worry about grammar or spelling or describing a place I know by heart or if I use a word redundantly...

We tell a story for ourselves... but we edit for our readers, making sure they picture it as closely to the way we imagine it. Getting the story down takes time, and one can argue that's time for you as it is your hobby, and remembering this makes writing a joy... but editing several times over (and still having mistakes, I know I know, sue me) this takes time, that is not a hobby. I am not an editor hobbyist. Formating it for Tumblr- adding warnings and word counts, tagging readers, etc. takes time, which is also not really part of the hobby. We don't "owe it to readers" but we do it to make it reader-friendly.

Please think about how you donate to your creators. The suggested donation is reblogging. Likes are appreciated, and comments help us grow.

[whatyoufish4]

I don't think I sent you any of these already? If I did...lol sorry for bombarding you. iron man 2, doctor strange, loki for the mcu asks 😊

Yay, thank you for the prompts!  :)

iron man 2 - are you a secret fan or does everyone know you love marvel?

It's pretty widely known amongst my family, friends, and even co-workers that I'm a comic book/superhero movie fan -- and if they know Marvel well enough to know the characters, they do know I'm a fan of Loki specifically. Even at work -- I'll wear (more subtle) Loki t-shirts to the office, and I've used the Loki helmet cut-out as my user icon on more than a few work accounts, among other things.

I do think that the *degree* of my fandom is something that is a little more under wraps. Only two of my non-internet friends know I write Loki fanfic, for instance (and one of those two is my mum!); and I've talked about why I love the character with good friends, but never with casual friends or co-workers. I tend to be a bit shy about delving into why or how much I love the Stories I love in offline situations.

In this regard, it's odd to have the "Loki" series on the horizon. I've chatted with co-workers for years about Marvel releases, because a fair few of said co-workers at least casually enjoy the films -- but because Loki has always been a secondary character, there's never been much to say about the character specifically when conversing with casual fans. It's so WEIRD to me to think that we are a month away from co-worker acquaintances coming up to me to ask me what I think about the new Loki episode, lol.

doctor strange - describe the process that leads up to publishing your fics. do you outline the whole thing? obsessively edit it? create moodboards?

I discovered early on that I am a writer who needs to outline. How I outline, or how much, tends to vary; for short fics, it's often just a mental outline of what specific scenes will unfold. 

With In Time -- the longest complete story I've ever written -- I had a half-a-page written outline that covered the story’s set-up, the three tasks, and the ending scene. This almost got me into trouble; it took me four or six weeks to get the second task written, because my only outline notes were, "Loki loses his memories of the past four years and has regressed to his TDW personality" and I went from being SUPER EXCITED to get to write that version of the character, to really struggling to figure out what, y'know, should HAPPEN. (But it all worked out; I ended up really liking that section. ;-D) 

For longer stories (especially multi-installment chapter fics), I’ll vacillate between written outlines (The Call) and just a sort of “each chapter will deal with this problem” mental outline (I'm Here). But there's always some kind of pre-decided framework, because otherwise I just sit and write dialogue that doesn't advance the plot and leaves me spinning my wheels.

I've been really struggling for the past year to finish projects; I'm having trouble shutting up my Internal Critic long enough to ever finish anything. At my mum's suggestion, I've started working on projects for just my own enjoyment, without worrying about it one day seeing the light of day. (If nothing else, this is allowing me to have fun letting my angst flag fly. XD)  Doing so has seen me fall back on my old RPing writing style, which is to plot out and visualize the next scene in my head before writing it down, but otherwise letting the story take me where it will, a section at a time. It'll be interesting if that turns out to result in coherent plot lines, because dang, I’m having a lot of fun with it. :)

(P.S. I really love the idea of doing a moodboard for my fics; I oughtta try that sometime ...)

loki - what’s the most outlandish (or it could just be your favorite) au you’ve ever read/wanted to write/thought of?

I suspect my "Loki and Thor become vampires" fic is probably my most outlandish AU (I’m still not 100% convinced it’s a sensible story; but man, would the idea not leave me alone) ... but my personal favorite is definitely my "Loki and Thor become pirates" AU. I toy every once in awhile with doing another installment to that one. ;D

MCU Fanfiction Ask Game!

[chunsoftie]

#1 2 3 5 9 11 13 for Fanfic Day Meme unless you don't wanna write that much in which case do what your body tells you

Thanks for the ask! Sorry I didn’t answer this sooner - I was at work when I got this but thank you so much, regardless!

1.  What is your favorite fic you have under your belt? 

My favorite fic would probably have to be either the(broken) road to recovery, my current WIP, or if we’re talking about oneshots,the king to your satellite castle is one I particularly admire. 

I think broken road is a fic that’s opening me up to writingmore multi-chapter works. Obviously, I cater more towards the short-story,oneshot style of writing, so the fact I wanted to embark on something longer ischallenging me to the extent I want to be challenged. I think writing this fichas allowed me to experiment more. 

The latter fic is a oneshot that I found myself proud ofwhen I finished. I really enjoy those Kyle/Cartman stories where it’s the twoof them bonding through mutual means, whether it be by deep, intellectualconversations or just hanging out at a D&B’ and then gazing at the stars. Ifind that I always have to include these heavy conversations between the two ofthem – like if I didn’t, what was the point? Kyle and Cartman are both smartkids, they can learn to adapt to the world themselves, but the idea of themneeding the other as they get older, knowing they can’t survive without theother…that’s really impactful to me. 

I also have to give credit to my compilation of oneshots onFFN, “The Most Random One-Shots You’ll Ever Read.” Basically it’s my Lord ofthe Flies compilation I’ve had published since 2014 and it’s over fiftychapters with over 150k+ words. It’s definitely something I’m proud of.

2. What is your favorite snippet of dialogue?

This is from my Junjou Romantica fic, the jetlags and thecatalysts:

Akihiko was just asconfused. It wasn’t sheer egoism that he was surprised not everyone knew who hewas, but a comfort that he could start scratch with someone. He shot the restof the drink, leaving his glass empty.

“I’m an author – my name is Usami Akihiko.”

“Ah, Usami.” The boy refilled the glass.

There was a brief silence where Akhiko expected the action to bereciprocal. When the boy caught on, he become flustered.

“My name is Takahashi Misaki.”

The feminine name left the writer in bafflement but he went withit. Misaki. He found the bartender start to laugh and he raised an eyebrow.

“It’s funny, your name is Usami. An old friend of mine – well,he was friends with my older brother – we called him usagi because he remindedus of a rabbit.”

“Well, that is what usagi means.” Akihiko took a drink. Misakigave off a comical expression.

“I see that the more you get drunk, the more your sarcasm comesout.”

“And I wasn’t even trying to be sarcastic.” Akihiko replied.

And I love thisfrom the king to your satellite castle”

“I should be pissedthat you assumed I wasn’t busy, but considering you never question yourassumptions, what else is new?” Kyle pulled on his jacket and hopped shotguninto Cartman’s truck, and the brunette just scoffed as he pulled out of thedriveway.

“Nice to see you too, Jew.”

“We’re a little too old for the nicknames, aren’t we?” Kylemuttered, eyeing the black jacket Cartman was wearing over his red shirt andhating himself for finding it hot. “Where are you taking me?”

“We should just let it be a surprise.” Cartman grinned, cominginto an intersection. Kyle rolled his eyes and leaned in, eyebrows narrowed.

“Where are you taking me?”

“We could sneak into a movie.” Cartman commented, a suggestivetone rather than a commanding one that took Kyle by surprise. “Terrance andPhilip’s new movie is out.”

Kyle was tempted, but he had already seen that with Stan and hedidn’t feel like seeing it again. Plus, Cartman would just talk during thewhole movie and Kyle knew he could barely take a few sentences with tolerance.

“You would suggest sneaking into a movie, probably because youdon’t have the money to get in.”

“Hey, I actually have a kickass job, Jewboy. I help society withgood deeds and commercial products.”

“You’re a grocer, Cartman.” Kyle sighed. “All you do is stockshit and put things under a beeper.”

“And what do you do, Kyle? Flaunt your pretty little ass and letyour family pay for all of your shit?” Cartman reached for what Kyle assumedwas a Dr. Pepper in the cupholder and took a drink. Kyle flushed a little atwhat seemed to be a compliment, but he flicked Cartman on the arm.

3. What inspired (broken road)?

In another ask I was told to include Broken Road with this,so that’s what I’m doing.

I actually came up with the idea for Broken Road on a walkback home from studying. I was almost back to my dorm and I thought, ‘You know,if you want more Eric-centric psychological works, why don’t you try writingone, yourself?’ And I was hooked with the potential of a behavior correctionalfacility, so I stuck with it. I ended up going back to the library either thatsame night or the next just to look up research before I started writing thefirst chapter. 

Originally I wanted to just continue writing it and make it along oneshot, but I felt like making it multi-chap was the right thing to do(and honestly I am glad I stuck with it in that regard).

 5. What’s your favorite headcanon you use in your fics?

I don’t really use a lot of headcanons for fics but if I hadto say a repetitive thing when it comes to my fics is when it comes to Kyman, Ilike the more ‘drunken exploration’ trope…a lot more than I care to admit. Myother OTPS, like Jalph, I don’t even care to use this as often just because Ifeel like if two characters could benefit from this, it would be Kyle andCartman.

9. What’s the fic you like the least?

Probably ‘he’s your ride home.’ I kind of wrote that at twoin the morning and thinking of it now, there is so many ways I could havewritten it better. I may go back and edit it just because compared to my otherKyman oneshots, it’s relatively weak.

11. What’s a fanfic idea yo haven’t done yet?

There’s a Stormpilot fic idea I’ve had for a while now thatrevolves around Finn and Poe’s confrontation regarding what they feel towardsone another with the setting of another couple’s wedding and them on the sides,not realizing how this plays with their own lives until they get a littlecarried away and well, yeah. It’s something I’ve been wanting to write for awhile but I just haven’t started yet.

I also would like to write a restaurant!AU Kyle/Cartmanoneshot. I have a few plans for this already so I may go ahead and write thissooner than later.

And, of course, I have another Bellarke piece I want to workon, but that’s going to be for another time.

13. Do you have a favorite character to write for?

I love writing for Cartman. He’s my absolute favoritecharacter to write for and I love it when people request me to write him,because, he’s fantastic. 

I also love writing Ralph. Jack is tied as my favoritecharacter in Lord of the Flies, next to Piggy, but there’s something aboutwriting Ralph that makes it so enjoyable for me, like I can envision hisexpressions in my mind and laugh mentally.

Thank you, @polarspicecaps-blog!