#letters speaks

[the-letterbox-archives]

hello, all! this is letters, back publicly in the archives again — this time to celebrate 2025! if i did this post right, it should be up when it’s officially 2025, and i have some things to say before coming off hiatus formally.

firstly, hiatus (evidently) is lasting quite a while! since going on hiatus, i had the simple goal to come back with volume 3. however, since then, i have acquired many talented, wonderful assistants who help me with beta/proofreading, whom i could not be more grateful for, and begun planning for volumes 4 and 5, as well as a brand new collection, and not 1, not 2, but 3 secret projects! the workload is going up and honestly i couldn’t be more happy for all the amazing work that’s happening this year.

i am immensely and infinitely happy and grateful for the community i’ve fostered and the friends i’ve made, every single person i’ve met has been absolutely amazing and i owe all of you so, so much. thank you all for what you’ve done for me.

i am also so proud of all my writing and how i’ve progressed as a writer, archivist, and person in the almost half-year i’ve spent online. i owe everyone who’s gotten me this far, as well as myself and all the effort i’ve put in this year. this has been truly, truly amazing. here’s to another year.

i have proper dedications planned for later, but for now i just want to throw out a mention to all the absolutely awesome friends i’ve made. you guys are beyond amazing, and i’m so happy to consider myself a part of this community.

@ominous-feychild, @world-of-iridensia, @moltenwrites, @loverboyxbutch, @mysticstarlightduck,

@leahnardo-da-veggie, @tc-doherty, @thecomfywriter, @inseasofgreen, @wyked-original-writing,

@honeybewrites, @corinneglass, and all my assistants, whom i will not tag, but they know who they are :)

[1alchemistart]

dont got much to offer for The Holiday but have these sillies!

happy valentines day :D

[pagan-posting]

Listen. Abandoning the idea of what a proper pagan is was the most rewarding experience. Your intuition is stronger than you think.

This isn't a science. You don't have to treat it like one. Go with your heart, go with your intuition. It will help you grow more than you've ever dreamed of.

[canon-gabriel-quotes]

Transcript:

Never forget that Gabv1el is peak yaoi

Audio source

Transcript:

Us smoochin'

God loves this!

*kissy kissy*

Audio source

You all need to see the visual for this one.

Similar clip for anyone who hasn't heard it ;)

[dcxdpdabbles]

Can you write a example of letters to Batman

Dear Batman,

My dad and I were walking home yesterday afternoon because our car decided it was time to expire on the side of the road. It was a nice car. Real reliable my entire childhood, I nicknamed it Benny.

Anyway, after Benny caught on fire, we got mugged. It was scary for about ten seconds before you swooped in and saved us! I've never heard any human bones make that noise before.

When you shook the goon from his ankles- how much do you lift? You had him like a rag doll!- a couple of dollars fell out of his pockets.

My dad took those dollars to pay for our bus ride. It had to stop two blocks from our house at a gas station, but Dad was nice enough to use the remaining bills to buy me a snack. I got hot spice chips and red burst soda.

He used the last dollar for a scratch ticket, and guess what? He won! Benny is going to be fix up with the five grand Dad won

Thank you, Batman, for always watching over me. Can you shake more money out of other goons near me if I do my homework?

Your fan,

Elizabeth H, ten year old

[insane-in-the-membranee]

I can forgive my father for all his wrongs against me, if only he had treated my mother differently. It is an echo, of what my mother says, "He may not be a good husband, but he is a good father." How do I tell her that one cannot exist without the other? He will never be a good father. He is not good to my mother.

—Reva

[monwillica]

Jet Lag s12e5 “is it more about his soul or his mortal form? what is the him we’re trying to find?”

all that rain and he still couldn��t find a frog???

Spoiler: Ben finally eats a real meal this episode, unsupervised!

in the spirit of including them here’s sam and adam doing the same thing i drew them doing last episode, looking despondent at a train station:

[367arte]

Inspired by these asks @pomefioredove

[melonteee]

New video released! I was itching to talk about Fan Letter so I'm glad I could get this out so quickly!

[neapenning]

Dan Heng really got jailed and exiled and was like "yeah this name will conceal my identity"

[lb-archives-atlas-department]

mystic i absolutely love your taste in music and analysis <3 never done a ship playlist/song but i sure do have the ships for it

Relationship Playlist Tag!

Essentially a OC Song Ship Tag <3

Rules: Choose some songs that you feel fits your OCs romantic relationship and explain how it fits them, or put a quote from said WIP underneath it.

Let's go with Dylan & Christine from What Lurks In The Hollow and Beck & Matteo from Crash Stardom! for this one!

Dylan & Christine

City Grown Willow - Radio Company (Jensen Ackles)

She wants to know the names of the games he plays He wants the names of the players in the game to change He's young in years but wise in wonderful ways Her faith in love is better on sunny days

City grown willow, unchain your pillow Let the man from the mountains run away with your heart Let the man from the mountains run away with your heart

He stokes the flames 'cause he is amused by the glow She'd rather feel all of its warmth than watch the show Holding the answer, he dances for the one he knows His faith in love will last through wind, rain and snow

[...]

All they want is forever, and All they need is for Their time together To be free

I think this song fits them so much!!! Except that, in their case, it would be the opposite, lol. Like instead of "city grown willow, unchain your pillow, let the MAN from the mountains run away with your heart"it would be "city grown willow, unchain your pillow, let the GIRL from the mountains run away with your heart" BECAUSE: Dylan would be the 'city grown willow' - as he is a guy from the big city and who hates living in a small town now - who needs to learn how to have fun and trust other people, while Christine is the wild 'girl from the mountains' who shows him how to enjoy life without worrying about other's opinions.

Stronger Than a Storm - Twisters OST

So hear me out 'cause I know I know the wind's something fierce but I'll be something you can hold Now do you, do you feel the same? 'Cause I wanna

I wanna know if your heart is racing too Mine's a mile a minute and I'm loving every tune You give me something that I've never had before Wilder than the wind and stronger than a storm

Well then, it's nothing in my life like I've ever known before Like a thread left alone or a splinter in the door The more I ignore, the more I swear it grows It's nothing in my life like I've ever known before

Hear me out 'cause I know I know the wind's something fierce but I'll be something you can hold Now do you, do you feel the same? 'Cause I wanna. I wanna know if your heart is racing too Mine's a mile a minute and I'm loving every tune

You give me something that I've never had before Wilder than the wind and stronger than a storm Stronger than a storm

THIS SONG FITS THEM SO MUCH YOU GUYS HAVE NO IDEA AAAAAAAA. First of all, "I know the wind's something fierce but I'll be something you can hold, now do you, do you feel the same?" this line fits Dylan's natural steadfast loyalty to those he loves, as well as his almost tentative uncertainty when it comes to romance, while this line "you give me something that I've never had before, wilder than the wind and stronger than a storm" fits how Christine is brings that warm spark of fun chaos into his life and helps him enjoy the small moments by practically turning every day into an adventure, which really contrasts with his usually serious, stern personality in a really good way.

Kindly Calm Me Down - Meghan Trainor

So cold, alone Could you be my blanket? Surround my bones When my heart feels naked No strength, too weak I could use some saving And your love's so strong

Like a pill I take it, I take it, I take it

[...]

When my world gets loud, could you make it quiet down? When my head, it pounds, could you turn down all the sound? If I lay in pain, by my side would you stay? If I need you now, would you kindly calm me down? Oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh, would you kindly calm me down? Oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh, would you kindly calm me down?

When my heart's not pure Would you kill my disease? And when there's no cure You are just what I need When I lose my mind Would you still remind me? When I'm feeling lost Would you come and find me?

Christine, for all her kooky 'life is fun, let's live it!' personality had always been pretty much alone - and she didn't mind it, but a part of her always yearned for someone who would understand her without thinking she's a weirdo. Meanwhile, Dylan is someone who had to toughen up too soon and who learned that vulnerability is often seen as weakness, so he feared letting anyone close enough to help him. This song fits how as their relationship develops, they can be 'that person' to one another - Dylan is someone who understands her without judgement, and she's someone whom he can open up to without holding it against him.

Beck & Matteo

Shame! Shame! Shame! - Reinaeiry

There's a reason why no one has stayed Oh, I've read every self-help book on the shelf

Can barely afford to breathe And I don't mean to get defensive But therapy's just so fucking expensive Where does it end And where do I begin?

Is there something to blame? At the end of the day The end result's the same Oh, Shame! Shame! Shame! Keep it to yourself

Don't sully the family name Oh, Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! Oh, Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! Shame! What do I do?

[...]

Who chooses this? Who wants this? Who can deal with it?

This fits BOTH of them so well! On one hand, it fits how Matteo is expected to shun Beck like everyone else from their clan did just because Beck adopted a half human (Aspen) as his sister and is thus considered 'tainted' by the Aimari community. Not only that, but Matteo is the son of vampiric fey nobles, and Beck has no title, and now he's considered as less than a nobody by their peers. So the "keep it to yourself, don't sully the family name" fits how Matteo is expected to uphold the Villaryth family legacy and marry the person they chose, not Beck. His refusal to do so (refusal to comply to an arranged marriage) and choice to stay loyal to Beck has been the reason for multiple turf wars in the Aimari lands but he does not mind as long as they're together. It's also the reason he was disowned by his parents, though he still has some loyalists and followers that support him. The "shame! shame! shame!" part also fit how Beck himself has an extremely low self esteem (and strong feelings of self shaming) and tends to be confused as to why someone as powerful as Matteo would love him so dearly instead of treating him like trash.

Young And Beautiful - Lana Del Rey

Hot summer nights, mid-July When you and I were forever wild The crazy days, city lights The way you'd play with me like a child

Will you still love me when I'm no longer young and beautiful? Will you still love me when I got nothing but my aching soul?

[...]

Will you still love me when I'm no longer beautiful?

I've seen the world, lit it up as my stage now Channeling angels in the new age now Hot summer days, rock and roll The way you'd play for me at your show And all the ways I got to know Your pretty face and electric soul

Will you still love me when I'm no longer young and beautiful? Will you still love me when I got nothing but my aching soul?

Okay so, brace yourselves: this song fits Beck's view of their relationship only BECAUSE, lemme explain one thing: in Aimari society, the males are expected to be beautiful and delicate, while the females are the warriors. Beck spent his entire life being treated like trash or less than a worm for refusing to abandon his half-human Fatebound (his adoptive sister, Aspen), but one thing he did have despite everything the world threw against him? He is one of the most beautiful vampiric feys alive. And that's a fact even the nobles have begrudgingly accepted. HOWEVER, after he and Aspen were kidnapped by the Secret Society, and Beck was tortured extensively with silver, he worried that, when he escaped, Matteo would find him too 'scarred' or 'disgusting', and that he would shun him like everyone else always had. Because Beck's self esteem was so low he believed the only reason someone as powerful as Matteo could love him was his looks. Once he's free again, Beck is pleasantly surprised to discover that Matteo will always love him no matter what happened, and that he loved him for who he was and not just for how he looked.

Please, Please, Please - Morgan Clae version

Please please please don't prove I'm right Please please please Don't bring me to tears when I just did my makeup so nice Heartbreak is one thing My egos another I beg you don't embarass me Mother fucker ahhh Please please please

Well I have a fun idea babe Maybe just stay inside I know you're craving some fresh air But the ceiling fan is so nice And we could live so happily If no one knows that you're with me I'm just kidding But really Kinda Really

This song fits how Beck doesn't want his worst fears to be 'proven right', as in he dreads to one day find out that Matteo's love is superficial, while it also fits how Matteo is torn between keeping their relationship a secret and being very open about it at the beginning before he truly parted ways with his family's expectations in order to be with Beck.

My Taglist (-/+): @ray-writes-n-shit, @sarandipitywrites, @lassiesandiego, @smol-feralgremlin, @kaylinalexanderbooks,

@diabolical-blue @oh-no-another-idea

@cakeinthevoid, @clairelsonao3,

@thepeculiarbird

@the-golden-comet, @urnumber1star, @ominous-feychild, @anyablackwood, @amaiguri,

@lyutenw @finickyfelix

@thecomfywriter, @the-letterbox-archives, @differentnighttale @wyked-ao3

@thelovelymachinery @an-indecisive-nerd

@zinabug-writes @dahliaontherun

Let me know if you'd like to be added!

[blakbonnet]

the way he asked "what kind of letters 😏" like pls get this man out of his clothes and back in bed stede

[definitelynotshouting]

You have synesthesia?? How does that work for you? Is this how you manage to use the word “meat” in a way that makes me go “holy shit that’s good and cool i need to read that sentence four more times” instead of “ew”?????

I do!!! Letters, numbers, and words all have colours and sometimes visual textures for me-- and while numbers and letters on their own are generally only a single colour (7 is a bright, grassy green!!! while "K" is a pale peachy pink, for example :] ), when i put them into words they often take on entirely new colours, some of which even bleed into each other like watercolour paints. Ironically, its why i use the UK spelling of "colour" in the first place-- the "u" turns what looks like a dull, desaturated blue into a smeared blue-and-purple that i find really pretty to look at :]] so when i say i like to paint with words, i kinda mean that literally 😂😂😂😂😂

But yeah, i'd imagine thats why my writing is Like That™ to some degree-- a lot of what im doing behind the scenes involves matching the colours and visual textures of a given word with all of the others in order to evoke a particular vibe or image in my writing. There are a lot of layers to how i write, but this is probably the one that takes both the most time AND is the one i happen to talk about the least WKDJWKSJEJ

[remyfire]

I'm in agony.

[the-golden-comet]

Oh no worries! Never a rush with me, and it was absolutely worth the wait!! ✨

I am so on board for anti-authoritarianism. Breaking down corrupt government police states from the inside and unlocking the deep rooted problems from within is always a thrilling read! We all need a little rebellion in our lives. 💛✨

Especially intriguing are this new police-state’s goals to eradicate the “misfortunates.” This sounds like the beginnings on a narrative of class war and rebellion uprising. 👀✨

Thank you so much for responding to my ask! Any snippets you’d like to share about TITANSPINE I am more than happy to be on your taglist for! 💫

Hello the-letterbox-archives! 👋✨

From your tag games (Badly Summarized WIP and Ask Box), TITANSPINE caught my eye. Can you tell me a little more about it? Who are the main characters? How does the police and justice system play into this world? Or, anything you wish to share about it~ ✨

Thank you again for your posts! 💛💫✨

I FORGOT TO ANSWER THIS SORRY GOLDEN!!!

anyway, thank you for the ask! TITANSPINE sure is an interesting one, let's get into it!

the characters

this one is gonna be hard to navigate, because there aren't too many named characters so far (heck, there's only one!), so i'll talk about lance, whilst trying to be as spoiler free as possible!

lance dexter is the mc of TITANSPINE! he's 16, and has a habit of bouncing from place to place amongst the lower levels of the city (and by lower levels, i mean geographically and socioeconomically) due to his lack of familial ties. he has a family, but they're uh... not with him at this time of the story. he has other social ties in criminal contexts, however, so he's got more relationships (those will become more apparent very quickly). he does own a car, and when he isn't with one of the aforementioned people he knows, that's his house.

personality wise, lance is very confrontational of authority. he's incredibly worldly and understands how his world works - i like to believe he is a character who has more control than he's expected to have (however, being beaten to near-death in an alleyway doesn't create that feeling). i relate to him a lot, actually; a scared kid coming into his own, and while it isn't pretty, and he's still suffering quite a bit, he's growing! and i love him for it (sorry for nearly killing you buddy).

the police + the TITANSPINE

this one's pretty important. the police and the government have a chokehold on lunaris; the goal of these forces is to create a society they can control, without the rabble of poor, revolutionary streets. it's a very classist world, and the government uses the incredibly brutish and high profile police force to exercise that control, especially on 'lower class' citizens.

that bleeds well into the next topic. the TITANSPINE (the acronym, not the story title (blue colour indicates the title, blank indicates the in-world principle)) is a new police initiative that is currently trying to be implemented when the story begins. it is not introduced in the story just yet, and the details are largely obscured, since lunaris is full of misinformation, and since lance is technically the narrator of this story (except in certain situations, but i'm not sure of that yet haha), he has only heard remnants of the TITANSPINE policy, enough to know it is dangerous for him.

"but letters!" you say, "what is the TITANSPINE?" great question! simply put, the TITANSPINE is a 'vigilant policing' initiative that aims to target the lower class and other 'misfortunate' individuals. it is presented to those it will not affect as a way to 'cleanse' and 'protect' society by regulating the 'undesirables,' but those who the policy will target understand it for what it is - a violent approach to remove poor people from lunaris society to better control the masses and design a world without 'problems.' basically a fucked up and violent way to bring about a perceived utopia for the upper class. the TITANSPINE initially focuses on jail time, fines, and smaller warnings, wearing away the public's confidence of revolution until bigger punishments can be implemented.

(as i'm typing this, i'm likening it to the american war on drugs, mostly the approach taken by the government and police during the event, but i am not all that educated in it so take that with a grain of salt. one i can make a decent comparison to is hostile architecture, the kind used by cities to lessen homeless people's places to sleep outside. imagine that but with more jail and bigger scale. and less about architecture and more society.)

sorry for the big post, think of it as an apology for waiting so long to reply! thank you again for asking!!

[gammija]

biggest dumb pet peeve is when an anglophone reposts some text or video that's technically not in english but still uses a ton of english loanwords in addition to being a germanic or roman language, and captions it like 'wow truly this post transcends language boundaries, i was able to understand almost all of this' yeah the parts you understood were in english buddy