#like it seems like it specializes in making the art look very traditional which is something I’ve been wanting to work on more for some stuf

[ocdhuacheng]

So there’s this painting software developer that is selling their app licenses for $10 I’m curious to try it out bc it looks really cool and I’ve been wanting to try out different ways to make my digital art look more realistic

[nfr-girly]

Benedict Bridgerton x Reader // Jealousy 📚 🖼️

:: masterlist

Summary: Lately, you and Colin have been bonding over art and books, but what happens when a certain Bridgerton gets jealous?

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Benedict never took any interest into deciding to marry, with his family having a tradition to marry for love, not wealth, he had the freedom to focus on his art, without the pressure to find romance.

To him, romance was a burden that held you back from achieving many things, but lately, Benedict had second guessed all his thoughts on love.

For the past few weeks, ever since Colin found out you like to read, you two have been meeting continuously in the gardens to discuss your latest reads. At first, Benedict thought it was nice you and Colin were starting to bond, he was glad you had another bridgerton to confide in, alongside himself. But as days turned into weeks, Benedict felt a burn in his chest as he sees your interest slowly turn away from him, and towards his brother.

Benedict and you had met at an event, you both bonded of your shared liking of the arts, and although to many in the ton, your friendship may have seemed inappropriate, Violet bridgerton never thought for one second your friendship was wrong.

However, friendship seemed to be a heavy understatement to describe what you two had, neither of you would admit it, but you both knew some feelings were there. Your mother was very adamant on you marrying someone with a high status, like a viscount, or duke, which is why she never considered Benedict as a suitor. “He’s a lovely gentleman, but his status is too low, perhaps his brother the viscount would be a better suit for you?” She would say.

Oh but you wish she did approve him. Your feelings for Benedict never went away, every time he was near you felt planets away, just out of reach of something special.

So when the younger brother of Benedict, Colin came to you, taking an interest in your latest read, you didn’t hesitate to start discussing it with him.

You never once thought Benedict and you would ever happen, maybe some time with another bridgerton would help those feelings die down?

As weeks went by, you did miss Benedict, you felt bad you were starting to spend time with Colin more, but every time you and him made eye contact, the longing in your heart grew, and it needed to be contained.

Benedict missed you tremendously, he always tried to find a moment to talk to you, just to know even one thing about what you’ve been up to. But Colin would always steal you away.

What did you even see in Colin that you didn’t see in him? He would listen to you talk about books for hours, if it just meant you’d go back to him.

*at the bridgerton house*

You’re waiting for Colin in the library, looking through some books, when you see in the corner of your eye a tall figure

You turn your head to see Benedict, you haven’t seen or talked to him in a while, both of you freeze seeing one another.

“Benedict. I haven’t seen you for a while, how have you been?” You say to him slowly walking towards him, hoping to make conversation, instead he furiously strides towards you

“Why have you been ignoring me?” He asks with a stern face

“What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean, you’ve spent almost a month going off with Colin talking about god knows what while I’m here missing you like some idiot” he’s mad now, he doesn’t understand why you have to ignore him to hang out with his brother

“I’m sorry, I’m sure we can arrange something-“

“Do you have any idea how much my heart has burned for you? You are the only thing I think about when I go to sleep, the only thing I think about when I wake up and you aren’t even there. I don’t know if I’ve done something but tell me so I can fix it. I’m tired of wishing you weren’t so far away.” Benedict comes to a stop, instantly regretting everything that just came out his mouth

“Do you really feel that way?” You ask, the warmth in you blossoms and that desire to be closer to him now grows

“Of course I have. I’ve felt it since the moment you spoke to me. I know your mother doesn’t want you to be with me, and maybe you don’t want to be with me either, but I won’t deny how I feel, you are the whole reason I breathe, every time you are near time stops and the only thing in the room is you. My mind goes insane because I can’t ignore the fact that I want you-“ before he can say anything else, you grab his shirt and pull him in to kiss him. He widens his eyes, but realising what’s going on, immediately kisses you back. He holds your cheeks to pull you in more. The whole room spins, the only thing you two care about in this moment is eachother.

You pull away and look into his eyes, so much desperation and desire painted across his face

”I’m sorry I’ve been away” you say softly

“It’s okay, you’re mine now, that’s all that matters” he laughs softly as he pulls you in for another kiss, harder than the last. Years of built up desire now let out, pulling the weight off of both your shoulders.

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a/n: it’s Benedict’s season soon 😝 I hope you guys enjoyed thisss! 🫶

[thebottomfromhell]

Hi! Sorry to bother you! But may I request a Dom!male reader like househusband x uppermoons head canons? Like the reader knows there a demon but literally doesn’t care and still loves them and the reader is basically the sole definition of “your doing great sweetie” (and the reader basically just supports them in everything and is like basically there 1# supporter)

(You can choose the uppermoons for the headcanons! I don’t mind!)

have a nice day! ♥︎

(Also if you have already done a similar idea you can just ignore this! I’m a little new to your blog and I really like your writing!)

I liked this ask a lot, also the image it's very cute, it made me smile, you might also like the traditional courting Headcanons 1 & 2 (but by this time you probably saw them already 😅) Also I didn't really know if as "dom" you meant as in dynamic or in sexual content, so I have a sexual connotation or two.

Househusband Human Supportive Dom Reader x Uppermoons. (Nakime, Douma and Gyutaro are not in this one, since their living conditions make it hard to step in as a house spouse. Also the clones come as a package in this one).

Warnings: Polyamory (Hantengu Clones), Slight sexual content (some characters and reader make out in a more sexual tone, but no explicit sex, so it's mostly implied), Cannibalism (mostly reading sharing his blood),

Gyokko:

"Okaeri, Gyokko. How was it today?" Gyokko is very organized with his time, he always comes back around the same hour and expects you to be awake to welcome him. "Tadaima." He just says, looking a bit tired. Probably some slayers did comments about his art, that pisses him off a lot. "I guess by that, it wasn't your best night. Is there is something this husband can do for you?" You tease as you get closer to him and hold gently the upper hands of his head, using your thumbs to carress circles in them. He relaxes and sighs after that.

"How about a cup of blood? That might cheer you up." You say as you guide him to the kitchen where you have a first aid kit, which you use a needle to take out your blood. "No, that is an artery. You will bleed out, let me do it myself." It's less messy this way, specially with Gyokko's help (he knows the circulatory system better than you), but it seems this time he doesn't have the patient to that. "Did you kill them or just put them in a pot?" You start a conversation as you put the red liquid in his favorite cup. "It was horrible, this was a Hashira and those sidekicks they have, they were so tasteless, didn't know how to appreciate arts. And the sidekick was infuriating, a damn child!" And you spend an hour with him drinking with one mouth as he complains with the other.

By the time he finishes there is are two hours left for sunrise, so you stand up and kiss the talking mouth "Meet me at bed, I will lock down the house." You close the window, three layers of curtains and move some objects for the weight to secure them more. "Do as I say, and I will treat you good." He compliains of you being "bossy" as you leave the room, but you do find him under the sheets once you step in your room. It doesn't have any windows, so it's already safe. You close the door and then go to sit in front of Gyokko. "You deserve to rest your mind once in a while. You are very hardworking, so let me..."

"Enough talking, darling. I already told you the night I had. Now I want my husband to spoil me. Now." You roll your eyes, and he calls you bossy? Still, you get under the sheets and kiss one of the mouths and you put your thumb in the other, tasting your own blood in the other's tongue as in joins yours. You also feel the teeth and tongue biting and salivating the thumb, you make sure the liquids don't fall into his lower eye. Still under the sheets you get on top of Gyokko, who's arousal is visible. "Then I better spoil you good."

It's already noon when you finish, you are very tired, but Gyokko just rest his head against your naked stomach because he is uncomfortable like that. You are always surprised by the unlimited demon stamina, you massage his scalp with your fingers to help him relax further. "There are people who just don't understand art, Gyokko. But you and I both know you are a great artist. Don't let things like this get you so worked up." He only groans a bit against your skin to speak after a minute of silence, you almost fell asleep before you heard his voice. "Well, I got my husband to support me and make me feel better, don't I?"

You chuckle a bit. He does.

Hantengu:

"T-t-t-tad-d-daim-a..." there, he said it (whispering), as he stepped in, closin the door behind him as quietly as possible. "Okaeri." Hantengu shrieks when you come next to him, when did you get this close? He thought you would still be asleep. "What are you doing up at this hour?" He asks quietly, still covering himself with his arms as he took a protective stance of the fright. He knows you won't hurt him, but it's a reflex. "I couldn't sleep, so I decided ro eat something. I just finished cleaning the kitchen after. How was your night?" He slowly puts his arms down as he sighs.

How long did you stay in a barely understadable ramble of how aggressive and scary Hashira are, how his master is an exploiter, how everyday and night are both nightmares alongside a self-pity monologue? Two hours, at least, but you only show him you are listening, not interrupting him once. Once he stops talking to tremble hard as he hugs himself you walk around him slowly, making sure he can see where you are and what are you doing with your hands as you put them on his shoulder. "Calm down, darling. It's ok. You are home right now, safe with your husband who wants to make you feel better."

He starts to relax as you squeeze and massage the stress away, then going to his back, feeling it full of knots. You sigh, you also did this yesterday and it's like this again? Well, it's not like it's Hantengu's fault. He didn't ask to be conditioned by the emotion of distress, it's already good enough he can find some comfort in you. "Thank you for doing this for me... How was your day? What did you eat just now." You appreciate his interest, even if part of it is only to be able to distract himself from the bad feelings as he listens to you. You do describe your day, talking mostly about when you went outside to buy some things the house needed. "It must be nice to not burn under the sun... even my clones can step on the sun."

"Well, other demons can't go under the sun neither. Have you eaten already? I can give you some of my blood." He shakes his head to reject the proposition "I don't have the stomach to eat today... thk u fr offr.... [thank you for offering]." You don't get to hear that last part, but you just finish the back to get in front of him. "Let's go to bed, I will give you a leg massage, check that the sun won't get through the windows and take a nap with you. That way you should feel better." Demons don't need to sleep, you already know that, but you are tired and asleep Hantengu feels a lot better than while awake, so he agrees.

Once you finish all those things you cuddle with his face against your chest, having him crying over everything and nothing specific as he hugs you tight. "Thank you... I feel better here." He answers honestly as you pat his back to valm him down as you feel the tears move through your abdomen. "It's ok dear, your husband is here for you. Just try to sleep." He does, you feel he stops breathing, but at this point it doesn't bother you, his nature is different to yours. He is still very dear to you, and so you help him as you can.

It can be tiring, but it's worth it.

Hantengu Clones:

"TADAIMA!" Scream Urogi and Karaku as they open the door, waking you up instantly as Sekido was lecturing them. You put another outer robe as you go towards the entrance to find your four idiots, Aizetsu is the first to notice you and go to see you before the others. "Y/N, Tadaima. We have had a rough night... can you please calm them down before going back to bed? I think you are the only one who can." He gives you big sad eyes before blinking fast a few times, making sure to look as cute as he can, manipulative little-. You can only nod before he leaves to the main room where you were sleeping "Okeari, by the way." You say before he disappears in the hallway.. Once he does that the next one to jump over you is Urogi, in his case, literally.

"Y/N! Hubby! We missed you so much!" He rubs his face against your as he has his arms and legs wraped up around you. "Sekido got beheaded like 7 times! It was so funny! Karaku actually had to save his a-" "SHUT THE FUCK UP, UROGI!" Karaku only laughs in the background. "He still got to thank me, ya know? I was so heroic back there, bet that if you saw me killing that slayer you would have gotten a bo-" "Karaku...." Yeah, that's the sign. If you don't step in Sekido will leave them outside all day. "Okaeri you all. I also missed you." You kiss Urogi's horn, wish makes him giggle. "I will set the house for sunrise, so if you want to help-" Joy and Pleasure leave to the main room in order to avoid work, leaving you with Sekido. "Those little shits..." he is very angry.

"Are you ok?" He doesn't answer, so you grab his hand gently and take it to your mouth to kiss it's back, making him blush but relax the frown. "I'm sure you all did great, at least did you all eat." He nods before you let him go, that means you don't need to offer blood (thank the one above and the one below, because you would die if the four were to drink blood from you), you both secure the house and find out that Aizetsu already secured the main room as Urogi and Karaku joined togeter several pillows, futons and sheets. "The beddings are ready! But if you want to have some fun before that, I am willing to give you some "cake" in the bathroom~" Karaku winks (which makes Sekido growl) at you, meking you (and Aizetsu) roll your eyes. "Nah, I'm good. I just want to cuddle and comfort my husbands if that is ok." Urogi laughs at the rejection as Karaku shrugs "Your loss."

Aizetsu goes to take both yours and Sekido's hand. "Can we please get along today. The sun will be up in some minutes, I can sense it... and it makes me sad that we would be trapped here while fighting." The Sorrow clone probably did already the eye trick to the other two and, since you already calmed down Sekido, it works on him to. "Thank you... " In the end you end up all un a fort under the sheets as they tell you the whole story. You are brushing Urogi's hair with your fingers as he lies on his stomach by your side, Sekido gives you his back as he uses your other arm as pillow, Karaku has your head in his lap to massage your scalp and Aizetsu rests his head in your stomach. It's not the most comfortable position to be, but you are happy to be like this (besides, you still could fall asleep how you are.)

You know they are also having a good time, since Sekido nuzzles against your limb, so you know he is there and comfortable. Aizetsu has his eyes close, so he could be asleep, once Urogi gets bore of you playing with his hair he starts nibbling softly your arm as if he was a cat (trying his best to not hurt you) and Karaku lies in his back with you still in his back. "Hey, Y/N... thank you for taking care of up. We like to be with you a lot." Karaku starts. "Yeah, we love you so much! You are the best husband ever!" "... you are good. Thank you for being there." "That tone didn't really sound sincere, Sekido." "Shut up, Aizetsu!" You can only chuckle at that. What can you say, you also enjoy taking care of them, even if as demons they don't need it.

"I love you all, too."

Akaza:

Akaza looks tired, emotionally exhausted, as he steps inside the house, he was just scolded for not killing the Hanafuba earing brat, the weakling, that little shi- "Okaeri, you came back early. Did something happen?" You ask him, you were just going back to sleep (you woke up to eat something) since Akaza usually comes back just some minutes before sunrise, looking for Muzan's imaginary flower he comes back to complain about. "Y/N... Tadaima... sorry, I... did you do the dishes?"

You laugh as he looks concerned, he didn't meam to change the topic, but "I told you I would do them..." he pouts, Akaza likes to be helpful around the house, so most of the time it's you both competing to do the chores. "Go to sleep, I will do the rest." He wants to clean, since the house is already set for sunrise. "You can fix the house for yourself, but I already did everything else after you left." You say proudly as you watch him grind his teeth. "I will cook you breakfast later then, and the house must be cleaned every day, so tomorrow I do the chores." He really likes to take care of you and gets easily frustrated when he can't. It often backfires because you also like to take care of him.

You cup his face in your hands to make him look at you in the eyes, smiling softly as he melts alightly in hour touch. "You look way too stressed for that, how about you tell me first how was your night?" Turns out his boss lectured him for not killing a child, the one he fought the day he didn't come home for sunrise (that night you were worried to the point of sickness, it was the first time since you married that Akaza didn't spend the day in your house) and he is very angry. "I have always done everything he told me! I swear that brat, weakling, will die at my hands. Damn weaklings taking advantage of...." his breathing become unsteady at that, so you pet his face. "I know you will, you are way too stubborn to not manage to kill someone you want dead. I'm sure even that Douma will fall under your hard work sooner or later." You don't really know about Douma, but fantazising of his death makes Akaza feel better.

"How about you go to bed with me? I am a bit tired and I would like to lie down somewhere." He nods as you take his hand and guide him to the main room. Once in the bed you push him so he can lie on his back as you get over him in the space between his legs. "Didn't you say you wanted to lie down?" You smile as you move your robes to expose one shoulder "Well, I will need it depending on the amswer. When was the last time you ate something?" By the look of his face you can se it has been a while, so you pull him from the back of his neck to your naked skin. "Take a bite, love. And I will also take a piece of you. Deal?" The second he bites theough your skin, you know you are on.

You didn't last that long, mostly because of the wound in your shoulder. You curse you only have 4 liters of blood and half gone already show it's effects, unlike Akaza, who is tending the bite. "If it makes you feel better, it's always hot when you bite me." You say something you know is stupid to make him laugh, he hates hurting you, even when you ask him to. "Well, I do think you are a snack, dear husband." You also laugh, gods that was awful.

You love, trust and support him, and Akaza better damn well know it.

Kokushibou:

Kokushibou just breathes in before closing the door behind him, fully knowing you are not only awake, but in the end of the hallway. "Tadaima." He answers without even looking at you, to be honest he was hoping you would still be asleep. He does love you but... he is not the best with feelings, and you are just so- "Okaeri, Kokushibou. How have you been?" good to him, and he just can't aswer the same way. It makes him feel inadequate. He hates that, so he tends to leave for long periods of time. "It's been six moons since the last time I saw you, anything interesting?"

And yet, you never anger, you never are anything but understanding, and that is just so confusing. There was other man that was like that with him, no matter how evasive or cold Michikatsu Kokushibou could get, he would still welcome him warmly, forever patient and stable, like the sun that burns all demons. You remind him a lot, and the worst part is that it attracts Kokushibou, the familiarity and the way you treat him. "Hey, are you ok?" You say as you notice he lost himself on his thoughts, once he gets out of his trance he looks at you. He only wanted to see you, that is why he came back, he hoped you wouldn't be awake when he did.

"Do you want a drink?" Blood, you are offering your blood and he can't find himself to day no. No when this is the only way he can drink it from a cup without calling it what it actually is, that way he can pretend he is still a samurai drinking tea in his free time, that he didn't transform into something that is not human. "Please. That would be nice." He sits in a mat as you serve him the red liquid, and besides thanking you as you hand the cup to him, Kokushibou doesn't say anything. There is a big chance he will leave soon, so you tell him everything that happened while he was missing. "And then I had to tell the ladies I was to old for marry his daughter, but I think she didn't believe me. Still, I'm a faithful husband to the second most powerful demon is not an explenation that will be well received."

Thankfully, between the blood and your story telling, he decides to stay for the day, so you prepare the house so the sunlight won't be able to come inside. You must hurry since you realized he would be staying when there was half an hojr for the sun to come up and he didn't move at all. You started with the room you are with Kokushibou, then the whole house, there was already sun when you finished the last rooms, but Kokushibou didn't burn and you consider that enough. "Kokushibou, the house is ready. You can move arpund if you want." He does, only to get to find yourself in hour room as you followed him. "You look tired. Sleep for a while I will stay here." He says as he sits in front of your bed.

The thing is, you are tired, you were at least half of the night awake and the missing blood is not doing you any good. But you don't want to sleep, you want to spend time with Kokushibou before he leaves. "Only if you promise we can properly say goodbye to each other bedore you go." He agrees, so you get ready for bed, knowing he likes to watch you sleep for some reason. "Kokushibou, remember that if you want to talk about anything, I will listen." ..... "Thank you." He just says that before becoming dead silent. It's very hard to be there dor Kokushibou, since he does and doesn't want you around at the same time.

Still, you try. That is enough.

[anon-amiss]

hello, I have a request of Wally Darling x singer y/n

at first, Wally and the others did not know the reader could sing. One day they all decided to have a group picnic and Wally was the one who would get you. Wally knocked at y/n home and Y/n didn't answer he noticed the window open and he heard Y/n singing. (Love like you by steven universe)

then and there Wally fell in love he could not bring himself to stop the reader from singing.

you can pick what happens next :)

Beginning notes: I love this! I'll do my best! Thank you for the request! Another quick mention is that the reader might be referred to as "neighbour". I don't mind using Y/n at all, but people give it so much bad rep :[

Some warnings: Nothing triggering, just reader being mildly embarrased haha

Wally Darling x Singer!Reader

(Platonic or Romantic)

(a bit more on the romantic side haha)

"...Turns out, I was holding the letter all along!! Now isn't that just hilarious??" Eddie boasted out, laughing while waving his arm around rapidly. Barnaby fell to the floor, rolling around and snickering in response. It was as if he'd just heard the funniest thing in Home, which, honestly, could have been probable.

Wally giggled after hearing the passing conversation, placing the picnic blanket down on the grass with ease.

The sky was perfect, and the weather calm. This meant only one thing: it was finally time for the monthly picnic party! Everyone was invited, which meant you were too! It was going to be your first time at this event, and everybody was very excited to have you join them as their special guest! Everyone came extra prepared, bringing gifts and items they thought would help with getting you acquainted with their tradition.

Sally weighted the blanket down with what looked to be a large sewing machine and a bag full of various fabrics and sewing materials. Wally turned his attention to her and tilted his head.

"What are all these for?" Wally asked, a little surprised she was able to carry all these items on her own.

"Why, I wanted to show our new friend how to make hand puppets! They've been asking me all week, and I thought this would be the best opportunity to teach them!" She beamed, organizing some of her tools on the blanket.

"Yeah, and I brought my makeup so we could do a little fashion show with them!" Julie interjected, placing a few of her bags, presumably filled with makeup, on the blanket next to Sally's items. "I made sure to bring everything I had just in case they wanted a certain look!"

"Oh! I brought along some arts and crafts if that helps at all!" Eddie chimed in, holding out a delivery bag filled to the brim with tons of crafting materials. He placed himself on the blanket next to the growing pile of goods. It was starting to form a little mountain by now.

"Whoa now, buddy! Make sure to leave some extra for the butterfly nets!" Frank blurted out. He held nothing, but Wally assumed they would use some of Eddie's resources to make the nets.

"Do we have to participate in this event before or after lunch?" Barnaby joined, with Poppy following suit. He placed down a picnic basket full of the most delicious smelling food. Oh! He seemed to have placed it on Eddie's head! It's perfectly balanced!

Frank shot him a glare and sighed. "We'll do it after lunch just so you won't complain the whole time."

"What can I say? Small dogs like me need lotsa energy to run!" He jested, laughing to himself with a wide grin.

"You better not eat it all this time, Barb! Poppy and I spent a lot of time gathering the most perfect ingredients for this specific batch of food!" Howdy blurted out, tapping his foot at the fluffy 'little' pup.

"Don't worry, Howdy! I wouldn't dream of ruining our new neighbour's first picnic! Besides, a tiny guy like me can't finish all this by myself," he replied, giving him a pat on the head for reassurance.

"Speaking of our new neighbour, where are they?" Poppy asked, turning to Wally with a motherly smile.

"Yeah! We can't possibly start without them!" Julie added on, turning to face Wally with an excited grin.

"I told them I'd come and pick them up as soon as we were done setting up!" Wally replied, clasping his felty hands together with the happiest expression he could give. "Would you all be so kind as to help me finish up while I go get our neighbour? I'm just too excited to wait."

"Of course! We'll have everything prepared in a jiffy!" Sally exclaimed, jumpstarting the task and immediately organizing the items on the blanket. Julie joined in, working at the same pace as her.

"Thank you so much! I'll see you all soon. I love you!" Wally waved to them, setting off to your home with an overjoyed feeling in his body. He felt so lucky to have friends like them.

Your home wasn't too far from the picnic site, only a few minutes away, so Wally got there pretty early. He told you earlier that he would probably finish up by noon. By now, according to the town clock, it was about 11:30pm. Though a few minutes definitely passed after Wally's struggle to remember how to read the clock in the first place.

Wally stood in front of the door to your home, ready to knock before hearing a quiet melody. Curiously, he turned his head to the source of the noise, which appeared to be coming from a nearby open window.

He hummed and looked away. Wouldn't it be rude to take a look inside? This place was your privacy, so maybe it was best to ignore it.

Another melodic tune began to ring out quietly, followed by the deafening tone of piano keys being smashed rather aggressively. "Oh dear..." Wally refused to look through your window. That would be unneighbourly!

Then he heard groaning and began to grow worried. Maybe just a peek. For your safety. Definitely.

He followed intuition and looked through the window, his eyes searching rapidly for the source of all the noise. His gaze happened upon you. You were sitting at the piano, holding what looked to be a journal and a pencil.

You were grumbling to yourself and writing angrily in the book, but other than that, you seemed to be doing relatively well. Perhaps you were just experimenting with new sounds. Wally's suspicions began to die down, and he would have left it at that, but before he could turn away, you did something completely unexpected.

Once you cleared your throat and placed your journal down, you began to press numerous keys, getting acquainted with the feeling before you began to play what sounded like an actual song.

Your fingers gingerly glided across the piano, leaving Wally entranced and more breathless than he already was. If he had a pulse, he was sure it would be beating critically by now.

He blinked, dumbfounded. Not about the fact that you were talented, but of the fact that you had kept this a secret for so long. He couldn't fathom why someone would hide such a gift.

Then another surprise emerged. Not from your movements, but from your voice. You began to sing! He nearly tripped himself inside your home, not realizing how far he was leaning into your window. He held onto the frame, his mouth agape from the sheer astonishment you managed to succumb him to.

He could only make out a few words from so far away. "If I could begin to be...... I could do about anything...... Could even learn how to love like you...." You continued on with the song, putting all the focus you could on playing the right keys. It was hard to concentrate when you sang and played at the same time, which was why you were practicing in the first place.

You didn't want to necessarily practice for anybody but yourself. You never planned on anyone hearing your singing, mainly because of how embarrassing and distracting it felt. It would most definitely make you mess up, which would only be more humiliating for you in the end.

You weren't a professional, and honestly, you were okay with that. As long as you could finish the song at all, you would be just fine. The accomplishing feeling was worth much more than the sound of cheers. You steadied your breathing and began to focus on your singing a little.

Meanwhile, Wally was lost in thought, watching you with a dreamy gaze. He absolutely adored you. He was so proud knowing he had a friend who could do so many beautiful things. He so badly wanted to learn this song so he could sing with you. He wanted to praise you right there and then, but he knew it was probably not the best idea.

He leaned on the window frame, crossing his arms and watching you intently. He was baffled, feeling himself just melt into the mixture of sounds you were creating right before his eyes. He sighed and closed his eyes, falling into the deepest state of peace he's ever had in Home.

He loved the concocting mix of your voice and the piano. The sounds succesfully meshed to create a hum that reverberated off the walls and vibrated the glasses around you, which, in turn, created what sounded like an extra voice. Angelic!

Then you did something else totally unexpected!

There was the tiniest note out of place, which was proceeded by the loudest smash of keys Wally's ever heard. Mortified, he opened his eyes and looked up at your figure.

You were frustrated with yourself. You were doing great, but you just had to take your attention away from the piano, didn't you? You groaned and rubbed your forehead. You'd been practicing for a while now, so maybe now would be the best time for a break.

You turned your body and got up from your seat. Water sounded good right about now.

Wally didn't have enough time to react before you laid your eyes upon the window. Panicked, he flopped down on the ground, feeling himself heat up. He wasn't sure if he had the capability to blush, but if he did, he was definitely doing it now.

At first you were shocked by the sight of Wally, but even moreso when he launched himself back from the window???? You hurridly rushed towards the opening and looked down at the ground. There he was.

"Wally?? What are you doing here??" You asked, observing as his felty face began to grow a few shades darker. He chuckled nervously and sat up quickly.

"Well.. Erm..."

"Wait there! Let me help you," you interrupted, making your way outside as hastily as you could. You grabbed his hand and led him in your home, helping him dust off some of the grass that seemed to have stuck to him when he threw himself back.

You invited him to sit at your dining room table, grabbing two glasses of water and placing one in front of him as an offering. He seemed to just stare at it quizically. Oh wait, did he drink water? Now that you thought about it, you don't think you've ever seen him consume anything.

But as you snapped yourself away from your thoughts, you found the water to be gone. Oh. The cup was too. Did he eat it? Maybe it was a puppet thing???

"I'm so sorry for my actions, neighbour," Wally started, staring up at you with dejected eyes. "I was going to knock on your door so I could escort you to the picnic, but I guess I got a little curious. I shouldn't have looked through your window. That was very uncouth of me." He hung his head low, expecting you reprimand him for his actions or get angry, but much to his surprise, you just laughed.

"Oh, Wally. You don't have to apologize. I would have gotten a little interested, too, if I heard all that noise I was making," you stated, laying a hand on his shoulder. "Besides, I wouldn't have minded having you listen to me. I can always depend on you to be kind and unjudgemental." You took a sip of your water, reassuring him with a smile. "I should be the one apologizing to you, in all honesty. All that key smashing was probably very... erm... unsurprising, to say the least." You gave out another laugh, Wally doing the same.

"Well, I must say, I just love your singing. It was gracious," he admitted, making you feel gaucherie-like. It wasn't unlike him to compliment you, even for the smallest of things, but you always knew he was genuine. It was refreshing to hear that he liked something so personal about you. "I could listen to you all day, really." His eyes had a glaze to them that you couldn't understand the meaning of, but it made your heart pump.

"Thank you, Wally. That means a lot to me," you replied, grinning proudly. He nodded and got up from his seat.

"Well, we should probably be heading to the picnic now. I wouldn't want everyone else to worry haha!" He pushed his chair in and offered his hand out to you, which you did take, but you had to admit you were a little bashful while doing so.

You both headed out, only stopping once for Wally to ask if he could hear you play sometime.

"Of course!" You responded cheerfully, feeling bubbly from his excited expression afterwards.

"Then it's a date!"

End

End notes: Haha, in the end I guess it was more on the romatic side. I might write a oneshot for the 'date' and the picnic as well if anyone wants that. I had fun writing the transitions between the characters, and in my personal opinion, this oneshot was a little funky, but hey, that's fine! I liked writing it! Thanks for your request! I appreciate your amazing idea!Sorry if it's not what you completely had in mind!

Another note: this is what I imagine he looked like when listening to you sing. I'm not the best artist, but I do try >:]

[bhaalsdeepbat]

unhinged Durge & Orin thoughts

i'm just fascinated by Orin. she's the little sister seething with jealousy bc they're fighting over scraps of love from a Father (Bhaal) who will never give either of them what they deserve.

and like. Her entire life is lived in ways that are meant to serve him bc she was raised from birth in the church. She's an artist who focuses her artistic vision on her kills and the way she presents her offerings. It's looked down upon, even though Durge also plays with their corpses, but Durge is also daddy's special little bhaalspawn, and Orin knows it. Always compared to the golden child, never measuring up, until she finally bests her older sibling by savaging their skull.

Durge literally just waltzed one day and told them that Bhaal said it was their turn to lead the church, even though Orin had also been born and raised believing that was HER purpose. The rage when some little street rat comes in and starts shaking up the Church. AND EVERYONE LOVES DURGE. They all hate Orin, but everyone WORSHIPS Durge. Durge, who is imperfect, who wasn't raised living the doctrine the way Orin was, and introduces cannibalism (which Orin does not seem to approve)

so all that suffering being raised in the church doesn't even garner her favor with Bhaal or the other Bhaalists. she's not Durge. she'll never be Durge. she can take Durge out and make it so they have no choice to follow her, and the Bhaalists will out of loyalty to Bhaal, but they still dislike her. They miss their new age worship when she takes over.

Durge just constantly frustrated with their little sister's antics. Orin is too rash, she runs her mouth, and she doesn't appreciate death for what it is, she keeps trying to make pretty little arrangements when she should be focused on perfecting the art of dealing death in droves, numbers...like razing the grove or taking out last light inn. bhaal doesn't care if you play with the corpses if you have enough deaths under your belt to make it count, it seems.

Orin choosing to use the tadpole on Durge rather than just allowing them to die was absolutely out of spite. It traps Durge's essence so they cannot be reunited with their Beloved Father. So, Orin is resentful because Durge seems to just have Bhaal's love and favorism without going through any of the agony of being raised entirely in Bhaal's temple. Then you learn from balthazar that this is literally worse than death for durge, especially while they're being used as a living cadaver.

durge had 0 idea of the resentment, too. saravok says something along the lines of durge being blinded by pride & the love of everyone to the point of never even suspecting orin would have anything else but the same blind devotion.

and then durge and orin begin butting heads, as siblings do, but also added layer of bhaalspawn being fated to slay one another and like. i interpret it as their very essence screaming at them to slaughter their sibling bc the divine essence recognizes itself in that other being. just desperate to slay and release it.

also laughing bc orin was raised a traditional Bhaalist church girlie basically. she's christian girl autumn but make it murder

[senkusphone]

Dr. Stone chapter 2D trivia post

Spoilers ahead !

Check out too, my trivia post for the previous chapter.

This changes everything, folks! however, we gotta start from the start.

Chrome's drawn this roadmap, and he seems to pretend to build yet another of his silly storehouse towers like he's done around the globe. Next stop, the moon.

This confused me for a while until it was pointed out to me that "EMU" stands for Extravehicular Mobility unit; which is what we normally call a spacesuit (and I call and EVA suit), and notably it doesn't look muck like these simple, yet decidedly comfy and cute looking jumpsuits.

The graphic depicted below actually shows two trips, if you follow the arrows along the lines, you can see the black ones show a trip from earth orbit to the moon, and the white ones show the return trip, landing in the middle of what loosely resembles the pacific ocean, east of Japan.

In other news, Suika joins the tradition of the space elevator, an idea that has been itching in the back of people's minds since the 1890's

The more detailed explanation of this is a bit more lenghty but I'll keep it simple, so buckle up.

The idea of a space elevator is that a weight with a cable tethering to earth, could keep it tense if the weight is moving too fast (so much so that if let loose it would escape into space, or at least a higher orbit).

This cable can support a vehicle going up along it, bringing any cargo within it to space, using much less energy and resources than a rocket.

How to make a cable that can support its own weight over such a huge distance is the main reason we haven't built one.

A problem that arises from this, is that if the weight doesn't match the rotation of the earth, the cable would get pulled around (eventually breaking or winding around the earth, pulling the weight down, as cartoony as that is), so we need it to hover over one spot.

Now we gotta talk about geostationary orbit, to make this easier.

So, when something is orbiting the earth, it needs to move really fast to combat gravity in such a way that the earth curves away from the object at the same rate it's falling towards it (spaceflight really is the art of falling to the ground and missing it, as the saying goes.)

The farther out you go, the weaker gravity's pull gets, and the slower the satellite needs to be in order to find this balance. Eventually it reaches the point where, if its flying around the equator, it will, at one point, match the speed of the ground spinning beneath, this is at 35786 km above.

Such a satellite appears still in the sky, which is very handy to, as a sidenote, aim a small TV dish at it, and just leave it in place, as you may have at home.

However one must notice that in a space elevator, the satellite (our weight) is not only pulled by gravity but also by the tension in the cable.

Since it's pulled in with a greater force, it falls faster than a normal satellite, and so it needs to also travel faster to avoid falling back to earth.

As a result, it also needs to be further away than a geostat satellite, so it needs to travel a longer way around the earth, and again find the balance of speed with rotation, staying still in one spot while keeping the cable taut.

This is why the weight is shown beyond geostationary orbit here. Yes, this was a long winded explanation for just that.

And after all that, here we all are, ignoring the fact that suddenly petrified hair is flexible.

Perhaps it's like glass fiber / glass wool, and it can be flexible when it's thin enough (yes, glass fiber is just glass but thin, if you weren't aware. Incidentally, most glass fiber is made by a process that works the same as a cotton candy machine... wait this was already shown in Dr. Stone, fu-).

This however doesn't explain how this flexibility hasn't been observed in statues before. Maybe her hair is special after all.

Also special is spider silk, although sometimes overhyped by the media. Spider silk has some outstanding mechanical properties, it's very durable, and it can take a lot of tension and deformation before breaking.

Ruri here makes a reference to her previously stated occupation after the main series. A lot of people took issue with the aftermath of the characters in general, myself included. Still mad at Kohaku joining the police, I'm pretending that didn't happen.

This might be an autism 100 take, but the wheels in this cart are backwards. The flanges should be on the inside, and the taper should be towards the outside.

This geometry helps railway wheels stay on the track, go around bends, and not have to constantly abuse the flanges to not fall off the rails.

The silk road... I really am just googling basic things for you, am I? It was an ancient trade route network joining asia with the middle east and europe. Silk was one of the most famous products traded through the network.

yeesh, I've been typing this for ages (tumblr logged me out while I was writing this post and lost like half of it), and I haven't even gotten to talk about induction motors yet.

A linear motor is just an electric motor that rather than making something spin, it pulls itself along some sort of guide rail. These are in use in some trains but they are not common, the infrastructure cost is much higher than a normal railway.

Why am I talking about trains again...

One way to make it work is by induction.

The tl:dr is that when a magnetic field is moving through a conductive object, it can effectively drag it with it to an extent.

The reason this happens is called Lenz's law; the variation of the magnetic field through the metal causes an electric current to flow through it.

This current, just like an electromagnet you may have put together in science class, produces it's own magnetic field that interacts with the one coming from outside, hence making the metal react, but only when the field is moving or otherwise changing.

A big advantage is that there needs to be no contact between the source of the field and the moving metal; this is used in all sorts of electric motors even in homes, you'll find them in fans, refrigerators and washing machines, etc.

The train/motor would have a magnetic field underneath with a north-south-north-south-... pattern, which flows towards the back like a river (made by a lot of electromagnets switching in coordination).

As the magnetic river flows backwards, the induced currents in the rail produce their own magnetic field in opposition, pushing the train forward.

How viable is it to use this on a thin cable that needs to pull itself up is another story, and I have my doubts. The electronics involved would be really complex, costly and perhaps even unwieldy, but at least the conductive cable can also be used to deliver power to the elevator with some tweaks.

The structure they begin constructing for the full size elevator is named after the 1979 novel "The fountains of Paradise" by Arthur C. Clarke, in which a space elevator is also constructed.

So, we've made it to this part. As far as I've seen this one panel has been the focus of like 50% of the discussion regarding this chapter.

We all see what he's doing whether we acknowledge it or not; Inagaki should know that you cannot build a relationship on just standing close and gazing with passion; believe me I checked, multiple times.

Wouldn't mind if he hadn't procrastinated on developing Senku's side, the girl has wanted her vegetables since day two (but not day one)

And now, things get really messy, as some mind boggling events lead Ryusui to ask "why, man?"

Look, I've already added 30 images to this post, and I imagine you have seen how this chapter ends, if you haven't, buddy what the heck are you doing here. Have some emoji, I'm not gonna make a second post about this.

🥨✨🦟 ⁉️👱🏼‍♂️🏴‍☠️ 👨‍🚀☠️??

You may be confused, you should.

But after a while I came to a conclusion that I feel is pretty solid, and you may have seen it in the post from earlier.

To summarize:

Ryusui noted that things were going suspiciously well for them, and the sudden disappearance of mosquitoes in the Kanto region ticked him off to something. He sent people to search and indeed found that mosquitos have been petrified within the region, and questions whyman about it, going as far as accusing them of pretending to be Byakuya from the future.

That's where we are left.

The medusa is fully capable of faking the signal they received from "Byakuya". The receiver only detected bursts of petrification beam presumed to be from the future and decoded them as morse code, and it was noted by Balb on discord that if you trace a circle with the center near Tokyo (where the lab keeping whyman is) and a radius reaching as far as Fuji, where they received the message, the circle covers the majority of the Kanto region as stated.

The bursts of petrification would have been invisible to humans, as only the affected species can see them.

So it is assumed that the mosquitos were petrified as a means for whyman to send the fake signal all the way to Fuji, depleting its diamond battery in the process.

However I believe it's also possible the mosquitos were zapped later to make work easier for the people building the space elevator as noted by Kaseki.

Several months if not more must have passed since the Byakuya message and whyman being caught (enough for Kohaku's hair to regrow), and it would be odd that no one would have noticed the lack of mosquitos, their petrified bodies, or the effect their absense would have in the ecosystem.

So why do any or all of this?

Well we know what whyman is largely motivated by, its survival and the spread of its kind across the universe.

So I think it's trying to accelerate human progress for that purpose, so we eventually get to the point where more medusas can be made, or who knows, maybe even succeed in warning the past ones with the time machine.

I also think it's likely this misunderstanding is gonna fizzle out once some dialog is made and Senku basically says yes to that goal too.

Will we get a triple twist and find that the Byakuya message was real after all, and the mosquitos were a separate event?

Will the sengen and kohasen crowds envelop the world in thermonuclear hellfire?

And will this be the true final end of Dr. Stone? hard to tell, but the answers may come next week.

Goodnight.

[yandere-sins]

Heyo! Can you please answer Q6, Q4, Q2, & Q16. Also have a peaceful and lovely day/night<3

[Writer asks here]

Thanks so much for asking ♥ I am surprised so many of you were curious!!

»»———————— ♡ ————————««   

#2 Do you listen to music when you write? What does your current writing playlist look like?

I actually do! And very specific ones, I have a few selected youtube videos which are either lo-fi hip hop or writing/studying music and just run on repeat. I'll link some of my favorites to give you an idea!

1 | 2 | 3

Most important is no lyric (especially not if I can understand it, but I usually also don't like the songs that are have people humming or singing to the songs and will skip these), upbeat but I keep the volume low so it really is just a background music (but that means like classical music doesn't really hit the itch), and preferable with ambiance sounds like rain or waves or so.

Sometimes music can be almost too much, so I use mynoise.net for either the Irish Waves or the white noise, depending on what suits me that day. It's my personal recommendation for anyone wanting background noises.

Lastly, yes, I am very jealous of artists who can do their art while watching movies or the like. But I can't even have someone talk to me while I write so that is just the biggest no-go lol

#6 When (and not if) you ultimately finish your WIP and publish, do you picture yourself giving readings and signings and interviews, or would you prefer to stay out of the public eye? 

Hm, complicated. I am not a super private person and I love talking with people (I am an introvert but my family and my job raised my tolerance lol) so I'd probably do well if I wanted to do events. But, if I ever get to finish my book, I'd go for self-publishing so the chances that I'd ever have a signing or reading is just super low because pulling it off on my own just seems... harder. Not impossible but harder. I don't think the genres I want to go into could be picked up by traditional publishing, so it would be a lot of work, and I don't know if I have enough dedication to see it through. Passion, yes, time and resources, no.

However, I think if I did have a book, I might start tableing at my conventions! I see a lot of authors there and that might lean towards my target audience more!

I think I'd still like to sign books though, maybe have a special sale and then sign them and send them to people or something. That would be cool. It was nice to write a special note to everyone who got my Yantober book, so I know I'd really like to do that!

#16 CHALLENGE: Tell us about your current project in three sentences or less. 

Oooh, hmmmm, let's see. It's something all of you guys chose in a poll a while ago, so how do I tease it without revealing too much hmmmm...

It's an isekai story and inspired by an existing manga (manhwa?). The concept is similar but I haven't read the original, I am just turning the core idea around and making it properly yandere (although the idea has been done in different versions a lot). The main character/reader misjudges the effects it'll have to just level up one certain stat and it comes back to bite them in the form of a typical noble getting overly obsessed.

Hope that keeps everyone guessing lol! :D

[chloroplasted-cyclopamine]

something i think is funny whenever i come across it on the internet is when people assume that there is like, a book akin to the bible with the full set story of greek mythology. i think since christianity is so widespread there is an assuming that other religions operate the same way just with a different god, even if said religion is polytheistic and not monotheistic.

once someone on youtube in a comment section, the shuddering inducing comment section of a video which claimed athena to be the “goddess of love” and then an influx of people who said that “it was aphrodite” and more people saying “shes the goddess of beauty”,

i was told to my greek mythology special interested self, my hellenistic pagan face (not that i think i know more than everyone, but definitely more than the people who insist miss lady aphrodite is NOT a goddess of love?) that aphrodite WAS the goddess of love, but when her son eros was born, she gave that title over to him instead…i do enjoy a few laughs in my daylit periods of ongoing enforced stress i must admit

they also insisted that ares was the only war god, not athena. and would not take the fact that eros is a very complex god when it comes to origins. although they have left the interaction (thank apollon) i still think it is so interesting the idea that each god is part of a set storyline with one job only, and that there are no crossovers of domains (especially with domains as fickle as love and war), and it makes me so giggly when the first result on google has more accuracy than a hand crafted by the world human mind.

we seem to forget that greek mythology was passed down through oral tradition and story telling, occasionally written down or drawn on walls or bowels or other forms of pottery, or made into statues. these gods were at constant evolution and still are, because greek gods are the peoples, unlike the christian lord, the greek pantheon is under the influence and impression of the society it lives within, not the inverse.

there are gods with mixed parentages (aphrodite, hephaestus, eros, dionysus), gods with many many titles (apollo, artemis, perhaps poseidon) and gods whose characters are very fickle throughout myths because it was a large region of people all retelling the stories to one another and mixing with other large regions of people and their stories and sometimes scribing that into some lasting piece of art

overly sarcastic productions on youtube have very accurately described each piece of art as a snapshot of the gods in their ever changing states, you can also go look at jake doubleyoo on youtube and at the videos not of comedic edutainment of the various mythologies and instead some insightful commentary on the greek mythological origins of all the surviving mythology we have

just something ive been thinking about :)

[thebearme]

P4 AUS???

I see you saw my Yosuke post :)

Well to go into more detail, I only have one that's fully fleshed out the rest are in crossovers with other characters that I won't get into.

the lore is VERY complicated and is a big discord rp

But the one I can describe is the first version of the Monster au:

Yu: The Vampire. Move in with his vampire uncle and lil cousin (Nanako is a baby vampire) to a middle of no where town with possibly more monsters then humans. In a town where everyones special in their own way, Yu is dedicate to helping everyone know that. All the while Yu learns more about being a vampire.

In this world there's a class/race system, from [werewolves < undead < humans < magical creatures] Werewolves are pretty low because you are just a glorified DOG! So some people would want to hide that, especially how come anyone could be a human. And a human could ALWAYS be a monster hunter; Yosuke knows ... from personal experience.

Yosuke: The Werewolf trying hard to be a normal teenaged boy. Ever since he moved here no one knows that he's a werewolf, which is honestly GOOD! He rather be known as "the clinging loser human" then "the clinging loser dog". Yosuke thinks the world is unfair seeing how he's the only one to be a werewolf (it skipped a generation)

Yukiko: The maiden Witch. She continue the family tradition of witchcraft and their monster only inn. (please don't make Hotel Transylvania jokes.)

Chie: The Witch Princess of the Pumpkin Patch. Her old traditional family owns the oldest and biggest pumpkin patch of Inaba. Single handedly saving the economic with their pumpkin beef bowls. Chie is still a learning witch, so the one time she tried to make a more effective scarecrow... she accidentally brought it to life and now they live with Yosuke.

Teddie: The scarecrow. After just being created and living with the Hanamura family he really feels like a person! Teddie looks plushy like but with hay and some stray stitches, STILL VERY CUTE. (just to let you know I headcanon out Teddies hornyness from canon so hes a good boy) Teddie and Kanji are good friends because...!

Kanji: The Frankincense Monster. Made by his late deceased father and taking care of by his mother. Kanji currently going through a identity crisis and trying to figure out what makes him a man or what makes anyone a PERSON?

Rise: The Succubus idol. Unlike her older succubus colleagues from the underworld, Rise is half human and feeds of the attention spans of humans. If you give her good vibes then she'll return it! But there seems to be one boy that took her heart and gives her zero attention of day. Rise's google history is just "how to make a vampire like you?"

Naoto: The Werecat scientists. previously was the fifth generation of well trained scientist then turned into a werecat overnight. Kanji as his assistant they will find the cure for werebeastism.

I've been indecisive of this au being a flatout p4 but everyone is monsters or a slide-of-life comedy?

anyway.. heres some werewolf Yosuke art + Teddie

v older art

[demi-shoggoth]

2023 Reading Log pt. 4

March was hard for me, both in terms of my personal life and in terms of my reading. I started a whole bunch of books that I haven't finished. Some of them I intend to come back to (two monster books, one for RPGs and one reference book). The ones I intentionally gave up on are listed here, as well as the whys of why I gave up on them.

16. Bestiarium Greenlandica, edited by Maria Bach Kreutzmann. Recommended to me a while ago by @abominationimperatrixx, but I have only been able to get a copy recently. This is the second edition, put out by Eye of Newt Press, which seems to specialize in publishing monster books with previously limited print runs (they also have an edition of Welsh Monsters and Mythical Beasts by C G J Ellis, for example). This book is an A-Z look at mythical creatures from Greenland, which entails a peek at traditional Thule culture. Anggakutt (the equivalent of shamans) use various monstrous spirits to guide them through the spiritual realm and work wonders for them, and these have to be negotiated with or even battled in order to recruit them. So there’s plenty of monsters, many of which are very obscure in English language sources, or confused with other creatures from other Inuit cultures. The book has illustrations for most of the monsters, some line drawings and some full color paintings. All of the art is great, and it doesn’t shy away from the sex and violence in the myths. So a trigger warning is at play if dead and decaying fetus monsters, ghouls with giant penises, or all manner of grotesque facial features are not your thing. But if you’re okay with those, this book is highly recommended.

17.  Bog Bodies Uncovered by Miranda Aldhouse-Green. This book looks at the various bodies that have been discovered in peat bogs throughout northern Europe, and is primarily concerned with why these people were killed and placed in the bog. After a discussion of the history of finding bog bodies, and about the nature of bogs and how the tannins contribute to preservation, the book is primarily a forensic investigation. Its ultimate thesis is that most of the bog bodies represent intentional human sacrifices by Celtic and Germanic people. The author does a good job of supporting that claim, although her extrapolations and speculations go a little far for my taste (especially when she conjectures that the Lindow Man was sacrificed because of a specific battle written about by the Romans). The book features a mix of black and white photos and illustrations with color plates, which is always appreciated for a book about physical artifacts.

17a. Bad Gays: A Homosexual History by Huw Lemmey and Ben Miller. I gave up on this one around the halfway point—much longer than I typically go into a book I decide not to finish. That’s because I really wanted to like this one, but couldn’t. The subject is how queer history has often been sanitized and gay historical figures made saintly, when in reality there were plenty of unremarkable and some downright evil gay people as well. The book also wants to aim a giant fuck you at respectability politics, arguing for radical queer liberation and that the current state of gay representation is rooted in capitalism and patriarchy. It also also wants to make snarky quips about gay kings and military leaders—this is a very distant priority. I agree with the book’s politics in the broad sense, and there’s just enough quips and history to have kept me interested this long, but the overall feel of the book is very preachy, and not actually that interested in the lives of the individual subjects. There are ways to make a book both stridently anti-capitalist and an entertaining read, and this one fails.

17b. How Far the Light Reaches by Sabrina Imbler. I stopped this one a few pages into the second chapter. I was looking for a book about marine life and fun facts, and this has that, but is interwoven with personal memoir and is much heavier on the memoir. The first chapter is about how goldfish are stunted in fishbowls, but can grow to enormous sizes in the wild and can act as an invasive species. And this is contrasted with the author feeling stifled by small town life and realizing that they’re queer upon growing up. That was fine, but the second chapter draws connections between how mother octopuses starve themselves watching over eggs, and the generational eating disorders that the author and their mother dealt with. My mood couldn’t handle that. Maybe I’ll come back to this book when I’m in a more secure mental place, but I didn’t feel like crying while reading again. Not for a while—I think my allotment is one sad book a year.

18. Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains by Bethany Brookshire. This feels like a companion volume to Mary Roach’s Fuzz. Both books are about how humans behave when animals get in their way, but Fuzz deals more with the humans and Pests deals more with the animals. There’s lots of evolution and ecology material here, including very recent research, like the possible link between the evolution of house mice and the contents of their gut flora, and a modern look at how Australia’s ecosystems are reacting to and coping with the introduction of cane toads. This book is much more the balance of science to personal experience that I was looking for right now, and I had a good time with this one.

19. Ancient Sea Reptiles by Darren Naish. I’ve been looking forward to this book since it was first announced, so I’m happy to report that it’s as good as I was hoping. The book discusses Mesozoic marine reptiles (with some guest appearances from Permian taxa, like mesosaurs). First, it goes through the history of their discovery and some overview of their anatomy, physiology and evolutionary relationships. Then, it goes through the clades. Ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs, mosasaurs, marine crocodiles and sea turtles get their own chapter, and all the other groups, from weird Triassic one-offs to sea snakes, are compiled into a single chapter. Naish is one of my favorite science writers, as he combines a phylogeny-centric approach for an appreciation of the novelties and weirdness of specific genera. I would love it if he wrote a similar book about another group for which books for educated laypeople are thin on the ground, like stem crocodiles or non-mammalian synapsids.

20. Effin’ Birds by Aaron Reynolds. This is the book form of a Twitter feed, which I appreciate from a historical perspective. The feed, and the book, have two main jokes. One, pictures of birds with profanity as captions. Two, faux descriptions of bird behavior and habitats that are jokes about common types of unpleasant people, or people who avoid unpleasant people. I got a few laughs out of it, but I’m glad that I got this book from a library and would not pay money for it. The funniest thing about this book to me is that that selfsame library put it with the books about bird biology and field guides, when there is zero informational content in this book, combined with the book itself making a joke about how you’d never find this book in a library.

[lacewise]

Alright… Pat Earnshaw’s book Needlelace!

This is an incredible book for people interested in making advanced lace or researching lace but you have to know how to use it! It’s not for beginners though. At all. Every single lace book, even the ones DEFINITELY not for beginners, has an introduction where they tell you how to make the lay down what Earnshaw calls the ‘outline thread’ (and from here forward, I will be doing the same because that’s genuinely helpful, why do I keep forgetting words and phrases I definitely know?), complete the filling stitches (another phrase I forgot!), and finish the cordonnet, which you’d THINK is all you need to get started. Anyway, you would be wrong. Which is why I continually recommend classes or books written for beginners.

Why is that? As a beginner, you have no idea what you’re looking for. Should you stumble across it, you have no idea what you’re looking *at*.

Pat Earnshaw’s diagrams are incredible, but as a novice, they were far, far too detailed for me to understand. And a lot of them don’t have detailed instructions or labels, just companion information to the diagrams. So, if you want to read this book, you have to know how read needle lace diagrams. And… you have to be willing to experiment (but we’ll get to that in the cons section).

What separates this from the transition-into-intermediate Intermediate Technical Instruction is it isn’t confined to *just* technical instruction. She gives the formal names of different laces (only needle laces with grounds, mind you, and only covers French and Belgian laces at that, except Reseau Venise, although she does provide a basic description of the Burano setup).

Pros: You will know more about different methods to work lace, basic details about different kinds of lace (which are named explicitly throughout), and the stitch guide is extensive. Her diagrams (once you learn to read them) are incredible. They will take you from unconscious incompetence to conscious incompetence. Or even conscious competence. There are really helpful tips throughout, and a lot of them will prevent you from making the mistakes that people often make in their transition to intermediates. The really frustrating ones you have no idea how to handle or prevent. That it seems like only you are doing!!! It is an excellent introduction to which stitches are used in which traditional (French and Belgian) laces and gives explanation and diagrams for very advanced stitches (like the one I adapted for the center of my lily; the stamens were from Catherine Barley’s book, however). Sometimes I keep it by my bed so I can read about the lace or look at the stitches for inspiration. The explanation of things like flat needle laces is very detailed and informative. That kind of specialized knowledge (often taken as a given when you get to a certain level) can help you understand the ideas behind the choices better. It’s useful as a reference, when you want to do your own research, and when you want more information to do your own thing in general. She also spotlights needle lace contemporary artists (from the 80s) and their art in the last chapter.

I personally want to make traditional lace in Alencon, Argentan, and Argentella, and point de gaze and that covers the stitches in all four was a huge selling point for me. (Btw, I will always refer to my own work that uses Alencon stitches or similar design elements by either point de gaze or point de gaze inspired for Reasons, most of which are summarized as ‘I Hate The French’)

Sorry for the terrible picture quality and description, but I wasn’t getting out of bed for this. Maybe I’ll fix it later, maybe I won’t.

Cons: Not all the information is accurate and it’s focused on these specific lace traditions. There are easier ways to make some stitches, although no one has yet tried to replace it with a more up-to-date guide (in English, anyway). The book is Very 80s. While it describes, in great detail, how to make traditional lace, as well as compares with antique patterns, all of the patterns and samples made for the readers are done in contemporary art fashion (as was the way in the 80s). The samples are worked in bright colours, which can make the working method a bit difficult to parse. She also works the lace away from her (I work it towards) so I end up turning the book around a lot (I turn it back to read it and to examine the diagrams). If you work towards then you will probably have to turn it around often as well. Additionally, because there are So Many samples, the tension in a lot of them is Not Ideal and that’s why I have to refer to the diagrams. Sometimes I will have this out with another book (even if no other book addresses the stitch in question, which is fairly common, so I understand the reasoning correctly)

Who is this for: people who want a stitch guide, especially if they want to make more complex pieces or you’re interested in making traditional lace, and extra if you want to design your own patterns.

Overall: this is a reference book (and an out-of-date one). Pat Earnshaw was a researcher as well as a lacemaker (I want several other books she wrote, covering identification and the history of lace) and this book is not meant to be a standalone. Not in the least bit. You know those specialized companion books you see at craft fairs for advanced crafters? That’s what this is. A sort of extremely niche encyclopaedia. As far as I know, she was not a specialist in any of these laces. So, this would also maybe not be a good fit for an expert in their specialty (as most needle lacemakers specialize). It is possible to outgrow this book, it is just very, very difficult. (As you can see because I am several years in and still singing its praises.)

[dymdrimluga]

Art of Mage: The Ascension

Recently, a big event happened: I started playing MtA again, and I was forced to read. To be honest, I still find it difficult to read long and complex texts in English, but it's great practice. It's not the first time I've opened the rule book, but now I somehow paid special attention to the arts. And they are very cool there! This is the book I want to talk about. And this is an old book, after which, I think, a lot has changed in the world of illustration. But I'm just curious how it was. Was this book successful? What do you think about it?

Many people worked on this edition

At first, I wanted to find the specific author of each picture, but despite the existence of such a list, it turned out to be a difficult task. So today I will only comment on the art, not the artists. I am not a professional because my art has never been used for such books, but I want to share my impressions and thoughts.

There were a lot of such cards there and they are also quite cool, and the main thing is that they look in their place and really look like real tarot cards in design and vibe. Although this is not the art that interests me the most, I couldn't help but mention them here.

Really cool. It seems to be something from traditional materials, similar to watercolor, maybe with the addition of something else. If you look closely, you can see the remains of a pencil. Look at the head. Is everything drawn anatomically correct? No. But does it create the right mood? Yes!

Art by Mark Jackson if I'm not mistaken. Kinda reminds me of Sandman from the comics, don't you think? I wonder if this kind of black and white line art is still used in modern books? Must check.

This art... I was a little surprised to see it in the book. I worked in the game industry and was used to the fact that everything should be casually polished (thanks to gamejams for allowing me to deviate from this rule). Right here... a dynamic plot, but work with the clarity of the picture, color, volume, lighting... on some details it is simply not there. It seems that at some point it was not the main thing to be an illustrator. I wonder what was important? And what remains? Because I would really like to be involved in something like this book.

I would be happy to see how it is done. I have thoughts that maybe photos were used, but most were definitely drawn and I just want to know how

It has its own style. A lot of work on small details requires patience, not everyone can draw so many small details and not get lost in them. I love when people do not lose the courage to draw in a unique style

as in the previous picture, traditional materials seem to have been used here: pencils, felt-tip pens, maybe watercolors? What do you think of when you see this? I think "small artists". So many talented artists with small audiences on Twitter or Tumblr can do the same. Although not. Not "the same", because no one will do "the same" in creativity. At the same level - yes. The same - no. It's obvious that a lot of the artist's personality and experience has been put into this, and that makes this picture unique

oh i love it, it's not even a color drawing, but it looks so good on the page! But I don't really understand what bothers me about this girl's breasts, I wish I could see what it looks like from the front

We have already seen this author. Look at the hair. I.. really don't know what to say. Not exactly what I expected.

interesting art, interesting creature. Many would call it a sketch, but I think it is precisely here that more work on the details is not needed

I don't know the author, but I definitely recognize the style - I saw something like that in the changelings rulebook

Oh, I like it. It takes a special skill to draw like that, and I don't have it. Very dynamic. And the form shown is interesting

Soap. Nothing extra, nice details on the background, clear silhouette. Good.

I love this kind of comic book style. It is exactly as it should be in this style, I don't know what else to say, except that there is a good work with textures

how interestingly and harmoniously different styles are combined in this book

I like it, I would read something like comic book in that style, very nice to look at

I can't say about the plot, but the details, volume, and shadows are very well drawn. I wonder if it was done in pencil? I am fascinated by people who can draw with pencils and have a similar result

very calm great vibe

this is already something closer to the game art I know, not casual, but a step towards polishing, + looks like digital

one more step :) If you don't pay attention to the face, something like this can now be drawn in hidden objects games. Very nice drawing, by the way, I like the dynamics.

I think that will be enough, at least for today. I don't know who would be interested in such a review with personal opinions. But here's what fascinated me and made me think: so many artists with such different styles in one book. Unbelievable. It would be very interesting to be a part of something like that. Now I want to review new books from this point of view. I used to look at them as a reader, but now...

I wonder if there will be new books of this kind? What are the requirements? What is needed?

Only one trend worries me. Some time ago I had a conversation with the author of this book It was an interesting but a little sad conversation. The author says that, at best, he will receive not so much for this book. He says that he cannot pay the artists as well, because then he will have nothing left. It's a shame, but the only solution he found was to use the AI. I wanted to read the text of the book, because Umbra is a very interesting topic. I even had the opportunity to read it for free as a free copy provided by the author. I did not read it. One of the comments says that the art there is well-suited, although it was created by AI. I do not know. I don't want to see it even for free. I think it brings Banality into the world, destroys the dreams of small artists to be part of something great. I can understand a small author of a small book that won't make much money. It's just sad. I can only hope that the trend does not spread to the whole world. It will really be the time of Winter. And no more magic in this technocratic world.

[risunsky]

As an accomplished artist and someone who I guess is harder to impress, what type of art / artist excites you and inspires you ?

You flatter me by calling me an accomplished artist! I don't think I am but I still take the compliment to cheer me up when I have a low self esteem haha!

It's a great question and also terribly difficult... mhmmm In terms of type and category… I admire those who master techniques that I want to do but could never do, like oil painting. I'm extremely sensitive to smells and strong products like what is needed for this technique but when I see some process videos it looks so wonderful!

Or the artists who master to an extraordinary level the techniques or style that I practice myself and that I consider as goals to reach. I do watercolours and comics but at a very basic level, I still consider myself a beginner, and I hope one day to reach even a tiny bit the level of Juanjo Guarnido with Blacksad, or Hermann with Jeremiah.

Or the artists who seem to excel in the areas where I'm a big slug, like speed and efficiency. I work slowly, I need to turn around my concept, do lots of drafts and tests, gather lots of references, so artists who can come up with an anatomically perfect drawing without a preparatory sketch or a composition that works great on the first draft blow my mind.

A special mention, I'm interested in linocut artists or those who do very elaborate black and white work like we see a lot in the metal world. I bought some material to do linocuts myself but I haven't had much time to do it yet and I love the ultra detailler black & white style but I think it's beyond my own patience which is already quite extended haha!

I'm making a small list, limiting myself to the artists : -that I am currently following -who are still alive -who work in fields where I myself practice, namely illustration, comics and traditional techniques. -whose name my horrible memory managed to retain and associate with the art…

Juanjo Guarnido Yoann Lossel One of my great favourites. His universe is simply wonderful. Wylie Beckert I'm in love with her style. Joe Fenton Stephen Wilson Madd Riccardo Federici. Jaime Calderón. Annie Stegg. Nico delort Ralph Meyer Jordi Lafebre Serge Birault

and many others, it's too hard to choose!

Sometimes it's other art consumers who talk about it so well that they themselves become a source of inspiration. I've already mentioned it here, Alt236, a French youtuber, who calls himself an archaeologist of fictional universes, every time I watch one of his videos I get a great art boost.

And my French community that makes letsplay RPGs centered on lovecraft kind of horror. I've been in this group for 10 years now, a lot of talented artists gravitate around it, come and go, participate and are motivating just by their enthusiasm or way of telling stories. it is through this community that I've discovered that I think I'm a better artist when it comes to exploring other people's worlds rather than creating my own. That said, don't think I'm an artistic snob, a funny drawing with a good dick or fart joke is enough to make my day! And challenging myself with cursed drawings. I think I have a passion for pushing the boundaries of idiocy.

And I think I can stop there, to keep it digestible hehe. I hope this answers your question properly! Thank you very much for this ask and your interest!

[threewaysdivided]

awwww 😭😭😭😭

Did you write a review on the legendary teen Titans series? (Aka what young Justice could have become if they weren't overly ambitious)

What's your opinion on Paul Dini as a writer?

(Follow up to these two previous asks)

Sorry nonnie! 😅

It seems that we both tripped down a rabbit hole of doughnuts.

I assume you’re talking about the Teen Titans 2003 Animated TV Series?  In that case, you might be thinking of another user – I haven’t personally written any reviews for it.  I do have a lot of fond feelings towards the show, though; it was my first real introduction to DC Comics alongside the Justice League/ JLU animated series.  My Tumblr has a Teen Titans tag where I share art, meta etc. and I do have some thoughts about specific plots or narrative elements – you might also see me make occasional reference to it as an example on some posts in the writing advice tag.

Just for the sake of expectation management, I should explain that my Tumblr isn’t really a traditional “review blog”.  And yes, I know that probably sounds a bit crazy considering the frankly unhinged amount of YJ analysis I’ve written, especially since I’ve been blogging less about other stories in the last year. Burnout, what can you do? 

Really I’m more of a writing/ story-analysis blog.  Sometimes I might write a semi-review style post where I try to break down and articulate a particular technique/ element/ execution/ implication of a narrative in order to understand what it’s doing well or why something isn’t working.  As I said in the very first Frustrations with YJ essay, I think storytelling is fundamentally about communication and understanding.  I got into fandom as a fan-reader turned fan-writer (AO3 wink wink), and before that I worked as a casual English tutor.  I want to learn from the ways different narratives succeeded or failed at communicating their stories within the restrictions of their medium(s) so that I can better find, discuss and even tell stories myself. 

Because of that, I’m also a big proponent of the Death of the Author approach to media analysis.  Let me copy the definition over from that first essay real quick:

DEATH OF THE AUTHOR This theory posits that, because commercial art is created to be consumed, not just created, the audience’s interpretations of a work should be considered as just valid as the creator’s.  The work must stand on its own and creators cannot micro-manage their audience’s response to it. 1.  A creator’s intentions and biographical facts (political stances, religion, etc) should hold no special weight in determining the validity of an interpretation. 2.  Save for re-releases/reboots or new entries, the creator cannot and should not attempt to retroactively insert information or interpretations that were not present in the original text.

I generally don’t look too deeply into or follow the specific people behind (non-fan) works.  This isn’t always the case – if I like a specific author’s style I might look up their body of work to read more; some stories are clearly rooted in their creators’ specific opinions or experiences, which makes for interesting context; and sometimes I like to learn about the behind-the-scenes methods/techniques/production woes of a bringing a specific story to life – but mostly I put the priority on what I can learn from the final product.

As I’ve said before, commercial storytelling is the result of more than just one person.  Under the right conditions I think a rank amateur or complete hack could produce something amazing and, if faced with enough production headaches, a usually-excellent creator could end up outputting utter drek although I expect that drek would at least be creatively interesting.

The questions that interest me more are: what was this narrative trying to communicate?  what techniques were used/ creative choices were made?  how well did it succeed?  could a different approach have been used? and, what restrictions/limitations/priorities could have led to the final creative decisions?  To me, information on a creator’s circumstances provide context for narrative analysis.  Since I generally don’t know them I try not to postulate their actual intent too much, only the potential intent suggested by the story.

SO WHAT THE HECK WAS I DOING WITH YJ, THEN? What happened with Young Justice is actually an outlier for me in both regards because of how baffling flawed the series ended up being.  Back in the pre-revival days I paid a lot of attention to the textual canon of Season 1 because I had started writing a fanfic based on it and wanted to do the story justice (heh).  The result was I went into the later seasons with a lot more awareness of the canonical details and storytelling techniques – and (like I said in the final Invasion case-study) I ended up being blindsided by how instinctively bored and annoyed I became just a short way into an attempted Season 2 rewatch, despite the fact that I was actively trying to study it. 

The reason I kept coming back with more and more posts is that I never felt like I had successfully grasped or articulated why I had such a strong and unexpected negative reaction.  I think it’s a similar impulse to what Dan Olson cited as making the Nostalgia Critic’s Parody of The Wall so weirdly compelling: there's a confusing contradiction between the level of work required to implement the sheer amount of stuff that Young Justice tries to include, and the absolute thoughtlessness of how sloppily that stuff was actually executed. A multi-season, multimedia story like Young Justice is a long-term project: there are too many layers of production involved for the end result to be made in a brief flash of impulse or accident. It needs some sort of sustained creative motivation to drive it… but I could never find a coherent creative intent that would satisfyingly explain the decisions on display.  Never before or since have I seen such a promising launch be followed by sequels so fatally flawed as to strip away every component of the original’s creative identity.  There’s a reason I subtitled that masterpost A Massive Failure of Narrative.

This is also why I went after lead-showrunner Greg Weisman a bit, despite not usually doing that.  The choice to exclude (or consciously excise) over 70% of the critical narrative substance and sequester it away in non-textual social-media /ask-blog retcons means that you cannot escape engaging with Weisman when trying to engage with the later seasons at any level of depth.  As a Death of the Author proponent this ticked me off just on-its-face, but it also meant that he and those seasons are inseparably intertwined.  Regardless of whether it was a conscious choice arising from his sense of creative entitlement, or simply a case of narrative incompetence self-selecting for a primary audience with a high tolerance for media-illiteracy Nigerian Prince Email Scam-style, the end-result is the same: Weisman gouged holes his narrative and left it to suffocate while he sucked up all the oxygen in the room.   Then, later, as I encountered people from other fandoms whose narratives had been similarly decimated by Weisman, it became impossible to ignore how inseparable his personal flaws are from those narrative failures.  As I alluded to in the last ask, you can separate the original seven Harry Potter texts from their author: Joanne Rowling and her politics could evaporate tomorrow and it wouldn’t change people’s ability to enjoy the story as a standalone work (in fact, the absence of her modern politics might make some of the more unpalatable flaws easier to accept as honest oversights rather than ominous foreshadowing).  Meanwhile, Young Justice is such a disaster because the later seasons stop being about the original story and increasingly become about Greg: his failures at basic storytelling, his disinterested misunderstanding of his own characters, his weird fixations, his patterns of reactionary prejudice, casual double-standards, deeply disturbing attitudes about consent and power, and a self-righteous entitlement that resents being held accountable.  Unlike Harry Potter, you can’t put Young Justice S2+ in a bubble. The problem at the root of every other problem with Young Justice is that it doesn’t have an actual narrative... and in the absence of a coherent central narrative, the text itself has become the story of Greg Weisman's terrible creative choices. His self-indulgent proclivities pervade every step of the later seasons' broken theming, bad pacing, warped characterisation, contradictory lore, intra-textual hypocrisies, over-stuffed cast and weird fanservice: baked-in at a level that cannot be ignored or rationalised away.

It makes me empathise a lot with how Hbomberguy said he felt on discovering the recent James Somerton stuff: it’s not fun to stumble down a rabbit hole of learning that a prominent figure in one of your communities is sucking up air via association with work from their less-credited colleagues, then using that air to present themselves as an ally, dominate the narrative and delegitimise valid criticism, all while spreading their own prejudiced agendas, refusing to change their behaviour and continuing to profit.  That’s why I felt the need to explicitly point out some of the clearer patterns of reactionary bigotry and hypocritical non-apologies in Weisman’s work – I wanted to make sure the evidence was at least available somewhere outside of Weisman’s carefully-filtered reputation-protecting PR statements.  People put pieces of their lives into communicating something that will hopefully be worth the pieces of life their audiences invest in return -  I find the idea of someone exploiting that trust for gain to be deeply disgusting.

Now, with that exceptionally-overlong context provided: Paul Dini. 

The disappointing but predictable answer is that I don’t really have an opinion on him as a writer.  Having looked up his credits, I recognise a lot of works that I personally enjoyed (including the cancelled-after-one-season Tower Prep).

I really like Batman: The Animated Series, both for the human element it brought to heroism and the tone it set for the following DCAU (colloquially Timm-verse) generation of animated series.  Justice League was one of my first introductions to the main DC roster, so that set a lot of my core understanding of their characters.  I find Harley Quinn, especially her early B:TAS/ DCAU story-iterations, to be compelling in a way that’s equal parts fun and tragic.  There are some parts of the DCAU that I find a bit silly (a couple of background ‘ships that make me go whaa?) but I think I was really lucky to grow up during a time when the DCAU and second-order series inspired by its tone and storytelling ethos (e.g. Teen Titans 2003) was the childhood DC experience for kids my age.

That said, I don’t know enough about the story behind the works in Dini’s credits to feel confident in speaking about him as a writer.  Just looking at his resume, he certainly seems like a passionate and prolific creator who did a lot of very influential work.  At the same time, however, I don’t know how much of that was Dini himself, how much was his frequent co-creator, Bruce Timm, and how much his works may have been adulterated by the influence of other, less-visible members of the production and editorial teams who worked alongside him.  It can be convenient to elevate one or two prominent members to Great Man status as an easy shorthand for discussing works they’ve been involved with, but that can come with the risk of crediting or platforming the wrong people through mis-attribution or just plain projection. 

I’ve learned my lesson on blind-lionisation after being thoroughly let down by all the Weisman nonsense, the same way others have learned from being let down by creators they previously idolised (Supergeekmike did a really good video covering this which also includes discussions of Death of the Author and Authorial Intent).  Without doing proper research into and comparisons of Dini’s work, I wouldn’t feel confident making an assertion about his personal skills as a creator.  I greatly enjoy many of the stories he’s been credited on, and can recognise the influence those stories had in shaping a generation of DC fans (and writers)… but while I’m happy to talk about the writing of those stories, it feels a little irresponsible of me to talk to the character or intent of a real person without knowing more about them.  I’m not making that mistake again.

In the meantime though, I do want to talk more about actual writing.  I’ve been taking it easier this year lockdown and job burnouts finally caught up to me and it suuucks, man but I'm hoping to pick back up in 2024.  I want to finally get back to working on my main fanfic so I can share the companion meta without spoiling people.  I have thoughts about some possible meta-textual metaphors in Across the Spider-verse.  I might do a case-study piece exploring why the years-long timeskip in Arcane Season 1 worked really well while others haven’t.  And there’s an ask about a canon-divergent-post-Season-1 Young Justice episode premise that’s been burning a hole in my inbox for at least 5 months now.

So yeah.  More writing breakdowns to come.  In the meantime, I previously wrote a Frustrations With analysis of how My Hero Academia’s story struggled following the Hideout Raid Arc if you’d like to check that one out.  There’s also this big compilation of links to my Young Justice and Danny Phantom meta (plus recommendations for fanfics and other stories), and you can check out the writing advice tag for general storytelling discussions.

Hopefully that makes up for the drought of Teen Titans content!

[denimbex1986]

'Coming to the end of Barbenheimer weekend, here are my stats. I have seen Barbie, but I have not seen Oppenheimer. This is not a feminist or aesthetic decision. It’s because Barbie is one hour and 54 minutes long, while Oppenheimer is just over three hours long.

I’m not alone in being perturbed by the length of the movie; over the weekend on TikTok and Twitter people posted the exact time that it was safe to go to the bathroom during Christopher Nolan’s epic. Others shared the app RunPee which is specifically created for this purpose (if you’re interested, it’s when Oppenheimer’s brother first comes on screen, apparently). These people are well practised at the art of knowing what parts of a cinematic epic can be missed because, lately, it seems filmmakers are well practised in the art of making movies and flat out refusing to cut them down to non-epic length.

James Cameron’s original Avatar came in at two hours 42 minutes. A decade later, Avatar: The Way of the Water, comes in at three hours and 12 minutes. The original Dune (1984) came in at two hours 17 minutes. Denis Villeneuve’s upcoming sequel to his reboot is slated to be three hours and 15 minutes. Even non-cinematic releases have embraced epic length; Netflix’s Blonde, released last year, was two hours and 46 minutes long, which felt reasonable given that three years before The Irishman ran for three hours 29 minutes. Ari Aster’s breakout horror, Hereditary, was a reasonable two hours and seven minutes. His follow up a year later, Midsommar, came in at two hours 28 minutes. Beau Is Afraid, released earlier this year, was two hours 59 minutes. Then there is Zac Snyder’s extended cut of Justice League that comes in at a criminally long four hours and two minutes.

Back in 2019 when Martin Scorsese released The Irishman, a long run-time was seen as a problem rather than what it is now; a thing to be endured or a badge of honour. “Meanwhile, traditional Hollywood studios beholden to box office sales have become progressively risk-averse in recent years (producing a three and a half hours-long film definitely counts as a risk, no matter how esteemed Scorsese is),” one article reported at the time. “A fact the filmmaker recently lamented when he argued that ‘cinema is gone.’ Perhaps The Irishman will help bring it back, if audiences can gear up for the long haul.”

It seems that the long movie is now a badge of honour for directors, screeners and filmmakers. Longer is more theatrical, more expensive, more intrinsically artistic. Compare this to previous cult movies that a generation before were noted both for their impact and for their short runtime; La Haine is only one hour 38 minutes long, Gummo is only 89 minutes long, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Pink Flamingos, Kids, Trainspotting — all really very short! But nowadays the ‘kill your darlings’ editing method has been inverted. “Most long films could be promoted as special and prestigious,” Dana Polan, a cinema studies professor at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, told Variety. “There was an assumption that length equaled quality. It’s almost to say, we’ve spent the money — let’s flaunt it.”

I had a theory that, given these lengthy blockbuster examples, the 90 minute movie was simply gone, done, over. But then I looked back at the past year’s releases and was proved sadly wrong. Rye Lane was one hour and 22 minutes long. Aftersun also ran at just over 90 minutes. As did Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret, and Sydney Sweeney’s Reality. Even Infinity Pool and A24’s The Whale were both under two hours long. Clearly 90 minute films still are around, but why does it feel like films are getting longer then. Why do we spend so much time talking about the long ones?

“These days, there’s a lot of talk about long running times,” Sarah Atkinson, professor of screen media at King’s College London, told The Guardian last year following the release of Tenet (which somehow didn’t even reach three hours). It’s all part of incentivising people to go out and pay for a ticket, which they won’t do unless it’s for something special – a big, epic film. Just look at the Marvel franchise: almost every one is well over two hours.” Film length isn’t going up, she concluded, but we think it is. Why? Sarah believed it was simply down to good, savvy marketing.

One other answer could be that our attention span is just worse now. That our attention span is destroyed, actually, by short form social media video and constantly having access to information chopped up to be digested as quickly as possible. We watch TV at double speed or 1.5 speed with the subtitles on. We can look up the plot on Wikipedia and even if we can’t be bothered to go to the cinema and figure out when it’s safe to pee, in six months or a year’s time we can watch whatever film we missed on TikTok anyway, chopped up into parts in a post-123 Movies age of piracy. Even if this doesn’t captivate us enough, someone will have edited those cut-up clips further, and put them above or alongside clips from Subway Surfer or Temple Run or people making cakes or pushing vodka bottles down flights of stairs to see if they break. We don’t ever have to concentrate long enough to take anything in. We can always be distracted.

It’s true also that longer movies always did exist, especially for vast historical epics like Oppenheimer. Lawrence of Arabia, released in 1962, ran at three hours and 42 minutes originally (it was cut down by both 20 and 35 minutes in later releases before being extended to three hours 48 minutes in 1980). Further back, 1939’s Gone with the Wind was three hours and 44 minutes long. Cleopatra, one of the world’s longest cinematic commercial films ever, was released in 1963 and is three hours and 53 minutes long. But a generation later, longer films made headlines when they tried to embrace the epic-runtime set by their predecessors. James Cameron’s Titanic – three hours 14 minutes – was originally released for home media in a two VHS bundle to account for its length. All of the Harry Potter movies were just under or over three hours long; Chris Columbus and later directors knew that the franchise’s rabid fan-base would watch, no matter the length, and so studios would pay for big, lengthy productions too. Even accounting for the amount of lore creators had to include, the length is frequently cited as one of the flaws of the series, which is now being remade into more easily digestible TV sized chunks.

For Oppenheimer though – Christopher Nolan’s longest movie to date – the length doesn’t seem to be off-putting, even with the fact the movie’s 70mm film reels are clocking in at over 600lbs (I did actually try to see it, but every cinema close enough to make is sold out even today). Perhaps we’re just more used to a modern lengthy epic than we used to be. It made just over $80 million in opening weekend takings, making it the director’s biggest non-Batman box office hit to date. Barbie, for transparency’s sake, did take $150 million in the same weekend. Despite its three hour length people still embraced Barbenheimer weekend, going to one movie and then the other, spending an entire day at the cinema, unfatigued and impressed. Maybe Barbenheimer weekend is not just what we needed to reinvigorate movie theatres, but what we needed to fix our broken attention spans. We have become death, destroyer of short films.'

[mistydeyes]

Hello! Hope your day is going good! I would like to request a mtchup for the CoD guys only if they’re still open :)

I am a tattoo artist with a big passion for art in general. I spend most of my time working but I like to craft and garden in my spare time.

One of my favourite things to do it go for long walks and look for cool things like bones and edible plants and herbs (I’m a bit of a hippy heehee).

In terms of personality I like to think I’m very laid back but I am stressed all the time, that being said I wouldn’t necessarily call myself high-strung. I try really hard to be kind and see the best even when it can be a struggle. I also am always joking around I LIVE to make people laugh and feel good :)

Despite my stress I’ve been described as a very calming and fun person to be around. I carry myself in a very professional and formal manner around those I don’t know, which can seem a little off putting at first. I am a big history buff with special interest in the Victorian era so it bled into my daily life and I literally walk around like a fancy Victorian lady with ‘Disney princess hands’.

Appearance isn’t very important but it is fun! I am just over average height and chubby, with olive skin and lots of tattoos. I have a more alternative look that’s been described as a kindergarten teacher at a school for forest witches, so I guess like a hippy goth haha!

Anyways, I appreciate your time, thank you! ❤️✨

John Price

How you met: Civilian John Price was never one for a tattoo but after the last few years, he decided on getting something more permanent to commemorate his time with his task force. He asked around for a good recommendation, ignoring Soap's friend who "does them for free" and going with Simon's tattoo artist who beautifully did his tattoo. "John Price," he spoke to the receptionist and she handed him a waiver to sign. As he sat on the velvet couch, he enjoyed marveling at the decorations of the shop. From the vintage frames with the artists' work to the posters depicting tattoo traditions from around the world, he wondered who decorated the place. Plus it was very clean, something he much appreciated. Eventually his artist emerged and he was taken aback by their beauty. Their dark floral skirt made it seem like they floated on the ground and their tattoos perfectly complimented their glowing, olive skin. "Hi John, I'll be your artist today. If you wouldn't mind, you can follow me" you beckoned and you took the waiver from him. You let him into your space and you saw his eyes flicker around as he looked at some of your previous work and Victorian botanical images you had on display. You motioned for him to sit as you grabbed your razor to shave his thigh. He looked nervous so you made light conversation. "First tattoo?" you asked as you applied the stencil. "I guess you can tell, must have been doing this for a while" he commented before you prepared your needle. "Trust me, once you get one tattoo you'll be coming back to me for more," you smiled. As Price looked at your radiant face, he knew there would be a few reasons to come back.

A peek into your relationship: "Love, can we please getting a wedding planner?" your fiancé, John, asked as you were painstakingly going over all the details of your nuptials. "John, I want it to be perfect and who better to plan this than myself?" you said before going back to typing on your laptop. Last week you drove him crazy with handwriting your invitations and sealing it with wax stamps, now you were trying to construct the perfect bouquet for yourself and your bridesmaid by researching the language of flowers. "That's enough for tonight," he said before hoisting you into his arms and carrying you off to bed. You tried to resist playfully but his strong arms kept you from leaving his grasp. Eventually you tired out and both lay in each others arms as you tried to fall asleep. "You do know that it is a little bit easier now," you whispered as John opened his eyes and faced you, "if we got married in the Victorian age then you would have to court me and pay a dowry." He pulled you gently into his side before he responded. "I would think my €636.42 tattoo would be payment enough," he laughed and kissed you gently. You fell asleep in his arms and Price secretly hoped that tomorrow he wouldn't wake up with thousands of bouquet designs in your shared apartment.