#like just in the past few years i can count. like. 5 different examples?

[ofandrastes]

LET'S GET REACQUAINTED ! hey rpc ! lets be honest, datv brought us all back in one way or another either you're a veteran or new, i'm sure there is stuff that has changed or we don't know each other so let's have a game about it to reintroduce each other ! repost this to do the same & tag some pals if you want !

Name / Penname: Ray for veterans, did you go by something previously ? name &/or penname: nope, always just Ray age & gender ( if comfortable sharing ): 28, female what was your first dragon age muse: Does all of them count? Ha! I guess I would say Maverick though, but he was originally a BG3 muse that I converted over for the DA setting when I started this blog up again. do you have any other darp muses / blogs: Nope, this is my first. what muses / blogs do you have outside of darp: My personal blog is @sambergcrs and tbh I am so inactive on that it's not even funny. It's my general musing & gif making blog because I've spent the last like 12 years or so doing rp groups. I only made my indie last year when BG3 came out and I was ITCHING to write in that universe!! So now I'm here, took a bit of a break over the last like 5 months because of a new job, but I'm back with my Dragon Age obsession reignited (even though I have not finished Veilguard...oops). thedas has two moons: I am unfortunately TERRIBLE at keeping track of lore so truly Bioware I feel you.

single line, para, or novella: Para/Novella. I don't mind what other people do but I am incapable of shortening replies half the time. SORRY. plotting or winging it: I am fine with both but I find I typically reply a lot faster and become more engaged in threads where we've plotted things out. Winging it with memes, starter calls and such are a great way to gauge chemistry and can serve super well as a jumping off point, though. fighting threads, you bold enough for them? They scare me truthfully but I could be down! My writing style is very...internalized as far as my characters go. I can dive into their psyches and write about why they do and feel the things they do and feel all day. So, admittedly I wouldn't say I'm super comfortable with them BUT I am more than willing to as long as we plot something out in detail & my partner is patient with me. what content warnings are on your blog?: Very few, just a general NSFW content may be present. I can always add more, but in general it's just possible smeggsual content and possible violence/gore. what things do you need tagged for your comfort?: I truly don't need anything tagged for my own purposes, but if that changes I will update my rules & let my writing partners know..

shipping preferences: single | multi | no ship | polyship. Wrote up a rule about this earlier this week! I am very versatile, happy to pair my muses up for multiple ships, but when it comes to canon characters I impose a limit. For example, I probably won't ship with more than one or two, say, Fenris' (FYI, I currently don't have any wink wink) because I find coming up with so many different dynamics between multiple portrayals a bit tiring, personally. Also, if my partners have rules I will typically follow them. But! Overall, I'm a ship fiend. Happy to discuss anything and everything. Also, would love more polyship opportunities. shipping boundaries: See above regarding canon characters, but I don't have too many hard boundaries right off the bat. Nothing generally inappropriate, obviously, or outright problematic. I'll always be open to ideas but will enforce my boundaries when they come up, and I hope others will feel comfortable to do the same.

fun facts about yourself that may have changed since in the past ten years( when inquisition dropped )-- damn I mean I graduated high school and college and then went into the working world, got married, moved a bunch, bought a house. It's certainly been a hard journey, especially the past few years or so in dealing with some of my husband's health struggled, but overall it's wild to see how much growth I've had and see how long these games have endured the test of time.

be honest, did you miss darp. come on now: I have never been a part of this community before, but I love it. I've had a great time & I can't wait to interact with more people!

challenge round! put a small top five things unrelated to dragon age ! - i have a 9 year old pitbull/corgi mix named dingo, and a 2 year old tuxedo cat named suki. i would do terrible things for them - i have a degree in television production but now i market forklifts for a living LMAO - hot rod is the greatest movie ever made - diet pepsi is superior to diet coke dont even @ me - go birds!!!!!

tagged by: @alitlantern & @onlyinthedas & i think more a while ago i am SORRY IM SLOW

tagging: you!! bc i cant keep up with who did this already and im shy!!

[stardusted-queerness]

Writing Resources

I've been writing all my life, and I've been saving resources I use over the past couple of years. I'm gonna post them all here, so that others can use them because some of these are rather obscure.

Resource: Character Profile Desc: a 20 page PDF file that helps you better flesh out your character. PDF is editable directly. Very useful for any type of character.

Resource: Character Sheet Desc: a very long character sheet hosted on DeviantArt. I'm not sure if it's still being updated, but it is VERY extensive and covers everything from the basics to pet peeves. Best used for the main cast.

Resource: Name Generator Desc: a site that hosts a number of name generators. You add a few variables, and it gives you a list of names. Has everything from a "quick name" generator to a "plot generator". Very useful for a variety of things (not just writing).

Resource: Worldbuilding Prompts Desc: a site with writing prompts. Pretty good for getting the basis of your world

Resource: World Anvil Desc: a site to house all of your worldbuilding. Basically acts like a wiki, but for worlds. Has a premium version, but the free version works just fine (but you're limited to 2 worlds and ~175 articles for each world). Can be used for any type of writing: creative, screenplay, even ttrpgs like DnD.

Resource: Inkarnate Desc: Map-making site. Pretty cool, and has assets that allow creation of dungeon maps, world maps, and even scene maps. The free version is a bit meh on the assets, while the pro version ($5/month or $25/year) is a lot better. Additionally, the free version limits you to 10 maps, while with the pro version, you can create ~1,500 maps. If you use pro and then cancel your subscription, any maps that you created while using pro will be locked. You will not be able to edit them. I learned this the hard way.

Resource: Gallery of Faces Desc: pretty much like the "thispersondoesnotexist" site, just under a different name. AI-generated human photos. Can edit the settings to include a specific age group, a specific sex, etc. Really good for people who aren't good artists and need/like having a visual of their character.

Resource: Fantasy Calendars Desc: Allows you to make a completely new calendar. You can choose the names of the months, weekdays, everything. It's an absolutely wonderful tool and really helps if you don't want to use a modern calendar. This is the calendar I made myself. It's just an example of what you can do.

Resource: Word Combiner Desc: a tool to combine up to 4 words together. Shows just about any and every possibility. Found this useful when trying to make a name or a language.

Resource: Fantasy Language Generator Desc: another generator, but for languages instead. There's a few variables you can mess with, and it'll generate counterparts to the 30,000 most commonly used words in English. You can save the language as a file and load it on the site at a later time. Completely free.

Resource: Word Counter Desc: Just a word-counting site. Useful if you frequent Discord & use bots like WriterBot or Sprinto (writing sprint bots), as you only have 2 minutes after the sprint ends to submit word count.

Resource: Worldbuilding Checklist :) Desc: a very extensive worldbuilding checklist. Covers everything from races to the economy to the current fashion trends. Really awesome resource.

All of these have proven to be really useful to me, so I wanted to share these. I just hope these are useful to others ^_^

[writingquestionsanswered]

Hello!

This might have already been answered in a previous post. However, tumblr on mobile hates me and doesn’t want to work half of the time so I’m having trouble locating stuff.

I’m working on a second draft of my manuscript and am trying multiple POVs along with having each chapter either be a different day or different character. For example: chapter one is date ‘xx’ with ‘character A’, while chapter two is date ‘xy’ with ‘character B’. (My story takes place over eight months with four distinct POVs). One of the very early chapters doesn’t have many plot points, but has a major one in it, as the major plot point leads to the kick off the inciting incident. (I usually do 5-6 basic points/events I want to hit in a chapter). But I’m only coming up with 1-2 for this specific chapter.

Would it be a better idea to combine this chapter with the next chapter? Or should I rework this chapter to have more substance? I could leave it as is however, I feel as if the chapter wouldn’t hit the mini word count I set for myself or highlight what I’m trying to show. Would it be a good idea to flesh out the world and this specific character more— or would it seem to info-dump-y?

Thanks so much! Also sorry if my question makes barely any sense.

Hitting 5-6 Plot Points/Events Per Chapter

First: tumblr on mobile hates everyone, so no worries there.

I'm curious about this idea of hitting 5 to 6 plot points or events per chapter... this isn't structural method I've ever encountered before, and honestly, it sound like a lot to cram into a single chapter. Most chapters would revolve around a single plot point or event, with maybe a few minor ones where necessary.

I mean, the bottom line is if it's working for your story, don't change it. If you feel like the chapters are solid and not too busy, keep doing what you're doing. But I definitely wouldn't worry about chapters that aren't overflowing with plot points and events. Just the 1 to 2 plot points/events should be enough for that chapter. If you're worried that not enough is happening, it might be a good place to illustrate something important about the world or characters, but you don't want to do it as an info dump. For example... let's say you realize this chapter could be a good place to explore the POV character's internal conflict. Rather than doing an info dump, you can find another event that would illustrate that conflict. Like, perhaps this character is dealing with a confidence issue related to a past event, so you can find a way to showcase that issue by showing how their confidence is impacted.

Ultimately, as nice as symmetry is, you generally don't want to make story decisions based on symmetry rather than what is best for the story. :)

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

I’ve been writing seriously for over 30 years and love to share what I’ve learned. Have a writing question? My inbox is always open!

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[kira-ani-mcgrath]

Your commission advice is all very practical and helpful, but how can I avoid saying "contact for pricing" when my offerings and the potential requests are so diverse? I understand that pricing schemes can be rather formulaic for character portraits, but I don't want to limit myself.

Note for others: This is referencing my "Commission Tips" post, specifically this part:

Public Pricing I've signed my name to more vehicles than I care to count over the years, which means I've done quite a bit of car shopping. I am a researcher, and I've had times where I have many browser tabs open, pouring over the various listings and comparing all kinds of factors - such as mileage, gas mileage, safety rating, features, and, of course, price - in an effort to narrow down my choices and arrive at the best deal possible. Sometimes in these searches, vehicle listings will say "contact dealer for pricing" for various reasons. That instantly knocks the vehicle down a slot in my rating system. I have enough anxiety dealing with certain things even when I have all the facts and know exactly what I want. It's even worse when I have to cold-call for a very important piece of information and risk getting roped into a conversation I don't want to have. Yes, I have a point to this anecdote. I have many times compared commission shopping to car buying, even joking that I put more research into my commission purchases than I have into our last few vehicle purchases. "DM/email me for prices" is an artist's equivalent of "contact dealer for pricing," and thus is an instant back-button for me at this point. It's just not worth the hassle when there are so many other options out there that give me all the information I need front-and-center.

Admittedly, this point is probably the least universally-applicable, given that there are buyers who have no issue with these sorts of inquiries. However, I'd presume I'm not the only one who avoids this, especially online. So, if you'd like to catch the consideration of a customer such as myself, there's a few options:

1) Include examples with approximate prices in your commission information. These examples can be personal works or past commissions you've done (and the example price doesn't need to be what you actually charged for that particular commission, but what you would charge if asked to repeat it - useful if you raise your rates or if the cost of materials increases). You can also stress that the priced pieces are examples and final pricing is determined by the exact specifications the potential buyer sends in for consideration.

2) Utilize base + add-on pricing. With this pricing method, you have a minimum price for a basic service, then additional charges for increased levels of work. This method is similar to the flat pricing you typically see for artwork commissions, but it gives a little more flexibility in accounting for the differing detail levels of requests while still giving people the ability to calculate an accurate price for themselves. Example 1: base of grayscale half-body = $10, add full-body +$5, add color +$10, add complex details +$10, add basic background +$10, add complex background +$20 or more depending on details Example 2: base of 24-in scarf 1 color of basic yarn = $10, every additional color +$5 ea, upgrade to premium yarn +$10 per color, add an extra inch +$2 ea

3) Utilize ranged pricing. With this pricing method, you advertise a minimum charge for a basic commission but also state that the price increases with complexity and the actual price will depend on the specifics of the commission. You don't specify all the minutia of what increases the cost. While this is less information upfront for the buyer, it's still some information while allowing for more nuanced pricing control by the artist. You can also have different levels of ranges. A top-end price cap isn't necessary, but I have seen it used in tiered ranged pricing or if the artist just wants a cap for their own sake. Example 1: grayscale portrait $50-$150, color portrait $100-$200, color illustration $300+ Example 2: acrylic scarf $15+, wool scarf $50+

On the back-end of things, I would recommend having some type of cost breakdown of what goes into your craft(s). Overall, have a general idea of how long it takes you to create pieces at different levels of quality/detail/size/etc. If the commission is a physical item, the costs of materials and tool wear-and-tear should also be factored into the final price. If you have at least a mental guideline for that sort of thing, it will be easier to price your examples and any incoming inquiries.

I understand the appeal of just saying "contact for pricing" is the artist being able to tailor a quote to the exact specifications of a request, but I think this method is inefficient. There's unnecessary extra steps that can be eliminated with the artist giving potential customers a minimum baseline expectation front-and-center through one of the above methods.

Thanks for the compliment and the question! I enjoyed being able to expand on that point, and I hope it's useful. :)

[hokkyokusei]

Characters' body proportions, "long legs syndrome" or why some people create hatred for the sake of hatred

First, let me explain to people who may not understand how proportions work in drawing.

I also want to remind you of a simple truth: change is not bad. Note: I took extra art classes in elementary school for 4 years and then completed 5 art classes(years) at art school. During my last years of study I had the most wonderful teachers. Still love one of these teachers so much.

And that is why I am sure that what is now considered a trend and supposedly the norm is a VERY BIG mistake.

I've noticed a trend of hate towards Onmyoji's game developers, and while I agree with some of their f#ck-ups, I still want to remind you that there are PEOPLE LIKE US working there. Hateful comments are not constructive criticism!

So who here thinks that the characters supposedly have “long legs syndrome”? Where and how did you get this information and who told you THAT THIS IS TRUE?

I was just furious when I read this nonsense on Weibo, the worst thing is that people don’t even understand this and blindly believe it! Don't blindly believe everything the Internet gives you! You can always check for yourself or find people who understand this topic!

Today I found out that the art team has changed and we can actually see that this seems to be true as the latest designs have changed.

I see a bunch of accusations and dissatisfaction against the developers that they draw incorrectly. Again, has anyone seen a sensible answer other than just a comparison of heights compared to previous works?

Secondly, I want to break down this stupid idea of long leg syndrome in characters.

The correct proportions in drawing are considered to be 7-8 heads from head to toe.

Hair growth, heels, levitation and other attributes are absolutely NOT taken into account. Only the skull and so the heads need to be counted 7-8.

There are times when artists can draw up to 9 heads in height. For example, big heroes.

Individual haracteristics, injuries (for example, a hernia in the back will make the height shorter, too tall growth will slightly change the proportions) must be taken into account.

The people “with long legs syndrome” are you and I look like in reality. Frequently, this is a European type of appearance. Asians, for example, have lower butts than Europeans (tested on Koreans lol), that’s why they think that our legs are longer, although they are also beautiful in proportion.

But another fun fact: we don’t have ideal proportions, because our fingers, arms, legs, etc. are longer and shorter by a few millimeters invisible to us.

But we're talking about basic anatomy in drawing, right? Teenagers and children have different proportions, but since they were not compared, I won’t describe them here; if you’re interested, you can find them on the Internet.

Proportions also differ between men and women.

+ in humans, proportions change with age.

For those who compare with the old character models in the game: Apparently, the art team has changed. So now they do what they want. And they do it competently and correctly in terms of proportions in the drawing. I don't judge past artists; Every creative person sees things differently. But the game continues to develop and this is ABSOLUTELY normal and natural. I don't think that old models will be remade for the sake of correct proportions, they will be optimized, but not completely remade in a new way. I think it's cool, kind of showing respect to those who originally worked on the character model.

People suffer every day and express their hatred online. I do not defend the mistakes of the developers, but I also ask you not to incite hatred everywhere without understanding the topic well.

Also remember that sometimes mistakes happen. As one wonderful mangaka said when asked about the difference in the height of characters on different pages of the manga: there was an uneven floor somewhere!

I hope this post has helped you and now you see things from a different perspective. If you have questions, you can ask them here or in DM.

And if you have the chance, send this post to people who believe in "long legs syndrome" characters, or send them to the Internet to google information about correct proportions (o˘◡˘o)

[hyperactivetransdrone]

You say you’re a nerd in your bio, but what are you a nerd about? Feel free to infodump.

I more Nerd off on my general account bc if I see like a single horny thing I get distracted lol

Anyways I'll start with the thing I've poured the most time into: Pokemon. I almost never make fakémon but I've made 2 so far: a Paradox pokemon Iron Queen and a legendary pokemon that's based on horror as a genre, other than that I have a pokedex list that even at font size 7 on Google docs (any smaller and it's illedgeable) it's like 14 pages, and at that size Google starts to lag, I've also done a full pokedex with stats and everything (not individual stats but base stat total) in a Google sheets and i had to split it into 2 sheets because over 500 pokemon pokemon spread over 4 mini sheets lags Google as well so I split it between 2 sheets with generations 1-4 on the first on and 5-9 on the second sheet.

This is a screenshot of the first generation from mobile, copy and paste most of that information for each form of each pokemon (at least ones with stat/type changes so for example partner Pikachu counts as a different form but not spiky eared pichu) and yeahhh it overwhelms Google a lot, I also have several boxes full of my favorite pokemon as well in pokemon ultra moon as well as maxed out the time in pokemon y, I don't yet have a Nintendo switch so I can't transfer those pokemon yet so that's a little sad but they just means I can still poke-amie them 🥰

I also play a lot of minecraft but there isn't much to talk about with that, same with batman Arkham, video games with little creativity and are very straight lined stories are difficult to really hyperfixate about because what are you going to say? And experience that everyone else has had? Now minecraft is not included in this but when you play alone there isn't much you can really talk about that excites you besides what projects you've done/are planning. I also enjoy mega man and am on summit c-side in celeste (with every other stage up to then beaten all a-sides beaten, all b-sides beaten, all but summit and core c-sides beaten and have not beaten where capitalism has not corrupted... THE MOOOON (I understand that's not the meme but that's the level)

Now in terms of non digital media (excluding music we'll get to that) i like to play magic thr gathering, i don't like their current moto of "power creep so "people will keep buying" even tho people still buy our product and since Commander is popular we'll make all of our products for that" so I just make theoretical decks online, mostly ones that are themed because it's fun making pirate themed decks and things like that. Another game I'm really obsessed with is Exploding Kittens it's really fun and I've gotten every expansion up to this point and yahh I just really enjoy that game. Otherwise if I know people irl I try to play rpgs as I have a BUNCH of dnd minis I've painted, he'll I got a big dragon for Christmas a few years back and here's what he looks like:

He looks REALLY COOL and I realize I did the fire wrong but, Oh well, Too late it's fine. I'm also making a Kirby rpg and a Mario party board game but I REALLY need to get to work on it as I haven't been working on them. I also love writing stories and am currently writing a book, I'm studies character development from YouTube videos to ensure I don't accidently write static characters as the main characters but I LOVE the concepts I made for it I also used to like reading but my mother kept mocking me for "reading erotica" books when 1 it was before the author started making them kinky 2 I didn't fucking KNOW they were erotic so I stopped reading because she kept making fun of me and pretty much just telling me (indirectly) that it was gross that I was reading that stuff even though I didnt know that's what it was

In terms of music I love dragonforce and will go off on how cool some of their music is and also like... ok there's too many that I enjoy to list off but just know I like metal rock and pop (some pop modern pop is veerrrryyy generic and bad) and hell there are stupid like rap Chord thing that i hear CONSTANTLY and I just hate that stupid Mario ds mini game instructions sounding music that fucking everyone is listening to because now even MUSIC has gotten 'safe' these days and i really hate it

Other than all of that what I'm needing about may change from day to day or week to week depending on what I've been doing

Oh one last note: I do also enjoy hypnosis and dronification as non kinks as well has dronification is just... SO helpful i can't focus for the life of me which is why I still don't have my damned drivers license or even past the first page of my book yet and dronification pretty much FORCING you to focus on things would be a LIFE SAVER and hypnosis for a similar reason I have a really difficult time truly relaxing due to my living situation so hypnosis helps me relax more, hell I have some trust issues too thanks to being overly cautious in my childhood so it really helps with a lot of things although my biggest trust problem is I either don't trust you at all or I trust you too much lol

[loodgack]

now that the year is ending, let's take a look at, how I wrote the relationship between HN characters in the past 5 years.

the funny thing is, everyone has different relationships and I really like writing these and experimenting. separating storylines and creating new ones. maybe because I'm a writer!

***

🍓Neighbor and Nicky(Player) OPTION 1: lovers. this is entirely crack ship and headcanons based, it has little to nothing to do with any canon. if I had to put it short, then it's the sassy Neighbor from the early era and the Player character. not nicky for sure. the way the original fandom wrote them. usually the "I chase my prey in a big house, because he keeps breaking in, we're addicted to each other because we're both lonely, and I catch him" base plot. nothing more, people often read too much into it. I have quite a few au's (my first ever au, where Nicky was a journalist, other au's where Nicky takes the role of prealpha player entirely, but I still call him Nicky because yes. The return is a strong exception from all of these, that's my only AU, which is based on the final storyline of HN and happens when the act 3 opening happens. that's the only AU I have, where Nicky is actually Nicky from the og HN game. it was actually hard to write it)

🍓Neighbor and Nicky(Player) OPTION 2: this is an entirely separated option and universe from the first one. would say even, that the characters are entirely different, and my writings show it. it strongly connects to the beta3 family storyline. Nicky is obviously not Nicky here either, because during that storyline, Player was different. I can separate stories and relationships and characters, because so could the HN canon and I'm no different from it; however, Nicky is strongly headcanon based here too, because we don't know his actual personality in beta3. this second option shows the same bodies, with different souls; they're a family. they're related, they don't like each other but a generational trauma connects them. (examples are The kri origins and a few more unreleased AU's, in which they're blood related. I wrote only a few, despite I really like the beta3 storyline.) this option obviously focuses on them as a family, and how they're trying to put their differences aside to function as one, just like in the beta 3 storyline. option 1 and 2 never connect, but I think it's needless to say it.

🍓Smith and HGQuentin: allies. I think in all of my au's, these two are either allies, friends, or a couple. but allies for sure. I'm aware that Smith and Quentin wasn't going to have the best relationship in the canon, that's partly why Smentin exists to begin with. smith is a loner on purpose and Quentin is just an unlucky, loveable loner. in the AS rewritten plot, Quentin is simply on Smiths side, but there are AU's in which these two aren't the center of attention, there it's up to the reader to decide things. but they're allies for sure.

🍓HGQuentin and Neighbor: I mean the HG Quentin here, because I separate Quentins as well. I think I have one HG au, where they're strangers, everywhere else, they're the way Ike Gershowitz and Theodore were in the books. a brother-like relationship, which is trust based "you can always count on me" type. best friends since childhood, but they never argue, because you can't argue with a sweetheart like Quentin.

🍓Smith and Bea: they dislike each other.

🍓Smith and Neighbor: they hate each other. so much, you can't leave them in the same room, because one would murder another. in the Kri origins, Smith and Neighbor are forced to get along, because Smith and Quentin are together and Neighbor and Quentin are like brothers.

🍓Quentin and Beatrix: siblings. or have a sibling-like relationship. it doesn't mean that Bea doesn't look down on Quentin or doesn't find him weird, but I strongly keep the sibling thing, ever since they were introduced. AND MY OH MY!✨

🍓Beatrix and Neighbor: platonic. this one is a very interesting thing to write and think about. I can't see them as a couple with sexual stuff(this doesn't mean that I'll never try writing an au), but in general, I can strongly see them having a thing for each other vice versa. Neighbor is strong and hot af, and Bea wants to hold onto strong men and bond with them. she avoids the hints (Neighbor would surely nonstop flirt with her) but is thankful for the man's loyalty.

🍓Nicky and Smith: they interact in exactly one story so far, and it's the Kri origins. Nicky/Player is an adult there too. they seem to be fine with each other, both of them knowing that Neighbor is just something else. but it's nothing special. would say, they're neutral.

🍓journalist!Quentin and Neighbor: they dislike each other. Quentin's relationship with others is kinda the same as HG Quentin's. despite I think that Norman Darby was HN2 Quentin at some early point, I usually separate Darby and include him as different character.

🍓journalist!Quentin and Smith: enemies to lovers. not exactly, but in short, maybe that's the most fitting sentence. they're rivals, enemies, they don't have the chemistry that HGQuentin and Smith absolutely has in HG. and I can turn them into allies/lovers, but it's much harder to do so. journalist is nowhere as innocent as HGQ was. I have one more interesting headcanon, which is that Gerda and Beatrix had a fight, and Gerda ended up killing her. that's how she owns Imbir now.

that's all for now.

[oddishblossom]

Hey I have a question? How do you produce such high-quality gifs. It's so cool and I've been trying but it usually just doesn't come out well

Thanks! I’ve been making gifs for about 2 years, so I’m by no means a pro. Sometimes it feels like I’m just throwing things at the video until it looks the way I want it to look.

I didn’t use any guides, so it took a lot of trial and error to learn. Just to compare, here’s the first gif I ever made!

My advice for starting to get into gif-making is, you gotta really choose a media or character you love because the process is time consuming and it can be frustrating if it doesn't end up the way you wanted right away. Plus, you’re gonna stare at the same picture for like a loooong time. Over time, I’ve gotten a lot faster at making sets. Like that killua x start over gifset only took me an hour to make, but I barely edited that one. I normally spend a few days on each set.

I still don’t completely get photoshop, so I don’t feel like I can give a tutorial for it. But I do make a lot of gifs on my phone so here’s a more in depth look at that.

For starters, I always get video footage in 1080P. Either download or record the footage you want to turn into gifs. I’m gonna use Killua as an example. Here’s a picture of what the clip looks like before I’ve done anything.

I find that the shorter the clip, the easier it is to make it smooth and crisp. This clip is only 5 seconds long. I try to keep my clips 5 seconds or shorter. I can do longer clips, but then I’d have to shorten the frames used and the speed of the gif (frames per second), which I don’t like doing. Next, I crop it. You want to crop before you start editing.

After that, I can start recoloring. There’s a couple good apps I like using for this. VideoDay and InShot are pretty good, but they’re pay to use. The free one Apple provides in the photos app is good, too. I’ve got a different coloring style for most of my sets. But I mainly focus on making dark colors darker, making colors more saturated so they pop, and brightening the video. On VideoDay & Inshot you can find this setting under Filter. Then go to Adjust. This is what it looks like after boosting up the contrast, saturation, brightness, shadows, and definition. Mess around with different settings until you come up with something you like.

Now, I recolor it a second time with filters. Sometimes I use Inshot or VideoDay, but I mostly use the app ImgPlay. ImgPlay is what I’ll be using to actually turn this video into a gif. I use different filters depending on what colors I want to stand out. CL2 and HW3 are a couple favorites. For this set I use HW3. Then I added more contrast, saturation, and sharpened it as high as it could go.

Now that it looks pretty, time to make it move smoothly. Through a lot of trial and error, I’ve found that these settings work okay. I have it set to 90 frames for this clip. For frames, I usually try to keep it within 80-90 frames (or 30-80 if it’s a shorter clip). If I push it past that, like say 100 frames, it’ll start to look blurry once I condense it.

For speed, I either use .04 seconds or .05 seconds. For frames per second, I always go with 20 FPS at least. This will push up the frame count, so you’ll need to make the clip shorter. You can do that by using the slide bar or that little area with 9 squares in the top right corner.

Now it’s time to export! Just click on save and GIF size. Set the loop to infinity and size to 10 MB. Tumblr has a limit on GIF size, so it needs to be 10MB or under. You can also click on GIF dithering to make the colors blend a bit more.

And we’re done! Hope it wasn’t too confusing and that I explained myself clearly! There’s a lot more cool effects you can do once you get the hang of video editing. This is by no means a strict guide or anything! Heck, even I don’t follow this exactly and I try changing things around, seeing what works and what doesn’t. Gif-making can be super fun, so I hope you keep at it! 😊💖

[ghostflowerhotpotch]

Hi! I have a few points about dates and such, so I'll just get to it:

- Miles' quiz says Decembruary 2, 2018 (but a poster later in the film says December, so that's just him playing dumb in front of his teacher).

- Jeff says Miles has been at the school for two weeks when he drops him off at the start.

- If you count the days as the movie progresses, it's about 6-7 days. There might be a few unseen days between Peter's body being found and his funeral, but if we assume he's buried immediately after, it takes place in about one week.

-The security cameras when Spot tries to steal the ATM seem to say it's July 2023. Consistency!

Anyway, the date on the quiz plus the fact that the film was released in December 2018 makes me think it also takes place then.

Thanks for your notes! I have some things to point.

I actually knew about the Decembruary detail! I watched the ITSV video from CinemaWins.

Actually, what Jeff says is that Miles needs to give it at least 2 weeks, not that he has been there for that long.

The week reference is interesting! Thanks.

Huh, I didn't notice that detail previously.

Now, with these details out of the way, what we can say?

I was right on the money about the creators not paying too much attention to dates. My original theory was that they avoided putting anything too concrete to don't run into timeline problems.

Is good to keep in mind that both the test (Miles could have easily put the wrong year too, considering he put Decembruary;) and the Security Camera are all little details that aren't really relevant to the plot; like this isn't an "if we don't do this before X date the world ends. I consider Miles Saying "And for the past year and four months" heavier proof of the time passed that what the security camera and the test had written on aren't as valuable as that. After all, if this ITSV happened on December 2018 but ATSV was on July 2023, that would mean it has been over almost 5 years for them, which has obviously not been the case.

So with the pieces of this new puzzle, what do we end up with?

New Dates

If we weigh the test Miles failed on Purpose vs the Security Camera, I think believing the Security camera makes more sense. Miles putting 2018 on a test that already says Decembruary can easily be chalked to him wanting to mess up even more.

If it has been a year and four months since he became Spiderman, and in July in ATSV, this would mean that Into the Spiderverse is happening around March.

This would mean Miles having this birthday fall between March and July, and Gwen's possible Birthday months to move from June to October.

If we continue to go with my theory of the outfits they use in the movie can count as a measurement of time, I would say March and June are very likely.

Headcanon dates for the new timeline

While I may or may not go with these dates in future stories (Which I will explain my reasoning later for those who like my fic writing.) I thought it would be fun to give some new headcanons to these dates.

Since the anomaly situation hasn't been done, my alternative number for Miles would be 24. Why 24? Because the number 42 plays a big role in his life (is the number which he won the "lottery," his spider is from that dimension, and is seen around in ITSV a lot too.) And since 42 can't be a date, 24 it is.

For Gwen, I thought it would be fun that since her universe is 65, and the month of June seems like a good lead, her birthday could be June 5 (since 06/05) I know this means there isn't an example of 15 months of difference between them, however, I think everybody goes more with the month than the exact day for these things.

I have a cousin who is roughly, 20 days older than me, but we always said "a month" while mentioned in passing because why bother with semantics.

Will I ignore this in my writing? Probably

Now, this next section is mostly there for those who like my writing, since usually, the headcanons I have here tend to translate into my works.

I will probably go with my original dates.

Here is my situation; I could believe Miles is in school in July because of the alternative universe (it seems traditionally it ends in June.) I could believe they use fluffy jackets in July because, in Miles' universe, July is colder than our own; heck I was joking with my partner that Miles probably didn't have coronavirus in his universe and the reactions to other spideys who dealt with that,

What I can't deal with, is Miles starting school in March.

While students can move to other schools all year around, the fact that the lottery part is mentioned as well as the test, makes me think this has to be at a reasonable timeline for the school year. After all, why they would host a lottery for a student when the school year ends in four months? Why Rio and Jeff would try to make Miles change school if nothing prompt them to?

Granted, this could be explained with the school year working differently, maybe they start in January, and is still early enough to do this, or start in March.

However, I disqualified the December bit (which I also discard because NO ONE HAS A STUDENT START CLASSES JUST BEFORE WINTER BREAK UNLESS THEY ARE MOVING OR SOMETHING SIMILAR.) I wouldn't be surprised if they decided to put imagine it was in December just because.

Again, this is not an important detail. Gwen's dad is different between ITSV and ATSV, as well as the fact that the situation and Peter's look are different.

(You could make the case it looks like this because Miles is imagining everything instead of being a faithful adaption. However, I firmly believe they didn't put too much time into it or stick with those concepts because it wasn't necessary. Also, this will mean Peter B maybe wasn't eating pizza instead of pushups, and I will NOT give up that.)

Why not have a different way the calendar works? Too many details to keep track of, and fics are supposed to be fun; I will not try to bend backward my writing to adhere to the canon if is not enjoyable.

Is not the only time I do this, Noir should be around 19 because of comics and stuff, but if you think I will give up the idea that Noir is in his 40s, you are dead wrong.

This part will be edited into the original post (since people don't tend to reblog reblogs, I prefer people will have the chance to see the corrections.) And queue for tomorrow so more people can see it.

Also, I made a mistake in my original post, I said Gwen's Birthday would be in June, when in reality it should May, sorry for the confusion!

If you read all the way, thank you for your patience! I know this is long.

[oftlunarialmoon]

Luna’s TOP 10 Jewelry Making Tips + Ideas!

Ciao lovelies! As you may already be aware, one of my favorite crafts is jewelry making, and I’ve been making fun bracelets, necklaces, brooches, and other jewelry for as long as I can remember. Over the years I’ve learned a lot about the hobby, and picked up a lot of tips and ideas along the way. So for today’s post, I thought I’d share 10 of my top tips and ideas for jewelry making, along with photo examples!

Luna’s TOP 10 Jewelry Making Tips + Ideas!

Design Tips:

Tip #1: If you’re having trouble developing a design, try working from a theme.

Sometimes it’s hard to narrow down exactly what you’re envisioning as a piece of jewelry. On that note, something that helps me a lot when I’m coming up blank on a design is to pick a theme at random. Something general enough to work from, but specific enough to help narrow down my options. Example themes I’ve used in the past include: sweets, Blue (Jurassic World), Draculaura (Monster High), Clawdeen (Monster High)....etc.

Tip #2: To further simplify the design process, try choosing 2-3 colors to work with.

If you’re still stumped on your design, make it easier to choose by selecting 2-3 colors to stick to in your design. Of course, highlighting beads in white, black, or metal colors, don’t really count towards these colors unless you want them to. Example color combos I like: pastel shades of blue, pride flag color sets, color sets based on specific characters…etc.

Tip #3: Picking a pattern can help the harmony of a design.

A great way to simplify and bring a design together is to pick a pattern to work off for your colors and shaped beads. Repeated patterns work well to help a design become cohesive. I enjoy alternating colors of beads, shapes of beads, or even opaque vs transparent types. There’s a lot you can do with patterns in a design, even morse code or secret messages!

Tip #4: Symmetry does NOT guarantee a better design.

I know in daily life, we often associate symmetry with beauty or nicer works, but in jewelry and other art forms, symmetry does not mean the design will automatically be a better one. When starting out, it’s okay to feel more comfortable making symmetrical designs, but it’s also perfectly fine to branch out. You can achieve asymmetry with special beads or charms to highlight each side, or even with different words in letter beads.

Tip #5: Don’t be afraid to experiment with different techniques, materials, etc on your designs.

One of my biggest set-backs in this hobby was my issue with a perfectionist mindset, I always want each piece to turn out perfectly, and that’s not realistic, especially when trying out new techniques, designs, or materials. Accepting that some pieces may be just practice attempts is very important.

OTHER IDEAS:

Idea #1: Upcycling old items is a great way to find hardware for the hobby!

One of my favorite things to upcycle in jewelry making is old keychains! I can use them as clasps at the end of bracelets or necklaces. I can also upcycle old jewelry for parts like lobster claws, ring bases, jump rings, chains, etc.

Idea #2: Simple Brooches can be made with Thumbtacks/Pushpins!

If you also like to craft charms for brooches or pins, you can give them the backing they need with pushpins or thumbtacks hot glued to the back. For the pin backing, you can use old pin backs, or use craft foam cubes for the stoppers. I have made a few brooches in this style, including this Popsicle one shown in the example photo.

Idea #3: Custom shaped pendants can be made with pipe cleaners and beads, or other forms of wire and bead combos!

A fun touch for a custom necklace is a one of a kind pendant made from pipecleaners (or other wire) and beads for decor! I made this peace sign pendant (shown in the example) from black pipecleaners and beads in a purple theme. Pipecleaners are easier to work with than other wire, but if you have wire cutters or pliers, other wire is always an option! Even wire upcycled from old spiral notebooks, like in THIS old OFT tutorial.

Idea #4: Using a similar technique to idea 3, you can also make Rings!

Along with custom pendants, did you know you can even use the pipe cleaner and beads method to make rings? In the example photo, I used a fuzzy pipe cleaner and some cute beads. As long as you tuck in the sharp pipe cleaner edges, this idea is safe for regular wear and use. This can also be done with other wire, but honestly for comfort’s sake, I would recommend the pipe cleaners instead.

Idea #5: Don’t be afraid to scavenge for cool pendants!

If you’re more inclined to want to make very unique and one of a kind designs (like me), you’ll probably avoid buying craft store charms and pendants in favor of something less common. I have found that party favors, dollar store toys, old keychains, vintage jewelry, pop tabs, and much more, make awesome charms and pendants that are especially unique! In the example photo shown, I used a plastic party favor eyeball from Halloween and pierced it with an awl. After that, I simply had to thread the elastic cord through and then make the rest!

What do you think of my ideas + tips? Do you have any to share? Leave them in the comments below, I’d love to hear your tips for making jewelry!

Now for the absolute most important part….

STAY AWESOME!! And LOVE YOURSELF! Each of you has such a unique impact on this world, and this world needs you in it. Try to give yourself a bit of love each day the way you do for others! And stay your truest, awesomest, self!

I’ll see you in my next post, video, or whatever comes next!

[once-upon-an-imagine]

WIPs

so, since this has worked in the past, I thought I would ask again...

SEND ME THE NAME OF A WIP and I'll share a piece of the story!

so, there are two different ways that you can actually request this now:

first, you can take a look at the Masterlists on my page to see what the upcoming fics are and let me know which one you'd like a sneek peek of 😊 (I'm also putting it below if you don't want to go all the way there 😂)

Masterlists:

Stranger Things Harry Potter: Marauders Era Harry Potter: Golden Trio Era

or, since I don't have all the summaries updated there because I've had a few requests in the past few weeks, if you would like just a random WIP, I currently have 38 inbox messages, and 7 drafts, so you can also just say like Inbox #something, or Drafts #5 for example

I will have more free time this weekend AND I also have all next week off work so, please request away and help me get out of this horrible writer's block 😁 thank you all so much for your patience btw! love you, dearies ❤️

Stranger Things

Steve Harrington

How Sweet It Is

[Henderson!Reader] Your favorite part about working at Scoops Ahoy is working with your crush; Steve Harrington. Everything was going normally one day until you see the next customer in line is your ex-boyfriend with his new girlfriend and Steve noticed.  

Our Last Summer

[Sinclair!Reader] Your brother and his friends were certain that you were dating someone but hiding it from them. At the same time, Dustin is sure that Steve is dating someone and hiding it from him. 

Wild World

[Newby!Reader] After your dad died, everyone saw how the light in you shot down as you pushed everyone away. For weeks your friends, especially Steve, have been trying whatever they can to get you to open up again. One day, when you don’t come home, everyone is looking for you but Steve is the one who finds you. And he finally gets you back.

Always On My Mind

Sequel to You Keep Me Hanging On if the reader chooses Steve.

With Or Without You

You dive into the Lover’s Lake before anyone can stop you and come back to tell everyone about the Watergate. But then, something pulls you back to the Upside Down and all you can see are bats around you so you feel like this is the end. Until you suddenly see Steve Harrington coming back for you and saving you. (mixing three similar requests)

How Will I Know [Chapter 3]

You have walked the halls of Hawkins High unseen. If it wasn’t because Eddie Munson and his Hellfire Club had found you, you probably wouldn’t even have any friends. You knew someone like your all-time crush Steve ‘The Hair’ Harrington wouldn’t notice you in a million years. Until you get paired up for a project and he finally learns your name.  

Eddie Munson

Alone Together

Eddie has always noticed you. You have always noticed Eddie. But neither one of you has ever done anything about it. Until one day, Eddie sits with you at the library and you smile at him

S.O.S.

When you finally get a chance to play your favorite songs with the school orchestra, your boyfriend, the one person you really wanted there doesn’t show up.

When It’s Love

Sequel to You Keep Me Hanging On if the reader chooses Eddie.

There Are Worse Things I Could Do [Chapter 4]

[Harrington!Reader] Your senior year was supposed to be the best one in your life. But when Jason broke up with you and turned the entire school against you by spreading rumors about you, you can count with your hand the people that talk to you. Dustin, Mike, Lucas, Max, Nancy, and Robin. But there might be a new one you can add to the list. One you never thought possible. Eddie Munson.

Argyle

Cielito Lindo

[Byers!Reader] Argyle is staying with your family when his parents are out of town. You know he’s been feeling down because he has to celebrate his birthday without them. So, you try to do something to cheer him up. (Sequel to Build Me Up, Buttercup)

Take A Chance On Me

You have been in love with your best friend since you can remember, but you’ve never had the courage to tell him, fearing he might not feel the same. However, when you confide in Jonathan, he convinces you to finally take the leap. 

A Kind Of Magic

Bullies are something you’ve had to deal with your whole life. You try to ignore it and not let it bother you. But the moment your boyfriend sees how people made fun of you, he immediately intervenes and stands up for you. (Warning: reader gets bullied for having a learning disability) 

Me Gustas Tu

When you go over to your best friend’s house after breaking up with your boyfriend, you get more than you were expecting. 

No Words

[Hopper!Reader]The first time Argyle went speechless was when he met you. Ironically, he’s the only person you have felt completely comfortable talking to.

(500 Miles) [Chapter 3]

[Hopper!Reader] After moving to California with your sister and your new family, you think maybe you’ll finally get some peace. But, of course, you are now driving across the country in your boyfriend’s pizza van, on your way back to Hawkins.

Billy Harrington

Highway To Hell

[Munson!Reader] When you are tired of your brother and your boyfriend arguing all the time, you come up with a plan that finally makes them work together and at least not murder each other.

***I actually have a lot more Billy requests but haven't updated the masterlist.

Steddie (Steve & Eddie)

A Sunday Kind Of Love

For six months, you had been fine with having a secret relationship with Steve Harrington and Eddie Munson. But that changes when a very special day for you approaches and you want them both by your side and for that to happen, a few rules might get broken.

Edge Of Seventeen

Against your boyfriends’ wishes, you decide it’s what’s best for everyone if you are the bait for Vecna. You stay back in the attic with Max and Lucas. Steve and Eddie try to make it back as quickly as they can but it might be too late. (Warning: reader is cursed by Vecna and gets hurt) 

Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now

Everyone in your group could feel the sexual tension between you, Steve, and Eddie. Which is probably why they all ganged up and planned to have the three of you share a bed to see if you would finally admit your feelings. 

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Marauders Era

Scars To Your Beautiful

[Black!Reader] You have always been considered the ‘least beautiful’ of the Black family. You’ve heard everyone call your cousins and even your brothers that. But not you. Until someone does.

Sirius Black

You’re Still The One

[Potter!Reader] When Sirius comes out of Azkaban he comes to find you and Harry. And he’s surprised to see someone else there too.

Just Give Me A Reason [Chapter 5]

[Snape!Reader] Coming back for another year in Hogwarts meant you and your brother were away from your worst tormentor. But when your school tormentor finds out about it, things are about to change and you are not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. (Warning: mentions of abuse)

*** I think I have more Sirius requests but haven't been updated

Remus Lupin

Linger

When you finally have the courage to ask Remus on a date, it did not go as well as you had wished. At all.

Too Good At Goodbyes [Chapter 6]

Twelve years ago, Lily and James Potter were brutally murdered. Twelve years ago, Sirius Black was sent to Azkaban for a crime he did not commit. Twelve years ago Remus Lupin left you to take care of a one-year-old Harry on your own. Twelve years ago Severus Snape was the only person who was there for you. And now, Remus is back to teach at Hogwarts with you, as Harry courses his third year, and Sirius Black escaped Azkaban.

*** I think I also have a few more Remus requests

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Harry Potter (Golden Trio Era)

Charlie Weasley

She Is Love

Charlie loves to make you blush and nervous because he knows you have a crush on him and he has a crush on you, but he doesn’t like it when someone else makes you blush or nervous.  

I’m Yours

Even if you’ve been friends with the twins forever, your boyfriend Charlie still feels a little bit jealous of how close you are with his two younger brothers.  

*** I also have a few more Charlie Weasley requests in my inbox

Bill Weasley

Get Outta My Dreams

Bill falls in love with his little brothers’ best friend but he is certain that she would not feel the same after seeing him with his werewolf scars.  

[roger-d0dger]

just asking for clarification ig: you said don’t flirt but… do you ship anyone because i’ve seen platonic jager so i’m just curious abt romantic ships. totally cool if no!

Thank you for the question! When I’m answering this, please keep in mind I am a fictive in a system, so my memories are different than canon. While I recognize I am not my source, this kind of stuff is easier to explain in first person. For reference, I personally remember the events of the book took place over the course of 4ish years. Now that I’ve given my disclaimer:

Ok so tbh I was dealing with undiagnosed ADHD and probably ASPD so I was a little self-focused and very mentally ill. Of course when I was like… 12, the mere mention of feelings made me gag and cover my ears, so we’re skipping ahead a few years.

I had been friends with Merridew since I was 7, way before the island. I was always kind of quiet and had trouble making friends because I had issues socially, but he never treated me any differently because of them. We became closer, in a way, on the island. If I had to label it, I’d call it a “Passionate Friendship”, or something like that, but I’ve never found a label that completely fits. I liked him and I felt a different way about him than I felt with anyone else, I really don’t know what that way was - partially because both of us were in very desperate need of therapy, and talking about your feelings is not at the top of the list of things hunters enjoy. So I guess maybe that counts? I’m not sure. Feelings are a little confusing for me sometimes.

TLDR: I pretty much don’t ship in the traditional sense, but platonic or slightly more than that Jager is the closest thing I have to a ship. In the future, my ask blog and associated art that I create for it will continue to not be focused on ships. For example: you can ask questions about me and Jack’s friendship, and I’d love to answer or make a joke about it, but if it’s overtly romantic I probably won’t discuss it, as it’s both a little too personal and discourse I do not want to be a part of. I want to keep this a welcoming place for every fan of the book. The fandom is already small enough, I don’t want to divide it any further.

Also, I don’t have a problem with ANY ship, Jalph included. Please don’t take this answer as me joining in the Jalph v.s. Jager debates. I have stayed out of all that for the past like, 5 years, and I would like to continue to do so. It’s a small fandom, and I really just want to be able to talk and joke about the book and the characters with everyone!

Thanks for reading!!

[verishere]

For the OC ask game, how about 3, 5, 9 and 14 for Liam or Freya? (choose which if any you do for each <3)

Oh, you asked the hard ones, how dare you!

/s

3 for both

Overconfidence, I think? My problem with writing characters- before I began actually writing them out fully, I mean when I was just writing a summary of them and otherwise leaving them in my head- I didn't give the characters enough flaws, if at all, and Liam is the best example of that. Overconfidence is the only character flaw he had that actually costed him during any scenes that I have planned out, and while it's true I'm probably gonna find a lot more as I keep writing, rn I don't have more than that.

Freya's is being too trusting. Even after Nirum's betrayal she trusts people too much, especially after she loses her memories. The way this costs her is actually one of the few things I am saving instead of spoilering, and it's a very, very late thing, so it's probably going to be months before I write about it, but hers is being too trusting. This one is definitively her flaw.

5 for Liam again.

In simpler words than below, for the ultimate goal he will go all the way, for most goals he will stop short of even interfering much with other people's lives.

I mean. Each character I have actually fully dies for the cause at some point. Yeah they can be reborn but still. The ultimate goal- a second blessed years- is paramount over literally everything. So I'll use a lesser goal instead, Liam is for any goal that is not contributing to the main goal (most of his actions during the Dark Years were contributing to "when the Final War breaks out, I want the decks stacked for our hand" so only counting goals that were not at all related to the Final War) he is typically unwilling to kill unless the target would be like, a serial killer with dozens of victims. Of all his family he hates to kill (or execute, since he's a high king) the most, but for example something nostalgic of his is stolen? If it's something important but not world shatteringly so he will hunt for the theft, ask if anyone had seen it, post flyers in the area, etc, but after he finds who did it he will usually pardon them with no more than a warning, and if he can't find them, he will miss whatever it is but won't go more than asking around the area.

9 for both. What lyrics don't I associate with these two. My playlists for my OCs- back when I actually updated those playlists- was ordered "Freya" "Liam" "any other Nulyradon" and "any other Nuthri". The Freya and Liam ones were individually larger than their respective family's entire collection, by a long shot.

For Liam, I guess

"I am the prophet, with the answers you seek,

Time, I've unlocked it, I see past and future flowing free"

No Longer You, from Epic the Musical. For I think very obvious reasons.

And then Freya, "I longed for peace, but you couldn't leave it be,

Now you've played your part in this forever unfinished symphony"

A derivakat song, somehow for a dream SMP character (the fuck HAPPENS in that it's a minecraft roleplay series why do so many fansongs fit my OCs talking about the end of the fucking world as they know it-) named "Why"

14 for both. Liam first.

simpler than that, he wants to be seen as relatable rather than put on a pedestal.

He wants to be seen as a person again. The Watcher is a mythological figure, the only person left with power in the world who the people know 100% for sure was during the Blessed Years, since no one knows who the suns Keeper is or where/when they're from. Liam is both the Watcher and the Keeper, so he has three personas- himself, the Watcher, the Keeper- and in only one of those is he treated as a human being rather than a monolith of opposition against Nirum, or as a seemingly natural phenomenon, unstoppable as the tide. Even his own family after he returns to them from being the Watcher and things treats him differently, like they don't know how to talk around him, since he is by that time the only one of them with wings, befriended the Nuthri, and looked Nirum himself in the eyes and denounced him. The Watcher is treated like a god and is actually worshiped as one by many religions- I don't have gods in my world, just wielders of some godlike things, but many people THOUGHT they were gods- and even among the nonreligious that awe is still there, even among his own family.

WOW that was heavy, lets do Freya now. She wants to be seen as the carefree figure who makes friends with pretty much anyone. She doesn't want respect, or awe, she just wants to meet people, have fun, form relationships, and party. She did not like the concept of queenship once it was eventually explained to her by Nrolin and Vlorindul.

[3416]

i didn’t really have a dog in this fight as a staunch passionista and a strong supporter of the i hope both teams lose camp going into this final but idk.. i think it’s unrealistic to expect people’s viewpoint of what it takes/means to win + “how much can one player actually contribute in a sport where so much is a product of chance” discussions to meaningfully change if mcdavid were to never win because the hockey space is filled with people who revise history and time over to fit their preferred narrative. the forever ongoing mitchcourse (cherry-picking games 5-7 stats, disregarding his playoff points in relation to the rest of the team, etc) is only a microcosm of it and i think the whole discourse so far after mcdavid winning the conn smythe has already been an immediate example with an objectively historic playoff run being boiled down to “he didn’t show up when it mattered” despite actual stats, in the same way leafs stars are criticized by the same line contrary at times to numbers and logic. no player seems to be exempt from the cruel, severely subjective lens that hockey uncles are committed to keeping intact, if the nhl’s best player isn’t after his first shot at the finals idk how anyone else would be

i mean... i think everyone just wants a reason to dunk on the losers right now, but i don't think the takeaway from this playoffs historically is gonna be that mcdavid cost them by not scoring in games 6 and 7. joking about it in the aftermath is one thing but the dude just won the conn smythe which was voted by the people who control the actual journalism in the sport, lol, and i think there's a difference. agree there's always gonna be revisionism but it's not gonna be unkind to connor mcdavid imo.

sure some people are never going to see the light and always move the goal posts w cherrypicked stats but ask how many of them would like players like mcdavid and draisaitl on their team for a playoff run and they'd still take the deal. some people will stay stupid no doubt but i think it's forced ppl who actually know the stats and the game to think a little differently or just. talk a little differently. so much ideology and the way ppl speak abt teams offhandedly like not trying enough or not putting in the effort even like commentating games is absolute nonsense but you cannot say that about the oilers or their stars in this series and i definitely still heard praise and hope for them when they were down.

it's not that i think there's going to be some big definitive shift or anything either... the fanbase for this sport is still incredibly full of old white men who view all of this a certain way and that's not going to change but i think it makes things more interesting and allows for more nuance in certain circles for sure. so many ppl i respect were torn about that conn smythe result despite knowing he deserved it and it's like. examine why you feel like that lol. why you think him putting up historic numbers to get his team back into the series they were down 0-3 in matters less somehow... i don't care about the trolls who are always going to do it, but i think the discourse would fall SO much more in line with the way uncles think if the oilers won last night so lol. maybe that would have been interesting too to see people turn on florida for not having that Killer Winning Instinct that weve praised them for and said we should build teams like the past few years but frankly. them winning is just rehashing the same stuff we've seen. i still find the mcdavid loss despite doing the most (except when it apparently counts the most to these ppl) more interesting and i don't think i'm changing my mind on that. and ultimately it's just my HOPE that things shift and change and people consider more before opening their mouths. there's never a guarantee, lol. it's sports sadly.

[jamestaylorswift]

NEED you to elaborate on the Thing please

Yes! The Thing!! If you have thoughts about The Thing, anon, I’d love to hear them.

I can’t for the life of me figure out what to properly call The Thing other than like…at times a cross between and at times just a drone and an ostinato and just background voicings? And mix in the functional opposite of pedaling? A more technical name, if it exists, is escaping me and a few google searches have not helped me figure out if such a term was ever in my brain. I will continue to call it The Thing until I figure it out.

The best way I can illustrate The Thing is *puts on my tiktoker voice* okay so you know the thing where a song is in (let’s say) the key of G and then there’s just this one synth that’s playing G constantly and oh look here it’s in another song too, just this one instrument playing the root, oh and in this song it’s doing a little boop boop boop but it’s still just a (let’s say) G major triad, oh and here we have it in THIS song too, you can hear the melody changing and the chords changing kind of around it but it’s jUst the ROOT rIGht There and it never stops and it never changes and oh my god watch out it’s even in this song because you see while these notes are being arpeggiated they’re just the notes of the first chord and the chord being arpeggiated doesn’t change even though there is a chord progression to different chords do you see what I’m saying??? guys I think this means something

Before I go on I should emphasize that Jack Antonoff is neither the only nor first artist to use The Thing or write songs that sound like This (“This,” of course, being the technical term for songs employing The Thing). I don’t think he or The Thing are “the problem” with (popular) music. It’s not like this is even a particularly new development in his music—I’d argue that it appeared at least 4-5 years ago if not earlier. And it’s hard for me to tell the extent to which The Thing is contributing to the rise in Jack Antonoff haterism of the past half decade. The reason I bring it up is that being cognizant of The Thing is different than being floored by its absolute overuse/oversaturation/overreliance (take your pick and then soften it a little) on the Bleachers self titled album. The latter I was last month. The Thing is not bad, it just is. That’s all.

Honestly one of the reasons I was so surprised when hearing Bleachers is that it really cemented how important understanding the context of The Thing is for identifying The Thing itself. I almost think it’s more obvious that Jack is using The Thing when the part that’s playing it is not as front-and-center. If said part is front-and-center then it’s given extreme musical importance. However, the Thing is important as an additive feature, and it’s rarely the main idea. Textural complexity is often subtle and so is The Thing. Similarly, The Thing is useful rhythmically when it’s repetitive and harmonically when it’s static. It’s the marriage of these three features that identify The Thing and that give The Thing value.

Here is an “annotated bibliography,” if you will, of examples of recent Jack Antonoff songs that employ The Thing. Note that this is a biased sample from songs I know/like/listen to enough to have them paged into my memory for constructing this argument. I did not do a comprehensive deep dive of Jack’s recent projects to come up with this list. Don’t take this as a timeline of The Thing’s existence. Also, this is highly subjective and there can be overlap between these categories. IMO they all kind of count as The Thing but I’m breaking it up for the purpose of illustration. You know how it is...

The “obvious use of The Thing” category:

“I Am Right On Time” (Bleachers) - good example of many The Thing and The Thing-adjacent parts! The gist of the song is a medium-high tempo song that steadily builds up. Part of the way Jack achieves this is by having a single electric guitar strum the same chord on 2 and 4 to create a backbeat. There’s also the ostinato (staccato synth rhythm on beats 2, 3, and 4) and single note (also just a single synth) that you can hear in the first and second verses and then continuing as the song builds to the end. All are very clearly establishing the key of the song and remaining at that center while the melody and chords change.

“Self Respect” (Bleachers) - in this category because of the large number of The Thing things. At very least, I’m counting the arpeggiated chord and the syncopated piano rhythm as appearances of The Thing. This song has the same ethos of “I Am Right On Time,” excitement built as the song becomes more musically busy. The Thing helps in that endeavor by contributing thickness, again mostly texturally and rhythmically, to the song.

“Me Before You” (Bleachers) - most notable instance of The Thing/its beginning in this song is that syncopated synth rhythm that starts at the beginning of the first verse and plays throughout the rest of the majority of the song. I put this song in this category, as opposed to the third, because I think this is a good example of the most basic/simple form of The Thing. At its core, The Thing is just playing around with how much of the root can be folded in to a song without crossing the threshold of making it sound “boring” or static or like something you’ve heard before. This part is just playing the same rhythm on one note. Because there’s not as much dynamic excitement/variation in this song, The Thing does less legwork than in other songs. But you can see how this could be the logical beginning for overreliance on The Thing.

“Isimo” (Bleachers) - Same explanation as above. The hemiola rhythm is just played over and over on the root. To me this part seems to be working pretty equally for rhythm, harmony, and texture.

The “eh, you could argue either way” category:

“Alma Mater” (Bleachers) - In the last minute or so there’s a lilting sax part that’s mostly there for textural/rhythmic purposes. Nonetheless, I think it’s a little ditty in the spirit of The Thing.

“Tiny Moves” (Bleachers) - This one is tricky and, in my opinion, easier to argue against. The main synth part (quarter notes of the 2-3 notes clustered around the root) is particularly salient as not clearly The Thing but clearly Thing-adjacent. The part is rhythmic, of course, but also plays a fairly important harmonic part in establishing the key center and keeping it relevant at all times. It has enough slight variation to make the song fun in a quirky way.

“The 1975” (The 1975) - Included because it’s very similar in spirit to “Tiny Moves.” Again, the quasi-randomness in this song makes it interesting and effective. Whether you like it or not, it is, at the very least, Thing-adjacent.

“91” (Bleachers) - The Point of this song is that repeated cello ostinato. Of course it doesn’t move. That’s The Point. That’s…The Thing, if you will.

“Question…?” (Taylor Swift) - Syn-co. Pa-ted. Synth-sound. Same-notes. The-Thing. Or-not. It-could. Just-be. The-synth. That-comps. The-chords. Your-choice.

The “The Thing, but more so its ontological beginning” category:

“Free” (Florence + The Machine) - all I can say is: B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B (break for the bridge and Florence’s ethereal vocals) B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B

“Looking For Somebody (To Love)” (The 1975) - all I can say is: A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A (break for the bridge - at this point I should acknowledge that it’s not like this the whole time and, yes, the bass very much matters and there is a “stronger/more obvious” chord progression in this song than “Free”) A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A

“Anti-Hero” (Taylor Swift) - all I can say is: E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E (okay you get the picture, also in this song there is a bit more variation from seminal The Thing because other synth parts are loudly playing other notes in the chord progression)

“The Archer” (Taylor Swift) - good song! Don’t you love how much C there is? Don’t you?! But that’s what helps make it work so well, in case that wasn’t clear. Oh there’s some variation too. But… C *hold for 3 minutes*

“mirrorball” (Taylor Swift) - another good example of the beginning of The Thing. The reason this song feels so “hazy” is that one of the guitars is just constantly playing the root chord, and any dissonance these chords’ individual notes’ dissonance have with other chords’ notes starts to melt away as you just get more entrenched in the first mode. (That is, it’s literally just vibes.) You can draw a very clear through-line between this sound and the next 3 years of Jack’s work.

IMO the reason The Thing is is not a vocally disliked part Jack Antonoff’s production style or music is that it’s hard to get your generic-enjoyer-of-western-pop-music to truly dislike songs that are so very drenched in “the ionian mode” or “the key” or whatever you want sum it up as. (Myself included—I hate neither Jack’s music nor The Thing.) If you’re playing a pop song only in the key of G then the more G you add, usually the better. The more D you add, often the better. The more B you add, yeah, sometimes-to-often the better. We—our ears and brains—have been trained to love and crave a certain amount that sameness, that root-iness, “the 1” (iykyk 🤪). Artists can, should, do evolve—and Jack has...and still, I don’t see people naming The Thing as what they hate about his music. Until twitter randos’ criticism becomes just slightly more targeted/technical I’m inclined to believe it is truly just nebulous haterism instead of, for example, constructive feedback about his style. I digress.

(If you’re wondering, my hypothesis for The Thing’s rise in prevalence over the last few years is to attribute it to the coincidental rise of whisper-y girl bedroom pop plus a subconscious sonic backlash to the pop music that dominated the late 2010s, specifically 2017-2018. In fairness, I don’t listen to a lot of either of those things so I don’t have good evidence off the top of my head for this theory. But, like, I’m sure Ed Sheeran has used The Thing too. Just a hypothesis, ya know.)

Here’s a far more fascinating line of inquiry that I’m trying to explore (still not sure what my answer is though): Can The Thing’s relevance, of course related to its artistic usefulness/ubiquity but also specifically Jack’s prominence in pop music, potentially be understood through the lens of an aesthetic?

To argue that The Thing has aesthetic value would be to argue that its virtues of textural, rhythmic, and harmonic complexity are more highly prized than the music produced avoiding/excluding that. Do we truly value the sensory experiences of being bathed in a singular note, a singular chord? Do we like that more than when we feel pulled in a strong current of a harmonic cadence? It’s clear we like The Thing because we’re nowhere close to, for instance, rioting at its very appearance like crowds did when they heard the dissonance of Shostakovich’s “The Rite of Spring.” But how much do we really love The Thing? Do we value it only because it’s highly available—Jack Antonoff still being a preeminent purveyor of pop music—and because we perceive few ways to escape his sonic influence? How much do we account for the fact that he did not invent The Thing? If we truly do love The Thing, when did this came about, originally and recently? Why would we truly love The Thing?

A final digression: I do think the shift towards use of The Thing this should be a credit to Jack. Over the last half decade, Jack has shown more restraint from a textural and dynamic point of view and been able to exercise that restraint to create warmer and more complex soundscapes. That kind of restraint helps “the softs seem softer and the louds seem louder.” It’s given us fan favorite songs like “august.” Whether this shift towards textural complexity more fully proxying for dynamic complexity is truly at the expense of, for example, more interesting harmonic complexity—well, maybe. The Thing need not imply such a zero sum game, though perhaps the data is skewed in favor of that conclusion right now. However, credit for artistic growth does not mean that growth should stop. It’s important to try out new ideas. Would the audience truly being sick of The Thing be a catalyst for another shift in Jack’s style? Only time will tell.

I’m not trying to turn this post into a referendum on whether Jack Antonoff’s music is good. The reason I point out The Thing as part of the current period of Jack’s style/work is that it is quite different than what he initially gained prominence for. Whether this shift means "good" or "bad" resulting music is purely opinion (mine is in favor of "good"). But above all I think we should value when artists change because they find something new exciting and fruitful.

If you asked someone, gun to their head, to describe Jack Antonoff’s “sound,” I’m not sure they would mention The Thing. He got famous for stuff like big drums, 80s synths, huge chord progressions for epic songs. He loves the 1-4-6-4 so much, is what I’d say if I had this gun to my head. His earlier work is very “I am going to make it obvious which chords you’re hearing, and when I pair that with some epic drums it’s going to sound cool.” Now, the chord changes are more “implied” (termed loosely). The tradeoffs he’s explored is that the more The Thing he uses, the more significant the choice of the degree to which to fill out the chord progression; the more the literal volume of the lowest bass notes matter; the more selective, sometimes, he has to be with adding percussion. Encountering and grappling with these tradeoffs is not bad. Jack Antonoff has made different music because he’s explored these tradeoffs. I, for one, find it funny that people say in the last decade he hasn’t grown or changed at all as an artist.

[sibswin]

I will chime in here-

As a cis guy, I don’t have a lot of horror stories on here. And I am NOT saying that to brag.

Now, I do have a couple -(skip to — for my larger point) in particular, a 30 year old guy who kept dodging the question of whether he was a twink or femboy (aka the type of guy i’m attracted to) and ended up very pushy, texting me again and again, and even when we talked and i told him i wasn’t interested because he was 30, and of course, he kept pushing in his next message until i think i blocked him. so sure, i have a couple here and there

——-

BUT, that is the exception, and not the rule.

From everything i’ve heard from NUMEROUS of female and NB friends in this space, they deal with a LOT more of this sorta thing than I do. A LOOOOT more. Like, an absurd amount.

Guys spamming, chasers, more creepy older guys, pushy ones…

And sure, i may be open to more people than you (OP), but almost everyone i meet is nice and caring. That does NOT seem to hold true for most of my female and NB peeps.

I might have a few bad stories. But only a few….

Listen, I won’t act like i’m the first person to discover sexism and misogyny. Especially since i’m a guy obv. but like

This ISNT a nsfw blog thing

This ISNT a normal thing

This ISNT an acceptable thing

And it ISNT okay.

It’s a shitty sexism thing.

And yknow what, there’s a nonzero chance that one of the guys like this will be reading this right now….instead of just telling you to unfollow me, lemme tell you how to hopefully be a better person while horny. this comes from someone who has messed around with more people here than you can count.

1. READ. THEIR. PINNED.

Seriously. Before you ever interact with someone, read their pinned. Please. Look at it, read it, and abide by it. If they say do not DM, DO NOT DM. if they have a specific boundary, ABIDE BY IT. Seriously. And actually, i’ll also send this one out to some of the ladies out there. While it’s not caused any major problems and i don’t really hold any ill will, and people quickly apologize when they mess up, there have been incidents in the past where someone accidentally violated one of my boundaries due to not reading my pinned. (in particular: the no romance boundary). So yeah, read people’s pinned.

2. IF IT IS A GREY AREA, ASK FOR CLARIFICATION!!

Even a simple “hey i hope you’re open to x,if not that’s cool” IS GREATLY APPRECIATED BY PEOPLE. If you don’t know, it’s okay to shoot your shot, but ASK FOR CLARIFICATION. Don’t just fully jump into it, seriously. And it’s okay, people won’t hate u if they clarify they don’t want to mess around with you: they’ll probably just go “aw sorry, but i hope you find success!” not everyone is into everyone, but that’s okay, just don’t be a dick who jumps fully into it without asking if they’re okay with it

3. EITHER WAY, DONT JUMP INTO CONSTANTLY SPAMMING THEM WITH MESSAGES AND FANTASIES

That’s how you end up crossing a line. That’s how you go from shooting your shot to trying to push yourself onto them.

I usually do a playful and flirty greeting + maaaybe a short fantasy. And then leave the ball in their court. Don’t overwhelm them with tons of stuff, because then you again; go from shooting your shot, to pushing yourself onto them. If you want to give long fantasies without knowing them prior, that’s what asks are for, if their pinned and such is okay with it.

DMs are different and more personal. Be respectful.

4. DONT DANCE AROUND QUESTIONS

Seriously. To give the example from earlier of my own story, dancing around whether youre the type of guy i’d be into at all is shitty. Because you know the answer might be no, but you’re trying to hide that fact. Don’t do it. Be honest and upfront with people. if they aren’t into you, they aren’t into you, there are a million fish in the sea. and in fact, you being untrustworthy just hurts ur chances, because it signals that you’re well, not someone i can trust, and who cares about my pleasure too. Speaking of,

5. LEARN TO BE OKAY WITH “NO”

Like, okay, lemme be straight here. Some people ARE going to say “no i don’t wanna” and that’s fully okay. You also can’t change that, and you’re a dick if you try to. Just take it in stride and move on. In fact, most people who say no to you will be genuine and nice about it!….if you’re actually KIND and don’t try to be pushy on them. They might even wish you luck on finding someone and generally wont hold any ill will against you.

Finding people on here is about finding people who are compatible with you - and not everyone is compatible! but just because you two aren’t compatible doesn’t mean they hate ya or don’t like ya as a person. They probably hope you do find someone who you’ll be compatible with!! You’re both just players of the same game, after all. That’s all there really is to it

Plus, well

6. RESPECT OTHERS, INCLUDING WOMEN AND NB PEOPLE, AS PEOPLE

This is also part of respecting “No”s but this goes in general.

No matter how degrading or kinky or whatever anyone on here is, they’re a real human person who has a whole life and personality and EVERYTHING. and like this goes for people in general but like

Women are human. just like. seriously yall

Respect them.

They deserve respect. Just like you and I.

this might sound blindingly obvious but considering the type of guy who might be reading this, i’m saying it

7. PEOPLE ARE NOT KINK MACHINES

Just, genuinely. NOBODY is a kink machine. Nobody is a dispenser for you. I’m a bit tired as i’m writing this section after the others but like. Don’t expect kink from them 24/7. Don’t expect kink unless they want to do it. In fact, maybe you shouldn’t “expect” anything from anyone at all, because it is not an obligation from any of us. If someone is taking a long time to respond to you, that’s okay! Hell they have the right to not respond to you, I REPEAT, THEY HAVE THE RIGHT TO NOT RESPOND TONYOU. But they also might respond to you, but there is no obligation for it to be in a timely manner!!!!! People have lives. People do things. People are not just horny dispensers for you. Please, learn to be okay with that.

And side note, no, idc how sex addicted you are, you probably wouldn’t be a kink dispenser either. Take it from another guy who felt like horny stuff was an addiction for him and still does tons of stuff- when i got on here and overall messed around, I realized that as much as i did things, i also wasn’t up for things 24/7, and didn’t want to do stuff with everyone all the time, and sometimes felt the pressure from that myself. I have met people equally as absurdly horny as me, but NONE of us are kink dispensers. And you probably wouldn’t be either, so don’t try to just act like there is someone out there who is, because u think ur constantly horny. idk if i communicated my point here well

8. Kink is kink. but kink is not real life.

There is a play space, and then there is real life. And sure, they might have some overlap, but…let’s put it like this, using an example from my perspective

A woman is being, in kink/play space, mean and degrading to me, and I like it, because that’s what i’m personally into.

And then suddenly, she says something that feels romantic. And I IMMEDIATELY start feeling very uncomfortable, because that is personally one of my boundaries.

If I then bring this up to her, and she doesn’t immediately step out of kink space for a second to apologize and acknowledge me and my uncomfortability, that is then a problem. Why?

Because kink hurt can feel good. Real hurt? Doesn’t.

Whatever hurt that form takes, even if unintentional.

Because in reality, it is all just a scene. There might be some real emotions mixed in, but it’s not real.

In reality, you should both be doing something that makes you both feel good. That is the goal!!!! Hell even if ur doing a kink as a “only for my pleasure” type thing, which i have discussed with someone before, the byproduct of it being only for one party’s pleasure SHOULD BE THAT THAT FACT FEELS GOOD FOR THE OTHER PERSON!!! And, while you should always have safewords, YOU SHOULD ESP HAVE SAFEWORDS IN CASES LIKE THAT!!! Even thw time i discussed doing this in particular as a kink I was also very clear that the other person would NEED to immediately tell me if it didn’t at all feel good, and I had to trust them to, since the point would’ve been that i wouldn’t care. (unless they told me it wasn’t feeling good)

And like,

YOU. SHOULD. TAKE. CARE. OF. YOUR. KINK. PARTNERS. AS. PEOPLE.

And now, now, take the example I used earlier; of someone stepping out of kink space to apologize for making me uncomfortable and to acknowledge me.

Now, flip the genders.

And put yourself in the shoes of the person who crossed a line, even accidentally.

Would you be willing to step out of kink space? Would you be willing to acknowledge them? Would you be willing to apologize? Genuinely?

Would you?

If the answer is no, you need to change that before you engage in kink.

Please. I’m begging you.

That’s what matters

9. JUST. BE KIND YALL

And this, really, is what it all comes down to. Be kind, to your kink partners, as people. Respect them. Don’t straight up push yourself onto them. Be willing to apologize, not just to step out of kink space and help them, but because you care about them, and are willing to acknowledge when you made a mistake. Don’t dance around their questions. Be willing to have gentle conversations if needed, be willing to ask “is this okay?” or say “no is valid.” remember to have a safe word and drop things immediately if it’s said! Be willing to listen to Nos.

And…take care of your kink partners, alright?

Please.

So yeah. Some of the treatment some blogs are getting on here isn’t okay, please be kind to people out there, and….yeah

people are always annoying u damn, i feel so bad for u girlie

ahhh it is what it is. every nsfw blog on here has a loootttaa horror stories I’m sure, some people just don’t prefer to share which is entirely understandable!