#make it story-based rather than ship-centric

[aatroxskitten]

i don't read a lot of fanfic because i refuse to read incomplete fic under 20k words and i'm not interested in ship fics unless i really like the ship (giga rare). that usually limits my options to like 3 fandoms, and one of them is Harry Potter.

you can probably see why i prefer published fiction tbh.

[eternal-echoes]

I’m probably just projecting my own bias here since I grew up with lots of brothers and male cousins so I have a tendency to prefer shonen animes over shoujo (and that one time my brother made fun of me for watching Meteor Garden (2001) which is a Taiwanese drama based on Boys Over Flowers kinda made me insecure about liking any romance shows for a while may also have something to do with that) but I have a theory that the reason why TwiYor is such a popular ship even more than the romantic couples in shoujo anime romance stories is because romance is not the central plot point of Spy x Family although it’s an important and essential part of it. What I mean by that is romance is not the main focus of the story. I know it sounds contradictory but I believe it has something to do with psychology.

Back in high school, I took an intro to psychology class and my teacher back then explained to us three phases of love (it’s been so long ago so Idk the exact terms he used so I’m just going by with what I remember from the lecture):

Phase 1: basically the lovey-dovey phase where the Significant Other seems to become the center of a person’s life. Everything is seen through rosy-colored glass. Phase 2: this is where a serious argument (or series of serious arguments) either makes or breaks the couple. Phase 3: after going through phase 2 is where the foundation of the relationship has been solidified. While the person may see some flaws in their Significant Other, they still admire them. For example, their talkativeness may annoy them sometimes, but they still admire that because thanks to that they have great circle of friends. And most importantly (and this is the point about TwiYor I’m trying to make), their Significant Other is not the center of their life anymore; rather the Significant Other is their partner in walking through life together with.

In the case of TwiYor, their relationship works precisely because they don’t worship each other. Rather, they have shared values and goals that had made in sync and complementary with each other, they’re attracted to each other because of those same values and goals:

(And it’s actually one of the contrasting traits between Yor and Fiona)

Hence why Twilight is falling in love with Yor by attraction, not by any effort from her part.

And the fruit of that love is exemplified by taking care of Anya, who embodies the world peace that they’re working so hard to protect.

So despite their flaws, their unconditional love and care for each other help fill in each other what the other lack.

That’s why even though Tatsuya Endo can go a year of not drawing a Twiyor-centric chapter and there would still be Twiyor fans gobbling up any Twiyor crumbs he lays out in the next chapter. Otherwise, the zealous fire for the Twiyor ship would have been blown out a long time ago when Tatsuya Endo decided to focus more on world building.

[momojedi]

Bad Batch: Season 3

My Predictions

The final countdown has started and I'm not ready at ALL! Here are some of my predictions for Season 3 and what I could imagine happening!

1. Tech will be back.

Yes, the trope of dead characters returning is incredibly overused. But as many others I have a good reason to believe that Tech might still be alive. Think about it. It’s pretty likely Hemlock managed to locate Tech’s body considering he left us a huge breadcrumb: his goggles.

Why would Hemlock get rid of a genetically enhanced super soldier, especially considering he likely knows how to properly brainwash someone?

I too like to think that Tech might be the black armoured soldier in the front. It’s the same, if not similar armour as Clone X. Maybe these are part of a special type of clone assassins or troopers? Could they be the prototype for the Dark or Death Trooper?

It’s pretty plain to say that Tech will likely come back, though probably not as the Tech we know.

2. Crosshair & Omega Dynamic

We've seen Omega genuinely bond with all of the Bad Batch - except for Crosshair. Despite her trying her best to get to him every time they had the chance to interact, he denied her any kind of response. Whether that would be because he's just too withdrawn or because he refuses to let anyone see his vulnerable side, we don't know so far.

What we do know however, both based on pure logic alone and the fact that we've heard them both involved in a heated debate in the leaked trailer from the Star Wars Celebration last year, is that they likely will spending a lot of time together on-screen now that they're both captives of the Empire.

Hopefully Omega will be able to lift Cross' spirits, he doesn't seem to be doing very well from what we've seen!

3. Ventress will be an enemy!

Asajj Ventress! We all know and love her, so naturally it's incredibly nice to find out that she'll be returning to the screens for the final season of the Bad Batch! Despite they're naturally being some raised eyebrows considering her fate in the Dark Disciple book, I'm curious to see in what way they'll connect the stories!

However, seeing as Ventress could rather be classified as an anti-hero rather than a full on hero, I believe that she won't be helping the Batch but rather fighting them in order to get to what she wants - as she likes to do.

Perhaps she'll end up cooperating when she realises there might be no other solution, but I strongly doubt she'll be any help to them when it comes to following their personal goals.

4. The Fall of the Clone Rebellion

It's sadly no secret that given the events of Rebels and the three remaining clones Rex, Gregor & Wolffe, it's very likely the rebellions aka rescue of the clones didn't go as initially planned.

I could imagine this being explained a bit clearer in the finale, perhaps even leading up to a great fight against the Empire in the end. We can't forget that the series mainly revolves around a rogue batch of clones, so the thought that it might also go out with a clone-centric subject, especially such a big one, isn't necessarily far-fetched.

5. The End of the Mission

And finally, my most tragic prediction: The end of the Bad Batch.

The writers have been making it very clear that season 3 will likely be the darkest season of the show which unfortunately leads me to think that, as much as I'd want it not to be the case, the finale will lead to the ultimate end of Clone Force 99.

I suspect the series to end with the batch ending up together in some way, as the original five, and landing in a tricky life-or-death situation. Perhaps they'll be stuck in a crashing ship with a one-person escape pod or maybe they'll be facing a threatening figure such as Sidious, leading to the decision to sacrifice themselves in order to protect Omega.

Either way, despite season 3 likely becoming a tragic rollercoaster of emotions, I'm glad we had the chance to experience the epic story of the Bad Batch. It's sad to see them go and although these characters have become like a family not only to me, but to many other fans, let's enjoy our last moments with them and let them go out with a bang!

[vetinarivimesy]

Kenobi-centric fic recs

Everything here will heavily feature Obi-Wan Kenobi in some fashion, and will vary wildly by ship, tone, and fic-type though I'll do my best to give little blurbs/not-too-spoilery summaries.

The fics range from gen to explicit, in some cases pre-date tagging ettiquette, and, no, no I have not re-read them all (ye gods have you seen the word counts).

In a few cases I'm basing my summaries on very hazy memory and I have a noted bad habit of skimming straight past explicit porn when I don't want to read it, then forgetting its there entirely - so caveat lector!

These are mostly fics that I currently mentally catalogue as Wonderful Obvious Obi-Wan Kenobi Goodness fics rather than expecting to dig up any obscure hidden gems. The list would probably look very different on a different day. It's far from comprehensive, and the categories are loose at best. But here it is!

I've been contemplating putting something like this together for a while but been a bit nervous of sticking my head up above the metaphorical parapet. As, follows my fave character around without caring overmuch about the ship trash, I've got quite a list of Star Wars fics inhaled/rediscovered.

(Wee bit too used to coming into very dead fandoms long after everyone's left, put the chairs up on the tables, the metaphorical lights have been turned off... and the not so metaphorical bills have stopped being paid. More than once I've stumbled into a wonderful old fandom fic archive only for it to vanish into, Only What Was Saved on the Internet Archive Remains status. Even when the archive isn't actually an ex-archive, many don't actually allow for interaction. Apologies to the authors I've never worked up the courage to comment on, this is an explanation not an excuse!)

Obi-Wan's apprenticeship fics:

Commander Kenobi - norcumi (complete, 9646 words)

Obi-Wan gets de-aged in the midst of battle. Cody gets to find out what teenaged Obi-Wan was like. Given Obi-Wan thinks he's fresh out of Melida-Daan, nothing like whatever Cody might have been expecting.

A Town Called Stagnation - deniigiq (complete, 33,000 words)

Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan take a trip to Stewjon, to let Obi-Wan get in touch with his roots post the horrorshow of his early apprenticeship. Smalltown thinking and the trauma of recent events clash horribly for everyone involved.

Another brilliant author who's whole fic-output is well worth checking out. Their wry utterly charming character voices never fail to amuse, even when the POV character is one I'm currently in an... actually I wouldn't mind some bashing of this guy kinda mood. I draw amusement and sympathy for Qui-Gon's character in every single one of their immediately post-Melida Daan fics for context here, with my knowledge of that event thoroughly warped and contaminated by the current popular fanon take on the matter too.

Though more Cody-centric, and thus Clone Wars era, than anything parallelogram (Complete, 33,000 words) and they're neutral (complete, 9900 words) by the same author are also wonderful.

poisoned chalice - qigiined (Complete, 9900 words)

Another author with the wit and deftness of characterisation to make immediately-post-Melida-Daan Qui-Gon's POV both amusing and sympathetic. They've also got quite a few other gems!

Qui-Gon's very wry POV as he tries to navigate raising a very traumatised child, and appeasing his various lineage members.

through hardships to the stars - kivaember (WIP, 148,000 words)

Canon divergence where Obi-Wan's apprenticeship snafu on Melida-Daan went just that much worse than those Legends-were-never-technically-canon novels would have it.

As a result Obi-Wan and a very young Jango Fett end up on the run from a terrifying darksider, whilst Jaster Mereel and Feemor despearately try to catch up with the pair.

Little Lights Stories - ms_nawilla (WIP, 628,000 words)

Qui-Gon neglected too much of Obi-Wan's training, so Obi-Wan isn't immediately knighted post-Naboo despite saving Qui-Gon's life and defeating the Sith.

Anakin goes to the creche, Qui-Gon's in utter denial, and Obi-Wan begins the rocky process of finding his own feet post-Naboo, getting through the thorny process of working out who you are as your own person after living under someone else's oppressive shadow for far too long.

Super detailed epic detailing all sorts of wonderful possible jedi-culture headcanons, illuminated manuscripts! beer! force-manipulation games! communal caring! crystallography! sex ed! old-people's homes! the engineers! clerical branch! outreach via art! dance instruction! reincarnation! politics! spies! terrible james bond esque spy films to hide that the spies were really real! lightsaber classes! non-jedi temple residents! U and L leaning prejudice! Alderaan!

Just what would happen if Qui-Gon Jinn were exactly the sort of irresponsible unpleasant adult who should never ever be given a child a lot of fandom suspects he is. His implied treatment of Obi-Wan here can be fairly harrowing, for all that its emotional neglect rather than anything graphic.

The jedi are never depicted as anything less than trying their best, unfortunately no matter how thorough the system tries to be, sometimes people do just fall through the cracks. As was v.nearly the case for Obi-Wan in this verse.

Mostly character driven, though the hints of the greater plot bubbling away underneath all of this glorious worldbuilding and character growth are both ominous and intriguing. The pairing is a hell of a spoiler, but also one that could potentially be a bit of a squick, I don't want to spoil the slowburn of this thing but I do want to give fair warning. Does tumblr offer spoiler tags?

Preventing Order 66 fics:

When Duty is Done - thosenearandfarwars (WIP, 257,000 words)

Wonderful long-form piece - technically a WIP but all installments so far are complete - a what happens next post-Palp's getting his comeuppance, messily. Features Codywan, grief, internalised ableism, jedi order reforming in a very nuanced 'we were this close to the brink' and lost so many people to the war sense *not* the sneaky 'jedi-positive but actually bashing' sense.

Hell I wholeheartedly reccie just about everything this author's ever done tbh!

(This Too Was a Gift (Complete, 69,000 words) is also utterly wonderfully done, and a complete fic in a similar vein, albeit much more focused on the ramifications for individual characters than the ensemble cast of thousands that is Star Wars.)

I Got My Head Checked - frostbitebakery (Complete, 79,000 words)

Codywan Sith!Obi-Wan AU. Cody falls for the hot Sith in the next cell...

Light of the Mists- Snowy Egret Chimes of Kyber, Songs of Kyber, and Anthem of Kyber (Complete, 166,000 words)

This one technically also fits the Obi-Wan's apprenticeship category too. Bit of an epic of, what would happen if Obi-Wan never made it to Bandomeer, and instead trained under a force sect with rather different ideas about how things worked than the modern jedi order?

Supreme Chancellor Obi-Wan Kenobi - stonefreeak (WIP, 113,000 words)

Wonderful crackfic premise done mostly seriously. (WIP)

By an extremely obscure bit of Senate Legalise, Obi-Wan finds himself thrust into the role of Supreme Chancellor. Palpatine is furious.

How A Romance Novel Saved The Galaxy - Ariana Deralte (WIP, 184,000 words)

The galaxy takes a left turn when a popular novel takes the world by storm, and the Jedi and Mandalorians mutually discover their two cultures aren't so different after all...

sanguine - glimmerglanger (complete, 158,000 words)

In which Obi-Wan being a vampire, with all the nasty prejudices that come with being a non-human in the GFFA, somehow saves the galaxy.

Just Go Kill Palpatine - nevertheless_turtle (WIP, 6662 words though this is likely an underestimate due to formatting of a wonderful epistolary/OutsiderPOV social-media-centric chapter)

Just as the title says. Obi-Wan goes and attempts to do just that. Wonderful and hilarious.

The More I Live the More I See this Life is Not About Me - K_R_Closson

Another de-aged Obi-Wan fic. In which post-Melida-Daan suspicious of everyone and everything Kenobi somehow fixes things. Everyone around Obi-Wan is suitably horrified by the news of just what his apprenticeship under Qui-Gon entailed.

Not Quite Sure How to Catergorise these...

This category is the equivalent of the draw marked 'misc.' sorry! Mostly a mix of action/adventure stuff and fics I suspect will turn into, and they prevented order 66 fix-its, but maybe not, with some other truly misc. things thrown in.

backdrop - esama (Complete, 2300 words)

Short and sweet self-contained little tale. Very succinct, but what the author does with those words...

Gunslinger's Paean - Idiot's Array + Homeworld Elegy - Ashcroft_Writes (WIP, 299,000 words)

Epic, what if Obi-Wan post-Rako Hardeen paired up with Cad Bane action adventure tale. Mistrust. Violence. Gunslinging. Espionage. Murder attempts galore!

We Brothers, We Sisters, We Vod'e Few - infinitecompositions(WIP, 322,000 words)

Hell of a fic. WIP. What if canon were to take just a step to the left... Post-Naboo Obi-Wan finds himself recruited for the Shadows branch of the jedi order...

Another epic, cough, can you tell what style I like yet? Uh, starts off as a bit of a dark action adventure romp, rapidly morphs into a detailed dissection of spy-craft, espionage, and galactic politics - but becomes no less tense for it.

Kneading - Threebea O (WIP, 79,000 words)

Manages the miraculous trick of being canon, whilst seeming to be a fluffy bakery AU for a significant chunk of the first few chapters.

Jango/Obi - Jango falls for a local baker whilst hanging out in small town with Boba. Increasingly important to the fate of the galaxy shenanigans inevitably ensue when aforementioned baker turns out to be Obi-Wan Kenobi undercover.

Be Your Love - glimmerglanger (complete, explicit, 9000 words)

I tend not to go for 'real world' AUs but this author's work is so very excellent that I'm reccieing this one - hell I think most of their work is well worth a look through, and every fic-genre they've attempted has proven very fun indeed.

Heed the tags. Explicit Codywan BDSM stuff contained within.

Wizard of the Jundland Wastes - phoenixyfriend (complete, 3200 words)

Obi-Wan on Tatooine, outsiderPOV.

One of many wonderful Star Wars fics this author has written. If this one doesn't catch your fancy, one of their many delightful utterly bizarre premise taken to logical conclusion fics probably will.

Father of the Year (Not) - phoenixyfriend (complete, 2430 words)

Obi-Wan and Jango find out they're each other's soulmates. Mostly they're furious.

Wonderful very pointed skewering of all the usual soulmate and Jango is actually a decent dude tendencies in fic-writing.

Time Travel fics:

I thought I fought this war alone - stonefreeak (Complete, 3783 words)

Wonderful short and sweet Obi-Wan time travelling to his padawan days fix-it.

this is unexpected - MarbleGlove (Complete, 4461 words)

Very succinct and perfect with it time travel what if. Old Ben Kenobi goes back in time and immediately ruins Palpatine's day.

This author tends to be delightful no matter the fandom.

The Sun Swings East - kj_feybarn (Complete, 33,000 words)

Brilliantly done timeloop story of woe and hope. As much about recovery as the initial plot-driven despair. Mind the tags, Obi-Wan is understandably severely depressed throughout much of this fic.

The Making of Mavericks - AppoApples (complete, 146,000 words)

It was extremely difficult to choose just the one time travel fic from this author. Their output is wonderfully varied, don't like their particular take on the Jedi Order and/or the Mandalorians in this fic? Pick another, and odds are they'll have explored the concept from precisely the opposite angle.

This author has a wonderful exploratory sense of, okay okay, so how do we fix this thing/how do we make it worse?

In this case, Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, Cody, and Rex time travel to the past. This creates broad sweeping changes to the timeline, not always for the better.

The Desert Storm (complete, 1,144,599 words) & Rise and Fall series (WIP, 396,000 words) - Blue_Sunshine (WIP)

Wonderful epic-length time-travel fic. Highly recommended. Technically a WIP, but what there is already is well worth the time.

Ben Kenobi, now Nasaade, in utter furious despair finds himself back in time, pre, well, everything. He decides to take matters into his own hands and change things.

Gorgeous character-work, where by the end of the piece the characters are all in very different places than where they started out. And you utterly believe the growth (positive and negative) that got them there.

Draws from both legends and canon in a bit of a hodgepodge approach - despite drawing from a few of the more leaning towards the jedi were the bad guys sources in legends, impressively manages to tread a nuanced stance on, okay so what if the jedi and mandalorians did decide to start reforming in the face of this grave existential threat that's been brought to their attention?

Wonderful utterly enviable pacing - I know this one's extremely long. But at no point do you ever feel/notice the length when reading this thing.

It Was Another Time and I Another Man - Pell_Binterhol (WIP, 196,000 words)

Multiple Kenobis time travelling. Absolute chaos for absolutely everyone else; fellow time travellers, fellow Kenobis, and plotting Sith alike.

the massive machinery of hope - Killbothtwins (Complete, 150,000 words)

Obi-Wan travels back to his padawan days and annoys everyone else into helping him save the day. Wonderful sense of wry humour throughout this fic.

Living Memory - elsa3beth (WIP, 363,000 words)

Epic very detailed wonderful fic detailing just what General Kenobi would do if he had to fight the war again.

Deals with just what could happen if Anakin had ever had to face his fellow jedi with even a few of his flaws laid bare, and the fallout.

Meanwhile, Obi-Wan, just barely managing to hold himself together, fresh out of the middle of his exile to Tatooine, is desperately playing four-dimensional chess against Palpatine and trying to use the awful structure of the Republic's Army to save both the Jedi and the Clones.

The 212th Attack Battalion's Guide to Saving the Galaxy by Accident - antigrav_vector & quarra (WIP, 783,000 words)

Long, character driven fic that's an incredibly fun take on just what might happen if Obi-Wan and a bunch of Ghost Company stumbled into Jaster Mereel's True Mandalorians and get themselves adopted. Heed the tags wrt pairings!

All the complications that come from being an adult stuck as an apparent child ensue. From being squicked out about being a kid again, to having other people being concerned that a kid is behaving like an adult, to just... time travel complications, kidnapping, force esoterica, and fighting a small war.

Plenty of Jedi thoughtfully staring at this strange miniature jedi master, lots of Mandalorians being both stunned and horrified by these tiny soldiers, and Dooku/Sifo-Dyas being a surprisingly lovely central pairing.

Not Qui-Gon friendly in the least, and in this verse you can't help but feel he very much deserves it.

Suicidal Misunderstandings - nevertheless_turtle (WIP, 67,000 words)

Obi-Wan spends much of this fic convinced he's hallucinating and on a bad spice-trip. The trigger warning is very much in the name here.

That said, wonderful, often hilarious time travelling Obi-Wan fic, as the jedi desperately try to work out 1) what's wrong with Obi-Wan, and 2) how to stop Palpatine.

Re-Entry (Complete, 568,000 words) and Re-Entry Journey of the Whills (WIP, 889,000 words) - flamethrower

Fair warning, might turn into a deadlink fairly soon. The author's stuff is in the process of being transferred to another archive. Not a big deal (though fandom being a collective arse is, ffs), as with many older fics this one has moved home fairly often! (Squidgeworld.)

Wonderful absolute epic time travelling Obi-Wan Kenobi fic. Even if you're not a fan of the central Qui/Obi pairing it's written from a very believable perspective, of you can see precisely how these two adults got there, and an extremely enjoyable read with it.

Starts off as a fairly character-driven piece, as the plot slowly builds into something extremely ominous indeed, though once the plot momentum gets going ye gods it gets going.

Another case of technically a series that's a WIP, but every individual story that's up is complete and a satisfying individual whole.

Filled with all the things I love in a Star Wars fic, Obi-Wan getting to be awesome, force esoterica, Obi-Wan getting to be a little shit, plotty plot, the jedi getting to be nuanced and awesome, canon and fanon star wars lore all over the place, and plenty of action adventure and gorgeous character work.

I don't want to go into too much spoilery detail here, but suffice it to say this one is a classic in the fandom for a reason, and deservedly so.

Warning that the dark stuff in this fic can get dark, the level of whump Obi-Wan endures goes all the way up to extremely creepy Palpatine-torture on par with the Ventress/Sith-mask/Alpha-17 situation. It's never gratuitous with it, but in places this fic is explicit, at turns in both the fun porny way and the whump sense.

Star Wars crossovers and fusions:

Alas this section will be shorter than I'd like it to be - unlike a lot of other sci-fi fandoms Star Wars fandom seems to shy away from crossover fic by and large. There's both less of it, and what there is seems to get a hell of a lot less interaction than it would in a different fandom. Not guilt-tripping, again, I am very very guilty of failing to interact myself, just a weird, 'huh, where are all the crossovers?' thing I've noticed.

Rouge Handed - nevertheless_turtle (complete, 2190 words)

As the name hopefully implies this one's kinda sorta a Moulin Rouge crossover. Ish. In that it's firmly set wholly in the GFFA.

Delightful little crackfic.

The weeping stone - Gabriel4Sam (complete, 6965 words)

A wonderful crossover with The Mummy that somehow manages to thread the needle, hitting the humorous tone of those films perfectly whilst simultaneously making you feel very sad indeed for Obi-Wan.

A Star to Steer By - dogmatix, norcumi (first fic in the series is complete, second a WIP, 109,000 words)

Absolutely wonderful Stargate crossover/fusion - it somehow manages to be both a crossover and a fusion at once.

Largely told from Jack's POV, the Jedi are symbionts, with all the misunderstandings that would imply, given the SGC are much more used to dealing with malevolent parasitic Goa'uld than benevolent symbiosis.

Lost Jedi - Augusta Pembroke (complete)

A Velvet Goldmine crossover fic. Curt Wild meets Qui-Gon Jinn, and things get complicated. Qui/Curt with implied unfulfilled Qui/Obi feelings.

All the unhealthy messy relationship stuff the Velvet Goldmine tag and the age of the fic implies is probably present and correct here.

Qui-Gon ends trapped on the wrong side of the galaxy, he finds Curt who's force sensitive, and trains him to help him get back home to Obi-Wan... Things get messy.

Snow and Cinder - MrsHamill (explicit, complete, 16,000 words)

The pre-requisite wonderfully done Highlander/Methos crossover fic. Obi-Wan hangs out with the ROG for a while post-Naboo in a bid to get over a falling out with Qui-Gon Jinn and work through his own messy feelings on the matter. The main pairing is Qui/Obi as many older Master&Apprentice archive era fics are.

All you really need to know about Methos is he's very old, and very cynical. He's literally seen and done it all.

This one doesn't fall into the all too easy to fall into trap of having Methos, understandably an extremely old and cunning immortal being so much better at anything and everything than everyone else around him that it stops being fun and starts bashing the other-verse in the crossover, for which I'm extremely grateful. It's a difficult balance to tread and this author manages it wonderfully. (I say this from first-hand, I have tried and failed to airdrop this character into other sci-fi fandoms you'd think he'd work well in, fic-author perspective rather than as a crit of anyone else's work!)

Look at the publishing dates please.

A few of these fics pre-date Attack of the Clones. They were written in the 90s.

If I find out someone's been bashing an author for outdated terminology or characterisation or for not using the current 2022 language, or a character the fic pre-dates in a fic they've not looked at for over twenty years, or how they wrote the central pairing in the era when the punchline to every single joke in Hollywood was 'haha they're gay!' I... Well... I won't be writing another one of these rec lists. Which isn't much of a threat I realise, but please, be civil.

I could probably easily fill a couple more of these lists tbh, and get more specific with it genre-wise... But as a general, here's a few fics I remember fondly often. I can feel myself getting neurotically 'this has to be perfect' at this thing, so, this'll do for now.

[box-architecture]

which are the aus You have more on your ming latetly?

A mixture of them!

I'm staring at the Dreambur AU I have (Strangers Vassal) and wondering if I should post what I had planned for it to look like. I'm struggling a lot with writing it, partially because I don't have a lot of people to bounce ideas off of, partially because it's an AU that would have a lot of fight scenes, something I don't have a lot of experience in and am unsure how to proceed with.

I really enjoy the concept of it, and I want to write for it, but it might once again turn into a bunch of shortfics in a series rather than the longfic I originally wanted. It's disappointing that I can't seem to consistently write longfics, but if I don't accept the limitation I might risk not getting anything done at all, and that's potentially more disappointing.

The Communication Knife AU is almost always on my mind. It's evolved from just pure demons and rotations to being a huge comfort that I can just idly think about throughout the day.

It's really neat, because I started out as a Dream-centric multishipper who wasn't sure if I could vibe with Punz and Sam closing the triangle, but after marinating in the idea, it's now really important to me that they become something too. They grow from two people fighting around their relationship with Dream to something based on trust and blunt honesty and Forgiveness Withoit Forgetting. They can be deeply affectionate with each other in a way thats different from their relationship with Dream. Not bad, not in a way that excludes him, just different.

The AU has also tentatively opened me up to exploring 2nd Gen characters, something I've literally never been capable of before. I have a lot of vague ideas for who gets together post-main story, and how those relationships works and why. Ponk/Foolish/XD is a ship for example, and I've designed a possible child for them? As well as designed Fooshs Totem children? It's always a maybe for if I actually want to give people kids, and it's not really the point of CKAU, it's just really fun to explore the rest of the smp in this sort of fix-it au and how it impacts their lives in the After of it all.

It's also helped me expand my Minecraft Lore and Worldbuilding Bible (how in my headcanon the mineacraft world works and its history/lore, including tying other media's like Hermitcraft and Maricraft to the dsmp to make everything part of the overall world.)

Writing CKAU post-story had also, ironically, made me enjoy benchtrio more, as I get to talk to my friends about their interpersonal dynamics and how they work and how they end up finally at peace. Especially considering Tubbo and Ranboo are bitterly divorced for a long time.

I had a lot of small ideas for a DNB Mass Effect AU in a similar vein to To Tear Asunder being my Dragon Age AU, but I feel really guilty getting into that when I haven't even finished the Philza fic or the Techno fic I have for the latter. I have significantly less people to bounce ideas off of for To Tear Asunder, which is why I struggle with it sometimes.

A lot of my writing in the beginning was done through utilizing my manic moods, but now that I'm better medicated/no longer constantly manic, it's led to me going a lot slower with writing. Demons (PWP stuff) are a lot easier to write, because they require significantly less scene set-up when I can use the sexual act as a template, and being horny-brained isn't particularly difficult.

(Also. No Plot Nessecary. Hence the Porn Without Plot. Plot is really exhausting to write sometimes.)

Obviously it's a lot better for my health that I'm no longer manic, but it's still disappointing that I can no longer work myself into a tizzy and write 30 pages of something (before collapsing and being unable to do anything at all for the next several days.) Give and take and all.

I briefly was very insane about Benchtrio fucking Dream in various ways. I made a whole Teacher/Student AU about it that's in my drafts, god willing I get my new laptop and can finish that up. I really enjoy CNC and bodice ripper type stuff, so it's pretty fun to explore crack AUs where Dream is just trying to be normal and the 3 most abnormal people in the world come into his life.

I'm not really a fan of the Tommy/Dream dynamic where Dream is preying on the Poor Helpless Child, especially because it has a habit of taking itself Very Seriously. I'm not looking for serious and dark and the villainization of Dream. It's a lot more fun for me to explore a strong, confident, and very tired 20-something desperately trying to figure out how to deal with the 17-18 year old being horny on main. Also it's just really interesting to me when the younger character takes advantage of normal social and power dynamics and subvert them so they can have the older character sub.

^I'm not sure if the explanation there is perfect or makes sense but I'm always happy to try to talk more about it if you'd like.

I have a little more of the Warden Hybrid!Dream type stuff in my head that I wanted to write out, mostly just a lot of Porn With Minimal Plot for purely kink reasons. I also have a Dream/Ravager fic I'm supposed to be posting, but God only knows when I can finish it. I need zoomies.

[frankenjoly]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Tagged by @cursedvibes thanks!!! i love these things

1. How many works do you have on ao3?

68 but for Reasons (a fanweek i'm very hyped for), it's gonna be 69 next week.

2. What’s your total ao3 word count?

287,330 (and counting ofc)

3. What fandoms do you write for?

mostly bsd, jjk & a bit of genshin, but i throw in ficlets and/or one-shots of other stuff to let Thoughts out.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

Connecting the dots. silly pre-canon fluff and humor won people over after arcane's s1 finale.

Between the pages: part 2. mix of bsd ficlets/drabbles, bcs i love doing small thingies (i'm already finishing part 4 laksdjflk).

Misread. aka jealuc from barbara's pov, aka humor that stemmed from a teensy lil angst.

Remnants. more of me letting thoughts out after arcane's s1 ending, this time timebomb with pining Jinx.

Por el amor de estepresidente... the bsd crack fic (or my first one, at least), in which Mori and Fukuchi sort of ally to crash fukuzawa's date with any 3rd person but are also competing against each other.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

i do, bcs i either have the need to thank ppl or ramble about the fic they're commenting on (or both).

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

probably Remnants, though i intended to go with the "it's not/won't be unrequited" vibe.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

i'm a pussy and a slut for happy/hopeful endings, so i have those by the ton aldkjfl.

8. Do you get hate on fic?

not hate per se, but i've had complaints about tagging all ships from the start in my genshin ficlet compilation... when i was gonna throw them all into ao3 in one sitting.

also that one person who came to one of my Utahime Week fics, who was tagged as both gojohime and shokohime, to tell me "nooo shokohime are just friends yadda yadda" while praising gojohime as canon (i love it too, but it isn't). it was odd.

9. Do you write smut?

i have this thing when it comes to nsfw in general and smut in particular, aka up to certain point it makes me uncomfy but below that idgaf and even go like "nice, my ship having sex"... so.

most i can offer is barely-explicit stuff, and for fic specifically i see "depictions of character bein horny" and "pre- and post-sex" rather than actual smut.

10. Do you write crossovers?

not a lot, but the bsd+jjk thingie that came from rp and also birthed the dnd-ish au got me by the throat.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

as far as i know, nope.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

as far as i know, nope (x2). though i do translate some rp solos to turn them into one-shots adding up stuff as well (i could just post them in spanish, but).

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

i guess rp is like schroedinger's yes here? but when it comes to literal fic... not yet, but i know what and with who.

14. What’s your all-time favourite ship?

i can't choose, sorry laskdjf.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but probably won’t?

not really a wip, but i had one Uraume-centric fic that i'm not sure if it'll see the light for... some reasons. long story short, it's based on another fic that's a roleswap and has modern socerers (and students) Uraume and Sukuna.

16. What are your writing strengths?

i apparently never run out of insp and will to write, so i can go fast as fuck. and my writing is one of the things i'm most confident about like fr.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

i still feel like english nerf me, at least when it comes to narrating, bcs i cannot be as descriptive or poetic as i am in spanish.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

as someone who's first language isn't english but writes fic in english, you go ppl. and also, native english speakers can be kiiinda entitled lol.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

both for rp and my first fic ever, abc's once upon a time (that was also my first fandom being online).

20. Favourite fic you’ve written?

another instance of me sucking at making choices alsdkf, sorry.

no pressure tag: @ildi-dragonheart @bungoustraypups @monday-headache @noirewaves @rhymbic @minluce @bunniezai @neonganymede @fyodorkitkat

[learnwithbeeka]

Optimizing Your Website for Conversions and Business Success

In today's digital-first world, a well-designed website goes beyond being an informational platform: it is a strategic revenue driver and an expansion mechanism for your customer base. Business-to-business and business-to-consumer businesses that need web development in Kochi to optimize their websites increase user engagement and leverage business growth. Here is how your website can be optimized to convert visitors into loyal customers and, by extension, enhance conversions as well as long-term business success.

UX User Experience Keeping visitors entertained or rather engaged with your website requires a very smooth user experience. Navigation has to be effortless and without anything else that will distract their focus from getting the necessary information. Kochi web development businesses improve UX a critical feature for any service, including all the following: Fast Load Times: Visitors will leave websites that take more than three seconds to load. Be sure pages load fast to keep visitors around. Mobile Responsiveness: Because mobile usage continues to grow, websites should be fully optimized for all screen sizes so users have a seamless experience on all devices. Layout and Design: Organized layouts give users the confidence to click and read more and to spend more time on a website. UX-centric web development can remove frustration, boost engagement, and boost conversions by leaps and bounds.

Write Clear and Compelling Call-to-Actions (CTAs) A good Call-to-Action (CTA) nudges users toward taking action, whether it's signing up, buying, or learning more. For conversion-optimized website web development in Kochi, effective CTAs are a must: Positioning: Place CTAs in high-visibility, strategic locations such as the top, middle, and end of pages. Design and Contrast: Use contrasting colors, and bold fonts to draw attention to the CTAs. Keep the message simple, and action-oriented by using the phrase "Sign Up Today" or "Shop Now." Personalization: CTAs that can be dynamic according to a user's browsing behavior will make your website more engaging and responsive to visitor needs. Well-designed CTAs contribute to increased conversions and help turn visitors into loyal customers.

Decrease Friction during E-Commerce Checkout Reduce checkout friction for the shopper. Checkout optimization is crucial to e-commerce optimization campaigns. Most cart abandonments take place because of too-long and complicated checkout processes. Limit Check-out Steps: Few are fewer. Make checkout clear-cut with an easy, sequential process Guest Checkout Available - Permit the shopper to complete an order by skipping barriers, even from returning prospects. Many Payment Options: Accept many forms of payment, including credit cards, digital wallets such as PayPal and Apple Pay, and Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL). Transparency with Fees: Display shipping costs, taxes, and fees so the user is not surprised at checkout. This can discourage customers from completing their purchases. A streamlined and transparent checkout process can reduce cart abandonment rates and improve conversion rates.

Add Social Proof and Testimonials Social proof, such as customer reviews, trust badges, and testimonials, is one of the most crucial components in credibility building and driving conversions. Humans tend to believe in what others say about something, so authentic testimonials from actual customers can go a long way in relieving some concerns and establishing that sense of trust. Add Testimonials to Key Pages: Have customer testimonials on product pages, landing pages, and even on the homepage to really drive that message of trustworthiness at every turn. Display reviews and ratings: For any e-commerce website, star ratings along with user-generated reviews about each product can be all the difference in persuading people to buy it. Use case studies and success stories: Share case studies about how your product or service has benefited previous clients. Ideally, the results would be quantifiable. Adding social proof reassures visitors, helping them feel more confident in their decision to engage with your brand.

Search Engine Optimization to Attract Quality Visitors For any performing website, SEO is an essential component; it ensures you get quality visitors to your site who are interested in your offered services. Ways to improve SEO on your page: Keyword Research and Implementation: Find relevant keywords from the industry, products, or services that your business offers. Effective use of natural keywords in page titles, headings, meta descriptions, and content across your pages. On-page SEO: Optimize title tags, headers, and images so that search engines can understand what each page is about. Quality content creation: Write blog posts, articles, or guides to answer frequently asked questions or the challenges that face your audience. High-quality, informative content brings visitors and encourages them to explore more in your website. By optimizing for SEO, you are more likely to bring a qualified lead which would increase opportunities for conversion.

Apply Analytics to Improve Conversion Rates Continuously Analytics tools like Google Analytics give insights into how users interact with your site. Key metrics that you need to keep track of include: Bounce Rate: A high bounce rate on a page could mean you have an issue with the content or design. Conversion Rate: Check different sources, pages, and CTAs to understand what is working out and what needs correction. User Flow: This shows the visitor paths on your site and where and how customers leave before converting to action. By continuously checking these metrics, you can make data-driven improvements that will have a huge impact on conversions and your business at large.

A/B Testing to Help in Better Results A/B testing compares two versions of a web page to see which one is better. You can refine many elements on your website by using actual user data when performing A/B testing. Headlines and Copy: Use various headlines and copy to know which message will resonate with visitors. Images and Imagery: Try testing all images, colors, and layouts to see which designs work better. CTAs: Test color, wording, and placement of CTAs to discover variations with higher conversion. A/B testing continually refines your site with time to better match the needs and expectations of your audience.

Live Chat and Live Support Conversion game-changer: real-time assistance. Live chat support will reach visitors at the point of making a decision to purchase or decide. 24/7 Availability: You should implement after-hours support through a chatbot so that no one ever leaves without having the answers they are seeking. Instant Responses: Quickly respond with accurate answers to commonly asked questions, so your customers can make decisions even quicker. Human Help Option Provide the option for your customers to escalate to a human representative when needed to ensure a smooth, positive experience. This extra support just shows that you care, and it is going to be instrumental in making someone less likely to be hesitant and helping to improve your conversions. Conclusion Optimization toward conversion is the key step toward business expansion for Kochi-based Web development companies. Every aspect of optimization, starting with UX design and going to A/B testing, reaches a website that attracts viewers, engages them, and converts them. Concentration on these strategies makes websites an indispensable tool for obtaining customers and achieving business targets. Every little bit counts, so begin optimizing today and build a site not only to attract visitors but to convert them to loyal customers, fueling your business's long-term growth.

[influencermagazineuk]

Decoding Jeff Bezos's Amazon Strategy: Unraveling the Blueprint for Unprecedented Growth

Jeff Bezos, the visionary founder of Amazon, has orchestrated one of the most remarkable success stories in the business world. Amazon's exponential growth from an online bookstore to a global e-commerce giant and tech conglomerate is a testament to Bezos's strategic brilliance. Let's delve into the key elements of Jeff Bezos's Amazon strategy that propelled the company to unparalleled heights. 1. Customer Obsession: At the core of Amazon's strategy is an unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction. Bezos instilled a culture of customer obsession within the company, prioritizing customer needs and continuously striving to exceed expectations. This focus on the customer experience has been a driving force behind Amazon's sustained growth. 2. Relentless Innovation: Jeff Bezos is a staunch advocate of continuous innovation. Amazon's success is attributed to its ability to evolve and diversify. From e-commerce to cloud computing (Amazon Web Services), smart devices (Amazon Echo), and streaming services (Amazon Prime Video), the company consistently ventures into new territories, staying at the forefront of technological advancements. 3. Long-Term Vision Over Short-Term Gains: Bezos is known for his long-term vision and willingness to forego short-term profits for sustained, strategic growth. Amazon prioritizes investments in areas that may not yield immediate returns but align with the company's long-term goals. This patient and forward-thinking approach has been instrumental in Amazon's transformative journey. 4. Operational Excellence: Efficiency and operational excellence are hallmarks of Amazon's success. The company has invested heavily in logistics, distribution, and supply chain management to ensure quick and reliable deliveries. Innovations like the introduction of Prime membership with fast shipping options have set new standards for e-commerce convenience. 5. Marketplace Model and Third-Party Sellers: Amazon's marketplace model allows third-party sellers to leverage the platform for their businesses. This strategy not only expands product offerings but also creates a robust ecosystem where sellers contribute to Amazon's overall growth. The company's success is intertwined with the success of its vast network of sellers. 6. Data-Driven Decision-Making: Data is a cornerstone of Amazon's decision-making process. The company leverages data analytics to understand customer behavior, optimize operations, and drive personalized recommendations. This data-centric approach empowers Amazon to make informed, strategic decisions that resonate with its customer base. 7. Diversification and Vertical Integration: Amazon has strategically diversified its business portfolio, entering diverse sectors such as entertainment, groceries, healthcare, and more. The acquisition of Whole Foods and the creation of Amazon Studios are examples of vertical integration that strengthens the company's position across various industries. 8. Embracing Disruption: Rather than fearing disruption, Amazon actively embraces it. Bezos encourages a culture that welcomes change and disruption, both within the company and in the industries it operates. This adaptability has allowed Amazon to stay agile in a rapidly evolving business landscape. In conclusion, Jeff Bezos's Amazon strategy is a blend of customer-centricity, innovation, long-term vision, and operational excellence. The company's growth trajectory reflects Bezos's ability to navigate challenges, seize opportunities, and maintain a relentless focus on providing value to customers. As Amazon continues to evolve under new leadership, the enduring principles instilled by Jeff Bezos continue to shape the company's path forward. Read the full article

[freedfromthegalactichivemind]

Nameless, Chapter 2

She-Ra fanfiction Galatic Horde-centric Teen and up, some disturbing imagery. The life and times of a clone in the Galactic Horde from his development and birth to his final battle.   Chapter 1 is here:  Birth    Also on Ao3.   Chapter 2: First Duties 

Nameless Chapter 2: First Duties He reported for his first shift.  Instead of going into the main chamber for his First Duties, he was shuffled into a fore-chamber with a small group of other newborns that would be sharing his first assignment with him.  There, they were bidden by the Mind to sing their first hymns.  It was an exercise in solidarity and to help them orient their individual minds to Prime. It also served to funnel off their initial joy at being born so that they wouldn’t be tempted to make bothersome and distracting facial expressions.   The hymns were very simple songs, poetry of worship to Prime and assurances of his love.   “Sing! Sing with the Heavens!” reverberated through the local sector of the hive mind.  “Rejoice in He who brings the day and the night!”   As the bay door opened, the young clone’s jaw hung.  He heard and felt the gasps of his other young Brothers behind him.  There was a glow everywhere, more profound than the standard artificial light of the Velvet Glove’s corridors.  It was green, soft and warm.  It was – for the presumably human readers viewing this story – like the light in a broad-leaf forest on a sunny early spring day.  There was even a sense of the ambient music of insects and birds, expressed in the hum of the hive mind and the occasional chirps of the spacebats in the room as they went about their work.   That gentle forest-light came from the floor of the great chamber, mostly.  The Amniotic Fluid Growth Chamber consisted principally of large vats with mats of algae and primitive bacteria suspended upon surfaces of clear fluid.  Along one of the curved walls of the cavernous room were upright vats filled with transparent green liquid that was busily being processed.   “Welcome,” a senior clone greeted the newcomers, speaking aloud as he conveyed simple feelings and complex instructions via the hive mind connection.  He gestured to the many veteran clones in the room, working at their stations at standing consoles or walking the pathways in between the floor-vats.   “This is Amniotic Fluid Processing.  All of you shall begin at the initial stage of work – monitoring the growth of the vegetative-mats and seeding the pre-fluid. This is a vital task.  These algae-mats provide us with vital sugars, nutritious vitamins and base-carbohydrates.  Failure to keep them growing properly will be disastrous and Prime will not tolerate failure.”   The young clone steadied himself, reaching out for the others as the floor seemed to shift beneath their feet.  It was shifting!  The entire chamber turned, sliding upon hidden rails beneath it as shutters crept upward over the curved dome of a clear wall and ceiling.  You might be tempted to call it “glass,” but, truly, it was a material of Horde-technology – far more durable than glass. Simple glass was employed elsewhere in the ship when necessary, but this was a particularly sensitive chamber that required an extra-measure of protection for those working within it.   The newborn clone gasped as yellow light flooded into the room.  Before them all was a great bright ball of shining fire.  It was a sun, a star, a yellow star to be exact.  Distance (a safe distance for the ship) and a protective coating upon the dome rendered the light visible as opposed to blinding and gave it a yellow cast rather than something more in the orange and red range, as it might be seen from one of the robotic cameras making a map of the cosmos. This sun was a yellow-class star – just the thing for rendering photosynthesis that left green as a leftover coloration.   Of course, radiation from other stars further off and spacebat-visual-perception allowed some other coloration to be viewed within the vat-stew for the clones, our wet-behind-the-ears protagonist included - once the sunlight hit it all.  It remained mainly glowing green, yet struck through with something akin to a gasoline-rainbow left in a puddle upon a street after a short rain.   He was not left long to marvel at the sight. He was passed a small cloth bag – made of the same material as his uniform – and mentally instructed to seed Vat 12 with dry spores.   The young clone’s first shift went without incident.  There were no significant events beyond the sheer wonder of his beholding growing things for the first time and seeing a safely-shielded sun.   His kind could suffer a condition known as “sunburn” or “the astral affliction” if they were exposed to the light of stars without significant protection for prolonged periods.  Information-downloads told the clone that they were far more resilient than many lesser species and could survive the surface of a planet lacking a protective ozone layer for a few spans of time.   As for something about the Galactic Horde: much of this is conceptually-translated for your benefit as a reader and mine as a transcriber.  I cannot tell you how difficult it is to translate Horde-timekeeping into what you are familiar with, so for simplicity’s sake, I will give you rough estimates of the “minutes,” “hours,” and “days,” but be aware that Horde-time is a little lesser or greater, depending upon the span.  I’d like to say that the passage of time was measured in “10s and 12s,” but even that is not entirely accurate given certain in-between points they counted.  In short, it is an alien-conception of numbers and time, just as the Horde-species can see a few colors that you and I cannot imagine.   While you’re at it, image that the members of the Galactic Horde are speaking a language other than the one you are reading this in.  Now, if you met a Horde-clone, they would quickly pick up and speak your language readily after hearing just a few lines as the universal-translation software in their brains is extremely efficient.  However, there are a few concepts they would be unfamiliar with.   When they were freed from Prime later, those who were on friendly and kind planets (Etheria included) tended to become fascinated by simple medical technologies such as wheelchairs and with children’s toys and the concept of eating for pleasure and for flavor.  The discovery of these concepts alone could be overwhelming to the clones, but that is a story for another time.   In any case, the young clone that we are following was grateful to Horde Prime and his brilliant engineering for the protection of the Growth Room window-coating so that he would not have to experience the “sunburn” that he felt was quite dreaded across the hive mind. His first “day” was an easy and pleasant one. He took his small oral dose of amniotic fluid at his appointed feeding time and took his rest.  Horde Prime bestowed upon him and other resting Brothers the night after they’d locked themselves into their designated rest-pods. It was a blessing after such a glorious day.   More shifts passed like this, uneventfully. The new clone learned to wield the consoles that chopped and stirred the algae and how to work the stations that added the proper dosages of the various “medicines” that went into the mix.  He knew the formulas by programming, but when he asked what, exactly, they were meant to do, a superior spoke to him in whispers, but outside of the hive mind; “We do not speak of that subject,” and that was the end of the inquiry.   On the clone’s ninth shift strangers entered the room.  They were fellow clones of Horde Prime – Brethern – but they were not Growth Room workers on the current rotation.  They rolled in large, clear tanks upon wheels.  The substance within the tanks was glowing green, as bright as the algae, but it looked thicker.   What is this? The young clone asked with his mind, reaching out to elders nearby. Protein supplements, the current foreman answered him.  It is a vital component of the finished fluid. We receive them once every ten-span. Every clone that was near the entrance shied away as the men wheeled the carts to their destined dock to be prepared for a feed into the finalizing chambers.  The young one had no time to think about it, but it seemed that extra care was taken around those chambers.   The way everyone gave the delivery-Brothers a wide berth was strange.  Exalted Brothers of Prime were to keep their faces stoic, but subtle dips in the ears told the acolyte-clone that his fellow Growth Chamber Brethren were uncomfortable around the delivery-men.  Out of curiosity, he ventured close, ready to offer assistance with the tanks.   His mind was stabbed.   Images that he could not make sense of paraded through his inner landscape.  He saw metal and wires, little machine-components that he recognized from his development-education as part of his own internal-workings and shimmering bone.  He shook his head as the pictures flashed.  He saw wet red and wet green on white surfaces.   He felt abject animal terror.   He stepped back sharply from the delivery-Brothers.  One of them regarded him with a sad expression on his face – a violation of the rules? – as an elder Amniotic Fluid Growth Chamber Brother took the young Brother by the shoulder.   He turned to the elder, jaw slightly slack. What is it? he asked with his mind, Why did I feel so much pain? “We do not speak of it,” the elder said simply. The young clone worked for another ten-span in the Amniotic Fluid Growth Room.  His shifts went uneventfully.  

[ichinoue]

Hello! Do you think in the future there's possibility of Kubo makes a story focused on Ichigo and Orihime's love relationship? Like the concept he did with WDKALY. Idk but I have that impression that Kubo was not really into Ichihime? I mean.. He made their chemistry very implicitly, only people who read it thoroughly would understand their development (as we can see there are so many readers who failed to see it) . Let's stick with his clarification about how Bleach is a shounen story that wasn't focused on romance, but he could executed the romantic atmosphere for RenRuki, even from the earlier arc when Renji showed us so many times about how important Rukia for him. We could see that Rukia and Renji always stick to each other in almost every arcs, it's not difficult for us to see their lovely dynamic. But it's kinda 'dry' for IchiHime, to the level of me who ship them from 2008 found it's make sense that those IR said that IH is lack of moments. Kubo prolly understands clearly that many people would hate it if he writes a story a focused on IH, since we know Orihime has a handful of haters everywhere. I could understand it. He even let it to our imagination on how Ichigo and Orihime went through their relationship. Did you ever think that way too? (Sorry for my awful grammar, I'd love to see your response)

Nah, I don't think he would make a story based on their relationship. I think we would still see them featured as a couple, of course, in any future works involving Ichigo and Orihime like we saw in the special Hell verse chapter, but their relationship wouldn't be the main focus of the story. Bleach is a shounen after all, so a spin-off about a romantic couple doesn't seem very fitting to me. If you mean a novel rather than a spin-off, WDKALY already addressed how their relationship came to be, and even WDKALY was not solely based on the RR love relationship; rather, it was used as a means to catch up with the characters and events happening in SS and Karakura following the war, culminating with Renji and Rukia's wedding and Ichigo's confession to Orihime.

I don't agree that IH was too implicit to notice or understand. I think the reason many readers failed to see that it was being written with the intention of becoming a romantic couple in the end was because they had already pinned their hopes on the more popular main male/female pairing from the very beginning, which generated an extreme dislike for IH as a result for being the direct competition, and so they weren't looking at the pairings objectively, which created a lot of denial and confirmation bias. Even in IH's most obvious moments, they still closed their eyes and shook their heads in denial.

And I love RR, but I don't think RR received more focus than IH? In the SS arc, sure, but IH received a lot more focus in all of the rest of the arcs. Starting from the arrancar arc, no other pairing received as much screentime or content as IH did. You say that Kubo executed a romantic atmosphere for RR via Renji's feelings for Rukia, which is true. But I think you're forgetting that Kubo did the exact same thing with IH via Orihime's feelings for Ichigo--and I would argue that IH and Orihime's feelings were even more explicit and "shoujo-esque" as it included Orihime's very explicit love confession, a hand-hold, and an almost kiss in "goodbye, halcyon days."

I think it's laughable for IR shippers to claim that IH had little screentime or moments. I compiled a list of IH manga moments here, and it's very extensive, spanning the entire manga. As I said before, IH received more screentime and content than any other pairing. Meanwhile, IR's screentime greatly plateaued after the SS arc.

So, I disagree. I don't think Kubo was uninterested in IH at all. I think if that were the case, he wouldn't have written so much content for IH. And I think if he were uninterested in it, he definitely wouldn't have made some of the most pinnacle moments of bleach so IH-centric (the arrancar/HM arcs, the Grimmjow/Nnoitra/Ulquiorra battles, the lust arc, and most importantly, the "final boss" battle against Yhwach).

I don't think Kubo cared about the hate for Orihime or IH. It clearly didn't deter him from writing a lot of IH/Orihime content, and he said himself on twitter that he would write more screentime for Orihime out of spite when people would complain or send him hate about her. Someone even compiled a graph showing that Orihime had the second most panel time in Bleach, with Ichigo being the obvious first. He wasn't concerned with catering to the haters, or holding back out of fear that it wouldn't be well received.

Basically, I think Kubo did a great job executing the romantic relationship between Ichigo and Orihime. He gave them plenty of content and development. To me, it doesn't make sense for people to complain that we didn't see their relationship confirmed until the final chapter, because that is basic shounen formula: to hold off pairing up the main characters until the very end, with a marriage and kids reveal.

As Kubo said, romance is only supplementary, after all. But even so, he still gave us more than that by confirming in WDKALY that Ichigo had been harbouring romantic feelings for Orihime for quite some time, and he created through words and a beautiful drawing the moment that Ichigo approaches Orihime to confess/ask her out.

And I think that's more than enough for a shounen.

[halcyon-hyacinth]

toh fanfics to keep you busy during hiatus, a thread.

A/N: If an author has a (*) by their name, PLEASE check out their other works!!! After combing through the toh archive, I now follow the skilled writers I've found rather than checking ao3 tags. This list could be longer but I really wanted to highlight these writers.

Finding Home Amongst the Infinite by DontDoHeroinKids * Multichapter, ongoing. Adventure/Action, Canon Divergence, Found Family, Friendship.

Mini Summary: Luz is a planes walker, and has spent years stumbling across the multitudes of realities, desperately searching for a way to return to her abandoned home with little success. She winds up in the Isles where she'll find answers and allies to help her on her journey.

One of the best multi chapter fics I've had the pleasure of reading. Luz's dynamic with all the characters is handled extremely well. Unlike other multi chap fics I've read, this is almost entirely done from Luz's POV.

Holding You Back by @FoolsSee *

Canon-Compliant Character Study, completed.

Recommendation in honor of Yesterday's Lie. Pre-season 1 one shot that captures Camila and Luz's relationship really well + strong characterization. Fools has written 27 other toh fics- PLEASE check out the authors other works!!!

Breaking Point by SquirrelWriter *

Canon-Divergence, Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, completed.

My favorite Luz and Amity oneshot. Not a lot of writers can effectively capture what makes their friendship work and this one knocks it out of the park.

Your Name by SunshineChildx

Multichapter, Slow burn, Friends to lovers, ongoing.

lumity fic based on the move of the same name. Not yet completed, but this is one of the most well written fics I've ever read. The prose and narration are beautiful and I've cried reading it.

Eda Clawthorne's Pro Skater by A_Big_Old_Skeleton

Series, Skateshop AU, Fluff, Angst, Humor, ongoing.

This is the only beta fic I support tbh. The characterization is off the charts and I adore how the author handles everyone's relationships. The comedy and storytelling are superb.

Postcards from a Place Named Threshold by incoherent_icarus_works *

Series, Character Study, ongoing.

A collection of standalone character study oneshots each centered around a different character from The Owl House (atm Luz, Willow, Boscha) . Luz one shot was inspired by @woozywonder art!

Curse Me Goodbye by Lumitations *

Canon Divergence, Comedy, Urban Fantasy, Action/Adventure, Romance. Multichapter, completed.

One of the most fun fics I've ever read. The mystery/intrigue is INCREDIBLE as are the kick-ass action scenes. Lumity centric.

Heir of the Jedi by @whatisurowlpolicy *

Multichapter. Ongoing. Action/Adventure, Star Wars AU, Angst, Fluff, Humor, Enemies to Lovers

I don't know shit about Star Wars and I am begging anyone who is dissuaded by the AU tag to READ THIS FIC! Green is extremely good at handling the ensemble cast of toh along with writing top tier development for every character. It's also lumity centric, and I think y'all will enjoy their take on them.

Our Stories Burn Bright, Hung Like Stars in the Sky by AtticusKaine*

Series, ongoing. Action/Adventure, Romance, Found Family, Humor.

What the hell are you doing with your life if you haven't read this series? Hands down my favorite toh canon divergence, it fleshes out every single character in ways you wouldn't believe.

make my heart your home by @tiredandjaded*

Ongoing series, found family, hurt/comfort.

Takes place in between s1/s2, I take it as canon. The relationships between Luz, Eda and Lilith post YBOS are handled beautifully-- the character dynamics and found family vibes are off the charts.

Hold Me Close by @the-lone-witch-and-secret-room

Oneshot. Completed. Jerbric Hurt/Comfort.

She writes the well-known Locked Out ALONG WITH several god-tier one shots y'all HAVE to read oh my god. This is one of my favorites. The characterization of Jerbo and Edric's relationship is super sweet.

learning how to be (with you by my side) by uniqeusernamegenerator*

Multichapter. Completed. College AU, Romance, Comedy

Atm you can only view it if you have an AO3 account and if you haven't read this masterpiece already YOU MUST! It's easy and free.

This is one of the best lumity fics of all time. The slice of life feel is otherworldly, as is the author's INCREDIBLE prose. Hits you right in the feels along with their skarscha fic windows up, walls down.

Transcendence by rhysanity

Oneshot. Soulmates AU. Completed.

This is what I like to call a ship conversion fic. If you've never considered skarscha before, read this fic. It will hit you in the feels and have you rereading over and over again for eternity.

Golden written by @whatisurowlpolicy / story by both of us *

Multichapter, ongoing. Golden Guard Amity AU. Action/Adventure, Found Family, Drama, Comedy, Hurt/Comfort

Shamless plug, this is one of my favorite ideas I've ever thought of and I am beyond hyped to be co-creating it with Green. We're doing a role reversal following a lot of the same beats of season 1 but putting our own spin on it. You'll see a lot more of the dynamics we haven't seen a lot in season 2 like Amity and Lilith along with Willow and Gus. Gonna go ahead and @anguigenus because Gus and Amity's relationship is one of the major focuses of the fic.

[literallink]

Not sure if anyone has asked already, but I would love to learn more about your SUPER BIG little linked universe warriors fanfiction. :)

HEEHOOHEEHOO OHOHOHOHO YOUVE DONE IT! YOUVE INDULGED ME! I AM ABSOLUTELY VIBRATING WITH SO MANY IDEAS MWAH I LOVE YOU I AM KISSIM YOU ON THE MOUTH!!/p

n ee ways WAHOOGA this "little" idea started around 1 month ago. Upon finding out that Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition is NOT canon BOOOOOOOO i have decided that fuck it if hyrule warriors isn't canon ANYTHING is canon. or rather, you can do anything in hyrule warriors and it would be supposedly canon in its own universe.

and that's how my most genius idea began: "Warriors is Hylia's OC Do Not Steal," the series. Wait no come baCK I SWEAR ITS GOOD-

"Warriors is Hylia's OC Do Not Steal" is a series about Warriors being absolutely ANYTHING, mostly due to Hylia's interference. It's like those "Prince Wild" or "Legend is Fable's brother" fics, except those are more noticeable trends while Warriors isn't really worked upon beyond the canon events inside his game. Aside from that really good Storyteller!Warriors fic, amazing Mailman!Warriors series and your local wingfic Warriors is pretty much a dot on the Linked Universe AUs. While yes there are LU aus including the whole chain, it's hard to find a Warriors-centric one that wasn't last year or 2020. So god bless silvercaptain they deserve this mention.

To touch more on the WHODNS series (a working title send help) ill have to explain the series within the series first. Basically, I am going to put Warriors into so many situations and some of them will end up getting me so hyperfixated that I will be forced by my own hand to make a series for it. I actually have a series inside WHODNS in the works right now called "Seventeen," I might make a masterpost about all my ideas sooner or later. You're free to ask for now though!

Seventeen is a Warriors-centric series wherein his connection with the royal family and therefore the Zeldas seem to be more intimate than one would think. And no, not THAT kind of intimate. All ships are the canonwise ones currently and never the main focus of the story.

The Zeldas play a somewhat important role in this story, considering the fact that they're actually joining the chain for their adventure. Why? Connected to the plot I can't say shit (..I need help to come up with a name for a group of Zeldas though).

Here's a sneak peek of the first work in the Seventeen series called "I Used to Kid Myself in this Dress." Yes. It's based off of the MARINA and the Diamonds song.

The portals are acting weird. And by that, they’re forcing all the Zeldas to join the chain on their quest to…no one’s really sure, actually. Every Link agrees that they’re happy to finally have their lover, friend or even sister by their side. Except Warriors.

Because his Zelda isn’t even with them at all.

Or 9 times the Zeldas had a less than pleasant interaction with our resident “ladies’ man,” and one time a Zelda actually took the time to understand him and break that stereotype

Not my favorite work of the series (I have like, 2 more), but it IS the first one. The one after this is called "Rise of a King (Fall of a Queen)," which has my favorite summary so far. Both are currently in the works! "I Used to Kid Myself in this Dress" will have 10 chapters, while "Rise of a King (Fall of a Queen)" are still undecided.

Maybe if people like the idea I'll release the summary for "Rise of a King (Fall of a Queen)."

Alright! Time to rant. Warriors' game is a GOLDMINE for multiple situations. As sad as it is that its not canon it baffles me that no one has thought of the possibilities for it in writing (I have a post for it right here! Although it's more or less just cluttered thoughts).

I hope this post sums it up! Sorry if there are instances where my words don't make sense haha, I'm just really happy that someone bothered to even like my post. My brain was just telling me to write EVERYTHING down but that would spoil the surprise. Have a great day!

[klixxy]

Genshin Fic Recs

so... i ventured into the vast world of Google looking for some good GI fic recs... only to find such a pitiful amount that i was promptly devastated. therefore, the solution is to make my own! :D

keep in mind most of these will be ChiLi or XingYun, and yes, i will try not to include smut unless it was one i really really liked. if anyone wants a separate list for just smut (though that will most likely be shorter) i can try to make one later.`

ft. my bookmark comments :)

CHILI

wrapped up in pure gold by beyondwinter

(chili; accidental marriage; chili/childe-centric; 22k words; ongoing)

"Do you understand its meaning, Childe?" He finally asks. There's a hard glint in his eyes, like he's trying to steel himself for his answer.

"Yeah." Loyalty and devotion, right? Between business partners? "I do. It's traditional, isn't it?"

Zhongli's eyes glow a warm amber in the near darkness, reflecting the soft shine of the lanterns. He studies his face with a strange intensity, as though Childe were a piece of high quality Nocticulous Jade being sold for suspiciously small sum and he's trying to find the blemishes that would explain the price. The weight of his gaze should be uncomfortable, boring into him like he can see into the very depths of his abyss-tainted soul, but Childe finds himself preening under the attention instead.

Childe accidentally proposes to Zhongli. Zhongli accepts.

The World is Water by Millereflets

(chili; smut; hurt/comfort; chili-centric; 7k words; oneshot)

Childe doesn't visit Zhongli until it's almost too late.

(my bookmarks: HOW DO YOU MAKE A SMUT SCENE SO POETIC HOLY SHITTTTT)

Set in Stone by seredemia

(chili; fake dating au; angst; some smut?; chili/chiilde-centric; 55k words; ongoing)

What do you do when you write about a certain six thousand year old consultant so much in your letters that it somehow convinces your entire family you're not only dating each other, but that you're also engaged?

In Childe's case, the answer is plain and simple: he goes along with it, of course. Absolutely nothing can go wrong if he makes a contract with the God of Contracts, vowing that the two of them will pretend to be lovers for the duration of his family's stay in Liyue. Afterwards, they'll return as normal and speak no more of this mess. No feelings or complications involved whatsoever.

Contract accepted. A fool-proof plan set in stone. Right?

Private Ledger of the Eleventh Harbinger by JuHuaTai

(chili; humor; getting together; chili/ekaterina-centric; 5k words; oneshot)

“So guess what I did next?”

Ekaterina contemplated not answering, but Harbinger Tartaglia was just… grinning and waiting. It’s honestly rather creepy the longer time passed.

In the end, she gave a long suffering sigh that seems lost on him, “You bought him the Erhu—“

“I bought him the antique, cor lapis based Erhu,”

-

When she first left her homeland for the unknown nation of Liyue, Ekaterina was ready to be many things: To be a soldier, to fell Tsaritsa’s enemies in her name, to bring glory to Snezhnaya and her leader.

Being a receptionist in a cozy bank wasn’t so bad in comparison, but she absolutely can do without the front row seat to Harbinger Tartaglia’s (expensive) love life.

i know i'm where i'm meant to go by paperclips (pastel_paperclips)

(chili; humor; fluff; chili-centric; 12k words; ongoing)

"Childe," Zhongli says suddenly. "I am enjoying myself greatly." Childe’s face breaks into a grin. "Then-" Zhongli gasps, grabbing his wrist and tugging him over to an unsuspecting peddler with a cart full of rocks. "Is that an intrusive igneous pegmatite formed in the Inazuma regions?" Childe’s grin smooths into a small, adoring smile. He has all the time in the world to figure the other man out.

OR: Finding the Geo Archon is on Childe's to-do list but hanging out with Zhongli is significantly more fun.

CHILIVEN

Crumbling Stone by avtorSola

(chiliven; ANGST; PAIN; mind control; zhongli-centric; 74k words; ongoing)

When Morax unleashes his plan to test the Liyue Qixing and his adepti, he does not take into account the stirring of the Abyss Order in the north and the corruption of Dvalin - for why would he fear an organization that works in such shadows? He is secure in his power, after all, unlike his flighty ex, the absentee archon of Mondstadt who rises only when his people are in danger.

But, somehow, the Abyss Order discovers his plan. Somehow, they capitalize on it. And he, the God of Stone who cannot sicken, is struck down - taken by an order bent on destroying all of humanity as Liyue crumbles around him. For even Archons aren't immune to Durin's blood, and Morax is no exception. But then the question becomes - if even Archons may fall to the agony of this corrupting burn - how is their traveling friend Aether immune?

The answer comes from beyond the stars - an ancient malice that knows no kindness or mercy. A malice whose legacy the Abyss Order now bears, seeking to topple all the Archons and their people into the void of utter destruction. And they have begun in Liyue.

Fortunately, it takes a long time to erode stone.

(my bookmarks: IM SCREAMING AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA)

PLATONIC ZHONGVEN

left-behind city by trixstar

(platonic zhongven; angst; ANGST; venti-centric; 1k words; oneshot)

"An associate of mine has just informed me that Rex Lapis, the Geo Archon has been assassinated."

Venti blinks.

Or: Venti and how he copes with finding out he is all that remains.

i circle ten thousand years long; and i still do not know if i am a falcon, a storm, or an unfinished song by birdsofpassage

(platonic zhongven; angst; hurt/comfort; zhongven-centric; 4k words; oneshot)

Venti and Zhongli, and the vignettes of a much-needed vacation around Mondstadt.

(my bookmarks: ; - ;      ;  -  ; )

oh ye with little faith by air_fried_air

(platonic zhongven; angst; hurt/comfort; zhongven-centric; 2k words; oneshot)

Two former archons do a little tour around Mondstadt.

(my bookmarks: why are all genshin angst fics so melancholy.... i feel so empty)

the wind through the mountain tops by glassdrachma

(platonic zhongven; humor; hurt/comfort; zhongven-centric; 21k words; finished)

Boredom brings Barbatos of Mondstadt to bother a certain ex-Archon of the Earth.

(my bookmarks: venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship-)

XINGYUN

the art of exorcism by Agried

(xingyun; ghost au; hurt/comfort; chongyun-centric; 9k words; oneshot)

On the road back from one of his jobs, Chongyun runs into Xingqiu, the wandering swordsman. And then they keep meeting, over and over again. or, alternately; how a ghost and an exorcist learn how to love, one step at a time.

Bane of All Evil by tzitzimeme

(xingyun; humor; romance; chongyun-centric; 24k words; hiatus)

When Chongyun unintentionally offends Liyue's second most powerful adepti, he vows to mend the thorny relationship between Adeptus Xiao and human exorcists-- even though no one has succeeded in currying Xiao's favor for over a thousand years.

His best friend Xingqiu offers to come alone, mainly because he's worried about what kind of trouble Chongyun will run into. Along the way, they receive help from others: Xiangling packs them meals for their journeys, while Zhongli gives them advice on what demons to track.

Childe is just there because he thinks the whole thing is hilarious.

[On indefinite hiatus due to burnout; sorry!]

kiss me slowly (so i don't forget) by xiwangmu

(xingyun; humor; romance; light angst; xingqiu-centric; 8k words; oneshot)

Wangshu Inn Bulletin Board

Guest Message: My best friend whom I harbor affections for kissed me last night, but due to his special condition he does not recall a single moment of it. I am quite conflicted about whether to disclose these events to him or not, because that would most certainly require me to confess my feelings as well. If anyone has experience in romancing boys with excessive positive energy, this one humbly asks you to share some advice.

Reply: Our greatest apologies—although we would like to offer some words in response, we simply cannot decipher your handwriting. Perhaps you may return with a neater message next time?

time trials by idlestars

(xingyun/many ships; humor; modern au; xingyun-centric; 2k words; oneshot)

A modern social media AU.

Xingqiu Teases Demons. Chongyun Almost Cries. [The clip shows Xingqiu, lit by the sickly green of night vision, as he stares bored into a dark room. He’s alone - Chongyun left to see if Xingqiu could lure out the ghosts. Xingqiu glances at the camera, smirks, and then opens his mouth.

“Hey demons, it’s me, yah boy.”]

OTHER/GEN

woe be the wallet of the god of wealth by glassdrachma

(gen; humor; identity reveal; keqing/zhongli-centric; 12k words; finished)

Or, the story of how the Yuheng of the Qixing came to idolize, befriend, and discover the identity of the God of Geo, in that order.

(personal comments: hilarious, made me burst out into laughter multiple times, and was just a masterful piece of writing)

to dream of dust by miao_x

(guili/gen; ANGST; hurt/no comfort; zhongli-centric; 5k words; oneshot)

Some nights, Zhongli dreams.

He dreams of soft light, golden song, and a gentle breeze whispering tales of millennia past. It is warm, familiar, and comforting.

It feels like home.

And then he opens his eyes, and awakes to reality.

(my bookmarks: oh zhongli... made me cry)

To drown in your own tears by C_rin_nyan

(guili/gen; ANGST; TEARS; PAIN; zhongli-centric; 2k words; oneshot)

As Rex Lapis, he had never shed a tear, even as he slaughtered hundreds, destruction following his every step. As Zhongli, he had shed much more than he would like to admit, however.

Or, “Zhongli’s soul gave its last scream long ago, yet even now, the echo of said sound was still strong enough to reach Rex Lapis.”

[writingwithcolor]

(to preface: i myself am not jewish) i have a character i'm coding as jewish, as explicitly as possible without saying 'jewish' (due to this being a sci-fi/fantasy world where earth doesn't exist), and i have a couple of questions. first of all, does him being a rich (and somewhat socially oblivious) nobleman closely related to a royal family play into any stereotypes i should avoid? he's the only jewish-coded main character, but i'd make it clear that he isn't the only jewish person. (1/2)

(2/2) second, is it better to use existing real-world names of customs / holidays, or would it be better to invent my own? i feel weird saying 'Chanukah' bc i'm trying to avoid real-life names, but i don't want to step on any toes by explicitly describing the character as celebrating Chanukah but calling it something else. (also, links to other posts about explicitly jewish-coding characters would be much appreciated! i tried searching wwc but there's a lot that doesn't fit my particular needs)

Jewish-coded character, holidays and avoiding stereotypes 

Jewish coding in fantasy

I’m curious what your motivation is for coded representation, rather than having it be more undeniable. Because coding can lead to, well, A Series Of Unfortunate Reactions - in other words, people arguing that it's not there at all. In other words, without a certain amount of obvious in-canon evidence, there will always be people on the outside saying "oh, they're not Jewish! You're just reading into it" and people on the inside feeling insecure about this fun thing they've discovered maybe just being in their heads.

I’m sure you’ve heard this before but we pride ourselves on healthy internal disagreement so there are probably people who like coded representation in SFF and people who need it spelled out more explicitly to feel validating. I think I fall somewhere in the middle; I never used the word “Jewish” in any of the five Mangoverse books but the holidays are named instead of vague allusions to “Festival of Lights” (which would be a good workaround, for Chanukah.) So they are undeniably Jewish but since I don't use the actual words "Jewish", "Yiddish", or "Hebrew", it's always possible that might bother someone.

--Shira

What does being Jewish mean in your story?

Shira, I know that you have a lot more experience than me writing this kind of fantasy, so I'll leave that part up to you. I'm personally a bit confused by the idea of Jewish-coding in a universe where Earth doesn't exist...like all of Jewish history and all the stories in the Torah took place on Earth; without those, in what sense are the characters Jewish? But 'Jewish identity' is obviously such a broad and diverse concept that there probably is still a way, I just haven't understood it.

-- Shoshi  

More on Jewish coding in fantasy settings

I address some of that (where did the Torah stories take place if there's no Earth etc.) in this post about explicitly coding fantasy characters as Jewish -- that to me it was more important to give us the ability to share the SFF playground with everyone else than for it to make sense. But you ARE right that it makes the specifics of the fictionalized version of the tradition hard to pin down. OP, is that the post you were looking for? Even the general examples are very fantasy-centric not sci-fi, but it might help you brainstorm.

--Shira

As far as Jewish-coding in a (non-Earth-based) fantasy setting, I personally get a lot out of it. It's nice to feel like the things we do aren't always considered alien. Like, is it that weird to want to get the blood out of your meat? Or to count days from sunset instead of sunrise? Those aren't impossible for other peoples to come up with independently, and therefore be reflected in the text. It can be comforting to see people doing things that echo our traditions, even where it's (perhaps technically) out of context. Then too, there are books that bridge the scifi/fantasy genres. One series in particular had a ship crash on a planet, and the people from the ship had to start a low-tech civilization to survive (the books largely were fantasy after that). Why shouldn't some of those survivors be Jewish?

In fantasy, at least what has been broadly available, so much is Christian-coded. There are so many fantasy books with mid-winter festivals, with gifts, and trees... it's easy to get the impression that that's just the default, but it isn't. We (and a lot of other groups) are proof that things can  work differently. So I love to see our habits, culture, etc mirrored in worlds that might otherwise have been another Christian-coded carbon copy of Earth, simply because we exist here, so people like us can exist in the writing too.  

-- Dierdra

Thanks guys, all really interesting thoughts! While I'm personally not sure how I feel about the idea that there would still have been a Jewish nation if no one had been enslaved in Egypt, and no Torah had ever been given at Mt Sinai, I can see how this wouldn't be a problem for other Jewish people. It depends on whether your Jewish identity is primarily based on belief, community, tradition or something else, and it all shows what a diverse community we are.

Dierdra, I can definitely see where you're coming from about normalising our practices. To me it's helpful at this point to differentiate between types of world building. The ship crash story you mentioned follows future descendants of current life on Earth, by the sound of things? In that way, it's similar to a lot of other world-building stories, especially dystopias like The Hunger Games. In that kind of set-up, it definitely makes sense to have Jewish characters be among the survivors of our current civilisation who show up in the future society too. And I agree with the reasons for saying that it's best to make them Jewish as explicitly as possible. Alternatively, there are parallel world stories that don't follow the real Earth but take place in a world that is still recognisable as Earth - Shira, it looks like we both automatically thought of the Snicket universe for that! Again, having explicitly Jewish characters makes total sense. And once again, explicit Jewishness is perfectly possible because words like ‘bar mitzvah’ and ‘hamantaschen’ can be among the words that are exactly the same as in our world, along with ‘sugar bowl’ and ‘peppermints’.  

I think what OP is asking about though is a more distantly parallel world where nothing that we would recognise as Earth exists. And I would say that this is potentially where it gets complicated. Because I agree with the other mods that for many Jewish readers it's super valuable to see our way of life reflected in these kinds of worlds and those readers deserve that experience, so from that perspective it's best to simply not over-think it and just go for it. On the other hand, I think for a non-Jewish author going down this route, it will be useful to be aware that you MAY be stepping on some Orthodox toes because the Torah as we know it can't be 'true' in your book's universe, so having Jewish characters may be uncomfortable for some. I think that Shira and Dierdra have given some great tips on how you could do this in a way that validates your Jewish characters and readers, but there is that other side that should be given a little consideration outside of an OwnVoices piece. Does that make sense?

-Shoshi

Just to add to the end -- if someone were to ask me if there were an Egypt in my secondary-world fantasy, my answer would be "yeah, sure, uhhh HANDWAVEY HANDWAVEY." In other words, I'm not sure I'm ready to commit to the idea that there's NO "Mitzrayim" for us to have to "litziat" from in whatever space Perach exists in. But I can see how this is a more important question to answer when it's a case of literally another planet far away in outer space. (Thank you for indulging an author's very specific post-script!)

--Shira

Rich nobleman Jewish character

What I did want to come back to was your question about stereotypes with a rich nobleman Jewish character. Yes, this is definitely a 'proceed with caution' type of set-up. A Jewish character with wealth and power isn't something a non-Jewish author can never write, but it does instantly put you on thin ice. If the character is also an antagonist/mostly unlikeable, then you're going to have a problem. I wasn't sure what you meant by 'socially oblivious'? Are you talking about social justice, or social situations? If it's the former, I would again say this is something to avoid. A nobleman character who has the opportunity to learn about/challenge social injustice, but doesn't, is complicit in it. This would then fall into the stereotype of your Jewish character being the evil puppet-master who is oppressing the masses.

If he's just socially awkward, that could be a fun quirk to add to your character as long as they're basically a likeable person. It would make them relatable, while in a way being the opposite of what the reader might expect, as you might think they would have over-inflated self-esteem if they've been raised as nobility. Stereotypes to be cautious of there are things like the infantalised Jewish man who is still dependent on his mother, or if he's the only beta male surrounded by physically stronger men. You should basically be fine with a socially awkward character though, but I would say that a Jewish character with the type of resources you're describing should make a point of using them for the good of the world to avoid the string-pulling stereotype.

-- Shoshi

I definitely think that any time there is a Jewish, or Jewish-coded character in power, or with access to people in power, there is a responsibility for the author to examine each word, and their own intentions.

-- Dierdra

Trace your logic

Given the wealthy nobleman angle I return to "what is your motivation" - ? I'm not saying you necessarily went "oh a wealthy person! Let's make them Jewish" -- maybe you had the idea because your faceclaim is a hot Jewish actor, or the character is inspired by a close friend IRL. But it's always a good idea to interrogate your thought processes. What's Colette always saying, "trace your logic", right? Just something to think about. Because if it ends up being trope based, with no other motivation, he doesn't really need to be Jewish and that sorts out your "there's no Earth" coding problem right there. 

-- Shira

[intheticklecloset]

12 Days of Ficmas 2021 Announcement

Hello! So last year at this time I did a 12 Days event where I basically just took twelve fic requests and made some of them kind of Christmasy, but this year I wanted to make it more of an official holiday-themed thing, so it's going to look different this time around!

The 12 Days of Ficmas will run from December 13-24 (12 days) in the run up to Christmas as a way to celebrate the holiday season! And in the spirit of the holidays, my goal is to make all twelve of them holiday-centric stories!

How to Participate

1) Choose one prompt and one fandom to combine, along with a character or shipping you'd like to see featured, and I'll use the prompt to turn it into a holiday-themed fic! Character restrictions do apply but they've also been updated recently, so feel free to refresh yourself before sending in a prompt. (Note: Most will be Christmas-centered, as that's the holiday I personally celebrate. I don't know enough about the other December holidays to create stories based on them. Sorry! It is what it is.)

2) The prompts WILL be posted in order. They're lined up the way they are for a reason. So if you choose "gingerbread men" as your prompt, yours will be the third fic to come out.

3) The prompt list is in a set order, but the fandoms are not. So if you want to pair Sk8 the Infinity with "gingerbread men," you'll get your Sk8 fic on day three even though it's listed as #11 on the fandom list. (I put the fandoms in alphabetical order, that's all.)

4) Limit one per person. Please don't send in more than one prompt. I want to give twelve individual people a chance to participate! ^^

5) I will personally choose which prompts I want to work on. Normally I'd do it on a first come, first served basis, but I want as many people to send in their ideas as possible rather than have all twelve taken immediately. I'll go through and handpick which ones to accept and work on. I feel like that will be the easiest and best way to do it for everyone involved.

6) Prompts for the 12 Days will close on Friday at 5pm PST.

~~~

After the 12 Days

Once the 12 Days are over, I'll be taking another brief writing break to celebrate the holidays! I'll still be online, but after Christmas Eve I won't be posting any new writing for a couple of weeks while I take a breather. I appreciate your understanding! ^^

Thank you all for your continued support and enthusiasm! Prompts for the 12 Days are open NOW!! I can't wait to see what you guys send in! Prepare for lots of fluffy, tickly Christmas stories! ^^

[robininthelabyrinth]

Fandom 5k letter:

MDZS (novel)

I would like NMJ centric fic - something where he's the center of attention and the focus of someone's affection, rather than a secondary character in someone else's story. I want him to be the hurt-and-then-comforted, I want him to someone's crazy obsession, I want him being put first over other people, etc. Stories in which another character has an emotional arc in which they realize how much NMJ means to them are also good.

In terms of genre, I really like darkfic, h/c, or plotty action/adventure (and more worldbuilding re: the Nie sect is always great!). Smut is OK if there's character development during, but no PWP. For romance, I prefer getting together, not established relationships, and enemies-to-lovers (or, well, enemies&lovers) over friend-eventually-becomes-a-lover.

Ships are flexible, but some optional specific prompts below:

NMJ/JGY (silver-tongued manipulator JGY, not sad misunderstood JGY please!)

yandere!JGY obsessing over NMJ because he gave him respect when he was nothing or because he’s just so damn moral and it fascinates amoral!JGY; scheming to get him back (whether via manipulation, an arranged marriage, kidnapping, whatever) or to trap him as his own (mind control could be fun!)

JGY finding out about a traumatic non-con or dub-con incident in NMJ's past (SLN post-qi deviation? WRH before/during the Nightless City captivity? JGS?) and/or seeing it happen, then going feral in his defense and/or providing him with comfort over it

if you want to do a modern AU, serial killer/assassin!JGY becoming fixated on righteous man NMJ

NMJ/WRH (generally prefer this to be noncon/dubcon and then a rescue h/c by someone else; if you want to write them romantically, please avoid completely whitewashing WRH - murderous bastard but not outright fascist tyrant is OK, but please no versions where he’s not a murderous bastard in some fashion)

WRH becoming creepily fixated on NMJ, whether pre-Sunshot (discussion conferences?) or during the campaign, and the fallout from that (wanting to make him his empress? wanting him to bear him children? etc.) – prefer this to be in the NC/DC/rescued by someone else vein

WRH sets up an arranged marriage to NMJ to get him out of the way but finds he likes him more than expected (or possibly one where WRH time travels?)

if you want to do a modern AU, mob boss!WRH obsessed with righteous man NMJ (genre shift AUs with this dynamic are also OK) – this one is OK to do as romantic between them if you want

NMJ/LXC: Would love alternate meeting, canon divergence, or genre-shift AU here; not so interested in friends from childhood with puppy crushes on each other that eventually get together. I want to see LXC doing some pining!

NMJ & Baxia: positive relationship only, please! NMJ loves his sentient or semi-sentient saber and she loves him. Other than that, go crazy – do they team up to fight his death by qi deviation? Does she cultivate to humanity? Are they weirdly co-dependent? All the worldbuilding!

NMJ/any male: go crazy! NMJ/WWX? NMJ/JC? NMJ/Wen Ning? NMJ/XXC? All good! In all cases, prefer NMJ as the pursued, not the pursuer :) no modern AUs unless they specifically fit into the type described above (i.e. if you want someone else as the mob boss/serial killer/etc. that's fine)

Wants/DNWs:

dark, creepy, dub con and non con are obvious yes, including temporary mind-alteration (hypnosis, mind control, common sense adjustment, age regression, aphrodisiacs, somnophilia, training to respond to stimuli, etc.), but no outright mind-break or permanent personality alteration (no leaving someone as a doll, no implications of long-term drug addiction, no bimboification, no permanent amnesia, etc.)

I'm very fond of AFAB!trans!NMJ but if you go this route please have him present as male and not angst over his gender assignment - being upset over forced feminization is OK, forced impreg/breeding kink is great, but no focus on gender dysphoria under normal non-extreme circumstances

ABO is fine as long as it's omega!NMJ, but no bitching/NMJ-was-once-an-alpha-but-changes-due-to-trauma

for fics involving outright non-con, please end with NMJ being rescued and getting comfort from someone else; dub-con fics can have bad end/ambiguous end (i.e. NMJ as WRH's empress, JGY's hypnotized pet, etc.)

DNW: no top!NMJ, no character death for NMJ including no implications he suffers his canon fate, no permanent physical alteration (amputation, piercings, tattoos, etc.), no voluntary infidelity, no watersports/scat/vomit/lactation/focus on body hair, no replacement pining (i.e. I want person X but I can't have them so I'll settle for you), no LXC/JGY or any ships with Wen Qing, no Christianity

no modern AUs other than those explicitly specified

no pure PWP

MDZS DONGHUA

The MDZS donghua is my absolute favorite form of MDZS (though I haven't seen the audio drama yet). I love the way that it's so much more high-fantasy and EXTRA - WWX controlling flocks of crows, using resentful energy to fly, summoning green ghost fire, ripping out Wen Zhliu's core with his bare hands..! The beautiful arrays, the magical tools (giant bells!), techniques (gravity-bending by Wen Ruohan!), literally everything Jiang Cheng does with Zidian...plus I love the small but significant canon divergences (like how NMJ is not captured by WRH but confronts him in open battle with LXC at his side).

I would like NMJ centric fic - something where he's the center of attention and the focus of someone's affection, rather than a secondary character in someone else's story. I want him to be the hurt-and-then-comforted, I want him to someone's crazy obsession, I want him being put first over other people, etc. Stories in which another character has an emotional arc in which they realize how much NMJ means to them are also good.

In terms of genre, I really like darkfic, h/c, or plotty action/adventure (and more worldbuilding re: the Nie sect is always great! ESPECIALLY with the donghua: I want to see NMJ get some of the special high-fantasy powers like we see for LWJ or WWX). Smut is OK if there's character development during, but no PWP. For romance, I prefer getting together, not established relationships, and enemies-to-lovers (or, well, enemies&lovers) over friend-eventually-becomes-a-lover.

Ships are flexible, but some optional specific prompts below:

NMJ/JGY

AU for the donghua! NMJ was never captured in the Nightless City, there's no indication he ever worked for NMJ, as far as we see he just appears when he kills WRH and then became sworn brothers with NMJ and LXC; there's not even any indication (yet) that he killed NMJ. Different meeting point? Different interactions? Wonderful opportunity to go completely off canon

I'm extremely fond of yandere!JGY or JGY going feral in NMJ's defense for some reason

if you want to do a modern AU, serial killer/assassin!JGY becoming fixated on righteous man NMJ

NMJ/WRH (generally prefer this to be noncon/dubcon and then a rescue h/c by someone else; if you want to write them romantically, please avoid completely whitewashing WRH - murderous bastard but not outright fascist tyrant is OK, but please no versions where he’s not a murderous bastard in some fashion)

WRH becoming creepily fixated on NMJ, whether pre-Sunshot (discussion conferences?) or during the campaign, and the fallout from that (wanting to make him his empress? wanting him to bear him children? etc.) – prefer this to be in the NC/DC/rescued by someone else vein

WRH sets up an arranged marriage to NMJ to get him out of the way but finds he likes him more than expected (or possibly one where WRH time travels?)

if you want to do a modern AU, mob boss!WRH obsessed with righteous man NMJ (genre shift AUs with this dynamic are also OK) – this one is OK to do as romantic between them if you want

NMJ/LQR (based on the interaction in the archery contest in the donghua, where LQR is the only one NMJ listens to)

something playing on inherent weirdness of someone a generation younger than you being your equal, plus seeing them having to stand up against the whole world more or less on their own

one of the other sect leaders tries to scheme against NMJ, LQR tries to intervene to stop them, stuff goes out of hand

NMJ/any male: go crazy! NMJ/LXC? NMJ/WWX/LWJ? NMJ/JC? NMJ/Wen Ning? NMJ/XXC? All good! In all cases, prefer NMJ as the pursued, not the pursuer :) no modern AUs unless they specifically fit into the type described above (i.e. if you want someone else as the mob boss/serial killer/etc. that's fine)

Wants/DNWs:

dark, creepy, dub con and non con are obvious yes, including temporary mind-alteration (hypnosis, mind control, common sense adjustment, age regression, aphrodisiacs, somnophilia, training to respond to stimuli, etc.), but no outright mind-break or permanent personality alteration (no leaving someone as a doll, no implications of long-term drug addiction, no bimboification, no permanent amnesia, etc.)

I'm very fond of AFAB!trans!NMJ but if you go this route please have him present as male and not angst over his gender assignment - being upset over forced feminization is OK, forced impreg/breeding kink is great, but no focus on gender dysphoria under normal non-extreme circumstances

ABO is fine as long as it's omega!NMJ, but no bitching/NMJ-was-once-an-alpha-but-changes-due-to-trauma

for fics involving outright non-con, please end with NMJ being rescued and getting comfort from someone else; dub-con fics can have bad end/ambiguous end (i.e. NMJ as WRH's empress, JGY's hypnotized pet, etc.)

DNW: no top!NMJ, no character death for NMJ including no implications he suffers his canon fate, no permanent physical alteration (amputation, piercings, tattoos, etc.), no voluntary infidelity, no watersports/scat/vomit/lactation/focus on body hair, no replacement pining (i.e. I want person X but I can't have them so I'll settle for you), no LXC/JGY or any ships with Wen Qing, no Christianity

no modern AUs other than those explicitly specified

no pure PWP

UNTAMED

Oh, the Untamed, my favorite AU fanfic that they filmed into an 50 episode series. I consider this canon completely distinct from the novel or donghua canons, so feel free to lean in to the canon divergences. Yin Metal? Ghost puppets? Completely different age gaps and/or chronologies? Baxia’s – uh – DISTINCTIVE appearance? All good!

I would like NMJ centric fic - something where he's the center of attention and the focus of someone's affection, rather than a secondary character in someone else's story. I want him to be the hurt-and-then-comforted, I want him to someone's crazy obsession, I want him being put first over other people, etc. Stories in which another character has an emotional arc in which they realize how much NMJ means to them are also good.

For the Untamed, I’m less interested in darkfic (thought it’s still OK!) and more interested in hurt/comfort.  For romance, I prefer getting together, not established relationships, and enemies-to-lovers (or, well, enemies&lovers) over friend-eventually-becomes-a-lover. Smut is OK but not preferred.

NMJ/JGY:

yandere!JGY obsessing over NMJ because he gave him respect when he was nothing or because he’s just so damn moral and it fascinates amoral!JGY; scheming to get him back (whether via manipulation, an arranged marriage, kidnapping, whatever)

JGY finding out about a traumatic non-con or dub-con incident in NMJ's past (SLN post-qi deviation? WRH before/during the Nightless City captivity? JGS?) and/or seeing it happen, then going feral in his defense and/or providing him with comfort over it

if you want to do a modern AU, serial killer/assassin!JGY becoming fixated on righteous man NMJ

NMJ/LXC: Would love alternate meeting, canon divergence, or genre-shift AU here; not so interested in friends from childhood with puppy crushes on each other that eventually get together. I want to see LXC doing some pining!

NMJ/any male: go crazy! NMJ/LXC? NMJ/WWX/LWJ? NMJ/JC? NMJ/Wen Ning? NMJ/XXC? All good! In all cases, prefer NMJ as the pursued, not the pursuer :) no modern AUs unless they specifically fit into the type described above (i.e. if you want someone else as the mob boss/serial killer/etc. that's fine)

Wants/DNWs:

dark, creepy, dub con and non con are obvious yes, including temporary mind-alteration (hypnosis, mind control, common sense adjustment, age regression, aphrodisiacs, somnophilia, training to respond to stimuli, etc.), but no outright mind-break or permanent personality alteration (no leaving someone as a doll, no implications of long-term drug addiction, no bimboification, no permanent amnesia, etc.)

I'm very fond of AFAB!trans!NMJ but if you go this route please have him present as male and not angst over his gender assignment - being upset over forced feminization is OK, forced impreg/breeding kink is great, but no focus on gender dysphoria under normal non-extreme circumstances

ABO is fine as long as it's omega!NMJ, but no bitching/NMJ-was-once-an-alpha-but-changes-due-to-trauma

for fics involving outright non-con, please end with NMJ being rescued and getting comfort from someone else; dub-con fics can have bad end/ambiguous end (i.e. NMJ JGY's hypnotized pet or puppet, etc.)

DNW: no top!NMJ, no character death for NMJ including no implications he suffers his canon fate, no permanent physical alteration (amputation, piercings, tattoos, etc.), no voluntary infidelity, no watersports/scat/vomit/lactation/focus on body hair, no replacement pining (i.e. I want person X but I can't have them so I'll settle for you), no LXC/JGY or any ships with Wen Qing, no Christianity

no modern AUs other than those explicitly specified

no pure PWP

BLACK BOOK

This movie is a delight - as long as Fouché's on screen, anyway, out-acting literally everyone else by miles (especially the terrible main leads). As someone who did their history major on the French Revolution, I'm deeply, deeply aware of how inaccurate this movie is - as someone who enjoys over-the-top villains and endless snark, I love it anyway.

Fouché (solo): The snark! The inability to take anything seriously even once! The blatant amorality! The ambiguous relationship and chemistry he has with literally anyone who is on screen with him! The willingness to side with anyone at least once, and then turn on them shortly thereafter! The surprising competence he has at everything he does - politics? investigations? flirting? lock-picking? He's your man. For now.

Requests: I'd love some canon-style shenanigans (investigating something? arresting people? having to team up with someone unusual? politics! ALL THE POLITICS!) or something plot-focused. Maybe even the glimpse of the future we get with Fouché establishing a relationship with Napoleon, or possibly an AU where Max really does become dictator (but keeps Fouché around)?  

Feel free to draw from Fouché's actual history (son of a (suspected) privateer! former math or physics teacher! may or may not have flirted with Robespierre's sister pre-Revolution while hanging out with Robespierre in a pie shop! may or may not have literally stolen a wife out of a convent and stayed very happily and monogamously married until she died decades later, much to the confusion of everyone around him!), but please maintain his key features from the movie (super competent, shameless, more amoral than outright evil). Complete genre shift AUs are also fine - I'd love to see a world where they're all mages or, like, steampunk, or IN SPACE! - but I'd prefer the vibe stay like the movie, aka completely ahistorical villains win/mad demagoguery/intrigue. Lean into the (light-hearted) dystopia!

Fouché/"Max" or Fouché & "Max": The inherent fun in a relationship where both parties know that it'll end with one of them killing the other and both of them are trying their damn hardest to achieve it, but also being absolutely essential to one another right now so. you know. let's just not talk about that.

Also just the way that Fouché calls Robespierre Max despite how much he hates it, speaking to a History between them, and the sheer glorious villainy of Robespierre in this movie - I love that he has basically a silver tongue, an almost hypnotizing ability to convince people (mostly the mob) of what he wants no matter what the situation, no matter what they know...I'd love to see that played with, including as a total AU/fantasy (magic-user AU? literal hypnosis powers? is Max planning on becoming a god?)

Would love to see plot-focused or "forced to work together" stuff, with a lot of mockery (and a great deal of competence) on Fouché's part and being ridiculously badass on Max's. Would prefer that they genuinely like each other, even if it's not going to stop them from murdering each other. Even if Max really, really wishes he didn't. Also would love to see an AU where Max really does become dictator but keeps Fouché around.

DNW: narrative endorsed anti-Revolution views (royalist or even "good idea but they went too far in 93"), no unasked-for crossovers with the Scarlet Pimpernel or something (using characters from actual history are just fine!), no major character death, no retrospective angsting (i.e. no "alas if only I hadn't killed him"), no focus on torture, no infidelity (except as approved and endorsed by spouses), no permanent amnesia, no permanent disfiguration/amputation (yes including Max losing his tongue), no "I want other person but you'll do" substitution, nothing that mind breaks either of the characters' personalities