#me: hasnt written in over a month

[voidcat]

once again at my wits end bc of men

[cookie-dough-writes]

shout out to everyones who's brains and nervous systems have been wrecked by stressors + the state of the internet + everything else going on. I promise we'll adapt and I promise things will be alright, focus on making good small decisions to protect your well-being like cutting certain platforms (instagram, twitter, whatever you feel like) and having a look through your follow list to see if unfollowing some people might help. try giving your brain a rest by letting yourself be bored some times. try doing a puzzle or a physical task without a podcast or music or netflix drama. consider not clicking on that expose video of someone you dont know. hesitate before telling someone off in the comments or joining in on an online argument that you can opt out of. protect yourself so you can make your world a better place. push yourself when needed. cut the onslaught of overstimulation where you can, if you want.

I am saying this as someone who's never felt at home irl, with adhd and dyspraxia, general awkwardness, chronic depression, struggles with regulation and im sure a bunch of other things. I really struggle reducing screen time because it often feels like the outside world rejects me, I'm sure some of you relate to that, but I'm taking small steps to make things easier for me in the long run and day to day. it doesnt matter if we don't reach some end goal of total and complete peace and purity or whatever, all that matters is that we're choosing to be more mindful of how we navigate this world of constant stimulation. and i fully believe in all of us :)

[pears-trinkets]

everything sucks so hard rn idk

[earth-wyrms]

crying, wailing, ect

[image ID in alt text]

[hyewka]

or can u suggest any txt fic here (preferably the long ones w chapters) that u enjoyed?

sorry for the extremely extremely late reply but i’ll list some long fics + txt series’s that ive enjoyed with some comments attached to each one. spoiler alert, a completed txt series is pretty hard to find lol

series

lover = lo$er (sub!gyu, virgin fic)

it would be easy to just straight up recommend every @/wildernessuntothemselves series and i might just succumb to that later on but this is pure submissive beomgyu heaven, served as my first real awakening and i would probably attribute most of my sub gyu writing to this fic alone. 10/10, has a love triangle bit and beomgyus kind of insane

criminal conscience (dom!gyu, crime au)

on the other side of the spectrum, this is pussy clenching dom beomgyu goodness and i dont think it gets better than this. the writing is so compelling it fully immerses you in the narrative, even im getting sucked in to beomgyu’s manipulation (whats new really), blaring red flags and all. its currently on hiatus though but i would catch up either way beomiracles is a pretty consistent writer, she’d probably pick it up sooner or later :)

mosquito (soobin)

sorry this is going to be all over the place lol but this is also still ongoing (its only two parts in) but this writer is absolutely insane. narrative feels fleshed out and though it mainly follows soobin’s perspective and feelings, i am quite enjoying it so far. it has some idol x idol action as well, not the main focus of course but it is written in detail

one way (dom!beomgyu, themes of sadism)

this ones a three parter and its completed. by the same writer mentioned previously (soobrat), very very good storytelling, keeps you on your toes and has a hold on your emotions but like mentioned, it has a bit of an extremity in the smut and it is undeniably toxic but its good

sneaky link (dom yeonjun, the other woman trope)

i havent read this in a while but i remember staying up all night reading all of it lol. i would probably not recommend this to people who really cant read infidelity since thats what the fic is based around but it isnt cast in a very favorable light anyway. really toxic, seriously good

fuck you series (sub gyu, enemies to lovers, band au)

its really cute and the e2l set up is believable enough since theyre band rivals. beomgyu is so so so cute in this even if a little insufferable to mc lol. i would also recommend fairyofshampgyu’s now live series but its currently on an indefinite hiatus (its sooo good as well though so if youre willing, you should check it out)

nabi (best friends to lovers beomgyu, no smut)

two parts in, not completed but im following it currently and god i love them together their dynamic is soooo fun to read, you wont get bored

jerk! (enemies to lovers, beomgyu fic, no smut)

its another band au and its also ongoing. there isnt a consistent update schedule so that might be a minus but the most recent chapter was from a month ago so its safe to say it hasnt been left in the dust (thank god). very very good writing, excited to see how their relationship takes off

bullying choi soobin (sub soobin)

submissive soobin and its good, of course im recommending this. its finished and a 4 parter

sugar (dom!yeonjun, dom!gyu)

unfortunately probably forever incomplete but i love it and i might actually go back to reading it for the third time

let me into your world (non smut beomgyu series)

i havent read a soulmate premise in sooo long so this was refreshing to read, good stuff

supermodel (dom gyu and sub i believe)

its just. Amazing. a two parter but a goodie

the city that never sleeps (bsf smut)

also two parts but both parts are pretty long, really good stuff

ok for the life of me i cannot find this one huening series where he was getting bullied by reader and they were secretly fucking?? that one was literally perfect submissive men shit so if you find it if youve struck gold

long full fics (6k+)

telepathy (fantasy, dom!gyu)

a little out of the box compared to all the fics ive recommended so far and thats what makes it so special and good

duality (dom!kai)

i actually havent read this one yet but i will soon, i just thought id add it here anyway since i know ill love it

killer instinct (taehyun fic)

very plot heavy and it centers taehyun mainly. i could go ahead and cheat and just list out every single koqabear fic lmao but this ones a gem, very happy i set aside the time to read it

the redemption of choi yeonjun (dom!yj)

im not personally a fan of the trope but when it was originally teased the smut sounded heavenly and honestly, it is. such a good dom yeonjun here but beware hes a little (a lot) mean lol. he changes by the end

like cat and mouse! (sub gyu, inexperienced)

again, worth the reading time investment. i love submissive gyu, he is everything here and more

love love love (sub gyu, royal au)

i have probably read this a total of 30 times

i hate you (enemy!beomgyu, dom beomgyu)

ok sorry im cheating here a bit this isnt long but its so good you should check it out anyway

[the-kipsabian]

wrestling fic writers!!

i have decided to be the change i wanna see, so lets do a nice little thing for each other, as a community full of incredible and talented writers. yes this is writer specific only, but thats cause thats where the main problem of people not interacting with creative works lies in this fandom as far as i can tell and have seen people talking about it especially in the last couple of months

if you read this, please add links to your written works. it can be just a single fic youre really proud of, your writing blog, your writing tag, your ao3 account, anything where your works can be found

and if you leave your link here, PLEASE check out someone else that has left their works, and interact with them. leave them a comment, even just a kudos, REBLOG their fic, etc. interacting is the keyword i want to emphasize here, along with building a sort of a masterpost of where to find people writing in this fandom

and if you are not a writer, youre still highly encouraged to interact with this post and share it and show love to the writers in this fandom, obviously!! i think that should go without saying, but adding it in anyways

a bit more about my vision and resources and such under the read more, but thats the gist of it. happy linking and please be kind and supportive to each other!! 💜

nobody is too big or too small to add their things on this list. if you write and post anything in this fandom whatsoever, be it fics or drabbles or headcanons, any companies or any kind of ships or reader inserts or any content whatsoever no matter how 'dead dove dont eat' or hell even if its just meta, we welcome all here and nobody can say that one thing is less valid than another. just please tag your content accordingly, especially if theres content warnings, and feel free to mention what you write, who you write, any info you wish to leave that would help people before they click on your links. but even so, that should not and hopefully will not deter people from interacting, no matter what it is. someones trash is another ones treasure, i promise you

and unless the amount gets really overwhelming, im personally going to be checking out everyone that leaves something here. unless it squeaks me out, but even then, i'll spread the word. and i just wish as many people as possible will do the same, and not just use this as a potential board to only get eyes on their stuff. ofc thats also the point, but you should give as much, if not more, than you get. we need to be kind and supportive of one another (besides, from personal experience, if you show love to someone else, they are more likely to do it back than without you taking the first step, so... pay it forward)

as for resources, heres a few links that should be helpful in leaving comments and feedback. of course everyone does their own thing and no comment is too big or too small to leave, but for those who need them. if you have anything you'd like added to this list, dont hesitate to get in touch or drop it in the post yourself!!

101 comment starters

ao3 floating comment box

kudos html

dont know how to comment? easy solutions

a quick hot guide to commenting (by yours truly)

an overall guide to appreciating fanfic writers

and just in general.. leave people comments. leave them asks about their projects. just go over and gush about their work. i know it sounds embarrassing but writers love nothing more than to hear that someone likes what they are doing. if you find a fic that hasnt been updated in forever, comment on it. it might just be the spark the author needs to continue. while kudos and likes are nice, and just as valuable to some, its definitely in the words the people leave for them that matter the most. im not saying this to put pressure on anyone, its just how it is, and i feel like unless people are writers themselves, and even then sometimes, thats just hard to grasp, especially if the writer is a smaller and less popular one who doesnt get a lot of traffic in the first place

i think thats all. just be nice and considered to everyone, reblog peoples works, this post with others add ons and so forth. and if i find anyone talking shit here or at other writers for something they share, you'll be blocked and im probably taking your kneecaps. be fucking nice. we are all struggling here and we need to stick together

happy sharing and commenting 💜💜

[crguang]

I'm back. Miss me? It's been several months since I opened this apl

I literally just encountered my acquaintance story but I'll alter it a bit. Imagine this is violinist Kafka x Pianist (Accompanists) Reader.

I imagine Kafka is like Chloe Chua, a famous prodigy that is known all over the world. When she was little, she has a cold yet talented accompanist (like the tone that she produced is warm. Quite contradictory with her appearance) this accom is reader (another prodigy that took lesson with a famous pianist, let's say the reader's teacher and Kafka's teacher is like a colleague that happened to perform together in the past, that's how reader can meet Kafka on the first place).

Suddenly Kafka's violin teacher replaced reader with another accom. Which makes her confused and becomes an annoying person. Like no one can stand Kafka and want to be her accom. But Kafka is talented, so people is using her so they can write it on CV like... "has performed with Kafka on Carneige Mellon" HAHAHAHA

Well, turns out the reader is some kind of retired but Kafka never knew about this fact. You know.... that one prodigy that people know as a prodigy, they never saw her musical journey till they grew up? Yup that's the reader.

And how do they meet again? I have no idea and I have no idea why reader retire. Just suddenly inspired by my acquaintance's story. I don't want to spill her story full, just taking the essence hahaha.

-🎹

HIIIIII AAAAA HOW ARE YOU!!!! has it been months already?… oh my goodness i hope youre doing great, i missed you and your violinist kafka thoughts <33 i neeeeed this AU written but i dont know anything about music so i wouldnt be the best person to write it but it sounds so GOOD.

kafka and R having perfect synergy because theyre so familiar with each other, maybe sharing some of the burdens of expectations at a young age, kafka being so focused on honing her skills that she’s kind of a loner and R was her closest friend growing up wow… R is more reserved and quiet while kafka’s a little troublemaker who never gets caught misbehaving and who drags R into her little schemes. they’re both pushed hard but they have each other; when one of them doubt themselves the other is there to tell them not to be stupid, they share a love for music that goes beyond spoken words like oh my godddd. maybe they’re each other’s first kiss and kafka initiates it because she wants to try and theres no one else. they never talk about it again.

anon your brain is so big even if that’s your acquaintance’s story like this is amazing— in response to your other ask i do think since kafka is naturally confident, if she knows that shes so important that other people are using her to boost their careers, she would be a little brat because she’d get away with it. once R is out of the picture i can see her pushing others to their limits, being dismissive of their struggles and getting irritated if they mess up some notes or cant follow her tempo because she knows who she wants to perform with, who would be able to follow her effortlessly and actually push her to be better and it’s not her eager peers. she’s condescending and keeps to herself so it’s hard to get past the surface and actually befriend her. no one wants to practice with her because she’s a hard ass but she doesn’t care… depending on her teacher i think she might grow up associating her worth with her skills and would be very hard on herself, especially if others start relying on her musical prowess to get better.

imagine her and R meeting again like a decade later omfg. R took a break from music while kafka hasnt and has only gotten more famous, but she recognizes them instantly despite both of them having grown up. R congratulates her on her success and asks how she’s doing, kafka answers talking about her next performance or her skills and R is like “that’s great. what about outside of music?” kafka ends up skillfully turning the conversation around because she doesn’t know what to reply with. the vision is so clear rn… R, as they’ve actually had time to find themselves outside of their potential, is the one helping kafka do that as well. when kafka finds out they’ve stopped playing the piano she’s personally offended. what a waste of potential. shes spent years thinking of them as the only person who could match her talent. she tries to get them to play again often and they refuse every time, but they do end up spending more time around each other and getting to know the other like they used to when they were younger. kafka’s gotten more guarded and confident, but R sees through her anyway and it makes her uncomfortable. she hides it well tho. oh that slow burn childhood best friends to strangers to friends who are new versions of themselves to lovers is REALLLLL ITS SO CLEAR IN MY MIND. FUCKKKKK

[charnockite]

heyyy its me you already know what this is about HAHAHA sorgy but christmas is almost here and it got me thinking about them and re-reading what we have so if finishing the fic is still possible then i am WAITING but i get that youre busy and all its all ok i understand and also ik it hasnt been THAT long since the last snippet i mean 3 months isnt that much but on the contrary anything could happen within 3 months. hm now i feel like im rushing you which is NOT the intended purpose of this message but this ask is getting long enough without any comas or other punctuation so im gonna end it here ok time for me to slumber again for half a year HAVE A GOOD ONE

hello!!! so I've got good news and bad news regarding that particular fic:

bad news: life has been [and will continue to be] incredibly busy for me. senior year of college is a bitch and a half, and that's without the grad school apps + classes I help teach + planetarium work taking up any semblance of free time I thought I'd have. aside from one or two oneshots I've thrown onto ao3 for other fandoms [</3], when I say I haven't really written since finishing my last big fic, I mean it. it took a while to get back into a writer-brain [as it always does once I finish something big], and I'm still waiting for it to come back.

good news: I got tickets for my brother and I to see weird al on his next tour, so if anything's going to kick my ass back into a weird al fixation, it's going to be that. but then again, that's not until next summer, and who knows what my life will be like then? grad school, Real Job, or secret third option?

as always, though, I really do appreciate yours + other's support for my silly little uhf fic <3 if I do end up drafting anything up over the next few months, I'll be sure to post it on here for y'all :')

[erotomanicpixiedreamgirl]

also my father called me yesterday drunk as hell being delusional about writing an an op-ed in the new york times about something already massively written about. and how he wants to start a resistance movement. like……..ok. when i finally asked him if he’s been to AA or talked to a counselor (he hasnt called me in like 4 months) he obviously got mad. “that isnt what this is about.” THAT’S ALL ANYTHING IS ABOUT. you ruined your life over cheap liquor. it’s like talking to a demon over an ouiji board and whenever you mention christ it gets angry.

[eddiemunsonbignaturals]

Hello <3

5. & 6. & 18 for the ask game, please.

hi somna thank u!! pls rb the ask game so i can send u q's :*

5. there r a few fic idea i'll never write the most recent is a st//ed//die x reader challengers AU and its bc i don't carrrreee about s//ted/die enough (at all) lol if u catch me rb'ing them its bc the art or the post was just too good to resist, sometimes people lob the genius over there on to my dash. now if someone wants to/has written it pls lmk i will eat it up i'm about to show that movie to a 3rd friend who hasnt seen it its great. also i thought it'd be fun to do "reader's in a mafia family eddie gets caught up thinking she needs protecting but nope shes the criminal " thing but lost steam like 3 sentences in

6. fics i reread all the time @jo-harrington knows i revisit her epoch "as above so below" @ambrossart "dancing with myself" is another early fave i've run thru a couple times still makes my stomach churn when reader gets on a roll she reminds me of me in the worst way i mean that with the highest of praise love ur work

18. "favorite line i've written" made me go reread my stuff which i havent actually done in uh hm 4 months lol my fave line in the last scene I messed with happens as R watches a usually very guarded Eddie sleep, and realizes how crazy they'll look if he wakes up and catches them.

"you're planning an escape route, doing the math on how hurling the unwrapped half of icy-pop would play-- how good is your aim, so addled by horny? could you get him in the eye from here?-- but instead of a sticky diversion, you choose, again, to wait."

[miidnightpoet]

Sweetheart (Rockstar!Eddie x MusicStar!Steve)

Steve is new to the music industry, he had worked as a teacher at Hawkins Middle School for six years after Venca, but now he's basically got his name in lights wherever he goes. Everything went by in a flash when it happened, the phone call saying he got the record deal, the congratulations from his friends and moving to New York with Robin. Now he was about to go on his own tour for his album “Sweetheart”, the album he had written for Eddie. (all steves songs are taylor swift songs)

Eddie’s been in the music industry for eight years now, he’s learned the ins and outs and all the ways to work the system. THe only thing is he isn’t exactly “Eddie Munson” in the industry. After everything that happened in Hawkins. The murder accusations, Chrissy’s death, Vecna. He couldn’t handle being Eddie anymore, the doc Hopper had introduced him to had set up an alternative life for Eddie after he reached out three months in Hawkins. Now he had his new band and a new life as Darren Mack. Their band Raining Hellfire was world famous and they were about to go on tour. 

Dear Eddie, With Love... A Collection Of Letters

A collection of letters written to Edward "Eddie" Munson of Corroded Coffin during his 4 month coma in 1986. These letters were written from friends and family when they were struggling with their losses and the fear they would lose Edward as well. This collection was published in 1996 after Edward came out as gay and announced his queer relationship with well known human rights activist Steven "Steve" Harrington.

The Aftermath

A bunch of one-shots that will come together in one holiday party ending

Nancy Is Dead (WIP Name)

Ronance, Steddie, hopper wants to adopt evryone, protective Steve.

Jason beats up robin for being gay and visiting Nancy's grave on their aniverity.

A Bullet Through My Heart (no full description yet)

during season 4, ronance, hinted steddie, mad robin, miscommunication, robin nancy fight, very emotional

Don't Mess With My Best Friend:

When Robin shows up at Steve's door covered in blood and bruises, he panics. His dad never let them keep a first aid kit in the house so he has no way to help his best friend. This leads him to call in a favour from Chief of Police Jim Hopper, who knows that Steve dosen't live in a great environment.

Steve nurses Robin back to health while trying to figure out who beat up this best friend and deals with his own trauma from his problematic father.

Also Nancy is dead :)

Trust Me I Love You:

A collection of our favourite people proving to their favourite people that they love them platonically, romantically and everything in between.

Fuck You Munson (havent started writing)

Steve's about to start his the tour for his first album Sweetheart when Eddie Munson gets brought back into the conversation. Steve still hasnt forgiven him for packing up and leaving in the middle of the night and dosent want to. Steve just wants to enjoy his tour with Robin and his fans.

Eddie's never been one to keep up with new artist but when he hears Steve Harrington said over the radio it pulls him from his current downward spiral. He's stopped smoking, any drop of alcohol is gone from his apartment. Eddie's biggest regret was leaving Steve now he had a chance to fix it.

Everything goes down hill when Steve find out their venue has been double booked and he now has to do a show with Eddie and his new band Raining Hellfire.

[definitelynotshouting]

hi! ive been binging your stuff on ao3 because it's like, super good and i love your ideas and writing anddd i had a question! so initially i was here for scarian, but youve got some dsmp fic on there that has also been included in the reading marathon and i was wondering in particular about the ghost tommy fic? would you be up for talking about any plans you mightve had for that story? it just awoke all my old sad feelings over ctommy (〒﹏〒) totally fine if not though! anways. eats ur writing <3

ANON

This is literally the sweetest compliment oh my gods... im genuinely so flattered that you've been marathon reading my stuff!!! its always such a pleasant shock to hear that people enjoy it, but liking it enough to binge read a bunch of my other works?? i am on the floor this is literally so nice

I wanna preface this by saying none of my dsmp works are abandoned!!! I almost never fully abandon fics-- i think the only one that i've ever chosen to abandon was my voltron fic, and that was for specific fandom experience reasons. Right now, all of my dsmp fics are just kinda on hold until i can get the motivation up to eventually finish them, but i know exactly where i want to go with each one.

So with that being said, you will be delighted to know that when the night cries is actually fully finished. The fic is written, i have all five chapters done. The only thing holding me back iiiiiis... the fact that the unpublished chapters are only rough draft. I freely admit i am very insecure about my rough draft writing, especially compared to what i post on ao3. It's been an incredibly huge leap for me to even post my rough draft work on here with minimal edits-- i havent gotten near to the point yet where i feel confident posting them to ao3, which is kind of a shame considering a heart choked full with wanting, my first ever work for dsmp, is a 14k wip that has never seen the light of day 😭😭😭😭

My final drafting process is intensive. I've made a few posts about this before, but i rewrite my rough drafts entirely from the ground up, using a very strict personal style guide i've developed over the years, and while it produces quality i can be proud of, it does,,, take a while 😅😅😅 a really long while. This is why the 7k scarian fic i finished months ago hasnt been posted yet lmao

So!! Rest assured i am actually picking at wtnc chapter 3 here and there!!! It's completed, i just need to rewrite it, but unfortunately my wilbur chapters are always my goddamn problem children when it comes to editing 😭😭 akdneks sorry this got so lengthy anon, but i really wanted to reassure you that wtnc isn't abandoned. Literally just for you im gonna go poke at it rn and see if i can get any more progress done, because gods know i want it published just as much as the people waiting for updates presumably do❤️❤️❤️

[clubatsumu]

heyaaa! how are you? i'm the anon who sent you that ask about "first love" aaah i just wanted to say thank you for the author recs!! i recently finished emily henry's "beach read" and i???? havent read a book this fast since i was a teenager??? lol i'm honestly just REELING i was not prepared for how good it was. the romance, banter, and chemistry was *chefs kiss* they literally had me giggling and kicking my feet o(>ω<)o but!! i also appreciate how it dealt with grief and heartbreak and hopelessness and all the feelings associated with them. (def cried at the ending) i get what you mean when you said “books that go inside rather than outside” …idk i loved how well-written january and gus were…just two flawed individuals trying to figure out their own lives while also trying to figure out each other…......yeah

anyway!! do you have a favorite emily henry book? i'm still not over "beach read" but i'm going to try "people we meet on vacation" next, then "book lovers",, going to check out mia vincy's books as well after i finish emily's!! hehe i also heard she’s releasing a new one this year and i think it's exes-to-lovers/second-chance?? now i cant help but think of "first love late spring" lol brb rereading it for the nth time (╥﹏╥)….

aahh i apologize for rambling but i hope the new year's treating you well!! sending u good vibes!!

BEACH READ!!!!! join the emily henry cult with me friend! i would die for her actually. im so happy you liked it!!:) she has that kind of introspection that hits Just Right and also her books have so many references it's such a fun time to spot them all. tell u what, if u loved the first one, you'll love the rest too, most likely. poppy+alex are SO dear to me, (alex actually makes me feral), and rn they hit the closest to my heart. sometimes though, it's january gus. and book lovers had me CRYING i swear. im so excited for you to go read the rest bc there's really nothing like reading her work the first time.

and mia vincy!!!! her books are much more... somber? in a way. and what i recommend when u read her is to space her work out bc sometimes her characters get so tiring bc they're legit Idiots like pls seek Therapy, but she's also on that character-understanding-driven tier.

EH's new book is called happy place duuude i requested an arc and realized my goodreads hasnt been updated in MONTHS so i legit wrote 10 reviews for 10 different books in a span of an hour so i could send in a request. (i was denied) oh well.

come back and tell me what u think when youve finished them bc id love to hear YOUR ranking 🥺 thank u for this, i hope 2023 sees your vibes and treats me better! sending good vibes right back!

[cosmicarcanist]

actually ill share a funny little story thats a little sad

i write very unpopular ships for a relatively (fic wise) unpopular fandom. i never receive comments, nor shares or kudos but i expected this as again, this is so niche i dont rly expect most people to even find it most of the time

i met a friend a few months back and i mentioned liking one of these extremely niche unpopular ships and they excitedly told me about my own fic, how much they loved this ONE fic that wrote this one ship and how many times theyd read it over and how they keep it open all the time

i was so excited at first cause i was like OMG THATS ME THATS MY FIC I WROTE THAT!! It was so exciting to see someone else be that excited about my fic and praising it

and then they said they were so embarrassed to have gushed to me, the author, about my work, and they wouldnt have if they had known id written it

thats... really sad. That made me sad on different levels. I was sad that no one had commented on my fic even though presumably there was at least one person out there that loved it this much, and i had not had this chance encounter i never wouldve known

i was sad to hear that they were embarrassed and mortified sharing their excitement with the creator of something they loved

if you feel like youre embarrassed or too shy to comment on a fic, all youre really doing is depriving both yourself and the creator the joy of that excitement. wed love to know, and the fact that no one lets us know anymore discourages many of us

i mostly write in private and only share with friends now, cause i dont get any love from publishing online anymore. and no, its not all about getting attention, but it hasnt stopped me from CREATING only from SHARING on the internet. why go through all the trouble of publishing and getting my hopes up only to be met with a wall of silence? id rather just share with my few friends and have them send me a bunch of memes as reactions instead

A writer friend told me something that broke my heart a little bit today; they're going to quit publishing their fanfic.

My instant thought was that they had been trolled or attacked or that something terrible had happened in their life because this person is so passionate about their writing. It wasn't any of that. Engagement with their works has been going down, as it has for many of us. Comments are like gold dust a lot of the time, and just looking through the historical comment counts on old fics on ao3 demonstrates this trend very clearly. It was not simply the comments dropping off which caused them to decide to stop posting, however.

My friend came across a discord server for their fandom (I should point out here that their fandom interest and mine diverged a couple of years ago, we stay in touch but don't currently read each other's posts because I'm not into their fandom and they would rather gouge their eyes out with a wooden spoon than read anything Star Wars) and specifically to share fic in that fandom. They joined, because we all love a good fic rec, only to discover that their latest multichapter fic, which has almost no comments and very few kudos, is being hotly discussed in this server as one of the best stories ever. Not one of these people has bothered to say this to them on the fic. When they asked, none of participants could see the point in telling the author of the fic they apparently loved so much that they love it.

This discovery has absolutely destroyed my friend's love of sharing fic. They share because they love seeing other people's enjoyment, and fic writers do that through comments and kudos/reblogs/likes because we don't get paid. There is no literary critic writing a blog post/article about how amazing the story is for us to copy and keep/frame. There is no money from royalties. All we have are the words of the people reading our works.

Those people on that server could have taken five minutes of the time they spent gushing about how amazing my friend's story was to other people and used it to tell the one person guaranteed to want to hear that praise how much they loved it. They could have taken a moment to express their opinion to the person who spent hours upon hours plotting, writing, editing, and posting those chapters. Instead, they deprived my friend of thing that keeps them sharing their writing, and in the process have killed their love of it. My friend now feels used and unmotivated.

I won't be sharing a link to their fic, they said I could share their experience but not their identity. I know they plan to post one final chapter. I know they intend to express their hurt at being excluded from the praise for the thing they created, and I know they intend to announce that as a consequence they will not be posting for a long while, if at all.

So please, I beg you, don't hide your love of a story from the writer. It's just about the only thing we have.

[allylikethecat]

Ally!! Can I just say you make my Tuesdays so fun because i know i get to read fics during lunch instead of stressing out over how insurance won’t cover my patients meds!!!!! 😭💀 (in the end they always pay i just have to fight with them for a couple days 🥲)

anyway— i was scrolling on your ao3 and looking at all the fics you have and i know you’ve answered before but how on earth do you decide which one gets an update??? there are so many and all of them are amazing!! how many chapters do you write at the same time and how far along do you have your current wips thought out?

todays chapter has me anxiously waiting to hear what matty and george are going to say to each other i need tears laughs loves hates basically the whole works and it ends with them being a happy family again 😭😭😭 if i were baby i would need more than a drink rn i’d be like “damn i’m staying in here my life is already insane and im not born yet” anyway—i’ll be back after i get off work to talk more

🥤

AHHH Hello my dear Smoothie Anon! As always it is such a joy to hear from you!

I'm so sorry to hear that lunch is usually spent stressing over insurance related matters (why is insurance always the worse? I just thought for two weeks to get Pop's renewed, and then when it came time for me to pay i was ghosted by my agent for a week, I was like WHERE IS MY INVOICE DON'T YOU WANT MY MONEY?! ALL THE CONTRACTS HAVE BEEN SIGNED) BUT I'm glad that a Ducklings update could be a nice little distraction!

What fic gets updated when usually varies - some fics had set update schedules (ex. All the King's Horses was every Friday) and Rid Me of the Blues was the OG Tuesday update fic (and why Tuesdays became a thing in the first place lol) now it's usually just vibes - if you come to my inbox and scream about a certain fic enough I will probably update it sooner, I also have some really great mutuals who make it very known which fic they would like next lol I try and get to the fics that haven't been updated in a while (which is why today was Ducklings instead of On a Friday.) But other times it's just whatever I'm feeling at the moment. I'm sorry for not having a more concise answer! It pretty much just is vibes though 😬

In terms of how far ahead - Ducklings the outline was tossed out months ago and we are just... seeing what happens I have no master plan (if anyone has a master plan please send it my way) but for YKWTCI (which I know hasnt been updated in ages it just makes me feel weird), On a Friday, and Forever. I do have very detailed outlines of each chapter and what is happening next. Little changes might occur but for the most part there is direction and a plot. I usually try and stay at least one chapter ahead when posting but that doesn't always happen. Forever. is the one I am the most ahead in terms of writing and posting because that is what I'm most excited about, but I also have a decent chunk of the Vampire AU written as well. (And another oneshot that is almost finished 👀) Other than when I was "broken" for a bit there over the summer I'm pretty much always writing!

AH They're FINALLY going to COMMUNICATE like ADULTS (hopefully) but yeah baby wants no part in whatever mess this is between their parents they are like ummm sort it out before my arrival thanks!

Thank you SO MUCH for taking the time to like reach my fics and send me this ask!! It means more than you even know! I hope the rest of your day at work goes / went well! And I hope you have a great night and a fabulous rest of your week! Thank you again for the continued support!

❤️Ally

[sleepytimepoet]

Hello. Here is smthn written and posted on the same day. Tw: metaphorical violence and cannibalism. (I promise it's not that bad I swear) Please enjoy.

You know, i shoud really stop extending my hand to people. What do i mean? I mean extending it open palmed and vulnerable and stretching my muscles to their limits just to reach someone or have them reach for me.

It hurts. The stretch, I mean. Pulling my fingers apart, tearing the sinue in an attmept to reach someone who has barely moved their hand from the body at all.

Now stretching isnt all that bad. Keeps the body nimble, less resistant to change or sudden movement. The main reason i want to stop is because they cut a piece of my arm off each time I reach.

Not every time, but when the person doesnt reach back they keep a piece of me. As a trophy or to embarass me further I cant decide.

Currently im missing everything past my left elbow. But thats only bc the first person i reached to took my entire hand in one go. My right arm is missing everything a little before that point.

It hurts even more when i was expecting to leave that situation with the same amount of arm i began it with.

But no.

Instead these beautiful women take dull cleavers and aimlessly hack at my arm until the piece they want has fallen off. It takes a while for my nerves to decide they were tired of feeling that intense ache.

Ive gotten used to it. The first time it hurt. I squirmed and fought back and called for help but was disregarded. This woman had called herself my girlfriend, my wife, my love. For months ! And now here she was taking my hand.

But now, as i watch blood spurt out of my stump and land on my face and hear my bones cracking and tendons screaming as she takes her earnings. She took earnings for the girl she actually wanted too.

Whats left is my shoulder to above where my elbow was on both arms. It hurts, the wound hasnt cauterized and my nerves are remidning me of my loss.

My face is wet too. I think im crying. I havent done that since the first time. But, i will get over it. I always do.

The wound crusts over and falls away, revealing my new skin and shorter stump. The pain subsides but it returns for a body part i no longer have. Almost like my body misses it.

I learn to live without those things lost. I learn to eat, feed, read, dress, clean, please with my stumps. And im miserable. And awful. And anxiety ridden. Worrying about if someone will soon return and take whats left of me. What will they do once they reach my shoulder ? Keep cutting ? Dig inside the stump for pieces of flesh and organ from the source rather than bothering with my skin, a reminder that im human.

The only constant is that they or she or he will stuff their maws of my meat and savagley lick away the remnants of me with a hand over my mouth to not spoil the meal (or to hide from the reminder that im unwilling, displeased, and alive). Only to discard me with less than i began with. Which already wasnt much.

And yet. I always find myself reaching a short time later. Always needing something that seems to be forever out of reach.