#nia-kamilah

[moonlightgem7]

With Blades back and now a Bloodbound special coming next week… It’s safe to say that I’m truly back! 🥹🥹

It’s been too long old friend 🫶���

[harbingerofdespair]

Top 5 choices books

Bloodbound

Ride or die

Immortal desires

Blades of light and shadow

Queen B

[the-unconquered-queen]

By which I don't just mean which one do you dislike most, but also which is the one that when you see people calling them god-tier, you genuinely cannot even begin to put yourself in the shoes of whoever's saying it because "really? that one?"

This is a safe space, let it out 😮‍💨

[gaiuskamilah]

metas/analyses/essays

updated 2024/09/06 - some of these are less structured and more spur of the moment, others more structured and evidently more thought out. it's probably easy to see which is which.

BLADES OF LIGHT AND SHADOW

blades of light and shadow and race-coding

kade and aerin

shadow nia

blades 2 epilogue and the gospel of luke 23:34

blades of light and shadow and motherhood

dinvali-kilvali, orc matriarchy, and power systems

BLOODBOUND

[on-going series] Bloodbound and the Politics of Dominance and Submission [also available on ao3]

bloodbound 2 tapestry analysis

bloodbound and the rejection of christ

jewish influence on bloodbound and the subversion of the vampire trope

vladimir nabokov's lolita and adrian, kamilah, gaius

robert frost's stopping by the woods on a snowy evening and gaius augustine

lily and the shadow den

gaius, history, memory, and the book 2 museum finale

CRIMES OF PASSION

thornecest and the institution of the family

the thornes, sibling incest, societal alienation, and solipsism

FOREIGN AFFAIRS

the love interests as foils to the mc

IT LIVES

danni and parker and their designated symbols

QUEEN B

my opinion on poppy

RIDE OR DIE

ride-or-die, the mirror, and the narrative foil trope

VEIL OF SECRETS

veil of secrets and liberal politics

[choicesfandomappreciation]

Secret Pal Exchange—December 2023

Thank you to everyone who participated this year to make the Secret Pal event a success! You helped spread joy and cheer in our fandom. Thank you for making this place one where we can come, feel safe, and enjoy talking about our fave pixel people. I hope you the rest of the year is kind to you and that 2024 brings you nothing but goodness! 💛

Missed this event? There will be another Secret Pal event in February!

Alphabetical by user name of the giftee Please let me know if you see any errors or any links that are wrong

❤️ To: @a-cloud-for-dreams 💚 From: @hydn-jpg

Trystan x MC Art

❤️ To: @aallotarenunelma 💚 From: @lilyoffandoms

Saini / Immortal Desires MC Moodboard + Art

❤️ To: @abelflints 💚 From: @totojo2

Tyril Starfury Art

❤️ To: @cadybear420 💚 From: @tveitertotwrites

Moving (fic) Aiden and Evie are moving out of their home and onto the next chapter of their life.

❤️ To: @cariantha 💚 From: @peonierose

Ethan x MC Art

❤️ To: @hydn-jpg 💚 From: @noesapphic

Partner (fic) Joaquin takes Zach to a salacious escapade to Vermont. Needless to say, it will be a memorable trip.

❤️ To: @inlocusmads 💚 From: @rosepetals1

Multiple Pairings Moodboard/Aesthetics

❤️ To: @jerzwriter 💚 From: @stars-are-within-me

Introduction Cookies (fic) There is a new case to solve and Trystan has a surprise for Carolina. Angels (fic) The gang goes ice skating. Airports (fic) It's time for Carolina to return home just in time for New Year's and the gang goes to pick her up. Everything should go according to plan,right?

❤️ To: @ladylamrian 💚 From: @peonyblossom

Nik Ryder x Alex Moodboard

❤️ To: @lilyoffandoms 💚 From: @a-cloud-for-dreams

Tyril x Maiele Moodboard + Video Edit

❤️ To: @lovealexhunt / storyofmychoices💚 From: @moominofthevalley

Daenarya Moodboard

❤️ To: @moominofthevalley 💚 From: @inlocusmads

Interborough Loops (fic) Emily puts her feelings to words after taking a leap of faith - something she'd not consider doing if it weren't for watching the people around her. However, Trystan isn't a huge fan of words.

❤️ To: @noesapphic 💚 From: @cariantha

Tyril x MC x Nia Art

❤️ To: @oh-so-youre-a-nerd 💚 From: @aallotarenunelma

By My Side (fic) : Aerin x MC

❤️ To: @peonierose 💚 From: @ladylamrian

Bryce x MC Icons + Drabble

❤️ To: @peonyblossom 💚 From: @lovealexhunt /@storyofmychoices

A Cozy Christmas (fic + moodboard) Ethan, Sydney, and Caramel spent a cozy Christmas at home.

❤️ To: @rosepetals1 💚 From: @tessa-liam

Mal x MC Edit

❤️ To: @stars-are-within-me 💚 From: @cadybear420

Multiple Pairing Character Edits

❤️ To: @talasintahan 💚 From: @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

Kamilah, Gaius, Adrian Art

❤️ To: @tessa-liam 💚 From: @talasintahan / @gaiuskamilah

Liam x MC Art

❤️ To: @totojo2 💚 From: @abelflints

Eiko x MC Edit (MOTY)

❤️ To: @tveitertotwrites 💚 From: @zealouscanonindeer

AME Aesthetic/Moodboard RCD Aesthetic/Moodboard

❤️ To: @zealouscanonindeer 💚 From: @jerzwriter

A Tall Order (fic + art) It's a snowy lunch break at Edenbrook.

[vivalgi]

A new record (at least since I've subbed) for how late the Choices Insiders has arrived. All of Europe is long asleep at this time already and even in California it's past normal working hours. I hope it's not a sign that PB is making its people to work overtime.

Since it was a simple free form answer box I doubt PB will do anything useful with the results, but for anyone curious I named my top 10: Aster, Sloane, Shannon, Nia, Quinn, Danni, Eris, Kamilah, Ava (ILITW) and Charlie (DS).

As weird and cheap as the LIs look and as much as they conform to male LI stereotypes, I wish PB gave us GOC MCs in supernatural/fantasy books rather than in simple chick flicks and soap operas. The premise of an evil ghost chasing you and causing havoc wherever you travel, is interesting enough in itself, but PB probably had to add another contrived connection between female family members. Despite giving us more GOC MCs than a year ago, I feel like PB cares about male players even less these days. Either PB has no idea what its male player base is interested in or just wants to get rid of us because the latter is honestly slowly working.

Be ready for a huge shock in chapter 1 and I'm not talking about the weird diamond hairstyles. I'm not interested in the wedding stuff because it's clearly WLM coded and lavish ceremonies are so not the MC's style. It looks though that the wedding will be set aside to focus on the mystery, so the story shouldn't be too bad.

"For y'all" my ass. Last time I checked Bitten and COP3 were early access books.

I've only managed to finish the first 3 chapters of Alpha so far, so I couldn't care less about the sequel for now.

lol, stop asking for 100 diamond ads to return, it's never gonna happen. By PB's own words 100 ads cost it 30% in revenue and the company is already poor af (EDIT: Series Entertainment just got $28M from investors so PB should be safe for a few years).

Too bad my questions weren't answered again. Are queries about GOC MCs and multiple LIs really that rare?

"In Inheritance, family secrets and cutthroat competition threaten to destroy everything as you fight for your rightful place at the top."

So, according to PB, Inheritance is some high-stakes drama, which sounds pretty interesting. Should it be GOC, it might actually be worth my time.

"In Years Apart, a steamy fling with a younger man takes an unexpected turn when your ex's protégé becomes impossible to resist.

Hah, "younger MAN"! Probably another slip-up from PB, showing how much it gives a sh't about those who prefer female LIs. But damn, now forbidden romances mean even our exes get to dictate who we can date. Why the hell should anyone care what their ex thinks about their new partner? With how close Choices is getting to Chapters with its themes, it won't be long until PB introduces step-family smut.

Although, I've been wondering for long when we'd get a younger LI than the MC. So far they've been either older or at most the same age, which seems to be the general taste of the main audience, so Years Apart is a fresh idea for Choices in that regard. However, I'm pretty sure MLW players weren't in PB's mind while writing this story.

Best Served Haute is a new title but it still doesn't sound like a dystopian story, which the ex-CEO promised us this year. It does sound like another culinary book, since 'haute cuisine' is a valid term. Maybe PB somehow repurposed that cancelled A Taste for Royalty book. There's also a chance it's a fashion book, though culinary theme is still my first guess.

This is nothing new and and since the exact release dates have already been published why not announce them in the Insiders as well? For those who don't know yet, Plus One wide release is in 2 weeks, October 18, and the first chapter of Blades 3 will be available for everyone from November 20.

I looked it up and as suspected, these two are also the chat stories some players got to play in the past. Not my thing though.

All in all, practically nothing interesting and important to me personally. I guess Lucky will have to keep me company while I wait for the wide release of Blades threequel.

[choicesficwriterscreations]

CFWC F/AotW - Feb 25 - Mar 3, 2023

✒️= Fanfic | 📱= Text Fics/Edits | 🎨 = Fanart Ⓜ️ = Mature Content 18+ | 🔥 = Explicit/NSFW 18+ 🏳️‍🌈 = LGBTQIA |🔹Submitted by creator

BLADES OF LIGHT & SHADOW

The Best Crew 🎨| Multiple Characters by @artoile (C: @storyofmychoices)

Best Crew in the Whole Damn Realm🎨| Multiple Characters by @garlickk

Nia Ellarious x MC Fanart 🎨🏳️‍🌈 by @gaiuskamilah

Orc Meets Girl ✒️🏳️‍🌈🔹| F!Orc!MC & F!Human!MC - @noesapphic

Pancake Mornings 🎨🔹| Mal Volari x F!elf!MC - @/artbyainna (IG) (C: @dutifullynuttywitch)

Until the Stars Fall From the Sky ✒️🔹| Tyril Starfury x F!human!MC - @thosehallowedhalls

BLOODBOUND

Hide Me In Thy Wounds ✒️| Gauis Augustine x F!MC - @gaiuskamilah

Kamilah Sayeed x F!MC Fanart 🎨🏳️‍🌈🔹by @vampirkit

CRIMES OF PASSION

An Interlude of Grief ✒️🔹| m!Trystan Thorne x F!MC - @thosehallowedhalls

THE CURSED HEART

Leaf Fanart 🎨by @artbyalz

DESIRE AND DECORUM

Threads of Gold ✒️🎨🔹| Ernest Sinclaire x F!MC - art by @oh-so-youre-a-nerd fic by @noesapphic

DISTANT SHORES

Distant Shores: An Alternate Path - Part 3 ✒️🔹| Charlie Smith x M!MC - @korgbelmont

THE ELEMENTALISTS

Surprise Selfie! 🎨🏳️‍🌈| Beckett Harrington x MC - @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

ENDLESS SUMMER

Grandchildren: Beatriz ✒️🎨🏳️‍🌈| Estela Montoya x F!MC - @marmolady

HIGH SCHOOL STORY

Count the Red Roses ✒️🏳️‍🌈🔹| Michael Harrison x NB!MC - @aallotarenunelma

IMMORTAL DESIRES

Cas Harlow x OC Fanart 🎨by @sadxlee

IT LIVES WITHIN

Rowan Burke 🎨| ILW MC by @bunmellos (C: @abelflints)

LAWS OF ATTRACTION

Watcha Doing Down There?🎨🏳️‍🌈 | NB!MC, OC - @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

Wind: Goldenrod (NB!MC)🎨🏳️‍🌈by @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

Windverse Art 🎨🏳️‍🌈 | NB!MC, OCs by @cammarada (C: @oh-so-youre-a-nerd)

MOTHER OF THE YEAR

Eiko Matsunaga Fanart 🎨by @artbyalz

NIGHTBOUND

Fantastic Beasts ✒️🔹| Nik Rycer x F!MC - @ladylamrian

OPEN HEART

Open Heart F/AotW List - Week ending March 2, 2024

THE ROYAL ROMANCE

Fruit of Her Loins ✒️Ⓜ️| Liam Rys - @littleredroseonthevalley

Midnights Like This (Series) ✒️Ⓜ️🔥🔹| Leo Rys x F!OC, Liam Rys x F!MC - @queenrileyrose Part 15: Hold Me Tight

The Royal Romance, Bk1 Ch1: Once Upon a Time (Pt. 1) ✒️ | Multiple Characters - @fadingreveries

Secrets Behind Their Eyes Ch. 1 & 2✒️Ⓜ️| Liam Rys, Drake Walker, Maxwell Beaumont - @fancy--marshmallow

Secrets Behind Their Eyes Ch. 3 ✒️| Liam Rys, Drake Walker, Maxwell Beaumont - @fancy--marshmallow

[dutifullynuttywitch]

Rank your favorite LIs within your favorite stories. (i.e., rank the OH lis, BOLAS lis, etc.)

Hi nonnie! Thanks for the ask 🥰

Blades of Light and Shadow

1. Mal Volari (my all time fav choices LI ❤️)

2. Tyril Starfury

3. Nia Ellarious

Wake the Dead

1. Troy Hassan

2. Eli Sipes

Perfect Match

1. Damien Nazario (just the one, he captured my heart - I could never play other LI routes 😅)

Endless Summer

1. Jake McKenzie

2. Sean Gayle

3. Quinn Kelly

Bloodbound

1. Jax Matsuo

2. Kamilah Sayeed

3. Adrian Raines

Open Heart

1. Bryce Lahela

2. Rafael Aveiro

3. I would have romanced Tobias had he been a choice!!

Kindred

1. Kaine Bell/Fang Zixin

2. Rainier

Guinevere

1. Lancelot du Lac

2. King Arthur/Artura

The Royal Romance

1. Drake Walker

2. Liam Rhys

3. I would have loooved to be able to romance Olivia Nevrakis !!!!

The Elementalists

1. Griffin Langley

2. Shreya Mistry

3. Becket Harrington

Nightbound

1. Cal Lowel

2. Nik Ryder (this was a hard choice, but I've played a few more times with Cal as my LI than Nik...)

Veil of Secrets

1. Flynn O'Malley

2. Grant Emerson

[masked-alien-lesbian]

Hi! On the series mentioned on the sequels poll who did you romance?

hello! Hope you're doing well anon! 🎵

The post anon is mentioning is this one

TRR: Hana Lee always! ❤️ She's my forever obsession! My absolutely end game, my wife till the end of time lol

Desire & Decorum: Annabelle Parsons ❤️ my 2nd favorite playchoices LI, I dare say if D&D had as many books as the TRR, she may even had surpassed Hana 🫣

Blood bound: My first play through I romanced Kamilah but Lily has been my LI ever since then.

It Lives Series: In ILITW, I've romanced Stacey once but choose Ava always, love my witch lol. In ILB, I've flirted with Danni but I've chosen Imogene every time. In fact I think I haven't took every diamond scene with Danni or done an end game with her. I may do that next time I read ILB.

Endless Summer: I've flirted with Quinn but Estela is my end game LI, but I've only read the entire ES series once so maybe I'll choose Quinn if I ever reread the series again.

High School Series: I've romanced Maria once but I always choose Emma in my other play throughs. In HSS:CA, it's the same with Rory and Skye. I've romanced Rory maybe 1 or 2x but Skye is my usual end game.

Blades: My elf mc romanced Imtura, Nia and Valax but I gravitated more towards Imtura and Valax. Then I created an orc mc that romances Nia and Valax. I'm wondering if I want to create a whole other mc just for Valax lol, but that's a lot of mcs for me 😅

In my tags I brought up Baby Bump so ofc I chose Myra Dixon, Clint was sweet but Myra won me over rather quickly.

[puredoesnotmeankind]

Evie, 20s, any pronouns, Desi

itlovesinthewoods->puredoesnotmeankind

(May change name again we will see)

Mostly posts about BOLAS, It Lives, BloodBound, CoP, TCH and Immortal Desires

Engages with heavy themes so proceed at your own discretion

Spoilers under ‘choices vip’

Sometimes NSFW

I love to interact, come say hi in my DMs!!

Characters I love: Jack (TCH), Lustre, Radiance, Cas Harlow, Gabe Adalhard, ID!MC, ILITW!MC, Noah Marshall, Tom Sato, Dan Pierce, Elizabeth (BB:CB), Gaius Augustine, Lila Sethi, BB!MC, Serafina Dupont/Yvonne, Princess Valax, Nia Ellarious, Bas Thorne, Vasili Thorne, Noah Harris, RoD!MC, Colt Kaneko

Favourite Dynamics (trio/more also include individual dynamics):

Lustre/Kieran

Opulence&MC

Radiance/MC

Radiance&Longclaw

Jack&Kieran&MC

Bas&Vasili

Thorne siblings

Vasili&Lydea&Trystan

Trystan&Queen Viktoria

Rheya&Xenocrates&Gaius

Gaius&Kamilah&Adrian

Gaius/MC

Gaius/Adrian

Gaius/Kamilah

Tbh any BB relationship

Gaius&Elizabeth

Lila&Rourke

Cas/MC/Gabe

Gabe&Lennox

ES!MC&Endless

Noah/MC

Noah/MC/Connor

Noah&Jane&MC

Valax/Nia

Nia/Aerin

Valax/MC

Nia/MC

Nifara/Ash Empress

Tom/Andy

ILITW friend group

Dan&Noah

RoD ensemble

Colt/MC

Mona/MC

Logan/MC

Teppei&Colt&Logan

Shaw/MC

Destiny&MC

Destiny/MC/Lucky

Farah/Medhani

Tommy/Stabby Joe

[harbingerofdespair]

Top 5 choices LI

Kamilah Sayeed

Cas Harlow

Mona

Nia ellarious

Poppy min Sinclair/zoey wade

[gaiuskamilah]

regarding one of the posts i rbed on portrayal of fem characters and fandom -> it's why i dislike so much stuff and discussion on nia and kamilah. when nia went shadow in book 2 there were swathes of people who went "ugh this is so stupid she thinks she's sooo cool can she go back to being nice?" while not even pausing to think that it's thematically relevant to her story and accepting "ugly" parts of herself, to show that she's more than just the stereotypical nice church girl who doesn't feel any bad emotion at all. meanwhile you'll also get some of the same people waxing poetic about aerin's shadow corruption lmfao. wonder if that would still happen if aerin was a woman.

similarly with kamilah, i don't think many of her actual fans like her either. she's always just this one-dimensional badass boss domme queen who can do no wrong and like? no? she's a layered character with a complicated relationship to her past. pisses me off when all she's reduced to is "omg badass queen 😍" or even worse, totally hated on by gaius stans. get a fucking grip

[choicesfandomappreciation]

Secret Admirer Event—February 2024

Thank you to everyone who dedicated their time and talents to make this event possible! Without all of you, none of this could happen! I know not everyone who wanted to participate was able to, due to time and real life responsibilities, but I hope that you can still help support those who did. I will try to host another secret pal event before long. Maybe something in the spring?

Alphabetical by user name of the giftee Please let me know if you see any errors or any links that are wrong

💖 To: @a-cloud-for-dreams 💛 From: @cowboy-eldritch

Bryce x MC Art

💖 To: @aallotarenunelma 💛 From: @abelflints

Abel x MC Edit

💖 To: @abelflints 💛 From: @hydn-jpg

Lincoln x MC Art

💖 To: @aria-ashryver 💛 From: @aallotarenunelma

Quote Edits #1 Quote Edit #2 + Drawing

💖 To: @cadybear420 💛 From: @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

Lucas x MC Art

💖 To: @cowboy-eldritch 💛 From: @peonyblossom

Valax x MC Moodboard

💖 To: @gaiuskamilah

Marya Blades MC Art 💛 From: @storyofmychoices Nia Video Edit 💛 From: @a-cloud-for-dreams

💖 To: @hydn-jpg 💛 From: @cadybear420

Cas x MC Edits

💖 To: @inlocusmads 💛 From: @vampirkit

Trystan x MC Art

💖 To: @lilyoffandoms 💛 From: @gaiuskamilah

Kieran x MC Art

💖 To: @moominofthevalley 💛 From: @tveitertotwrites

COP MC Moodboards and Picrew

💖 To: @noesapphic 💛 From: @moominofthevalley

Desire & Decorum Moodboard and Playlist

💖 To: @oh-so-youre-a-nerd 💛 From: @storyofmychoices

Wind (LOA) Geometric Art Ernest x MC art and drabble

💖 To: @peonierose 💛 From: @totojo2

Gabe x MC Art

💖 To: @peonyblossom 💛 From: @inlocusmads

Kit Jackson x MC Art

💖 To: @storyofmychoices 💛 From: @peonierose (Art by @lilyoffandoms)

Mal x MC Drabble + Art

💖 To: @thosehallowedhalls 💛 From: @aria-ashryver

Woven Threads and Winding Roads (Pt 1&2): Five times Tyril attempts to braid Raine’s hair; and one time those threads begin to come together again as they should. Woven Threads and Winding Roads (Pt3&4) Tyril x MC Edits

💖 To: @totojo2 💛 From: @noesapphic

Come Back to Me, Detective: After Cameron Rose collapsed after saving Marguerite and the grand reveal of who was the killer all along, Trystan has some thinking to do before Cameron wakes up

💖 To: @tveitertotwrites 💛 From: @lilyoffandoms

Derek x MC (AME) Art

💖 To: @vampirkit 💛 From: @thosehallowedhalls

By Any Other Name (fic): Do Kamilah and Carmilla have anything in common besides some consonants and vowels?

[rndyounghowze]

The Fire This Time Festival 2024

This is an accessible version of the review posted on our instagram. To see the post go to @rndyounghowze.

NYC-4: What's Love Got To Do With It

Leelee Jackson wrote this piece for the millions of women who have had to constantly contend with the frailty of men who take up so much space in one’s life without giving one little scrap of it back. Jackson had all the women, most of the men, and all the rest of us eating out of the palm of her hand. We would encourage her to think of the forward momentum that she builds with the action of the play. It’s telling that our lead shows compassion to the man to tend to a wound that she gave him. Yet that moment pays off more when she leaves anyway. Anything keeping her from walking towards the door is delaying one of the best payoffs we’ve seen in a short play.

NYC-5: Mamas and Papas

We are big fans of stories of people having to create a family out of the ashes of disaster. Kamilah Bush is telling a gripping story about Charles who has to learn to be a father to Dottie a child he created when he was just a baby himself. She’s also telling the story of a Dottie who desperately needs stability after losing her mother who was her anchor. We felt that tension hanging over everything yet we were torn from the journey with moments that lagged (such as the father waiting for Billie Holiday to come over). We would encourage Bush to focus on distilling this amazing story into as few plot points as possible or expand them all into a full-length play. We connected enough with the characters and the premise that we will go in whichever direction that Bush decides to take us with the script.

NYC-6: It's Karen B****

This play is a wonderful illustration of how punchlines work. Many plays set up premises where the punchline seems like a subway car. You know that it’s coming eventually so you’re just sitting and waiting until it gets here so you can get to where you’re going. The best premises will take you on an unexpected and pleasant detour. Taylor A. Blackman’s detour was one that Dana the ex-honor student from a private PWI resonated with Niani immediately. What black “gifted” child hasn’t longed to “just” exist, to be mediocre, and NOT be placed on a pillar just to be knocked off the next time a Karen decides we are beneath her? We would beg Blackman to focus on pacing and refining the journey that the audience takes through the play when (or if) he decides to do a rewrite.

NYC-7: Ethel and Ethel

Joël Ren�� Scoville has an unfair advantage in that Ricky LOVES Ethel Mae Waters. We appreciated that Scoville gave us a script that lived in tenderness and caring. One of the things that was hard to understand was why they were holding themselves back. We are well aware of the realities of the time period but the play didn’t really talk about those nor did they seem as looming of a threat as they could have been. Case in point the calls from the gentleman caller did not feel like the looming threat to the relationship that Scoville intended them to be. The piece needed that ticking time bomb to make the gravity of their secret meetings hit home. That makes the payoff of the key to an apartment feel way more sweet and fulfilling. This piece is so good that we would love to see how far it could go with some more development.

NYC-8: Why Jamira Gotta Do All Da Werk?

Every time we feel the NYC cold chilling our bones Dana likes to recall one of their many escapades wearing next to nothing to avoid paying a coat check fee and playing mother hen to a gaggle of gal pals headed to one Hell’s Kitchen club or another. This play immediately rang a bell with them. Nia Akilah Robinson created two characters we understood immediately and acted like our handholds in the story. Jamira and Kiana were very real and endearing. Taking something as simple as hanging out in the club and adding emotional resonance to it is no easy feat. We’d love to see what Scoville does next.

NYC-9: The Mural

The greatest compliment that we can give Pappas-Williams is that there seems to be too much story going on to be contained in such a small package. Monique Pappas-Williams presents a piece with so many wonderful moments and images between Nia and Riz but we can tell she had way more story that she wanted to tell than what we saw. This will be the first time in RnD history that we will say (we think) we would love to see “Act Zero” as a longer version of this play. This is an interesting and dynamic story. We would love to see where it goes from here.

Nailah Carrie:

On top of New Work The Fire This Time Festival also featured the music of Nailah Carrie. Carrie started her music career doing an open mic at Frigid NYC. Opening for Fire This Time she regaled us with two pieces, one of them her original work called “Bad Girl”. This song immediately brought tears to Ricky’s eyes. We could feel the soul of her music as she set the mood. We hope to see her be even bolder and more powerful the next time we see her.

The Ensemble:

In our minds we see this cast as an ensemble. Even though each piece had different characters and extremely different parts that needed to be played this small handful of actors stepped up where they needed to be. Each one so seamlessly fit into each role that it was like a new person onstage every time.

Cezar Williams:

As the director, we can tell that Wlliams enjoys both character-driven drama and big visual statements. He’s not afraid of letting characters stand and talk while withstanding the tension that wants to pull them together or the sense of repulsion pushing them away. Then there are big character moments being highlighted with costumes, props, or huuuge rainbow banners on the walls. Williams brings practical guidance that perfectly matches artists debuting their new works for the first time. It’s one of those things that make Fire This Time Festival a perfect match for emerging writers.

In Closing:

We have attended several festivals before in-person and online and one of the things we like to talk about amongst each other is the festival's atmosphere. The minute we walked in the door of The Fire This Time Festival we noticed that the “fire” also could describe the warmth of the artists involved. Literary Manager AJ Mohammad is walking around, shaking hands, and scoops us up in a bear hug when he sees us. Director Cezar Williams is constantly greeting audience members as they enter to sit down. We can immediately tell that this is a place where long-time donors, fellow artists, and new audiences can gather and watch new works, sing out to the music, and cheer for our favorite characters. The Fire This Time Festival has been keeping these home fires burning for 15 years and with an atmosphere like this we hope that they’ll keep a blaze burning in winter for the next 50 years.

[choicesficwriterscreations]

CFWC LGBTQIA Masterlist March

✒️ = Fanfic | 📱= Text Fics/Edits | 🎨= Fanart Ⓜ️ = Mature Content 18+ | 🔥 = Explicit/NSFW 18+ 🏳️‍🌈 = LGBTQIA

AMERICAS MOST ELIGIBLE

Cherry Blossoms Dancing In The Sunlight ✒️🏳️‍🌈| Contestant x F!MC - @aallotarenunelma

BACHELORETTE PARTY

Gardenia in Blossom ✒️🏳️‍🌈🔹| BP NB!MC - @aallotarenunelma

BIG SKY COUNTRY

Pink Azaleas For a Love That Saved Us ✒️🏳️‍🌈| Dallas James x F!MC - @aallotarenunelma

BLADES OF LIGHT & SHADOW

Blades MC Fanart 🎨🏳️‍🌈 by @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

A Burden We Both Share ✒️🏳️‍🌈| Valax x Nia Ellarious - @livelaughlovecassie

Nia Ellarious x MC Fanart 🎨🏳️‍🌈 by @gaiuskamilah

Orc Meets Girl ✒️🏳️‍🌈🔹| F!Orc!MC & F!Human!MC - @noesapphic

BLOODBOUND

Kamilah Sayeed x F!MC Fanart 🎨🏳️‍🌈🔹by @vampirkit

CRIMES OF PASSION

Gabriel Rose 🎨🏳️‍🌈 by @lilyoffandoms

So Was it Honestly the Best? ✒️🏳️‍🌈| m!Trystan Thorne x MC - @choices-ceri

THE ELEMENTALISTS

Surprise Selfie! 🎨🏳️‍🌈| Beckett Harrington x MC - @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

Your Love is Sweet Like a Honeysuckle ✒️🏳️‍🌈| Griffin Langley x F!MC - @aallotarenunelma

ENDLESS SUMMER

Grandchildren: Beatriz ✒️🎨🏳️‍🌈| Estela Montoya x F!MC - @marmolady

GUINEVERE

Lancelot du Lac 🎨🏳️‍🌈by @lilyoffandoms

THE HAUNTING OF BRIARWOOD MANOR

Chicory Flowers For My Beloved ✒️🏳️‍🌈| Eleanor Waverly x F!MC - @aallotarenunelma

HIGH SCHOOL STORY

Count the Red Roses ✒️🏳️‍🌈🔹| Michael Harrison x NB!MC - @aallotarenunelma

IMMORTAL DESIRES

Gabe Adalhard Flower Crown 🎨🏳️‍🌈 by @lilyoffandoms for @aria-ashryver

Lavander Sass ✒️🏳️‍🌈| NB!MC, Original Characters - @aallotarenunelma

IT LIVES SERIES

Noah Marshall x MC Fanart 🎨🏳️‍🌈by @payroo

LAWS OF ATTRACTION

I thought that I was special...🎨🏳️‍🌈| Gabe Ricci, NB!MC - @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

Martin Vanderweil Fanart 🎨🏳️‍🌈 by @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

The Three Fates 🎨🏳️‍🌈| Original Characters - @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

Watcha Doing Down There?🎨🏳️‍🌈 | NB!MC, OC - @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

Weird, but not a sin🎨🏳️‍🌈| LOA NB!MC - @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

Wind Fanart 🎨🏳️‍🌈 by @lilyoffandoms for @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

Wind: Goldenrod (NB!MC)🎨🏳️‍🌈by @oh-so-youre-a-nerd

Windverse Art 🎨🏳️‍🌈 | NB!MC, OCs by @cammarada (C: @oh-so-youre-a-nerd)

OPEN HEART

Bryce Lahela x M!MC Fanart 🎨🏳️‍🌈by @/artbyainna (C: @icecoffee90)

Your Death, Your Dog, Your Declaration ✒️🏳️‍🌈| Bryce Lahela x M!MC (eventual) - @mydemonsdrivealimo

With Warning (Series)✒️🏳️‍🌈 | Bryce Lahela, Tobias Carrick x F!MC - @jerzwriter Part Five: Captain Lahela and a Serving of Common Sense

PERFECT MATCH

Alstroemeria as in Adoration ✒️🏳️‍🌈| PM F!MC - @aallotarenunelma

PLATINUM

Wisteria Will Intertwine Around Our Wrists ✒️🏳️‍🌈| M!Raleigh Carerra x F!MC - @aallotarenunelma

QUEEN B

I'm Not Needed, Never Will I Be ✒️🏳️‍🌈| Ina Kingsley x MC - @kwaj115

RIDE OR DIE

Ride or Die Fanart 🎨🏳️‍🌈| F!Logan x M!MC - @cadybear420

THE ROYAL ROMANCE

Cinderfella's Adventures in Cordonia (Series) ✒️🏳️‍🌈| Liam Rys x M!MC - @justcallmefox89

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

Stitched Sunflowers ✒️🏳️‍🌈| Dean West x F!MC - @aallotarenunelma

SAVE THE DATE

Origami Daisy ✒️🏳️‍🌈| Simon Hendricks x F!MC - @aallotarenunelma

WISHFUL THINKING

Amaryllis Bliss ✒️🏳️‍🌈🔹| Jamie Lewis x F!MC - @aallotarenunelma

[gaiuskamilah]

i mean im pretty sure he does say in the latest chapter that he very much had the motive to and wanted power. like i get what you're saying but and he says he was still influenced by the shadow court but he does say that the seeds of that influence were already present within himself.

aerin's story is so obviously one of being isolated from others and that feeling of isolation and suppression being exploited by a person with more power over him. in a sense he's much like nia - someone who was indoctrinated into a cult and groomed by the people in power for their own interests. the difference is that nia was exposed to people outside that the temple who actually cared for her and loved her. aerin didn't have that, and in the latest chapter he says that the party was the first to not make him feel alone on his feelings regarding baldur, feelings which were exploited by the dreadlord.

forcing it into a dichotomy of "he 100% chose to do it" vs "he is absolved of everything because he was forced by someone else" is depleting it of all the nuance and meat the story is giving, because it's more of a mix of both. additionally, we've already seen characters like him before - his situation is literally like adrian and kamilah's after they go against gaius. over and over again they say that yes, gaius influenced them, but they also chose to do what they did. people just like to paint them as angels because they aren't initially postured as villains in BB, they immediately started as LIs. it's a complicated situation, and that's what makes it human.

"It could very well just be a strange bedfellows/uneasy alliance situation which could work incredibly" - this is already happening. it's already an uneasy alliance. mal, tyril, imtura, and even mc can be actively hostile towards him and on multiple times mal, tyril, and imtura threaten to kill him to his face.

i think the final point i want to make is if we meet everything with this outlook, what does it say about how we should meet cult survivors, or people who genuinely want to better themselves? sure making him just evil is interesting but imo turning his story into one that mirrors the real life experience of victims of cult indoctrination/grooming makes him more compelling and human and fits better with the themes of blades.

They’re really gonna try and do a redemption arc for Aerin aren’t they?