#nobody asked me but I'm answering

[gerardwayissexah]

Fic writer asks

See below the cut for my answers! :) Also, I did away with the numbering because formatting numbered lists is a pain in the butt.

How old were you when you started writing fic?

I was 12-13 when I first started typing them out and posting them online. When I discovered the world of fanfiction, something just...clicked for me. I've liked imagining scenarios for my favorite characters and worlds since I can remember having conscious thoughts. So, I was like: wow, there's an actual word for that imagination thing I do! And I'm not the only one who does it!

Where did you first post your fics?

Fanfiction.net.

What was your first fandom?

The Hunger Games.

What fandoms have you written for?

A bunch that I can't immediately recall, but here's an abbreviated list: Naruto, Harry Potter, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Attack on Titan, Percy Jackson, Kung Fu Panda, Kane Chronicles, The Hunger Games

Romantic or gen?

I enjoy writing romance more, and that's what I tend to gravitate toward as a reader of fics. But I can still appreciate an emotional family drama or a worldbuilding-centric fic. I'd say around 1/3 of my fics are gen.

Fluff or angst?

Angst with a fluff chaser. Otherwise, the fluff feels unearned. Without any fluffiness, the angst gets too heavy.

A fic of yours you think is underrated?

I totally understand why the audience for this fic is limited, but I'd submit my Hiashi Hyuga x Kurenai fic for consideration here. If that makes you curious, here's a link: Wildflowers for Hinata

What's the best summary you've come up with?

Hm, I have trouble deciding on one. I do like the summary I ultimately settled on for Bird in a Gilded Cage, after I went through a few iterations. Naruto was full of lies. Yet Neji wanted to believe him. And for years, he did. Desperate to marry Ten-ten, Neji discovers one bar in his cage will never bend - Hyuga only marry their own. Forced into loveless marriage with a stranger, he fights to free himself from the clan's gilded cage. But Neji learns people remain caged for a reason - because the price of freedom is often too high to pay.

What's the best title you've come up with?

Neji needs glasses - it's concise, and direct. The fic is about...Neji needing glasses but being a stubborn asshole who won't admit it.

Do you read your own fics for fun?

For sure! I've gotten so attached to some of my characters that I can't help revisiting their stories again and again. I think one mark of my improvement as a writer is that I willingly reread my work again and again, rather than avoiding it out of fear that I'll cringe.

What's an idea for a fic you've had that you'll probably never write?

Sasuke Uchiha and Arya Stark helping one another on their quests for vengeance and power. The parallels between these characters is so interesting to me, and calls out for exploration. Not by me, though. I don't have enough confidence in my Song of Ice and Fire knowledge to flesh this one out.

Post a sentence from your current WIP

This one's from the final chapter of Freefall:

The edge in Neji’s voice didn’t appear to faze Tenten, who rolled her brown eyes sidelong. Brown eyes that were the color of chocolate and just as intoxicating, bittersweet and forbidden. Strange – he’d never noticed that similarity before.

Do you post WIPs or wait until you're finished writing to post?

I lean toward waiting until I'm almost finished - around 80% through a first draft if it's a longer multichapter fic. I value having completed stories for my personal satisfaction, and for the sake of any readers who might get invested in one of my fics.

One-shots or chaptered fic?

Both! I've written both, and think each one offers its own rewards. I do have more oneshots posted, though - just because they're faster to write and complete.

What are some of your favorite tropes to write?

Forbidden love, arranged marriage, dysfunctional family, love triangles, infidelity, accidental baby acquisition, secret lovechild

What are you favorite characters to write?

Neji, Tenten, Rock Lee, Chiyo, my OCs - Risa Hyuga (branch Hyuga) and Jiro Sato (Neji/Tenten's child)

Have you ever or would you ever write a fic in first person POV?

I think it's odd that first person gets a bad rap in fanfic circles when so much original fiction is in first person. I enjoy reading first person and third person about equally, and I've written first person in fics. Second person, too, because the source material was written in second person.

Is there some headcanon you've included in more than one fic?

More than I can write out here, that's for sure! A short list: Hyuga clan only marries the extended family in most cases, Tenten hates radish pickles, Tenten's parents own a grocery store, Suna has cisterns carved in the cliffs to store water, the average branch Hyuga is loyal not only out of fear - but out of sincere conviction or love of family

What's the longest fic you've written?

Bird in a Gilded Cage - A Neji x Branch Hyuga OC fanfic with a Neji x Tenten vs. Neji x OC love triangle. Clocked in at 167k words including the three epilogue chapters.

What's the shortest fic you've written?

Hm, probably my first one, about Foxface from the Hunger Games reflecting on her death. I thought it was a novel at the time, when the entire thing was less than 300 words.

Do you have an abandoned WIP?

I have a bunch of fics in the graveyard on my Fanfiction.net profile. Younger me was terrible about following through on all the awesome fics I wanted to write, and most of my old multichapter fics never made it past a few chapters if that.

Pick out a random line from a fic you're really proud of

From Bird in a Gilded Cage:

A promise passed between them. Amaya would live with her head unbowed, free of the gilded bars that bound generations of Hyugas. So would her long-suffering mother and father.

What's the most personal fic you've ever written?

Tough question. I'd say Your Heart Beats On, because of the subject matter and emotional intensity.

What's the cringiest (affectionate) fic you've ever written?

My first fic, honestly. I was so proud of that thing, too.

What's your most popular fic?

Depends on how you define popularity. Bird in a Gilded Cage has the greatest number of kudos, views, comments and bookmarks. But it's also 50+ chapters, and is twice as long as my next longest fic. I think looking at raw numbers hardly offers a fair comparison to my other fics. My most viewed oneshot is Rising Waters - a Hunger Games smut fic written years after I'd last been active in the fandom as a teenager. Last I checked, my most kudosed oneshot was Walk You Home, a genin-era SasuSaku fic.

What fic are you proudest of?

Definitely Bird in a Gilded Cage. It was my first completed longfic, and the most challenging fic I've managed to finish.

Fic writer asks

How old were you when you started writing fic?

Where did you first post your fics?

What was your first fandom?

What fandoms have you written for?

Romantic or gen?

Fluff or angst?

A fic of yours you think is underrated?

What's the best summary you've come up with?

What's the best title you've come up with?

Do you read your own fics for fun?

What's an idea for a fic you've had that you'll probably never write?

Post a sentence from your current WIP

Do you post WIPs or wait until you're finished writing to post?

One-shots or chaptered fic?

What are some of your favorite tropes to write?

What are you favorite characters to write?

Have you ever or would you ever write a fic in first person POV?

Is there some headcanon you've included in more than one fic?

What's the longest fic you've written?

What's the shortest fic you've written?

Do you have an abandoned WIP?

Pick out a random line from a fic you're really proud of

What's the most personal fic you've ever written?

What's the cringiest (affectionate) fic you've ever written?

What's your most popular fic?

What fic are you proudest of?

[ezlo-x]

telling all of you rn when I finish chapter 3 and this idea still lingers in my mind imma make an animatic of this song for my au

[hoffmansbignaturals]

Who does each character in 'Saw' main in Mario Kart?

shitty image quality TW

first off the GOAT, John. John uses Wiggler. John knows that appearing helpless and silly is the key to winning. John regularly wins the Saw inc Mario Kart tournament due to memorizing every single shortcut beforehand.

Amanda. Amanda mains Pauline. She loves to see a girlboss winning. She used to play as Isabelle when AC New Horizons came out but denies this. Amanda is ok at Mario Kart. John makes sure everyone lets her win sometimes.

Hoffman mains Ludwig. Theres nothing deep to this, just look at the resemblance. Uncanny. He and Ludwig share a misguided thirst for power. Hoffman couldn't win a game of Mario Kart if his sister's life depended on it.

[thatswhatsushesaid]

THOUGHTS ON AMBESSA??

hot. extremely hot.

also a tyrant and an awful mother??? but, you know. hot.

[autisticbiologistmess]

.

[puppyudderly-dreamy]

putting things together as to why i constantly ask my wife details as to how my body works/changes 🙃

[ckret2]

On a scale of one to ten, 1 being "This has gotten annoying and offputting," 10 being "This is awesome and I love how engaged you guys are," and 5 being "You do you but I'm getting bored with the topic," how are you feeling about the Gender and Pronouns discussion? Seems like people (including me) exploded your page for a bit there.

I'd give it a 7 I think.

I wouldn't have already prior to this conversation put this much thought into how sentient polygons can be trans—much less taken an alien with he/him pronouns, stuffed him in a body with a vag, and declared he's got three overlapping alien genders that have absolutely nothing to do with either these pronouns or this body and that are weird even by his species's standards—if I didn't think the topic of speculative gender is fascinating. I'm the person who wrote this post. This is a topic of great interest to me.

It's only a 7 because of the preoccupation with pronouns, specifically, in a way that makes it clear that people are looking at this very alien character that I've been taking pains to keep alien and assuming that his understanding of gender and How Gender Should Be Recognized is identical to early 21st century English-speaking humans' understanding of gender. I've had three different people writing in on the assumption that it's a given that this alien who's never said anything about his pronouns except "whatever" would jump for joy to be assigned some English neopronouns.

I'm his writer. I am using his primary English pronouns, every time I talk about him. I'm using his pronouns right now. Divorce "he/him" from inherent implications of masculinity.

So, tl;dr: +7 points for conversation exploring ways gender can be different & alien for an alien species; -3 points for the part of the conversation fixated on trying to wedge alien gender into our framework.

[rolandkaros]

i think someone tried to send me an ask bc it showed a [1] next to my inbox and the total number of asks went up but there is no new ask in there...and its not in my notifs............

[bittsandpieces]

How’s your day going so far Bitt? ❤️

I literally just woke up lol, I have to open at work today so I'm up earlier than usual (I can't believe I used to go to work at 4:30am. how did I do that). I'm working on a research project for my job though and I'm kinda excited about it so I don't really mind going in earlier than usual!!

[brandonsanderson]

I'm sorry. I only use this website every couple of days. If you've sent an ask that I haven't answered yet, please don't be mad at me. I'm writing books most of my time, and I can only come on this website when nobody's looking. I'll answer your questions but please don't be mad at me.

[mechanicanon]

Knock knock you've been inactive for 3 months

{There's no response. The workshop is empty.}

[can-of-slorgs]

Im dying at your tags on that last anon 😭😂 youre now the dr.sloth pinup artist that neopets needed

Not the title i wanted to craft for myself when i started this blog but hey, it brought us such good memories like

[starving-mimi]

would terrorbeak wilson purr if someone pet him?

[danadaria]

There's an unidentifiable bad smell in my house, and no-one is taking it seriously.

If I'll die from poisoning I'm going to be SO MAD.

[nightmareonpeachstreet]

I am going to start stabbing people why the FUCK is it so hard to remove a fucking payment method these days

like jesus christ I'm trying to get rid of a card that is completely worthless now you don't have to call the fucking pope about it

[ioannemos]

yay what are your favourite lyrics from your #1 most played song? and numbers 8, 16, 82 and 100?

1: blood in the cut, k.flay

guess i'm contagious, it'd be safest if you ran

fk, that's what they all just end up doing in the end

take my car and paint it black

take my arm, break it in half

say something, do it soon

it's too quiet in this room

8: love is beginning, imaginary future

oh, look how colors are changing

new stars appear in the night sky

this heart is starting to come to life

16: nobody else will be there, the national

hey baby, where were you back then

when i needed your help

i thought that if i stuck my neck out

i'd get you out of your shell

my faith is sick and my skin is thin as ever

i need you alone

goodbyes always take us half an hour

can't we just go home

82: send me on my way, guy meets girl

i would like to reach out my hand

i may see you

i may tell you to run

know what they say about the young

100: broken, jonah kagen

i'm begging you to come and pull me out the fire

come and save me like you did when we were young

oh please, come bring me up from my lowest, take me higher

can you see me through the ashes and the smoke