#phart thoughts

[dnpanimationstudioclone]

Meet Frostbite🏔️

     Meet my version of the very cold but warm hearted Ruler of the Far Frozen and one of Danny’s other worldly allies, Frostbite!!!!!!!!!!!!🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️🏔️

If you need some guidance on ghostly and other beyond this world issues, he’s the guy(well Yeti) to look to for help!

What do u think? I’d love to know💖

[hascapart]

bantering

[nathanbatemanfucker]

In Plain Sight, Ch 3: The Tempest

summary: nathan makes his intentions clear and as always…is a bit of an asshole while doing it.

pairing: nathan bateman x f!reader

contents: 18+/NSFW/MINORS DNI, enemies to lovers (sorta), boss/employee dynamics, pining, nerves, SIBLINGSSSS, mentions of care taking/sick relative, first date?? (after the fact), Nathan being A MEGA SIMPPPPPP

wc: 3,446

an: we get to meet reader’s sisters in this, both of which i love very very much! you also get a bit of reader’s background. and of course, nathan’s attempt at asking someone out. hope y’all enjoy and always thanks for reading! <3

in plain sight masterlist | part 4 | phart 5

Sleep last night was difficult…and interesting. It took you a while to fall asleep, your nerves feeling a little frazzled once you’d gotten in the car and started to think about how you were going to have dinner with Nathan. You’ve spent plenty of time alone with him, but within the boss-employee dynamic. This dinner he’s asked you to could still be that— but you wouldn’t have your usual protections. No pressing questions, no tasks, no screens to hide behind. You and him. And food. When’s the last time you shared a meal with someone other than your sisters?

Once you’d finally succumbed to sleep, your dreams were of him. It felt like nothing and everything all at once. Nathan was there. You’ve never dreamt of him before. You were in Nathan’s house— except it was clear that neither of you were working. You watched a movie together cuddling on the couch, cooked a meal, and took a walk through the forest. While the thought of that would never appeal to you in real life when you wake, there’s a peaceful feeling lingering. It’s a little unsettling.

You hop out of bed before you can allow yourself to start assigning meaning to the dream. It was simply that— a dream. A product of your nerves, and spending nearly every waking moment dedicated to learning, organizing and managing all the aspects of Nathan’s life.

You get caught up in your ungodly long morning routine. Breakfast and tea with your mom as you read from her favorite poetry book, picking your sisters’ lunches, showering. Pressing your sisters’ uniforms. Making sure your mother has everything she needs before the time gap it takes for the nurse to arrive. Writing out a to do list for when you get home and setting out your comfortable clothing. Once everything’s set you change out of your robe and into your work clothes. You’re spending too much time in front of the mirror, fidgeting and analyzing yourself. There’s no need to look perfect, it’s just Nathan. Mr. Bateman, you should call him even in your head for separation.

“You look extra pretty today,” Your youngest sister, Emma, mumbles sleepily from her place in your bed.

You smooth out your skirt for the millionth time, looking over your shoulder at her, “Yeah, you think so Em?”

She yawns, raising a fist to rub at her eye. “You did your hair all nice and you’re wearing a skirt.”

“I wear skirts all the time,” You reason with her (and maybe a little with yourself).

“Not the pretty one.”

You cross the room, leaning in to tickle her, “Hey— are you saying all my other skirts are ugly?”

Emma bursts into a fit of giggles, doing her best to twist away from you. “Stop it,” She wheezes.

“Take it back and I’ll stop,” You reason with her, unable to stop your own laughter.

“I’m sorry, I take it back,” She whines, thrashing playfully beneath you.

“You’re safe for now, little one. Do you want me to make you some oatmeal before I go?”

“Can you eat it with me?” Emma asks, hopeful.

“No, honey, I’ve got to go. But, I’ll be home early tonight. We can watch a movie, how does that sound.”

Emma’s quiet for a few moments, obviously disappointed but then she nods, and cracks a sad smile. You lean in to kiss her forehead, hugging her close.

“Go brush your teeth and I’ll make your breakfast.”

“Do you think sister wants to eat with me?”

It takes effort for you not to cringe. Of course Emma wants to spend time with her other sister, but it seems like Phil is in her fuck any and everyone phase. You’ll try to get through to her though, if not for her own sake, then for Emma’s. A 7 year old shouldn't be spending so much time alone, not when some of her family is right here.

“I’ll ask her. If not, you can go sit with momma, alright?”

“Okay.”

“Okay, little, up up. To the bathroom you go.”

You both stand, and you take her hand, dropping her off at the bathroom on your way to Phil’s room. To your surprise, the girl is already on up and on her phone when you crack the door.

She frowns, letting out a little sigh. “What?”

“Emma wants you to have breakfast with her.”

Phil rolls her eyes, not bothering to look over at you, “I’m not hungry.”

“Phillipa, you should eat. And you should always be excited to spend time with your sister.”

“She’s whiny.”

You cross the room, coming to sit beside her on the bed, “So are you.”

“Yeah and I have reason to be,” She murmurs defiantly.

“And she doesn’t?”

She grows quiet then, her thumb that had been continuously scrolling stopping in its tracks.

“Even if you don’t eat, could you just sit with her?” You ask, knowing that her shell has cracked a little.

“Fine, whatever,” She breathes.

“I’m making her a yogurt bowl. Do you want one?”

“No,” She says quickly, trying to feign uninterest. “Unless we have chocolate chips.”

“We have chocolate chips. And marshmallow fluff.”

“Then I guess I’ll have one.”

“Thank you. I’ll leave some money so you can get one of those fancy coffees from the place near your school. Will you pick a movie for us to watch today?”

“You’re coming home?”

“I should be here by 6…7 at the latest.”

“Oh. Okay,” She says, feigning disinterest.

“That’s all I get? An oh okay? Maybe I should tell Mr. Bateman I can work late.”

“No! You’re never home, c’mon don’t do that.”

“I’m excited to hang out with you too,” You say teasingly, leaning over to rest your head on her shoulder. Surprisingly, she lets you stay there.

“Can I make brownies?”

“As long as you let Emma help.”

“Of course I’ll let her help.”

“You have to be patient with her,” You remind her gently.

“I know, I know. Like you were with me,” She whispers thoughtfully. Sometimes you don’t think you give her enough credit.

“I love you Phillipa. You’re her big sister you know? I’m gone so much trying to make everything work here. She’s looking up to you. She thinks you’re the coolest person in the world.”

“You think so?”

“I know so.”

“Can I make her yogurt bowl and you make mine?”

“Sure, sweet girl. Let’s go.”

—

Nathan has never described himself as antsy. Impatient maybe, against delayed gratification sure. Antsy brings a connotation he’s not used to— nerves, a power struggle he’s on the losing side of, and lack of confidence. And while all of that feels true right now he still doesn’t want to admit it. He’s sitting at his desk, waiting for you to get in. His brow is sweaty because he’s been pacing back and forth, changing his mind about where he should be.

Eager to see you, he’d started in your office which is based in one of his many labs. It only took 10 minutes of him pacing in there to think that he was coming on too strong. It led him to the living room, but after sitting for a few minutes lounging at 6:30 in the morning when you were clocking in felt like it would be a slap in the face. He tried the patio, the kitchen, and eventually ended up back in his office.

He’d felt a little good about himself, the fact that he was thinking about this in a way that doesn’t just involve him and his desires. It was one of the reasons he’d realized what was happening to him. He’s doing his best at balancing his protective shell and showing you what he could be. What the two of you could be together.

Nathan loses his breath when you first come up on the camera, walking into your office. He’s always thought you were beautiful but today it seems like you tried to be. That could be his wishful thinking. Either way, he can’t take his eyes off you. You’re wearing a skirt he’s never seen before. A little shorter, a little pleated. It has his mind wandering off to places it shouldn’t, but it’s not like it hasn’t before. He can’t wait to get in the shower long after you left, and imagine what it would feel like to slip you out of it.

He stares…and stares…and stares until he realizes that an hour and half has gone by and he’s done nothing but give himself blue balls while watching you type away on your computer. Fuck, he’s completely at your mercy.

He pings you. Maybe that’ll make it worse, having you right in front of him like this. But, he needs to see you to scratch whatever itch this is in him today. There’s work too, a few things he needs to give to you to file away or mail out.

“Good morning, Mr. Bateman.”

He usually likes it when you call him that— especially when he’s imagining you say it while he runs his hands all over your body, all dirty and forbidden. Today is different. Something about it makes him shift uncomfortably in his seat. With dinner today, his first real shot at trying to know you as something other than his employee. As an outsider like everyone else.

“Would it kill you to call me Nathan?” He asks, raising a brow though his mouth is a little pouty.

It takes everything in you not to laugh. He looks ridiculous when he’s disgruntled. “That would be unprofessional, sir. Are those for me?”

“Yeah, they’re for you. We still on for dinner?”

The words make your stomach flip. Not because you don’t want to, but because you do. Because words like that aren’t supposed to come out of your boss’ mouth. They’re too casual, too much like the one’s men you used to swipe through on your phone said.

“Yes, I’m still able to have dinner with you, sir. Am I able to leave early?” You ask, reaching for the stack of files.

“You can leave whenever you want.”

Your mouth pulls up into a half-smile, and you nod. “Thank you, Mr. Bateman.”

Nathan leaves you be for the rest of the day. He doesn’t want to come on too strong, or be too clingy, something he’s never worried about before. He spends most of the day with the chef, yelling at him that he’s making everything all wrong— too salty or sweet or slimy or acidic— until it’s perfect. He needs it to be perfect. And once it is, he appears in the doorway of the lab your office is in, calling out to you in an uncharacteristically soft manner.

You inhale softly as you two make your way to the kitchen, the smell of familiar herbs and spices in the air. “Italian?”

“Compiled some data— this seemed like the smartest choice.”

“Compiled some data? On me?”

“I compile data on everyone. I need to learn.”

“What could you possibly have to learn about me?”

“Everything. You’re really fucking secretive.”

“I’m not secretive, I’m private,” You reason.

Nathan snorts, looking at you with an expression of disbelief, “You have to realize that those things are the same.”

“They’re not,” You counter before thinking better of it.

This is why you were quiet and avoided him as much as possible— Philippa isn’t the only one in your family with a streak of defiance. Denying authority runs in your blood, it has taken you years to quell it.

“They are if somebody’s trying to get to know you.”

“And that’s what you’re doing, Mr. Bateman? Trying to get to know me?”

He shrugs, feeling a little too unsettled— a little too nervous to reveal his intentions so early on.

“What did you learn with this data you compiled on me?”

“That you like noodle dishes of all kinds, but preferably Italian. And chocolate.”

There are two places settings sat at the corner of the table, a few bowls of various pastas, salads and breads. Dinner is surprisingly calm. He asks you simple, noninvasive questions about your past. He knows where you went to school and what past jobs you’ve had, but he asks you how you felt about them, if you made friends. He asks for your favorite movies and bands, supplying his own when you ask the same questions. It’s the most benign conversation you’ve ever had with him and it feels…good.

He surprises you when he says, “This. Again. Maybe next week?”

Your mouth goes flat with confusion, “You want to have dinner with me again, sir?”

“Nathan,” He suggests, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

You stare at him for a moment, eyes narrowing. “If this is some sort of joke, I don’t appreciate it, Nathan.”

Sweet, sweet music to his ears. Even with the attitude in your voice, Nathan drinks in every drop of his name on your tongue. In fact, he thinks the edge makes it better— it makes his blood hot. It makes him want you.

He leans closer, peering at you from over his glasses. “I’m an asshole and a clown, a shitty combination but what I’m not is an idiot, sweetheart. I wouldn’t joke about this,” His face is earnest as he speaks.

But, what does that even mean when it comes to him? You’re not completely sure. What’s worse is that you don’t know if your stomach is flipping at the idea of him telling the truth or disappointment that he may not be. The latter is what scares you most. When did you start to care about him like that?

“You— are you— you’re— you want to date me?”

Nathan bites his tongue for several seconds. He can’t say that he wants to do more than date you. He wants to consume you, to worship you, to spread you across this table and drink from between your legs until you whine and beg him for mercy. He can’t do any of that— not yet at least.

He settles for, “Yes.”

With his affirmative response, with nowhere to hide you look down at your empty plate, trying to process what’s happening. If this is true and he wants to date you, was this your first date? First dates are consensual, and while you had agreed to this dinner with him you hadn’t even been aware of your feelings at the time. Surely you couldn’t date your boss. It’s the total opposite of what you’d been trying to do— keep a low radar and be as competent and professional as possible to keep your family on the right path. You wouldn't jeopardize that for the hot, broad, bearded man sitting in front of you, even if he was looking at you with those gooey brown eyes. How long had you pretended you didn’t see him? How wide he is, how his shirts cling to his shoulders and chest, how sometimes when he comes straight to the lab after boxing his pheromones have you wanting to rut against him like an animal in heat.

You inhale a sharp breath, horrified and surprised by the thoughts racing through your head. It’s like he had unlocked a vault of vulgarities.

Finally, you look at him, apologetic, “Nathan…I can’t. I can’t do something that.”

Nathan notices right away that you didn’t deny feeling anything, and for now that’s enough. It’s an in. And if he’s not mistaken he hears a breathiness in your tone, hunger in your eyes.

“Why?”

“You’re my boss,” You say simply. It seems rather straightforward but Nathan frowns at you in confusion. For a man with such a big brain he could miss the mark sometimes. It would be endearing if it didn’t drive you a little nuts. Okay, maybe it’s both.

“What’s that gotta do with anything?”

“If it went poorly—“

“You think I would fire you over my ego?”

“Quite frankly, yes. I’ve seen how you treat people.”

“I wouldn’t do that to you,” He insists firmly. He knows it’s true, he just had to convince you.

“How would you know?”

“Because I know.”

“And if I say that’s not good enough? My entire family is dependent on me. On the money I make. I can’t and won’t put that at risk.”

Nathan scoffs, “There is no risk. I’m sure.”

“What if I’m not sure?”

“What’s that gotta do with how I feel?”

“Everything.”

“Nothing. It’s got nothing to do with how I feel, wanna know why? Because I put my ass on the line asking you here, not knowing how the fuck you feel about me. You’re the most elusive, sweet, competent…fucking arousing woman I’ve ever met. I’m spoken for.”

“Prove it,” You challenge.

This time he’s sure. He can hear how winded you sound and he knows that he’s affecting you. He wants to clear the table, crawl across and fuck you until neither of you can think. He’s getting ahead of himself.

“Prove it?”

“A trial of you showing me that all of what you said is true. We can spend more time together, but no commitments, and if it doesn’t work out I keep my job.”

“You sure? You’re gonna fall in love with me,” He warns, his grin mischievous.

“And you’re gonna have to work for it. Have you ever had to court a woman, Mr. Bateman?”

“No, sounds like I’ve got a lot of research to do. I’m a fast learner.”

“That you are.”

“Do you want to know your choices for dessert?”

“There’s choices?”

“Four.”

You grow thoughtful for a moment, before saying, “All of them. Bring me all of them.”

He can’t help the smile that spreads across his face— if he wasn’t in love with you already he is now. You allow yourself to look at him, to really look at him. And like this, his teeth white and shiny, eyes crinkled in the corners, warm brown eyes he looks sweet. Lovable. Like he could one day be yours. You won’t get your hopes up, not yet.

—

Nathan walks you to your car. It’s strange, much sweeter than you anticipating him being, but you did tell he had to work for it. You unlock the car with your remote and he gets your door. He ushers you in. He takes your hand and kisses it, his full beard tickling your skin in a way that makes your thoughts go hot and filthy.

“Drive safe for fucks sake.”

“Aren’t you a charmer?” You murmur in that soft little voice.

Nathan raises a brow at you as he leans against the car. “Are you sassing your boss?”

“No. I’m sassing the man that claims he wants to pursue me.”

“I hate to break it to you, but those are the same man, sweetheart,” He teases with a grin.

“Not if he’s gonna get it together, and prove it.”

“Touché. Let me know when you get home?”

“Keeping tabs on me already?”

“I— I always wonder,” He admits softly, and as you peer at him, you notice a soft flush in his cheeks.

He’s going to be the death of you, isn’t he? Getting all soft and sweet and flustered. You want to grab him by the collar and kiss him until his chest heaves with arousal and he cums in his pants. Instead you say: “I’ll let you know.”

“Good,” He takes a step away from the car, trying his best not to show how pleased he is with your agreement.

He feels like a walking raw nerve. You hold his future in your hands— his happiness, his sanity. It’s unhealthy and scary, how much control you have over him. But this time, he knows that the person is worthy. You’re worth any pain you could cause him, and that’s solidified by the way you grin up at him. It’s the brightest thing he’s ever seen. You looking at him like this, your saccharine smile, eyes full of mirth has his brain liquifying.

He grits his teeth at the way you’ve turned him into some Shakespearean loser. He could wax day in and day out about you. Write lines upon lines of code that would program nothing but his feelings for you. It’s stupidly perfect. He wants this with no one else. There is just you. Part of him is convinced that it’s always been you. He’s been on trajectory, making his way to you with every single decision. Fuck Bluebook. Fuck robots and their fake brains and gangly synthetic limbs. Fuck his data. Fuck all of his accomplishments. There’s just you.

“See you tomorrow, Nathan.”

nathan taglist: @missdictatorme, @hon3yboy, @runa-falls, @campingwiththecharmings, @toracainz, @steven-grants-world, @clemdango04, @jdbxws, @crispysublimecupcake, @sub-aro, @faretheeoscar, @cupidysm, @whentheskyispinkandabitblue, @nova-ivy541, @sparkypantelones, @veritable-trash, @mangoslushcrush, @thhriller, @kotaropuppy, @tenderhornynihilist

[invinciblerodent]

tagged by @starfightrpilot in a kissy-picrew, couple song game using this creator! (A lot of the designs aren't super well-reflected in it because, well, the medium itself is a little limited like that, but I still had so much fun playing dressup with it again! ❤️)

@antiqua-lugar, if you're in the mood to play dolls, I'd love to see you do it too next! ❤️

(I went on a bit longer than i thought, so, under the cut it all goes!)

This is the best I can do for the moment of Iona and Astarion- their song for me is "Masquerade" by YENDRY (ft. Lous and the Yakuza)

I really like how the basis of their whole story is, at its core, a willful miscommunication based on the complete misunderstanding of the other's motives, and how the two singers have their back and forth in different languages.

I really like how over and over again, the song responds to "Antes de hablarme quítate la máscara" ("before you'd speak to me, take off your mask") with "Arrêtez un peu avec toute cette mascarade" ("stop with all this charade/masquerade"), I think that works so nicely for these two's whole Deal with each other- kind of both daring each other to drop the pretense first without fully understanding what the other is saying.

They didn't have a goatee that would have fit Arvid, so this is kind of the closest I could get to him and Gale! Their song for me is "I Know That He Loves Me" by Autoheart.

I like to kind of think of it as "He" in a way going back and forth between referring to Arvid's god Tempus ("At the edge of imploding/He surrounds me with light") and referring to Gale ("And He acts like a sedative/All through the night"), kind of as a.... religious crisis/romantic panic type of deal? Either way, it's a nice fit.

For Petyr and Shadowheart (shipname: Phart), most of my songs are instrumentals, but the one that I associate with them is "Love Song of The Beta Male" by Stornoway.

"beta male" in this context is referring to the concept as it exists in birds basically, but it's just a very sweet kind of, "I'm not an idiot, I know I'm not, like, a perfect, charming prince who'll sweep you off your feet, but hey, I can love you still the best I can" sentiment that I feel fits their silly and.... in a way, almost kind of juvenile romance.

(I unfortunately don't yet have one for Petyr and Halsin -ship name Hatyr-, but that's probably for the best, since I can't make them look not related in the bloody picrew, lol.)

And closing it out with Ray and Wyll, with "Yellow Bird" by Ben Stevenson.

This whole.... hero in/before his prime and hero past his own angle, this... one of them embodying the present and the future and the other the melancholy past, they're very much two sides of the same coin, and "Nobody knows all that we've got, you couldn't tell a single thing new/Nobody knows me like you" just... fits so well.

To know sacrifice because they've both had to make it, to know one another because they see versions of themselves in each other, I really like that. Nobody knows me like you, because I am you, and you are me, and that depth of understanding without need for words just tickles me so perfectly.

Thank you for tagging me love on u ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[elephart-hi]

My Jude’s 2 years apart

Both are no references and that was like the best I would give you 2 years ago 😭

[cawziiku]

Day 7: Second Chance

[sanschips]

I can’t wait to see you. 

[phantomphangphucker]

Hmmmmmm.... now what could it be?

Is it maybe being

FUCKING DEAD

[ghostsray]

I am absolutely DYING over the fact that you tag all Danny phantom art with 'phart' and it just looks like fart spelled wrong

ashdhdhsjhf yeah i think @lexosaurus (?) proposed the word phart as a joke alternative to phanart (since that tag is co-used by dan and phil fans) and i thought it was hilarious and started tagging all my art reblogs as phart and at one point i stopped thinking about it and it became a habit to tag incredible pieces of art with a homonym for fart

[buzzdixonwriter]

(non)Writing Report October 29, 2021

David Gerrold has famously observed 90% of a writer’s job is research.*

Currently instead of actually writing, I’m researching several upcoming projects (one slated to be started January 1, 2022; another for January 1, 2023; plus a handful of still coalescing ideas for 2024 onwards) so I figured this is as good a time as any to discuss research methods.

As always, we’re going by Kipling’s immortal dictum here:

There are nine and ninety ways Of constructing tribal lays And every single one of them is right

What follows is what I typically do when researching most projects.  Every new story presents its own unique set of parameters so just because I usually do it this way is no guarantee I always do it this way and even more importantly, no requirement you do your research in a similar fashion.

But wot da hey, this works for me most of the time, so let’s give the model a spin.

Prospecting The Rabbit Hole

We’ve all been there, right?  You log on to find the address of the nearest pizzeria that delivers and the next thing you know it’s four a.m. and you’re reading about the favorite wallpaper designs of Polish nobility in 1740.

One thing leads to another which leads to another which leads to another to another to another to another…

You catch my drift.

Much -- perhaps even most -- of my research falls into this category.

I’m not looking for anything…

…but I’m looking for something.

What am I looking for?

Well, let’s quote another verse, this one from the musical Paint You Wagon.

“Where ya goin’?”

“I don’t know.”

“When’ll you git there?”

“I ain’t certain.”

“What’ll you find?”

“I ain’t equipped to say, but who gives a damn? We’re on our way!”

To mangle metaphors, the rabbit hole is where I cast my widest net.  I can’t tell what will tickle my fancy until my fancy gets tickled.

Decades ago I was reading a thick tome on the naval history of the Civil War and in one paragraph buried deep in the middle of the book it casually mentioned that the enslaved harbor pilot Robert Smalls hijacked a Confederate gunboat and escaped to the Union feet blockading Charleston and I thought, “That’s interesting” and I turned the page and got halfway through the next paragraph and I said ”He did WHAT?!?!?” and flipped back and lo and behold that led to me doing a lot of research on a screenplay that, alas, I never sold but gave me a brand new perspective on the horrors of slavery and just how deplorable the Confederacy was.

It’s like walking through a smorgasbord / buffet / cafeteria and selecting items you’ve never seen much less tasted before and trying them and discovering your new favorite food in the process (those of you born after the pandemic started, find some old pharte to explain what smorgasbords / buffets / cafeterias were).

Prospecting the rabbit hole looks a lot like wasting time on the internet to non-creatives, and truth be told probably the bulk of it is fruitless insofar as no usable ideas spring from it.

Ah, but you only have to strike gold once or twice every few trips for it to pay off…

Building The Foundation

Once I’ve arrived on an idea (and ideas can come from anywhere and everywhere), I try to figure out what the general shape of the story that best serves that idea.

Typically this means coming up with a ballpark idea of the types of characters involved and the types of conflicts and obstacles they will encounter, and more importantly, the environment.

By “environment” I’m not talking about the location but rather the culture / community / circumstances that binds everything together.  

For example, the musical Pajama Game uses garment manufacturing as its environment; everything in the story orbits around the fact all the major characters working at a pajama factory.  Singin’ In The Rain features classic Hollywood on the cusp of the talkies revolution, The Sound Of Music is Austria as the Nazis take over the country, etc., etc., and of course, etc.

Of course, this is no guarantee that initial rough idea will survive.  More than once I’ve set off on one path only to find another far more interesting one along the way.  Never get so enamored of an early idea that it blinds you to better possibilities.

Right now I’m involved in foundational research for my 2022 and 2023 projects:   I know what I currently think the broad strokes of their stories will be, their major characters (or at least the character types), and more importantly what kind of information I need to create a sense of verisimilitude about my story.

Research for my 2022 project is focused on how professional sports are run as a business.

I’ve already done enough research to learn a major portion of my story can’t happen in the real world because the leagues in question have a specific rule against it.

So that means throw the story out, right?

Wrong.

It means I create a fictitious professional sports league where my plot twist can happen.  

I wouldn’t have even known about that rule if I hadn’t done my basic foundational research.

If I just whipped together a story set in the professional sports world without doing that basic research, I would have walked right into a plot hole that would impair many readers’ enjoyment of the story.

That’s my fig leaf if anyone says, “Hey!  That can’t happen!”

Yes, it can. In my league.

(Think that can’t happen?  Guess again.  You’d be astonished at the number of crime and mystery novels, including a good number considered to be classics of the genre, that make a complete mishmash out of criminal investigations.  Looking at you, Perry Mason.)

Fine Tuning The Details

Once I’ve got enough information to build a solid base for my story, I start looking for little bits of information that will help bring the story to life.

These are not lynch pins that the work will rest on, but minor details that help sell the story, either by making it more relatable to readers or by suggesting an idea that hadn’t occurred to me.

Case in point: I recently stumbled across a minor piece of mid-20th century…well, can’t really call it folk lore or folk medicine, so let’s say folk science that fits perfectly in my 2023 project.  It was an idea that at the time didn’t seem obviously bogus but, once a few people tried it and found it didn’t work, soon was abandoned.

Ah, but in the time frame of that story, having a bunch of people all trying this not-exactly-dumb-but-certainly-not-right idea at the same time will provide the perfect trigger for my climax (which I don’t know what it’s going to be yet, other than it’s gonna cause a lotta tsuris to a lotta people).

Now, I probably never would have uncovered this not-exactly-dumb-but-certainly-not-right idea if I’d gone actively looking for it, but while doing foundational research for my 2023 project, this popped up, and I instantly recognized it as the key to my story’s conclusion.

Which brings up another principle that harkens back to the first: You will never ever know where the ideas will come from.

As I said, this idea just happened to present itself while I was researching something entirely different for the story, but I knew instantly that would be crucial the resolution of the story.

Which means when you’re falling down the rabbit hole or laying the foundation, don’t ignore the little details.

You never know what will surprise you…

…or help you.

  © Buzz Dixon 

  *  The other 10% is revenge, says David.

[hascapart]

i like him now

[spooky-the-owl]

Omfg holy shit omfgjfjckdnxjkdkf dude. I friking love it. I uh. Thank you holy shit he's beautiful

[ask-emilz-de-philz]

MAJOR PHARMACIES IN THE PHILIPPINES! 

I thought I already drew my gijinkas of them, I've always thought of doing so but I almost always assumed I already illustrated them so I'm like wat XD So here they are.

#phART #ARTph #PHartist #artistPH #gijinka

[elephart-hi]

I am so humbled to announce my 200th follower 🥰🫣

I’m a wee small fandom blog and am so honored for all your company

I wish you all a very pleasant night and a tender motherly smooch on your brow 💖😌

[messymaci]

"Candida" Pure or Innocent. . This artwork is different from my usual style as I had no lineart and did it like a painting style. Swipe right for the process vid and reference for the clothes. Do you like my previous artstyle or this one? Your response would be really helpful! ❤️ . So I tried to draw a "Manobo" woman in a variant of the traditional Manobo clothing. The Manobos are the most numerous of the ethnic groups in the Philippines that are primarily located around Northern Mindanao, Central Mindanao and Caraga Regions. (Mindanao is the southernmost major island group in the Philippines). Fact: I live in the Caraga Region! Thought I just wanted to share that and appreciate my roots.🧡 Have you looked back at yours? . . . #digitalart #digitalartwork #digitaldrawing #digitalpainting #digitalartist #artph #art #artwork #artgallery #artistsoninstagram #digitalsketch #artistsupport #artgram #artistsofinstagram #artistsupportartists #artistlife #digitalillustrator #digitalillustration #digitalartph #artist #artlover #artshare #artoftheday #artlife #artsy #artofvisuals #philippines #philippines🇵🇭 #phart (at Bayabas, Surigao Del Sur, Philippines) https://www.instagram.com/p/CLjgiHeB992/?igshid=d1kzq9qgdqgd

[ciathyzareposts]

Spellcasting 301 – The Beach Boys

By Deimar

Ernie Eaglebeak’s Journal #1 “I just can’t believe I am still friends with these guys… First, they got me to drive the carpet to our spring break destination, Fort Naughtytail, alone for hours on end while they slept. We arrived safe and sound, but then they blamed me for saving their lives by throwing away everything that was not them during our flight. Ungrateful pricks! They even had the courage to charge me twice the amount they paid for the hotel as a penalty! But when they get tangled against another fraternity in a tournament for the rights to come here on spring break for the next five years, who do you think they call?”

Hello people! I don’t know why I feel the need to greet you again after my rocking introduction post for this game but here I am again ready to continue!

Pictured here: Totally Voltgloss

What? Did you say I am not Voltgloss? How did you manage to see through my impeccable disguise? Sadly for you, Voltgloss had some issues that prevented him from finishing this game so you are stuck… with me!!. A non-native English speaker which has played as many as three (allegedly) parser-based adventures in his life and that hates time-based games because he likes exploring at his own pace. Clearly the only good choice to play this game.

Resuming the game from where Voltgloss left it, the prologue ends with Ernie in the main Plaza of Fort Naughtytail, just in front of the Hu Delta Phart’s hotel, the Royal Infesta. Our brothers are set on going to the rooms so that seems like the best course of action. Once inside, the group pays the fee, with Ernie paying twice the price for his room in punishment for throwing away all the HDP’s things during the flight.

Maybe you should know that Ernie’s room is the cheapest, with views to the dumpster and only costs 20 pieces…

Once the ordeal is resolved, the group agrees to meet at the beach in 30 minutes. As the key to the room was not among my inventory, I tried to ask the receptionist for it to no avail and nothing I tried at the reception was of any consequence. That’s a good beginning. I exited the lobby east to explore the hotel but ended up outside in Beachwhaled Boulevard, a fancy street with an aquarium and several shops. Sadly, I had no time to explore the new location as 30 in game minutes had passed and I was dragged to the beach by Sid, one of the Pharts.

As soon as we arrive, a group of muscled guys approaches. They are a group of bullies from Getta Loda Yu, a fraternity at St. Weinersburg Academy of Magic (SWAM), our arch-rival school. Their intention is to get our beloved group of hornball nerds kicked out the beach by means of a weight-lifting contest. The Yus bring out three barbells of different weights (I guess they take them wherever they go) and one of them starts lifting them from the lightest to the heaviest.

Seeing an opportunity here, I cast FRIMP (levitation) on the heaviest and try to impress everyone by lifting it before the jock, but I am interrupted by Moe, the Pharts “leader” as he thinks I am too skinny and that Ralph should do it instead. And that’s when the game crushes me even more describing how easy it is for the jock to lift the heaviest weight now that it is levitating. Good job me!!

But now it is Ralph’s time in the court. So I help him as I helped the jock, noticing that there is a cooldown of 1 turn before being able of casting the same spell twice. But he is a little less subtle about the effort put into lifting the last weight…

I think he is still missing an elephant on the other hand…

Seeing as there is a tie, Moe and Ace, the Yus leader, start bickering at each other until The Judge appears. This being a spellcasting game, The Judge is an impressively described blonde in a bikini that extends the weight lifting contest to a full tournament full of college competitions such as drink-a-thons, tan contest, wet t-shirt competitions, etc… Surprisingly for me, the prize is not a night with her (oh Al Lowe, how much have you perverted me!), but avoiding 5 years of exclusion from Fort Naughtytail. And somehow the competition starts by giving 40 points to the Yus and 45 to us.

I am not sure I fully understand how this scoring works. I must be distracted but I am not entirely sure why…

Seems quite straightforward until now, right? What if I told you it took me an embarrassingly high number of repetitions to reach a point where I was ready to keep advancing in the game? You see, time in this game is getting in my nerves. Every action you do other than a general look over the scene or seeing what’s in your inventory takes 5 minutes of in-game time. So you have like 6 actions before being taken to the beach.

My first tries were actually trying to find something to do with that time. My best guess here is that you can only get to your room and get into your bathing suit, as I was specifically picked on by the bullies for wearing a cloak to the beach and it is what our brothers suggested. This time, instead of losing time at the reception I simply went to Ernie’s room using the elevator and found out that I didn’t need anything to enter. In fact, there isn’t even a screen before the door, you simply choose your room from a map. Inside, our roommate Sid is unpacking. Being the nice guy I am, I greet him and try to talk with him but he has no useful information for us. There is a visible book bag that we can rummage. The bag contains a… Oh, what’s that? It’s been 30 minutes already? Back to square one!

Damn you, Sid! Let me relax and take my time!

This time I do less looking and talking and more looting. The bag contains a text book on plant-resin-based magic potions so boring it can melt your brain if you read it, a nose shield and a deflated float. With that done, it is time to get into my bathing suit. Ups, at the beach again. Restore!! Go to the room, take the bag, look for the bathing suit. The only problem being I can’t find it anywhere in the room before getting to beach. Finally, simply removing the cloak reveals the bathing suit underneath. Great. This is a perfect example of why I prefer my adventure games event based instead of timed.

But then you have the beach scene, which is even worse. You see, what I described in merely four paragraphs is a stream of scenes where you can do things in between. So when the jerks approach, you are given the opportunity to do something. Also several occasions in between Moe and Ace’s conversation. And you are given a single action before the scene continues.

So if you inflate your float, the conversation between Ace and Moe continues meanwhile. This is not that bad per se, but it left me with the feeling I was missing something. For example, the only thing you can do before the weight lifting contest that changes how the scene goes is throwing a punch, but the only result is Ernie being humiliated and the contest then starts immediately. During the contest there are even less things that change how the contest end. I didn’t even manage to lower the Yus’ score. No sand throwing, no punching, no spell to help either… So in the end I just settled with being in my swimsuit with Sid’s bag and having an score of 40 vs 45.

I ended up cheering and booing people. Just because.

The bad news for me is that I have a feeling the rest of the game is going to be as time-pressing as this introduction to what I assume are the secondary villains (I have little doubt that the old nemesis from the previous games will return as the main antagonist) and the following chapters objectives. The Judge even sets the time limit for the next step, as each fraternity is going to hold a party the next day at 7 o’clock, and she is going to judge which one has the hottest girls. She even sets the timing for the next test, being a sand-castle building contest the following day to the parties. I think I will be typing RESTORE even in my dreams (or more likely nightmares).

Ok, enough with the complaining. The game opens a lot here as you are finally given some freedom to explore the island. Let me tell you it is huge. But it feels a little empty, as there are a lot of locations with nothing to do, at least at the moment. I spent most of the day before the party just exploring and taking notes of the several items and relevant locations that seem useful. I won’t describe everything now, as I will have to replay it for sure, but I will try to summarize my thoughts on what I have discovered so far:

I didn’t find anything that could help me with getting hot girls to the party. I am at a lost here on how to tackle this objective but here is me hoping that at some point I will see some solution to the problem while I explore.

There are a lot of items in the town shops, and having found the sack of gold I dropped from the carpet in the Village Center, most of it is available to buy. However, there are way too many things to carry around and you can’t buy anything even with the extra gold, so there must be a way of getting more gold or I will have to buy things on a need-to-use basis. There is a shovel that could be useful for the sand-castle thingy.

In the Pokkaball Hall of Fame I found Otto Tickingclock, the president of Ernie’s university.

I don’t think I agree with his “invite-youngsters-to-my-hotel-room-with-this-smile” policy

If you eat a bisque, the only available option, at the Tourist Trap restaurant, you are send to jail. A group of spring-breakers breaks a wall at the restaurant and the sheriff detains Ernie when he arrives thinking he was part of the crowd. Once in jail, the only way out is to give the bisque to a crown-wearing cat that then transforms into a prince and opens the jail door before disappearing. That’s weird. And serves no purpose as I couldn’t find anything useful in the sheriff’s office. Maybe I did this too soon, as whenever I try to enter the police station before or after the event, the sheriff is always there and I can’t search the place. So I will have to try to avoid doing this before I know there is something interesting in the station or maybe I just need to learn how to get out of the jail without giving away the bisque.

I found the local wizard guild hall on top of the lighthouse. They asked me to fix the bulb there in order to gain access to the guild. No idea yet on how to do it

There a four level spell at the Point, that you can only reach if you empty your inventory. The spell transforms a man to a mermaid so I will have underwater adventures when I manage to level up.

There is a rummy at the Groggery with a key around his neck. It could be the key to the blue mansion at the bottom of the map or maybe to the Employees only door at the aquarium so I should find a way of getting it. Maybe getting him drunk?

Drunk-er?

Ernie falls sleep around 0.00 whenever he is. There doesn’t seem to be a penalty to sleeping on the outside but I think I should probably try to sleep on Ernie’s room

There doesn’t seem to be as many timed events as I thought there would be. There is a wrestling match on The Sand Bar every two hours. And some shops are only open on certain days of the week. But apart from that I didn’t find any day-night cycle occurring or people changing locations. Not that there is that many people around…

Chapter two starts after the morning following the party. And attending the party is something you have to plan, as the game won’t take you forcibly there. I simply skipped it while exploring.

  As you can see, not that many leads at the moment but many things to try and do. I will keep you posted

Inventory: 315 pieces of gold, inflated duck float, cloak, Sid’s book bag (textbook and nose shield), a package of breadsticks, a trophy, a confirmation letter, an instruction sheet, a spell book, glasses (worn) and a bathing suit (worn) Spells: BIP (produce soft music), FOY (create daiquiris), FRIMP (levitation). Session Time: 3 hours Total Time: Deimar 4 hours

Note Regarding Spoilers and Companion Assist Points: There’s a set of rules regarding spoilers and companion assist points. Please read it here before making any comments that could be considered a spoiler in any way. The short of it is that no points will be given for hints or spoilers given in advance of me requiring one. Please…try not to spoil any part of the game for me…unless I really obviously need the help…or I specifically request assistance. In this instance, I’ve not made any requests for assistance. Thanks!

source http://reposts.ciathyza.com/spellcasting-301-the-beach-boys/