#posts with a maximum audience of 3 people

[halfbloodfanboy]

Solar Archery Capstone:

Sidereal Archery Capstone:

Abyssal Archery Capstone:

[kipperlillyforpresident]

today's kipperlilly is about to have her heart stolen!

[archaeren]

How I learned to write smarter, not harder

(aka, how to write when you're hella ADHD lol)

A reader commented on my current long fic asking how I write so well. I replied with an essay of my honestly pretty non-standard writing advice (that they probably didn't actually want lol) Now I'm gonna share it with you guys and hopefully there's a few of you out there who will benefit from my past mistakes and find some useful advice in here. XD Since I started doing this stuff, which are all pretty easy changes to absorb into your process if you want to try them, I now almost never get writer's block.

The text of the original reply is indented, and I've added some additional commentary to expand upon and clarify some of the concepts.

As for writing well, I usually attribute it to the fact that I spent roughly four years in my late teens/early 20s writing text roleplay with a friend for hours every single day. Aside from the constant practice that provided, having a live audience immediately reacting to everything I wrote made me think a lot about how to make as many sentences as possible have maximum impact so that I could get that kind of fun reaction. (Which is another reason why comments like yours are so valuable to fanfic writers! <3) The other factors that have improved my writing are thus: 1. Writing nonlinearly. I used to write a whole story in order, from the first sentence onward. If there was a part I was excited to write, I slogged through everything to get there, thinking that it would be my reward once I finished everything that led up to that. It never worked. XD It was miserable. By the time I got to the part I wanted to write, I had beaten the scene to death in my head imagining all the ways I could write it, and it a) no longer interested me and b) could not live up to my expectations because I couldn't remember all my ideas I'd had for writing it. The scene came out mediocre and so did everything leading up to it. Since then, I learned through working on VN writing (I co-own a game studio and we have some visual novels that I write for) that I don't have to write linearly. If I'm inspired to write a scene, I just write it immediately. It usually comes out pretty good even in a first draft! But then I also have it for if I get more ideas for that scene later, and I can just edit them in. The scenes come out MUCH stronger because of this. And you know what else I discovered? Those scenes I slogged through before weren't scenes I had no inspiration for, I just didn't have any inspiration for them in that moment! I can't tell you how many times there was a scene I had no interest in writing, and then a week later I'd get struck by the perfect inspiration for it! Those are scenes I would have done a very mediocre job on, and now they can be some of the most powerful scenes because I gave them time to marinate. Inspiration isn't always linear, so writing doesn't have to be either!

Some people are the type that joyfully write linearly. I have a friend like this--she picks up the characters and just continues playing out the next scene. Her story progresses through the entire day-by-day lives of the characters; it never timeskips more than a few hours. She started writing and posting just eight months ago, she's about an eighth of the way through her planned fic timeline, and the content she has so far posted to AO3 for it is already 450,000 words long. But most of us are normal humans. We're not, for the most part, wired to create linearly. We consume linearly, we experience linearly, so we assume we must also create linearly. But actually, a lot of us really suffer from trying to force ourselves to create this way, and we might not even realize it. If you're the kind of person who thinks you need to carrot-on-a-stick yourself into writing by saving the fun part for when you finally write everything that happens before it: Stop. You're probably not a linear writer. You're making yourself suffer for no reason and your writing is probably suffering for it. At least give nonlinear writing a try before you assume you can't write if you're not baiting or forcing yourself into it!! Remember: Writing is fun. You do this because it's fun, because it's your hobby. If you're miserable 80% of the time you're doing it, you're probably doing it wrong!

2. Rereading my own work. I used to hate reading my own work. I wouldn't even edit it usually. I would write it and slap it online and try not to look at it again. XD Writing nonlinearly forced me to start rereading because I needed to make sure scenes connected together naturally and it also made it easier to get into the headspace of the story to keep writing and fill in the blanks and get new inspiration. Doing this built the editing process into my writing process--I would read a scene to get back in the headspace, dislike what I had written, and just clean it up on the fly. I still never ever sit down to 'edit' my work. I just reread it to prep for writing and it ends up editing itself. Many many scenes in this fic I have read probably a dozen times or more! (And now, I can actually reread my own work for enjoyment!) Another thing I found from doing this that it became easy to see patterns and themes in my work and strengthen them. Foreshadowing became easy. Setting up for jokes or plot points became easy. I didn't have to plan out my story in advance or write an outline, because the scenes themselves because a sort of living outline on their own. (Yes, despite all the foreshadowing and recurring thematic elements and secret hidden meanings sprinkled throughout this story, it actually never had an outline or a plan for any of that. It's all a natural byproduct of writing nonlinearly and rereading.)

Unpopular writing opinion time: You don't need to make a detailed outline.

Some people thrive on having an outline and planning out every detail before they sit down to write. But I know for a lot of us, we don't know how to write an outline or how to use it once we've written it. The idea of making one is daunting, and the advice that it's the only way to write or beat writer's block is demoralizing. So let me explain how I approach "outlining" which isn't really outlining at all.

I write in a Notion table, where every scene is a separate table entry and the scene is written in the page inside that entry. I do this because it makes writing nonlinearly VASTLY more intuitive and straightforward than writing in a single document. (If you're familiar with Notion, this probably makes perfect sense to you. If you're not, imagine something a little like a more contained Google Sheets, but every row has a title cell that opens into a unique Google Doc when you click on it. And it's not as slow and clunky as the Google suite lol) (Edit from the future: I answered an ask with more explanation on how I use Notion for non-linear writing here.) When I sit down to begin a new fic idea, I make a quick entry in the table for every scene I already know I'll want or need, with the entries titled with a couple words or a sentence that describes what will be in that scene so I'll remember it later. Basically, it's the most absolute bare-bones skeleton of what I vaguely know will probably happen in the story.

Then I start writing, wherever I want in the list. As I write, ideas for new scenes and new connections and themes will emerge over time, and I'll just slot them in between the original entries wherever they naturally fit, rearranging as necessary, so that I won't forget about them later when I'm ready to write them. As an example, my current long fic started with a list of roughly 35 scenes that I knew I wanted or needed, for a fic that will probably be around 100k words (which I didn't know at the time haha). As of this writing, it has expanded to 129 scenes. And since I write them directly in the page entries for the table, the fic is actually its own outline, without any additional effort on my part. As I said in the comment reply--a living outline!

This also made it easier to let go of the notion that I had to write something exactly right the first time. (People always say you should do this, but how many of us do? It's harder than it sounds! I didn't want to commit to editing later! I didn't want to reread my work! XD) I know I'm going to edit it naturally anyway, so I can feel okay giving myself permission to just write it approximately right and I can fix it later. And what I found from that was that sometimes what I believed was kind of meh when I wrote it was actually totally fine when I read it later! Sometimes the internal critic is actually wrong. 3. Marinating in the headspace of the story. For the first two months I worked on [fic], I did not consume any media other than [fandom the fic is in]. I didn't watch, read, or play anything else. Not even mobile games. (And there wasn't really much fan content for [fandom] to consume either. Still isn't, really. XD) This basically forced me to treat writing my story as my only source of entertainment, and kept me from getting distracted or inspired to write other ideas and abandon this one.

As an aside, I don't think this is a necessary step for writing, but if you really want to be productive in a short burst, I do highly recommend going on a media consumption hiatus. Not forever, obviously! Consuming media is a valuable tool for new inspiration, and reading other's work (both good and bad, as long as you think critically to identify the differences!) is an invaluable resource for improving your writing.

When I write, I usually lay down, close my eyes, and play the scene I'm interested in writing in my head. I even take a ten-minute nap now and then during this process. (I find being in a state of partial drowsiness, but not outright sleepiness, makes writing easier and better. Sleep helps the brain process and make connections!) Then I roll over to the laptop next to me and type up whatever I felt like worked for the scene. This may mean I write half a sentence at a time between intervals of closed-eye-time XD

People always say if you're stuck, you need to outline.

What they actually mean by that (whether they realize it or not) is that if you're stuck, you need to brainstorm. You need to marinate. You don't need to plan what you're doing, you just need to give yourself time to think about it!

What's another framing for brainstorming for your fic? Fantasizing about it! Planning is work, but fantasizing isn't.

You're already fantasizing about it, right? That's why you're writing it. Just direct that effort toward the scenes you're trying to write next! Close your eyes, lay back, and fantasize what the characters do and how they react.

And then quickly note down your inspirations so you don't forget, haha.

And if a scene is so boring to you that even fantasizing about it sucks--it's probably a bad scene.

If it's boring to write, it's going to be boring to read. Ask yourself why you wanted that scene. Is it even necessary? Can you cut it? Can you replace it with a different scene that serves the same purpose but approaches the problem from a different angle? If you can't remove the troublesome scene, what can you change about it that would make it interesting or exciting for you to write?

And I can't write sitting up to save my damn life. It's like my brain just stops working if I have to sit in a chair and stare at a computer screen. I need to be able to lie down, even if I don't use it! Talking walks and swinging in a hammock are also fantastic places to get scene ideas worked out, because the rhythmic motion also helps our brain process. It's just a little harder to work on a laptop in those scenarios. XD

In conclusion: Writing nonlinearly is an amazing tool for kicking writer's block to the curb. There's almost always some scene you'll want to write. If there isn't, you need to re-read or marinate.

Or you need to use the bathroom, eat something, or sleep. XD Seriously, if you're that stuck, assess your current physical condition. You might just be unable to focus because you're uncomfortable and you haven't realized it yet.

Anyway! I hope that was helpful, or at least interesting! XD Sorry again for the text wall. (I think this is the longest comment reply I've ever written!)

And same to you guys on tumblr--I hope this was helpful or at least interesting. XD Reblogs appreciated if so! (Maybe it'll help someone else!)

[dyktvideogamesfx]

Rules and the like!

Song poll blog inspired by things like @doyoulikethis-videogame-song, @doyoulikethissong-poll and Guess the Game.

The general gist is similar to most if not all of these blogs in which a small clip of SFX from a video game will be isolated and posted here, with polls for people to vote on how well known it is.

This page'll most likely be updated the more this kinda stuff goes on.

Should go without saying but transphobes, aphobes and exclusionists are not welcome here.

Submissions are: CLOSED

General FAQ:

Do you take submissions: Yes! Though only when submissions are open. This will be through a google form that will open and close periodically, whenever I have the time!

Will there be scheduled posts at specific times?: Right now I'm scheduling around 3 posts at 4pm GMT every day, though this may change with my own schedule/if submissions are running low.

I'll do my best to keep it going! :D

What is your name/pronouns: You can call me Smudge. He/They. Nice to meet you :3

Can we say the answer in the tags?: I would prefer if people didn't as this goes against the spirit of the game- However, very vague hints are fine by me! Be warey of spoilers in the notes if you want to play along!

My submission wasn't posted?: I will post every submission I get to the best of my ability but if I cannot locate or find the isolated audio I will have skip as game noise can warp or disturb the sound itself. I will do my best to find it isolated beforehand, but if I cannot then it must be skipped, apologies!

A good resource for finding game SFX is The Sound Resource but unfortunatly not every game has a clean rip for its sounds!

Can we submit voicelines?: This is tricky, mostly yes.

I would say things like Hornet's "SHAW" from Hollow Knight count for this blog and I would accept them vs something like a clip from Cave Johnson's Lemon Rant I would not accept! Use your best judgement when submitting, but voicelines and clips are not specifically off of the table.

This SFX was used somewhere else!: This blog will run both on submissions and generally what the sound is more associated with rather than its original source! Not every SFX is original and some are used from specific sound libraries. The Roblox OOF, for example, comes from a game named Messiah - however, since it is more well known for its inclusion in Roblox, thats what this blog will use as its source if thats how its submitted.

I will also be going off of what people say is the Context/Source for a game so sorry if that is ever wrong! If it is entirely, 100% incorrect in terms of where its from you can send me a message and I'll change it!

Can you tag scary/sounds from horror games?: The point of the game is listening to unexpected sounds, and "scary" is an extremely subjective description. I will do my best to avoid posting loud jumpscare sounds or other sounds that I think are unpalatable to a general audience, but beyond that I don't intend on tagging specific types of sounds at this time.

How many SFX can we submit in the form?: I would prefer 4 per person, at maximum, if you submit multiple from the same series I will most likely space them out across a few days/weeks.

You didn't answer my ask/did you recieve my ask?: I tend to be doing other things while this blog runs on a queue, I try my best to answer and give the best responses I can for this blog to make it more accessible/comfortable and for everyone to contribute to this fun little game!

However- if you've noticed I haven't answered your ask, it's not personal. It may be due to it already being answered here, too spoilery concerning specific polls, inappropriate subjects for this blog or I may just keep asks in my inbox if they're especially nice/kind to look back on!

Can we add XYZ to the voting options?: I am quite happy with the three options as they are! I prefer not to muddy polls with very specific options, making votes a little more strict. Generally all 3 cover everything they should.

This sound is too loud/quiet!:

In all seriousness, if a sound is genuinely too loud, shoot me an ask. I'll see if its appropriate to add a warning!

Active Tags:

#open vote : Polls that are open

#closed vote : Polls that have been closed and the SFX source revealed

#asks : Asks for the blog.

#off-topic : For anything off topic - may be related to the blog or an update/announcement!

[girlcharles-ficfest]

Welcome to the girl charles fest!

This is a charles-centric fest but with the twist of making him a girl. as one should do.

Most of the important information has been compiled in the carrd which is also linked in bio.

Important dates

Prompting open: June 16 to July 5

Claiming & sign ups opening: June 17

Check-in: July 20

Posting start: August 17

Reveal: August 20

Important links

Sign up form

Prompt form

ao3 collection

But a quick rundown of the rules and guidelines under the cut:

all works should feature charles as a primary character and as a girl (cis or trans).

there's a minimum of 2k words, while maximum is up to the writer

works’ ratings can range from general audience, teen and up, mature, and explicit.

all works must be properly tagged.

writers remain anonymous until reveal but stating participation is fine!

two prompts per people, and if you think you can do more, please wait until you have at least finished the first two & contact me

have fun & be yourself <3

This is supposed to be a low-stress event so don't stress out too much if you miss deadlines or feel that you cannot finish, but do think about telling me so i can keep track of everything!

[hermitzine]

HERMITZINE FAQ

What is Hermitzine, anyway?

Hermitzine is a fanzine, a compilation of illustration, comics and writing based around the long running Minecraft SMP Hermitcraft, with works focusing on the creative projects, collaborations and interactions the creators on the server (aka Hermits) share with their audiences. For each edition, we (the Hermitzine mods) announce the theme we're running with this edition, open applications, and pick our roster of collaborators from the artists and writers who want to be involved. 

Once our line up of collaborators has been selected, we invite all the contributors for the zine to our discord server, and the process of making the zine pieces starts! Contributors brainstorm an idea for a piece they want to do, and run it past our mods for approval, then work on it over the course of about 2 months (to make sure people have time to put together something they're proud of without having to ignore things like sleep, school and work). Hermitzine #9 has a little bit more going on with collaboration and format, but we go through that in the application form.

What's the timeline of events for this edition?

The current schedule for Hermitzine #9 is as follows:

March 02 — Applications open at midnight GMT

March 16 — Applications close at midnight GMT

March 23 — Acceptance / Rejection emails go out

March 30 — Check in 1 (initial sketches / ideas)

April 13 — Check in 2

April 27 — Check in 3

May 11 — Check in 4

June 01 — Final pieces are due

Late June / early July — Zine is published

More questions and answers below the cut! (A lot more. Be glad we added the cut).

How do I apply?

Fill out the form (we'll be posting them very soon)! We have a writers application form and an artists application form, both will be open between the 2nd and the 16th of March.

In your application, you'll be answering a few questions and sharing 3-5 of your best pieces, to let us know what you're about as a writer and/or artist.

Then all you have to do is sit tight and wait for our email on March 23rd to find out if you're in!

Who can apply?

We have three requirements: 1) you’re 15 years or older, 2) you can speak enough English to communicate about deadlines and other important zine-related discussions, and 3) you have a Discord account, as that is how all communications with contributors will be made. A free account is fine — we don’t send files through Discord itself, so there’s no need to buy Nitro.

What do I need to do / have to apply?

For all of our applicants, we ask for a small portfolio of 3-5 pieces of your best finished work. We ask for a small portfolio to keep our views of your work focused on what you think is you at your best. These portfolio pieces don’t necessarily have to be Hermitcraft related, or even belong to a fandom. As long as it’s your personal work and you’re proud of it, we want to see it.

For writers: we ask that the 3-5 works you submit are around 3,000 words maximum, since that is the vague limit you will have to work within the zine. You can submit excerpts from longer works as long as you specify that somewhere within the application piece.

Do I need to be well-known or have a large social media following to be accepted?

Not at all. Social media following does not factor into whether or not you’re accepted. You could have one follower or one thousand — either way, we’re looking at your portfolio. You don’t even need any social media at all! We ask for social media handles in the application in case we want to check out more of your work beyond your portfolio.

What do you look for in the portfolio judging criteria?

We look for several things when judging portfolios. For artists, the list includes:

Your ability to finish zine-quality pieces (fully-rendered, backgrounds, not rushed-looking, etc)

Hard skills: composition, color theory, anatomy, perspective, shape language, etc

Comic paneling skills, if applicable

Solid illustration styles that interest us and we want to see more of

For writers, the list includes:

Your ability to finish zine-quality pieces (complete and concise work, with a full narrative if applicable)

Good grasp on writing basics (grammar, punctuation, spelling, sentence flow, etc)

Solid writing styles / voice / characterization

Ideas and we find intriguing, interesting, or otherwise would like to see written in full

If either of these lists are daunting to you, don’t worry! We are very interested in people who are eager to try new things and push themselves as artists and writers. We’ve accepted many people before based on their apparent eagerness to improve and collaborate with others.

We also like applicants with a unique or unusual approach to artmaking. Some examples include: traditional media, 3D modeling, photo manipulation, graphic design, typography, poetry, etc. While these skills are fun to include, don’t worry — not having them won’t detract from your chance of getting accepted.

Can I apply for both an artist and a writer position?

Yes you can, but if you’re accepted, we’ll choose you for only one of the two options. For example, if you apply to both and we accept you for writing, we expect you to create a written piece for the zine only, no illustration. This decision will be revealed to you in the acceptance email you get once the application period is over.

Can I participate if I’m a traditional artist?

Absolutely! All we require is that you have a scanner in order to submit high-quality images of your work. We work around the 300dpi range, and unfortunately photos taken with phones or webcams usually aren’t high-quality enough for us to include.

How many artists / writers do you accept?

The number of participants (artists and writers combined) we accept depends on several factors — the most important of which are how many mods we have working on the zine and how much we decide we can handle. Historically, our acceptance count ranges anywhere from 35 to 75 participants, with our most recent editions hitting numbers closer to the top of that range.

How do I know my application was submitted correctly? What happens if the link to my portfolio doesn’t work?

If you don’t receive any word from us from the time you submitted your application to when the acceptance and rejection emails go out, then congratulations, your application was submitted correctly! If something is wrong with your portfolio, like if one or more of your links don’t work, we typically request access — which will then appear as an email in the inbox of whatever email is linked to the drive you shared your portfolio from. If the issue persists, you might receive a private message requesting access from one of the mods on a social media handle you included in your application. If you don’t receive an email or message from us, then everything with your application works.

Do you guys send rejection emails?

We do. If you apply to Hermitzine, you’re going to receive an email from us regardless of whether you’re accepted or rejected. If you’re rejected, we give you the opportunity to ask for feedback with your portfolio.

I applied but never got an email. What’s going on?

If you haven’t received an email even though we’ve announced they’ve been sent out on our social media accounts, please check your spam folder to see if it accidentally went there. This has happened a lot in the past!

If I’ve been rejected from an edition of Hermitzine, does that mean I can never apply again?

Absolutely not! You can apply to any edition of Hermitzine you’d like, from now until forever, regardless of the results of previous applications. We love seeing friendly names show up in applications!

Do people who have participated in prior editions of Hermitzine have a higher chance of getting accepted to the newest edition?

No. Applicants who’ve participated in previous editions have the exact same chances at getting into the newest edition than any other participant.

What content is allowed in Hermitzine?

Requirements for a piece are only to feature Hermitcraft and/or the Hermits primarily, follow the theme, be SFW and not have any shipping content. That means that crossover content (ex: the Empires crossover) and hermit-adjacent people can be included, and that pieces can be about content from any season of Hermitcraft.

[gojosbf]

About your Gege making people confront death post- I think people are more mad about the gojo/yuuta situation bc of all the people that died. Like they all had their shining moment for what ? Just to keep killing then off and having learned nothing from sukuna. At least for me brining Gojo back that way was so unnecessary bc he’s possibly killing yuuta now as well.Like you’re telling me all those people who died couldn’t have all teamed up together somehow to beat sukuna, they just solely are relying on Gojo.

we aren't sure if yuuta will be really dead or whatever is to come anymore and i can understand why people are mad about gojo/yuuta situation and i even agree about having learnt barely anything about sukuna, they did understand his techniques but that is so little and he's the only ultimate villain we have against whom nothing works and i get your frustration about that part because same. each 2 chapters a character has a shining moment, surprises sukuna only to be killed off later though about if they could've ganged up on him instead of relying on just gojo there were three reasons for that: 1) as mentioned in manga anyone interfering between gojo vs sukuna was only going to hold gojo back that is why they had no choice but to wait and watch 2) when gojo did die kashimo immediately wanted to be able to fight sukuna 1v1 and nobody could deny it 3) when they were finally left to themselves they had to plan meticulously because it is THE ryoumen sukuna and we cannot have just anyone jumping in the battle whenever (henceforth all the flashbacks and explaining). bringing gojo back might seem unnecessary but gege is making maximum use of yuuta here, the sorcerers saw how much gojo's techniques damaged sukuna and we had yuuta with copy ct and kenjaku, he put each one of them to use. these three might truly be the only characters that he's utilised to the fullest and since of course because it'd stir the audience as a mangaka it seems like a great writing option. again i agree with you on some points but i can also see why the recent chapter is the way it is, gege had the chance to the worst thing ever and knowing him he obviously couldn't let it simply go.

[zot3-flopped]

Louis put his son Freddie in his documentary because one of Louis’ tactics to hold onto fame is to make himself look like a stand-up guy who has had a lot of shit thrown at him but who has triumphed against all those odds.

He was sidelined during 1D? But look at him on stage now! (1) He never understood the end of the band? But by golly that plucky young man picked himself up and got on with it! (2) He doesn’t get radio play for reasons he can’t put his finger on? But his fans will pick up the slack because he needs them and they need him! (3) He accidentally got a stylist’s assistant pregnant during a fling and she refused to have a termination? I mean, sure, it’s a logistical pain, but look at how he is stepping up to be a dad! (4)

(1) He’s motionless on stage, can’t remember his lyrics, cannot sing, doesn’t really sing for a lot of his set, has a back-up band to do it for him, and has inconsistent ticket sales to say the least, in venues that are far too big for him.

(2) If he didn’t understand the end of the band, what with all the wrapping up of companies that he actually had to sign documents to do, then he’s either mentally incapable or a liar.

(3) He doesn’t get radio play because he isn’t interesting enough and his audience is mentally unstable and bombards djs with demands. He’s also probably pissed off most of the relevant people over the past 14 years. Plus there’s the whiff of racism and misogyny he can’t quite shift.

(4) Except when he’s in the pub.

Louis has had a lot to deal with over the years - it’s hard to lose a parent and a sister, and I appreciate he doesn’t want to talk about those very real things a lot. But, I see him using Freddie in that film to fit in with the story he and BMG have tailored for him, and I think it’s reprehensible. In a world full of Larries with no boundaries and no shame, he shouldn’t have done that.

Love this! Louis and Briana should probably never have shown Freddie's face, and then he'd have had complete privacy like Khai and Bear. But Louis started the ball rolling with a Hello type photoshoot, bare chested and holding Freddie. He put it up on his IG to grab maximum attention for himself.

Of course, after that Briana followed suit and posted their son, but despite being depicted by Larries as the biggest fame whore to walk the earth, she never once did an interview with a magazine despite being inundated with offers. Nor has she monetised her IG by working with brands.

[yelldeadcellvrremix]

I've been thinking about Clone High again since I can't escape that show.

There is no serious analysis or thesis statement. I just need to vent.

THIS SHOW COULD'VE BEEN SO FUCKING GOOD. THIS SHOW HAD SUCH A GOOD PREMISE, IT HAS AN AMAZING FIRST SEASON. AND IT'S ALL FUCKING WASTED.

This fandom is mostly made up of teenagers, so lemme just tell y'all this: When I was your age, I had to watch this show split into two parts on YouTube, at 360p resolution AT HIGHEST. I witnessed the fandom back when it was 10 people maximum, sitting around in a little makeshift DeviantArt group and maybe a forum if you were lucky, and half of them were every -phobic and -ist imaginable. And I couldn't even join them because I wasn't allowed to have social media until 14 years old, and even then, the state of social media back then was so dookie that I wouldn't have even known how to have used it.

You wanted to talk about the long wait of time you had to wait for season 2 to drop, and 3 afterwards? Y'all only had two years maximum.

IMAGINE BEING ME, WHO HAD TO WAIT A WHOLE TEN YEARS FOR ANYTHING TO COME OUT. ANYTHING.

AND WHEN SEASON 2 FINALLY DROPPED.... i mean it was aight, I guess. The sleepover episode and For Your Consideration are easily the best of the season. Nothing can ever beat Raisin' The Stakes, but at least it wasn't boring like the rest of the season.

AND THEN SEASON 3 DROPS AND IT WAS TOTAL

DOOKIE

I could've accepted the fact that Clone High wouldn't be as good as it used to. I may not have liked season 2, but I was willing to acknowledge that it had some alright stuff. But season 3? I watched in real time as the show I loved was eviscerated right in front of my eyes.

and then it took an entire year to confirm that the show was cancelled and i felt part of my soul die. I didn't even like the show anymore around this time, but there was a slight part of me that hoped for even a crumb of a chance that Clone High could've redeemed itself with a fourth season.

But you know the worst part?

The premise had no right being as good as it was, but it was all used for a show that basically forgot about it.

Clones of historical figures navigating their identities during their teenage years, an age range where everyone questions what their future will be and where they're just getting their first taste of independence. IS THAT NOT A PREMISE RIPE WITH SO MUCH POTENTIAL? Even if you don't wanna explore the existentialism of such a story, imagine all of the fun you can have by showing how historical figures would act in a modern setting, and the jokes and facts you can throw in along the way.

Meanwhile Clone High did just that for its first season (even though MTV actually told them to keep them minimal because they thought their audience was too stupid to understand history jokes)... and then completely forgot about its own premise moving onwards, save for the season premieres and finales.

Yeah I don't know how to end this post, I'm just really mad that this show had to end up this way. Anyways I'm gonna rip this show's premise off for a future project, k bye.

[thatzombiecat]

Seems like tumblr got me shadowbanned for some unknown for me reason. My posts just not appearing for people and me in tag-wide search and tl.

I remember my posts have gathered plenty of interactions before but now they barely scraping 10 likes, 60 likes maximum for the posts that exploded otherwise on other platforms (like Baldur's Gate 3 fanarts).

Like, it's so discouraging to use tumblr now and to share my works with people here when no one can see it. Gosh I'm so tired...

I've experienced a huge bot influx in my follower count somewhere at the start of 2023 and the fact is that you can't get them unfollow you. My activity died since then. I also tried to promote my patreon as a blog with more content and thoughts as it was a platform that I was comfortable with and a friendly place to battle my social media anxiety. But maybe algorithms and bot influx got me screwed

And now this blog's activity is plain dead and stale and I have no joy to post here anymore because all of it

I'm so fed up with the social media bullshit, the bot influx, fighting to please the algorithms, and new apps trying to replace where you have to figure out how to AGAIN battle algorithms and build AGAIN your follower count. As is already the abundance of social media is REALLY draining, and it's really hard to focus while you have to repost every piece everywhere

I'm just a little artist trying to survive that wants to have everything and my audience in one place to share my little scribbles ;;

Already filed the complain to tumblr support. I'll promise to reblog my artworks when I'll get a respond and things will get fixed (hope they'll do)

Sorry for the rant. Gotta finally blow out some steam

[wienersmosh]

rapid fire list of my smosh-related opinions:

noah grossman needs to have been phased out 3 months ago. people acting like FREELANCER contracts are so fucking ironclad and that's why smosh couldn't do anything are so disingenuous. they phased out saige in 2022, they could've very easily done the same to noah -- they just didn't want to.

eat it or yeet it was fun for the first few episodes, but they ran it to the ground when they realized it was a hit with the locals/casual viewers and they needed those numbers. it's SO absurd that they made 89 episodes and it got really boring, really fast. (i'm glad anthony got to be on it before they got rid of it tho)

i've always found garrett annoying and unfunny for the most part. he's maybe said one or two funny things in all of my time watching smosh and i will never understand how some people stan him or find him attractive.

to be clear even if they replaced garrett as host on eioyi, it would still be boring and stale to me.

i miss kimmy being on camera. she wasn't the funniest and the smiley sunshine persona can be a bit much but she was one of the better sketch actors imo.

i do not want the og smosh games cast back. it's also weird they keep bringing up smosh on their ogsog content. i'm glad they appear to be on good terms with ian and anthony but unless there's ACTUALLY a future collab in the works they need to stop namedropping smosh so much.

i don't necessarily miss saige on smosh but i do miss damien and saige as a couple.

i don't care if people don't like anthony or don't find him funny, but the way a LOT of fans (mostly on twitter and reddit) blatantly disrespect him, the fact that he started smosh, and him literally reuniting with his best friend, just bc they got rid of the unscripted series on main really pisses me off. also he's not to blame for EVERYTHING wrong with smosh today.

HOWEVER, that being said, i do believe there was a better way to transition smosh main. they could've had anthony do a speed run of all of their unscripted series to give them a proper goodbye, and THEN uploaded the sketches.

EBE was a hit or miss, but when they did it well they did it REALLY well.

other than ian, anthony, and finnerty, syd and olivia were their best sketch writers.

people who are genuinely mad that they have memberships now are overreacting. i get that paying for anything sucks but if you're an adult with a job in a first world country $10 USD a month *maximum* really isn't that much. also, they're independent now, that's just the reality of capitalism.

people who act like smosh is above any and all criticism genuinely terrify me. they're a youtube channel and a company, and as audience members we're allowed to critique them.

the old smoshcast was better than smosh mouth, but i might be biased bc ian did host most of them.

agree to disagree was a good series, but they botched it when they started using more serious prompts which caused a lot of viewers to lose respect for some of the cast for problematic opinions.

i used to like olivia but considering she was only in 30 videos last year and she really doesn't seem like she cares anymore, i don't get how they expect any of us to still care about her. also she posted something in support of israel on her story, but hardly anyone knows about it.

i love the guy but shayne doesn't need to be in every video. i get that he brings in the views, but jesus christ.

smosh pit theater is their best pit series, followed closely by beopardy.

i find a lot of their defy era series on pit eg sleepover, show with no name, put it in my mouth, etc to be really boring and i’m glad they got out of defy and sarah whittle was more in charge of pit.

i didn’t like angela at first but i love her now.

[moriarty1234]

T*LC Refutation (but decidedly NOT johnlock refutation)

[Note: I love and ship johnlock because I saw it for myself in the show when I watched it and was part of the general audience in the past. I even want it to become canon in some Holmes adaption in the future. But T*lc needs to get sucked into obscurity and forgotten. Other fandoms like Good Omens, etc., are following the same rhetoric in their "meta" posts, and that needs to go. This is crucial for our basic critical thinking skills and objectivity.]

Read Part - 3 : Everything wrong with "subtexts" and "symbolisms" here.

Part-4: The Harmful Aspect of T*LC:

Let's move on to some more serious issues, or why we (Kim and I) don't believe for even a second that hardcore t*lcers (the ones who're rabid about this theory) ever cared for any type of representation, or even johnlock in itself for that matter.

I say hardcore t*lcers because the normal ones simply believe in t*lc and keep that shit to themselves. I'm even mutuals with them on Tumblr (although I know that when the show was on air, hardcore, insufferable, and deeply problematic t*lcers were in the majority).

1.) The very definition of t*lc : The general idea of t*lc is that johnlock has been planned since 2010 (right from the first episode of S1), this whole show is essentially a love story between Sherlock and John, the cases are not so important, and that johnlock is going to be the endgame canon ship. When the writers deny anything related to johnlock in their own show, they're lying to keep their elaborate plan under the wraps. When Sherlock and John kiss on screen, it'll be a rug pull moment for all the non-believers, their love story will be groundbreaking queer representation in mainstream media, and BBC Sherlock will become a culturally iconic Holmes adaptation. Because sometimes, the queer characters can be the heroes of the story.

All this sounded so nice and fancy to me when I was new to shipping johnlock. Because BBC Sherlock was my first fandom that I ever participated in. Johnlock was (and is) my first ship. I used to be a non-shipper before this, because I'm not exactly a Romance-genre fan in published fiction.

Now I don't like the general idea of this at all. Not because I don't want johnlock to become canon in some version (I really do), but there are so many flaws in the very idea of t*lc.

a.) They didn't even plan what they were going to do with Rosie Watson in S4. They just introduced the pregnancy subplot to raise the stakes in HLV. Only for shock value purposes. This was Mark Gatiss' statement (now I can't find the link but I've seen an article about this before). To think they'd planned an entire romance storyline, but it was just under the wraps the whole time, is unrealistic.

b.) While it's true that showrunners or directors do lie to their fans before a work is published to maintain an element of surprise, Moffat and Gatiss had denied anything related to johnlock too many times, and almost vehemently for most viewers to believe that they're just lying. One can only lie too many times, after all. And something needs to be there in the actual show for (maximum) fans to catch on that they're indeed just lying. There wasn't enough evidence for that. Too many of those scenes just came off as gay jokes instead of anything of real substance. That wasn't a good look.

c.) The third part is really what gets me the most here, and one of the main reasons why Kim and I began to actively despise t*lc, even though we're both still pro-johnlock. These people really thought the ultimate rug pull moment for the entire audience should be... that John and Sherlock are in love? Really? That's it? That's highest standard you have for supposedly groundbreaking queer representation? That doesn't sound right. Queer representation really shouldn't be used for shock value. As if we're not marginalised and isolated from most people already. Especially in my country. That just sounds as though you want to place these two characters in a museum as though they're some exotic beings or something. That's the opposite of a healthy queer rep.

d.) Even if johnlock were canon, it would've hardly been groundbreaking for the purposes of queer representation. Even in the 2010s. Because shows like Breaking Bad (a show from 2008, i.e., before BBC Sherlock, in which a very significant character is canonically gay and black), Elementary (where Mrs Hudson is canonically trans, Joan Watson is a well written character even as a poc female lead, Jamie Moriarty is also properly characterised when mainstream media doesn't have a lot of well-written female villains to begin with), London Spy (which is also a BBC show from 2015), Money Heist (which also features a significant canonically gay character), etc., still existed. I'll even list The Irregulars as an example, even though the first season of that show was aired in 2021, because that was still before the Sherlock Holmes franchise entered the public domain. Watson is canonically gay and black in that one.

e.) This is a detective show you're talking about. Cases aren't important? You kidding me?

2.) Rabid t*lcers were hypocritical as hell. They used to demand canon johnlock for "representation", but they were all sorts of bigoted people themselves.

a.) They made racist comments about Lucy Liu.

(From Sarah Z's video) :

They've called slurs to fans of colour in the fandom (I can think of one fan specifically right now) for not shipping johnlock.

b.) Characterising Sherlock as a twink, gay baby, or "smol" is fetishistic. It's just homophobia indirectly.

c.) They went rabid about the bisexual Sherlock headcanon, Instead of simply disagreeing with it for whatever reason. You're not doing the queer community any favours by h/cing John as bisexual just for your johnlock shipping, only because he has canonically shown attraction to women.

See this:

Stop playing the victim card right after perpetuating biphobia lol. You need to rewatch the show if you think mere fascination was all he felt for Irene. Also, even if he genuinely didn't show any attraction to any woman in canon, fanon can still be its own thing. Not everything has to be strictly canon compliant.

One more:

Stop straw manning and assuming real people's sexuality. Stop ship bashing. Enough with the biphobia.

This person is a johnlocker and "The One" obviously means johnlock here. No, not everyone is uncomfortable because of johnlock for bigoted reasons. People are allowed to have preferences.

Another one (probably my favourite) :

Talk about hypocrisy. The title of this post sounds so positive to bisexuality, but then OP goes right ahead to frantically claim Sherlock is 100% gay and not anything else!!! 1!!

Sherlock is heavily queercoded in the show, I agree. I don't even care whether that was the authorial intent or not at this point. That's what a non-insignificant amount of people took away from this show.

But his canon sexuality was never specified. People are allowed to interpret his sexuality however they want. You are nobody to state your own headcanons as facts.

More hypocrisy.

d.) The acephobia was rampant in this fandom mostly because of these people. It's a well-documented fact.

e.) The misogyny in this fandom was ugly. The kind of outlandish metas they write trying to disprove adl*ck from the show... jeez. If adl*ck definitely doesn't exist in this show, why would you need to disprove it so many times through your meta posts?

Can't erase something that really isn't there, just saying.

"Irene is just a personification of Sherlock's libido for John." Seriously? Do you even listen to yourself?

Don't get me wrong. I blame Mofftiss equally as much for not writing women properly in general, Irene Adler in particular. They butchered canon Irene Adler (a queen) way too much in their show. But the fans' response to her was almost worst.

It's understandable if the show's version of Mary doesn't sit right with you for whatever reason. People are allowed to have preferences. Personally, I'm quite neutral about Mary Morstan in this show.

But these people used to take their hate for her too far. These people have never been as mad at Moriarty, or even at Culverton Smith, as they all were at Mary for shooting Sherlock. Again, this is a crime drama show. Not all characters are going to be sunshine and roses.

3.) Rabid t*lcers hardly ever tried to explore johnlock in other versions. If you're a fan of Sherlock Holmes, you'll be at least curious about different adaptations that exist out there. Why did they hardly ever posted about The Irregulars when it was aired? An adaptation in which Watson is canonically in love with Holmes? I've been around in the johnlock fandom enough to know that the rabid t*lcers (NOT ALL T*LCers) never really cared about the possibility of johnlock in some other version after it ultimately didn't become canon in BBC Sherlock. They only care for johnlock as long as Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman are associated with it.

... Yup.

(ACD canon Watson was in his early thirties in the first novel. That's not middle aged. Joanlock didn't even become canon - something that was specified since Day 1 - in Elementary lmfao. Also, Lucy Liu was in her forties when Elementary aired. Get your facts straight.)

All these three points are enough to conclude that what t*lcers usually posted about was obviously not "demand for representation", but rather a demand for some extremely specific fantasies acted out on screen with an even more specific choice of actors.

I even joked to Kim about this: The stuff they demand for is so extremely specific that it sounds like a Starbucks order lol.

Part: 5 - Conclusion:

I want johnlock to become canon in some version of Sherlock Holmes adaptation. But I want t*lc as a theory to be completely forgotten and obscured. T*lc is definitely not the way to go about it. Other fandoms (namely Good Omens) have started to write "metas" with the exact same rhetoric in them, and now it's completely unacceptable. It's 2024 now. Let it go.

Some interesting links Kim and I found that are very insightful and relevant to this post:

About cults and the followers

Cult psychology

Conspiracy theory psychology

Science vs pseudo-science

Science vs psudo-science - 2

Conspiracy theory psychology - 2

Signs someone is a pseudo-intellectual

One explanation why even otherwise sensible people seem to believe in t*lc

PS: Not every dark haired character/ blond character is a Sherlock/John mirror respectively. That's not how character-mirroring works. Experts would know this.

T*LC refutation (but NOT johnlock) refutation master post.

[infyq]

What is online reputation management India | explain by Infyq Seo experts

This is the digital age, whereby the reputation of a business or a person is emulated by an online footing. You are either a small business owner, a multinational corporation, or even a public figure; you are partly defined by what a person is going to find out about you on the internet. This is where online reputation comes in. That's where we come in here at InfyQ SEO Experts—to provide highly specialized help to businesses and persons who realize their reputation either adds or takes away from their status in the gradually paperless digital universe.

Understanding reputation management

Basically, ORM is the process of monitoring, influencing, and managing a brand's or even individual's perception online. It is basically a mix of methods and strategies used to control what people see in perceptions regarding a person or business in the online space, especially in search, social media, and review websites.

ORM does not only aim at suppressing negative content but also looks at enhancing positive information that characterizes or defines the image that an entity wants to project.

Importance of Online Reputation.

With increased reliance of consumers on the Internet for research before they make any decision, online reputation becomes really important. Here's why:

Builds Trust and Credibility

One of the critical success factors in delivering any business relationship is building trust. Any search your prospective customer may conduct over the internet needs to result in something that builds confidence in your brand.

1.First Impressions Count

The majority of times, search engines are where a future customer will have their very first experience with your brand. It's extremely hard to recover from a bad first impression. We can help in forming that positive first impression through ORM, shining a light on the positives with your brand, and making sure any negative content is at a minimum or removed altogether.

2.Influence Buying Decisions

Modern-day consumers are much better informed and use online forums and review sites to a great extent. A poor online reputation can make a huge difference in purchase decisions. Online management gives you a better way to influence how consumers think about your brand, product, or service and will more likely drive them toward a positive purchase decision.

The Various Key Strategies of ORM

In order to manage and regulate your online reputation, it deploys quite a few strategies. Some of the key constituents of this comprehensive package include:

1. Monitoring and Analysis

The first step of ORM is being aware of what people say about you online. This involves search engine results, not to forget social media, review site platforms, and other channels for brand mentions.

2.Content Creation and Promotion

positive content is very important for strong online reputation. High-quality content represents the core values and expertise of your brand. we do provide blog posts, press releases, great articles and social media updates with good contents that let you show off your strengths. This content is also shared on multiple platforms so as to reach maximum individuals.

3.Social Media Optimization India

Social media is the greatest of all platforms that stands to influence your customer's perception. In the realm of our ORM services, we bring to the table SMO that aid you in the professional administration of your brand's social media avatars on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

Our team makes content that is bound to engage, motivate, and connect to your target audience, which thrills your followers to more positive interactions. We ensure that more friends are initiated from the conversations and that all the comments and messages are replied to instantly in order to retain a positive image.

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Link-building is another critical step in ORM, as through high quality backlinks acquired through reputable sites, one can boost the authority of website and its ranking in search engines.

It is one such brand that deals with specialized link building services India. we have a strong belief in working on the creation of a robust and diversified backlink profile through guest posting, influencer outreach, and content marketing.

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Search engine optimization is an integral part of ORM. We optimize the website and its content, leaning toward the relevant search engine keywords to increase placement on SERPs. It doesn't just give you the visibility, it controls what that visibility says about your brand.

It performs both on-page and off-page optimizations to ensure that the positive content comes up above the negative information. This will include website structure optimization, improving load times, and enhancing user experience.

Why Choose my company for Best SEO Experts in Reputation Management?

we understand that your online reputation is one of your most valuable assets. Our experienced team is committed to helping you keep and improve your online reputation management India.

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As a full-service digital marketing agency, we deliver ORM management services, social media optimization, link building, and full SEO as part of a holistic approach to the task.

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We are one of the leading management companies and are based out of India. We offer a whole bouquet of services to enhance and protect your reputation even further. From social media optimization in India to link building services, we have strategies that will be tailor-made for you, done with the sole intention of turning the perception of your brand positive on the World Wide Web.

Do not hesitate to contact us and let us serve the various reputation management needs of your business.

[thetreetopinn]

PINNED POST!

Oh hey, I should make a pinned post. Might be a good idea.

Hi, I'm Smokey.

ABOUT ME

I'm a dragon. I used to write a hell of a lot and I'm trying to get my mojo back. Burnout is a serious ass bitch.

I don't identify as trans offline, but to quote Thought Slime: "I'm not fancy, I'll use whatever pronouns ya got lyin' around."

So, you can use: He/She/Any/All

My favorite pronoun joke, since I live in a particular state, is: "My pronouns are yee/haw."

I do however stan all my trans brothers, sisters, and non-binary siblings. You better respect trans folks or your pronouns are gonna be was/were.

👴👵HOW OLD AM I👵👴

A lotta of folks put "AGE IN BIO OR YOU'RE BLOCKED" or "MINORS DO NOT INTERACT" or something like that.

Here's my answer. I'm an elder millennial.

If that's not good enough, here. I'm older than this:

No, I'm not going to put my actual age in my bio. No, I'm not going to put my birth year in my bio. If "Elder Millennial" or the "I'm older than $Movie" isn't good enough, well, sounds like a 'you' problem. Sorry.

"yOu cOuLd bE lYiNg aBoUt aLl oF tHat!" So could someone who put a number in their bio.

🪄✨🌈POLITICS🌈✨🪄

I live in the United States (for my sins) and I'm a frothing, foaming, shrieking, screaming leftist.

Being an elder millennial that lived through: A) 9/11 (I was in high school at the time) B) 3 consecutive, once-in-a-lifetime, economic disasters (2000's oil price bubble, 2007-2010 subprime mortgage crisis, 2020 stock market crash) C) The pandemic (and seeing people lose their fucking shit and prove that zombie movies are ENTIRELY plausible) D) Just... well... everything that's happened with my country's government at various levels ...You could say I've been radicalized.

So, let's get the obvious political talking points out of the way and watch my follower count shrink a bit!

✊🏿Black Lives Matter✊🏿

🏳️‍⚧️Trans rights are human rights🏳️‍⚧️

🏳️‍🌈Stonewall was a riot🏳️‍🌈

Sex work is real work

Forced birth is a form of torture

Cars suck Give us public transport, walkable cities, & high speed rail

N@zis can fuck right the hell off into a god damned volcano Same with t3rfs, biological essentialists, crypto douchebags, "AI" techbro fucksticks, and libertarians who think age of consent means "mental maturity"

Palestine will be free This doesn't make it okay to be an antisemite Supporting Palestine does not mean "Eradicate the Jews" Protesting antisemitism does not mean protesting Palestine The Israeli State does not equal The Israeli People Hamas does not equal The Palestinian People

Trumpists and MAGA are fascists and white supremacists Same with Qanon Same with all the far right schmucks like the oath keepers, the 3 percenters, the proud boys, the KKK, and other similar groups

Capitalism is just feudalism with extra steps When forced to choose between money and a sustainable world, Capitalists will always choose money and let the rest of us burn Eat the fucking rich

I believe in pursuing the maximum amount of freedom for the maximum number of people

This is, of course, not a complete list.

Heh, I'm sure that'll piss of a LOT of people. And I'm totally down with that. If you're offended by any of this, please, cry some more. And feel free to leave nasty comments or mean asks or whatever. Just lets me know who to block! Thank you for outing yourself!

If you wanna show solidarity with any of this, just reblog with a 🐉or a 🐲. Why a dragon? Because dragons are cool. No I'm not biased.

⭐WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT ON THIS BLOG⭐

I'm probably going to include a broad mix of things. Some of it will be suitable for all audiences, but a lot of it VERY MUCH NOT.

Things I will likely reblog:

Funny memes

Important news/posts/political updates

Wholesome stuff

Plenty of generally queer affirming stuff This includes aro/ace folks, ya'll are valid too

Plenty of explicitly trans affirming stuff

Art that I like (cute)

Art that I like (impressive)

Art that I like (adult/kink related)

Adult/kink related posts in general

Furry stuff I would say "LOTS AND LOTS OF FURRY STUFF" but it feels like Tumblr isn't all that prime a spot for furries, but I stan what I can when I find it

🫷You said adult/kink--is this a PORN blog!?!🫸

Not explicitly, because Tumblr is a coward. I'm old enough to remember when this place used to allow straight up porn. Then the great puritanical purge happened. Still, this blog stans sexytimes and those who create stuff in that vein.

Kinks/fetishes you'll see me reblog (if I find it and I like it):

Vore (Soft, safe, endo, almost exclusively consenting) Various forms that can fall under this, like unbirthing

Pregnancy (fpreg, mpreg, nbpreg, tpreg, it's all good)

Transformation

Gender transformation I honestly don't know if this is the right term for this Someone's sex/gender changing through sciencey or magical means

Big strong dudes/ladies/enbies

Twinkish dudes/ladies/enbies

Size difference

CONSENT. I HAVE A HUGE CONSENSUAL KINK. ENTHUSIASTIC CONSENT IS HOT. NOT EVEN REALLY AS A KINK BUT JUST KNOWING & UNDERSTANDING THAT THE INVOLVED PARTIES ARE INTO WHAT'S HAPPENING IS SUPER FUCKING IMPORTANT.

Other weird things that I can't think to include here

All of this is stuff that I've written smutty stories about in the past (and I'm trying to get back into the swing of writing, again, burnout is a bitch). If you wanna know more about that, feel free to ask about it.

Things I am NOT into and will almost assuredly avoid:

Vore (Hard, cruel, fatal)

Pregnancy, specifically birthing

Non-consensual stuff

Piss, scat, vomit, blood

Omegaverse

Macro/Micro aka Giant/Giantess (nothing wrong with this, it's just not my thing)

Underage characters (minimum age: 18)

"Aged Up" characters that are clearly just an excuse to get around the underage problem (if you slap a pair of tits on a cartoon of an 8 year old girl... you're sexualizing a cartoon child. Fuck you.)

This is, of course, not a complete list.

DNI ACCOUNTS

Minors

Porn bots

Fascists, racists, t3rfs, zionists, ✨CHRISTIANS™✨ (yes there is a difference between christians and ✨CHRISTIANS™✨, and I think you know what I'm talking about)

Crypto assholes

"AI Art" and ChatGPT assholes

This is, of course, not a complete list.

I think that's plenty to put in a pinned post... probably too much, very TL;DR I'm sure. But whatever. If someone complains to me about something that they could have learned by just reading it here, well... it's their own damn fault.

Anyway, be kind and stay weird.

[pencilofawesomeness]

20 Questions for Writers

Tagged by @kiliinstinct so let's go

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

Okay so the number on my account is a slight lie because I have two anthology-type fics with many fics inside of them like an egg sac, and in htryds’ case I took all of them out and separated them and I pulled one out of the other so.... 130 unique works. And if I count the oneshots shoved inside my 2021 Whumptober anthology, then 159.

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

This also requires some math for the above reason so.... 948,078. (Holy cow I am so close to one million, wait—)

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Mainly Fairy Tail, Genshin Impact, and Twisted Wonderland, in that order, buttttt I have a few other fandoms under my belt and I am known to branch out on a whim. (Others include Voltron, RWBY, Fullmetal Alchemist, Seven Deadly Sins, Arrowverse, Transformers, Owl House, and literally so many others that I haven't actually published...)

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Alright, we got:

—5. Demon Tales [Fairy Tail] - 762 —4. The Eighth Tower [Fairy Tail] - 914 —3. Sparks in the Night [Genshin Impact] - 1,066 —2. Pain Comes in Many Forms (and so does Comfort): Whumptober 2021 [Genshin Impact] - 1,121 —1. Of Dragons and Fairies [Fairy Tail] - 1,405

(So I guess, to no one's surprise, it's mainly HTRYDS but I will say I continue to be baffled by Sparks in the Knight, that random twoshot I wrote in two days XD)

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

Yes! I love responding to comments, both because it's fun and I love to let people know that I totally did read and enjoy their comment. (And I've even been able to just chat with people this way, beyond the scope of the fic itself, which is a fun little community feature I do enjoy as well.) If there's a comment I haven't replied to, it's probably because somehow it was marked as read and therefore I forgot to go back and respond.

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Hmmm that is a tough one. I do tend to want to end things on a lighter note, despite the amount of whump I write... Maybe Mortal Instinct, actually, since I pull a bit of a (self-perceived) fate-worse-than-death bit. Though solely by audience reaction I guess it's Coming Home since I left it on a purposeful note of suspense, eheh.

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

Oh geez, um... I think a lot of them?? Have very happy endings?? Uhhh maybe I'll just say Of Dragons and Fairies, then, because it's meant to be very hopeful and family-shaped, with that bright future ahead.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

No not really, actually. I have had a very good experience, especially on AO3.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Ha. No. (Guys I'm so aroace I barely write romance I will probably never write smut XD)

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

Yes actually! Not many that are finished/posted, but boy I actually love them a lot. (Many live in my head in amorphous form to be honest.) Most are AUs, so like the world of X with the characters of Y, but for straight-up crossovers, I think the craziest is The A.I.D. Files which is a co-project with @therosefrontier where we have a longstanding universe where we combine literally everything into a multi-sectioned multiverse, and the story focuses on an agency that is comprised of people from all manner of universes, leading to a team that includes Tech E. Coyote, Dani Phantom, Iggy (from Maximum Ride), Jim Hawkins, Numbah 5, and more. That said, there's not any present plans to continue it even though it lives on in our heads XD

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of...

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

There is one! (That I know of, lol.) Sparks in the Night was translated (into a paraphrased version, at least) into German, which can be found here.

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

Yup. With my sister, over the years. Not really a direct one on AO3 though. (Just a shared storyverse or series there.)

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

Uhhhh I am not really a shipper at all, so I don't really have a hill I will die on, even though I do have ships I enjoy.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

I hold onto the delusional hope that I will go back and finish all of my wips one day because I haven't abandoned them in my heart, but, I doubt I will finish United because it was a largely original world and I have been scheming for a way to make it an original work altogether, so when I revisit it, it will probably be for that.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Um. I like to think I do good character voice/inner monologue. Strength of tone and syntax and all that.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Fight scenes pain me and I also am not great at scenic/setting descriptions, mostly because I forget.

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

In most cases I think there are better ways to go about it, but it has its place. Especially if the POV character doesn't know it and is trying to learn or pick up words. (Essentially it boils down to making sure the experience is understandable and authentic to the reader's promised language, otherwise it is just a surprise obstacle/gate, like expecting a reader to understand excessive medical jargon in order to know what is happening. If the language is meant to be understood by the pov character, and therefore the audience, then I feel it's best to offer a direct translation in some way.)

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Sonic the Hedgehog. In a place. That I will not name because I was very young. But it was Sonic the Hedgehog...

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

Oh geez um picking favorites is hard. The How to Raise Your Dragon Slayers series as a whole is obviously my baby and I am very biased towards it, but one of my favorite pieces might actually be a FMA/MHA au oneshot that I lost in a harddrive crash and I am haunted by it because I wrote it in a frenzy of inspiration and honestly I think it slapped. XD

-

Okay so let's see which victims to tag... (Though obviously there's no pressure to do this lol): @therosefrontier, @forwantofacalling, @breezy-cheezy, @ljf613, @xxthe-hidden-spyxx, and whoever else wants to do it

[arvandus]

Fun fact about me: I missed the whole Wattpad era and all that because I had a literal 10 year hiatus on fanfiction writing (and overall anime consumption).  I missed the Naruto era and all else that went down during that time between 2006-2016.

So I went from the Sailor Moon/Gundam Wing days on ff.net to tumblr years later, starting out with Loki and then shifting to BNHA (and the rest is history).

So when I think of fan interaction with my writing content, I’m coming from a place where on FF.net I had 15 devoted readers for my one multichapter Gundam Wing fanfic, and I was happy with that.  It’s just interesting to see the shift in fandom culture now, and it’s why I’ve never really worried much about numbers and all that.  The popularity of a post depends a LOT on the popularity of that character/fandom, so there are some writers out there that are making phenomenal content that doesn’t ever really take off because the target audience is so small compared to other, much bigger fandoms/characters.

In short, if you feel like your tumblr numbers are low, or you’re not getting enough notes or whatnot, try not to stress it too much. At its core, fandom is more about interaction/bonding over shared niche interests than it should be a popularity contest. I’d rather have 3-4 people that interact with my content consistently, providing comments in the reblogs and/or the comments section, than I’d rather have X number of likes/reblogs whatever. That may not be the case for others, but this is what works for me. Quality over quantity; and quantity doesn’t always equal quality. On the flip side, if you’re a consumer of fan-created content (e.g., a reader), then PLEASE interact with us. Scream in the tags, key smash in the comments.  We just want to know that we’re not alone in our obsession, and when we share our writings and crazy thoughts on here, that’s us extending the olive branch to connect.  By the simple nature of posting we are already saying that yes, it’s okay to interact with us. Not in an egocentric “I need attention” sort of way, but as someone looking for equals, a safe space to nerd out without judgement or guilt.

Also, don’t misunderstand my statement that numbers aren’t important = reblogs aren’t important.  That’s not the case at all. The very nature of Tumblr requires reblogs to be a part of the fandom experience to allow for maximum connection, maximum quality.  If you choose not to reblog, understand that you’re essentially inhibiting the reach of that content that you love so much, and therefore limiting the level of connection that creator is able to have/develop with others. And THAT is what makes creators want to leave the platform, because no one wants to scream into a void.  If creators didn’t care about interactions, then we wouldn’t even bother posting in these online communities.