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bakughosts · 5 months ago

Note

hellooooo! I hope I’m not bothering you but your writing inspires me! I really love your Bakugou fics because you characterize him well. I find myself rereading it over and over, finding details that went through my head the first time lol. It’s so difficult to find genuine Bakugou fics because every time I look through tumblr I sometimes find some… interesting fics who take Bakugous character and change him dramatically to the point where I don’t even recognize him, you know? Idk maybe I think too deeply about these things but it’s just something I noticed! But I have deep appreciation for your effort and care to place him in any story and keeping him himself as much as possible!

With that being said, I was wondering how you approach writing? How do you develop your characters?

I’m excited for your fics! Writing reallyyyy takes time and there’s so much thought that goes into it. I’m not a writer but I’m an artist! One day I’d love to draw you something when I’m more confident in my drawing skills. You’re doing great 🥺

Omg i have so much to say in response to this… i feel like this is gonna be a long ass response and i have just started writing it so omg sorry in advance (edit: IM SO SORRY YOU DO NOT HAVE TO READ ALL OF THIS)

Also i was going to put this at the end to respond to things in your ask chronologically but i had no idea I’d write so fucking much on the topic!! But omg i would LOVE to see your art!!!!! It’s so sweet of you to want to draw me something that’s genuinely the sweetest thing in the world it makes me SO emotional omgggggggg please…….. no pressure at all but any time you want to share please stop by and do so i would love to see what you’re working on

Gonna put a read more because this got ridiculous dlkfkjdsfjdlkjsflkjdfslksdjlfksdj

But omg NO it is absolutely no bother it is very kind of you to say that!!!! I am very glad you think his characterization is solid it’s genuinely one of the things i worry about most when writing (not just him, but any character)!!! I think he is such a difficult person to characterize. You’re right there are many many interpretations of him and i think that there is validity to all of them to certain extents because they all draw on aspects of his character that he expresses outwardly. But there is so much inside him that it like…. Idk i think it’s really difficult to get his nuances right. (Not that I’m saying i do all the time—and def not saying that my characterization is like Better Than Others at all it’s just the way i interpret him!!!!!)

He is a harder character to develop than others because i feel like you have to be on three levels when you write anything he says or does:

1. What is his gut instinct? His knee-jerk reaction? This is always influenced by things that are harder to control for him, so like anger, frustration, pridefulness, proclivity for violence. From there,

2. You move on to consider where he is in his life/what he’s been through and apply that lens to those knee-jerk emotions. So the way i usually write him, he’s older, he’s been to therapy to some extent lmao, he knows techniques to bite back anger or tamp down frustration, this is going to affect the way he knows he /should/ feel (just found out my Ctrl key isn’t working LMAOOOOOOOO so please pretend those are italics) despite the way he /instinctually/ feels. So he’s going to apply this the best he can to how he reacts to things. The deeper the gut instinct is, though, the harder it is to cover up, so you measure how much control over his actions he is able to apply depending on how distressed/angry he is.

Okay brief pause before three because this is where the internality ends, and you have to figure this out before you apply it externally. You want to have an idea of what he’s feeling /exactly/ before you run it through his thought process and decide how he would express it externally.

3. So then the last part is the external level: what’s actually shown on the page in his dialogue, actions, and body language. So we have a man here who so desperately doesn’t want to show his vulnerable emotions to other people. He has an ‘image’ that he wants to portray because it’s how he wants people to perceive him (strong, unbothered, powerful, he doesn’t /need/ anyone because he’s /so/ strong and powerful, he’s embarrassed when his friends show him love because it’s in essence weak to accept/show love so freely—remember the lack of vulnerability here—and he’s the best at everything he does, ever, no question). With steps one and two, you have the gut emotion and how he knows the gut emotion should be handled. Now you have to ask: how can he express this and make himself look like the image he so wants to project?

This is fun to play with because, as we know, he often fails at portraying that image. He’s an awkward person. He was never socialized well. When he’s not feeling entirely confident and self-assured (think post-fight victory, when he’s doing his hero thing that he /knows/ he’s good at), he’s bad at hiding his more vulnerable emotions. You just have to decide from here how badly he fails at projecting the image/how well the character he’s speaking to knows him and can see underneath it.

So example: 1. kirishima and him are walking, kirishima puts an arm around bkg’s shoulders, he’s embarrassed but does feel the warmth of having his best friend care about him. Gut instinct here is to shove kirishima off because he’s embarrassed, but doesn’t want to show that he’s embarrassed because that’s ‘weak’ behavior > 2. Knows he shouldn’t shove kirishima off of him because he’s just innocently expressing affection for bkg because he cares about him, and rejecting that affection so vehemently could potentially hurt kirishima’s feelings > 3. The image dictates he doesn’t look ‘weak’, but his reason dictates that he doesn’t hurt kirishima’s feelings. So he rolls his eyes maybe, plays at shoving him off—to show that he’s not weak, that he doesn’t care about people caring about him—but lets kirishima keep his arm there because he really does appreciate his best friend caring about him and he never wants to make Kirishima think that bkg is actually angry because of the affection shown to him.

This is a really hasty example lmao i knew if i did anything more specific it would make the ask like six times longer lsdfkjdlskdfjdslkjf but you apply that and then to degrees, peel back how much the image means to him. So in in the dark of morning (hate being like oh look at this part of my fic! But that’s the best way i can use an example i know well) at the beginning when he’s driving her to his apartment, he’s hurting bc of all might’s health decline, hurting bc of denki’s death. But he can’t yet show that vulnerability, so he upholds the image of being a gruff n tough guy who doesn’t care about anything at all. But when they’re talking during the gala in front of the picture of all might and he’s worried that he could never mean as much to reader as denki meant to her, he’s able to claw past his need to project that image and is able to offer a form of vulnerability and openness, but it’s tentative and hesitant because he’s not used to showing himself as anything other than the image he’s created for himself.

God i know that was just how i approach writing bakugou. I am SO sorry it got that long Jesus Christ. I just have a lot to say about it dlksfdlskfjs but essentially that’s how i approach writing all characters to an extent. 1. What do i know about how they would gut react to things 2. What experiences/training/factors of upbringing in their life affect how they know they /should/ act 3. How do they want people to see them and how does this affect the way they finally act/speak/etc. Some characters the steps matter more or less for, but they’re always there somewhat. Like step 3 i think outward perception always shapes actions to an extent, but like. When i write Mina, if she’s just with her friends, step three has absolutely no bearing on what she does and says. She’s very open and is unapologetic about it. When i wrote wolfwood for this fic i just published step 2 was also barely a factor because even if he knows how he /should/ act, it means very little to him because he doesn’t care much about how anyone perceives him (except for reader). Bakugou is harder lmaooooooo he takes all three steps to the MAX and that’s why i think interpretations of him vary so much because there’s so many areas where you can decide that he would react/feel a different way to various external stimuli.

Anyway GOD sorry this is long as HELL but i really wanted to put all my words into thoughts. Thank you SO SO SO much for that ask….. like getting to talk about writing ever is so special to me and the fact that you wanted to know about my process is like…. Im like omg. So honored to be asked about it and so happy to talk about it. I cropped in my note about sharing your art with me earlier in the post bc this is ridiculously long but SERIOUSLY please share any time!!!!!

If u have read to the end thank u so much for bearing with me as i go absolutely insane sdflkjdslkfjsldkjflkdsjfdkljdslkfjds

#eli.asks #why did i write a fucking essay in response to this?#the world may never know #lsdkjfsdlkjfdslkjfsldkj thank you so much for sending in this ask it’s so sweet of you !!!!!!!!!

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ggoddammitt · 6 years ago

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Hiiii~ sorry to bother, but do you have any FrUK fanfic recommendations? You seem to like this ship a lot so I figured you read a lot of fanfics. Sorry if I'm bothering you btw,,

it’s no bother ^_^ and yep, i have a LOT OF RECS! (oh boy)

before you begin, i should let you know that i have a bias for certain themes, so these tropes may reflect in my list -*anything that doesn’t blatantly state “uke!england” or “seme!france”…*friendship, pining ;;*quirky/humour*consent

without further ado, here’s my list :D (to keep things simple, i will only be recommending fics that are complete! it is sorted by rating followed by word count) -

ARCHIVEOFOUROWN:

NATIONVERSE

La Douleur Exquise by DoritoDuck (Flightlesskiwi)

Beautifully descriptive ;v;

Rating: General | Wordcount: 811Fruk-centric; pining but also established relationship

Jane Eyre by Fudgyokra

I love fics like this one- with france being a teasing sap.

Rating: General | Wordcount: 1139Fruk-centric (with a bit more France)

Of Lily Petals and Rose Thorns by pantheralupus

Fruk as kids on Valentine’s day; france being in love with love (and england) :D

Rating: General | Wordcount: 2488Fruk-centric.

Darling, Let Us Be Quiet by saunatonttu

just… England being self-deprecating, lonely and trying to breathe past his anxiety. France makes it just a tad more bearable.

Rating: General | Wordcount: 5606ENG-centric.

Comme des enfants by newamsterdam

England looks after de-aged France. a really sweet fic ^^

Rating: General | Wordcount: 15096ENG-centric.

Match Point by Fishwichformylove

Quite suggestive but really light and funny ^_^

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 1098Fruk-centric; established relationship

and we carry on by courfelicious

Domestic; development of their relationship (including the fights and arguments as well as romance ;; )

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 1824Fruk-centric (with a bit more England), a pinch of FACE

Second-Hand Smoke by Shachaai

new years kiss: pining + denial = oh no.

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 2857ENG-centric.

behind closed doors, with open hearts by saunatonttu

Terribly, terribly romantic.

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 6764ENG-centric, they’re this close to being in love already (ffs)

It’s Hard for Me to say “I Love You” (But I do!) by Antimisma

i don’t remember much of this fic but i tagged it as ‘fav fruk fic ever.’ so it must be good x)

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 9226ENG-centric; bucketloads of angst and pining

Table Manners by boudicca

OK I DISTINCTLY REMEMBER THIS FIC BC IT’S SO FUNNY AND I LOVE SNARKY ENGLAND

Rating: Mature | Wordcount: 844ENG-centric… there’s handjobs

The Colour of Love by wintersyzygy

Twisted, unfiltered passion.

Rating: Mature | Wordcount: 1178ENG-centric, friends-with-benefits

don’t let the sun set on us by kevystel

France has commitment issues but he still wants England.

Rating: Mature | Wordcount: 5090Fruk-centric (a bit more England)

What Love? by FinduilasLissesul

it’s classic friends-with-benefits to lovers ^_^

Rating: Explicit | Wordcount: 32296Fruk-centric (a bit more England)

HISTORICAL FRUK

Historical Hetalia (FrUK) by crashedtimemachine (snowonpalecheeks)

A series of historical fruk ;;

Rating: General - Mature | Wordcount: 12965spans the beginning of their relationship to the day France passes marriage equality in 2013. ENG-centric (the first fic in the series)

Mon Cher Ennemi by LM_Artless (MariekoWest)

Some gore + death but ultimately bitterly sweet.

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 3516set during WW2ENG-centric (he speaks french)

A Glass of Wine by fierysuzaku

Mainly reflection and nostalgia with some cutting banter ^^

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 4524includes their childhood and some FACE FR-centric, has a theme of poetry

A Portrait of England by ZaliaChimera

France takes care of England after he is left bedridden and blinded. Romance.

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 5113set after the Great WarENG-centric.

To Betray The People by hybridempress

heavy angst + fruk friendship, i adore this fic!

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 6863Warning: Temporary Character DeathFR-centric; set during the French Rev.

L'Entente Maladroite by maxcellwire

i’ve read this fic three times already..

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 13716set during the the War of the Quadruple Alliance, 1718-1720 (eng and fr are allies)Fruk-centric, a bit of FACE family

Your Excuse (For A Lover) by InTheLoft

get ready for centuries of war, heartbreak and pining. imo this is one of the most heartbreaking historical fruk fics ever written.

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 23714from 1066 to 1994 (pretty much nearly spans the entirety of their relationship)Warning: violence, character deaths (most are temporary), dissociation at one point (further warnings are in the author notes)

Hurricane Verse by newamsterdam

This is a series with two works, one complete. It’s been a long time since I last read it but it is tagged as one of my faves! It’s mainly France being hurt and uncooperative hahah

Rating: Teen - Mature | Wordcount: 27437WW2Fruk-centric (a bit more England I think?)

If Loyalties Lie by GhostoftheMotif, qualapec

ANGST. Not quite romantic- I remember this fic very briefly but I have it marked as one of my fave fruk fics ever :o

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 29690post WW2 (includes Prussia’s dissolution if I remember correctly) FR-centric, some Pru/Fra and BTT

The One I Trust by celestialenigma

trans male England; this fic really stands out in my mind :’)

Rating: Mature (mild smut) | Wordcount: 9059Fruk-centric (with a bit more England), a bit of Jeanne d’Arc

gonna give my heart away by kevystel

epitome of a love-hate relationship between these two honestly.

Rating: Explicit | Wordcount: 4801Fruk-centric, friends-with-benefits to lovers.

HUMAN AU

it’s a quiet time, but it’s not solitude by [orphan_account]

It’s just england admiring France softly and sweetly, that’s all *heart clenches* god I wish this fic was longer. can be intepreted as nationverse if you wish.

Rating: General | Wordcount: 726ENG-centric; established relationship

The Love Song of Arthur J. Kirkand by mikkey_bones

Romantic and domestic with a side of banter x)

Rating: General | Wordcount: 2755ENG-centric; grad school

Demain, Qui Sait? by snark_sniper

Francis is planning Arthur and Alfred’s wedding.. but he falls for Arthur.

Rating: not officially rated, but it’s G I think | Wordcount: 24956FR-centric, some USUK, Rus/Ame and BTT, past France/Jeanne

What We Remember by bearwald

Burning romance, poetry and art.

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 1106Fruk-centric, they’re roommates in college/uni

What Happens In Vegas by DemonicCharm

France and england accidentally get married and they go to great lengths to make each others lives miserable xD

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 28544Fruk-centric (with a bit more England), BTT, brief Jap/Eng

Divulging Peculiarities by DestineyTot

Vampire!francis; this fic really left an impression on me x)

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 29442ENG-centric, lonely pining hahah

CARDVERSE

Heavy is the Crown by 0Rocky41_7

this fic was a ride from start to finish holy heck ft. arthur in denial

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 56445ENG-centric (some parts are from F’s pov)

FANFICTION.NET

NATIONVERSE

Surprise, Surprise byjoyouswolves

The one time England is a gentleman to France and France is hopelessly charmed :’)

Rating: General | Wordcount: 2818Fruk-centric (a bit more France)

When I Fall by hopefulmemoir

England has depression. France notices.

Rating: General | Wordcount: 3531ENG-centric; fruk friendship.

Not Jealous by Darkfire75

France purposely embarrasses England bc he’s jelly.

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 1476FR-centric; establishedrelationship.

Chalk Hearts by ApplesauceLady

France is passive-aggressively jelly of China.

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 2800FR-centric; establishedrelationship.

A Blind Man’s Quest by marinoa

England accidentally blinds himself, and despite his stubborness France insists on helping him through it.

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 7177ENG-centric.

On The Red Street Of Dover by Lynn Kroto

Mutual longing and pining.

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 9120Fruk-centric.

Running Passions by SpeakingThroughWrittenWordcount

50% smut, 50% humour.

Rating: Mature | Wordcount: 5476ENG-centric; established relationship.

HISTORICAL FRUK

Laissez-Faire Love by oh-cripe-my-fish

Passion and romance. France is bi af.

Rating: Mature | Wordcount: 62081187, 1715, 2008.Fruk-centric.

HUMAN AU

A Fitting Color by Geekies

Oh man I’m reccing this fic for Arthur alone. He’s absolutely endearing in this fic. and Francis is being French.

Rating: General | Wordcount:29239Office AU; Francis is a fashion designer and Arthur is a comp technician.FR-centric; fruk friendship +pre-relationship.

Anything For You byRaindropsOnMyTeaCup

Heavy romance. Arthur is so in love ;;

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 31555Francis is a world-famous singer and Arthur is his agent.Fruk-centric (a bit more Englandif I remember correctly)

Fortune’s Favour by Shadowcatxx

whenever I think of this fic I remember how badass Arthur is xD

Rating: Teen+ | Wordcount: 35748AU set in 1735; Arthur is part of the Royal Navy and Francis is a pirate.FACE-centric; fruk slowburn romance.

OTHER

i don’t read fics on livejournal but ik there are a lot of really good fruk fics out there. one of the authors i know is nuitdenovembre :>

rainingFRUK by IamREADING gets aspecial mention. It’s the My Immortal of fruk fics and I just about criedreading it.

this list pained me to write bc there are SO MANY fics i wished to include, but in the end i had to pick the ones i have a vague memory of reading.. haizz.

#ask #anon #long post #fanfics bring joy to my life #to all the authors out there: THANK YOU!! SO MUCH!!!!!!#writing is such a tedious process like #reading def does not take even 1% of the effort writers put into writing #iv so much respect TvT #fic #rec #i wanna get into writing comments more.. so far i have three in my drafts that i should probs finish lol #rosetea

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birlcholtz · 3 years ago

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Fic Questions

tagged by @the-lincyclopedia thank you!! (fun game: watch my writing get progressively less formal as the post continues. by the end it’s like what is capitalization)

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

77!

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

434,378 as of this week but it does go up quite regularly

3. How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

Okay so in terms of what’s on my AO3, I have Check Please, All For the Game, Sharp Zero, HP, and Miraculous Ladybug. I also have The Forbidden LOTR and PJO Fanfiction (as in, I’ve written it, but it’s never seeing the light of day)

(technically there is a PJO fic out there that has seen the light of day but I orphaned it because I was tired of getting comments asking about when it would be updated)

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

and then i met you (and the whole world changed)

for the better

Knew It Was You

come home (to you, to us)

sin bin schematics

All of these are Check Please and all of them except Knew It Was You are part of my Zimbits Airport AU!

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

I do! It’s actually a very recent thing that I’ve started not responding to literally every single comment. Mainly I respond because I love talking about my writing so I am going to seize that opportunity when it comes up

6. What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

Oh, DEFINITELY Happy Birthday (HP). Check out that MCD tag ahah. (I say HP but what I really mean is that I write fic about Regulus Black. The Regulus Black-centric tag is my home in the HP fandom)

fun fact: this is a very short fic that I wrote when I was 15 and basically forgot about until recently, and then I reread it recently and went holy shit?? I pulled NO punches????

7. Do you write crossovers? If so, what is the wildest one you’ve written?

Not a ton? I think a lot of the fandoms I write for don’t really mesh that well. That being said, the aforementioned orphaned PJO fic is actually a PJO/ML crossover, so there’s that

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Nope! Sometimes I get comments that are just.... really confusing? And a more common thing is that in my AFTG fic I’ll get comments from people who are so focused on Andreil (or the most common ships in general) to the point that like. they miss the point of what I actually wrote. Those are annoying but they’re not hate, they’re very enthusiastic, they’re just... enthusiastic about a story I’m not writing? So it’s a bit frustrating.

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

No sjflskgjhgf I struggle enough to write kissing, I think if I ever tried to write smut my brain would just shut down. I’ve managed some fade-to-blacks (which are mostly in WIPs that haven’t been posted) but they rely HEAVILY on the powers of implication

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of!

11. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No, although I have occasionally made a brief go of it, not to post, more as an exercise for myself in a language that I’m learning. Anyway I never finish them so I’m gonna say no

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

Not really? I’ve definitely group brainstormed fics and then written them (the best example of this being Q&A (AFTG), which was the product of a truly off-the-walls group chat), but I tend to do all the actual writing myself. I think the way I write would drive a co-writer up the wall since it’s very disorganized and I don’t write stuff down because ~I know what’s gonna happen I don’t need notes~ and it would infuriate me if I was co-writing with me lmao, so I won’t inflict that on someone else

13. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

I regularly move through ships I’m SUPER focused on, like it’s kind of a rotation. I will forever and always ship Percabeth though.

14. What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

Okay so if you follow me at @birlwrites you may know this already, but i have this ‘warmups’ document that is just like, random ideas i get that i don’t necessarily want to finish but i just want to try out for a bit? and i have a rule that once a ‘warmup’ is more than 10 pages long (so 11+) then it has to be moved to its own document, just to make scrolling through the warmups doc easier. but usually, a warmup only passes 10 pages when i’m INTO it. so i have a bazillion wips i will probably never finish. i complain about this a lot. i have so many wips. i don’t need more.

here’s one: it’s titled ‘interrobang doesn’t know they’re dating’, it’s basically a full outline for a chowder/tango fic and it would be SO cool if i could ever like. get around to writing it. but i am constantly swamped with writing projects, so it’s probably not gonna happen. if anyone’s interested in adopting it though i’d be down for that!! i think it’s a fun idea i just almost def won’t write it myself

15. What are your writing strengths?

SNAPPY DIALOGUE AND SNARKY INTERNAL MONOLOGUE. my writing is COMEDIC, 90% of my ideas are based on a funny snippet that popped into my head, a lot of my worldbuilding is based on ‘hey you know what would be hilarious’ (whenever i explain how larai selects a chosen one in the rainfall universe i start laughing, which is a STARK contrast to how it plays out on the page), i love writing funny stuff!!

also i think my writing sounds nice, a lot of the time i pick words/syntax based on sound and flow so there’s that too. and i have lots of ideas! i don’t struggle much with writer’s block because a) i have a lot of strategies to deal with it and b) i have a lot of ideas to help get around it/work with it

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

PHYSICAL INTIMACY LMAO, sometimes in my end notes on shippy fics you can see me complaining ‘it took me literally 4 hours to write that very brief kiss’. also sometimes the humor in my writing gets in the way a bit, i have to very consciously put it away so characters can actually have serious, genuine emotions. also i don’t like outlining and i tend not to get betas for fanfiction so like..... i do my best continuity-wise but having really tightly plotted stories is just not my focus lol. (and i do put more effort into that for original stuff, it’s just fic where i kind of go wild)

17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

If the reader’s supposed to know what it means, then writing it in another language is iffy for me. (stuff like terms of endearment which come up a lot in fic are fine imo, you can just put a note in to translate them and your reader will prob remember)

If the pov character isn’t supposed to understand it, and it doesn’t matter if the reader understands it, then ig it’s fine? but unless you already speak the other language (and i am NOT confident in my ability to translate english into literally any other language), then i think it’s way easier to just note that a character’s speaking x language and provide tone indicators, body language cues, etc. so the reader understands as much as the pov character.

That being said there are def times when it’s used super effectively--the dialogue in spanish in cemetery boys comes to mind! that’s not fanfic but it’s still creative writing so w/e

so i guess it comes down to: does actually writing out the dialogue in the other language serve a purpose? if it doesn’t, then you’re filling up the screen with words your reader isn’t likely to understand, which i try to avoid doing

18. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

so the first fandom i actually *wrote* for was PJO, but i distinctly remember creating warrior cats OCs when i was little. i never actually did anything w them but i had them and my favorite was a riverclan warrior named shellstream i remember this VIVIDLY

19. What’s your favorite fic you’ve ever written?

oh boy. okay so this is hard because i feel like i’m continuously improving as a writer. like in the sense that my writing is getting closer and closer to really matching my own taste? my favorites tend to always be my current projects as a result. and i do really love set those ghosts alight (HP) but it feels a little like cheating to say a fic i haven’t even finished writing yet. even though it’s def not cheating, that’s just the direction my brain is taking it.

i’m gonna say and then what? (OMGCP) because i’m super proud of the prose (especially ch 2 aka the first actual prose chapter), survived by (HP) for SUCCESSFULLY WRITING AN EMOTION and making readers cry :), and Q&A (AFTG) because i’m literally the one who wrote it and yet it still makes me wheeze. those are all fics i reread occasionally, because i’m big enough to admit i enjoy rereading my old stuff! (just like. to a point. some of my old stuff i can’t look at anymore because all the mistakes stick out to me like they have spotlights shining directly on them)

this was fun!! i’m gonna do an open tag because i just started my fall semester and brain tired. i know sometimes people see open tags and assume the op didn’t really mean it but I MEAN IT, PLEASE DO THIS AND TAG ME!!!!! YES YOU READING THIS

#tag games #long post #birl talks

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currywaifu · 5 years ago

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𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: muse 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩: miyoshi kazunari/reader 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: sfw 𝐰𝐜: 3.1k words, 1 image

𝐚𝐧: got back to writing again~ how much kazu-speak is too much? sorry this took a while, but I finally got over my writer’s block!

When your phone vibrates the exact minute your class ends, you know the text can only be sent by him. As the people around you begin to step outside the lecture hall, you find time to read your boyfriend’s message before heading out as well.

With Kazunari being a year above you, in a different course more so, there were times during the week where the two of you could barely catch a glimpse of each other. Projects were beginning to pile up for both of you, and with his acting to consider you initially didn’t want to bother him, but…

Just as you picked up your bag, your phone lights up again.

Wah, where r u??? I mish u already beb 💓💕💞

Stifling a giggle, you send back a text before quickly shuffling out of the classroom.

Kazunari always made the effort to put time into your relationship and give you affection, regardless if it was eating together during mutual breaks in between classes or sending each other cute messages and memes on social media.

Of course as cute as his selfies were nothing could beat physically being beside him and hearing his voice in person, so who could blame you for picking up your pace and rushing to where you knew your boyfriend was.

He’s seated on a bench when you spot him, fiddling with his phone. Before you could call out to him whips his head to face you. Instantaneously his lips break into a smile and from the lift of your cheeks you know you’re the same.

“Heyho☆ You looking for someone?” Kazunari says as you approach him, a teasing grin settling on his face. “You look a little lost~”

“I’m here for Kazu, my boyfriend!” You reply, lifting your hand and placing it atop of his head. “He’s this tall, and… oh! Super handsome, too. Have you seen him?”

Holding back a laugh, his eyes dart from left to right before sighing. “Unfortunately, he’s nowhere to be found. Aw, but you look totes adorbs~♪ Should I steal you away from this Kazu guy? I’ll def sweep you off your feet☆”

Before you know it Kazunari pulls you into his arms, the spontaneity a surprising but warm feeling. You wrap your arms around him as well, smiling against his sweater as the two of you hug while swaying left and right.

“Alright, that’s enough, Casanova.” You say the moment the hug gets too tight, slowly escaping his embrace.

“I want more though~” He whines, reluctantly letting go of you. He didn’t actually look upset if the glimmer in his eyes was anything to go by. “Well, I needed your help with something anyway!”

Anticipation bubbles up within you, expecting a new piece he needed help with, or maybe something for you to critique. After all, your admiration for his work was one of the reasons the two of you had gotten so close in the first place.

“I’ll do my best, Kazu-senpai!” You beam at him, throwing in the honorific to potentially catch him off-guard. Needless to say, it worked splendidly.

“Senpai?! You haven’t called me that in forever!” Kazunari was buzzing with excitement, grabbing one of your hands to swing it around. “Ahhhh- it was so, so cute every time you called me that! I was like, OMG—”

You roll your eyes. “I know, you’ve said that how many times?” Nevertheless, every time he mentioned it the more fond you grew of him.

“Kazuuu,” you squeeze his hand “come on, we have something to do, right?”

Not letting go of your hand for even a moment he leads you along the hallway, eventually stopping outside one of the classrooms.

“So, like, you can totally say no if you want but I’d be hella happy if you helped me out with this.”

You frown slightly, a little befuddled on what kind of request he’d be asking of you. “Kazunari, you don’t have to beat around the bush. I’ll understand.”

Nodding and looking more sure of himself, Kazunari continues. “I’d like to paint you.”

You tilt your head in confusion. “Don’t you already do that without asking me? I’ve seen your sketchbook, I’m totally okay with it.”

“This is different. I need to submit a painting of something or someone that’s my muse, so I wanted you as my model,” he explains, silently watching your expression change as you grasp the whole situation.

Avoiding his gaze, you look away from Kazunari. “Muse? So- so that means inspiration, right?” You stammer slightly, imagining how frazzled you must look already. “Wait I’m- are you sure it should be me? I’m not really…” you trail off, unsure of what reason you were going to give at the end.

When he says your name you look back up at his face. “I’m being legit here, you inspire me more than you know. It won’t feel right to paint anything else when you were the first thing that popped into my mind.”

Your eyes widen at his serious declaration. It’s not everyday Kazunari gives you such a straightforward and earnest compliment to that degree. Despite your initial embarrassment, your heart swelled up with joy; watching his shoulder’s ease up made you realize that he was probably waiting for a reaction out of you. At this point, it was impossible for you to reject his request.

“If you’ll still have me, then you can paint me.”

Kazunari’s eyes light up again, expressive and sparkling, before opening the classroom door to lead you inside. “Thank you, and like obvi! Why wouldn’t I wanna show off my sunshine to the world! My baby! My go-“

You let out a huff of amusement as he continued to spurt out pet names for you. Looks like he was back to normal?

When he lets go of your hand you finally take the time to absorb the room. It was obvious it was an art-centric classroom, from the numerous easels, art supplies, and artsy clutter scattered around the room. You wouldn’t have noticed such a difference between this and the other “painter occupied” rooms if it wasn’t for the set-up right smack in the middle.

It made for a pretty picture- loads of white offset by its nature orientedness. A few potted plants (you weren’t sure if they were real or not) were strategically placed along the area. The white fabric was hung and draped atop what was probably a bunch of easels used as a base frame. Similar cloths were set on the floor, a pillow placed on top.

You have a good feeling, a hunch if you will, that you were meant to stay there; if that wasn’t enough proof, an easel with a blank canvas was positioned directly in front of the space.

“When’d you even get the time to set this up? Are we even allowed to be here?” You question, a little surprised how everything has already been prepared.

“Friends from the photography dept helped me out~ Plus I’m lowkey besties with the prof so it’s ayt as long as we clean up.” He replies, grabbing one of the spare fabrics on the table.

“Can you remove your jacket?” Kazunari steps closer to you; as soon as you unzip the garment and throw it aside he wraps the plain, white material around your shoulders like a makeshift shawl or blanket.

You know it’s for the portrait, but there was something domestic about the simple act that made your heart race. He stepped back, smiling at you and looking self-accomplished.

“Huhu I can’t- my baby’s so pretty? How is this possible? Like an angel, no, a deity!”

“Kazu-“

“My venus~ wahh, I need so many pics? Do I have enough space? Do I post on InstaBlam or-”

“Kazu!” You interrupt, your cheeks flaring up in embarrassment. It was literally a white drape! Still, it was always nice when he complimented you, no matter how extra he went about it, so you didn’t have the heart to complain— after a year, you knew he was always genuine with his praise to you.

“We should probably start with the painting, right? We don’t wanna stay too late.” Kazunari perks back up and you briefly watch him choose between paintbrushes before you sit down on the floor.

How do models figure this shit out? Where does your leg go? How do you angle your face? How much tilt was too much tilt? Even the way you sat down was suddenly making you conscious— should you sit cross-legged or on your heels? Legs stretched out or tucked in?

You fidget in place, picking at the stray threads of the cloth beneath you. Should you just let Kazunari do his magic and hope he somehow makes you look good? After watching him from the corner of your eye he drops his paintbrush back in the mug.

“Beb, the vibes are off. I was being legit when I said you looked good, but you look like you’re thinking too hard.”

“Sorry, I can’t figure out what pose works.”

He crouches down in front of you, quietly looking over your awkward form. His hands take action in moving your body, nudging the arm that laid limp on your lap to lay flat against the floor behind you. Then his palms are on your legs, positioning the left thigh atop the right so that your knees faced front and the soles of your feet faced the side.

‘Okay, don’t be weird about it’ you tell yourself, despite hyper-focusing on the ghosts of Kazunari’s fingertips barely seeping through your jeans as they settle on your chin, gently moving your head to the side and tilting it downwards.

Kazunari narrows his eyes, simply staring at your face without a word being uttered. A part of you almost wants him to break into his trendy-speak again if only to give you time to shake off your sudden bashfulness.

“We Gucci! You still look distracted though… oh! Can you think about something that makes you happy?”

Maybe it was because he suggested it, or maybe it was because he’s your boyfriend— either way, the first thing that popped into your mind was Kazunari.

Settling into university was tough, but you had worked so hard to get accepted into Veludo Arts that you could look past the taxing work handed by the professors. Aside from the workload, you came to really enjoy studying here— you learned first hand how talented your peers were, and that motivated you to work harder.

During one of the campus’ exhibits your eyes were immediately drawn to the canvas with a Japanese painting style. Even from afar you could tell the artist was incredibly talented, but the closer you got the more you were able to see the tiny details and how purposeful every stroke was.

‘The devil truly is in the details’ you thought, looking at the exhibit label card beside the painting.

“Miyoshi Kazunari, 2nd-year student…” you read out loud, wondering if he had more works you could look at around the school.

“I heard my name just now~♪ Could it be, I have an admirer?” You immediately turn around to face a guy with blond hair and green eyes, keeping steady eye contact with you as he grinned.

Cute as he was, you might have totally ignored him if you hadn’t absorbed what he said.

“Hello, you’re Miyoshi-senpai, then?” You ask, trying to hide your disbelief at how he just popped up out of nowhere. Had you been staring at the painting that long that you lost awareness of your surroundings?

“The one and only~♪ You like the painting?”

Abandoning your bewilderment you immediately shifted into admiration mode. “Definitely! I thought the sparse use of colour was genius, particularly how certain parts of the painting got bolder colours than others. Not only that but the title! You think it’s literal at first, but it’s actually a double entendre! I also-“

Your rambling gets caught off by your new acquaintance chuckling, looking infinitely amused by you. You feel pinpricks on your cheeks, deliberating if you had gone too far with your praise or not.

“Kouhai, you’re so cute~♪ If you ever need help, just DM me, alrighty? I’ll always answer ya piko☆”

It had started out with you asking for his advice or to borrow materials, but somehow someway a couple of selfies and hundreds of DM stickers later the conversation shifted to topics unrelated to art.

You had eagerly begun looking forward to seeing the green circle beside his icon as he logged in to tell you about his day, whether it be something he did at Mankai or some crazy shenanigans with his friends.

Becoming close friends with Kazunari, to getting asked out by him, to dating him— you’d be lying if you said the past two years would be just as enjoyable if he wasn’t there to celebrate with you.

The sound of your name made you escape your daydream, being met with the sight of the blond in front of you.

“Were you calling me for long?” You ask, smiling as he pets you on the head.

“Nah, but aside from some deets the painting’s done now!” Even though the easel was turned to you, you still stand up to take a closer look.

Leave it up to Kazunari to make a human look so… pure? Angelic? How’d he even make you look so good? It was almost as if he had put a dreamy filter over you. As expected, even though he said there was still work to do, the tiniest of details were present— from the creases of the fabric hung behind you to the slight discolourations of the monstera plant beside you.

However, easily the most impressive thing about the whole portrait was the look on your face. The slope of your eyelashes as they shaded your eyes— averted with a faraway look to them, as though enchanted by something unseen to the viewer. The corners of your lips lifted your cheeks, a closed smile holding onto words unspoken.

So that’s what you looked like in love.

“What were you thinking of here, my muse?” Kazunari breaks the silence, and when you turn to face him you notice he’s not looking at the painting. You don’t break the eye contact.

“Were you… musing about me?” He teases, though it’s a little lacking in spirit. You don’t fail to notice— neither the lower timbre of his voice nor the gentleness of his eyes escape you.

Even with all his eccentricities, you and Kazunari aren’t too dissimilar when it comes to love.

“Yeah, I was thinking about you.”

The look on his face was something you wish you could capture in a photo or painting yourself, a medley of unpreparedness, joy, and adoration. You can’t stop your small laughter when he literally clutches his chest.

“OMG my heart, I’m so? You’re so?” He takes hold of the cloth around your shoulders and pulls you closer until the only thing you can focus on is the brilliance of his green eyes. You could look only for a few seconds as he stretched his head forward and pressed his lips against yours.

The kiss was sweet and inviting, not unlike the first they shared months ago. Kazunari’s lips were warm and he tasted faintly of the candy he always liked to stock in his bag. After a moment, he brings both hands up to your cheekbones, cupping your face like he was savouring you.

Then he drops his chin, breaking off the kiss and pushing you away a fraction, so he could look into your eyes.

“Sorry,” he says with a small laugh, “Just can’t believe that expression was all for me, you know?”

You pout, poking his side. “And who else would I think about? I only have one boyfriend, Kazu.”

“Oh? Does that boyfriend happen to be a good kisser?” Kazunari asks playfully, his eyes crinkling with mirth, “I bet I’d be a better kisser~”

“Is that so?” You reply with a raised eyebrow, slowly erasing the distance until you were but a breath apart from touching. “Would you like to prove it?”

The intimacy of the moment was both strange and wonderful. You tilt your chin slightly and he immediately took it as the cue to lean in and kiss you again, drawing your lower lip between his with a light suction. If the first was gentle if not a little energetic, this time he kissed with an unexpected passion and confidence.

It was clear that missing each other plus the accumulation of little moments this afternoon led to this moment.

Kazunari traces one hand over your cheek, down your shoulder, back up again. His fingers come to rest at the back of your neck, sending a slight shiver down your spine, his thumb playing idly along your jaw as he works his mouth against yours and in the back of your head you realise the fabric on your shoulders had slipped some seconds ago. Eventually, you pull yourself closer, until you were flush against him.

Kazunari releases your mouth and starts kissing down your jawline. He presses his upper body over yours as he settles in to tease and nip at your earlobe, murmuring your name, the sensation against your ear making your whole body tingle.

You could only whimper in response as he attacks the outer shell of your ear, beginning to get overwhelmed by his warmth and his smell and you burrowed against his sweater, trying to lose yourself in all of it. At this point, you were just trying to steal as much of Kazunari’s loving warmth as you could.

You tighten your grip on his clothes when he grazes his teeth against your neck; then his lips were on yours again and you readily opened up to him, swirling your tongue against his.

When the need for air came desperately, you took to a slower pace until eventually coming to a halt, loosening the grip you had on him. You don’t immediately open your eyes, collapsing against chest once more to catch your breath. You only look back up when Kazunari lets out a loud snort that turned into a fit of laughter.

“I forgot we were still on campus for a sec,” He says, gently squeezing your forearms. You step backward, making yourself look presentable, though it serves a bit of a task without a mirror to guide you.

“We should probably clean up and leave.”

Kazunari lets out a thoughtful hum, and you can already see the grin creeping upon his lips. “Yeah, we def should… unless?”

want to order again?

#a3!#a3! act! addict! actors!#a3! kazunari #kazunari miyoshi #cafe: dessert menu #a3! game #a3! actor training game #a3! x reader #reader insert #kazunari x reader

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seb-owns-these-tatas · 4 years ago

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Can I just say how I greatly admire the way you write?! Do you have any tips for better writing? I used to have this burning passion to write stories then I took a really long hiatus after having consecutive burn outs 😭😭😭

First of all, thank you so much for appreciating me. *sobs* This message really made my heart all giddy and blushing, I ain’t used to people telling me these. 😭🥰 Mwah mwah! *does a kissy face for you*

Second, we’re the same on that long hiatus thing and having consecutive burn-outs. I’ve been having one since the last week and haven’t written anything after writing a smut---considering my plans about writing future chapters for Witcher of the Night before my school starts because I know it’ll take a toll on me soon and I’m worried. 😭

I’ve had my own hiatus before I started writing my current fic. Back when I was posting oneshots for Sebastian Stan in Wattpad and also when my school started, I haven’t gotten to write for at least a year. The pandemic made me write an awful lot---and being that, Henry caught my poor, fragile potato heart---I didn’t even know I was already writing tons of fics for the lad.

Tips for writing? Oh, oof. I think I suck at giving advice. But, here it is. (Based on my own opinion, perspective and style)

1. Do not be afraid of others not liking your story.

-There will always be people out there who would sob and cheer for your ideas and story-telling. Some will cringe for it and probably even send hate for no damn reason. (Because I believe we all have our own style of writing) But, as chapter per chapter passes, you’ll realize that at the end of the day, you’re writing this because its what you want to read for yourself.

2. Write for your happiness, not others. Also, don’t compare yourself to other writers who get a lot of reader/writer interaction.

-Don’t be discouraged about the lack of likes and reblogs. Though, I’m struggling over this since last week because I’m a human being who always think I prolly suck at writing which is why people skip my works or what---but, don’t let this munch you down. This is just our own insecurity trying to test us. Write what you wanna see. Write to escape whatever reality you’re in.

3. Imagine yourself being in the protagonist’s shoes.

-I always have been doing this. It’s one way onto how I realize I’m already done writing the end of one chapter because I’m too focused on being the reader/OC. This gives me the smiles and giggles for real, bby. It makes me roll on the ground like a blushing potato because I try to imagine what it feels and be like to be with my muse’s characters/or my muse himself. I swear, this will make everything better and even make yourself feel better.

4. Dictionaries will help you a lot than you can ever think of.

-Synonyms, antonyms, idioms...They’re a lifesaver in this hobbies/passion we try’na mold. Especially since English isn’t my first language and I struggle with it even with speaking. Having google by your side or an app that can help your writing will be your superhero.

5. First draft won’t always be the best.

-First draft is always bound to be filled with mistakes. Though, don’t let this discourage you. I struggle with it especially the bad grammars. Always double check your works before publishing them and come back to them to recheck again.

6. Constructive criticism are helpful if the sender really wants to help.

-Notice the last phrase? I needed to add that because not all people who give criticism wants to help. I’ve seen comments on other writer’s posts that they’re offering these but sound like they’re actually criticizing the author’s style of story-telling and are actually the people who send the author some hate on anon. Oof. Though, don’t let this get inside your head. I’m not telling you to feel like you’re above all because being humble is better than growing big heads. You’ll know it if that one comment really cares for your improvement, offer tips and their own opinions or such. Now, it’s your own decision if you know this will help your writing or not.

7. Describe what you feel and see. Let your readers feel the connection from your world to theirs. Offer them an invitation on seeing what your world consists of.

“Twilight visited the day. Gloom swallowing the skies, covering the cotton balls of clouds, languidly crawling to offer darkness and wanting to wrap you in its shadow. With the moon lightly carved up above, eventually shedding to offer light in the midst of evening.”

-Yep. I literally had to look up the sky and see what I want you to see. However, it’s not actually evening right now and I just needed to write that out. LMAO. But, did that make you think you’re experiencing night time at the moment? If yes, then this is what I’m trying to pertain to in this certain tip. Don’t be afraid to use words that can describe a certain scene.

8. You’re the only person who can and will be the best on telling the story or idea you have.

- You know why we’re writing fanfics/stories? Because we know people won’t be writing this for us. It’s sad to think that we’re writing this because it’s what we want to read. Sure, there are lots of ideas of the same genre. But, they’re not the same alright? Unless, this person plagiarized the whole fic/oneshot. Then, it’s literally the same. It’s a common circumstance to have. But, I try to think of different kinds of ideas.

9. Be creative. Don’t stick with one genre/mood you’re used to.

- A challenge can be good. You will never know if you can do it and actually write great on it unless you try. If it’s a dark fic, never forget to put warnings first because a lot here in tumblr act like they’re a saint and never committed a crime when they stumble upon an idea that doesn’t tickle their pickle, punani---Oof. I’m sorry? Hehehe.

10. Lastly, take your time. Nobody has the right to rush you into writing a fic. If they want to read the best of your capabilities, then rushing is no good because writing a fic/book takes a lot of time, sweat, effort, challenge of oneself and tears. If they think that we finish everything in a snap of our fingers. Then, I’ll gladly challenge them to write a whole 2k-10k chapter in 5 minutes.

Tag me in your fic/book anon, if you’ve finally try to write again! I’ll def be proud to know when you’ll be writing again! Heehee! Stay safe where ever you are, bby! Mwah! 🥰

#seb-owns-these-tatas #it's an honor #THANK YOU #You make my shed potato tears #mwah #ILY

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littlehollyleaf · 7 years ago

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Ask a writer!

tagged by @mysillylittlesoapbox (yes I do still write fic... sometimes :p I’m afraid it’s all Gotham now though!) ...I don’t usually do memes about my writing though so, this should be...interesting...

1. How did you come up with your username and what does it mean?

my name is holly, holly leaves are a thing, I wanted to just be ‘hollyleaf’ but it was already taken so I figured ‘well hey, I’m also small...’ and voila! (no, I’m so sorry, but the Warrior Cats series was not involved at any point, I still haven’t read them and only know a character has my username, or a version of it, because of all the asks I keep getting about it :P)

2. Which fanfic of yours has the most feedback? (bookmarks/favorites, follows/subscriptions, visitor hits, kudos)

So I had a quick glance at AO3 and this is something it looks like WAAAAY too much effort for my lazy ass to figure out, plus I dunno how accurate the AO3 stats would be for my stuff anyways because I only very recently put all my fic on there after having most of it posted (and therefore commented on and otherwise interacted with) solely over at LJ for years and years...

I would imagine it’s Imitating Life (spn, deancas), because that’s the one I remember getting the most feedback for. So I’ll just go with that!

3. What is your FFnNet/AO3 profile icon, and why did you choose it?

It’s the same as my tumblr one. Because it’s me and I already had the image saved in an appropriate size. I know, dull right?? (back on LJ I was OBSESSED with finding and/or creating SO MANY different icons to convey different moods and whatnot - they were basically an oldschool version of reaction gifs I guess - but on any other platform I’ve been just... meh about the icon thing... idk!)

4. Do you have any regular/favourite commenters?

@vampirebillionaire has been a regular for my Gotham stuff, notable for jumping ship with me into foxma :) (well not jumping... simultaneously enjoying :p), for which I am profoundly grateful xx but generally my fic style and content is a bit... eclectic I guess? so no, no one who is super regular

5. Is there a fanfic that you keep going back to read again and again?

Of my own? Nah. Well... not AGAIN AND AGAIN like on the regular. I HAVE re-read my stuff OF COURSE :p But usually it’s me re-reading previous parts of a series/set to get the feel for the story/characters again as I write new stuff. Though admittedly I have re-read Imitating Life more than most probably, to check it still reads okay.

As to other authors’ fics - I must confess that I read less and less these days, so there is def not a single one I constantly return to.

I have, however, re-read a few by depthsofgreen since I got into Gotham, as well as some by rissalf and silentsinger

Back in the day there was this one spn last unicorn AU I used to re-read the night before each premiere, because it was a deliciously angsty way to get me in the mood for a new season and pass the time while waiting - particularly notable because AUs are not really my thing, so it was an interesting choice for me to keep returning to! Alas I have lost my link to it however :( Should anyone know the one I mean drop me a line! (Cas was the unicorn, obvs, Dean was the Prince, Sam was Schmendrick, Anna was Molly and Meg was Fortuna)

6. How many stories are you subscribed to? How many do you have bookmarked?

I have ONE (1) story bookmarked - because it is a WIP I am following (and I just learnt how to bookmark the other month)

...what even is subscribing and how is it different??

7. Which AU do you find yourself writing the most?

None at all if possible. Although most of my fics end up being Canon Divergent in the end ofc they are generally canon compliant (based on my interpretation of the canon anyways) at the time of writing... Sometimes canon changes things while I am in the middle of writing stuff though ofc (*shakes fist at Gotham right now*), in which case I will unavoidably be writing something knowingly Canon Divergent/What If.

(aside - I tried to write an spn x-men AU once, but I got bored very quickly... full on AUs are just not me!)

8. How many people are subscribed and bookmarked to you in total? (you can view this on the stats page)

OH THERE’S A STATS PAGE?

*checks*

K - 34 subscribers and 423 bookmarks (whoa that seems a lot??)

hey there’s graphs and stuff with your top five fics based on hits too - that’s pretty cool - my top is in fact Holding On and Letting Go... probably because it was one of my last big spn fics and one of the first I published on AO3...

9. Is there something you’d like to write about but are afraid of people judging you for it? (Feeling brave? If so, share it!)

No... I mean... I don’t think so? If there ever has been it’s passed me by and I’ve forgotten about it.

...for a hot minute I was into Eddie/Isabella in Gotham, and that plot was ofc (understandably) received VERY POORLY by the fandom, so I may have at one point been hesitant to explore that idea (and the related Ozzie/Eddie/Izzy thoughts I had) because of that... but I never got as far as wanting to actually WRITE anything that I recall so... I guess not really?

10. Is there anything you would like to be better at? Writing certain scenes or genres, replying to comments, updating better, etc.

There’s a couple of dumb little grammatical things I wish I was better at remembering - like when it’s ‘passed’ and when it’s ‘past’ or when it’s ‘effect’ and when it’s ‘affect.’ Because I forget and have to look it up Every.Damn.Time!

11. Do you write rarepairs or popular ships more often?

Well, the ship I’ve written most for is deancas - so it’s def ‘popular ships’ I write most! (though I would like to point out that it WASN’T ONE when I STARTED :p).

I’m not opposed to writing rarepairs as well however (she says, in the middle of a huge Gotham rarepair series!). I just write... whatever I’m enjoying most at the time.

12. How many stories have you posted on FFNet/AO3 to this day (finished and unfinished)?

I’ve got 39 works up on AO3. Never published on FFNet. Probably got a few little things that I’ve only ever published on tumblr (like my cracky spn/WtNV crossover :p), so total number published across the board is more like 40ish...

13. How many stories do you have saved in/with your writing program?

(not counting the abandoned spn x-men AU that will remain forever unfinished) Just one. I CANNOT work on more than one fic at a time.

14. Do you write down story ideas, or just keep them in your head?

In my head (my stories are never especially complex after all). Once I’m stuck into a fic though I do tend to start creating bullet points below the main text of certain things that are coming next - like specific lines or phrases/metaphors I might think up as I go that I want to make sure I include, or the order of certain scenes if there is a series of short ones on the way, or sometimes points with question marks if I haven’t quite decided on something (eg. ‘have Eddie take his hat off here or wait until Ozzie smiles at him?’ that kind of thing...)

15. Have you ever co-authored a story?

No. I came CLOSE to co-writing a DCBB with the lovely @takadainmate YEARS AGO but we never quite made it work (I got a distracted by involving Balthazar in a subplot and went on my own tangent, we had trouble even getting together to discuss it, the deadline started looming and eventually we wisely close to call it a day!).

For a while there were VAGUE murmurings about returning to the idea... but the plot involved Dean and Cas getting trapped together in Purgatory you see aND THEN SEASON 8 HAPPENED!! So we decided to let canon run with it instead :P

16. How did you discover FFNet/AO3?

While I don’t use FFNet and don’t even read stuff there now, I did used to read fics on it early on. I discovered it while searching for info on my very first TV obsession Due South and was DELIGHTED to find a place full of stories about this thing I loved but had no new content for at the time :)

AO3 I remember being talked about and used a little by my LJ crowd, which is how I heard of it. I didn’t start using it myself until recently when I realised it had very much become the go-to hosting site used by tumblr fic writers.

17. Do you consider yourself to be a popular or famous author in your fandom(s) on FFNet/AO3?

Nah.

18. Do you have a nickname or fandom name for your readers?

...my personal readers? As in, not the general name for the various fandoms (like ‘spn family’ or ‘Gotham fam’), but for the people who read my fic specifically?

No... that seems... weird...?

19. Was there an author who inspired or encouraged you to write?

Actually... no... no one specific. Just... reading lots of fiction by lots of different writers, fic writers included, is what inspired/encouraged me to take a crack at it myself I suppose.

20. What writing advice would you give to a beginning author?

Do not listen to me!

21. Do you plot out your stories, or do you just figure it out as you go?

Um... both I suppose. Only... my plotting isn’t really... plotting.

Because I just... daydream, you know? And after a bit I’ll realise that I’m coming back to one particular daydream more often than another. And adding to it. And adding to it. Until I’ve got something at least vaguely coherent. At which point I make a decision as to whether I like the scenario enough to write it down or not and if I do, well, it’s already pretty much there and fully formed in my head, so no additional ‘plotting’ necessary (just the ironing out and researching of a few details).

But while I’m daydreaming... well that’s me ‘figuring it out as I go’ I guess.

22. Have you ever gotten a bad comment on a story? If so, what did you do?

My first foray into writing fic was with a Clex re-write of S05 Smallville. It ended up being a sprawling, much too ambitious multi-chapter thing I had no hope of ever finishing. But hey, it kept me out of trouble :p

Anyways, I was part of a sci-fi society at Uni at the time I was writing and each of us in the group developed these different fictional versions of ourselves over the course of our time together... because we were a sci-fi society and it was fun! And I thought it would be a laugh if, for one chapter, I put all of us into my SV fic. So I did (I made us all kryptonite infected characters who lived at Lex’s secret 33.1 facility - if any SV fans are reading) and prefaced the chapter with some disclaimer about how I was sorry if this part was a bit too self indulgent or ‘mary-sue’ or whatever, but that I couldn’t resist doing it for my friends, and that things would get back to normal next chapter.

And generally it was fine - I didn’t have many readers anyway :p

But long LONG after the fact, when I had written many other chapters since, I got a comment on this one chapter from someone saying that they felt my self-insert characters came across as too obviously self indulgent and were unnecessary and that I shouldn’t have written them in.

And you know, it was a fair call. But since I’d actually prefaced the chapter with myself saying that’s EXACTLY what they were, it seemed a bit odd to me that this person would bother making a point of the issue. And to compound confusion - this person had actually already commented POSITIVELY on the chapter when I first posted it, so their comment read something like ‘I’ve been re-reading this and on consideration ACTUALLY I think you should know that...’

So... that was a bit odd. Not really bad, but notable enough that it’s stayed with me! Since I was many many chapters along in the story at that point though it was easy enough to just nod and shrug and move on.

I’m lucky in that I’ve never received any actual scathing or horribly negative comments otherwise. I like to think I’d be thoughtful and philosophical about any serious criticism I might receive...

23. Is there a certain type of scene that you have a hard time writing? (action, smut, etc..)

Hmmm. Exposition probably. My focus is typically on a character’s emotion at any given time, but when the only thing happening is characters discussing what’s happening and when and why there’s not exactly much strong emotion involved you know? So I struggle, because it’s boring to write and I constantly fear I’m not describing/depicting it in a way that is interesting to the reader and blah blah.

(part of the reason I don’t often write complex stories anymore perhaps - less narrative means less exposition!)

(smut used to be hard... now it is less so... though that doesn’t mean I think I’m good at it now! I don’t think I’ll ever shake the fear that my smut is actually cringe-worthy...)

24. What story(s) are you working on now?

Just The Fox and the Scorpion :)

25. Do you plan your next project(s) before you finish your current ongoing story(s)?

No. Like I say above - I CANNOT work on more than one fic at a time. How do people do that??? I bow to you all!

I have in the past paused in the middle of longer spn fics (like my DCBBs) to knock out some quick ‘finished in the span of an evening’ FICLETS, usually in response to specific happenings in canon (like when Gabriel died and I just HAD to type something up as an outlet). But I don’t think that’s really quite what this question means? Because those aren’t projects OR stories, they are just... SCENES, you know? Also - I haven’t written a ficlet in FOREVER, so I’m not even sure I could do it anymore...

Having said this - I DO CONSTANTLY DAYDREAM. Which involves daydreaming multiple scenarios not exclusive to whatever fic I’m in the middle of. Some of which may well end up being part of the next fic I end up writing. But that’s hardly ‘planning’ I think? Because at that stage of things I’ll have no desire to make what I’m dreaming part of an actual story/fic.

26. Do you have a daily writing goal set for yourself?

Nah. I just write when I feel like it and keep going until I’m done.

If I’m writing for a challenge this changes ofc, because DEADLINES. So sometimes I’ve had to set goals because of that - usually it’s something vague though, like ‘you need to get to this point in the plot by tomorrow night Holly, come on!’ Nothing so regimented as a specific amount of time and/or words every day.

...generally when I’m in the middle of a fic I end up in a kind of... idk, natural momentum that pulls me on? Like there’s this constant FEELING in the back of my mind urging me to get back to the story. And not in a nagging guilt kind of way, in a ‘this is what I WANT to be doing right now’ kind of way.

Not that I end up easily writing every time I get back to the fic or anything! Sometimes I’ll get back to the page and just... be stuck, find I’m not in the mood or can’t think of the words or whatever. Which is frustrating because I still have that feeling of WANTING to continue the story, but I’ll know that I’m not in the right frame of mind so have to leave it for a bit (which can be anywhere from a few hours to a week). Generally the pull to keep writing draws me back in eventually though.

27. Do you think you’ve improved as a writer since you first started?

Goodness yes. I think if you’re writing regularly you’re just ALWAYS improving, aren’t you? Naturally my fic today is better than my first attempts, but likewise I think some of my Gotham fics are better than my spn fics in some parts. It’s a constant process isn’t it?

28. What is your favorite story(s) that you’ve written?

Imitating Life remains one of the fics I’m most proud of. Not only did the main story hold up well AND stick to overall canon (when it comes to Dean and Cas at least), so I think anyways, I also wove in a couple of subplots I very much enjoyed seeing through to the end. PLUS I really enjoyed all the meta nonsense, including messing about with the format to make it like look (a little bit) like a screenplay. So yes, that one will always hold a dear place in my heart :)

For Gotham I don’t think I’m ever gonna do better than We Are What We Are tbh

29. What is your least favorite story(s) that you’ve written?

Generally unimpressed by ALL my SV fic now. And considering I spent SO MANY HOURS/DAYS/WEEKS/MONTHS/YEARS of my life on it all I kinda feel like I should feel bad about that but... you know I really don’t? Because if it wasn’t for all the time and effort (and love and fun) I put into those not very good stories, I wouldn’t be enjoying the work I’m proud of and writing today. So *shrug emoji*

30. Where do you see yourself (as a writer) in 5 years?

5 whole years? Tbh I rather think I’ll have stopped writing by then. I’ve been winding down when it comes to fic for a LONG TIME now and writing for Gotham feels very much like a minor, brief resurgence of the hobby. Currently planning on calling it a day once I’ve finished Fox and Scorpion in fact.

31. What is the easiest thing about writing?

The part that doesn’t involve writing.

32. What is the hardest thing about writing?

Trying not to be repetitive.

Have I started a paragraph with this character’s name too many times in a row? Am I using ‘furrowed brow’/’bites lip’/’narrows eyes’/’insert stock descriptive phrase here’ too often? Did I use this phrase already or was that in another fic or in the book I was just reading? Is there too much alliteration in this sentence? - to name but a few of the questions that inevitably pop up related to my paranoia about repetition.

33. Why do you write?

Because I’m insatiable and the stories onscreen aren’t enough for me.

...well that was exhaustingly introspective so I’m way too tired to tag! Interesting one though, made me think! (and taught me some stuff about AO3 :p)

#meme #about me

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