#see this is one of the reasons i don't do mains. i love coming up with my own portrayals regardless of if i write them

[mer-acle]

I've been thinking about Athena and Zeus and their whole favorite daughter again because I can see their relationship in two main ways.

The first is Athena having a "good" relationship with Zeus before God Games, Zeus treated Athena with more "love" because she was loyal and well perfect, she did what he wanted and didn't complain even if she didn't like it, and Athena was that loyal because she loved him, and he was a relative good father (emotional manipulative as hell).

The second is if their relationship abuse were already more apparent before, Zeus being a lot more controlling and giving punishments every time she crossed the smallest of lines, but only behind closed doors of course, the rest of Olympus thinks Athena is just daddy's favorite so nobody really on her side since no one likes Zeus very much, and poor Athena just having to deal with this alone and being so very obedient although partly because of love mainly out of fear of what he could do.

Honestly, I don't know which is worse on one side having Athena already having a bad relationship with Zeus is great for angst, and it's so interesting to explore, but makes Zeus finally fiscally hurting ends up being less of a shock, it's just very tragic. And on the other side having Athena who really loved Zeus and was truly loyal having him hurt her out of the blue like that is really heartbreaking because no one really wants to believe our own father could hurt us.

Anyway I don't know if I'm making a lot of sense, english isn't my first language so sometimes is hard to write down what I'm thinking, I just wanted to ramble a bit and I thought you would like to see it lol

ahhhhhhh

you know, when I first read this I stopped and stared at it for a second.

cos you somehow managed to encompass both what I'm kinda aiming for in Fighting to be Loved, where there was a lot of emotional manipulation but the physical escalation is pretty much completely new and unexpected, and what @evermorecatra and I are doing for our AU with Zeus being physically abusive already but behind closed doors. I can't even add anything to what you wrote. It's that. we're doing that.

I totally agree with your assessment of why both are tragic in their own way. I gotta love the angst of Olympus being shocked bc daddy's favorite got so horrifically hurt while Athena 100% saw it coming and wasn't surprised at all. While in the other scenario, those who got hurt were always those around her (Metis, Pallas, Prometheus, even Odysseus to a degree) while she remained unscathed. Getting not only injured but almost killed after thousands of years where you were safe must completely take you out of your reality. Like... what can you reasonably believe at that point? Poor owl. Either way she loses.

I found it made perfect sense, thank you for rambling, I really appreciate it <33

[centrally-unplanned]

Partner M and I did a (re- for me) watch of the first half of Season 2 of Sailor Moon (Sailor Moon R for the real ones), the infamous "filler" arc made because the manga wasn't really caught up yet, and it has confirmed for me that this is the better half of the season. Which is a problem, because if you consult a typical 'watch guide', they will recommend skipping it! This is because none of the events are "relevant to the plot of the later content", i.e. none of it comes up again.

You can see the logic but guys, it's Sailor Moon. The plot generally just isn't that relevant, almost none of the events "come up again" between seasons. Whether or not it is "in the manga" isn't really a guide to what makes the anime good. Honestly a lot of the watch guides out there are bad for this reason - the plot of Sailor Moon isn't why you watch it! The plot is mid. The charm comes from design ethos and the creativity of the team, which generally gets to flourish way more in the slice-of-life-esque "filler" episodes. And meanwhile if you skip plot episodes the idea that that is a problem is, look, "this is Chibiusa. She is Usagi's daughter from the future, visiting to learn about friendship". Done, you can now skip the entirety of Season 2 if you wanted to. It's a show for 10 year olds, believe in yourself.

Anyway the "core" part of Season 2 is the worst season of the show. Chibiusa sucks as an annoying child who won't communicate, Mamoru really sucks doing the "I must protect Usagi by pushing her away" trope, and the villains are pretty weak. It spends a lot of time on not the main girls, which is a big mistake. Meanwhile! The "filler" arc of Season 2 is about two alien elves who are Learning To Love with crushes on Usagi & Mamoru (so the plot is ABOUT them), each of the inner senshi get new powers with episodes focused on them, and Usagi/Mamoru get a whole romantic arc. The slice-of-life elements are great; standout episodes are the picnic one, the Snow White one, and Jupiter's hilarious date with the main villain guy. And most importantly it is tight - full story, told in 13 episodes. You can watch it as like it's own show and it can work.

Also Mamoru's subconscious is Muslim; dude got some real Yu-gi-oh shit going on in there. Good times.

So yeah, ignore all the watch guides. If you are going to watch Season 2, definitely watch episodes 1 -13, then maybe watch a selection of the best "filler" episodes from the rest and just go right to Season 3. Or watch the whole thing, up to you, it is Sailor Moon after all: charming even when it is at its worst. But don't skip the arc because it is "filler".

[tempural]

Hi!! I wanted to say that I loved reading about your journey of creating a personal website. I'm still unsure between Vercel and Netlify. I have a small question to ask. See, one of the reasons I want to make a website is to archive drawings and journal/sketchbook. Would you have any tips for creating an area on my website just for the diary/journal, which has tags, files for each entry, etc.?

Bello!

Really happy to hear about your interest in websites! I want everyone to make their own site so I don't have to log into social media and get instant tummyaches ♥

Vercel vs Netlify: I think I settled on Vercel for absolutely no reason whatsoever. I just made a site on Netlify, then tested on Vercel, and now I have like 5 websites on Vercel so I just kept using it LOL. I'm sure a more tech-savvy person would know the difference - I think they have certain integrations with specific programs.

Creating a diary or journal with tags:

There's a couple of different ways you can do that, with different levels of work needed.

you got me yapping again:

This sadgrl tutorial might be outdated and may or may not work, but explains the process better than I can.

Easiest: make a journal on Dreamwidth, or another blogging site (wordpress??) that allows easy tags and RSS feed, and embed that RSS feed onto your site.

This requires almost no HTML set-up, and the easiest to organize tags, but you don't truly have the data on your own site since it's just embedded.

When I snuck into a web design class at college, this was one of the methods that the professor used for a blog within a portfolio site LOL.

Shit like wordpress is what a LOT of ~professional~ sites do for their blog section. They code it separately from the main site haha. It's the most popular thing, but not necessarily the best. And wait til you read on what the CEO of wordpress has been having meltdowns about... he owns tumblr too!

It's made with a tutorial for Neocities if that's what you use.

Medium: Set up zonelets.

It will require some HTML and JS editing, but will help automate making headers/footers for each page of a blog.

I've never used it myself, but I see other people speak highly of it.

HARD FOR ME CUZ I'M A GORILLA: I believe a lot of professional web devs will slap your face with their coding cock until you use a static site generator (SSG) to make your site.

You will need some coding knowledge to set up the tagging system since it doesn't come with it enabled by default. But it's made explicitly to be an alternative to big Static Site Generators which are...

It requires some more intimidating knowledge, because it's a lot of scripts that turn files that are not HTML/CSS/JS into plain HTML.

Also you have to use the command line, and that doesn't come with buttons that tell you what you can do. You have to copy/paste all that shit or memorize the code to 'dev build astro' and it all looks silly.

I've used Eleventy, and now am using Astro. Other people use Hugo or Jekyll or some other stuff with crazy names like Glup Shitto. I hate all these sites cuz none of the words mean anything to me. This is a common theme for me and tech. I don't know what NODES or CONTENT or ISLANDS are!!!

I had the most success attempting to learn how to use a SSG by downloading a template and altering it with github + VScodium. Here's the template page for Astro. You click on a theme you like, and it takes you to its github page. (If you don't want to use evil Microsoft stuff sorry. Skip this entire section.) Follow the instructions on the page for "forking" the glup shitto. When it tells you to run commands, I run those commands through the terminal window in VScodium. These tutorials never tell you what these commands do cuz they assume you already know. Usually those commands automatically install the files you need onto your computer, and create the final files.

You can see my wip here for a "tag system" that SHOULD show members of a web listing haha but I don't know what I'm doing and I have a reading disorder AND don't know cumputer good.

THEORETICALLY this will be the simplest and easiest way to maintain tags and files, because after you set it up you just have to write the "content" of the blog page. And you don't have to set up the header/footer ever again. I see the vision, and potential, but I am not there yet when it takes me 5 hours a day to figure out what any of the words in the documentation mean and I don't want to ask an actual tech person cuz they will be like 'obviously just press the Blip on the Repository and then Suck My Ass in the command line".

(side note I haven't updated fujofans in like a year cuz I'm struggling with this part to make updating easier).

Con: the final HTML/CSS code is really ugly if it's "minified", and a lot of themes use """"""professional"""""" CSS libraries like Bootstrap and Tailwind that I honestly think are ugly cuz that's what every fuckin' tech website uses to style their pages and make them look Professional and Minimalist with stupid code like style="500-w dark-gray-balls D-cup-bra" on every single element. Even Toyhouse uses Bootstrap. Eugh!

But maybe you're smarter than me and can wrangle these things better!

That was really long. Woops. I hope you can slug through this wall of text and find something helpful. Feel free to email me if you have any more specific questions. I may or may not be helpful.

If someone else sees this and has better suggestions for making BLOGS, please chime in. I'm begging you.

[xjulixred45x]

I'm trying to be active again and i though: "what could be a better way of coming Back from the Dead than a critique to the soap opera that has become Helluva Boss?"

So here we are. My personal Critique to the episodes Ghost Fuckers and Mastermind.

I'll be honest, i saw both of them in one sit bc i delay seeing Ghost Fuckers SO MUCH that IN THAT TIME Mastermind come out, then i realized i could't keep doing that and accept my fate(seeing the episodes when i was doing nothing importart and Home alone).

AND GOOOOOOOD-

First of all, Ghost Fuckers.

The first half, absolutly GROSS and incredible out of character for many characters.

I liked Millie A LOT in this Episode bc she represented how i was feeling trough this first half, CONFUSED AS HELL AND MAD AT THE BAD DIRECTION OF THE BOSS(vivziepop).

I get it, we are suposse to see this reaction of Blitz as natural and that affect him a Lot, BUT:1-that wasn't Even a BREAKUP(i'll talk of it later) and 2- it's super out of character for BLITZ OF ALL PEOPLE.

if You tell me that Stolas is neglecting His duties after what happen, yeah, i can believe that, BUT BLITZ? The one who all motivación trough the seasons was to keep His business AND employees aflot is not only neglecting His job BUT ALSO USING THE MONEY OF SAID JOB (THAT HE HIMSELF SAID WAS IN CONSTANT RISK OF BANKKRUP) FOR IMPULSIVE PURCHASES???

What the actual Hell.

Even Loona just allowing this and doing what Blitz told her to do feels strange, that's HER PAY TOO, and she just dosen't care or dosen't understand what is happening??

Moxxie is My spiritual animal when i was doing Homework from Collage. The only joke that i find funny in this Episode. Believe me kids, there's nothing more scary than BANKKRUPSY.

Also, seeing that most of our own knolege from Hell is based on Blitz since the Start, it's feels so strange and incrongruent that he still insist on the Ghost theme. Specially when he likes to make fun of humans for those kind of things.

The whole secuence of Spooky Kind of Love just have me...there.

And we got to the second half! Where i have more problems Even though is the Best party of the episode.

Millie blows up and tells Blitz what we all want to Say, he gets offended for no reason, they get diferent ways, Blitz starts allucinate bc of the infester demon, making Even more OBVIOUS His insecurities. Again. For i don't know how many times.

Millie finds him and she tries to make him see that he dosen't destroy everything by remembering how they meet. It was actually a pretty cool scene. We Even get to see more of Millie when she first got out of Wrath, her insecurities, how she was at the job, when they get the IMP Bulding, etc.

Half a point for the develomp to Millie(TWO SEASONS LATE).

they find the demon and he posses(?) Blitz for some reason, and meanwhile Possesed Blitz tries to kill Millie, Blitz has to revive His traumas AGAIN. For GOD sake just leave him alone FOR FIVE MINUTES--

Millie kick His ass, they kill the demon, finished the job, the end.

This is the Best example of the Main problem of Helluva: His Tone problem.

The first half and the shorts, for example, are the characteristic humor of Helluva we are used to, that the people want to see, and just a little bit of lore. And that works ALONE, it's funny, it's dynamyc.

BUT THEN they spit lots and lots of Lore in our faces, Mysteries, Flashbacks, Angst, comfort, ALL IN THE OTHER HALF, and it's TOO MUCH.

Those halfs work on their own, but not togheter. That's the Main problem. And Vivziepop dosen't decide which one want to prevail.

NOW, MASTERMIND

Which of MASTERMIND only has the title

WHY ANDREALPHUS KEEP SAYING THAT HIS SISTER IS HOT?!? SPECIALLY IN A CONTEXT LIKE THAT???!

Stella could have been waaayyy more better for this Episode than him honestly, maybe hiding the fact that Stolas was doing something ilegal SO she can personally report him and make a case as she as the poor Woman who was cheated on(which is not a lie-) and have all the assets of Stolas for HERSELF.

THAT COULD HAVE BEEN MORE INTERESTING THAN THE GAY PEACKOWT. But WELL.

The dementors from Harry Potter go to arrest IMP, and they have a trial where Andre says that "Blitzo force himself on Stolas to take possesion of the book" which was funny for me bc is sounded just like the Stolas Stans🤣

They got Striker! He's fine! But he lies saying that Blitz is the one who wanted Stolas Dead(which is another thing that bothers me, WHY WOULD STRIKER HELP THE GOETIA WITH HOW MUCH HE SAYS TO HATE THEM??) and Blitz tries to defend himself saying that if he wanted Stolas Dead he could do it HIMSELF(good point thoug)

Blitz is sentenced to DEATH and is LIVE STREAMED IN ALL RINGS OF HELL AS A LESSON OF NOT GOING AGAINST THE LAWS OF SATAN.

But then Stolas appear and instead of explaning himself like a normal fucking person he starts to sing. I didn't listen to the Song, to much Cringe in one sit. But Stolas take all of Blitz Blame.

BUT OF COURSE SATAN WOULD'T EXCECUTE A ROYAL BC AND I QUOTE "YOUR LIFE HAS ACTUAL VALUE" ARE TOU FUCKING KIDDING ME--

Instead they take away His assets and legions and passed them to... Andre (which is weird, wasn't supposed to be Via? Andre Say it HIMSELF in a previous Ep. But WELL, i'm searching for LOGIC in this show-) and Stolas has to live like a normal Hell citizen for 100 years.

Bascically just turn him into a normal person.

The good side is that the imps start admiring and hiring IMP services more, Even seeing Blitz as a hero for standing to Satán(and honestly good for him).

Stolas dosen't have anywhere to live anymore so Blitz takes pity and they go to His place, he Even bathes him and gives him clothes.

THIS FACE

Brings me so mucho JOY.

and the fact that Blitz it's giving him SPACE, GIVING HIM A PLACE TO STAY, AND COMFORT AND HIS WORST MOMENT, KNOWING THAT STOLAS WOULD'T DO THE SAME FOR BLITZ(bc he NEVER has done it as far as we are in the series), ITS JUST AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHG-

I'll pretend the episode ends here, thank You very much.

CONCLUSION:

Episode 10 just make Even more visible the HUGE tone problem with the series, Vivzie dosen't Even know what she want in the series, if it is a comedy or a melodrama. And it end up wasting great opportunities to develomp her characters in each case.

Not only that, but that the torment to Blitz has to STOP, SERIOUSLY, the writers love to make him SUFFER but at the same time we don't confirm ANYTHING, it's a stupid attempt to generate "intrige" and to extend this series Even more. At the price of it's own protagonist.

3/10

Episode 11 feels like Fanservice with a Lot of unnecesary drama. And convenience of the script.

WHY are there the other sins?? Why nobody besides Vasago asked about Stolas or quesrioned Andre?? How could't Stolas Know about the whole trial things before?? WHY THEY ARE SINGING??

And of COURSE, the lesson of the day with this Episode is that if You are power class and Disobay, You get EXCECUTED, but if youre a Royal, You just have to pay taxes now. Fucking. GENIUS. VIVZIEPOP.

5/10( only for Stella and the Scenes with IMP)

Overall, just a soap opera i would recomend if You turn off Your brain.

Shares, reblogs and comments are very welcome!

[ismaeldrawsthings]

Still thinking about Thetis now her in TSOA and specially at the end

(I'll always defend tsoa Thetis btw)

Thetis hatred for mortals is a key factor of her character in the book. That's why she hates Patroclus in the first place. The only mortal she truly holds close to her heart is her son. That's why she says "he's going to be a God and you'll die soon" when she meets him. She was stating a fact; a bitter one, yes, but a fact nonetheless.

One of the main themes of the book is Achilles' conflict between humanity and godhood. Patroclus represents his humanity and Thetis represents his godhood, as she is the reason godhood is a part of himself in the first place. And something about Gods and goddesses is that they, more often than not, don't really care about mortals. They see earth as their playground and mortals as their dolls they can destroy and torture if and as much as they want to. They don't care. They shouldn't care. A mortal's life is too short to care. One way Thetis can bring Achilles closer to godhood is to make him care as less for mortals as possible so he doesn't mind having to kill them.

But that's not what Patroclus wants. Patroclus wants Achilles to be as human as possible. He wants him to keep being gentle, to be kind-hearted and empathetic and capable of love. Achilles follows Patroclus' path during his years prior the war because he loves him. And what's more human than love? But then the war comes. He fears to be forgotten, and follows Thetis' path. And we know where that lead him.

At the end of the book, when she's talking to Patroclus, she wants to learn more about Achilles. Human, not God. Because she wants to learn other virtues one can be proud of apart from the power of taking a man's life, like she knows Gods do. And Patroclus teaches her. He tells her stories about a golden boy who juggles with his food and plays the lyre and sings and knows how to take care of wounds and likes to run to the shore and swim and make up games and and so much more aspects that compose one's humanity.

"I couldn't make him a God"

"But you made him"

I feel like the reason some people hate tsoa Thetis and felt like Madeline Miller mischaracterized her and that her intention was to make her evil either just know Thetis from The Iliad or misinterpreted the book altogether. TSOA is written from Patroclus' POV and she fucking hates Patroclus in this book so what did you expect lmao she wasn't gonna be likeable, and she doesn't have to. Thetis doesn't like mortals, indeed; that's not something MM made up. TSOA is also the first Iliad retelling where Achilles and Patroclus are explicitly lovers and Thetis is not fucking stupid so it makes sense for her to dislike Patroclus because she already finds her marriage with Peleus a nightmare, she doesn't want that for her son. The first time she appears she's just bitter towards Patroclus and after that she doesn't do much. But after they kissed she obviously starts to hate him 😭 a mortal lover is the LEAST Achilles needs to reach godhood. Don't piss her off.

[bagheerita]

#ooh this is a hot take#bc on one hand I do actually believe that tain loves him in his own fucked up way#which is why hes so hard on him. i mean he literally risked his career and reputaion to send him to bamarren#he really did want the best for him. but hes so fucked up himself that he really cant be a parent#i love his ‘night people’ speech bc thats really the only time hes ever honest or straight with garak#and that bit about the riding hound tells me he absolutely loved garak. he obviously loves mila very much#but on the other hand garak never felt loved or accepted or like his dad was proud of him. he was never a father to him.#and afterall its tains fault that garak turned out the way he did. sentimental and emotional and short sighted#obviously he had no choice but to have tolan raise him but he was more of a father to him than tain ever could be.#so of course he takes after him. like tain did this to himself and he did it to garak.#theres just so much pain and disapointment and blame between the two of them#they both made mistakes. they even both deserve some grace. the big differance is that garak was just a kid. this was done to him.#even if tain didnt mean to. even if he had the best of intentions. intentions arent worth much when compared to actions and outcomes#also… I bet your right about tain being this fuckin close to just being like yk what. idc. join a cult be a gardener idfc#but he loved him. which is why he never gave up on him until the disspointment was too great. and he was angry and hurt#the humiliation of exile is so much worse than execution. ts was personal#it was so cruel bc he loved him so much and was so hurt

@codenameregnar I wanted to thank you, because I've been thinking about your tags for months now.

My initial instinctive reaction to the idea that Tain actually loved Garak was fucking no way. I personally think Tain loves no one but himself, and therefore loves only the mirror that he thinks he can carve in Garak. But I swallowed my hasty words and forced myself to get to some Tain episodes in my rewatch first and reexamine the evidence.

To me, selflessness is a main component of love, placing someone else's needs ahead of your own, and I don't believe Tain has ever been selfless in his entire life and is therefore incapable of love. I personally don't think he even really loves Cardassia, except when it's a reflection of himself and his own ideals.

But the other main component of love, to my mind, is vulnerability. And Tain does allow himself to be vulnerable around Garak. So, yeah, in his own fucked up way, I guess Tain does love Garak. (For what it's worth, because love is neither a be-all-end-all or an obligation, despite what the writers of DS9 want to promote.)

I also really liked your point that the reason Tain never gives up on Garak being a part of the Order is that he does love him, and wants to keep giving him opportunities to prove that he can do better. He never wants Garak to die: even when Tain feels ultimately betrayed and hurt, Garak is exiled instead of killed because if he's alive he can always have another chance to learn to be better; and Tain gives Julian whatever he needs in "The Wire." If he says it's only because living is a punishment, well he is a noted liar and teacher of liars; and also the truth in the lie is that it is a punishment that part of him hopes Garak will learn from and return from, stronger. Even when he sends the assassin in "Improbable Cause" (I mean I think he's pretty well gone on being too up his own ass at that point but) I feel like it was really just another test: that he knew it wouldn't work unless Garak was already fallen too far from what he could have been. And I guess he was right, because Garak saw the assassin coming, but Tain didn't see Changeling-Lovok coming.

So I read A Stitch in Time and one result of that which I was certainly not expecting was that I feel so much sympathy for Enabran Tain. Garak's life is a tragedy, but Tain's is a fucking black comedy.

I mean, he's a terrible person and an absolute shitbag, but can you imagine? You have this kid. You go to all the trouble of arranging for him to be raised in a family situation where he won't be rejected from society for being your bastard. You get him into the nicest indoctrination school where he can hobnob with plenty of uppercrust kids. You get him a job in your Order and all the proper training. And he's actually, like, really good at it. But he has this fatal flaw of being completely incapable of not making stupid, short-sighted, emotional decisions.

A scene I imagine has to have happened just prior to Garak and Tain's confrontation at the end of part II:

Like goddamn. When Tain asked "what's your plan for getting rid of her husband?" and Garak's just like "plan what plan." Dude. I'M disappointed, I can only imagine the guy who's job it is to know and plan for everything isn't at least as disappointed.

I know he didn't actually, but do you think there was ever a time when Tain wanted to be like, You know what. Just go back to Tolan and become a gardener. Join that illegal hippie cult. It's fine.

[14dayswithyou]

are you a compsci major :0

✦゜ANSWERED: I wish I had the brains and dedication for that ^^; If anything, Ren would be the compsci major (if he chose to go to university with you)!! As for me though?? I'm currently double majoring in digital media and social working ;v;

[autumnoakes]

hyperfixations really will have you imagining a 2 hour video essay on some white guy video game character huh 😪

[anonyanonymouse]

🙈

[the-oogly-boogler]

Honestly, I wouldn't buy something labeled "Established journeys and character arcs to be expected. With your nth "John Doe, the chosen hero"" either. What I will buy and read is something with a summary. And that's something that I can find for books that aren't marketed based on "Subversive bipoc cast with trans black lesbian main character".

The problem with a lot of books I see are that they don't have a summary blurb. Instead there's "Praise for An X of O's" followed by quotes from authors I've never heard of. "By the author of An O of Y's" the back of the book assures me, as if I surely know this great book. "Fascinating and breathtaking," Someone McSomeperson of Whatever Times states, probably truthfully, though not helpfully. "Like Fargleblargen meets Visheltonken!" a part reads, presuming I both know those books and am intrigued enough by something having the vibes of those two things to drop money on this.

Yeah, subversive isn't an inherently interesting word. It is to us what "dark deconstruction" was to the 2010's. But predictable is also not inherently appealing. You know what is? PLOT!

Tell me John is going to try and tame a dragon despite dragon tamers being an ancient myth in order to win a war against an evil empire and, yes, I see where we're going with this. But I have something to grasp onto. John and his childhood best friend Faye are going up that mountain and they're coming down with at least one dragon. There will be fantasy shenanigans, yeah, but I can put up with bog standard "the elves are snobby assholes and they hate dwarves and also the monarchy is great" for dragons and a good friendship.

Tell me Annalisa goes to tame a dragon but the one she finds is fleeing something else, something blue and darker than pitch black that dwells within the forest. And she goes to it, abandoning her old friends because the evil empire needs to be stopped and anything that can stop a dragon is a viable option. Tell me she finds a beautiful, otherworldly young woman in the darkness who half-possesses her and they share a body and dark magic as they seek the aid of neighboring nations in their quest. I don't care if you subvert the asshole elves who hate dwarves and also the monarchy. I don't care if you do all of that. But I need something to hold onto.

I need a character. I need a genre, a plot, a lead who sounds like they're doing something instead of being a static protagonist. Annalisa can be a black trans lesbian. Her being those things doesn't automatically invest me in her. Her being determined enough that she's going to chase after something dragons flee in fear of is. It tells me she loves her friends and family and freedom enough to do something. "Black trans lesbian" doesn't tell me who she is. What does she want? What is she willing to do? How much is she willing to swallow down her own fear and keep trying regardless of it?

The reason John's story sells more isn't because it's conventional, although it is. It's because John sounds like a nice guy who loves his friend and country and wants to help people. "Trans black lesbian" dehumanizes Annalisa down to gender ethnicity orientation. If you don't describe John that way but you do reduce Annalisa down to that, you're priming the potential readers to view him as a character and her as a list of boxes you've checked. You're doing the equivalent of "A great book!" - Author VonSomebody instead of a blurb.

I say this as a queer POC myself: I need something that indicates the author doesn't view Annalisa as a means to an end, that end usually being 'please see me as a socially conscious writer'. I need something to tell me Annalisa is being written as a person. Describe her with a personality - headstrong, terrified but determined, perpetually sunny but secretly deeply worried - and use a word to describe her decisions that sound like ways you'd describe a person. "It's subversive and about a trans black lesbian!" is not as interesting to me as "Despite her fear, her love for her community drives her to race into the dark across the frozen lake, seeking the blue darker than black, to risk everything for a chance at hope."

You can subvert whatever the hell you want to subvert later. Make the deal go wrong, let her fall in love with the spirit who possesses her and not the male sidekick, have her realize the elves are racist assholes working with the empire to uphold the status quo instead of being the cavalry who'll swoop in to save the day, have her die midquest and wake up healed by the spirit possessing her but physically changed enough she can't convince anyone she's the same person, yadda yadda.

But before you subvert anything you need me to feel like you're writing queer BIPOC as people. Anxious, trying-her-best, smiling outside screaming inside Annalisa is being written as a person. I can get invested in a person. That person sounds interesting. I want to know her story.

"Black trans lesbian" implies either that the personality of a black trans lesbian isn't important/worth describing or that the author thinks black trans lesbian is a personality. I have no desire to read that. That sounds shitty.

Which is more interesting, this:

or the words trans black lesbian?

I really hate it when people seem to play stupid as to why more "radically diverse" books aren't bought compared to the "cookie cutter" of the week novels.

Really? REALLY? You don't understand how genre staples that are basically cookie cutter established sets of paraemters? People know what they'll get. Established journeys and character arcs to be expected. With your nth "John Doe, the chosen hero"

Vs

(And this is a indirect quote) "Subversive bipoc cast with trans black lesbian main character."

You really don't get it? Really? Come the fuck on. You can be sad about people sticking to their old horses, and leaving the new ones by the roadside. You don't need play THIS stupid about this kinda bullshit.

Hint: Old habits die hard.

Hint hint: Fucking learn to market books better than just vague tagging.

(You're also not gonna get anyone to read your preferred books if you keep insulting their faves either. No you're not gonna get readers to read other books if you call the cookie cutter books boring and old. Bonus hint for that one: If you tell them that a different book is radically different, most people will be a lot more likely to unwilling to try. People like some familiar things.)

--

[pyrriax]

ANYWHO goodnight tumblr i'll be back on the art grind tomorrow i think 🙏

[imagine-nerd]

The fucking disconnect is so real.

[m4niackkyun]

Hi. (Announcement in the tags)

[spring-lxcked]

had a moment of weakness and now have given (my understanding of/default) william's wife a name and a growing backstory and will end up having to fight to keep her off of my multi (i won't fight very hard). pray for me.

[sovamurka]

Not me suddenly creating an AU in my head about Altan and Lera being broken puppets in a magical shop owned by a wizard named... Sergey, of course. They try to repair each other in secret and find surprising comfort in one another.��

[arolesbianism]

If I was more of a fanfic writer I would totally write like 50 oni timeloop ai fics and Id have to fight myself so hard to not make Olivia a significant part of all of them. Just like yeah Quinn timeloop au. They and Olivia regular at the same bar actually. Don't worry abt it.