#she gave an example of maybe getting triggered on the 4th of July

[thelastspeecher]

I had a brief med check appointment with my doctor this morning and wound up telling her the Bad Time I was/have been going through to explain why I was crying so much my throat hurt and I wanted her to take a look at it to make sure I didn't do something to it. From crying. Which, given how hard and painfully I cry, was a concern. My abs were sore like I'd gone to the gym that first week.

And she immediately checked in on how I was coping (increased therapy sessions, strong support system) and then told me that I'm going to be grieving for a while. That there's going to be random things, esp around the holidays, that trigger strong emotions bc I'm reminded of my dog and grandmother.

And a) I'm glad she's so on top of things, in particular that she flat-out told me if I experience strong negative emotions without triggers, just feeling really bad in general, to call the office for help. And b) BOY HOWDY was she right bc I saw a damn Costco truck while I was driving back to the lab and that made me cry bc my grandmother offered to get me a Costco membership for my birthday last year. And I told her I didn't want one right now but maybe later.

And uhhhhhh that later will never come now

[josiebelladonna]

re: my sexual history post

(i talk about some rather triggering things in this one, so... you’ve been warned)

there was a point in that post where i noted that my 18th/19th years of life are years where i would like a redo of if given the opportunity, but really... i don’t.

what i went through at 18 and 19 years old was all completely justifiable. 

18, i was going off to school and then my parents split two months before my graduation: my mom took the money and my dad and i were left with an empty house until the end of the month and then i moved in with my grandmother - and my dad with my uncle up in the mountains, until school let out. that was the year where my brother really unfolded into his now-trademark douchebaggery, complemented by his wife at the time. just so we’re clear on her not liking me: i started voicing my own opinions again, just to do it, and in retrospect, i feel like she went against it just to annoy me. for example, i said how i didn’t like the word “guesstimate” and she was like “why?” and i said, “idk, it just bugs me” - and it does, too, it’s one of those ultra-cutesy portmanteau words that don’t really make any sense. and then, literally right after i said that she said it at like every opportunity she got: it literally felt like she was trying to annoy me. they were still newlyweds at the time and i remember when i was staying with them for a whole month that summer, they sat down with me one night and basically told me to get over myself, that my parents’ divorce was meaningless and that i needed to shape up or ship up, and i started crying right there.

and, you know the more i think about it, the more i think about that night, the more i feel like the two of them were just... completely emotionally tone-deaf, especially to me.

she was one of those ultra-feminine women (that you see a dime a dozen now no less... which frightens me) and she was almost hell-bent on making me the same way, when it was pretty obvious from the very beginning that there is no way i’m going that way: i have too much testosterone flowing through me and the only one who knows how i truly feel within is myself. she just... didn’t respect me. i could see it in her eyes just from what i remember about her, too, like there was just too much about me that annoyed her, but she wasn’t willing to tell me it, though. in hindsight, it felt like a warning of what was to come in the next decade, that... so many women have a problem with me, but they’re not going to say it to me to my face, until the next thing i know, they’re blocking me for no reason and it’s too late at that point. and when she was killed over 4th of july weekend back in 2016, i was dry-eyed at the funeral, and i know it was all because she didn’t respect me, and when i gave my opinions on things, it almost felt like annoyance on her part, like nothing i said sat with her very well. my brother says it was more like “pushing you to do better” but that’s not the impression i got, just from how i remember her. and i think my being the star at their wedding might have played a big role in that, too. that day was supposed to be them and unfortunately, it wasn’t. everyone was talking about me in the hot pink dress and those black velvet heels. so, for all i know, there may have been some resentment there, but neither one of them said anything to me because... again...

i don’t have fond memories of the two of them: maybe there were a couple of things, like some little nuggets, a couple of mornings were good, and i watched grey’s anatomy and the bachelor a couple of times because of her but that’s as far as it goes, though. my main memory of the two of them is me sitting in between the two of them on their couch and bawling my eyes out: another memory i have of them is laying on the bed in the guest bedroom in the fetal position because i had honest to god the worst cramps i ever had in my life - the one and only time in my life i had cramps so awful, i thought i was going to puke. so, i associate them with tears and vomit.

i was changed forever because of my parents splitting: i was a kid when we lived in the trailer, whereas he was a teenager. the whole “moody teenager” trope was in full effect with him when we lived there. my formative years in a closed space with my parents within three feet of our beds, and because of that, even to this day, i’m close with them. i’ll admit it: i’m a daddy’s girl. when he and my mom split, i went with him, and i soon found out that my presence next to him very literally saved his life - he told me that if i went with my mom after the split, he would’ve found something gnarly and just od’ed. he got clean because of me. my mom got clean because of me - after they split, she got hooked on... something, for a while, and then when i came back into the picture, she gave it up.

whereas he’s not very close with either of them - or with me, for that matter. he was widowed with three children in her wake, and then he met his current wife and they got married in 2018 into that huge mormon family (and my dad and i are unanimous on this, too: i don’t know who anybody is, just... oh yeah, you’re that big family that my brother married into and... weirdly adopted?) at the very start of this year, i saw that he changed his last name to hers, doing the whole jack white thing, which is fine on its own, men do that all the time. but it’s always strange to see it, though, like... are you okay? like, is there... something you’re not telling anybody?

i literally hate this word - and i hate any word that uses “man” as a prefix because it’s so condescending and misandrist (a close second is anything with “fat” as a prefix like “fatsplain”, it’s very belittling and feels like a blanket statement: you don’t know why i want to keep on gaining weight even at 251 pounds, and you don’t understand why so many men out there are suffering as women build continuously themselves up at their expense as i write this), but it just reeks of MANPAIN.

you know what i mean.

it’s not the genuine pain that a man feels after a woman just ripped his heart out of his chest. it’s not the genuine pain that men feel when they get told, either straight-up or covertly, they’re fat and ugly and undesirable and they feel this way 24/7. it’s not the genuine pain that abused men feel when radfems dismiss their problems. it’s not the genuine pain that you see in a man’s deep blue eyes and he tells you that he’s not worth the time or the tears, and he’s genuinely shocked that someone wants to draw him because she thinks he’s gorgeous and interesting-looking and she can’t stop staring at his gray streak-

no, it’s the kind of thing that makes you wonder if he’s compensating for something. it’s that over-the-top level of angst that almost feels like complete parody at times.

and there are two things that tell me that this is the case with him:

the first thing is our parents didn’t abuse us. they didn’t expose us to anything dangerous - if anything, they kept us away from it. that trailer protected me. and i know, for a damn fact - my one hand on my grandpa’s ashes and my other on my drawing of taylor hawkins - that when they go, he is not going to take it well. he’ll be sorry that he didn’t speak with my mom more or get with my dad more.

the second thing is... after i met chris in 2015, i decided to take things into my own hands. i got three inches from chris’ face; not even three months before that, i was seriously considering visiting the psychiatric ward. so, meeting him was a huge deal for me: i really wanted to turn things around on my own terms. and i made note of this, too. this was back when the word “girlboss” actually meant something positive: i wanted to be the rebellious little girl that i was growing up. i wanted to go back to that because that’s just how i am: “i’m not gonna do it just ‘cause you told me to”. it was just me saying “this is me, this is my life, this is how i’m going to portray it, and if anyone wants to ride my coattails, well then you can get lost.”

and... neither he, my sis-in-law, my dad, my aunt, or anyone in the family took this the way i intended it to. my dad - for some unfathomable reason, i still can’t put my head around this, how he came to this conclusion - believed that this was a sign of depression on my part. another thing i can’t put my head around is when he asked me if meeting chris gave me a job opportunity, because i was out of school at that point and i couldn’t find a single one if it saved my life (living in the middle of nowhere does fuck all for that) - and neither of them understood this, either. they didn’t understand my situation: really, when i was 19 and living alone off-campus, and i told my dad that i was suffering from anorexia and that i may have bipolar disorder (i don’t; at the time i thought i did) and he completely wrote me off. and with that, i was literally considering ending it. live alone, die alone, that was how it was going to go with me at 19. cold all the time and literally starving to death, and my own family didn’t even give a shit.

so, really, it was just me saying “enough.” it was just me setting boundaries, after letting people put words in my mouth for the entirety of my adolescence. i’m a concise person, too: there’s no hidden meaning behind my words. when i tell a story like this, there’s no subtext here. when i met chris, i felt powerful for the first time in literal years at that point. so, to this day, their reaction to that still completely baffles me. especially, that of my brother.

even if i was dealing with depression at the time - and i hadn’t, either; the last time i experienced a full-blown depressive episode, it was when i was 19 and living on my own - i will literally never let him live this down. it was the one time he was actually verbally abusive towards me. he called me names that, if my mom overheard them when we were living in the trailer, he would be out on his can. he accused me of not only being lazy, but a wedge in the family. he also told me to kill myself. yeah. this is my big brother we’re talking here. big brother told his kid sister to kill herself (later on, he called the cops on me because i was having a bad night and he posed as my dad. good mormon boy, my ass). he even blocked me on facebook - by the way, every time they reacted the way they did, and i had to clarify myself, they were all over me like flies on shit. gossip in that family travelled like poison gas: once it got out, there was no clarification, so every word that came out of my mouth was fuel on the fire. it was the only time i ever really locked horns with my dad.

if there’s any silver lining to all of this, it just confirmed to me that i’m not the one with the problems. when i finally said, “stop it. i mean it, stop it. i’m serious: leave me the fuck alone, all of you”, everyone got that... except him. at my grandma’s funeral the following spring - and a month before my sis-in-law was killed in a car accident - i could see the anger in his eyes towards me (i could see the anger in her eyes, too: literally my last memory of her is an embittered, annoyed scowl thrown my way from across the room. to this day, i can still see it. i can hear it in his voice, too. and yet, he treats me as if i’m a delicate flower, and it all shows up in his voice.

on a sidenote, it’s kind of funny to hear alex’s voice because he does kind of sound like him - they have a similar tone: alex is a little lower, has that “mad scientist” aura to him, and he has more of that, i call it “bay area swag”. people from the bay area tend to have this swagger to them, like they know what’s up and they see all: i don’t know if anyone has noticed it but i’ve more than picked up on it, though. the difference is alex is actually sweet, and he treats me very well. and i can see something is bothering him, emotionally speaking: when i post my works in progress on stories, on instagram, and he’s at the top - especially recently with my mermay drawings; the thing i’m doing this year is going to be packed to the brim with emotions - so it makes me wonder what’s going on behind that cool demeanor of his, and yet... i want to protect it. it brings out the protective best friend in me. he’s actually stood up for me a few times: it just makes sense to me to hold his emotional life closely, sort of as like “returning the favor”. my guess - this is just a total guess, too - is he probably just doesn’t feel comfortable talking about it, especially when i think about that morning last spring when i dm’ed him and i asked him if everything was alright because he seemed more withdrawn than usual on charlie’s chat room. and he didn’t tell me straight up, he showed me a screenshot of a tweet with a piece of it underlined. i’ve only seen him really angry all of three times, and one of those times, he was so apologetic about it after the fact - and i told him that it was okay, and he was more than acknowledging to me for that. men are notoriously non-emotional, but i do see it with him, though. i see him on an emotional level, and that tweet to me just tells me that he sees me, too, and it’s something i cherish. he knows that i can see his pain, and he talks to me very softly and with a little twinkle in his eye.

on the other hand, with my brother, i simply can’t. the quote unquote “pain” (read: manpain) that he feels is completely unjustified and unwarranted. there’s no reason for it. just because we lived in a tiny-ass trailer doesn’t mean you have to resent our parents to the point of not talking to them anymore. just because your kid sister is notoriously plucky and rambunctious doesn’t mean you have to be a fucking bully about it. he got angry at me for a misconstruing on my dad’s part: he got angry at me for something i never even said. he told me to drop dead for something i never said - and even if i was dealing my depression at the time, jesus christ, is that low or what. yeah, tell somebody who feels like dying to just go ahead and do it: even if that was the case, that’s not gonna come back and haunt you or anything.

last time he and i actually talked, one on one, was in 2019. just completely out of the blue called me and asked me what i was doing and if i planned on cutting myself or doing anything like that (and at that point, that hadn’t even crossed my mind in literal months). we “talked” for ten minutes - i.e., i probably said all of 7 words. told me to get therapy, get help, demanded i do this and this and this and this, and told me straight up that he was lonely and shit. really, the only thing that kept me from hanging up on him was i wondered what he would do if i did. it wasn’t my heart, and it wasn’t sympathy - he doesn’t get a shred of sympathy from me; hell will freeze over before i give him a single nugget of sympathy - no, it was me thinking about the repercussions.

i have anorexia. i’ve struggled with cutting. when i was 19, i had dropped down to my 12 year old weight - 5′7″ and 139 pounds might sound normal, but for me, i’m lucky my heart didn’t stop during the night. i wanted to make art and something that would make the little girl in me happy, and i couldn’t do it being in STEM. i tried to talk to him and my sis-in-law about it and it went right over their heads. it’s like, “neither of you gave a fuck about me and i’m lucky to even be here right now... why should i do that with you?”

i haven’t told him about alex. i haven’t told anyone outside of you guys about him, actually. as far as i know, he doesn’t deserve to know how alex makes me feel, or how i make him feel. one of the last things my stepdad told me before he passed last spring - it’s actually been a year since we lost him, unreal - was he wished that the two of us would connect, and i confessed that i didn’t think it was possible. i still don’t, either: he’s so far gone and fucked on an emotional level that it’s completely impossible.

really, the best thing i can do with my brother is just keep going my thing and don’t give him any clues into my emotional life. sometimes, i’ll get a small handful of notifications from him - and it’s never with my art, either, or a selfie. it’s always with a word post. like yeah, you only interact with your sister not only whenever you feel it’s convenient but to keep tabs on her emotional state when you don’t know the first thing about how she feels. and when she really did want you to know, you completely dismissed it. you disrespected her and then you find yourself so emotionally tone-deaf that you wonder why she won’t talk to you after you made your last two phone calls with her all about yourself.  talk about dead on arrival, jesus christ.

i say all this because he doesn’t share anything about his kids with us - with me or my parents. the only time i ever do is from my dad. these are my nieces and nephews, and you’re so out of it with the three of us that you don’t say a word about it? yeah. he deserves to have his last name revoked.

so, really, if there is anyone with a problem, it’s him. i’ve had my host of problems in my life but i’ve been open and honest with them, though, because that’s how you build a community is through relating to people. being autobiographical will find you people who have experienced the same things and you can go from there. i’m autobiographical in not just straight posts like this one, but in my writing - so much content from fever and dead man walking is based off of a memory or something i witnessed - and in my art, too - my cartoons are based on my appearance.

religion ate his brain. family ate his brain (dude’s got 6 kids and he wants more, major varg vikernes vibes there). unresolved immature teen angst ate his brain. and being widowed and remarrying far too quickly ate his brain.

he can declare gratitude for his gargantuan family all he wants, but... he’ll have his regrets in the future. like i said in my sexual history post, i worry that one of his kids is going to come out as gay or trans or bi, and i can already see the fire brigade coming. and there won’t be a single thing he can do about it.

on the other hand, do i regret my 18th and 19th years of life being the way that they were? no. not at all. not one bit. i had to go through those things just to realize my strength. i had to be nearly homeless, starving, living four hours from my closest relative, and wanting to die in order to realize my own strength.

[wild-aloof-rebel]

There has been a lot of fic published in the last couple weeks--116 completed fics since mid-July--which means today’s rec list is a little longer than usual. 

Not that that’s anything to complain about...

<1k words

give me one good movie kiss and I’ll be alright by imbrokelyn99 (rated G) It's pouring rain and David is dancing around the store and lip-syncing to "Nobody" by Mitski. Patrick loves him so, so much. 

1 - 3k words

Bring It Back by pennilesspoet (rated T) David once heard that no sense triggers sharper memories than the sense of smell. He is not sure if that’s true, but he does know that certain scents do tend to instantly bring him back to a very specific time and place.

fools rush in (and i’ve been a fool before) by withkissesfour (rated T) ‘Babe.’ ‘Oh no, I like husband.’

house and home by couldaughter (rated T) But there were still special occasions, and special occasions warranted special meals. Like, for example, 'You came out to your parents yesterday, and it was kind of emotionally exhausting? And I kind of feel guilty about it and need to mediate my guilt by pouring orange juice into a champagne flute and burning your toast to shit just the way you like." Sadly, Hallmark didn't make cards for that.

I am at rest with you by leupagus (rated T) “One of these days, you’ll listen to the doctor when she tells you to lift with your knees,” David says. He gets up, taking Patrick’s empty glass with him. “Do you want some more orange juice, or would you rather just skip to combining liquor and pills?” There’s a pause from the direction of the kitchen. “Oh, god, Twyla left the cake here.”

The IKEA Test by HolmesApothecary (rated T) When it came time to furnish his new apartment, Patrick knew he was going to need some additional furniture to what he had in storage—namely a bed. He also knew that an extra set of hands were key. And that even with all his bluster, he respected and even envied David’s sense of taste and eye for décor in the store. So, dear god, Patrick was going to drag David Rose to IKEA—possibly kicking and screaming.

Mad About the Boy by imbrokelyn99 (rated G) David gives Patrick a watch as a wedding present.

Symbol of Hospitality by kt_rose28 (rated T) “It’s just, I trusted you with the purchase of a tasteful housewarming gesture and I’m confused why you decided to bring this fugly, textured fruit to my parent’s new home”. Patrick gets a gift for Johnny and Moira's housewarming, and David has some very strong opinions.

Unknown Caller by WellSchitt (rated G) Patrick, 10:03 am: Alexis get here NOW. Please. Patrick, 10:03 am: David’s having a panic attack and he’s asking for you. I don’t know what to do. Please.

when you lie to me it’s in the small stuff by goingmywaydoll (rated G) “So I’m having a little back pain,” Patrick says and David has to resist every urge he has to let out a laugh. Instead, he sets his lips in a thin line and nods, patient and stoic. “What gave it away?” David asks and maybe he’s not being so patient.

You gotta let me read just a page of you baby by cromarty (rated G) 5 times Patrick tells David a bedtime story, and one time David tells Patrick one.

3 - 5k words

Funny Meeting You Here by Aelia_Weasley (rated M) “Nice night,” he said to David without looking away from the Leafs game playing on one of the TVs over the bar. “Yeah it is,” David replied a little too quickly. They caught each other’s eye and laughed nervously. The other man held his hand out. “Patrick.” “David, hi.” They shook hands.

How to Take it Slow by Basingstoke (rated M) David has a few questions for Patrick regarding what he's looking for in their new relationship. Set between 4x1 and 4x2.

How You Know by Distractivate (not rated) It's hard to miss the double take from the man in a golf polo and shorts as he passes him on the way back to the store. David rolls his eyes and switches Patrick’s tea to his other hand. Normally, David would assume it’s his less-than-bucolic wardrobe that caught the man’s attention. Today, he suspects it has more to do with the way he’s grinning at the blank space in front of him like he’s slightly deranged. God, maybe he is. Or, a few snippets of (mostly) marital fluff.

learned behaviors by goingmywaydoll (rated G) Brewers don't like to be taken care of. David tries anyway.

talk to me, come to me, hurry up by livelyvague (rated M) Patrick decides to use Grindr when he first gets to Schitt's Creek, ready for an opportunity to embrace his new life.

5 - 10k words

I’ve got the feeling you’re the right thing after all by JessX2231 (rated G) Once they arrived at the drive-in, Patrick insisted they get more comfortable in the backseat. He knew there was no way to offer that without sounding suggestive, but he took it all in stride.“ And what are we going to do back there that we can’t do here?” David asked. “I don’t know, David,” Patrick said with a telling grin. “Why don’t you join me and we’ll find out?” Or, Patrick takes David on their second date.

no matter what the storybooks say by wardo_wedidit (rated T) “What if I read that too?” Patrick asks one day over breakfast, setting David’s coffee down carefully on the table as he watches his husband flip his book over to concentrate on his breakfast. David shoots him a startled look. “Do you want to?” Or, five times Patrick reads a book of David’s, and one they read together.

10k+ words

1, 2, 3, 4, tell me that you love me more [series] by sloganeer (various ratings) One story per year of marriage, inspired by the traditional anniversary gifts. The series title is from the Feist song.

The Last Rose Video by Distractivate (rated M) “Unlike most of the people David was typically drawn to, Patrick’s edge wasn’t about high fashion or shitty manners or a twisted game of use or be used. Patrick’s edge was his mouth, the sharpness of his tongue. David would do pretty much anything at this point to see what else that tongue was capable of.” A story about Patrick Brewer, who owns the last Rose Video franchise in the world, and David Rose, who has been sent to Schitt's Creek by his father to close the store for good. When David meets Patrick well... things do not go to plan. Banter, sex, sweetness and soulmates finding each other in any universe.

A Very Specific Store by startswithhope (rated T) What if Christmas World didn't pull out? How would David and Patrick meet? And what would that mean for Rose Apothecary? Come along, for a little holiday tale, a Christmas in July story of first meetings, flirting, some misunderstandings, dreams lost and maybe found, along with a whole lot more (with some bed sharing, because that's always an extra special gift for us all).

Yellow Moon on the Rise by cromarty (rated T) “David was about to take his chances again when he looked up at the next float and saw the kissing booth boy, waving genially in a blue button down and slacks, with a plastic crown and a sash that said, unbelievably, ‘Corn Crown Prince.’” Or, Stevie and Alexis drag David to Elm Grove’s 4th Annual Corn Festival, where Patrick is working their college baseball team’s kissing booth fundraiser.

[aitaikimochi]

I translated the entire interview with Boku No Hero Academia’s Horikoshi Kouhei, published online via Natalie Comics. He discusses many different things, from what is a hero to which arc was the most difficult to draw, how much he was involved with the new movie, and much more! The interview is extremely long but gives great insight into the creative process that he goes through! Enjoy~

THE INTERNSHIP ARC WAS DIFFICULT

Interviewer: Boku No Hero Academia will be celebrating its 4th anniversary in July. Congratulations!

Horikoshi: Ahh, it’s been four years already, huh. Thank you very much.

Interviewer: Well then, let’s discuss some of the content for Boku No Hero Academia. At the moment, the most recent volume is Volume 18, and up until now Deku and the others have been interning with pro-heroes and also came into contact with villains along the way. This is the “Internship Arc,” and it is supposed to be the longest arc within the Boku No Hero Academia story so far, right?

Horikoshi: When I started the internship arc, I was thinking that I wanted to make this the longest arc so far. Up until now, even the longest arcs for BNHA spanned no more than two volumes. However, series such as ONE PIECE have arcs that keep going and going, right?

Interviewer: The longest arc for ONE PIECE probably was more than 10 volumes.

Horikoshi: I wanted to challenge myself in creating a long arc like that. Also, I needed to introduce characters that will be present in the last arc of the Boku No Hero Academia story, so I wanted to plan this all out. To tell the truth though, when I was writing the internship arc, it was really hard to push through. In the middle of the arc I thought to myself, “I can’t do this.”

Interviewer: Is it because the arc was long that gave you hardships?

Horikoshi: It’s not because the arc was long, but more about the story that made it difficult. The story was much too dark, and during the middle of it, I just wasn’t feeling it.

Interview: The internship arc indeed also had a character who actually died, and this was a very heavy episode that had not happened thus far.

Horikoshi: When I read other manga or watch movies, I really like stories that have dark plots. I also like stories that don’t have happy endings and can totally stomach gore and horror. However, when I’m writing it myself, it gets really difficult. I’m someone whose feelings fluctuate depending on the contents that I am working on.

THIS WAS AN ARC THAT YOU WANTED READERS TO THINK WAS THE LAST ARC

Interviewer: When you were writing this dark episode, how did you keep up your own tensions during this?

Horikoshi: In the story, if I’m writing about a feel good development, then that’s where I recover my own feelings. For example, in the “Internship Arc,” the character Fat Gum really saved me.

Interview: With the name “Fat,” he was as his name suggests, and also spoke in a Kansai accent, and he was quite a comic relief character, right?

Horikoshi: In the scene with Fat Gum and Kirishima fighting against the villain, I felt really passionate, and I was able to transfer that onto my brush. From that point, I was finally able to write out the Internship Arc little by little. Fat Gum is My Hero.

Interview: On the topic of darker plot points, right now in the anime, the fight between All Might and All For One is also an episode that weighs heavily. Horikoshi-sensei, you started that episode in Volume 8 and made a comment that “This time, I want to write a bit more of a painful story.”

Horikoshi: As expected, writing out that arc was rough. Within the battle between All Might and All For One, when the rescue of (Bakugou) Katsuki, who was previously kidnapped by the villains, was finally put into motion, I myself was able to see the light, and I felt way better. That’s what I mean when I say that within the story, my own feelings become transferred on the paper, thinking “I finally drew it” at myself.

Interviewer: What kind of tensions were you feeling at that time?

Horikoshi: My goal was to let readers think that Boku No Hero Academia would end during this fight. However, the readers probably knew that this wasn’t the end, and at that point during the poll, there were really good reviews, giving me the feeling that this manga isn’t just going to be tossed aside as a one shot thing.

Interviewer: What was your reasoning of wanting readers to think that this was the completion of the series?

Horikoshi: Since All Might loses his power in this fight, I couldn’t just draw with a normal feeling of tension. It’s not really “PLUS ULTRA,” but it was an episode that I needed to break the limit in order to leave an impression on the reader. I wanted to create a story where readers could look back at Boku No Hero Academia and say that the best episode of the entire series was the fight between All Might and All For One.

WHAT IS A HERO?

Interviewer: This subject is present in the current arc, but for Horikoshi-sensei, what is a Hero in Boku No Hero Academia?

Horikoshi: “What exactly is a hero?” This is what I think about and what makes me want to draw. What is a hero? It’s hard to put it in words.

Interviewer: How would you define the image of a hero?

Horikoshi: Moreso than that, I personally do not want to define that. When Boku No Hero Academia first started, in a past interview, I remember answering “A hero would probably have this type of existence.” Recently though, I have been thinking about how there’s way more viewpoints that correlate with what is a hero. For example, some people might think a hero is someone who “even if they’re a lone wolf, they would still do their best, and that’s what you can call a hero.” There are also others who might think that heroes would be like a pro baseball player, someone who hopes to let everyone enjoy their work. There’s no single word that can pinpoint “Ah, this is a hero” in my opinion.

Interviewer: Has there been any triggers that made your own thought process change within the story?

Horikoshi: As the serialization continued, and after seeing various reviews from readers, I decided to start moving various characters’ stories forward. For example, for Deku, a hero is someone who can save people, and for Katsuki, a hero is someone who can win. When I realized that I had to write about their entire stories, I started to think that I had to figure out collectively what a hero figure would be for various people, and I guess if you call that a trigger, then I guess it is one.

A CHARACTER WHO WAS EXPANDED UPON AFTER INITIAL SERIALIZATION

Interviewer: The series has been in serialization for four years now, and has there been any characters that have been expanded upon than what you originally had planned?

Horikoshi: Hm…I guess that All Might, Katsuki, Todoroki, Endeavor, Ochako are all characters that this can be applied to, but since they are all main characters who have been progressing since their introduction, I wouldn’t say it’s an expansion of their character per se. However, if we are speaking about characters that had more plot expanded, then it would be Tsuyu and Toga. I think since they were first introduced, we took into consideration the voices of the readers, and afterwards changed their storylines. That’s why I would probably say Tsuyu and Toga.

Interviewer: Aoyama was featured in Volume 19 at the beginning of the volume. During the Boku No Hero Academia anime event, and according to the coverage, a lot of cast members said that they like Aoyama, but of course, if he’s popular enough, will he have his own feature?

Horikoshi: No, that’s not exactly true (laughs). Just because he’s popular hm…maybe he’s just popular among industry members.

Interviewer: Oh no (laughs)! Besides Aoyama-kun, if you were to feature another character from Class A, who would it be?

Horikoshi: If it’s the girls, then I would choose Ashido. She’s rather cute, and a good character, so I would like to write about her. If it’s the boys, then I would choose Sero, the guy who has Spiderman-like abilities that could have great action sequences. However, I think that including Hagakure, Shouji, etc., I would like to write more about all members of the class. We actually have a story featuring Shouji planned already, so we will probably include it somewhere.

I WANT TO REACH NUMBER ONE IN THE POLLS

Interviewer: In Kadokawa’s Da Vinci magazine, you had an interview with Naruto’s Kishimoto-sensei, and during the discussion, you mentioned that you were worried about keeping up with the demands of the readers.

Horikoshi: Yes, I did.

Interviewer: At that time, Boku No Hero Academia was only at its 3rd volume, but afterwards the anime, games, light novels, and now a movie have been released, so the series has expanded to various media. How do you maintain the demand of the readers in this case?

Horikoshi: The most important one is of course the polls. I always aim for the top and not lose any traction. Boku No Hero Academia fluctuates a lot in the polls, so there have been times where it dipped. That’s why I want to create an amazing story that can reach the Number 1 ranks, and I create the content with the hope that it will reach Number 1. At first I thought that since the anime has started, I really needed to put my all into this, but if I keep thinking that, then I would probably break from the pressure, so that’s why right now I just want to focus on the contents of the manga.

Interviewer: You mentioned before that Yahagi Kousuke, the person who initially helped the serialization of Kishimoto’s Naruto, was a great presence for you.

Horikoshi: That’s right. He’s always on my conscience.

Interviewer: Do you think about the editor who first helped you in the serialization?

Horikoshi: Sometimes. Even though we have a different editor now for Boku No Hero Academia, I sometimes think about what the first editor, Koike-san, would say, such as maybe he would get upset at that, and so forth. However, I heard that Koike-san tell my current editor that he praised the new character Hawks, and that made me really happy from the bottom of my heart. In lieu of this, my first editor does have a presence within me.

THE MOVIE HAS A COMBO MOVE WITH DEKU AND ALL MIGHT THAT WAS NOT IN THE MANGA

Interviewer: Well then, let’s talk a bit about the Boku No Hero Academia Movie “The Two Heroes,” which will release in theaters in August! When it was decided that there will be a movie, what were your feelings?

Horikoshi: I had a feeling of “wait…no way, you’re joking, right?” There was talk of making a movie previously, but I never believed it. However, when the story progressed more and more, even if we were to have a meeting with the staff, I’m sure that the plans would fall through. Because a movie requires a lot of manpower to make it happen, I truly thought that it was never going to happen, but now that I think of it, I was a bit rude in that aspect.

Interviewer: Horikoshi, you are listed as the creator and supervisor of the movie. Exactly what did you work on?

Horikoshi: I worked on many things such as the design for David and Melissa as well as what I want to have in the movie’s plot, what I want the characters to do, and we discussed this thoroughly with Director Nagasaki and the movie staff. I also read the scripts and offered my own opinions with the direction of how the story should go.

Interviewer: What kind of scenarios did the staff ask you?

Horikoshi: It wasn’t discussed in the first draft, but I wanted Deku to really try his all in the story. I also wanted people who did not know anything about Boku No Hero Academia to be able to enjoy the movie. Since it’s a movie, I wanted to let Deku and the others go to a different location! (laughs)

Interviewer: The stage is set in a floating island abroad, and we also see that a Young All Might used to study abroad in a city in America.

Horikoshi: When I create a character, I think of their chronology, and for All Might, his history is that he studied abroad in America, so that’s why I wanted to expand on that aspect.

Interviewer: In the trailer, there are scenes where they are fighting, and the animation is really well done!

Horikoshi: Yes, I actually haven’t seen the finished product yet myself, but from the brief scenes I saw, the characters move wonderfully. I hope everyone watches it in theaters! The duo combo attack scenes with All Might and Deku that didn’t make it into the manga are also a point of interest!

Interviewer: Since this happens before All Might loses his power in the manga, his power move with Deku is something you can’t write anymore in the manga.

Horikoshi: Yes, the events of the movie happen before the battle with All For One, so I want everyone to be able to watch and look forward to this since you will never see their duo power move in the manga.

FOUR CAREFULLY SELECTED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Interviewer: To promote the movie, there was a hash tag on Twitter where users could ask you a question, and these are the four questions that we hope you can answer for us.

Horikoshi: Ah, these were the four chosen ones, yes? I totally you meant that even though we had planned this, we only got four questions (laughs).

Interviewer: We got so many questions, it was way beyond even 100 (laughs). So let’s move on to the first question. “Is there club activities in U.A. Academy?” and “If there was, what kind of activities would the students of Class 1A partake in?”

Horikoshi: U.A. Academy has the General Studies and Economics departments, so there would be club activities. However those who are in the hero department would not enter those. They of course could enter if they wanted to, but I don’t think they would have time to go through that. However, perhaps the General Studies’ student Shinsou might be involved, and there might be a bit about the club activities in the main story in the future.

Interviewer: For example, what type of club activity do you think Deku or Katsuki would do?

Horikoshi: Deku would probably be in some kind of movie analysis club. Katsuki would be in…I don’t know, maybe Argument Club? (T/N: He specifically says ARGUMENT club, not Debate Club lol).

Interviewer: You don’t think he would be in a boxing club? (laughs)

Horikoshi: I think he would hate the rules and probably boxing isn’t his thing. Maybe he wouldn’t even be in a club to begin with.

Interviewer: Okay, on to the next question: “Within the series and the world, the BNHA characters feel real and have very human emotions. Did you have any of your own experiences that you wrote into the story?” Has there been any specific instances where your own personal experienced have influenced some of the story’s scenes or script?

Horikoshi: Oh wow, there’s way too many to count. For example in Volume 11, when Deku was younger he and his mom have a scene together [where Deku’s mom says, “Help me!” and Deku says “I am here!”] I actually used to do this exact same thing with my mom when I was younger, and we played at the park’s playgrounds. We called it the “King of the Jungle.” My mom would go inside the jungle gym at the playground and say, “Please save me, Leo,” which is the name that I used to call myself when we played this together.

I have that memory of pretending to be Leo and playing with my mom at the playground, so I wanted to incorporate that into the story. As a reader, it’s probably a scene that does not hold much meaning, but as for me, I cried while writing that scene.

Interviewer: So Horikoshi-sensei does incorporate your own experiences into the Boku No Hero Academia storyline.

Horikoshi: Yes, I suppose. Another experience that I put into the story was in Volume 16 where you learn about Tamaki transferring schools.

Interviewer: Tamaki transferred schools and was not used to his new class, but he soon became good friends with Mirio, who helped him feel included.

Horikoshi: Right before entering middle school but after elementary school, I ended up going to a middle school outside of my neighborhood. Since this school was outside of where I went to elementary school, I knew no one at all. Everyone else was already in their own groups and knew each other, but I was the loner, and it was a really sad time for me (laughs).

Interviewer: So then for you, a friend like Mirio was there to help.

Horikoshi: Yes, he told me, “you’re not a bad person at all” and was the one who helped me feel included. Man, when I say this now it sounds kind of stupid, huh? (laughs)

Interviewer: Not at all!!!

Horikoshi: Hopefully fans of Tamaki won’t dislike this bit of information, with an impression of like “Oh that’s actually Horikoshi’s memory” or something like that. However, that’s basically how I use my own experiences to add to my characters, and my feelings just overflow into the story.

Interviewer: Let’s move on to the third question: “If you had this quirk, you would definitely want to use it!” Which quirk would that be, and how would you want to use it?

Horikoshi: Definitely Todoroki. I hate hot places, and when things get hot I immediately want to cool down. When I draw Todoroki, I often think “It would be nice to have this quirk.”

Interviewer: That’s quite a practical answer (laughs). Here’s the last question: “Please let us know the reason why you decided to become a mangaka.”

Horikoshi: I loved drawing ever since I was little, and if you think of an industry that allows you to draw, there’s nothing else besides manga, so I decided to become a manga artist. To give a specific incident that occurred, when I was in Elementary chool, the manga “Megaman X2” came out, and I loved drawing the character called the Crystal Snail. My friends complimented me on my drawing and even said “Please give me this drawing!” and this made me really happy. At that time, I don’t know why, but I remember thinking “I want to be a manga artist in the future!”

HE IS DRAWING CONTENT THAT WILL HAVE MEANING IN THE LAST ARC

Interviewer: Well then, lastly, please tell us a bit more about the expansion of the “Boku No Hero Academia” universe. Previously in SUGOI JAPAN, you mentioned that you would like Boku No Hero Academia to be a short and concise story and not drawn out, but what percentage of the story is complete at this point?

Horikoshi: When the decision to extend the series happened, I personally thought “I guess I want to end it here” and it was around Volume 30.

Interviewer: So then are you 2/3 done with the story?

Horikoshi: That’s what I had originally planned, but when I think of all the things that must be set up before getting into the last arc, I realized, “Ending the series at Volume 30 will be impossible” (laughs). However, the current arc that is going on all has purpose that will be relevant in the last arc.

Interviewer: You mentioned in today’s interview that the “Internship Arc” had a very important character that you wanted to draw at the end. Does that mean that all the characters will come together at the last arc?

Horikoshi: All characters will come together and go forward into the last arc. However, at the moment we are not even close to the last battle, but I do have an idea of how I want it to be planned out.

Interviewer: Volume 19 covers the Cultural Festival, and there’s a lot of bright scenes, but please give us a message in regards to points of interest within the newest volume.

Horikoshi: The Cultural Festival puts a spotlight on Jirou from the girls in Class A, and I had the conscience of making sure that she has a lot of cute faces when drawing it. Of course, fans of Jirou would love this, but I hope that others will also enjoy Jirou in this arc!