#so i saved it as a draft to work on later

[phantomrose96]

PSA: if you save a draft of an ask you were answering, it shows up in your drafts timestamped to when the ask was sent. Not when you saved the draft.

[gingergari]

Ooh for Toad Peach AU how did the first meeting go with the officials of the Beanbean Kingdom? Ohh maybe more on Peach and Peasley's becoming friends. Does he help her feel a little more confident in her true form? Gimme all of the dynamics hehe

idk why i thought i dreamed this ask but i forgot you sent it 😭 here ya go!

the beanbean and mushroom kingdoms have an extremely close relationship that’s rather old, and as such the births of both heirs were highly celebrated by both families.

here, peasley is roughly 1 year older than peach, and the betrothal between the two was set up very early so the two do not remember their first meeting as they were infants at the time. but still, they visited peach many times before her debutante.

peach’s parents died in a horrific incident i still haven’t detailed when she was around 3-4, which did result in queen bean reaching out more often as peach grew older to offer additional guidance and support :]

but back to peasley and peach, they were thick as thieves and peasley introduced her to fencing! toadsworth wasn’t a fan at first but eventually relented (whatever endears her to peasley, plus any experience with a weapon could come in handy if the mushroom kingdom were to ever leave the peacful era). she’s quite adept in both forms, but prefers to fence in human form. it isn’t something she practices often in current day but it’s something she treasures the memories of alongside trying his bean pillow and learning about beanbean allies and his travels :]

though, as they got older, the two became more aware of their betrothal and what would follow, but things weren’t clicking so they decided to experiment a little (read: they kissed and neither of them liked it. sad!) but neither have brought up calling anything off as both are quite fine with something contractual if it came down to it (but peach would call it off if peasley asked)

at peach’s debutante, they danced together first as a show of the kingdom relationship, and when the first attack/kidnapping happens, the beanbean kingdom offered aid and refuge (little fungitown)

re: her appearance and peasley—she initially meets the beanbean family in toad form, but as she got older this became rarer as experience (and her self image) became priority. peasley makes sure to praise her toad form’s beauty when he sees it, and when mario does come into the picture is of the firm opinion alongside daisy that he does not deserve her if he doesn’t like her true form. on most days she agrees with him

as for superstar saga, he still arrives to the mushroom kingdom ahead of time and toadette volunteers to take peach’s place instead of birdo (the effect is later undone before peach arrives in the beanbean kingdom)

post superstar saga, the two meet (peach crownless) to discuss their love interests, and their betrothal is officially called off. consequent meetings with the beanbean kingdom are held in her toad form :]

[hylianane]

I was going to write this in the tags of your last post but i think it's important actually so I'm gonna send an ask

On a more serious note I'm actually kind of obsessed with psychoanalyzing Zoro specifically. Because he actually has some pretty big issues I think, mentally

He takes his self appointed job as protector of the crew very very seriously, and he's really hard on himself if he thinks he's failed in any way. I mean just look at him right after Little Garden, or how mad he is after losing his shadow on Thriller Bark.

So yeah there's nothing in that brain but swords and I fucking love that about him, he sure is sharpening them to an unhealthy degree isn't he. He's never strong enough, after all, to protect everyone.

I just,, really like combining silly ideas with serious ones, it's fun

GOD listen is 12:25 am but I just couldnt go to bed without at least STARTING to jot down my thoughts on this but like YEAH. for SURE. Zoro for all that he’s shown to be a pretty simple guy with a single-minded focus, has a LOT to chew on in terms of character depth and layers. There’s lots of fun contradictions to him too. He’s prideful and self-assured but also so often self-punishing, and he’s also someone who is fiercely independent and a free spirit, while having a habit of building his own identity around others (both his dreams are shared with others, they belong other people as much as they do to him and that’s a LOT to think about).

You may have actually caught me red handed here cause that ‘Journey to the Center of the Mind’ story concept maaaay be kind of something i’ve played around with for months now. I think I once tried to write out like a basic premise, but the only thing I really remember is is wanting Luffy to be the primary person to undergo the journey cause. if every Strawhat was present it’d feel less intimate, less personal, and I feel like Luffy would want to explore Zoro’s mind alone to preserve his privacy. Unaware that he’s the person Zoro has the most to hide from. I think the levels of Zoro’s willingness to put the Strawhat’s well being first has the potential to truly frighten him, if the visuals Zoro’s mind provides him are right.

[unexpectedly-haunted]

treebark week my beloved i can't believe gay people are real from April 22 - April 28 <3

[bananasofthorns]

she lord on my huron till I'm long lost

[sanctfy]

[ereborne]

Song of the Day: May 3

"Life Less Frightening" by Rise Against

[narwhalandchill]

(natlan character lineup leaks/claims of dubious reliability as for now)

well huh. if u ask me the one thing i rly wasnt expecting to hear abt the alleged upcoming characters its this whole "5* geo tall lady in 5.1 will be big meta support" like. how come Now they remember geo as an element exists again more often than once in more than a year 💀 but ig interesting if true???

tho massive grain of salt w leaker "theorycrafting" as usual - even if the core claims themselves on her kit outline end up being somewhat true (a supportive 5* geo), when leakers say Anything about "team synergies" or "x will be meta" its uhhhhhhh. dubious at best. remember when clorinde and arlecchino were going to be good together in a team? yae the electro dps ceiling? lmao

(guess they did get the chiori albedo powercreep right tho but that ones. easy)

still tho if she actually ends up being a thing and a cool design i could actually see myself going for her??? i dislike mono geo yes and never had any interest in it but navia n chiori r obviously favorites and if shes more of a flexible unit than tied to geo completely (buffer support with an unkillable construct so it becomes the new zhongli/chiori flex core mby??????) then very cool and might well be a pull id go for

...... is what id like to say. BUT. the actual real important content this leak is giving me is. if 5* geo in 5.1. then chioris probably rerunning in the same patch???? so thats locked in actually and the priority lmao

anyway im p sure that starting the way i am aka. 0 pity p much and no guarantee but with the remainder of 4.7 left, 4.8, 5.0 and then depending on 1st or 2nd half of 5.1 or then the entire patch to save im fairly confident c4 will be guaranteed even in the worst case scenario? i have a bit under 50 pulls currently. so thats neat but getting lucky w even just a 50-50 win or two would b ideal . We will see .

also man im actually SO happy i just got uraku misugiri on release easy n comfy so i dont need to fear wasting my chiori constellation pulls on any weapon banner bs lmao. but like cheeky c6 with some sigma luck on first rerun pls.... just 4 copies hoyo 🙏

(also IF i luck out on chiori c6 and she runs w the new alleged geo 5* lady and IF she synergizes w carry chiori. then obviously we try pulling 😤)

no thoughts for now on the other alleged kits tho other than hydro 5* catalyst is so. Why another one. also i love the iansan element discourse of is she the claimed 4* geo of 5.0 or a later pyro unit bc she makes fire in her fists in travail and all. boothill explosions in splash art but still physical moment

(still wanna see the actual character designs so bad. leaks have dried up like hell recently bc hoyos tightened up security 💀💀)

[ectoplasmer]

did you guys know i loove ymy boyffriendss orr

[redjaybathood]

You know, saw a "Battle for the Cowl should have been between Cass and Jason" post and it's a cool idea. Def check that out.

What comes to my mind, though, is - there's no way Jason going in this fight. Like, he sees Cass? He's out. Task Force Z answered this question for us, you know.

And I sincerely don't think he would have been against Cass as Batman if Cass wasn't against him as Red Hood. Batlle for the Cowl was a mess, alright? Jason was there solely to be Dick's foil, push him into the place the writers - and the DC comics in general - wanted Dick to be pushed despite Dick previously not wanting to be Batman. Like, I - and many others - have extensive headcanons making this work, and some people just, dismisse it from their memories (as you should). But that's what it was. If Jason wanted to be Batman - a better Batman than Batman - he was doing it with his Red Hood persona already.

And the last thing: no way in hell would a confrontation between them be a fight. It should be challenging to Cass if this is her story, so it should strike at her weaknesses. Like, an overly complicated plan that a fight, a physical defeat, or even imprisoment of Red Hood won't change anything for Cass.

A funny way to do it would be Jason setting up a voting poll to democratically elect Batman. Make Gotham Safe Again! and all that. The vote can even be, like, the telephone vote as a less on the nose reference to the telephone vote that killed him than what happened in Batman and Robin. The vote is not rigged or anything, Jason also wants to prove to himself as much as to Cass that his way is right and Gothamites share that view. He does campaign though, in some way, and pulls public to his side in short term.

And at first, Cass is like... I don't care. I'm already Batman, you can't fight me for it. What are you gonna do, helmet boy? And yeah, true. But - the public opinion does get to her, or interfers with her work in some way, and maybe she loses confidence in doing what she does. Like, not in the way that makes her consider whether killing is an option (I think it's better suited to her vs Shiva conflict, or another, totally unrelated conflict with Red Hood where they're both against the same guy). But in a way... is she doing enough? Is there any point in what she's doing? And she's coming up with no, it's not enough; there's a point and she's not doing any worse than Bruce did but it is still. Not enough.

So she does something, some... community outreach? Direct action? Something to tackle the three behemots: affordable housing, available jobs, and both available and affordable healthcare. With community building activities like food gardens, food banks, parks instead of parking lots, helping kids stay in schools, childcare for working parents...

And maybe she does use Jason Todd Foundation to bankroll whatever she's doing. And that's what works best. And that's what solves problems. And, you know, people of Gotham do see these efforts but they're still choosing Red Hood as the new Batman over Batgirl. Not sure how they would side if they knew that Cass Cain-Wayne is the Batgirl/Batman. I wouldn't bet my money on it? Because, yeah, The Cult. But it's not the point. The point is, Jason seeing the results, and seeing how the crime rate drops, and people's life getting easier, and being like. This is something that really would have made my life and my parents and the guys I knew, and their families', lives easier. I should also do something about that.

And he's like, calls this election thing off. And promotes (ironically) not himself but Jason Todd Foundation and Cassandra Cain-Wayne Initiative. And - helps, now, with whatever Cass is doing.

But also, he still kills whoever needs killing, because something tells me that people who're into child trafficing, for example, are not in it for affordable housing.

And Red Hood and Batman would need some level of coordination, you know. If it's possible to build a case against the worst offenders, Jason needs to keep them alive. If it's not - when what are you doing killing people, Jason, you can't kill people on not enough evidence! But if there's a trial, and the scumbag gets away because corruption or threatening jury or something else... Cass, just, backs off. Her time is finite, too, you know. She's not letting Jason kill people. She's just... being productive and efficient and using time-management skills an d... It's not like Jason leaves evidence... And... Look. Between saving people in trouble who can't save themselves, or saving people who are after people who can't save themselves from Jason? A girl can't be in two places at once, even if the girl is the Batman.

But also, the next case they're both on is the corrupt judge or cop or DA etc. So the amount of mistrials is dropping, which means next to none people Jason needs to kill.

[cornelianlute]

.

[depressinggreenie]

✨ New (side) Blog ✨

I've had it on my mind for some time to create a side blog where I can have all my works by itself. Just so it's easier for me to find things. The tagging on my main blog is a mess due to the way I've changed tagging things over the years.

So! I've created this blog. And came up with a simple tagging system so that I can find things easier, and people can blacklist things they'd rather not see 💜.

[wintersoldeer]

i hope everyone who watches videos in public without headphones drops their phone into a puddle and when they go to pick it up they accidentally step too far into said puddle so their shoes and socks get all wet and when theyre worrying about that they drop their phone again and this time the screen cracks 

[archaeren]

How I learned to write smarter, not harder

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

[trashyandtiredsol]

Damn I'm getting dragged back into the Bradley Upper crust x Max Goof (I believe that's his last name??? Ye probably) at the most random time

Like- just randomly found an account making art for em and now I learn there's more VERY RECENT art for those dorks????? Kafjsjfj yeppers I am back on my bullshit- tho I ain't complaining

Also side note- I have well over 400 drafts of reblogs I haven't fully made and actually reblogged so if I say I'm more into a certain thing but y'all don't see anything being reblogged for it, I just saved it to my drafts so I can at SOME point remember to save the majority of em as wallpapers cuz I love me some fabulous art wallpapers and then also reblog em

And now idk if that makes sense so I'mma just leave it 😅

[radioactive-earthshine]

Writing tips for long fics that helped me that no one asked for.

1.) Don't actually delete content from your WIP unless it is minor editing - instead cut it and put it in a secondary document. If you're omitting paragraphs of content, dialog, a whole scene you might find a better place for it later and having it readily available can really save time. Sometimes your idea was fantastic, but it just wasn't in the right spot.

2.) Stuck with wording the action? Just write the dialog then revisit it later.

3.) Stuck on the whole scene? Skip it and write the next one.

4.) Write on literally any other color than a white background. It just works. (I use black)

5.) If you have a beta, while they are beta-ing have them read your fic out loud. Yes, I know a lot of betas/writers do not have the luxury of face-timing or have the opportunity to do this due to time constraints etc but reading your fic out loud can catch some very awkward phrasing that otherwise might be missed. If you don't have a beta, you read it out loud to yourself. Throw some passion into your dialog, you might find a better way to word it if it sounds stuffy or weird.

6.) The moment you have an idea, write it down. If you don't have paper or a pen, EMAIL it to yourself or put it in a draft etc etc. I have sent myself dozens of ideas while laying down before sleep that I 10/10 forgot the next morning but had emailed them to myself and got to implement them.

7.) Remember - hits/likes/kudos/comments are not reflective of the quality of your fic or your ability to write. Most people just don't comment - even if they say they do, they don't, even if they preach all day about commenting, they don't, even if they are a very popular blog that passionately reminds people to comment - they don't comment (I know this personally). Even if your fic brought tears to their eyes and it haunted them for weeks and they printed it out and sent it to their friends they just don't comment. You just have to accept it. That being said - comment on the fic you're reading now, just do it, if you're 'shy' and that's why you don't comment the more you comment the better you'll get at it. Just do it.

8.) Remove unrealistic daily word count goals from your routine. I've seen people stress 1500 - 2000 words a day and if they don't reach that they feel like a failure and they get discouraged. This is ridiculous. Write when you can, but remove absurd goals. My average is 500 words a day in combination with a 40 hour a week job and I have written over 200k words from 2022-2023.

9.) There are dozens of ways to do an outline from precise analytical deconstruction that goes scene by scene to the minimalist bullet point list - it doesn't matter which one you use just have some sort of direction. A partial outline is better than no outline.

10.) Write for yourself, not for others. Write the fic you know no one is going to read. Write the fic that sounds ridiculous. You will be so happy you put it out in the world and there will be people who will be glad it exists.