#sometimes numbers really just bum me out

[zemkzone]

I'm stuck on a train, so I have a few min to weigh in.

There is NO SUCH THING as a perfect length for a chapter. A single sentence or word can be a chapter, the same way 10k or 5k can be a chapter. What really decides this for writers is the type of story they're writing. Thrillers TEND to have shorter chapters because of their rapid pacing. SFF tends to go long because sometimes you really just have to take a couple paragraphs to explain an intricate piece of world-building. If we're talking fanfiction.... all bets are off. Sometimes the general rule of one character perspective per chapter doesn't quite cut it for the pacing and subject matter you wanna discuss in fics.

So yeah, my end take is, as a writer, the genre and feel of what I'm trying to create matter more than a word count. (In trad-pub, the bargaining about total length comes later, haha.) As a reader, well, I've never taken issue with longer chapters to read--as long as I can follow a sensible thread of subject or thought, of course!

I'm currently writing and trying to figure out what could be a possible middle ground for chapter lengths and just want some general feedback on what the (heavy on quotation) "perfect" length is. But I kind of want to hear why some of these lengths are better than others, or if you're someone who doesn't pay attention to length but the quality what are some things that normally keep you interested in longer chapters (or even shorter chapters) I have my own opinions as a reader but as a writer I'm very interested in what the 'general' opinion is. (I don't think I'll personally cater to the majority, but I really enjoy conversations that revolve around topics like this and its been a while since Ive had a deep conversation with other readers/writers and wanted to start one if anyone wants to discuss :)

[torasplanet]

❝𝘿𝘼𝘿’𝙎 𝙂𝙁.ᐟ❞

D. WAYNE + BRUCE’S GF!F. READER

𝙨𝙪𝙢𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙮 ; damian doesn’t particularly like his dad’s girlfriend but soon, she ends up being his favorite family member.

𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨; fluff, platonic obvi, age gap between reader and bruce (mid 20s and early 40s), rude damian lmao and skin tone not mentioned

It wasn’t necessarily a secret that Damian did not like you. You were Bruce’s girlfriend and that wasn’t something that would’ve made him not like you but instead it was the age gap that made him not like you. I mean you were in your twenties and his father was in his early forties, you can’t expect him to not see anything wrong with that. It didn’t really surprise you per se because although the others never hated you for it, they did tell Bruce it was weird for him to date you.

They would always make sure to tell you that they meant no offense to you and that you were a sweetheart but still said it was weird. So Damian not liking you for that reason was not surprising, especially considering the number of people that told you how uhm… let's say ‘stuck-up’ he was before you went to meet him for the first time. Of course, you were still bummed out but it wasn’t a surprise. You tried everything to get Damian to like you but nothing really made him budge.

He’d still make the same snarky remarks, rude comments and sometimes it’d make you a little upset but not all the time. “Dude chill.” “You don’t have to be rude damian…” “Don’t talk to her like that.” They’d all tell him even though you brushed it off and would tell them you didn’t mind. For someone who was just like Damian at first, Jason was very unhappy whenever damian would make his comments.

But maybe it was just because the two of you have never had a time to actually talk before, you thought. And you would prove to be right one late night at the manor.

Damian walked down the long stairs only in his pajamas with a yawn escaping his throat. He had been awoken to a rumbling stomach just begging for a midnight snack so he was going to fulfill that need but he did not expect to see you in the kitchen when he got there.

You sat at the long table very obviously crying your eyes out. Damian didn’t say anything and only stood at the other end of the table staring at you while you sniffled. He wondered why you seemed so upset, Bruce was home from patrol. He hadn’t said anything rude to you all day, actually, he’d barely seen you today. Maybe that was just because he had school but still.

Damian had no idea what was going on. He did not like being in the dark.

With the floorboard uncharacteristically creaking under his footstep, his presence was known to you. Your head snapped up immediately and he was able to see your red eyes more clearly. “Oh, hi��Is everything okay?” You asked, trying to go back to your cheerful mood, but he saw through your facade.

“Everything is alright. I suppose I should be asking you that question.” The younger wayne said walking closer to you and undeniably, it made you quite nervous. “I’m okay, just…uhm.” You muttered not able to come up with a lie quick enough which made Damian quite suspicious of you.

He eyed you up and down before making eye contact once again “Excuse me for asking this but, are you pregnant?” Damian asked out of pure curiosity. In his mind this was the only logical answer.

I mean you were crying in the kitchen at one in the morning and got extremely nervous when your boyfriend's son walked in. Not exactly pointing to pregnancy but the hints are there. “No!” You whisper-shouted out of embarrassment.

“Then why are you upset?” Damian asked now standing by your side and you knew you couldn’t lie to him. He was too smart for that. “I-I just had a hard day, it’s nothing.” Your response only earned blinks from the boy. “You stay home all day. What possible could be hard about that?”” He questioned and it made you feel a bit worse but you didn’t show it. Tim told you not to show weakness to the “demon child” and he was probably right about that.

You glanced side to side awkwardly as you tried to find your words. “Erm…Damian that’s not exactly true but okay. It was mainly about the other people I was around instead of the day itself.” You told him and Damian plopped down on the chair to your left now intrigued with this conversation. Or maybe he was listening to tire himself out you know…because of boredom.

“I was just out buying food for Jason because he’s sick and…he doesn’t exactly have edible things in his fridge.” Damian nodded at your sentence as he observed your expressions whilst you talked. “Graysons place has a better selection.” The boy muttered under his breath before urging you to continue your talking.

“And there were these women in the store talking about me like I wasn’t even in there…saying awful things about me not really loving bruce.” You admitted. It was weird to be confining your feelings in a twelve year old but Damian was hardly a child, he was probably smarter than you. So it wasn’t all that horrible.

You made eye contact with him for the first time in a while and Damian’s cold expression softened at how tears were brimming at your lash line all over again. You were really beat up about this. “I know I shouldn’t because people say it all the time but it’s not like that. If I was with Bruce for the money, I would’ve quit my job a long time ago. It doesn’t even pay that much anyway.” Damian didn’t even know you had a job.

He was rarely home with school and patrol but when he was, you were always there too so he just assumed you stayed at home all day. Damian didn’t really know much about you up until now. “But I really do love Bruce.” He hummed in response not knowing how else to reply.

You became aware of the situation and grew stiff and awkward. “Uhm sorry…I’m keeping you up.” Your words were mumbles as you stood from your chair prepared to leave the room and let Damian be alone. You were probably a bother to him.

Then you were stopped by his voice “Not yet.” You turned around and he was now standing by the fridge and pointed up at the cabinets that contained the breakfast items. “I need you to get cereal for me.” Damian requested and you smiled at him before obliging and grabbing his favorite cereal and handing it to him.

“Goodnight Damian.” Damian hummed in response as he watched you start to walk away “…Have a good night [Y/n].” He told you, making you grin. It wasn’t much but it meant a lot to you.

Little did you know, that was the start of it all. After that night, Damian stuck to you like a koala but not as if he was hugging you but everywhere you went, he was right next to you. Everyone (including you and Alfred) thought it was super weird. It was literally overnight that Damian started to take a liking to you.

You may have thought it was weird but you enjoyed it. It made you feel like you were truly part of the family. Damian only took a liking to you because he saw the real you, not the cheerful one that put on an act for cameras and paparazzi. You had feelings and he realized that he was hurting them for no reason.

I mean you weren’t like the others. You didn’t treat him like a child, you treated him just how he wanted to be. Not babied and not having his intelligence insulted because of his age, you treated him with the respect he deserved and saw his points of arguments like not needing school. He liked that and now that he had realized he was hurting you by saying the same things those women said, he felt bad. So he accepted you, a little too accepting for everyone else’s comfort.

You thought it was weird but you enjoyed it. It truly made you feel like part of the family because now everyone liked you. Damian seemed to like you a bit more than the others though mainly your presence.

“Oh hey, we’re about to watch a movie. Come sit.” Dick said, inviting Damian over as he reached the living room. A frown formed on his lips at the spot next to Bruce that was empty. You weren’t here.

His gaze traveled to his father “Where is [Y/n]?” Damian asked, tilting his head slightly. “In the room. She wanted to catch up on her reading.” Bruce said and without a word, Damian started to make his way back up the stairs and toward you and Bruce’s shared bedroom.

Opening the door, there you were sitting on the bed reading but your focus turned to him when you heard him approach the bed “It’s movie night.” Damian spoke before you even asked what he wanted “Oh I wanted to finish reading this book.” You replied carelessly but Damian did not like that answer.

“But I want you there…you protect me from Grayson’s popcorn when he gets excited.” Damian said, growing a bit flustered mid-sentence after noticing that he had just aired his feelings out. You looked at him as you sighed “I can still read my book, right?” You questioned and Damian nodded as he reached out to grab your wrist.

You allowed him after putting a bookmark in your book. Damian dragged you down stairs, book in hand and everything while you tried not to trip and fall. “You actually went and got her?” Jason asked as you and Damian sat side-by-side next to Bruce while Tim sat at your feet on the floor.

Jason wasn’t here often, honestly he only came here for Alfred and your cooking and to spend time with you. You were probably the only one he could actually stand for longer than five minutes. “You didn’t have to bother her.” Stephanie said from one of the armchairs but you waved your hands in defense of the boy who did not care whatsoever.

“I don’t mind.” “So mind your business Todd.” Jason scowled at Damian’s rude comment after your kind one that wasn’t even directed toward him but stayed quiet and just continued to watch the movie. You continued to read through your book with Damian sometimes leaning over to catch a glimpse at what you were reading.

Movies that Dick picked out didn’t particularly interest him that much. He could usually fish out the plot twists from miles away and it was the same with books but more often than not, books were more interesting.

Halfway through the movie, Damian got intrigued in a certain page he had read through “What book is this?” He asked, blinking up at you with his large green eyes and you thought they were so adorable but you didn’t say anything. “Gone girl, I think you’d like it actually. I found it in the library.” You whispered to him but somehow, with his dog-like hearing, Dick overheard the conversation.

“Oo! Gone girl? I love that movie, we should watch it next.” The oldest boy said and Cassandra and Tim were quick to shush him and he did so but not without rolling his eyes. “It’s a movie?” Damian whispered to you, who nodded. Bruce almost cooed at how cute the two of you were.

Damian considered sticking around for the rest of the night to watch this movie but when less than twenty minutes passed and popcorn went flying everywhere, he was questioning that idea. “Holy shit! Why would he do that!?” Dick shouted as everyone complained about the popcorn in their hair and on their clothes.

Damian, of course, had nothing on him because you shielded his body “How could you be so careless? You got popcorn all over her.” Damian said snarkily while crossing his arms against his chest. Dick rolled his eyes “Oh please, you just started liking her. I was the first to like her!” Dick shouted in defense, making you and Bruce sigh.

Somehow, always, movie nights ended up in arguments that almost always involved Dick. “Whatever! You still put this filth on her.” The young boy cursed while the others merely groaned in annoyance. “Uh, can you guys keep watching the movie? I��m still trying to read.” You said a bit quietly trying not to get in the middle of their argument.

It happened every time. You’d get in the middle and they’d start asking you questions which you’d have no answer to because you didn’t want it to look like you were playing favorites. “Oops. Sorry.” Dick apologized and Damian nodded in agreement. “I’ll be quiet too.” He muttered before beginning to watch the movie again.

You sighed in relief as you leaned against Bruce’s arm. He thought it was so cute how the two of you were finally getting along, it made him so happy. Until you started backing him up even more on stupid shit like the topic of school and patrol.

A few days after movie night, Bruce was getting ready to walk out of the door for work when he spotted you and Damian on the couch still in your pajamas watching Criminal Minds while eating toast. “Um, what are you two doing?” He asked, buttoning his suit as the two of you looked up at your boyfriend.

“We’re watching Criminal Minds father. It is quite an interesting show.” Damian said, shrugging. Initially, he had planned to just jump straight into training after you told him he could stay home but you asked him to watch at least one episode and that episode turned into almost half a season watched.

Bruce sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose before pointing at Damian “You need to be at school.” He then pointed at you, “And you need to be at work.” Bruce finished earning an irritated sigh from his son and a loud whine from his girlfriend.

“Damian doesn’t need school and the shop is closed for today.” You said sitting up while Damian continued to lay down while humming in agreement. “Okay well Damian still needs to be at school.” The older man said fairly tired with how Damian upright refused to go to school everyday and now you were helping him.

“No need. I think I’m well off on sex education, slope and how to understand The Lord of the Flies.” Damian said passive-aggressively which made you chuckle a bit but when Bruce gave you a slight glare, you shut your mouth and looked away.

Bruce sighed once more and you grabbed Damian by his shoulders and hugged him close to you. Damian still was not used to your affectionate side but he could live with being hugged by you now. “Please! Brucie, I’ll make sure he doesn’t train too much and Criminal Minds could help him on his patrol and stuff!” You shouted and Damian nodded in agreement as usual despite not exactly agreeing with you.

There wasn’t anything on Criminal Minds that he hadn’t already learned except for maybe the occasional Spencer Reid comment but it’d make his case of staying home better. “Okay fine.” He said putting his hand on the doorknob but then he looked back at you and pointed “I’ll deal with you later.” You looked away awkwardly feeling a bit embarrassed but wished him a goodbye as he left the Manor.

Damian scoffed and continued to eat his cereal “He’s annoying.” He muttered and you looked at him with a shocked face but he only looked confused. “Hm? You say that all the time. I remember when you said that about Kent.” Damian responded and now it was your turn to look confused with a small laugh.

“Which one?” You asked and Damian hummed “You said it to his face.” Yet again you seemed confused and Damian smiled. He loved how mean you could be sometimes “Clark.” Damian responded plainly. You laughed, making him chuckle a bit.

It seemed that life was a bit more pleasant for him because of his and your alliance. He can’t wait for when you start tagging in his arguments with Dick and Todd while you were just happy that your boyfriend’s son finally likes you!

©torasplanet .ᐟ reblogs and likes are very appreciated! pls do not repost!!

[erwinsvow]

omg omg I have a request, jealous!reader being “jealous” of bsf!rafe for bringing another girl over and taking her to his room, like reader was used to it but had enough because of her crush on him

yess omg this w/ jealous kook trio reader !! <3 shes a lil bitchy too hooray !

you think you'd had just about enough of this.

after months and months of being rafe's friend, you thought you were used to the seemingly endless flow of girls that constantly wandered in and out of tannyhill, the druthers, even his truck.

in fact, you'd never felt any specific type of way about it. rafe was your friend, and him hooking up with every girl on this side of the island used to be a couple of things—mostly gross, a little disturbing, sort of annoying. the girls he hooked up with were always clingers, and rafe sometimes would abandon plans with his friends to get laid.

which was completely normal. you wouldn't expect anything less from a guy like him—until you started to get mad about it.

you can't pinpoint when it happened, but somewhere in between the two back-to-back dates of yours rafe crashed, that one guy at the beach party who was happily chatting you up one moment and gone by the next, and a cute boy's number that had somehow been deleted off your phone, you started to get annoyed.

yes, rafe seemed to have some kind of problem with you dating. yes, he hadn't ever said as much. no, you didn't really have any proof proving your suspicions. but something was going on that you couldn't quite pinpoint, and then, before you knew it, something was going on with you.

when had it become so unbearable to watch rafe with one of his girls? you used to turn to kelce and top and make faces, pretend to hurl watching them in the distance. you used to cuss rafe out on the phone for ditching dinner or the movies or a sunset boat ride for some girl he just met. you used to think it was funny, not... painful.

so now, watching rafe chat up some girl when the boy you had just been flirting with was nowhere to be found, you can't understand why you feel like this.

like your throat is closing up watching rafe lean in to hear her better. like you want thunder to strike this girl so she gets away from him. like everything else in the world has just disappeared, with just you, your best friend, and your best friend's new girl remaining.

"are you fucking deaf?" kelce snaps at you, and you finally turn your head away from the pair.

"shut up," you snap right back. "i wasn't paying attention. what?"

"we gotta take this fucking bum home. you coming or not?" you turn, expecting a fully drunk topper laying on a couch or passed out on the floor somewhere. instead he turns to glare at kelce.

"you're a dick, you know that? no really, kelce-"

"why are you acting like there's a stick up your asses, huh? what's going on?"

"oh, i don't know," topper says sarcastically, and kelce joins in with a snicker. "maybe because we've been talking to you for a fucking hour and you've been ignoring us the entire time."

oh. you hadn't realized you'd been so oblivious.

"if you're that worried he's gonna go home with her, then why-"

"shut up!" you say again, with the words coming out loudly, in a rush. some heads turn to look at you. your friends laugh, but you can't join in. you huff out a breath, jaw clenched and perhaps a touch more angry than you'd thought you were. "why would i care if he went home with her?"

"i don't know and i'm way too drunk for this. you coming or not?" top says, though kelce stares at you much too knowingly.

you glance back—though you really shouldn't—watching rafe and the girl laughing at something together. anger trickles over your skin, seeping into your body all too quickly, making everything burn inside you. they start walking up the staircase together. you turn back before your head blows straight off.

"no. rafe said he's driving me home. so he's fucking driving me home."

kelce and topper laugh but you can't focus on that right now. you head up the stairs, though rafe and the girl are out of sight. you even catch sight of the boy you had been talking to earlier—and he turns and sprints in the other direction when you meet him eye.

even more angry, determined that rafe should get a taste of his own medicine tonight, you run up the stairs, pounding on closed doors and opening them up. you catch two couples that you really wish you hadn't before you finally get to the room that rafe is in.

of course he's in the master. prick.

it takes two slams with your fists and one attempt to shake the doorknob so hard you think it's gonna fall off for him to open up.

"what the fuck are you-" rafe stops the second he sees you. "kid, what the hell?"

you open your mouth, shoulders tense and face twisted in anger, ready to give him an earful when you look back, seeing the girl sitting on the bed and rafe with his hair a little messed up.

you're not just angry anymore. you're infuriated.

"sorry to interrupt," you say, looking at the girl waiting in the back. "you said you'd drive me home. i'm ready to go home."

"kid i'm a little busy here-"

"yeah? i was busy too. i was talking to a nice guy but after thirty seconds with you he won't even look at me anymore."

"that doesn't sound like-"

"well it is. he was gonna take me home, but you interfered. so it's your problem now."

"can you just-" interrupting rafe again, though you know you shouldn't, you butt back in to finish his sentence before he can.

"no, i'm not waiting five minutes so you can finish up."

"excuse me?" rafe makes a face like he can't believe what you just said.

you look back at the girl.

"sorry, sorry." rafe relaxes for a second. "two minutes."

he closes the door, and you hear him say something you can't really make out. a second later, he comes out and shuts the door behind him. grabbing your wrist, he leads you out of the house and back to his truck, and it's not until you're sitting in the passenger seat that he speaks again.

"you wanna tell me what the fuck that was about?"

[cranberrymoons]

speak a little louder

prompt: mutual pining (@steddieholidaydrabbles) rated: t word count: 673 words tags: fluff, flirting, nerds in a basement

welcome to Day 3 of the fic advent calendar – bite-sized fics posting every day during the month of december. enjoy!

The campaign lasts all day.

That’s what they call it – a campaign – as if it’s an actual military coup and not what it really is, which is a bunch of teenage nerds sitting around a table in Mike Wheeler’s basement with sodas and a bag full of dice. 

Steve is used to it by now, but he doesn’t expect to have to wait for a whole extra hour when he shows up to collect them, but here he is, sitting on the couch in the corner and staring at the ceiling while he listens to Eddie drone on and on about elves or some shit.

Well – drone is maybe sort of an inaccurate word, considering how into it Eddie’s getting, crouched on his seat like a gargoyle, talking with his hands, doing the voices. It’s actually kind of fun to watch, and Steve is maybe sort of pretending not to find it as interesting as he does, because he has a reputation to maintain, dammit, and he refuses to be drawn in by the spark in Eddie’s eye or the flush on his cheeks or the way his fingers weave strands of the story across the table.

Whatever. Steve doesn’t even care.

“Sorry about that,” Eddie says when it finally wraps up, when he’s climbed off his chair and is standing in front of Steve while the kids bicker over something and take their sweet time packing their things. “Couldn’t stop in the middle, they would’ve killed me.”

He reaches behind his ear for a cigarette stuck there, and Steve stares at the way his rings catch the light as his hand moves. 

“No problem,” he says. He clears his throat. “Hey, can I –” 

He nods his head toward the cigarette, and Eddie raises his eyebrows, holding it out.

“Bum a smoke?” he asks. “Sure, Harrington. Anything for the valiant babysitter.”

Steve smiles as he accepts it from him, and he tries to ignore the way his stomach flips when their fingers brush. 

“Thanks.”

---

They take them upstairs, outside to wait for the kids, and it’s starting to get cold enough now that Steve has to flip up the collar of his jacket against the chill as soon as they step onto the porch. 

“That was cool back there,” he says around the filter clenched in his teeth as he ducks his head to light the cigarette. “The thing, or whatever.”

Eddie eyes him for a moment, then flicks ash onto the ground. “It was like… the metric opposite of cool, but thanks anyway.”

Steve laughs. “Still. It looked fun.”

“You should join us sometime,” Eddie says. He clears his throat. “I mean… if you want.”

And Steve can’t help it; even on top of everything big and scary going on in his chest right now, the idea of actually playing the fantasy math nerd game sounds like –

“I don’t know,” he says, shaking his head. “I think I’ll leave that one to the pros.”

Eddie laughs a little. “Oh, we’re pros now?”

“You managed to save the elf. I think. Sounds pretty professional to me. I couldn’t save an elf.”

Eddie gives him a look. “There wasn’t even an elf in that part of the campaign. I think you’re just making shit up.”

Steve laughs too at that. “Yeah, I had… no idea what you were doing. But the kids seemed into it.”

“So what are you into, then?” Eddie asks. “If not nerd shit, then what?”

You , Steve wants to say. Mostly these days, I’m just into you .

He takes a breath. “I don’t know,” he says instead. “I don’t mind the fantasy stuff. It’s the math part I have issues with.”

Eddie smiles a little. “Then take the numbers out of it. Come watch a movie with me sometime. I bet we can find some kind of nerd thing for you to be into.”

Steve feels his stomach give another little jolt as he stubs out his cigarette. “Yeah, I bet we can.”

[also on ao3]

[internetgiraffekid1673]

I spent the entirety of this week reading BatFam comics and it DID NOT help the brainrot go away. I’ll make an extended rambling post about it later, but for now that means it’s time for Robin #2! Have some Red Hood! No, I didn’t read any Red Hood stuff, I just have an order in my head for how I’m drawing these idiots!

Initial traces with half-baked backdrop! Sooooo, Jason has two commonly used costumes, and I think it kinda just depends on the writer which one he gets (someone tell me if there is any rhyme or reason to which one is used). And sometimes they even mix and match like giving him the full helmet, but short sleeves and a vest. I couldn’t decide which one I liked better till I drew them a couple times, so you get both! On the one hand, I really like costume number #2, since it actually HAS a Red Hood and it allows for more expressiveness in his face. But, on the other hand I also really like the long sleeves and the biker jacket look, and it makes more sense practically to wear a full headed helmet.

Make it a chibi! Here, I do any remaining stylization by using my trace as a reference for a free handed drawing. For my style, that means make them chibi and make them precious. I don’t care if he’s an angry murderer, he is also a cute baby because that’s just how I draw. This is also when I really got a feel for what it’s like to draw each costume. By the time I was done, I had made a decision.

Characterization pose! Yup, I went with Biker Red Hood. I’m a real sucker for superhero costumes that are actually just really iconic plainclothes, so a really cool custom bike helmet, cargo pants, and a leather jacket are my vibe! I might still oscillate between the two in future drawings depending on what I need for that specific one, but anything with, like, a continuity will use this Red Hood. Like in the Nightwing post, the Red Hood text is traced.

A quick note about the scars: I know Jason got dumped in the Lazarus pit, but I think even before he accumulated a billion new scars by hanging out in the League of Assassins and then being a mob boss, it probably didn’t have enough time or juice to fix his old injuries. Too much power went to fixing his brain and all the injuries accrued from clawing out of his own grave and then bumming it on the streets of Gotham. I specifically included some head trauma from Crowbar and the Batarang scar from the incident in Under The Red Hood which still haven’t read and probably won’t get to for a while. I am also an advocate for the autopsy scar if I ever draw him with that much chest showing.

Finally, I mentioned in the tags for the last post that I colored Dick a little more brown because he is Romani, and that my Jason and my Damian are also not white. I head-cannon Jason as either half Latino or half Brazilian, and I tried to reflect that here.

Nightwing Edition Here!

[burins]

I wrote up half of my Eisners roundup back in May and then my arm crapped out profoundly. But here is the rest of my thoughts about all the comics and graphic novels I read this year, of which there were many! As usual particular faves are bolded.

JAN

Delicious in Dungeon v6-12

FEB

MAR

The Chromatic Fantasy - HA

I think that if you are following me you will probably like this book. Great stuff on gender and sex and religion in a deeply fun art style. (Best I can describe it is the really trippy bits of Alice in Wonderland.)

Gleem - Freddy Carasco

Fluid, delightful linework.

APR

A Guest in the House - E M Carroll

E M Carroll has been doing some of the best horror comics in the business for about a decade and this continues the streak. Twisty, turny psychological horror

MAY

Where I’m Coming From - Barbara Brandon-Croft

Collection of Brandon-Croft’s wonderful 90s newspaper strips about Black womanhood. 

Roaming - Jillian and Mariko Tamaki

Love letter to being messy and gay and young in the city.

Local Man v1-2 - Tim Seeley and Tony Fleecs

This is a fun little deconstruction of comics tropes. Inga, the love interest slash female lead, is the best part of the comic.

Danger and Other Unknown Risks - Ryan North and Erica Henderson

Great story, great characters, great art. What if you were in charge of preventing the second end of the world, and also your mentor figure was SO dubious, and also you had the world’s biggest, cutest dog?

Family Style: Memories of an American from Vietnam - Thien Pham

First of a number of immigration memoirs nominated for the Eisners. The storytelling here is excellent; the art wasn’t my personal favorite.

In Limbo - Deb JJ Lee

I always have such a hard time judging memoir comics, but I think this walks a good line between gesturing at and directly portraying its fairly heavy subject matter, and the art is stunning.

Last on His Feet: Jack Johnson and the Battle of the Century - Adrian Matekja and Youssef Daoudi

Probably my favorite thing I read in this batch. Lyrical, poetic art that plays with paneling and pagination to incredible effect. Does not shy away from the everyday brutality of either boxing, racism, or Johnson’s personal life. 

Messenger: The Legend of Muhammad Ali - Marc Bernardin

I read this right after Last on His Feet and boy did it suffer for it. Unfortunately, this is just an entirely forgettable bio of Muhammad Ali. 

Sunshine - Jarrett J. Krosoczka

I wish I liked Krosoczka’s art. This did make me cry but it’s a memoir about working at a camp for kids with cancer, so it would be pretty hard for it NOT to.

Blackward - Lawrence Lindell

This would have been a perfectly serviceable 2010s-era webcomic. Not everything needs to be a book!

The Out Side: Trans & Nonbinary Comics

Graphic anthologies are deeply hit or miss for me but this one was extremely solid!

Frontera - Jaco -  Salcedo and Julio Anta

Excellent story about the violence of the border, deeply undercut (for me) by a very jarring ghost subplot. 

A First Time for Everything - Dan Santat

Sweet little story about a class trip abroad with glowing art. 

Shubeik Lubeik - Deena Mohamed

I'm so bummed I couldn't hear Mohamed speak at MICE because I LOVED this. Uses genies as a vehicle to explore the fault lines of class and politics in Egyptian society. 

A Boy Named Rose - Gaëlle Geniller

Lovely art but this was entirely nothing. Remember Teahouse? This is that but sfw and also without any narrative tension. 

Comics for Ukraine

Almost universally bad, with the exception of "Talking to a Hill."  I think sometimes the medium of superhero comics is not the one with which to tackle every issue, 

Parasocial -  Erica Henderson and Alex de Campi

Tense paneling, solid art, I didn't care for the ending of the story. 

Are You Willing to Die for the Cause? - Chris Oliveros

This relies almost entirely in first person accounts, which I like as a device for exploring who gets to claim historicity, but it means that the actual narrative is kind of incoherent. 

The Great Beyond - Léa Murawiec

My other favorite from this batch! This is a story about celebrity and fame and being remembered, but the art is some of the most fluid and expressive stuff I've seen in years and the creativity of the conceit keeps it from ever feeling run of the mill. 

Memento Mori - Tiitu Takalo

I am pretty down on illness memoirs, but I liked this more than I thought I would. 

Swan Songs - W. Maxwell Prince et al

This collection of stories about endings was going to be a winner for me and then the final comic was SO bad it soured the whole experience for me. 

Monstrous: A Transracial Adoption Story - Sarah Myer

This (like a lot of the comics in the teen category) did make me cry! The art is a little too scratchy for me at times- it's intentional, but not always deployed to best advantage. 

Phantom Road v1 - Jeff Lemire and Gabriel Hernández Walta

Is this basically Alice Isn't Dead with a guy as the driver? Well, yes, but it is good. Lemire always nails creeping dread and Hernández Walta's art is ominously flat in an excellent way. 

Black Cloak v1 - Kelly Thompson and Meredith McLaren

Compelling story undercut by webtoony art that's way too cute for the fantasy noir vibe of the narrative. 

My Girlfriend's Child v1 - Mamoru Aoi

It's always kind of wild to me to see a completely bog standard teenage pregnancy narrative get nominations like this and then I remember that most people making these nominations do not like, know a lot of people who were pregnant as teens. 

Godzilla: Here There Be Dragons - Frank Tieri and Inaki Miranda

This is simply not very good art or story. 

The Cull v1 - Kelly Thompson and Mattia de Iulis

The story here is really intriguing! I wish we had a little more time to get to know the characters before getting thrown into Plot but it's real solid. I don't always love this hyper realistic 3D rendering but it works for the story. 

The Summer Hikaru Died v1 - Mokumokuren

I could wish that the translator hadn't rendered all of the dialogue as weirdly southern but this is a really good gay rural horror. Came back wrong simply hits! 

Mabuhay! - Zachary Sterling

Cute! Didn't really slam me but I would have had a lot of fun with this as a kid. 

Mexikid: A Graphic Memoir - Pedro Martín

This was both lovely and deeply felt and also laugh out loud funny. 

Saving Sunshine - Saadia Faruqi and Shazleen Khan

Extremely sweet sibling story. 

Fire Power v1-4 - Robert Kirkman and Chris Samnee

The Good Asian v1-2 - Pornsak Pichetshote and Alexandre Tefenkgi

Eden II - Kenny Wroten

This has great moments and is also deeply irony poisoned. I would love to read a weird queer comic by someone who was not Online. Also I could not tell any of the characters apart, because they were all thin white-presenting people from fake Seattle. ALSO the speech bubbles were so clearly added in after the fact that it was often difficult to tell who was saying what. I'm not a purist about speech bubble rules or anything but I gotta be able to tell what order to read your dialogue!

Three Rocks: The Story of Ernie Bushmiller: The Man Who Created Nancy - Bill Griffith

The frame narrative is solid, but the best part of this was just the actual Nancy comics included within.

The Horizon v1 - JH

This is just apocalypse torture porn tbh. 

Thing: Inside the Struggle for Animal Personhood - Sam Machado

Here's the thing. I think there are compelling arguments for animal rights. I would also like to see us put that same kind of energy towards ensuring full rights for people first. Also the art and writing here are simply not very good.

Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons - Kelly Sue deConnick, Phil Jiminez, Gene Ha, and Nicola Scott

I wasn't sure I would love this because of my noted Picky Feelings about feminist Greek myths but I liked it more than I thought! The art is phenomenal.

Superman (2023) v1 - Joshua Williamson 

The annual is what was nominated, but the single issues are the actual stars of this trade. Williamson does a really solid job of situating Clark in community.

Wonder Woman (2023) v1 - Tom King

I find the story pretty grating (why does Diana need to be fighting the entire US government?)

Poison Ivy (2022) v1 - G Willow Wilson and Marcio Takara

YAY we love an ecoterrorist getting her due. Takara's art leans full Annihilation. 

My Picture Diary - Maki Fujiwara

This suffered in comparison to last year's alt-manga diary comics from a similar era, Talk to My Back, which was one of my favorite books of the year. Fujiwara's art is very stolid and pretty simplistic and while it works for the subject matter it wasn't my favorite.

River’s Edge - Kyoko Okazaki

This is SO messed up! We are right in the violence and emotional mess of teenagerhood. 

The Yakuza’s Bias v1 - Teki Yatsuda

This gets a little one note by the end of the collection but yakuza falls right into Kpop stan culture is such a funny premise that I didn't mind.

How to Love: A Guide to Feelings and Relationships for Everyone - Alex Norris

This is much cuter and more charming than I thought it'd be.

The Talk - Darrin Bell

Bell is best known for his political cartoons and this brings the same kind of incisive political wit to a longform piece while adding a great deal of empathy.

Transformers (2023) v1 - Daniel Warren Johnson

I am so sorry to DWJ who did his very very absolute best to make me care about Transformers. The art and writing are great I just don't go here. 

Kill Your Darlings - Ethan Parker and Griffin Sheridan

Pretty mid dark fairytale.

PeePee PooPoo - Caroline Cash

Diversity win this lesbian alt comic is just as annoying as the straight ones!

Superman: Lost - Christopher Priest and Carlo Pagulayan

Ugh. Superman: Lost was one of my favorite takes on Superman and Lois last year and I still think the first like… five issues are phenomenal. As soon as we get the weird infidelity/assault/pregnancy narrative I was out. 

Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees - Patrick Horvath

I simply hate cutesy animal horror. 

The Devil’s Cut, edited by Will Dennis

I know I read this but I have no memory of it. My notes say I liked it, and I'm generally in support of DSTLRY and creator-owned comics as a concept.

Marvel Age #1000, edited by Tom Brevoort

Deeply masturbatory.

JUN

Deep Cuts - Kyle Higgins et al

I liked this so much it was my end of the year staff pick! It's hard to do comics that really capture the collaborative and improvisational feeling of a good jazz session but this anthology absolutely does.

Somna: A Bedtime Story - Becky Cloonan and Tula Lotay

Tula Lotay's art is absolutely gorgeous but I was kind of bored by "what if a Puritan housewife was fucking the devil." 

Watership Down: The Graphic Novel - James Sturm

I think these rabbits are too cute to really capture the horror of Watership Down.

Delicates - Brenna Thummler

It's really difficult to tell a story about a kid who is bullying someone else and have it land sympathetically for both parties and Thummler manages it with an uncommon emotional depth.

Buzzing - Samuel Sattin and Rye Hickman

OOF this hit me right in the psych kid feelings. Very sweet and really captured the feeling of the complicated family dynamics that surround kids with mental illness.

#DRCL midnight children v1 - Shin’ichi Sakamoto

Insane choice to make Lucy Westenras a bishie.

Doctor Strange: Fall Sunrise - Tradd Moore

Did not think I would ever be rooting for a Doctor Strange comic but this is the kind of psychedelic universe bending art I would love to see more of from his whole character premise!

Bea Wolf - Zach Weinersmith

Absolutely delightful adaptation of Beowulf for children. Weinersmith really captures the feeling of the old English language in a story about a bunch of little kids defending their treehouse.

HP Lovecraft’s The Shadow over Innsmouth - Gou Tanabe

I don't feel qualified to examine the choice by a Japanese artist to adapt a story about Lovecraft's fear of Chinese and Pacific Islander genes entering Massachusetts. I haven't read much actual Lovecraft but did we all know it was that racist? I mean, I knew he was racist but my god.

The Monkey King v2 - Chaiko Tsai

EXCELLENT adaptation of Journey into the West! I couldn't get v1 in time for voting but the art and the pacing here are just so much fun.

It’s Jeff! - Kelly Thompson and Gurihiru

This is extremely cute but it is ultimately just a cute animal comic.

Earthdivers v1 - Stephen Graham Jones and Davide Gianfelice

I hope you don't need me to tell you Earthdivers is good. It's good.

Birds of Prey (2023) v1 - Kelly Thompson and Leonardo Romero

I was so dubious about this one that I ended my yuri zine piece talking about it. And then it was in fact really really good. The team dynamics are excellent here and the art is perfectly suited to it (except for one issue with a guest penciller where the art is execrable.)

Shazam! (2023) v1 - Mark Waid and Dan Mora

Waid and Mora are sort of the DC powerhouse couple at the moment and I know that at any minute Mora is gonna switch to only doing covers, which will make me very sad. This was way more fun than I expected to have with a Shazam comic but the kids here are delightful without being cutesy and Waid does a great job balancing Billy being a real character and also a believable hero.

Four Gathered on Christmas Eve - Eric Powell, Mike Mignola, Becky Cloonan, and James Harren

Becky Cloonan's was the story that was nominated in this but unfortunately I didn't really care for it. 

Spa - Erik Svetoft

This was hard for me to read because it is just body horror from start to finish. I think it runs a little long but as far as the horrors of capitalism and the tourism industry go it doesn't get much better than this.

JULY

The Most Costly Journey: Stories of Migrant Farmworkers in Vermont Drawn by New England Cartoonists

Really, really good cartooning and storytelling. Vermont is not really what you think of as the front lines of immigration but it's a farming community!

Green Arrow (1988) v1-9 by Mike Grell and others

Honestly the highlight of these for me is that the scans on (website redacted) maintain the letters pages! Grell's Green Arrow tackles a lot of capital I issues with mixed results but I do enjoy seeing the attempt. And it comes off a lot better than Batman comics of a similar vintage that attempt the same thing.

Robin (2021) v1-3 - Joshua Williamson, Gleb Melnikov, and Roger Cruz

Honestly? Delightful. I love to see Damian come into himself and I love to see his cute little romance and I love to see him reading shoujo manga.

AUG

Are You Listening? - Tillie Walden

Tillie Walden always hits!

Hunter x Hunter v 1-13 - Yoshihiro Togashi

Sometimes you read 38 volumes of manga in two months after watching 130 episodes of the show and listening to hundreds of hours of podcast about it. And that's just what HxH does to you. It's normal, and fine.

The Yakuza’s Bias v2 - Teki Yatsuda

The bones of the premise are starting to show - I think this really would have been better as a single volume. Still very charming but probably not gonna pick up any third volume.

The Boy Wonder (as it came out) - Juni Ba 

BOY WONDER COMIC OF ALL TIME! Wonderful take on Damian wonderful art wonderful Al Ghuls.

SEPT

The Summer Hikaru Died v2 - Mokumokuren

Hunter x Hunter v13-38 - Yoshihiro Togashi

OCT

The Concierge At Hokkyoku Department Store, v1 - Tsuchika Nishimura

What if working retail was not a horror show but was instead deeply fulfilling for everyone involved? This can only happen in a world where the customers are animals. 

NOV

Iris: A Novel for Viewers - Lo Hartog van Banda and Thé Tjong-Khing

The gender of this is kind of crazy (derogatory) and it could not more clearly be from the 60s. I don't think I'd recommend it but I don't regret reading it as like, a historical document.

Space Mullet - Daniel Warren Johnson

DWJ really doesn't miss. This is a very classic grungy space noir in the vein of a Cowboy Bebop or an Expanse but I liked it quite a bit despite being made to feel sympathetic for a space Marine. 

DEC

Nightwing (1996) v1-3 - Chuck Dixon and Scott McDaniel

Flush! Those! Blood pressure! Meds! Is Nightwing 96 a good comic? Who can say. Babs is there and Dick Grayson is experiencing the full spectrum of human emotion deep in his #failgirl 20s so I'm having a great time. 

[maniacwatchestheworld]

Man... So yeah... I've got conflicting feelings about Batman: The Caped Crusader... On the one hand, the art direction and the backgrounds? I can genuinely dig them! The diversity and number of people of color in the main cast? Fantastic! And I'm down for them trying out new takes on old or obscure rogues! The tone and atmosphere can be pretty good at times, and I appreciate the 1940's setting and the weird little oddities the show has because of the retro setting.

But to me, by far the most interesting thing about the show is that it doesn't really feel like a show about Batman. But rather that the show is about the systems of corruption that make Gotham the way that it is and stay that way. Batman has 0 qualms about beating the shit out of the cops, and I dig the hell out of that! Bruce often feels secondary to what Barbara, Renee, and Harvey are up to. The show feels like it's about Gotham! And what Batman is here to do and does is secondary to the other people living in it and trying to change things for Gotham. And I can dig that about this series! And honestly, seeing Barbara and Renee just being complete and utter badasses throughout the whole show and always being the best, most competent, incorruptable people in the room? Kinda delightful! Batman just gets to be a chump sometimes. And it's pretty funny to see the men go down with the easiest of punches while the ladies seem to be able to tank anything coming their way! Love that for them! But honestly... It really does seem like the show is a LOT more interested in the struggles of the poor, the people of color, and the women of the city than it is with the perspective of the rich, white, cis, male society that we usually see! So that's a direction I really appreciate with the show!

But on the negative side, BOY HOWDY does that animation look sloppy sometimes. And in fact, the animation style is often far too close to that of Scooby-Doo for my liking! When I started the 5th episode with Gentleman Ghost, I felt a little baffled because I just put on Batman... But what I was seeing looked like it was literally pulled straight out of Scooby-Doo! The only real animation details that made it NOT look like Scooby-Doo was MAYBE the eyeliner on some of the characters. And even then, only maybe. Like it's not exactly surprising, but still a bit of a bummer. :p Also this is probably just a me thing, but I wish that Batman was just more successful when it came to saving people. Like, I entirely got that they wanted this show to be for adults so they they could raise the stakes and actually kill characters off... But there are just a few instances that feel like a bummer and I wish that Batman was given a chance to save them... Speaking of... Spoilers below the cut!

Man! I'm bummed out by what they did with Harvey! He's my favorite! He's my boi! I love he! And he just gets killed off! Like... I was genuinely interested to see what they were doing with him. It wasn't my ideal direction for Harvey, but it was interesting! And I would have liked to see more of him! I would have liked to see more of the dynamic between Harvey and Two-Face! And their dynamic with Barbara was genuinely very fun to see! But yeah... They killed him off and he's very VERY unlikely to come back! I think that it would have been more interesting if they tried to keep him around. In that last episode, he asks what kind of happy ending he can have where he gets out of this. And honestly, I think that it would have been more fun and challenging for them to try and answer that question! But nah. They just killed him off. Siiiiigh... Also when thinking about the themes of the show, them killing Harvey off feels a little... Troubling... So at the very least, if Caped Crusader does return for a second season... I sure as FUCK hope that Harvey haunts the ever-loving FUCK out of the narrative! Cause honestly, I could have stood to see more of this interpretation of him! But alas! Siiiiigh...

Also lol. Apparently my prediction of the direction that they were trying to do with this Two-Face and Harvey was spot on. And that's kinda hilarious! :P

[hyperfixationhobo]

MORE ✨MAYDAY AND HOBIE✨

Best duo hands down eat my frozen heart if you no agree.

Okay so recently I got turned down for a library job that I really wanted (and spent a weeks studying for I LEARNED HOW TO SEPARATE BOOKS BY CALL NUMBER DAMMIT YKNOW HOW HARD IT IS TO ORGANIZE BOOKS BY FUCKING CALL NUMBERS?!)

Anyways I was like really bummed out about it and to cheer myself up I started watching one of my childhood shows called Kipper. (See below it’s really fucking good free full eps on YouTube) And I’m not sure if it’s the gentle music or the way they talk or the simple and soft colors for the characters and backgrounds but all my stress when I watch it just fucking vanishes.

Imagine it with me.

Hobie visits Peter’s home to calm down a bit. He would normally go to Pav or the others but they have their own lives with school and such and Hobie doesn’t want to burden them especially since it’s midterms for them.

Now Hobie isn’t the type to talk a lot, he’s more of a listener if anything but his silence is different when he’s in a bad mood. It’s more tense in a way and his posture is not as relaxed as he usually is.

So when Hobie knocks and Peter opens the door (Hobie doesn’t just barge in, he tried once and Mj gave him a long lecture) he knows Hobie isn’t doing so well and immediately gets backup.

“Mayday is in her room watching cartoons.”

“Mhm.”

Hobie walks up and sits next to Mayday who is watching Kipper and Hobie isn’t really paying attention to the tv until he feels little taps on his knee.

“ ‘Obie see? Dogs!”

Hobie just hums and starts to watch the cartoon cause Mayday keeps on asking if he saw something that happened on the screen. As he’s watching it he suddenly realizes that he’s feeling much better than usual. It normally takes him a while to get out of his funk, even around the people he cares about, but it’s like a switch flipped.

Peter walks in about 30 minutes later to tell his kids it’s time for lunch only to see Hobie and Mayday staring intently at the screen to see if Kipper and Tiger are gonna be able to help the kitten from the tree.

This leads to a snowball effect.

Anytime Hobie visits and Mayday is watching cartoons he plops down right next to her and watches whatever happens to be on for her tv time.

He got addicted to watching Bluey and Pav got annoyed with the theme song real quick after that.

He totally recommended watching Mayday’s cartoon to the rest of the gang to help with stress (let’s be honest Noir has watched those sensory dancing fruit vids and got hooked)

Sometimes when he comes to watch cartoons with Mayday he sees Gwen, Miles, Pav, or the rest of the gang sitting with her watching the tv as well.

(He saw Miguel once and now has some pretty good blackmail)

[aita-blorbos]

(OC. 👁🐺 <- to find later)

Aita for just being kind of a jackass?

Alright, so, getting straight to the point, I (20+, male) am just A Regular Guy. The thing is, uh, while I'm not exactly a monster per se, where I come from, people are sometimes very weird, so weird shit is basically the norm, and I'm one of the few who are like, exceptionally weird, what with 5 eyes and pitch black fur and some really fucked up anatomy. But I swear there's nothing out of the ordinary with my existence itself.

Anyways, Ma kicked me out from home for being a lazy bum a few years back and, tbh, that's alright. The thing is, I was really lost. I had no job, no place to stay, and not a single shred of money. But that's when I had a BRILLIANT idea.

Remember when I said I'm exceptionally weird? So, turns out I'm weird enough to pass as a mysterious cryptid!

So, I made myself home at this abandoned hospice, and started to "terrorize" this nearby town.

I say "terrorize" with quotations because that's really all I do. I play some pranks, scare people, and steal stuff, mainly food and things like video games, comfy pillows, etc. I turned that hospice into my dream home and lemme tell you, it's GREAT. It's spacious, I don't gotta worry about cleaning, and I don't have to pay taxes!

But you see, the thing is, the town I mess around in, it has an above-average number of missing teenagers, y'know? Lotsa people betweeb 13-18 just vanish every year.

So, a group of like, 5 or 6 teens (idk I didn't count) broke into MY hospice because they thought I was the one responsible for making teenagers disappear! And like, I get it. I'm the local fucked up cryptid! But still, I think they were kinda rude.

Now, I'll be the bigger man here (HA this is funny because I'm taller than all of them! ...Well, except for this one abnormally tall catgirl, but I digress) and admit that I did chase them down while barking and howling and twisting my body in impossible ways, but that was just because one of the girls had taken MY (well, not exactly mine, because I did steal it) console, and was intending to take it with her!

And, I still maintain that they were unreasonably rude to me. Almost as if I WAS, in fact, some teenage eating monster! Now, I DO have a livestream channel, but I'm not nearly popular enough for that kinda controversy!

So yeah, I am kind of a jackass in general, but am I really THAT much of an asshole?

[nian-7]

Hallo :>>> can I request for pjsk boys x gn!reader headcannons when character x reader met in college. If you dont mind, please add whether their respective group/s disbanded or not :') that's all for me and ty in advance <333

hello! sure, please enjoy!!

Tsukasa, Rui, Akito, Toya x gn!reader

✧meeting in college

✧fluff

-Wonderlands x Showtime has become more of a side thing for them. Emu does it the most often though, followed by Tsukasa.

-Tsukasa probably went to college for something in the drama or theatrical department. An actor of sorts, whether it be a stage actor, movie actor, or a voice actor.

-He likely met you through a group project where he needed a partner and you just happened to be sitting next to him that day so why not ask to be partners? No harm in it!

-He'd get along with you fairly easily. As long as you don't push him away, he'll be your friend even without ever verbally asking to be friends.

-Probably asks if you need help and vise versa. You're his friend now and he'd like for you to be able to get through college and pursue your dream as well!

-Again, Wonderlands x Showtime has become more of a side thing for its members. Rui is the least active in it because of college work but, he does occasionally show up for shows.

-He probably had gone to college for some sort of engineering degree. It probably wasn't unlikely that he met you in a class that you struggled in and asked him for help.

-Rui helped you but it wasn't much after that. You both would chat occasionally when you found yourselves sitting next to each other in class or in the halls.

-Probably would accept your offers to come by your dorm or house to work on an assignment together. As long as he has nothing going on, he really doesn't mind.

-Honestly, he likely has invited you to come to Phoenix Wonderland and help work backstage on the automations like Robo-Nene. It was honestly quite a shock to the other Wonderlands x Showtime members when they see Rui there along with a new friend.

-Vivid Bad Squad has probably gone on some sort of hiatus. Both Vivids and Bad Dogs operate still just at a lesser rate. They can't find the time to all get together with their busier schedules.

-Akito likely went to community college. Whether it be because he wasn't sure what he wanted to go to college for or if he just wanted to continue Rad Weekend.

-He honestly probably met you through Rad Weekend. Having you randomly come up to him after Toya and him got off stage and telling him he did a good job! Somehow the conversation spiraled from there into him getting your number by the end of it.

-After that, he'd always text you when he'd be performing at Rad Weekend and you'd always show up. He appreciated it even though it wasn't often that he got to see you.

-With the two of you being in college, study sessions aren't uncommon. He'd randomly bring it up one day and it'd start becoming a near weekly thing for the two of you.

-Again, Vivid Bad Squad would be on a hiatus while Bad Dogs and Vivids operated independently. Toya is a bit bummed about it but, he still is able to go up occasionally.

-Toya likely went to a college on his fathers accord. He likely came to a sort of compromise (if it was even possible) with him about where he'd like to study.

-Most likely, he met you on a walk one day when he was going out for lunch. Whether you were an employee or just another customer, it was a simple and nice chat.

-You both would see each other at the same place every week, whether it be on purpose or not, he's still baffled by how he had gotten your number in such a short amount of time.

-He likes to text you about random things and will always respond to anything you send him. Sometimes you feel like he's waiting for you to text him with how fast he'll respond, even when he's in class sometimes...

please do not repost any of my work without my permission, thank you for reading.

[tillthelandslide]

International Friendship Day - Matty Healy One Shot

I wrote this fic to celebrate today. P.s I did not proofread it.

She sits in a black leather spiny chair in her home studio, her legs are crossed underneath her, a light green electric guitar resting in her lap, her hands moving down the neck of it, fingers moving against the frets as she tries different chords out. A pair of black headphones sat on top of her head and she had moved the microphone in front of her so she could sing sitting down. She grunts when a certain chord doesn't sound the way she wants it to, nearly swearing when she can't figure it out.

Her doorbell (which she has ignored twice already) sounds again, the grating noise which she really must change, finds her ears again and she swears.

"For fuck sake" she stands from her chair, placing the guitar in it's holder, removing her headphones and walking to the front door.

"You will not give in will you... Probably just a freaking package... Just leave it next door" she mumbles to herself, gasping when she opens the door, revealing someone unexpected.

"Happy international friendship day love!" Matty says, his curls are loose on his head and he's sprouted a few more greys since the last time she saw him, of course she saw them on their daily face time calls but they seemed brighter in person. He holds red roses in one hand, a bottle of red wine in the other and her favourite snacks clasped in-between his fingers, somehow managing to not drop them. She feels kind of sad that he's holding so much, otherwise she would've launched herself towards him already.

"Thought you were in LA... Or New York or some shit" she says making him chuckle and shake his head.

"Nope. I'm here" he smirks at her and she crosses her arms at him, looking him up and down, needing to take him in after having not seen him in person for a few months.

"Well duh.... You're outside my flat"

"I'm outside your flat" he confirms with a nod of his head "going to let me in?" He asks, and she smiles, nods and steps aside. They walk to her kitchen where Matty places the items he's holding down, reminding himself to open her cabinet which holds her vases after properly saving hello.

He turns to face her and smiles widely, opening his arms widely. She runs into his arms, Matty hooking his hands underneath her bum and lifting her up, her legs close around his hips and she tucks her head into his neck.

"God I missed you..." He mumbles into her neck, squeezing her tightly.

"Can't believe you're here... Why are you here again?" She says, pulling back to look at him. He walks them until she's sitting on the counter, but he remains in-between her legs, holding her tightly to him by her waist as she holds his shoulders.

"It's national best friend day!" He says excitedly.

"You don't believe in that shit... You think it's just another occasion capitalists can exploit poor people into buying more shit" she says and he laughs.

"Hey I'm a changed man!"

"I heard... You're back on social media again..." He laughs at her, quickly saying a "we can talk about that later"

"Your neighbour text me saying you've been listening to my entire discography on repeat... Except it's only the sad songs... Which means two things. One: you're sad" he begins, shes scoffs at his words, mumbling a "good observation".

"And two: you miss me" he says proudly.

"God you're insufferable sometimes... Why am I friends with you again? Please remind me" he laughs again before pulling her into another hug.

"Shut up... You love me"

"When did you start talking to my neighbor?" She asks.

"Why? Jealous?" He gets a shove on the chest at that and he laughs.

"She asked for my number at your last party, said she needed it so she can text me when you get... Well like this" he explains.

"Hey I'm fine thank you very much!" She says, removing her hands from his shoulders and crossing them over her chest.

"Don't be like that" he says, uncrossing them for her and holding her hands in his.

"Tell me what's wrong..." He says, he stares into her eyes for two, maybe three seconds before she's breaking.

"Everything's wrong... I can't fucking write any songs, I'm failing as a musician, I haven't eaten a proper meal in like three days, I'm fucking tired" she begins listing, Matty makes a mental note to order them food.

"And I fucking missed you..." She finally admits.

"Love" he says, his eyes softening. His fingertips caress her cheek and her eyes flutter closed.

"I'm here now... And we can work on the song part... Come on I can tell you've been in your studio, show me what you've got so far" he says and she nods, smiling a kind of sad smile at him. He takes a step back, removing himself from her legs and helping her jump down from the counter.

They walk to the studio together and she shows Matty what she's been working on so far, he really likes it and helps her tweek a few bits, recommending different things he thinks would sound good. At some point Matty orders them food (without her knowing). Eventually they're both squished onto the one chair she has in the room. She's resting in his lap, scrunched up in a little ball and he's hand is smoothing down her back.

"So Twitter... Kinda made your fans feral with the return" she says, she had lifted his top up slightly, her fingertips now grazing his "we are kings tattoo".

"been keeping tabs on me love?" He says, his pointer finger and thumb hooking under her chin and gently pulling until she's looking at him.

"Said I missed you didn't I? Besides... When your best friend returns to social media without telling you... His fans are going to make you aware of it" she says, and he shakes his head, mumbling an "unbelievable".

"What have you heard then? I'll confirm or deny now" he says and she nods, thinking about things she's read.

"People think you're dating Taylor again... Or still dating her... I don't know" she shrugs.

"Well you know that was never true... Not true even now" he says and she nods again.

"good" he raises his eyebrows at that and she closes her mouth, hating that the word slipped out.

"Yeah? Happy I'm not dating her?" He asks and she pauses, thinking about her options. She knew she could deter the conversation in a different direction like she had for years, avoiding her feelings for her best friend, or she could finally, finally be brave and tell him the truth. What's the worse that could happen? This is Matty were talking about, her best friend, everyone around them knew how mad he was about her and she had an incline too, she was just too afraid it would change too much.

"Happy you're not dating full stop." She says and he pulls back slightly at that, raising his eyebrows, his grasp on her chin tightening slightly so she didn't move.

"Well that's a revelation I didn't think id be hearing today" he says smiling to himself, especially when she blushes.

"You've been my best friend how long? 7 years now?" He asks.

"8" she confirms and he nods.

"And it's taken you that long to admit your feelings for me?" He asks, chuckling.

"Hey! I didn't admit my feelings, just said I'm happy you're not dating" she says, being defensive as ever.

"Oh don't do that. Don't go back on your word" he says, gently tugging her forward more, grazing his lips against hers.

"Don't make this embarrassing for me" she says, eyes fluttering shut, trying to avoid his eye contact, not able to deal with his teasing.

"Love... Open your eyes... Come on look at me" he says and she eventually does as he says, meeting his soft eyes which sparkle with happiness.

"You've been my best friend for 8 years... And I've been wanting to kiss you since day one. Can I love?" He asks and she nods her head, closing her eyes again when he leans forward, closing the gap between them, his soft lips pressing lightly against hers.

She sighs at the first contact, feeling her hairs stand on end and her stomachs doing backflips. His lips press firmer against hers, hands moving down to her waist to pull her tighter against him. He begins moving his mouth against hers, taking her upper lip in-between his, running his tongue along the plumpness of it.

She pulls away, feeling slightly overwhelmed.

"I've been wanting to do that for years... Never wanted you to be just my best friend" he admits.

"I really did miss you" she says and he smiles.

"I missed you more... That was the real reason I came... Couldn't stand being away from you another day... The kiss was just a welcomed surprise..." He says, his words make her smile widely.

"I really do like you Matty... More than a friend too" she says, feeling like a school girl.

"Well I'd hope so... I just kissed you" he says, teasing her again, making her blush.

"I love seeing you blush" he says, thumb caressing her cheeks, feeling the warmth under his pad.

"Kiss me again then" she says and he does, pressing his lips firmly in hers. This one is faster, somehow more passionate than the last, years of passion and wanting and love being poured into the next person. He grunts and she gasps as their tongues meet, only pulling away when her doorbell sounds.

"Shit" he says against her mouth "foods here" he says and she pulls away fully.

"food?"

"you said you hadn't eaten properly in three days so I ordered your favourite" she smiles widely at him after his words, pushing another kiss to his lips.

"You're the best"

"What can I say? It is national best friend day" he says making her groan.

"Stop saying that" they both laugh together, eventually having to get up when the door bell rings again. They sit in her kitchen and devour the food he brought, catching up on everything the other missed, holding each other's hands and eating with the other.

"So..." He says as they finish eating "what now?" He asks.

"Well... I think it's safe to say I can't call you my best friend anymore" she admits.

"Yeah? Let me take you on a date then... A proper one" he says and she smiles.

"Id love that" she says and he leans forward to kiss her again.

"Not going to stop doing this though" he murmurs into her mouth, tugging her towards him when their tongues meet, until her legs are hooked over his and she's perched in his lap.

"Reckon we could do this thing a bit backwards?" She asks against his lips, not allowing them to stop the kiss.

"How so?"

"Reckon you can take me to my bedroom and THEN we can go on a date" she says and she's glad he catches on quick to what she's insuating.

"Absolutely" he says, picking her up with his mouth stick attached to hers and carrying her to her room, placing her down on the covers.

"this is the best friends day ever" he says making them both laugh.

"Shut up and show me what I've been missing out on" she says.

[yuurivoice]

A lot of creatives have a point where they have that sorta "Nobody's gonna wanna see this/nobody will care" feeling about their work.

I was wondering if you've ever struggled with that sort of feeling, be it about your audio content or even just other creative projects? If so, how did you end up overcoming it in the end? Do you ever feel that way these days?

Only if you wanna answer ^^

Oh plenty of times! Whether it's due to imposter syndrome, or just a general numbers slump, or something you worked really hard on just not doing as well as you wanted it to...plenty of ways to end up with that sorta hopeless feeling.

This is one of the times where it truly matters why you started doing the thing in the first place, when your intentions get checked. That big ass filter will hit you eventually. Are you here because you wanna create, or because you want number go up? Would you be doing this even if there was no compensation, or are you tapping out the moment you aren't profitable?

So you take a deep breath, feel bad for a little bit, then take a look inwards. What could you do better? What can you change or do in addition to your current approach? What are others doing that's working, and why isn't it working for you?

Sometimes auditing yourself to see what's not working can be rough. Looking at your peers might press on your insecurities. But if you actually want to improve in terms of reach and growth, you can't just piss and moan about algorithms, or how other people are successful, or any of that.

You can always improve in some way or another, and there are always alternative paths to success. Whatever that might look like for you!

When Finn's content was first coming out he didn't do super great. He was cute but he wasn't doing numbers. It bummed me out and soured me on pushing him real hard at the time. Years later, his compilation with many of the same videos I didn't love ended up being my first video over a million views.

There is ALWAYS a way to make shit work. It might not be right when you expected it to be, but it can surprise you if you keep hustling.

A lot of the recent changes I made with thumbnails and other stuff came about because I was frustrated in this exact way. 7 years into it and I was still looking for ways to get better and kick more ass. It'll happen again and again because I'm here for this shit and it's not just a job, it was a hobby that I fell in love with and take pride in. I like getting better, whether it's in the business side or if it's my writing and acting.

But I've never immediately spring back from that initial feeling of frustration. I'll mope and feel bad and get frustrated and upset.

Then it's over, and I get back in the saddle.

So keep on trying, keep on creating, and try to find the joy in it all!

[somethingclevermahogony]

I worry sometimes that I'm oversaturating tumblr with my posts, I get worried that people are annoyed when they see multiple posts from me on here. Maybe its silly, but I guess that's just how anxious brain works. And so I feel like I shouldn't post, but then I get worried about not posting, but also I worry about posting too much of my WIP. I stopped doing Tumblr for almost a year because I wasn't really getting any interaction and I realized I was spending hours working on posts, and then getting bummed out when a post would only get one or two likes. I want to share things about my project but I feel like maybe I'm just doing too much? Both in the length of my posts and the number of posts.

I'm bad at reblogging,I know I should do that more, I need to get better at it I suppose.

I have a post in my draft for an OC intro that I've been meaning to post but I also don't know if I should wait. AAAAAAAAAAAAA

[callmeroygbiv]

I played crutchie in newsies, here are some of the things that happened

- the refuge was constantly referred to as "little boy jail." "I wish you were in king of new york" "can't, little boy jail." "yeah when i got rolled onstage for letter from the refuge-" "HAHA, LITTLE BOY JAIL!" 

- an ensemble member came up with the hypothetical question "if you were starving and had no food, would you eat crutchie's leg?" he then proceeded to ask every single cast member this question. I now know which newsies would eat crutchie's leg and could provide a list if asked. jack kelly would he told me HIMSELF. 

- someone accidentally called me crunchy instead of crutchie. various variations of that nickname ensued, my personal favorite being "cankle" 

- somebody put me on the spot and asked me to name my crutch. I panicked and said pickles. 

- jack kelly himself greeted me every rehearsal by pointing at me and saying "bum leg." what a wonderful friend. 

- the theatre we performed at had a covered area outside that could be accessed from backstage. this area had a sign over the door that said "area of refuge." three different people asked me to pose under it and took a picture of me. 

- our director had us practice the prologue together with her to guide us exactly two times, the first was in a practice room the size of a closet (i knocked a framed photo off the wall and my director and i blamed our jack immediately) and the second was in the theatre bathroom like ten minutes before the opening show (jack had to hold a mini piano so our director could play the notes for us. he looked very silly.)

- we had a medda wig that we didn't end up using. it was blonde and very long and jack put it on after the closing show. i begged him to sing hopelessly devoted to you. he didn't. :(

- Jack Kelly got sick the day before the show. It set off a chain reaction of understudies. our directors pumped so many concoctions and vitamins into him. he looked deathly ill and was sitting in the corner breathing through this crazy miracle cure device that looked So Scary but he magically got better it was beautiful.

- we aren't cowards like disney so when crutchie returns from the refuge jack and crutchie have a Big Hug and like five minutes before the closing show our director came up to me and was like “yeah i was thinking we should probably cut that, i don't know why they would hug like that, its almost a little weird.” and i was like “oh no i play crutchie like he’s gay don’t i”  (I did and it was a little bit on purpose) so i thought that she told our jack too, but she didn't. i was fully prepared to give him a fistbump and he almost knocked me over with the hug.

- "care to let this young man’s artististry shine a light into your closed doors?” -our pulitzer three times

- stress dreams. everyone had them. in mine i forgot to climb onto the scaffolding during the overture AND i forgot to bring my crutch onstage. our director had a stress dream that our jack showed up really late to rehearsal in a three piece suit.

 - sprace was canon. that's it. they called each other stage boyfriend offstage.

- entire cast swayed our arms back and forth during something to believe in. sometimes we turned on our phone lights like it was a concert.

- one time our davey lost his voice and wasn't singing during rehearsal so his understudy, who also plays race, was running back and forth between doing a weird voiceover over davey’s shoulder for all his singing parts and doing all his race parts. he was darting across the stage for the entirety of seize the day it was great. 

 - "And all the newsies run up the stairs, across the scaffolding, and down the other set of stairs and offstage.” “Ms Sarah I only have one working leg.”

- up until tech week we didn't have our newsies banner newspapers for once and for all, so during rehearsals for that number we got out the giant bin of stuffed animals. the number just was so much more beautiful when it was performed by a bunch of angry looking teenagers holding small stuffed animals. like ten of them were frogs (or supposed to be frogs. vaguely frog shaped.)

[idontknowreallywhy]

WIP Wednesday

Might have a couple of different ones to share today. This one is a bit experimental and may forever stay a WIP (especially if I fail to get the discord skin for ao3 to comply with my will 🙃)

Herewith the thought experiment that nobody needed…

*************************************************

Extract of Discord Chat between rocket46boi and Anarchy_Aunt_Est44

*************************************************

So - big news!

***

You beat the Undead Overlord???!

WITHOUT ME??

***

No, you daft idiot we have a hot date with that guy tonight.

***

Oh of course. I did not forget that.

***

You’ve been having a stab at it without me haven’t you?

***

Noooooooo.

Well a bit.

I mean we both know it’s impossible as a solo run. Just testing out some options… you know so I don’t let you down in the field, right?

***

Haha guilty conscience much?

***

Um, sorry… I just couldn’t resist when everyone was off doing stuff and I just… needed a distraction from all the everything.

***

Mate, it’s cool. And you do have my number you know, if you need a distraction just text me.

***

Aww thanks ☺️

***

Anyway - back here whatever 19:00 GMT is where you are?

***

Cool. Yeah! Looking forward to it!

Usual caveat for if I’m not there it’s not personal just my part time job thing you know sometimes the hours are a bit random.

***

Yeah yeah Mr Mysterious.

Anyway…

***

Sorry!!!! What news, my Queen?

***

I’m not going to college!

***

Wait, what?

Don’t tell me they turned down your scholarship?!! Those ignorant bastards!

***

Calm down hun

(though your rage on my behalf is cute 🥰 )

I did get that, but am not gonna need it.

***

Has someone said something? Don’t let the losers get in your head.

Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean you have so much potential??

You’d smash college!

***

Slow doooown.

I’m not just bumming out.

I have a job!

***

Oh! Uh, ok what kind of job?

***

Not 100% clear yet but it’s in experimental digital tech field and there’ll be a shedload of training on the job and best bit is…

Drumroll please…

***

What? What?!!

***

ACCOMMODATION INCLUDED!

**

Oh! You get out of the SH hellscape!!

***

Yep!!!

***

That must be a relief.

***

Yeah. Oh you have no idea.

Like, I wish them well and all but… my ‘neighbours’ are just constant drama. College would be cool but how on Earth I’d get that kind of study done with all that going on?

Instead I get a sweet little flat with just a couple of other trainees who will actually be On My Level you know?

The only one I’ll miss is Clarry. Might see if I can put a good word in for him when I get settled.

***

Well, congrats! When do you start?

***

Tomorrow!

***

Oh!

Wow that’s fast!

***

Yeah the guy is keen to start on whatever this new project is so - tomorrow I get on a private jet to somewhere awesome!

***

Ok. Wow. You weren’t wrong that’s huge news

I’m really pleased for you

***

Chin up rocketboi, it’s a tech job, gaming has gotta be an unwritten part of the job description! We’ll still hang out ;)

***

Oh ok :) Good to know!

***

Should be a decent WiFi connection there as it’s not paid for by the skinflints at SS! I might even kick your ass more easily.

***

Hahaha like you need any help with that!!!

I really am pleased for you!

***

Thanks ☺️ I’m pleased for me too.

***

Ok I gotta run but, see you later for giant-zombie-crushing?

***

Laters xx

*************************************************

[prismatoxic]

sometimes it bums me out that the most notes any of my art has is 300+ on the sexy chilchuck i drew, and i make myself sad with how many notes other people's chilaios art gets compared to my own, but i try to keep in mind that over half of my chilaios art has been for my very specific modern au fic, and also before i got into this fandom i was a nobody. a lot of the artists who get hundreds or thousands of notes probably already had an audience (not to mention many of them being more technically skilled than i am).

it's really easy to get caught up in the numbers game. my art didn't get more than 10 notes generally before i got into chilaios, even when it was fanart, so i'm grateful for the dozens (sometimes hundreds) it gets now. and my fic is doing way better than i ever would have thought. i have a lot of growth to make as an artist anyway... it's demoralizing sometimes, but my friends like what i do, and i am more confident in my skills than i used to be, so at least i'm getting somewhere.

i want to get better, and not just to make numbers go up. the numbers are just a fun bonus of people liking my work.