#sorry if some of you already have done this game LMAO. 😭

[ditty-nightsong]

i just remembered that mare and dae BOTH tagged me in this and i completely forgot to do it! so here it is now!

last song: useless by omar apollo!

favorite color: obviously i'm very fond of purple but also shoutout to cream-yellow, turquoise, and dark red. (and black, of course.)

last book: i think it was "i'm glad my mom died" by jennette mccurdy.

last movie: oh man i gotta think about this one... honestly might have been "mr. and mrs. smith" but it may have also been "10 things i hate about you." can i cheat and say disney hercules? i've been meaning to re-watch it for Reasons Related To MarFugue.

last TV show: i think it was the start of arcane s2! and then i Forgor.

sweet/savory/spicy: if possible, some mix of sweet and spicy.

last thing in search history: see this is a fantastic question because i google everything in incognito mode/private browsing! so i genuinely do not remember LMAO but it may have been something related to the atelier series?

current obsession: MY SELFSHIPS... especially marfugue and angelyse! i've also been back on my league of legends-related bullshit. (also really enjoy hearing about/seeing my friends' selfships!)

looking forward to: THURSDAY IS PAYDAY!! time to order more comms!! (also, going home and eating. i am on the bus right now and i still have probably at least 30-45 minutes to go until i'm at my stop home. 😔)

as for tagging... @kylilah @apisamorabundus @blank-sins @lighttrapped @sparklings-husband @flatstarcarcosa @flusteredladylover @dear-gambler aaaand @one-winged-dreams !!

[hazyange1s]

WIP Tag Game

Thank you for tagging me @myokk 🥰🥰 your writing ashdjdns I need that one shot asap

Currently, writing is an uphill battle for me 😭 this is the longest I’ve gone without being able to find any sort of ~ flow ~ but we’re trying to power through lmao

unsure of everyone who’s been tagged already so sorry if you have! @ps-cactus @morelikeravenbore @galaxiasgreen @writingsoftarnishedsilver

some very expected angst from part 2 of enshrouded (I posted the first part in the SUMMER good lord) — warning for suggestive dialogue:

His expression betrayed pain, thick brows furrowing as he swiped at the rain trickling into his eyes. “Can you really tell me that you didn’t wonder, even for a moment? That not a single part of you recognized me in any way?”

No reply came. She opened and closed her mouth, tasting bitter rain as her teeth worried at the kiss-swollen flesh of her lower lip.

Now that she was thinking about it…the signs were there: his dancing, his toast; as they’d done many times in their Hogwarts days at the Three Broomsticks, the cologne he still seemed to favor.

Even (and especially) his eyes, which had always spoken more than words could express alone, and the way he moved when they were —

It seemed old habits really did die hard.

”I wish I had realized sooner. Then we both wouldn’t have wasted a perfectly good night.”

Sebastian smiled in that lopsided way of his, like a cat that got the cream. “I’d hardly say it went to waste. You always did enjoy yourself when we were together, and… well, it seems i haven’t lost my touch.”

“I — you —“ she sputtered. “You certainly haven’t lost your touch for mucking everything up, either.”

That wiped the grin off of his stupid, smug face. Sebastian sighed, watching a carriage roll over the uneven street as a streak of lightning illuminated the crease he’d earned between his brows over the years. “So, that’s it, then? Three years apart and a night in bed together haven’t softened your heart towards me?”

If anything, it had only hardened.

Her throat constricted, and her answer came out choked and pathetic and wrong. “Where you’re concerned, I’m not sure I have a heart anymore.”

And to prove it, she stood several steps backwards, turned on her heel, and Disapparated on the spot with a soft crack that echoed through the desolate streets.

And now we check in with Incendiary Seb, who is — coincidentally — also not having a good time. I might change this chapter completely idek 😩

Sebastian had a plan. Several, in fact — although they were less carefully constructed strategies and more spur of the moment strokes of madness.

Plan A was to slip Veritaserum in the wine and pumpkin juice from the kitchens, but he crossed that off the list upon realizing he could hardly interrogate everyone in the Hall at once.

Plan B: find one of the remaining Ashwinder hideouts and interrogate them. He really hoped he wouldn’t have to resort to this one, as he rather preferred his head attached to his body, so —

Plan C brought him to Ominis.

“I have a question,” he caught up to the blonde on their way to Defense class.

“I probably have an answer, but that doesn’t mean I’ll give it to you.” Ominis snipped.

Sebastian barreled on anyway, speaking in hushed tones. “Your family knows people. Do they know, say, any… mercenaries? Assassins? Private investigators willing to get their hands dirty, even?”

Ominis’s lip curled up into a sneer. He stopped in his tracks, nearly causing Sebastian to run right into him.

“I’m going to walk away now and pretend you never said that.”

In all fairness, asking Ominis to be accessory-adjacent to another murder probably hadn’t been his best idea, either. But as the days grew shorter, so did Sebastian’s limited patience as November hurried on, each X on his calendar a reminder of the looming deadline.

Eventually, his ideas ran out, and Plan B it was. In the encyclopedia of Sebastian’s Dumbest Decisions Ever Made, this one might be in the top three — and that was saying something.

[ps-cactus]

Hi HL tumblr! I'm gonna answer some valentines (it's almost April, yes, sue me), anons and ramble a bit 🫰🏻

TL;DR I had a break and I'm not coming back yet because mental health, but I genuinely wish you all happiness and lots of inspiration in doing things you love ❤️

It's been a while and I'm sorry I didn't say anything weeks back but I really had to make a break and needed it right then.

Anxiety works bad with social networks, and when irl things happen to change your rl in a way you don't even feel enough strength for your favourite coping and your fomo intensifies, and it's just... I needed my time in a cave and I'm still not going out for a time being, because I'm just starting feeling a bit better but still have some big irl tasks.

FIRST OF ALL thank you my favourite gang, you know who you are, for being you, for your support and love. You are amazing and deserve the best. I'm so glad to have met you 🥹🫂❤️ I'll keep saying it to you personally FOREVER there is no escape sorry ❤️

VALENTINES! THANK you Lorrain 💖 and Casper 💖 (And Vale 😆) for the cards here 💖 If you wanted to make me cry you really did thank you!!! 😭😭🥹💖

And of course THANK YOU again everyone who reached out in dms and discord that day even though I already was already kinda MIA 💖

And THANK YOU Jo for what you wrote, really I read it five times or so and I love it so much (check out one of my last reblogs!)

ALSO HELLOO lovely Anons! I love you ❤️ seeing this was unexpected and pleasantly surprising to say the least 🥹 Sending many-many hugs!!

Lucy! I saw all your messages, hi! Thank you for all of the kind words! Hugs to you!

THANK YOU to everyone who reached out in other asks and DMs! Every word you put your time and love and support into means so much to me it hurts (in a best way!) 🥹🫶 I truly appreciate you 🫂

THANK YOU to everyone who tagged me in tag games, picrews, and asks! Even though I won't be back to posting at least for a while, it was nice to scroll and see what you have done and what pictures, music lists and stories you shared! 🫶

THANK YOU to everyone who liked and reblogged some old posts, it was fun to see and remember what I used to post once 😆🫶

WELL NO MATTER what might be happening in my rl and any things that might be happening to the game/fandom, I genuinely believe while there are so many people who create what they love and support other creators even when they're mia for eternity lmao no a bad example there will always be a nice place for me and people like me to came back to from their caves 😆😁❤️ once we're a bit more mentally healthy and stable 😅 thank you all for that ❤️

Until we meet here again ❤️

[namgyunation]

i'm rlly interested in your take on this because your nam-gyu meta posts are amazing, i find myself nodding profusely the entire time i read them lmao i was wondering if you think nam-gyu would ever let his gf or situationship see him cry? and what would make him cry?

sorry for the late response!!!

and ahhhhh thank you <3 :]]] i have soooo many thoughts about his stupid ass 🙂‍↕️ i have way too much fun looking too deeply into the small, nonexistent scraps that we were given in the show LMAO

one thing that i think is clear about nam-gyu's character as he's presented in the show is that he hatesss being seen as weak or being associated with weak people, scared that it might reflect back on him. it always seems like he's overcompensating to look stronger (joining in on the fight with thanos when they had mg coin on the floor even though... he looks like he barely knows wtf he's doing and he ??? falls??? myung-gi was already on the ground 😭), lecturing min-su and trying to reaffirm to himself and others that he was strong before the pentathlon to 'not fear death' even though he was literally just as fucking scared and shaking and had to take a pill to calm himself lmao, and then referring to the other players as "cockroaches" after the pentathlon and trying to exert himself over min-su for no reason at all (and then we even got to see that nam-gyu was the only other person besides min-su that didn't get their game done on the first try lol...)

he seems so emotionally constipated, repressed, and terribly insecure about how he's perceived by others, that i just don't see him ever wanting anyone to see him cry, especially not a situationship / girlfriend / partner.

i honestly don't even see him being the type to even let himself cry. tbh, i get some vibes of toxic masculinity in the way he acts, since he's shown to be desperate to control / exert himself over others using aggression and intimidation, as well as how often he feels the need to suppress his "bad" emotions (fear, sadness, insecurity) and come off as confident and strong. this is straying to my own headcanons here but idkkk he just seems like the type of guy to believe in some bullshit like 'crying = weak', preferring to just bottle everything up and pretend it doesn't affect him. he seems like the least vulnerable guy ever.

then, if his partner were to ever see him in a vulnerable state, i think he'd be horrified and reject any attempt at comfort / connection. he seems like the type of guy to hate the idea of someone pitying him. i think he'd just want to be alone and deny it / shut it down immediately if you tried to bring it up after the fact

bro is barely even honest with himself. i don't see him being honest with anyone else, either. no guy that acts like that has good emotional regulation or is in touch with his feelings lmfao

he seems like he'd rarely ever let himself cry in front of someone. i think he'd rather mask it with anger, if anything. and if he did let it slip and let you see him cry, he'd definitely be furious with himself

when thanos died in the show, he was very obviously upset, and idk, watching the closest thing you have to a friend—in a game where you've nearly died three times—bleed out in front of you seems like... a pretty valid reason to cry, imo! and even then he denies feeling upset, pretends he doesn't care at all, and just takes the pills in an attempt to ease his mind.

though, i think if he were without the comfort of the pills, he would've actually cried, or at the very least teared up.

i think to get him to actually cry, it'd likely have to be over something big with the right conditions, like him being alone or with little to no distractions.

death

so, death, for one. we already saw him get close with thanos's death. i could see him losing it over the death of a family member or a close friend

(headcanon here, but i don't think he had the best relationship with his family when growing up. like, look at how he behaves. hence why he's so insecure and desperate for attention / someone to latch onto in the events of s2. despite this, i think he'd still yearn for their attention / approval, and the death of a family member would kind of cement the fact that he no longer has the chance to impress them / prove to them that he's special or worthwhile. he seems very hung up on gaining the respect of those that look down on him, eg. thanos)

though, i could see him still trying to pretend he's above crying and play it up in front of other people, acting as if he just grieves differently. though when he's alone with no one to perform for, that's when he'd really cry. i could see him being mad about it the whole time, though, laughing / yelling at himself and trying to pretend that there's not tears coming out of his eyes. i don't think he'd want to admit to even himself how much he's affected by it. he'd put off the grief and try to keep going about his life until it caught up to him one day and hit him full force

abandonment

bro seems starved of any and all forms of love and attention. i could see him having a pretty deep fear of abandonment. in the show, he seems very hesitant, timid, and unsure when he's on his own, always following someone and waiting for them to take the lead on things / be there to back him up before he does anything. he does nottt strike me as someone who's independent, capable of making his own decisions confidently, or operating without the validation of others.

if he were to be abandoned / given up on by someone he cares about (whether they respect him or are genuinely good to him or not), i could see this being another thing that pushes him to the edge and makes him cry. he seems like the type to desperately try to avoid / deny his need for affection, but if he's truly abandoned (especially after swallowing his pride and trying to keep someone in his life), it'd act as a constant reminder of his overwhelming desire to be loved to the point where he can't keep avoiding it, though he'd once again try to mask his tears with anger and try to convince himself that he didn't gaf about said person to begin with

from a romantic standpoint, i could definitely see him going especially apeshit over a romantic partner that decides to leave him, especially since said romantic partner is likely one of the few people in his life he's allowed himself to depend on and display some level of vulnerability with. based on how he acts in the events of s2, he doesn't seem like he'd be the sweetest or most emotionally mature boyfriend in the world, so it'd probably cause him to spiral, knowing that it was his own issues that led to his relationship ending.

bad trip

considering his substance abuse and the way he acted after thanos died, he most definitely uses drugs as a means of coping and avoiding his emotions so he doesn't have to deal with or acknowledge them. i could see him doing this, having a bad trip, and then coming out the other side feeling like shit and having to grapple with the fact that he's still alone, still bruised from whatever negative experience happened to him, and still right back to where he started emotionally. i don't see him knowing how to deal with his own feelings in a healthier way, so if that coping mechanism fails to make him feel better and forget about things, i could see him crying over that and just feeling worse about himself and the situation once he comes down from it.

insecurity

clearly, nam-gyu has a lot of insecurities and is unsure of himself. he has a specific image that he wants to uphold, and doesn't like when he's called out. if someone were to directly harp on these insecurities, it would definitely set him off. however, he's clearly used to this behavior, as rjw said nam-gyu's been disrespected for basically his whole life, so i think for him to actually cry over it, it'd have to be something that cuts particularly deep and/or is said by someone he perceives to have some sort of importance or agency in his life and how he views himself. for example, a family member or partner expressing their disappointment in him or being embarrassed by him.

ok now to narrow it down to just specifically what would make him cry within the context of a romantic relationship bc i think that's more what you were asking:

being abandoned for real; knowing that it's his fault and that he pushed you past a breaking point and it's completely out of his hands whether you come back or not

jealousy; feeling like you genuinely like someone better than him or would actually leave him for them, especially if it's someone more 'successful', 'normal', and well-adjusted, with a better relationship with their family. things that he's not and doesn't have. i could see him imagining what it'd be like if you were to be with them instead, and how much easier and more 'acceptable' your life would be without him. he seems like he would never admit this while sober but would become more open about it when he's on drugs and being unable to stop himself from crying / showing you how much it affects him

after a particularly bad / intense fight, especially if either you or him threw some harsh words at each other. though, he'd wait til he was alone to cry

feeling like he's disappointed you or has done something that has altered your relationship forever, something that he can't come back from or fully fix / gain your trust back no matter how hard he tries or what he does (eg. maybe if he stole your money for drugs, lost your money by investing it into crypto lol, made a bad impression on your parents / family because he couldn't control himself)

anywayssss YEAH. thank u so much for enjoying my nam-gyu meta posts... i'm crazy but i am free.

[quinngefail]

I got to ask because I wanna get to know you better, and if you have answered these already, I'm sorry :)

1. Favorite Music Artist?

2. Favorite Movie (Besides Saw)

3. What hobbies do you have?

I don't ask many questions cause I don't wanna bother you :)

~🩰

AAA NO WORRIES, I do love yapping >8]

1. Okay uhh the bigger list is here, but I'll get uber specific and say that MUSE is easily my favorite band lmao. Been into them for nearly ten years now and we're still going strong ✊️✊️✊️

2. I have a few :] !! Besides the first Saw movie, some other favorites are The Iron Giant, Star Wars: A New Hope, Rogue One, The Blair Witch Project, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, Terminator 1 + 2, and like tbh... I'm thinking The Substance may be making it into this list now as well 😭 IT'S JUST. SO GOOD

3. UHH Okay outside of drawing and writing, I'm really into video games + movies :] Also been into DnD for 7ish years, it's genuinely such a lovely time and I always enjoy getting together with The Fellas to play our silly little fantasy games 😊 then uh idk if driving is a hobby. But I do enjoy long night drives especially, it just has such a special vibe to it- I'll either listen to music, or throw some scary stories on and just have a good time HSKS. OH I like baking as well, haven't done too much lately but it is still very much a hobby :)

But yea uh ty for the ask!! And do not worry about being a bother, like I said I'm happy to yap, so 🫶 !!

[forget-me-maybe]

Okay just in case no one is hiding in your asks with these, I'm here again 😶‍🌫️😶‍🌫️😶‍🌫️

🪨 - Landslide

⛰ - Earthquake

(granted that the bg3 fics have worldbuilding handed on a silver platter, but I think as a writer you can input your own sauce and play with the material)

hiii!!! i love it it when you visit in my asks <3

and these ones were hard because as you say - it is handed on a silver platter - and i kind of just consider myself a visitor in an already existing world. but of course there has to be come forget flavour in there somewhere. especially since i prefer to write post-canon or very vaguely connected to canon (someone else can do the game retelling and do it much better than me).

🪨 Landslide - Which WIP has the most worldbuilding?

i'd have to say look after me, my rolan/tav wip. unfortunately it's on hiatus now and probably won't ever be finished because i'm not feeling it at all. maybe some day i'll get back to it but i'd like to rewrite everything.

or the project that will cater to one person (me!), the modern au hockey situation that i'm going to put tav and aradin in once i'm done with you keep showing up and a change of heart. i adore putting the forgotten realms in a modern setting.

OR a rolan/tav wip that i'm never going to finish where it's like a 1930s setting (but without the warfare) and they're archeologists looking for a shrine of a forgotten god.

new idea unlocked: aradin in a 1950s grease setting?????

sorry for this turning into a list of wips that never will be done lmao. my wip folder is really a bunch of docs with 3k-7k words that are just left to rot. 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

⛰ Earthquake - Which WIP has the least worldbuilding?

at this point, it's a change of heart. honestly, it's just fighting and smut (my favourite things hehe).

[shiny-jr]

RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH I literally cannot put into words how much I loved the latest Damnation au chapter- I was literally seconds away from putting my phone down to get back to work but as soon as I saw a glimpse of the fic, I just couldn't help but put everything on hold

I was really impressed with how you included Epel into the story in a way that just about correlated to Epel in canon (like how he was actively opposed to hit position in the castle). Like taking into consideration of the time period and the possible reasons why Epel would be relevant there in the first place despite not being in the original tale- SO WELL DONE!! Not to mention Vil going out of his way to find potential successors really emphasizes his hatred for Neige (poor guy😭) Also the way you write about Rook??? I knew he'd be creepy but gyat damn your writing only increased the feeling of it ten-fold. Especially in that scene after he climbed through the window and interrupted MC and Vil- Literally foaming at the mouth i was like 'holy crap this is it, we're gonna get exposed' cause aint no way Rook WOULDN'T know. Everything about him was unnerving yet so charming?? I really don't know how you do it but the way you just write them is just so accurate👏

As a Vil simp, every scene with him in it had be giggling and kicking my feet✨ I was pleasantly surprised with his advances towards the MC though- like hubba hubba... I ain't complaining though! The tension in those scenes were just *chefs kiss* Every moment with him just oozed authority and power, like I'd be on the edge of my metaphorical seat just waiting for the moment he calls out the MC

Like holy crap you really know how to set your scenes- like legit every time I Rook or Vil were in a scene, it genuinely felt tense. Also props to MC for looking out for #1 (themselves) even at the expense of ruining someone else

Anyway excuse my rambling lmao i'm definitely gonna be re-reading it again ^^

Sounds like another happy reader. And yes, Epel's part was difficult. Mainly because, well, Epel is based off the poisoned apple, so how is he supposed to play that role? In my mind, the poisoned apple is a tool used by the Evil Queen. So, what is similar to a tool? A person to manipulate, which is how I came up with the idea of heir. Combined with the fact that Vil obviously takes a shine to Epel, as he spends time meticulously perfecting his habits and mannerisms in-game. Which fit the scenario I was to use, of a King claiming an heir and drilling instructions and behaviors in their mind to manipulate.

Rook and Vil were easy to place into roles, due to who they're based off of. But it was difficult coming up with scenes for them, since the Huntsman and Evil Queen don't have a lot in the movies. Especially the Huntsman.

For Rook, I actually considered writing a scene were MC followed him as he scoped out the meadow or the moment when Rook was to escort Neige to the meadow, but ultimately I decided against that as it would overcomplicate the plot and give more time to Neige instead of Rook. I needed a way to properly portray Rook's watchfulness and the unease it spawns, which I figured should fit the setting. A carefully worded conversation knit of lies and unsaid threats and fears is much more effective when the reader is picturing hollowed stone halls of a palace instead of a colorful meadow. At least, that was my thought process there, which is why most interactions with Rook are in settings such as those.

And finally, Vil, who I decided to write a few more interesting scenes for purely because I know a good amount of my followers love that pretty man. There were multiple concepts and scrapped ideas I've already forgotten by now, different things that never made it to my keyboard, like a tense dinner scene and back-and-forth bickering. But some of those just didn't fit the feeling I wanted, or was out of character for either the MC or others.

Anyways, now I'm rambling. Sorry. I hope the second read was just as enjoyable as the first!

[puckpocketed]

inspired by yesterday’s ovechkin-posting and the stick story, because. i had as much fun as anyone with the idea that riding a camel over all-star break is what jostled the goal-scoring back out of him, but at the same time... i am frothing at the fucking mouth about ovi × The League × national hockey media. where is his respect? where is his hype? where are his roses???? please !!!! understand !!!! that i find sidney endearing as a guy and he is undeniably incredible as a player and he deserves the love that he gets. but from day one, ovi has only existed to them in relation to sid and that makes me lose my fucking mind. 

and general hockey fans through the years loved ovi, and then they hated him, and then they said he was an overhyped washed-up old man who doesn't care anymore (starting in like 2013 lmfao). like, I'M sorry, back in the late '00s and early '10s he was being hounded for days about his cellies, and being booed every time he came out on the ice—and you're mad? that he looks like he's lost his love and enthusiasm for the game???? (i cannot for the LIFE of me find the podcast ep where i heard this, so. grain of salt. but a former teammate talked about how startling and upsetting ovi found the booing, bc it was such a sudden change, and meanwhile, ovi was just the same guy he’d always been 😭).

and then, idk, we went through hate again, and then indifference, and now in the 2020s we're back to "oh, his production has dropped so therefore he's overhyped, can’t wait ‘til he’s gone"?? the season ovi was 36 he had more points per game than sid did last year at 36 (90 in 77 vs 94 in 82). or how about. please remind me how many goals gretz scored the season he was 36 (25 goals compared to ovi's 50). or what about when gretz was 38 (9 goals compared to ovi's 31)? i am NOT trying to say that ovi is "better" than either of them—this is just me saying that people are completely irrational about him. like back when he was drafted and people were saying "oh, he's not actually as good as he looks, because he's lying about his age" bc he looked 25 instead of 18. like. okay lmao. and then what? his NINE rocket richards count less bc he started later? he's actually older now and scoring more per game than gordie howe was the first time he retired? like what are we doing here??? i'm not an empty-netters-pod guy, but they talked about it in the first few minutes of this ep; like... yeah, why was everyone so fucking excited to dance on his grave at the start of last season? and then again in the playoffs? he’s NOT DONE YET, and even if he were, i would hope to see a modicum of respect for the player he’s been and the career he’s had! 

the point is. ovi has scored 30+ goals per season every single year since his debut except the pandemic-shortened season. his teammates, current and former, love him and say what an awesome, generous, team-focused guy he is. he has literally dozens of nhl records already, some of them previously belonging to gretzky. and yet! general hockey fans and the league and national hockey media all refuse to take him seriously. and caps fans (mostly) and dc hockey media (mostly) (barry svrlugas i do not forgive you... dan holmi i would just like to have a fucking word with you....) are all just standing here like hello? alexander ovechkin is RIGHT HERE and he is very good at hockey. hello he is GOOD at HOCKEY, can you hear me????? is anyone seeing this, HELLO???? 

i don’t get it. i simply and entirely don’t get it. there are so many excellent players on teams that i hate! there are players i dislike and i can still point to many impressive things about their game!!! WHAT is the mental block that happens for everyone when it comes to ovi, and how tf has it been going strong for nineteen fucking years? 

thank you for listening!! i swear to you that the vast majority of the time i am simply having a fun time with whatever my terrible children decide to do, admiring ovi’s fashion choices, cheering on my number one babygirl dylan strome, and enjoying whatever horny, incomprehensible nonsense they get up to. it’s just that sometimes i gotta go guard dog mode about alex ovechkin 😅

Hello!!! First of all, thanks for going to all the trouble of typing all that out and including links. I have loved sifting through your citations, and felt very much like a floor dwelling sea creature eating nutrients from the silt <3

I believe you all when you say Ovechkin's not done yet. Shaking my entire clenched fin at everyone calling him a washed up old man!! Fascinated by the Caps' attempt to pivot into being competitive long enough for him to break the record, because what of the After? The Rebuild of Damocles beckons!! Except, having paid some attention to prospects I see they've got a pretty interesting crop of talent coming through. And there are those big contracts they just acquired (hello Dubie and Roy). I just feel like have to be on this train so I can say I was there to see how it all shakes out. History Witnessing type beat <3

and I'm SO endeared to Caps rituals. What little I've seen of them is so fun, so silly. Exactly my vibe. MUST a team "Play Hockey Well"?? can't they just be obsessed with each other . can't they torture and embarrass each other . being stressed about strange concepts such as ""Winning"" is so., passé .

Thank you again for dropping by and for the essay! and I'm sorry it took so long to get back to you, it was such a meal I was digesting it for days :>

extended thoughts/discussion under the cut.

From the outside looking in, I think can speak to how compelling it is to pit Crosby and Ovechkin against each other. As your ESPN article puts it: "Crosby was careful, corporate. Ovechkin was unpredictable, borderline dangerous. The key word was passion, and even though Crosby had it inside, Ovechkin oozed it. He was the anti-Sid, possibly the better player, and soon a cult hero." (x, y) I know you're frustrated by this, but they do sort of exist in relation to each other. Maybe I've fallen for the propaganda, but it's very literary <3 You could write their story down and present it to a novel studies class, and the easiest thread to pull on would be all the ways in which they're each other's narrative foils.

IF you held a gun to my head and made me guess at the 'why' of it, I'd probably agree with Eric Adelson! It really does feel like Crosby's image is who hockey wants to be seen as. A Good Canadian Boy; humble, no conspicuous expressions of his wealth, no partying, and of course no on-ice flash! I think I can understand the backlash somewhat; in such a team-oriented game, one with all these arcane honour codes and the emphasis on humility and respect and not rocking the boat, I could see why the spectacle of Ovechkin's personality would've grated. Crosby's an easier pill to swallow for the conservatism of hockey culture. (And I specified 'image' because there's the reality of what it is to be famous, deified, and torn apart each time you don't quite measure up. I hate to be the guy who says there's another side to this but, like, I'm sure plenty of people who are more familiar with Crosby's story could come out and tell me about the unique challenges that come with being considered The Next One.)

And obviously, your specific frustration is coming from the fact that Ovechkin is, somehow, seen as the inferior superstar, and that his achievements - which either equal or surpass Crosby's - go uncelebrated by mainstream media. and ough. man. I'm not as invested in this as you given I just got here, but your emotion is palpable!! I have... complicated feelings about his whole deal wrt geopolitics I won't lie, but I am serious about the whole "Is it the Russian thing?" I wouldn't, like, submit this as a legal document or anything, and I doubt I'd be the first to point it out, but there has to be a level of Othering that comes from his nationality, right?

So there's my thesis: he's not like them, he's not from there, and his image is not who they want for a star. Being so undeniably good for so long probably bought him some time in their good books, but the moment he looked a little bit mortal any grace they had to give was dispensed with. It sucks for you as a fan of course </3 I don't mean to sound so morbidly curious about it all,,, like i get that a real wrong was done to Ovechkin by the establishment that refused to recognise him!! But . well. I'm looking at this through a nonfiction writer's lens. I do hope someone who was there for the whole thing writes a book or two about this, because it would make for a really interesting story. I get the feeling people will look back on this stretch of time and think the world went a bit crazy for believing Alex Ovechkin was done.

[pbaz7]

loving this so far im so excited

warning: mentions car accident

and suddenly my excitement has faded

Her gaze naturally drifted to Paige, who was still fast asleep beside her, the steadiness of her breathing reflecting her deep slumber.

please don't make it weird guys!

how naturally beautiful Paige was, the little details that made her feel more real, more alive.

not sure I even believe in her existence she's so perfect

She realized, then, just how little she truly knew about her

yeah y'all kinda know NOTHING about each other...

You still alive? Hope it was good.”

"hope it was good" LMAO she knows EXACTLY what happened

she finally spoke in a raspy morning voice

FUCKKKK

Paige’s gaze flickered to Azzi’s phone, still in her hand. “Telling your friends how good I was already?”

there's the Paige I know

Azzi let out a soft sigh. "Like you just had sex with me last night."

about that... I'm not sure if you know this babe... but she did. I fear!

“I’m 22. My birthday is October 20th. Um… I like purple.”

wow she is DEEP isn't she

Paige sighed before pushing herself up, stretching her arms over her head as she walked over in just her boxers and sports bra.

again: FUCKKKK

“Looks good on you.”

god I need this woman so bad

Matching smirks immediately spread across both of their faces.

nosy whores

“Geno wants us all to hang out with her today before she leaves.”

I think Azzi's done enough hanging out with Paige for the whole team

Paige glanced at her and nodded. “Surprisingly, yeah.”

I feel like Azzi's just one of those people whose personally you can kind of just gauge from looking at her

Azzi gave her a look, smiling at her. “Oh, you’re back now, huh?”

she literally does not have the ability to speak in front of anyone besides az

Paige licked her lips as she looked up at Azzi, “So what you wanna do about it?”

oh lil paigey

You sound like a robot dawg.”

she kind of is...

Aubrey nodded. “You can shoot?”

oh Aubrey you have no idea

Paige met her gaze one last time, her expression softer now. “I’ll see you soon, Azzi.”

yeah you fucking better

“I told you I don’t like FaceTime,”

she says as she answers them...

She found out that Paige was at a small Division II school in Minnesota,

Paige. bueckers. at a d 2 school... pardon

she’d probably marry a sweet treat.

wouldn't we all! oh to marry ice cream

but Paige hadn’t mentioned anything about being at the game.

surprising HER girl

toward USC’s bench

let's make uconn win this one yeah?

This girl.

my thoughts exactly azzi

The fans near them yelling to get Azzi’s attention.

I can hear the people on Tumblr typing furiously "oh my god azzi is talking to some really hot blonde girl do you think they're dating"

Azzi hummed at this. "Hm. Us too."

and there was no sexual content warning???😭😭😭

taking in the tiny red hearts printed across them.

azzi and those damn shorts

Paige shrugged. "Nah. I get it. I’m me."

this girl.

"Would've helped if you had a more consistent shooter."

yeah like you maybe

Paige laughed. “Because they’ll report all the other schools to the NCAA if I don’t.”

she's THAT good

Paige exhaled steadily against Azzi, her hands finding their place on Azzi’s hips.

this just feels so calm to me it's sweet

Paige, still beneath her, let out a low chuckle, her thumbs rubbing soothing circles against Azzi’s waist. “I know.”

she knows this girl better than she knows herself im sorry im literally emotional

She hesitated before asking, “Is it because of the accident?”

no. I sign off.

“It’s just… easier. Not thinking about it, not talking about it.”

STOP. NO ANGST. NO SADNESS. EVER.

He couldn’t brake in time, so he ran the light while we were in the intersection.”

im choosing to pretend this isn't happening

But I remember everything. I just—” Her voice faded, like the words had dried up in her throat. Her eyes were glossy, unfocused, trapped in a memory she couldn’t shake.

y'all were making out not even 2 minute ago like...

Paige licked her lips, taking a slow breath. “Tell me something about you.”

this is awful. I hate the way im feeling right now. there's like a pit in my stomach

It was just them, existing in this moment, wrapped up in each other.

why can't everything just be happy and perfect all the time

Thanks,” the voice said.

who the hell is this mofo

There wasn’t a single beat of hesitation before Paige answered, “No.”

YUP YUP YUP

Paige laughed fully. “Impossible questions? I ask things like, ‘How’s your day?’”

Azzi's just a little indecisive its okay

“Stop having sex with the recruit and come back to the room. CD’s having room checks soon.”

PLEASEEE

“You don’t need to walk me to my room.”

but she will

Azzi laughed softly, shaking her head. “You’re cute sometimes.”

only sometimes...

leaving Paige standing in the hallway for just a moment longer before she turned to walk away.

so I actually am in need of part 4

author I don't think you understand how much I love this

also you better not make Paige cheat or do anything or have there be something with the usc girls because I will protest

loved this regardless!

-🍉

and suddenly my excitement has faded

nooo !!!

yeah y’all kinda know NOTHING about each other…

literal strangers lmao

FUCKKK

🤨.

again: FUCKKKK

you a lil fruity i see

Paige. bueckers. at a d 2 school... pardon

ssshhh it’s for the plot 😭

let's make uconn win this one yeah?

oops

STOP. NO ANGST. NO SADNESS. EVER.

angst no sadness maybe

CHEAT ?!?! I could never that’s just sick work

[littlemissmentallyunstable]

hiii bella, since tkd tournament season is FINALLY over for me (cal state championships were yesterday) i really wanted to talk to you, i miss you so much omggoshh. well. i dont have a conversation starter, but then again i never seem to need one when im with you so i guess i just talk. read it, respond, or ignore my ramblings i dont mind.

life has been busy recently, in good ways and bad ways! its always for to have stuff to do but too much is literally suffocating. but, iv ebeen trying to read more so i started the powerless and lightlark series... (and so far, reckless is freaking amazing but i wouldnt recommend lightlark LMAO the writing is super cringey and the fmc is a player-) speaking of which, what are you reading bella? have you been writing recently? ohhh my gosh and im also so excited for glorious rivals but jlb could not have released it later, like no i dont want to wait to read about whats going to happen to rohan and savannah MY MISUNDERSTOOD BABIES!!! did i mention i met eun this week? it was crazy, like i literally just pulled up to her swim meet like wassupp baee... sighh if you lived closer i would have gone to you too meeting you irl would have been a dream. oh, oh! and im going to dye my hair red today yayyyayyyy<33 how are you doing, pretty girl?

hiii maddie!! omggg I’ve missed you so so much, it was so so lovely to see your user pop up, it literally made me smile so freaking hard!! (and sorry it’s taken me a hot minute to reply, I have been super busy today!!)

ahhhh omgoshhh how did your tournaments go!? I want to hear all about them!! awwww I really have missed talking to you too and it’s so weird because I was literally going to message you tonight and there you popped up in my asks!! 💖💖 I also never feel like we need a convo starter, like it just flows. how could I ever ignore your ramblings, they’re the best part 😘😘

I totally understand you, sometimes busy is good when you’re in the thick of it you don’t notice what a physical and mental toll it takes, so I hope you’re doing okay 💕💕 AHHHH POWERLESS MENTION ALERT!! Kai Azer 🤤🥵 my baby!! oh just you wait until you get to the end of reckless girlie *evil laugh* and oooo I’ve had lightlark on my the for agesss!!

currently I’m reading ‘kiss of deception’ by Mary E Pearson but I’m in my mock period at school right now so I haven’t had a lot of time for recreational reading. BUTTT my preordered copy of sunrise on the reaping arrived and it’s staring me in the face begging to be read but I’m saving it until after my mocks end so I can properly enjoy it!! IM ACTUALLY SO EXCIYED LIKE MY BB HAYMITCH 😍😍 (always had a soft spot for the guy… I can’t help myself)

writing wise I’ve been really lacking sadly, I’m in the middle of two late birthday fics which I feel so bad for not getting done in time and an aaron warner x reader fic… so that’s what to come I suppose but nothing much else bc of mocks 😔😔 I miss writing so so so much!! have you been doing any writing lately??

OMG GLORIOUS RIVALS IS LITERALLY SAT IN MY BASKET LIKE DHSIDJHD I NEED IT NOWWW!! fr, like I want more savrohan, I want to see where the game is going wheidjjwjdh but I have to wait ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹 I’m too impatient for this!!

OMG YOU DID NOT MENTION!! THATS SO COOL!! and super crazy like what on earth!? and omggg I actually can’t get over how surreal that is and like woah you met a tumblr friend irl!! I am in shock!!

sighhhh if only we lived closer 😔😔 maybe some day eventually… awwww girl youre so sweet!! it’s a dream of mine too 💖💖 I hope one day we’ll make it a reality!!

OMGGG WHATTT!? I LOVE THIS NEW RED HAIR MADDIE ERA, ITS GIVING ALREADY 😍😍 I JUST KNOWWWW YOURE GOING TO LOOK SO SO SO INSANELY STUNNING!!

ahhhh thank you for askinggg!! I’m okay, like I said I just finished my first week of mocks and I’ve got my second week starting this monday so my life is pretty much revision, eat, try to sleep, repeat 😭😭 it’s very boring!! but I had two dance presentations today which were a fun and a little chance for me to let loose!!

ANYWYAYSYS it has literally meant the WORLD to hear from you girl 💖💖 I have really missed out convos!! hopefully we’ll chat more when our lives are a little less busy!! but I hope everything’s going well for you and continues that way my love <3333

[diabolikpersonals]

Heyyy, just an interesting question I had, do you think diabloic lovers could’ve been more popular and better if it wasn’t a “romance” thing, for me I feel like it would’ve been wayyy better if they were to choose the healing from trauma route for the franchise, esp since it would’ve made sense since the vampires had traumatic childhoods. Not only that the “romance” isn’t even romance it’s straight up (TW: SA, abuse and manipulation) and it’s hella weird that most of the characters are minors. Sorry for blubbering so much but just a thought I had 😭😭😭

You and I just aren't members of the target audience, anon, but dialovers is plenty popular because it's a dark romance. I get that the eng-speaking fandom isn't all that active, and things are especially quiet because we're in the middle of a long hiatus, but it's a fairly popular otome game series with lots of dedicated fans, u know? And the thing everybody knows it for, and the thing that the fans are always talking about, are its dark romantic fantasy sexy vampire stuff. Getting preyed on by a hot vampire guy is a pretty normal & common fantasy to have, imo. so I don't think it needs to change to become more popular or anything, in fact I think it'd become less popular fsdghfh

But I hear you, because I'm not part of the target audience either (opposite end of the spectrum, personally...!) and I'm mostly into it for plot n character analysis. (I know that sounds so pretentious but I can't help being a nerd about this stuff ok.......I definitely have my ships too) I've definitely felt, as I was playing and reading, that this is an amazing story that is kind of held back because it's an otome game and the law requires them to stick blood-sucking scenes into almost every single chapter.

I'd argue that dialovers already is steering itself in a direction where it's focusing more on character-driven plot and less on romance. A lot of people complained about LE for this exact reason. Personally, I like it...! I know it's because I'm not the target audience but when I'm playing these games, getting through the bloodsucking scenes is such a chore, especially when I'm like "GUYS there's a demon war going on!!!" lmao. I thought this was an unpopular perspective to have in this fandom, but I've met some people who share the same opinions as me, and I think both parties can be satisfied (and I'm putting this in bold because I'm so so serious) if dialovers released a series of light novels.

This is my newest thing I'm campaigning for bc I think it would be the perfect supplementary material for dialovers. The best blood-sucking scenes are gonna be in the game, since they've got the visuals and the voice acting. Novels aren't structured like the games, so while they'll definitely still have blood-sucking scenes in them (duh), they won't have to interrupt important plot points to have 5 or 6 unnecessary ones. It's a retelling so you can take the scenes from the games and describe them in way more detail! Dialovers as a tighter story! More insight into how the characters act, and what they're thinking and feeling! Intimate scenes described in prose! Cool new art for the covers! And rejet makes money without the need for voice acting, so it can be done during the hiatus! Everybody's happy, right??? rejet pls hear my pitch.......

[1moreoffkeyanthem]

hi pce :) why do you ship style and what are your favorites parts of the ship? also what are your favorites aspects of stan and kyle’s individual personalities? AND bonus question, how do you write so quickly 😭😭

First of all I’m SO sorry I’ve been terrible about checking my inbox and answering asks I’m working through them slowly I promise

So! We all know while I’m a ridiculous multishipper (especially where Kyle is concerned), NOTHING tops style for me! SP otp no question. Why? Because I ADORE ships that start off as friendships and develop into something more! Style in particular I think is so appealing because they already know each other so well from being super best friends their whole lives and I love the idea of them both “secretly” pining for the other longggg before either of them confess. And there’s the added bonus of their dynamic, at least the way I interpret them most of the time: Kyle being passionate and hotheaded, Stan being more reserved and friendly until he gets worked up enough. Kyle being “WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU JUST SAY?!” And Stan being “yeah whatever, dude” if you catch my drift.

My number one favorite aspect of Stan’s personality is his protectiveness. Not just as a headcanon, but in the show and games as well. We see him protective of his friends (especially Kyle) as well as Wendy. Yesterday i was watching sp (ofc I was) and the way he got sooo pissed at Cartman when he was talking shit about “his gf” in Dances With Smurfs lmfao. And I mean, Stan chooses to play as a KNIGHT when the kids are playing their fantasy game. So yes, his protectiveness.

For Kyle, definitely his passion. My boy sees an injustice and he is FIGHTING it. A good example of that is the most recent special. Kyle and Cartman DONT get along well, but Kyle finds out that people who need weight loss medication and can’t get it because people are abusing it? He’s fighting like hell to make it right, dealing with the convoluted ass American healthcare system, literally learning how to make it himself. Bro doesn’t do ANYTHING half assed.

Dude lemme tell ya. I know as of late the PCE fics haven’t been pumping out the way they used to, and I had some medical and mental health reasons for that, but back in the day the fics were coming faster than a repressed horny teenager jackin off (Sry I had to lmao) Anyway, a lot of the reason I was able to write so quickly is because I’m CONSTANTLY writing in my head. Like if I’m not focused on doing something else, there’s a story I’m making up mentally. And I’ve always done that; it’s just a year and a half or so ago that those stories became South Park focused and I started writing them down and posting them. I’ll be driving or trying to fall asleep or doing chores around the house or a menial task at work, and be writing in my head. So then when I go to actually type it out, it’s already mostly written. I’d say my process has definitely changed since the RANT groupchat, specifically with sharing my ideas as they come to me, whereas before I didn’t have that. Now I’ll just be all “hey should I add this” and have feedback that inspires something else I wind up adding. But yeah, long story short, I write quickly bc I write the whole thing in my head first lmao

[solivagantingrebel]

Fanfic writer questions!

How many works do you have on ao3?

8! But if we count my other account that I abandoned, 10.

What's your total ao3 word count?

So far, roughly 142k words.

What fandoms do you write for?

Mostly just COD fandom (exclusively Ghostsoap!)

Top five fics by kudos:

Leaving Your Heart On Fire - omegaverse smut amirite? (first attempt at smut fic too, which is, something!)

carry me in your teeth (with tender jaws of sympathy) - seal!soap x orca!ghost with hurt/comfort, biting and other shenanigans. honestly, i never thought people would like it that much since i hallucinated the plot & the first chapter within a day lmaoo.

Only Yours - another omegaverse smut! second one in the series, but whatever. wall sex galore tho <33

Sweetest Gift - lingerie & shibari & bdsm. need i say more

With The Softness Of Your Breath - what if hallmark movies were good, and ghoap? ALSO childhood friends and retired au + all the christmas goodness. this one is very deserved and i will literally kiss everyone who read this on the mouth for giving it a chance even tho i know first person pov isn't favoured in fandom spaces. i poured my heart into it, ty <3

Do you respond to comments?

I try my best to! Miss some sometimes because i'm too busy giggling and kicking my feet over the sheer amount of elation i feel whenever i get the notification.

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Happy ending kind of guy, so none. Unless you count the letter. MCD 😔

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

CHRISTMAS FIC,, but all of them are going to be happy ending so we'll see!! my current longfics will take the rest of the year, or more, to end though, so who knows.

Do you get hate on fics?

No? But I did get a comment about how first person pov was something that a reader hated and they were looking forward to reading the fic with the tags & summary. Oh well, their loss.

Do you write smut?

ABSOLUTELY,,, i adore writing smut. right after fluff and angst, i have to say.

Craziest crossover:

None yet :(

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

No, not that I know of.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope! I wouldn't mind it though.

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No but Alex. i am looking at you with the softest, darkest brown eyes ever.

All time favourite ship?

GHOSTSOAP. but also capitaru and cami. if you know you know. i don't mind ghoap x reader too, but i swear they NEED to be fucking each other as well, no ghoap 'thinking' of each other as friends and nothing more. all of us are in love and fucking and that is final, or there is nothing.

What's a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

Beyond Life and Death,,, im so sorry my first attempt at a longfic but i really overestimated everything before i started writing it. Still hold it in my heart, since it was how I taught myself to write fanfics in general but it's a mess, honestly.

What are your writing strengths?

I. have no idea. I've been told I'm good at setting scene (emotional, erotic, angsty) so maybe that? Words also fly out of my mind at the speed of light whenever I am deeply dissecting a character's inner monologue, feelings and thought process AND ALSO TRAUMA, so that too.

What are your writing weaknesses?

I would say action if it were me from the past,, but I've gotten better at it. So, for now, plot, but I'm working on it!

Thoughts on dialogue in another language?

HELL YEAH!!

First fandom you wrote in?

......JJK. You will not find that fic though.

Favourite fic you've written?

All of them are my babies don't make me choose 😭

I have no idea who has done this tag game and who hasn't. it was trending like months ago, so open tag for now! do feel free to yap about your fics and tag me if you, i'd love to know <3 (get some recs meself) ill tag a few but feel free to ignore me if youve already done it lmao @eiraeths @myriadblvck

[alitgblog]

volume ix thoughts wooooo we're out of casa

first off, return of a legend: the beach hut

i was fully expecting the compatibility test to be more like the season 1 compatibility test with the zodiacs because that's fun but i guess that's less of a pot stirrer than a fun game to have. though the narrator poking fun at it i guess is making fun of the fandom for thinking it was gonna be horoscopes 🤣

so very obvious ass test though especially with the two answers only about the two guys you're pursuing, which I think is a missed opportunity to throw more lore about the guys in there. or at least make it not as obvious? really goes to show how surface level the characters are compared to, say, the Mr. and Mrs. Challenge towards the end of S2

I'm going for Jin and Max rn so I thought it was funny their personalities were boiled down to "funny" vs "extroverted" and my MC had to pick between the two as if they were mutually exclusive

anyway just nearly got Jin lmao

I'd like them to stop with the Claudia/Theo storyline because it feels like they've already decided they're done with each other and are ready to move on? However, Claudia being compatible with Theo on paper but like not really feeling it is an interesting idea. Like she feels she's got no other option to stay safe except for him and they like each other enough. Meanwhile Bea's settling for Liam because he's shown any interest in her at all. (Let them date each other if MC can't! They deserve better!!)

also I know that I joked about Theo being just some mildly attractive white guy to fawn over and settle for but the way that Claudia is just settling for him? actually upsetting like I'm so sorry, Theo 😟 I didn't mean it I thought he was fine after the first dates 😖

Hari mention! I was pretty sure the game forgot about him lmao

anyway the compatibility thing still doesn't make the most sense because like,,, why did all the guys get the Villa girls and none of the casa girls? I just think we should stir up some shit. I know it's annoying but it is the perfect opportunity to try to make Emel angry at Oakley again by saying he's most compatible with some casa girl. And she can show growth by not getting upset this time.

idk why but Kyle's poem to Emel is giving wannabe rap crew vibes (i.e. I'm missing S1 I'll take what I can get). Also, Claudia said he's giving game player vibes?? I'm actually so upset with how the LI's are all interchangeable because simply this cannot be the same Kyle y'all are fawning over (it's not 😭)

I'm kind of curious what it's like replaying on a straight route bc personally my heart hurts every time they show Claudia's little sad face but like I have to talk to Max it just makes more sense because MC can't couple with Claudia in stick or twist

Close your eyes and pick at random is actually hilarious as an option for stick or twist and I almost did it

i've already said my piece about Sienna, I love her design. I will admit though, her open mouth smile is a little stilted but people get botox so... not out of the ordinary lol. The bigger problem is how her hand on her hip is a little fucked up (color in between the lines, fusebox!)

as someone not on a Theo route, I really don't understand why he's sticking with Claudia unless he's got some personal turmoil he's working through and trying to actually reform his player ways. And I wish MC could talk to him as a friend and we'd see that. like in the way S2, you get to know Rocco's insecurity about never finishing university and Gary's anxiety even if you aren't on their routes

Anyway I'm still upset at the forcing MC to couple because she's single thing. They could've still had her coupled with Jin (or even with Hari it would work) and then she can either walk in single or with a casa boy. And then she's the main character: just say that the single islanders don't get dumped post casa (like it's SUPPOSED to be) because in that situation, she's the only one! Or if you need the numbers to be right, literally Emel is right there. She can come back to Oakley later if anything

still not the best stick or twist could've gone in terms of drama (or maybe that's just bc I've been looking at spoilers), but compared to S5-6, not too bad (I assume also s7 but tbh I did stop right at stick or twist for that season)

So fyi when I played Casa, I had my MC go for Shawn most of it, and then last minute switched to Max because I remembered she's a musician and I thought that would be cute. That being said, I wish it was like in the too hot to handle game where you unlock certain dialogue if you happen to have something in common with a character. Because why is Max explaining music stuff to my musician MC?

is Hari not an LI? Because they made him seem like one and then just all of a sudden we're not talking about him, it's only about Jin and Casa Boy. And I'm fine with not all the boys being LIs, but it is odd the way he's just shoved to the side in the story

Okay so I'm writing this as I'm playing and it seems like maybe he is. They just forget to mention him most of the time.

Hari and Hazel are a hot couple though. like I don't love Hari's design but like if he was drawn better?? I see it.

the swimming game is a fun idea but imagining everyone splashing around to get to MC is so funny. like I can hear it in my head and it's not the best game, but for the fictional game in the app it's fine.

although why tf is Theo suddenly interested in MC? I haven't been romancing him at all but for the chat at the pool I couldn't decide between any of the characters I'm actually kind of interested in so I had MC go talk to Theo and then he was also flirting? then the pool game he also thinks MC has the best chat?? sir I barely know you

omg not emel deflecting the drama to Claudia (and it's about her hookup with MC???) oof this is the drama I crave I think we're gonna need a movie night soon

so not too bad yet I just hope these storylines can come through!!

[imaginespazzi]

Look at me being on here right as you reply to my ask, bestie!

Ok you're right, i went AWF on Paige, and I have since calmed down (but still a little pissed at her). Cause i mean like look how excited lil Stephie was to tell her that they were keeping her forever and she had to go be a dumb blonde. Stephie definitely deserves a soda after that night, you really put her through it 😭

Oh honey, i just know whatever you write for the break-up will be a masterpiece; i still remember the scene from the ucla fic (their last fight before not speaking for a year??) and you executed that perfectly. I mean, I may be biased cause you know UCLA fic is that baddie for me lmao but i still stand by my statement! (side note: I re-read the UCLA fic recently and omg chapter 4 will never not do it for me every. single. time.)

Also super interesting to see the duality of reactions of whether that was super angsty or not. I think Azzi not immediately "over"reacting and choosing to stay and give Paige time softened the blow a little bit, but any chapter with a sad Stephie is already too much angst (i love that fictional little kid sm lmao; sorry the baby fever be baby-fevering so i think i'm projecting 😂)

Hmmmm thoughts on the ND game... well bestie, I actually predicted we would lose that one especially once Azzi wasn't available so I think I was already mentally prepared for it (i know, i know, i'm sorry for the lack of faith but well, they didn't prove me wrong soo 😭). But nah, look i think similar to what others have said; our inability to make 3s and defend 3s was a real killer but most of all, there was just no energy, no real desire or fire to win it - that was probably the most disappointing. But look, if we were gonna lose one game, I make my peace with that being the one cause it's earlier in the season, and it's an away game against a very very good team. And i want a good revenge story in March 😈

I will say though, the only time I've really been moved by the team so far this season was the Louisville game. I just would like us to consistently string together 4-quarter performances and look, I know we're a young team so I'm sure they'll get there eventually. But yeah, hope to see more improvement than I have so far. Loved Morgan's game today though! And I really really hope Jana and Ice get it together ASAP!

Can't wait for Azzi to be back (hopefully Tuesday or Saturday 🙏🤞 cause yes otherwise i might join you in the crash out if I don't get to see Azzi hoop again expeditiously). And Aubrey coming back Jan 1?? Exciting times!

Also, I just remembered me making a comment about me being team Logan and I already knew you were team Jess, l just knew it. We'll just have to agree to disagree on that, babes 😌 (I'm right in this instance)

Oh and finally, that first draft memo version of my boy only breaks his favorite toys keeps popping up on my tiktok and I always think about GH Pazzi whenever I hear the "just say when, i'd play again, [she] was my best friend and that was the worst part".

Ok i'm done now LOL.

Good luck on your exam, Nivi! 🫶

-🙋‍♀️

Hello hello again bestie <3

Yes I think Stephie probably should get her soda after that night. I mean first she hand to endure all that awkwardness while literally carrying the convi, then her Mama yells at her and then Miss Buecks does this? LET STEPHIE CHUG SOME SODA!

That was one of my favorite scenes to write in the UCLA fic fr fr so I'm hoping the breakup-fight comes just as naturally to me as that one did. Bestie you are my angst fiend fr cause chapter 4 was probably peak angst but no yeah, that fic is quite literally yours lmao.

I did pick a slightly more *mature* reaction that just straight up "fuck you, get out" lol.

YES REVENGE! I really do wanna see ND in March like I think with Azzi and Aubrey back and hopefully Ash truly out of her slump as well as an improved Jana, we're gonna be a whole other team and so will they but I need that revenge game so bad.

Louisville was definitely their most complete performance and I know you sent this before the Iowa State game, and so you might disagree now and other will probably as well, but I actually do still think Louisville was our best game of the season.

Oooooof that lyric hit HARD

[pikapeppa]

Hi! I absolutely love all your fanfiction that I've read so far. I don't know if this has ever been asked so feel free to ignore or point me toward the answer if it already exists. The thing that I admire the most about your fanfiction is how clearly you capture the character's voices. I can literally hear them in my head whenever I read the dialogue you write. I can't think of a single piece of dialogue that you've written where I've thought "Hmmm no... I'm not sure that character would say that". And though you are writing in third person, your narration is so clearly conveying the thoughts of the character whose perspective you are writing from. I feel like I'm in their heads! I'm wondering HOW you are able to do that so clearly! Do you have some kind of method to observing canon dialogue and then conjuring what the characters would say? How do you match their natural speaking styles, inflections, mannerisms, etc? Or maybe you just have a natural gift for it? I'm in the process of writing a fanfiction and it's so important to me that I capture their voices well, particularly because the two characters are extremely different and I want to capture those differences as I switch perspectives. If you have any insight, tips or suggestions, I'd welcome them!

First of all: THANK YOU SO MUCH OMG 😭❤❤🙏 this is such incredibly high praise!! Trying to make sure the characters sound like themselves (both in speech and thought) is so important to me, so this whole ask is like, the nicest thing you could ever have said HAHA!! Thank you so so much!!!

I’m sorry my reply was delayed — I was actually think about how to answer! I don’t think of myself as being a very systematic writer in that I don’t use any formal tools or have any formal training, so what I’ve done here is verbalized my own process in the hopes that it’ll give some insights. You asking this question has helped me think about my own process in a way I never really have before, so thanks for this fun mental exercise lmao!

My usual caveat when answering these wonderful writing-process asks: I have no formal training, as mentioned above, and this is entirely based on my own experience, and thus should be taken with a grain of salt! 😂🙏

I’m not sure what fandom you’re writing for, so I’ll be as general as possible, but if you want to know more about a specific fandom or character(s), let me know! 😂

We’re thinking about two things here: 

How the person says stuff (speech patterns, inflections)

What the person is saying (thoughts/what’s going on in their head)

(see below the cut for the rest!) 

How the person says stuff: capturing the “voice”

The main thing I do when trying to capture someone’s voice is, quite literally, just listen to it a lot LOL. Whenever I get obsessed with interested in writing a new character, I typically save video clips of all of their dialogues so I can pull them up on my computer at will to listen to. When it comes to what exactly I’m listening for, there are several things to consider:

Formality: do they speak casually or formally? Are there contexts when they might speak more or less formally/casually (e.g. with certain people, in certain social settings)? Do they use a lot of contractions when they’re talking (e.g. don’t/can’t vs. do not/cannot)? Do they drop the ‘g’ at the ends of words ending in ‘ing’ e.g. “I’m gettin’ out of here”?

Vocabulary: do they use basic everyday vocabulary, or do they tend to use more rare/unusual words? Do they have training of some kind that would make them more prone to using special words in a specific context (e.g. mages in Dragon Age using magical jargon)? 

Cursing (a special and VERY IMPORTANT case of vocabulary): Do they curse? If they do curse, how often/in what circumstances? What is the “worst” word they use in canon, and that you can imagine them using based on what you know about them? Sometimes you have to use your imagination a little here depending on the rating of the game/show etc., and that’s okay; e.g. they never use the word “fuck” in Horizon Zero Dawn/Horizon Forbidden West but I can’t imagine that world existing without it LOL.

Cadence/lyricality: I don’t even know if these are the right words to explain this. But some characters have a distinctive rhythm or “musicality” to their speech that can make all the difference to whether they sound like themselves or not when you’re writing them. Some good examples of this are Solas from Dragon Age (whenever he’s talking about the ancient past), Nil from Horizon, even Geralt in the Witcher 3 (the game specifically, not the books or the show). Also important, for these characters with a special “rhythm” to their speech, do they always talk like that, or is it only in certain contexts (see re: Solas)? 

Accent: a character’s accent doesn’t “look” any different when written on the page, but it’s a obviously a huge part of whether they sound like themselves when you're reading their words in your head. Different accents use the above features in different ways, too, so the idea of an “accent” ties back to the elements mentioned above. This is especially relevant when writing someone where the “standard language/lingua franca” may not be their first language, so they may have more hesitations in their speech, their sentence structure may be simpler, their curse words may be in their first language, etc. 

This probably all sounds like a lot to juggle. But in practice, basically what I do is just imagine the character’s voice in my head, then just write the dialogue to sound as much like them as possible, while holding the memory of their voice in my mind. If I start to feel like the memory of their voice is getting a little blurred in my mind, I pull up video clips of them talking and listen to them again until their voice is clear in my mind so I can continue writing. If the character is a tricky biscuit, I might listen to clips of them talking before every writing session just to refresh  their voice in my mind. 

You mentioned mannerisms in your ask, and I’ll talk about this separately! Some characters have mannerisms/body language that is very characteristic to them (e.g. Alva and Drakka in Horizon Forbidden West), but for other fandoms, you might not have much in terms of canon body language to go on — for example, the Dragon Age games (everyone does the “Bioware Lean” LOL. You know what I’m talking about. It is not very character-specific). I usually invent little physical quirks/fidgets that seem in keeping with each character, and the context in which they might do those things. E.g. does the character run their hands through their hair when they’re anxious? Do they do a little hop when they’re excited? Do they have their arms folded most of the time?

What the person is saying: getting into their head

This is the topic where I might be less helpful (even less helpful HAHA) because I don’t do anything particularly systematic or formal to keep important information straight about a character. But there are a few important things that have their own sections within my outlines, which I’ll expand on below. 

Stuff I made up

One important thing to keep in mind with fanfic is that no matter how much canon info we know about a character, canon does not give us everything. Canon might not even give you a character’s age! Every version of a character I write is partly headcanon/stuff that I made up, which means it may not match other people’s headcanons. What matters is that you keep it consistent within your own understanding and fleshing-out of the character. For instance, a lot of the time I’m inventing a sexual history for a character since that stuff isn’t explicitly mentioned in most fandoms LOL. The key here is that whenever I’m writing that character moving forward, even if their sexual history is made up by me, I’m sticking to it and staying consistent with what I’ve invented for them. 

Core motivations, core conflicts, and formative relationships

This gets at the big, underlying foundations of the character — what made them who they are, and why they react to the world in the way they do. Who do they love, and why? Who hurt them badly? What personal traits do they have (e.g. are they a “lawful good” sort of person) that play a big role in how they see the world? For instance, in the Horizon games, Aloy’s relationship with Rost and her sense of connection with Elisabet Sobeck are huge influences on everything she does. In the Witcher (games and books), Geralt has a core conflict between “witchers don’t get involved in politics/world affairs” and his own sense of morality, which combines in fascinating ways with his overriding need to make sure the people he loves are safe. Knowing these very broad, core traits/relationships will be central for helping you decide how your character reacts to various events and people in your story. You might have some canon information about these important core traits/relationships, but you also might be making a lot of this stuff up, and that's okay; as mentioned above, it's just important to keep consistent with what you came up with for that person. 

For romances: why them? 

Since I’m always writing a romantic and/or sexual relationship, I always have a section about why those characters are together. Why them? Why those people specifically? What’s so compelling about the two (or more!) of them together that makes them worth writing about? What is it about those people that makes them good for each other or bad for each other, and that makes us want to follow their relationship? For me, this can be a pretty meaty part of the outline, since it’s so central to what I love to write. Having a clear picture of why you are writing these people together, and why they’re interesting together, will help you shape their interactions and how they react to each other as your fic goes on, and how they react together to external events. 

Knowing the information outlined above then forms a foundation for everything you write about that character moving forward. If you know those things about the character, then getting into their headspace is just a matter of using those foundations to predict how they would react whenever new situations arise.

I hope this is helpful!! I'll also pop in a link here to my other tutorial posts I've written, in case any of them are helpful. And if you want more examples tailored to a specific fandom, feel free to ask or send me a DM! 🥰

-- love from your friendly neighbourhood Pika! xoxo