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lucifer-is-a-bag-of-dicks · 3 years ago

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fuck I still haven't done the rewrite of the Mutant Town AU that I specifically came off hiatus to write, like the Plant Witch Sam and Pharaoh Tucker posts were written to prep this au and I just got wildly distracted so uhhhh

yeah the concept is in the link but the gist is that the people and town becoming mutated by constant ectoplasmic contamination, we all know and love this concept right but I'm gonna expand on it

this is a direct result of the portal being opened, but they aren't getting infected from the portal, the issue is that creating a permanent opening into the ghost zone has weakened the veil between their worlds and Amity Park and the Ghost Zone sort of slip in and out of each other constantly

and because ectoplasm responds strongly to emotions (poltergeists being made from atmospheric emotions for example) it all tends to converge very heavily at the school full of hormonal teenagers

so Casper High becomes its own god damn cryptid, the teachers get so jaded about opening the door to a classroom and finding just a whole ass ghost zone on the other side that they just put a sign on the door telling kids to go to a different room, lockers swap contents with other lockers so kids have started putting their names on the inside so they know who's stuff they've just found

this also means the kids get super affected, like super affected, literally, they all get ghost powers, some are just physical mutations, some are just super abilities, or a general increase in natural ability, like a member of the track team getting super speed

it takes a while for Danny and co. to figure this out, Sam and Tucker should have been warning signs as they've spent the most time around ghosts and the ghost zone, but that's why the Witch Sam and Pharaoh Tucker posts are important

they have powers, but they thought they came exclusively from outside sources, they had no idea that their abilities were also strengthened and influenced by being highly contaminated by ectoplasm, which is why when one day Mikey sneezes and green acid shoots out of his nose and melts his desk, everyone is a little bit startled

the teachers have long since started using ghost detectors after the time Paulina spent a whole week overshadowed by Kitty, so Mikey gets a check over and other than the usual atmospheric reading Lancer gets nothing especially strong from him

there have been concerns about the gradually increasing ectoplasmic content in the air messing with ghost detector results, the devices have to be recalibrated constantly, so Lancer asks the one and only son of the local ghost hunters in the room if he has some other way to check

Danny's parents make him keep a few protective items in his schoolbag, so he tries some gear on him to see if anything comes flying out, but nothing does, Danny isn't too surprised seeing as he couldn't sense a ghost in the room anyway, but it definitely makes things a little concerning

even if it were a repeat of the Spectra incident and he wasn't being overshadowed, the Fenton's tech would have still gotten rid of whatever was causing this if it were an external influence

Mikey is sent home for the day and his parents are told to keep an eye on him

and then the next week, Star drops a pen off her desk and a strand of her hair whips out to grab it, she's also checked for ghost influence and sent home

a few weeks after that it happens again, a kid on the basketball team makes a leap to the net and stays in the air, they have to call in the cheerleaders to climb on top of each other to reach him and pull him down

Danny has been trying to figure out what's happening from the first moment with Mikey, and his parents have also been getting calls from worried parents who want to know if they can fix whatever's happening to their kids

over the next couple of months, every kid in the school has some kind of ability or mutation, Dash heals whoever he touches, which he discovers after punching Nathan in the face and curing his acne, Paulina turns invisible, which freaks her out at first until she realises it's great for eavesdropping, Wes can conjure fire (because I desperately needed him to have a polarising ability to Danny), Kwan becomes empathic and can feel and influence people's emotions

Valerie also had an early mutation that she didn't know about, when Technus gave her a new suit, her body pretty much just absorbed it as a part of her, Technus had not intended this to happen, and was pretty peeved about it, Valerie found out that she had stolen control over the suit when Technus had a big rant about it during a fight, and she put the pieces together once other kids started developing abilities

this whole thing causes a ton of chaos as kids are struggling to control what they can do, so Danny has to step in and help them out, he often has to run off to change into Phantom in order to protect everyone from an ability that's gone haywire, he ends up pretty much running ghost power training courses after school to help them control themselves

he's also gotten stuck in situations where he's had to step in and help someone without having the time to change forms, meaning he has to make up a cover story about having developed his own powers way before everyone else since he's been living on top of a portal for years, he only tells people about his ice powers

Jazz has always had a tendency to be able to reign in her emotions and keep a cool head, (the only ones who can really push her buttons are Danny and sometimes her parents, at school around other kids who look up to her she's often very in control) meaning she doesn't draw ectoplasm to herself all that much, and though Danny uses the excuse of having lived on top of a ghost portal to explain why he's already so familiar with using his power, it's actually not even remotely true, because the Fentons use specialised air purifiers to keep the atmospheric ectoplasm at a manageable level, the Fenton house ironically has the least atmospheric contamination compared to the rest of the town, that's how Maddie and Jack have had limited mutation to themselves (though they aren't wholly free, they've mostly just gotten physically stronger and tougher)

so even though Jazz develops her power a little earlier than everyone else's, it's not that far ahead, and she actually doesn't even realise she already has one until half the school has developed theirs

Jazz has the power to slow time in a little bubble around herself, she'd been using it without realising while studying, having gotten through hours of work in half that time, she always thought it was just her losing track of time or she was just getting faster at reading, she also spends a lot of time counselling other students and trying to help them sort out their problems, and they'd often comment that they felt like they'd been talking for so much longer than they had, again she just chalked it up to losing track of time

a lot of students had wondered why Danny developed a power early and Jazz hadn't, until someone walked in on Jazz helping a girl through a panic attack in the bathroom, and found them both talking extremely fast, a lot of her friends realised in hindsight that she'd been doing that unwittingly for quite a while, nobody had noticed because she always talked to people privately, so nobody outside her little time bubble had seen it happen

Sam and Tucker come clean about their abilities too, but they also don't give the full rundown, still keeping some things close to the chest to avoid standing out from everyone else

then there's the teachers

adults typically have a better time regulating emotions than teenagers, meaning much like Jazz they aren't drawing as much ectoplasm toward themselves, but this doesn't exempt them from developing something after a while, especially with the heightened stress of managing a school full of volatile super kids

Mr Lancer discovers that he can create shields, after an incident where he jumps in front of some students to protect them from another power gone awry

Tetslaff ends up with a sonic ability, able to project her voice like a megaphone (yes this is a Coach Boomer from Sky High reference don't @ me), Principal Ishiyama develops a physical mutation, growing to twice her size, she likes that she can tower over the students while delivering speeches, but she doesn't like having to stoop through doors all the time, she has the one to her office resized, along with her chair and desk

so as you can imagine, the town ends up erupting into chaos, a lot of kids very much misuse their abilities, Danny does his best as Phantom to teach people to be responsible, but sometimes he has to resort to literally kicking their asses to get them to straighten up

but for the most part, a ton of kids were already looking up to him, and are generally pretty happy to follow his example, especially the more popular kids, it's generally considered not very cool to get your ass kicked by Phantom, so weirdly enough a lot of kids get peer pressured into not causing any real damage or injury with their powers

this doesn't mean they don't absolutely misuse them, they're just more subtle about it

until a ghost shows up, a lot of the kids are more than happy to let loose to protect themselves and their friends, and Phantom for the most part is happy to let them, with some supervision of course, he still has to make sure nobody gets too hurt (including the ghosts)

the entire debacle makes Danny's life simultaneously a whole lot easier AND so much more fucking stressful

#lula's aus #mutant town au #danny phantom #you have no idea how hard it was to find the links to the other posts #tumblr's search system was fucking me around so much

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fieryhonesty · 4 years ago

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“Talked with a friend about how bad bus drivers are where I live and how many times I landed on somebody or somebody has landed on me. Somehow felt like to write a short fic about it, ended up being more from real life than I dare to admit. N-no! it’s not like that!”

Words: 2714

Genre: fluff, modern AU, gn!reader

"-and that's it for today. Don't forget to review, the exam will mostly contain questions based on this topic. The results will gradually affect your grades."

With those words the professor has left the room. It was the last class of the day and obviously he didn't want to waste any minute. Hurrying to his car not to get caught in traffic.

You were idly sitting at your desk, not even paying attention to others packing their stuff and leaving the classroom. You are slowly the last person in the room. You didn't listen most of the time and had no idea what the professor was talking about. Your mind was drifting everywhere, it's too hard to stay focused on classes. Especially when your mind is overflowing with ideas.

Last night you had talked with one of your friends. You two knew since elementary school and despite choosing different schools and paths you remained in contact. She knew everything about you including the passion for writing. It was just a hobby of yours. You had never planned it to be your career.

In fact not so many knew about it. People around you knew you were writing something in your notebook. But you are a student, probably writing some notes for school or something. And you always hid your writings when somebody was approaching. Even if they asked what you were doing you just said 'rewriting my school notes, hehe.'

Except that one friend nobody has any idea about your passion. Perhaps it's for the best as you are really shy about it. The thought of other people seeing what you write or how you write is kind of terrifying. Publishing your stories never crossed your mind until your friend got fed up one day. Telling you to just go and publish it. There was no room for negotiations.

Your shyness slowly disappeared, at least when it came to publishing your works online. People didn't know you, your name or who you are. They knew you under a nickname and that's it. You felt safe and happy as you got quickly recognized and fans were leaving supportive comments.

Writing is your way to express yourself and your emotions. Talking to people face to face is quite harder. You don't have the time to think it through and usually say the first thing which comes to your mind. Sometimes ending up saying some weird stuff which embarrasses you. That's why you rather don't initiate talk or talk really rarely.

You are most talkative around your best friend and family. Everything else is just giving you anxious feelings. You'd love to start talking with others, especially if they are talking about something you are also interested in. But you are simply not that kind of person who would randomly join in and talk. Sometimes you wish all conversations could happen in written form, that way you would be the star.

You wanted to pull out your notebook and write down some of your thoughts but you realized where you are. Looking around the classroom, it's only you. Sighing for yourself. It will have to wait until you arrive at your apartment. Quickly packing all books into your fancy bag and rushing to your locker.

You were actually sharing the locker with another person but they are sick at the moment. Their half is clean as ever, books neatly folded, cup and coffee hidden in the back part of the locker. They actually made you into the coffee addicted person you are now. At first you didn't like it but eventually fell in love with the bitter flavor.

Sometimes you fetch some latté on your way home, thinking of where you would be without caffeine. It's probably one of the best things which happened to you during your university days. So many sleepless nights as you were studying for exams or writing until early morning.

Changing into your comfy shoes, wrapping a scarf around your neck and dressing into the coat you loved so much. It's so warm and cool looking, makes you feel badass whenever you wear it. One last glance over your stuff in the locker in case you had forgotten about something. All set. Time to catch a bus.

Knowing about you had missed all early buses and will probably get stuck in traffic. Which is fine by you, your earbuds and music is ready. Luckily you didn't have to wait for too long at the bus stop. But it was enough for your cheeks to start freezing. As always you stood at your usual spot. Not feeling like sitting as you do it the whole day at school and home.

Wrapping one arm around the pole, leaning a bit at it. There's not many people with you on the bus and so you can monopolize the pole and the area around it. You put down your bag as it was quite heavy and your shoulder was starting to hurt. Pulling the phone out of your pocket and browsing news.

Not really paying attention, just mindlessly scrolling through articles. Sometimes reading the first few sentences before you go back and keep scrolling.

As expected the bus was moving slowly, the delay was getting worse and worse. Checking the time, you had already spent here over ten minutes. If the bus had moved by a few meters, it's a lot, let's say that. Delays are quite normal at this hour so you don't really sweat it. Looking back to your screen, resuming your news browsing.

After a couple of minutes the bus finally got out of the major traffic and quickly catching up with the delay. As expected the ride was faster than usual, hopefully still within the speed limits. However you won't know this, all you know is the roundabout you will reach soon won't be funny. It's quite a steep one and even if the driver will take it very slowly you will have a hard time balancing yourself.

You are prepared, actually holding tight the pole instead of leaning on it. You have a perfect posture to keep yourself stable. Maybe your grip on the pole is a bit too convulsive. As you feel unpleasant pressure in your wrist. The moment you ease the grip a little, feeling how your feet are sliding. Before you tighten your grip again you fly forward. Trying your best not to crash into the person who was sitting there.

Despite all of your efforts you land on them. You are in shock but more than that you are embarrassed. As you tried to pull back and regain your posture. Feeling hands on your shoulders. Apologies are about to roll out of your lips but they are faster.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Up until now you didn't realize it's a guy you fell on. His long crimson locks tied into a ponytail. At first you thought you had landed on a woman. But his hoarse voice assured you he is anything but a female. You are too close to him for your comfort, his scent already entered your nose. Feeling how heat is rising in your cheeks. This is bad. His crimson eyes were darting around your face, looking for any sign of injury.

'This is embarrassing, say something you idiot!'

"Uh, yea. I... I'm terribly sorry!"

Your voice nearly betrayed you. The last word could be barely heard which made you even more wishing to just be able to vanish. Staring at the male unable to think what to say. Feeling relieved when the bus has stopped as he lets go his hold on you. If you could, you could have dug yourself in a ten meters deep hole and never climb up.

Quickly murmuring out another apology. Grabbing your bag and jumping out of the bus. It doesn't matter if your stop is still far away. You'd rather walk the rest or wait for another bus than stay in that one.

It was already dark outside when you arrived at your place. Freezing and tired. Trying not to think of what happened earlier but you couldn't get the male's scent out of your nose. It was like he is still next to you, the sweet smell of vanilla.

You let it be as you tossed the bag into a corner in your room. You are too hungry to think about anything. Making some quick cup noodles and eating them while going through another writing and editing session.

Days were passing by. Always the same: school, ride home and then either study or write. You had forgotten about what happened a few days ago, not even mentioning it to your close friend who had been hanging out with you here and now in chat.

It's Friday and you are feeling like chugging one quick latté. Perhaps you will sit there for a while and write a bit. You sure do like the atmosphere in café shops especially with playing jazz. Sitting in your corner, peeking at other customers here and now. Just to be sure nobody is approaching you.

You ordered your regular and are waiting for the waitress. In the meantime you pull out your small notebook and read through the latest ideas. You usually write short things there, like drabbles which sometimes turn into much longer stories.

When a cup with your favorite drink landed on the table you looked up and shot a quick smile at the waitress. She answered with the same gesture before checking on other customers.

You fished for a pen in your bag. As soon as the tip of the pen touched the paper, a group of guys entered the shop. You didn't look up to check on them. Why would you anyway? You came here to chill after school, enjoy your drink and possibly write a few lines. Well maybe if you did check, then you would have noticed the redhead from before.

He was dragged here by his friends as they got this stupid idea to look at girls. Starting here at café and moving to other public places. He didn't want to. He is kind of tired after the long week but that's also the reason why he is here. Too tired to search for excuses. And he knew he would need valid ones especially for his little brother whose idea was all of this.

As he sat with them, quite unbothered by their talk about the waitress who just took their order. Pulling out his phone to finish reading something he started during lunch break. He agreed to tag along not join into their jewelry observations as they call it. They could be talking about anything and he wouldn't pay mind to it.

Only to be brought back to reality when Childe snatched his phone away. Grinning at him.

"C'mon Diluc, your social media can wait. Cute girls won't~"

The scarlet haired male rolled eyes at the ginger.

"For your information, reading stories is not the same as browsing twitter."

"Oh? What I am hearing? I didn't know my big bro is into reading inappropriate stories."

Diluc shot a glare at the bluenette. Reconsidering if it's worth his time to argue about it. If anyone is reading smuts here, it's Kaeya. Why is he hanging out with his brother again?

Childe waved with his phone in front of his face in a very taunting manner. But didn't evade when Diluc reached for it, sliding it back into his coat. Looking around the café and then he noticed you. He was not sure if it's really you, the person who fell on him on the bus a few days ago. But when you looked up to take a sip of your latté he saw your face.

Something inside of him felt like to get up and go talk to you. But he can't. Or? Can he talk to you? A total stranger whom he met only once and under strange circumstances? For some reason he really wanted to greet you at least. He resisted the urge for long enough, at least until Kaeya didn't notice where he was looking and said something about it.

Grabbing his cup and slowly approaching you. He didn't know what he was doing or why he was doing it. When he was close enough to your table, clearing his throat, asking if he could join you.

Your eyes shoot up to the not so familiar voice. Widening when you realized it's the same guy from back then. Feeling like your stomach was being squished. Just when you had forgotten about that embarrassing moment.

All what you managed was a nod, observing how he sat at the chair opposite of you. Nervously smiling at him. What should you say? This is awkward.

"Um-"

You both started in unison, exchanging embarrassed looks. You motioned to him to start.

"Hi, uh. Hope I'm not disturbing?"

"No... not at all."

You put your hand over the notebook instinctively. It's a habit of yours, hiding it from anyone's eyes.

"I'm Diluc and you are-"

"That person who landed on you on the bus, yes that’s me."

You deadpanned. Can't help it but smile a little, finding it funny. The guy who you fell at, the one who should be mad at you. He is trying to talk to you and what's better he also seems to be nervous while talking. Feeling a bit relieved as it probably won't be only you embarrassing themselves.

He chuckled a little at your words. Kind of wishing to know you more than just a person who fell on him. When you tried to apologize once again he stopped you, saying it's fine. To change the topic he asked for your name and where were you going back then.

When he found out you are also an university student he felt relieved a bit and more at ease. You had something in common, something you both could relate to. As the talk between you warmed up enough, when the first uneasiness faded. You talked about your hobbies, of course you didn't want to tell him about your big passion and said you are reading.

Which wasn't that much far from reality but unlike him you didn't read from known authors or big titles. In fact most of your reading were stories from other passionate writers, mixed with random novels here and now.

"Oh, I also happen to read stories posted on the web. Some people are really talented."

He admits and flashes you something that one could describe as a slight smile? But really quick so your brain barely registers it.

"Hey um, I know this will be strange. But I kind of enjoy our talk, it's much more..." He trailed off as he was thinking how to put it without saying anything bad about his companions. Who are probably scheming or coming up with various ideas how to use this against him.

"What I mean is, you act like a person in your age unlike my brother."

You tried not to laugh too much. Giggles escaping your lips. Truth to be told you were also enjoying this little talk between the two of you. This was probably the very first conversation you had with a stranger. And they didn't seem to mind your awkwardness.

It feels like you two understand each other. Both are interested in literature, have to deal with school troubles and have something unique to each of you.

Looking up into his ruby eyes. "Yeah. I'm enjoying this too. Why didn't I fall on you earlier?!"

Both of you laughed at that remark.

"If you don't mind, we could do this more often?"

"You mean me falling on you on the bus or drinking coffee?"

"The latter. If I see you on the same bus I'll make sure you sit."

You two had talked more after this. Way longer than both of you expected. When Diluc checked the table where his companions were sitting before he noticed they are gone. He didn't think of checking his phone. But once he does he will find a message from his brother.

「'Seems like you had found somebody to spent night with, don't worry about your lil bro and enjoy~ 😘 '」

#genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #genshin x reader #diluc x reader #genshin diluc x reader #gn!reader #genshin impact imagines #diluc ragnvindr #i'm a sucker for café shops #but i think i suck at modern AU stories #fiery fic

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wordsablaze · 4 years ago

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5/13 - soulmate’s lies on your skin

A Dozen Denials Soulmate-identifiers exist to make things easier unless you’re Jaskier, who’s equally as deep in love as he is in denial. But there’s only so many excuses you can make to avoid the truth… (aka jaskier’s soulmate is definitely a witcher, just not the one he first assumes)

A/N: i’m procrastinating and thought i’d make our bard’s life more chaotic so on we go...

previous chapter

Geralt is the most honest man Jaskier knows.

And Jaskier knows this because he can tell if Geralt lies.

He hadn’t even realised that was what kept happening every time random sentences spontaneously appeared and disappeared on his skin, especially when he was younger, but it became crystal clear when he was old enough to recognise that the phrases were obviously all wrong.

His siblings would often tease him for having a soulmate who lied so rarely or about such strange things and often, he’d wished he could share their amusement in knowing their soulmates lied about ordinary things or share their relief in knowing their soulmates were ordinary and acceptable and nothing that warranted ridicule.

And then he’d gotten over seeking the ordinary and instead spent years wondering what the actual asking price for a bruxa contract was because apparently Geralt had kept lying about it. And not only that but a wide range of things like witchers don’t feel such emotions or yes this ale tastes great or every so often, something absolutely awful like you’re going to be just fine.

Knowing that someone is telling the truth almost all the time makes it a lot easier to trust them so, even early on in their travels, it had never been difficult for Jaskier to confidently say he trusts Geralt with his life.

“Geralt, are you listening to me?” Jaskier asks one evening as they drop their belongings on either side of the inn room they’d been given.

Geralt only hums in response.

“Yes yes, I know you have enhanced hearing and couldn’t help listening if you tried but I do need a second opinion so come on, tell me what you thought of that last verse with the warg?”

After a small pause, Geralt rolls his eyes. “It wasn’t bad-”

Jaskier beams at him.

“-aside from the melodrama.”

Waving a hand, Jaskier flops onto the floor beside his bag, fishing out his notebook and a quill. “Nobody wants to hear about emotionless bloodshed.”

“Maybe it’s just you they don’t want to hear,” Geralt replies with a small smirk. For a second, Jaskier panics at the lack of premonition about his soulmate lying, but then he catches Geralt’s expression and figures that sarcasm is exempt.

“Why, how dare you!” Jaskier exclaims, barely resisting the urge to throw his notebook at the witcher. “Need I remind you that we are tossed coins in almost every town specifically because the people wanted to hear me!”

“I need a drink,” Geralt replies.

Jaskier waves a hand again. “Bring me back one too, would you?”

Geralt pauses at the door. “You’re not performing?”

He shakes his head, already rewriting the succubus verse to be just a touch less melodramatic and a little more plausible. “I’ll make up for it in the morning, Maya said that’d be fine.”

“Who?” Geralt asks.

Jaskier blinks at him. “Really, Geralt? The innkeeper who we talked to moments ago? Maybe you do need that drink!”

He doesn’t actually know how long it takes Geralt to get the drink but by the time he comes back, Jaskier is having to squint at the page because the sun had rudely decided to set before he could finish.

“Jaskier, I’ll leave without you if you stay up and complain in the morning,” Geralt says in place of a greeting as he locks the door behind him.

“No you won’t,” Jaskier mumbles back.

“Oh, really?” Geralt asks, then crouches in front of him and holds out a tankard.

Jaskier takes it gratefully before nodding and looking up. “You are a softie, Geralt of Rivia, and you have long since stopped trying to leave me behind,” he declares as if he’s not secretly very worried every time the words don’t appear on his skin - he’s almost certain teasing is also exempt.

Regardless, he finishes the drink and only one more verse before retiring for the night.

He wakes with the uncanny notion that his soulmate is lying and when he blinks his eyes open to glance at his arm under the moonlight, he stares at the words ‘it definitely wasn’t a succubus’ with confusion until they disappear.

Then, for a horrible moment, he thinks that Geralt has left him to go seek a contract somewhere else in the middle of the night like he’d threatened to. But then he throws an arm out and finds Geralt still asleep next to him, sighing in relief as he lets his head drop back down onto the pillow, concluding that perhaps he’s just having some sort of strange dream.

It’s not unexpected when Geralt denies it the next morning, snorting in amusement.

“I’m not the one who dreamt of a succubus, Geralt, I don’t know why you bother to deny it,” Jaskier grumbles, “and anyway, it’s not the worst dream one could have. You really do need to tell me more about succubi though, I don’t think I’ve written a song about them yet.”

“I’ve never killed one,” Geralt replies as they both get dressed.

Jaskier frowns at the impossibility of that statement for a moment but then realises what he actually means. “Just because you have too much of a heart to kill every creature you come across doesn’t mean I can’t write about them anyway!”

Geralt only hums in response and the two of them make their way down the stairs so Jaskier can perform and prevent them from being kicked out. It doesn’t take long to earn enough coin for that even with the more sparse morning crowd so he’s back by Geralt’s side at their table before he’s even really that hungry.

“Thought you’d never stop,” Geralt says with another smirk.

Jaskier huffs, elbowing him to grab some cheese off his plate. “You liked it really, my dear, I know you did.”

A maid comes over to their table with another drink for Jaskier before they can say much more, smiling shyly as he beams at her. “Why hello, beautiful! Thank you for this-” he takes a small sip of the rather mediocre ale- “wonderful drink!”

“You really think it’s wonderful?” she asks, her eyes shining as if she’d made it herself. Which, when he thinks about it, she probably has. Oh dear.

He turns to warn Geralt not to say anything bad since witchers have their own specific taste in ale that is most definitely leagues above this one but to his surprise, Geralt only smiles at her. “I agree, it’s wonderful.”

Jaskier glances at his wrists instinctively, biting his lip when nothing appears. That same unsettling fear roots inside his heart again until he looks up at the girl who’s blushing furiously and stumbling over her words of gratitude and abruptly, he’s fearless once again; small, polite white lies must also be exempt.

He chides himself for even daring to think badly of Destiny and smiles once again at the girl before she slips back into the kitchens, merely shrugging when Geralt asks him why he has a funny expression on his face and stealing more cheese off his plate in response, content.

(little did he know that exemptions don’t exist.)

let’s avoid questioning jaskier’s obliviousness and focus on eskel and that succubus instead :)

thanks for reading! masterlist | witcher blog: @itsjaskier | next chapter

#jaskier #eskel #geralt #geraskier #jaskel #it's complicated #endgame jaskel #sorry #soulmate au #soulmates gone wrong #hurt jaskier #not that he knows it #the witcher #fanfic #fanfiction #my writing #add #i'm also sorry to eskel for jaskier inadvertently confusing him :/

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ot3 · 4 years ago

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wait wait wait can you explain more how to be funny and what makes humor work preferably a la essay form if you’re up to it. I’m reading a comic and the jokes aren’t sticking so I’d love to be able to properly be able to figure out what makes some joeks works but others not so I articulate what I hate about it

This response got kinda long so i’m sticking it under a readmore. TL;DR: I don’t think I can tell you how to be funny and what makes comedy work, I don’t think anyone can tell you that. However, I can give you a bunch of advice and guiding questions on how to go about figuring out these answers for yourself

Honestly I don’t think that’s something I’m capable of doing this in any sort of reasonable amount of time. It’d either have to be something really short and really general like what I wrote in the rvb0 post or it’d have to be incredibly long and incredibly specific where I pick specific good and bad examples of comedy and break down what I think works and what I think doesn’t. It’d take a lot of slow and meticulous work I don’t really have the time for, and I’m also not sure how helpful it would be, because once again, comedy is super super subjective and I don’t want to risk overemphasizing my own tastes/general observations as any sort of gospel.

the best advice i can give you would be to try and properly figure out for yourself why these jokes aren’t sticking! because processing something as Funny is much more of an innate reaction than, like, engaging Cerebrally with Narrative Developments it can be much harder to actually realize why something works or doesn’t. I’m going to start by sticking in what I said in my original RVB0 post here in case anyone is reading this without context.

A rule of thumb I personally hold for comedy is that, when push comes to shove, more specific is always going to be more funny. The example I gave when trying to explain this was this:

saying two characters had awkward sex in a movie theater: funny

saying two characters had an awkward handjob in a cinemark: even funnier

saying two characters spent 54 minutes of 11:14's 1:26 runtime trying out some uncomfortably-angled hand stuff in the back of a dilapidated cinemark that lost funding halfway through retrofitting into a dinner theater: the funniest

The more specific a joke is, the more it relies on an in-depth understanding of the characters and world you’re dealing with and the more ‘realistic’ it feels within the context of your media. Especially with this kind of humor. When you’re joking with your friends, you don’t go for stock-humor that could be pulled out of a joke book, you go for the specific. You aim for the weak spots. If a set of jokes could be blindly transplanted into another world, onto another cast of characters, then it’s far too generic to be truly funny or memorable. I don’t think there’s a single joke in RVB0 where the humor of it hinged upon the characters or the setting.

Then there’s the issue of situational comedy and physical comedy. This is really where the humor being ‘tacked on’ shows the most. Once again, part of what makes actually solid comedy land properly is it feeling like a natural result of the world you have established. Real life is absurd and comical situations can be found even in the midst of some pretty grim context, and that’s why black comedy is successful, and why comedy shows are allowed to dip into heavier subject matter from time to time, or why dramas often search for levity in humor. It’s a natural part of being human to find humor in almost any situation. The key thing, though, once again, is finding it in the situation. Many of RVB0’s attempts at humor, once again, feel like they would be the exact same jokes when stripped from their context, and that’s almost never good. A pretty fundamental concept in both storytelling in general but particularly comedy writing is ‘setup and payoff’. No joke in RVB0 is a reward for a seemingly innocuous event in an earlier scene or for an overlooked piece of environmental design. The jokes pop in when there’s time for them in between all the exposition and fighting, and are gone as soon as they’re done. There’s no long term, underlying comedic throughline to give any sense of coherence or intent to the sense of humor the show is trying to establish. Every joke is an isolated one-off quip or one-liner, and it fails to engage the audience in a meaningful way.

When you see a joke that doesn’t land - try mentally rewriting it. Is there anything you could do to make it funny? Can you bring to mind any similar jokes from other pieces of media that you did like? How does the joke effect the pace of the story - is it an awkward and unnatural pause within the flow of events/dialogue? Is the joke well implemented - that is to say, regardless of how ‘objectively’ funny or unfunny the actual meat of the thing is, is it coming from the right source and directed at the right target? Does it add to your understanding of events/characters/setting, do nothing in this department, or does it detract from/contradict them? Is it immersion-breaking (and if so, is this intentional or meaningful?) or does it pull you deeper into the world you’re being shown?

Once you start asking these questions of both media you like and media you dislike you’ll start to recognize patterns in what lands and what doesn’t, and I don’t think they’re questions anyone else can really answer for you.

I think it also is a question of whether comedy is the intended final destination of a piece of media or just a step along the way. Media that exists solely as a vehicle for jokes is going to have comedy that looks very different than the comedy present in media that exists for heavy narrative purposes but includes moments of levity.

Here are two examples of shows I think are really good and are also about as different in concept, execution, and intent as humanly possible: phineas and ferb and breaking bad.

Breaking bad is probably the most emotionally taxing television experience I’ve had in my life. I mean this as a compliment. breaking bad is supposed to be grueling to watch. It also has jokes in it. the scenes that are funny server to really meaningfully increase the immersion, not break it, and they do this by bringing a very realistic sense of human interaction that grounds the high-stakes melodrama into something that looks a hell of a lot more like reality. There’s one scene in particular i think does just such a great job of exemplifying this. here we’ve got jesse having dinner with walt and his wife while they are, as always, fighting with each other viciously and creating such a horrible and suffocating miasma of tension over the entire narrative, and jesse is trying to break some of this tension very poorly.

youtube

Then, in literally the complete opposite vein, you’ve got the phineas and ferb episode ‘lets take a quiz’ which i consider incredibly formative in the development of my sense of humor. The entire Bit of literally this whole episode is that they’re doing this terrible quiz with no rules that makes no sense and candace is trying to win but nobody knows how to play this game.

youtube

Phineas and ferb is an episodic children’s cartoon that deals almost exclusively in unreality and the absurd, and so this kind of bit works here.

Saying ‘whats good comedy’ is really hard because it’s just like saying ‘whats good narrative’. There’s no one set of criteria; it boils down to what is the intention of your comedy, and how successfully were you able to act on these intentions?

This really got away from me sorry I am working on extremely little sleep i hope this helped even a little bit. My final piece of advice is: go watch hot fuzz. seriously. go watch hot fuzz (2007) dir. edgar wright and look at how the jokes in that movie are because theyre perfect and i love hot fuzz and it’s fucking funny

#long post #Anonymous

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spidxysense · 5 years ago

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Back to You | 10

Summary: He broke your heart, but you’d always love him. Two souls that not even the universe could tear apart, even if you wanted it to at times.

Pairing: Tom Holland x Reader x Timothee Chalamet

A/N: Happy 2020 everybody!!!!! Sorry I was MIA for a while! I decided to take the rest of 2019 to calm down, get some writing done and plan out and decide what I wanted to do with this series and I’m honestly so glad to say that I’m back with a rejuvenated and enthusiastic place to finish this fic! Sorry I didn’t tell anyone, but I thought it would be best to get away form tumblr for a while and the less time I spent on it the less I would feel guilty for not uploading. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, I had a hard time picturing the reunion so it was written then rewritten about a dozen times probably! I wouldn’t expect weekly updated on this either sine I am also rewriting anf reuploading an old fic of mine from another account, but I promise I’ll get this fic done too! As always send in your asks, and comments I love hearing from all of you!!

Word count: 3,676

Prologue | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |

_______________________________________________

You had your eyes set on the road, tense, while the feeling in this car just screamed tension as you could feel Timothee's worried gaze looking over at you to the road and back at you only to repeat that cycle. You notice the slight twitch in his hand on the steering wheel as he keeps himself from grabbing your hand, the same one picking the skin off from the side of your fingernails again.

And before you could hear it, you see the smoke in the air, you were probably about 25 minutes away from the station and the whole time before then, you and Timothee had just been driving around, visiting your usual places to eat and hang around. It dawns on you while you two were sitting on the hood of the car, watching the sun go up, silent but comfortable, that this was your new familiar. It was no longer a lazy Sunday afternoons with Tessa, or a visit to the docks with Troye or Tom, it wasn't reading a book at the breakfast table while Tom read the newspaper or his script as he held and squeezed your hand from across the table. No. This was your new constant, Timothee, everyday it was him, and a part of you wished it would always be him, nevermind the role he played in your everyday life, as long as he was in it.

"You seriously need to calm down and breathe." He says ironically as he takes a deep breath himself, this somehow felt akin to when Tom first met your family. A shaking water bottle in front of your face takes you out of your thoughts and you can't help but laugh because Timothee was noticeably very nervous himself.

From the way you understood Timothee, he wasn't the type to really care what other people would think of him, but why for goodness sake did he care what Haz and Tom would think?

The car comes to a halt suddenly as he pulls over to the side. You lean over to look at the hood, expecting to see smoke, a sign God had given you two that maybe you two weren't meant to pick up the two from the station. But you're met with Timothee bent over, as he clutched his knees in desperation. You hurriedly step out yourself, gently placing your hand on his back but he slaps your hand away just as fast as when he got out of the car.

"No…" he heaves heavy breathes in between, "I can… I can do this." He tried to stand up straight only to go back to his bent over position and you knew just from seeing him what this was. Timothee was having a panic attack.

Timothee Trivia: He had panic attacks too.

But even when he pushed you away, you stood your ground, "No." You grab him by his sides, he was kneeling on the ground now, so you sit down and sit him down as well, setting him up straight, looking him straight in the eyes, "Look at me." You say with a steady voice.

He takes a few seconds but he manages to keep his eyes open, blinking back the tears from the painful choking feeling he must have in his throat, but he looks into your eyes nonetheless

"Breathe with me." You say as you inhale and exhale in deep breaths. He tries to mimic you, but he still has some trouble.

You bit your lip as he started to have trouble breathing again. You speak in a quiet voice, despite the train noises that would reach your ears every now and again, "When I was growing up, I used to trace the lines on my palms." You chuckle to yourself and you know Timothee wanted to snort in laughter, but all he could manage was a pained smile, "C-can you trace them?" You stare into his eyes, "Slowly, I’ll be here. You just focus on tracing them."

He nods silently with difficulty but looks at them, hands shaking as one traces and the other is held out, but you grab his wrist, stopping him, “Here.” You offer your hand, “You can trace mine. So it isn’t shakey.”

He points them out with his index finger, your hand wrapped securely around his wrist as he starts tracing. By the 17th line he traces, he's breathing normally again, his pupils no longer dilated.

It's a calm silence between the two of you, almost all of your quiet moments together a calm silence, as he keeps his head down, thinking.

"I'm sorry you had to witness...that." he calls it that with such disgust that it hurts even you, and you remember back then.

You were sitting in the closet, your first week of living with Tom and while putting away the laundry you felt it crawling up your spine. So you drop the basket and run up the stairs and into the closet, sitting at the very end behind the coats. You clutch your hands together and press it against your chest as you tried to get it to stop beating so fast, while trying to even out your breathing.

The door creaks slightly open, "Y/n? Sweetheart?"

This was a panic attack but it wasn't a severe one, you knew that much since you could still kind of focus on Tom when he pops his head into the closet.

You expect him to close the door when he finds you with your head to your knees and hands pressed against your chest, a common practice in your family, even for Troye, they'd leave you alone to handle it because they knew eventually, you could. And he does. But not before he steps inside. He sits next to you, but when you flinch, he opts to sit across from you as he watches you catching your breath slowly as you wring your hands together, calming down the excessive beating in your chest.

You lift your head slowly, looking up at him, eyes brimming with tears, "Sorry." You both say at the same time. He chuckles, letting you go first.

"I'm sorry…" you speak in a quiet voice, "That you had to see that. I can understand if this isn't what you imagined-"

"You're beautiful." He smiles calmly at you. He leans his head back against the wall as he lets out a sigh of relief, "I was so scared, I had no idea what to do!" He pounds on his chest slightly, "Any longer and I think I might've joined you." He laughs aloud, but the laughter dies down, a soft look on his face as he stares at you, tears streaming down you face and he brings himself closer, "I love you." He leans his forehead against yours, closing his eyes, as he synchronizes his breathing with yours.

"You're beautiful." You mumble softly as you stroke his cheek, knowing that when Tom told you that, everything felt at peace, someone finally accepted you. He looked a little shaken at first, but he relishes in the feeling, closing his eyes as he leaned his cheek into your hand.

He was just like you.

"It's heavy, right?" You smile sadly at him, he doesn't answer but you know he hears you, "It's heavy feeling all alone. Having to be you and all alone." He nods quietly, "I'm here." You say calmly, "I'm here with you. It'll become a lot lighter." You blink back the tears.

He was just like you.

_______________________________________________

You two were standing at the station, albeit slightly awkward as a space between the two of you appeared ever since you two stepped onto the platform.

You clutched your right arm, your left arm across your torso as you kicked an invisible speck of dirt from the platform. Passengers started flooring the place as you hear loud calls of your name that has the two of you jumping in surprise.

"Y/N!!!" You see a pale hand from behind all the smoke, "Y/N! Over here!"

You walk towards the voice, and you stop when you come face to face with Tom, who had yet to see you and was pulling his cap down so nobody got a good look at his face. He turns his head, right in your direction and despite all the anxieties you had earlier, his face breaks out into a giant grin and he runs over to you, picking you up and spinning you around. It wasn't awkward. It would never be awkward with Tom, before all else he was your friend. Well he'd fight tooth and nail with you on that. To him, you were never his friend, he was always sure the two of you would be together. But to you, he was a friend first and this was exactly how it was between you two.

He sets you down, crossing his muscular arms across his chest, "Jesus, is Marvel making you lift weights even during the read throughs?" You laugh, poking his biceps, "Those has gotten bigger."

Tom shrugs, bashfully, but you and Haz both know he crossed his arms only for that purpose, even though it was a habit of his, you guide them towards Timothee, who still had his feet planted in the spot you left him in, "This is Timothee!" You introduce them. You were slightly nervous in introducing them.

Haz was no problem, he was a guy's guy. Very bro-like and could get along with anyone. Tom was more of a wildcard. You've never actually seen him get jealous but that was because you never gave him a reason to be, but now you were single and Timothee was definitely not just a friend.

Tom grabs Timothee's open hand first, Timothee chuckles nervously, "Quite a grip you got there." You look down at their hands, Timmy's hand going slightly red.

"Great to meet you man." Haz does that strange bro hug thing, "You've been taking care of Y/N here, yeah?"

Tom clears his throat, "So, how has it been here in Italy?"

You scratch the back of your head, "Well, Italy's Italy. It's freaking hot here."

You look over at Timothee, grinning over at Tom who wasn't paying any attention to him.

"Man, this is great. I'm meeting fucking Spiderman." This catches Tom's attention, "I almost got cast as him, you know."

"Huh." Tom chuckled, "What could have been, yeah?" He pulls along his suitcase as Timothee and Haz lead the way to the car.

Even though it was just some stupid thing he said, you can't help but believe there was something more the what Tom said, "And what cat got your tongue?" He pokes your cheek and you shake your head.

"No cat." You pull back his cap, "but your cap is distracting me." You laugh, "Literally nobody here will recognize you."

"I've been meaning to bring this up, but just haven't since we've been in a group till now, but is everything alright?" He grabs your wrist, bringing your hand closer to your face. Of course he'd notice. Tom always noticed, no matter how small. He saw you, and he always made a point to ask about it.

You smile to yourself, "There have been bad days." You sigh, "But nothing I can't handle."

"Without me?"

He doesn't look over at you, afraid of the answer that would come out of your mouth.

They place their baggage into the trunk. But you're still stuck in your head even when you're sat in the passenger seat, staring out the window. To a degree, you could understand how Tom was being and how he was feeling. He had questions. But he was never the type to force for amy of his questions to be answered if you didn't answer them yourself. It was almost like a guessing game if you weren't used to how Tom was. So whether he'd get the answers he seemed so desperate for on this trip was fully and completely in your court. Was that why he came here?

A soft graze on your shoulder brings you back from your thoughts. It was Timothee. You notice he didn't touch your hand this time.

He chuckles nervously, "Tom's been calling you for a while now." He keeps his eyes straight on the road.

You shake your head, laughing, completely fake, "Sorry! You know how I am, Tom." you look behind over at him from your seat.

He has his arms crossed in front of his chest, tense, his gaze was out the window but there was a sadness to his eyes and an irritation in the way his lips formed in a tight line, he laughs with you, fake as well, "Totally! Classic, Y/N. I swear if no one's around she'd walk into traffic." She chuckles, "In fact I remember during the last City of London Festival, I nearly lost you in the parade."

You giggle, remembering the whole thing. You'd seen a dog that strangely looked like Tessa so you followed it only to realize you lost Tom and that the dog wasn't Tessa. And you'd spent the morning looking for each other. Since it was such a huge parade there was no cell service, and Tom was in a panic because he was scared that the amount of people would trigger a panic attack. But knowing he was looking for you kept you grounded. Eventually you found each other at the Van Gogh section of the fair grounds because Tom remembered Van Gogh was your favorite. You remembered how tight he hugged you then, how you two could laugh about it now but Tom was practically sobbing when he found you, shaking and scared that if he didn't find you, someone would find you having an attack, something you told him you wanted to be kept an absolute secret. But all you remember feeling that day was like you found your way back home, you were never scared because Tom would always find you.

But now things were different. Tom still felt like home but at the same time he felt like a stranger in the skin of someone you used to know everything about.

__________________

The car comes to a stop at a quaint hostel, they were apparently able to rent out two nights here, but knowing how charismatic Haz was it was definitely no surprise.

Timothee taps on the steering wheel, "Well, we've got a couple of scenes to shoot but hopefully by 6 we'll be finished since we're doing day shots today so we could probably have dinner."

Haz peeks into the car, having just taken their luggage out, Tom pulls them along to the entrance and slowly approaches the passenger seat, "Yeah sounds great, mate." Haz shuts the door, tapping Tom and motioning towards the hostel as if to say we'd be getting them checked in.

Tom had an arm on top of the car while he leaned down towards your window, "I'll see you later, alright?" His voice is soft and so are his eyes as he pleads that you follow through with your plans. He'd probably been sensing you'd make up some bullshit excuse not to see them that night. As sad as it may be, you never even thought of making excuses not to see Tom, not until this very moment at least.

You give him a reassuring smile, "Yeah, we have a lot to catch up on."

He nods silently, tapping the hood of the car twice before he lifts a hand to say goodbye to you, but nothing for Timothee.

_________________________

You were sat on one of those foldable chairs with your name on it as you watched what Luca said would be "usable" for the final cut when the seat next to you gets filled, "So, I was thinking Santorini."

You notice the lack of touching and the increased distance between the two of you as he leaned forward towards the screen but not towards you where the screen was closest.

You hum, "Santorini? You must be trying to impress then."

"Exactly who is Timothee trying to impress?" Luca's thick Italian accent fills the space between the two of you as his hands find purchase on the back of Timothy's chair, "Has he met someone? I do not approve."

Timothee gives Luca a look, "You KNOW it's not that." He sighed, "I'm just trying to-" he sighs again, pounding exasperated, "Tom Holland is in town and he just doesn't seem to like me. I'm just trying to get on his good side."

"Tom Holland? That brute of human muscle? Appeasing him should be easy enough like appeasing a dog-" Luca realizes exactly who he's insulting before sneaking a look at you, "I mean, he must be a sensitive soul, a humanitarian-I'm sorry, Y/N, you know where my loyalties lie." He shrugs.

You wave a hand, giggling, "It's fine really. When you really get to know him, he's a lot more than what he looks." You ponder for a minute, "But if you really want to impress him, he like wine and steak. He has a cigar every now and then and he likes places where you can go walking after eating."

Luca blinks, "Well, you won't find any worthwhile places here for steak, wine, there probably is, but I would recommend going out of town for this one, I'll have my assistant text you the details." He shoots Timothee a looks before scurrying away to talk with Armie.

_________________________________

"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Timothee's nervously tapping on the steering wheel as you tried to figure out whether you chose the right destination that Waze was navigating yu towards.

You furrowed your eyebrows, “Seems like it.” You notice the slight tremble in his fingers, and then it hits you all at once, the lights are in your eyes and the cameras are flashing against the windshield, “Fuck.” You muttered, “Luca said there would be more people here than the town we’re flming in but for fuck’s sake I didn’t expect this.”

The car comes to a stop in front of a fancy looking restaurant with a red stanchion and a red carpet leading to the entrance, “We’ll need to leave the car with valet, are you okay with stepping out with those people around?”

You sigh, “Well, we’ve got no choice, these guys aren’t leaving anytime soon and there’s nobody who would drive us to the back and take care of parking.” You shrug, taking a deep breath you open the door and then you’re bombarded with questions.

“Y/N! What are you doing at a restaurant like this with Timothee Chalamet?”

“Is there something brewing between the two of you?”

“Y/N, we saw Tom going inside a while ago, are you two on a date?”

“Have you two kissed and made up?”

“Who are you really on a date with tonight, Y/N?”

“Is this a date night? We have the two of you been this whole time?”

“Did Tom come to Italy to visit you on set?”

“You and Timothee look quite close, does Tom already know about this? What did he have to say?”

You feel an arm wrap around your back and instead of finding Timothee next to you with his arm secured around your back, it’s Tom, pushing past the paparazzi with one arm while the other was tucked behind your back all the while Timothee was still speaking with the valet, one of them apparently asking for pictures and autographs.

Tom slouches, leaning his head closer to yours as his hand grips your arm reassuringly, “I heard a commotion outside, and I thought it would be you.”

You appreciate the hold he has on you but you try to get it to soften up even if just a bit, “Well knowing these guys they’ll make some bullshit article about how we’re here on a date and we’re getting back together so maybe ease up a bit on your grip.”

You two step inside, Timothee following closely behind, Tom faces him and holds out a hand, “Thanks for getting Y/N here in one piece.” He finally shoots Timothee a smile, “And really, thank you for looking out for her this whole time. I can’t tell you how worried I’ve been about how Y/N was managing here, but she seems to be doing alright thanks to you and Armie.”

Timothee’s smile is practically glowing as he reaches over to grab Tom’s hand and shake it enthusiastically. While the two of them are chatting by the front desk, you walk over to the table where Haz was sat all alone, “I take it you had a talk with Tom?” You snort.

He sighs, “Yeah, it wasn’t an easy conversation but he came around soon enough. I told him you wouldn’t want him fighting with a close friend of yours and he eventually calmed down.”

“The crowd out there was crazy, I honestly thought Italy was a pretty quiet place but it’s pretty bad.”

He shrugs, “Well you three are pretty up and coming, especially since we’re with Tom, the current Spiderman and Timothee who’s certainly been making headlines lately, then add you to the mix and it’s even bigger.”

Haz flags down a waiter making his rounds around the dining area, “Hey man, sorry about this but if it’s not too much trouble, could you maybe handle the crowd outside, my friend has problems with her anxiety and getting rid of them would be a lot of help.”

The waiter nodded calmly before proceeding out the front to ward off the photographers as Tom and Timothee come to sit at the table, Tom’s face unreadable with his mouth set in a thin line and his eyebrows coming together approaching the table seriously as Timothee looks like he’s optimistic about the night.

Timothee clasps his hands together, “How about we get this dinner started then?”

#tom holland #I AM BACK!!!!#back to you #spidxysense #Timothee Chalamet #tom holland fic #endgame was so good #tom x reader #tom holland fanfiction #tom holland au #TOM!#timothee x reader #timothee fanfic

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tlbodine · 5 years ago

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So, What’s it Actually Like to Work With a Small Press?

Have you ever noticed that advice for writers tends to be sort of...lackluster in some areas? Like there are some parts of the publishing process that are really easy to find information about. For example, how to write a query letter! Everybody tells you how to write a query letter! But what nobody ever seems to talk about is wtf actually happens once your book is accepted. Like, what is it actually like to be a published author?

And that's kind of scary, right? Like you're plunging into darkness on absolute faith that there's something on the other side? If you can't imagine yourself in a role, it's kind of hard to take the leap into it. So here's my attempt at shining a flashlight on one small corner of the publishing industry.

I can't speak to the process of being published with a major publisher, but I can at least tell you a bit about what it's like to work with the small press that I work with.

Short answer: Way, way cooler than I expected.

Honestly. I went into this with pretty low expectations, because you hear a lot of talk about how publishers don't do anything to promote their authors and how first-time authors are pretty much nobodies etc. etc. so I was expecting nothing. Here's what I got instead:

- Several months after my query, I got an email saying they loved my book and would like to publish it. There was a contract attached. I asked if I could take some time to review the contract and reach out to some agents (I still had queries out with them) and they said that was fine. I gave them a specific date I'd have an answer for them (I think it was two weeks) and sent some emails to agents. Most of the agents replied right away that I was off the hook and good luck. Some said nothing. One notable outlier emailed me back several months after the contract was signed and asked if I still had the book. (I told him no but I'd consider him first the next time I query an agent).

- I signed the contract. The terms were pretty much what I expected. If I'd had an agent I could probably have negotiated better terms, maybe. But I'm satisfied with what I'm getting, and it's very standard for the industry.

- Which brings us to another irritating truth about the publishing business: nobody talks about money. Like, aside from short story markets (which usually post their rates right in the market listing) you never have any idea how much anything pays. This is by design. The authors who are really vague in their posts about money? They've probably signed a contract stating that they can't talk about the specifics. I know it's really frustrating. It's just how the industry works, for better or worse (and, tbh, it's how a lot of businesses work - if you get a raise, for example, your boss may ask you not to tell anyone because other employees aren't getting the same raise).

- Anyway. I signed the contract and then waited around for a while for it to be signed by the head of the company and sent back to me. Then I waited around a little bit longer to be introduced to my editor. Publishing involves a lot of waiting, which you should use to your advantage to do more writing rather than brooding and pacing.

- My editor emailed me and let me know she really liked my book and approximately how long it would take for her to turn around edits. It took about that long. She sent the edits in tracked-changes format in the word doc and I spent an evening going through and pretty much approving all of them because I am not a person to quibble over the placement of a comma.

- What was editing like? Well. They were copy-edits, not substantive edits. I don't know whether that's the norm for this publisher or small presses or publishing in general, but that was my experience. I'm mostly fine with that, but it did surprise me; I was expecting to have to do a lot more work post-acceptance. There was no discussion about changing the title, either, which is a thing I was expecting because I'd once read that books never get published with their original titles.

- Once I'd approved the edits, it got sent of for formatting and we talked about cover design. I made a list of book covers I liked and some general things I wanted. My editor passed this along to the designer, and they had some back-and-forth before it was sent back to me, and I loved it a whole lot and had one extremely minor change. I imagine if I really, really hated it I could have gotten it re-done, but I loved it so I didn't get to test that hypothesis.

- So with the cover and the formatting pretty much done, it's time to start promo. I started pulling together things independently. I ended up with a list of 86 blogs/websites I wanted to approach for online promo, and I can write a whole thing about this process later so I won't bother you with the details on it now. But there were a few things that were really interesting and I didn't know about or didn't expect, so I'll talk about that instead!

- Blurbs! You know those quotes from other authors and such that are on book covers or on a page inside the cover? Ever wonder where those come from? You ask for them. This should not have been mind-blowing to me but it totally was. My editor approached some people, and then asked me if I had anybody to approach, which led to me sending some really awkward emails both to complete strangers (people with books I really liked that were similar to my own) and to friends/acquaintances who were more successful than I am. This was terrifying, but also really cool. I had to remind myself constantly: you are a professional sending business correspondence to other professionals. This did not stop me from squeaking when anybody replied.

- Reviews! I submitted a ton of requests to people with the ARC (advanced review copy). My editor reached out to solicit some, too. Like I said, I'll write a thing about this later, but just know that I'm not and have never been wholly on my own in this regard.

Over the course of all this I've become gradually more familiar with my editor. We're Facebook friends now. I have emailed at odd hours with panicked requests ("Is it too late to rewrite the jacket copy? here are several paragraphs of alternative ideas") and she's pinged me with opportunities and kept me updated on what's going to happen next. This publisher is only open to submissions for a narrow window during the year (about a month or two) and I think that’s mostly so each author can get this kind of personal attention, and I love that.

Honestly, it's really great, and a much more hands-on and personable experience than I had anticipated. I strongly doubt that publishing with a big house is like this at all. But publishing with a small press, for me anyway, feels a lot like a VIP treatment, even if I'm not, like...getting flown around the country for book tours or anything like that. Just having somebody who really believes in your book who answers your emails within a couple days of sending them is...pretty freaking awesome?

10/10 would recommend Journalstone/Trepidatio to anyone.

You can scope out their website here: http://journalstone.com/mainstore/

You’ll note that my book (River of Souls) is one of just two new releases slated for late summer. You’ll also note that the other book, Doorways to the Deadeye, looks fucking phenomenal and you should buy it (and I’m not just saying that because Eric Guignard wrote very nice things about my book).

But anyway, that’s my experience so far. I’ll try to follow up after the book has been released to give some more insights.

#writing #publishing #behind the scenes #writing advice #publishing advice #how to #writeblr #small press

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darkwingsnark · 5 years ago

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FIC WRITER MEME

Tagged by @prince-luffy

AO3 name: DarkwingSnark

Fandoms: ...SEE, I’m in lots of fandoms. Or at least, I’ve written for them during hyper-fixation periods. Let’s see what AO3 says...

Batman: The Animated Series (20)

Batman - All Media Types (7)

Wander Over Yonder (Cartoon) (6)

DuckTales (Cartoon 1987) (5)

Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero (5)

Penguins of Madagascar (3)

James and the Giant Peach - Roald Dahl (3)

Darkwing Duck (Cartoon 1991) (3)

Disney - All Media Types (3)

Dan Vs. (2)

Milo Murphy's Law (2)

Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja (1)

The Batman (Cartoon) (1)

Lady and the Tramp (1955) (1)

Looney Tunes | Merrie Melodies (1)

Winnie-the-Pooh - All Media Types (1)

Alice in Wonderland (1951) (1)

Gummi Bears (TV) (1)

Winnie-the-Pooh (Disney) (1)

.... Honestly, I feel like there’s more that this list isn’t covering. Like Phineas and Ferb isn’t here and I wrote for that show too. And many of these can be simplified and condensed because they belong to similar fics.

Tropes: Depends on the fic. But as a whole, tend to write Romantic Comedies with a lot of slow burn. Mostly because... struggle is funny. People being dumdums and oblivious to the obvious is funny. Aaaaand also because it allows the episodic quality of shenanigans to occur.

Number of fics: Up and posted on AO3? 53. Does not include stuff on FF.net or that’s sitting in google docs begging to be finished.

Fic I spent the most time on: Not sure how to read this. Does it mean active man hours? Or does stuff like having a hiatus in-between count? Because TECHNICALLY ‘Real Value’ was started in high school, and I didn’t rewrite it and carry on the series (with Moonie) until many years later. There are also fics like ‘Growing Love’ or ‘Priorities’ that took a lot of time to do research. Like learning how to build a lawn mower so I could have a character believably break it apart for repairs.

....God I do a lot of research that doesn’t go into the actual fics. Because all I need, really, in the confidence of what I’m doing to be the character and describe an action here or there.

Fic I spent the least time on: Probably something drabble related? Or maybe the fic I did that was just me venting out emotions because I was feeling guilty? ‘A Mother’s Intuition’ was written and posted within a couple of hours.

Longest fic: Complicated. The longest thing written is technically an RP, NOT a story. (Different, trust me.) ‘What Happens in Gotham’ has a word count of 207,413. But fic wise at 89,022 word would be ‘The Constant Gardener’ .

Runner up being ‘Priorities’ at little over 87k.

Shortest fic: Drabbles? Uh, let’s see.. Probably from ‘Beauty and Your Worth’, as i think one was literally a paragraph long. ... Speaking of Gummi Bears, I wonder if I still have my notes on the GruffiGusto fic I wanted to write. Something to look into.

Most hits: Apparently ‘Fallen Hard’ at 5354

Most kudos: Also ‘Fallen Hard’ at 518. There... were more fans of Milo Murphy’s Law than I realised.

Most comment threads: ‘Fallen Hard’, 193 comments. ‘What Happens in Gotham’ following at 185.

Most bookmarks: .... that’s something people care about? I hardly ever bookmark things, since I read it in one go. But... I can look?

Ah.... ‘Fallen Hard’. 63

Total word count: 971,833 Oh hey! Almost a million. That’s something to celebrate.

Favorite fic I wrote: 'Knights of Dobenshire’. Hands down. (With ‘Heart of the Cards’ being very close.) I like writing road trip styled stories. It allows many things to happen within the narrative. BUT, ‘Knights of Dobenshire’ wins because it was such a satisfying conclusion of this build up, you know? Scrooge is finally no longer just putting up with the relationship with Fenton, but fully embracing it. That surprise feeling that hits him when he realizes, dear lord, he IS attracted to Fenton beyond affection.

It hits me more than a mutual pining because there I KNOW they will get together. But here? While writing with Moonie? I DIDN’T KNOW! I was worried in the end we’d have to write another fic to finally reach that step. Scrooge is stubborn and does what he wants, let me tell ya.

Fic you want to rewrite/expand on: 'Fallen Hard’, ‘Season of Miracles’, ‘Going with the Flow’, pretty much anything that isn’t complete. BUT, not posted, I really want to get back to more of the stories planned in the McCrack series. It was a ship I kinda made from the ground up, with nobody caring about it in the beginning. So it feels very important to see that series through.

Share a bit of a WIP or a story idea you’re planning on:

... Actually, I can share something from 'Donald’s Party (Working Title)’. @swampy-tiefling and I started. Just the first scene to get you guys hooked.

Donald took a deep breath of air from the doorway of the house and sighed, once again pleased to find himself at his home away from home. Traveling the seas and exploring the world with the navy were its own rewards, he supposed, but there would never be anything quite like the countryside-- the middle aged mallard having practically been raised on Grandma Duck’s farm. Donald Duck was happy to be on shore-- his naval carrier being docked for the week in Duckburg as they replenished supplies and took care of whatever repairs that were needed. Whatever excuse his bosses wanted to use were fine by him, he was just happy to not be scrubbing decks for a change!

That didn’t, however, mean he was able to rest and relax-- as the duck was startled out of his thoughts as somebody bumped into him. That somebody was his grandmother as she came to, just having caught her plate of cookies before they fell.

“My land, Donald! What in the world are you doing hiding here when you should be meetin’ and greetin’ the guests?”

Donald ignored the woman’s soft glare as he waved her off, using his other hand to steal a cookie in the process. Stuffing it in his mouth, he murmured out a response.

“Phooey, they’re just relatives.”

“Even more of a reason to go out and talk to them.” Before the sailor could argue, Grandma Duck placed the plate of treats into his hands. “And put these out on the snack table while you’re at it. Poor Fethry is looking peckish.”

Donald rolled his eyes, but otherwise did as he was told. Wasn’t it just like life to make him work at his own welcome home party? Walking towards the open yard where the party was taking place, it didn’t take long to reach the table, where his cousins were already gathered around as they chat.

This instantly caught the attention of the lankier duck, his gaze zoning in as he smiled widely towards Donald in greeting.

“Well if it ain’t the guest of honor, with snacks to boot!” Fethry leaned closer, his red hat wobbling with him as he continued to inquire. “Say, cuz, ya wouldn’t happen to know if these are gluten free, would ya?”

Donald gave him an unimpressed look.

“You’re not going on another crazy diet, are ya?” Though, in all honesty, he was more worried his looney cousin might try to drag him along-- and after months of eating nothing but mush, he would NOT miss out on his first chance to pig out on actual home cooked meals.

"Not crazy at all, actually!" Fethry grinned that goofy grin. "See, it's all right here; Gluten Free; It's the Way to Be' !" he shoved a rather lengthy-looking hard cover book in Donald's face. Donald had no choice but to stare at it, the words all blurring together from its close proximity to his eyes. The offending object remained there for only a second, however, before it was yanked back, the nutty mallard already busy flipping through it.

"Let's see, here, there's a fascinating chapter I think you should-- Don?"

Phew, that had been close. Donald was still in sneaking away mode, and jumped and yelped when he was tapped on the shoulder. Oh no. He'd been caught, after all. He slowly turned, with a forced, toothy grin, to face his fate.

A wave of relief washed over him when he saw his girlfriend, Daisy, smiling sweetly at him, instead.

“And where do you think you’re sneaking off to, Mister? You’ve been gone for so long, and here we are, with you haven’t even given me a kiss ‘hello’ yet.”

Now there was something Donald didn’t mind doing, as his girlfriend leaned in her face for her reward. Wrapping his arms around her, he planted the biggest of smooches to her temple.

“Gaww, I’m sorry Daisy. I really did miss you.”

This earned him a soft smile, as it was Daisy’s turn to kiss him on the forehead.

“And I missed you, hun. Now, tell me… why WERE you sneaking around?”

“Grandma put me on entertainment duty.”

“Well, “ his girlfriend began, “it IS your party, after all. They came to see you, seems fair to me.” This made the sailor groan as she looked at him unsympathetically. Rolling her eyes, the reporter sarcastically patted her boyfriend in comfort. “There there. Now don’t go sneaking off for real, the boys will be arriving soon. And Grandma tells me Uncle Scrooge will be bringing along a special guest.”

“Special guest?” Donald asked incredulously. “Like who?” This caused Daisy’s eyes to glimmer all the more in mischief, a look that told him that she knew something he didn’t know. And that something was big news, if he was reading her right.

“Oh, nobody TOO special, I suppose,” Daisy was stalling, and it was driving Donald up the wall. The duck woman continued her teasing. “Nobody except your uncle’s new date friend.”

"Date friend?" Donald practically exclaimed, prompting Daisy's grin to grow all the more smug.

"Yep! You've missed quite a bit since you've been away, you know."

"No kidding...well I'll be..." Donald was shaking his head, but he was smiling. Uncle Scrooge, dating, at his age... it was nothing short of a miracle. It was about time, too!

"Meanwhile, why don't you go say hi to the rest of the guests? I know it's hard..." she rolled her eyes. "but at least make an effort, okay? Thanks, hun!"

Donald's heart fluttered as she smooched his cheek, and left. He glanced out over the yard, and saw quite a few familiar faces; Gus, Ludwig, Gladstone... heck, even Gyro Gearloose had shown up!

He sighed, but this one wasn't a sigh of pure despair. It did feel nice to be home, surrounded by people who most likely cared, and his nephews were even going to show up soon. Not to mention, he'd get to tease his uncle for finally taking his advice on the whole dating thing.

That alone gave Donald the pep in his step he needed as he threw himself back into the party-- where he knew his crazed family would be waiting for him.

#long post #fanfiction #snark life #disney ducks #mccrack #meme

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koalitypop · 6 years ago

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bts having a s/o who's afraid of failure

a/n: I wanted to try something a little different, also this reaction/scenario is quite angsty, but as you may have realised angst is just my style. This actually turned out way too long, but I hope you'll enjoy it.

▸ Kim Namjoon

- You were that type of person who had numerous plans through which you can achieve your dreams

- They all involved passing your most important exams with flying colours and getting into that university, one of the best when it comes to the field you wanted to specialise in

- But at the very end nothing was the way you planned it

- The exams were extremely hard, but you still managed to pass them with pretty good grades

- Your motivational letter was also very good written, so there was no reason for them not to accept you

- Well, you thought

- The day when you received the letter was wonderful - you went on a coffee date with your boyfriend Namjoon, the weather was nice, you were both happy

- Namjoon and you were heading to your place, so that you can take your luggage and go to his place for a sleepover

- The letter was waiting for you on that perfect little day you had with your boyfriend

- You weren't accepted

- You couldn't believe what was written on that letter, all the nights spent studying, all the money your parents spent on the extra classes and courses, all those efforts went for nothing

- You failed

- Your biggest fear has happened, your whole life was ruined

- “I-I... I am not accepted”

- Namjoon was so shook, he couldn’t say a single word

- “i failed. I am a failure. A failure. A failure..”

- You couldn't stop saying that, falling to your knees

- Fortunately, Namjoon came to his senses before you actually fell

- “Y/N, Y/N, listen, babe, everything’s alright”

- But you knew, everything was gone, all your plans for the happy future were all gone and there was nobody who could do a single thing to change that

- All those kind words used in the letter sounded like insults to you, those people knew that you were a failure, but still tried to speak as you have just won the lottery

- There was no one to blame, it was all your fault that you weren’t accepted

- You should have studied harder and more, you knew how important those exams were

- You felt so stupid and worthless, useless for not being accepted, so lost in your emotions, you couldn't feel the tears drowning you even deeper in your already endless sadness

- “Darling, listen to me, listen, you may think that your life has ended, but everything’s alright, babe, things may not have gone the exact same way you planned them, but that doesn't mean a thing, okay, sweetheart.”

- Namjoon was holding you tight, whispering in your ear

- “The best things happen when we least expect them to, Y/N, please, believe me. Everything will be fine, Y/N, and if it isn't, Y/N, I’ll make it just perfect for you. Who knows, maybe through this so-called “failure” the destiny is trying to show you or move you towards something.”

- But this so-called failure was everything you wanted in your life

▸ Kim Seokjin

- Most of the kids make some stupid promises when they are young

- You were no exception, having promised your parents to buy them a huge hause with a garden somewhere in the mountains

- The only difference was that, as not so many people, you actually tried your best to make this dream of your parents come true

- You saved every single quarter you had just to buy this house

- After spending so much time trying to make all the money for it, this house became your own dream too in some kind of way

- Your boyfriend Jin was amazed by your devotion, finding it even slightly obsessive and unhealthy

- But he wasn't surprised at all, as he knew how hardworking and afraid of failure you were

- Years have passed till you actually had enough money and bought the dream house

- It was lovely - a house in a rather calm area with many spacious rooms, including a garden with many flowers and a few trees - your parents’ dream

- You spent so much time decorating the house and making it perfect, they had to love it, you thought

- Jin and you flew to your country to meet your parents and show them the house

- You were immensely nervous

- Jin tried so hard to calm you down or just distract you from the thoughts of your parents hating the house you have worked so hard on

- The day has come and you and Jin were driving to the house with your parents driving just after your car

- The closer you were to the house, the more nervous you grew

- When you reached the house and you showed it to your parents, at first glance they seemed to like it a lot

- Then they came into the house and the nightmare began

- “Ah, the hall is quite small, isn’t it!”; “Why is the sofa made of leather?”; “Gosh, this kitchen is so strange arranged”

- Your parents’ comments on the house continued on as they found something wrong wrong in everything in the house

- “Do you really think that we would like it?” said your father

- This question shattered you, making you feel as you are going to faint any time soon

- “Give us a minute or two, we will be coming right up!” Jin explained taking you to the garden

- On the way to the garden you couldn't stop looking around the house - you had made everything so that your parents can live there happily, just the way they had always wanted

- All the time, the money, the efforts - everything was for nothing

- You had failed your parents

- “Babe, listen to me, okay. Everything's alright, okay? We didn't like our house that much when we saw it for the first time, but nowadays we love it. Everything that you have bought is beautiful and convenient and they will understand it as soon as they try it out. All those things they said, they didn't mean a single word, Y/N! Please, calm down, babe, you shouldn't worry about this, you have done the best that you can do!”

- You couldn't breathe, couldn't move, you were just looking at the front door to the house, you couldn't even start crying

- You had tried your best, as Jin said, but clearly your best wasn't enough

- “Y/N, everything is just fine, babe, if they don't like it that much they can change it or rearrange it by themselves. You have spent so much money and efforts into it, there aren't many children who do such kind of things for their parents. You have already done more than enough, babe. I am here, love, don't worry about anything.”

▸ Min Yoongi

- You were a great writer and a poet, having been writing since you were just 6 years old

- Unfortunately, you were always doubting your talent

- Also taking your enormous fear of failure into consideration, it was no surprise how hardworking you were

- Sometimes even your workaholic boyfriend, Yoongi, had to make you get up from your cabinet and sleep for a couple of hours

- You were rewriting the last chapters of your book, which had to be ready in a week

- The success of this book was invaluable for you, so you have been working on it everyday, the whole day, for a couple of months now

- You were happy with the way most of it was written, but every time you read the last chapter you felt incredibly bad, thinking that this chapter was shitty, boring and disappointing

- You have been writing day and night, trying to keep the idea of the chapter, but just change the way it was written

- You couldn't do anything about it, no matter what you change, it always ended up bad

- You were starting to think that it will never work and your book was doomed a failure

- You started to sob, falling into a hole of sadness, losing any hope that this book will ever be published

- “Hey, what’s wrong?” your sleepy boyfriend came into your cabinet

- You felt even worse, as you have woken up your exhausted boyfriend to deal with your inability to write properly

- “I can't write it, Yoongi, I just can't” you completely bursted out, crying harder

- “Sh-sh, Y/N, let me see-let me see..” he whispered

- He started reading the chapter, petting your head

- “Now even he has seen how bad I am at writing, I am a failure to him too..” you thought, biting your lip to blood

- “Y/N, it’s really good! Especially that part when the three main characters are throwing stones in the river, the conversation is very naturally written.”

- “That’s the end of the chapter, Yoongi, why would anybody read a chapter, which is boring at the very beginning. It’s over, this book is garbage. I can't even write a proper piece obviously, what about a book..” you were literally shaking in his arms

- Yoongi sighed, trying to lift your tired

- “Y/N, stop pushing yourself, there is no need to do so, the chapter is perfect! Listen, let’s go to bed, you need to sleep. Maybe in the morning you won't be so irritated and you will be able to understand how beautifully written this chapter, and actually the whole book, is.”

- “No, no, can't you see I have so much to work on, the chapter and I have to reread the book again and...”

- “Yes, my one, but you can do that tomorrow. You'll be fresh and productive.”

- “I already don’t have the enough time about this m-mess, I c-can't afford loosing more” you were choking on your words, not being able to breathe

- “If it is that bad, I will help, just come and sleep tonight, Y/N! I am here, love, I will stay by your side, everything will get better.”

▸ Jung Hoseok

- You worked in a multinational multimillion company and you were working on a project which had to lead you to a new position

- The project was huge and there were many challenges, but you and your team managed to go through everything

- Tomorrow you had to present your project to a very important client

- You had already spent 2 days working on your presentation, but you decided that you have to pull an all-nighter, just to make sure that everything is alright and you wouldn't make a mistake tomorrow

- It was around 1 am when your boyfriend, Hoseok, came in your shared bedroom, just to see you working again

- “Hey, baby, are you finishing?” Hoseok put his hands on your shoulders, massaging them gently

- “No, I’ll be working all night, you know, I have to be ready for the presentation tomorrow.” you said quickly, going through your notes

- Your boyfriend wasn't surprised, he knew how afraid of failure you were

- That fear made you even more hardworking

- But he also knew that you need to sleep, especially tonight, having a very big day tomorrow

- “Babe, you have to sleep, you need to be fresh for the big day.” Hoseok murmured, taking your hands in his

- “I can't, i have to grow through everything again, I have to be perfect tomorrow!” you whined, pulling out your hands to continue with your work

- “Sweetheart, you have gone through it at least a hundred times already, come on, let’s sleep..”

- “Hoseok, are you listening to me? This is not only my project, this is a team project and I can't afford to fail all my co-workers. They have worked so hard on this project and I can't afford to be lazy and fail them, because if I go to sleep, that is exactly what will happen” you weren't shouting, but your boyfriend could sense that you were really stressed and nervous, your whole body was shaking, but you just went on wit your work

- Your boyfriend knew how persistent you were, so he was ready to spend an hour arguing with you, but he had to make you sleep

- “Y/N, if you don't go to bed and sleep even for a few hours, tomorrow, while you are presenting, you would be all sleepy and grumpy. Is that what you want?” Hoseok’s eyebrows were playing on his forehead, he tried his best to make a serious or even kinda angry face

- “I can cover the need to sleep.” you mumbled

- “Okay, why don't you sleep for a few hours, for example I can wake you up at 5 am and you can continue with your work. I will help.” he saw how acquiescent you were becoming, so he continued with a more gentle tone

“ I have to be at work by 9:30. I won't have enough time to go through everything and get ready and take the bus and, and..”

- You were whining and looking so cute that Hoseok could keep his hands to himself.

- He hugged you tightly and kissed your cheek

- “I told you I will help, I promise. Just please get to bed, lovely. I will be by your side, always.”

- Hoseok made you lay down and snuggled closer

- “Okay, but promise me you will wake me up at 5 am sharp.”

- “Okay, baby, okay” - Hoseok murmured, smiling slightly.

▸ Park Jimin

- You were a girl with big dreams with not so many but loyal and supportive friends

- Well you thought

- Since high school your biggest friend was Y/F/N

- You had amazing memories together and cherished every single one of them

- She knew pretty much everything about you, your weak spots and your biggest desires in life

- She always supported you and was always there for you

- So when you started to argue with her for the simplest things you thought that it will be just another though period in your friendship

- Unfortunately, things went on

- And if in the beginning everything was about you being late with 5-10 minutes or you forgetting something she has said a month ago, now it was all about how this whole friendship was about you or how you don't cherish her as a friend enough

- You were feeling awful but tried to keep your hopes up

- One day you and Y/F/N were at a cafe and you were generally talking

- Your best friend was talking passionately about some cute new colleague

- When she finally finished her talk about that boy she asked you how you were doing

- You saw that she had a good day so you lied and told her that you're fine

- Of course, she knew you and made you tell her what was wrong

- You told her that it was the arguments and the fights that made you feel anxious and stressed, but what followed was something you have never expected from your dearest friend

- She laughed at you as those arguments and the problems, even the thoughts which were eating you alive, were just a joke

- “You know that it is something normal in a friendship and you're not a person with an easy character with all your problems, your high hopes and your stupid big dreams.”

- You were left shook

- “I know I have to support you and I truly do, but some of the things you do, well actually most of them, are genuinely stupid”

- You left the cafe nearly crying

- Your friendship, years of memories were just fake support and love

- It was nearly midnight and you were in your bed, overthinking everything which has happened to you the last years and breaking down every ten minutes

- You started thinking if all of this was your fault, it was you who caused the end of this friendship

- Maybe you really was making such dumb things, maybe you both were having arguments because of your stupid behaviour

- Your boyfriend, Jimin, had called you numerous times, but all you did was text him that you can't talk at the moment, but more than 10 hours ago

- You didn't think that he will come to your place, so when you heard someone unlocking the front door you were terrified - You thought that this will be the perfect ending of this horrible day

- You lost your biggest friend in your life, you had obviously also lost lots of years and now you were about to get robbed or maybe even killed

- Your most logical decision was to get in the bathroom and hide there

- You got in the bath tub and began deciding on your next move

- The person was coming to your bedroom, which made you feel even more panicked, so you started sobbing again

- That person was already in your bedroom

- “Y/N, babygirl?”

- That voice, you knew it.. Could it be..

- “Jimin?”

- “Baby, where are you?”

- You felt as a huge weight has fallen from your shoulders which led to another breakdown

- “B-bathroom”

- “Gosh, babygirl, what has happened?” Jimin came in the bathroom, getting into the bathtub to hold you immediately

- “I don’t know, I r-really don't k-know..”

- “Hey, hey, sweetheart, breathe, baby, calm down. Tell me, what has happened?” Jimin was worried, so worried he was about to cry too

- “I was with Y/F/N and we were talking about o-our arguments and then.. then she told me that she finds p-retty much everything I-I do stupid. All my d-dreams, my hopes, the memories we had... It’s all fake.”

- You were crying so hard, harder than any time Jimin has seen you to cry, it made him feel like someone was tearing his heart away from his body

- Jimin felt so bad, he couldn't say anything, he just held you even tighter and closer, kissing your forehead

- “All, Y/N, babygirl...”

- “And the worst is that I am starting to believe that she has a point. Aren't my dreams bigger than an ordinary girl’s ones should be. I am always exaggerating and embarrassing myself, maybe she has grown tired of me and my stupidity. Maybe I am the reason why this whole friendship failed.”

- Jimin has also gone through many failed friendships, but never through such an important one, so he couldn't imagine how hard it is for you

- He knew as well how important this friendship was for you and how afraid of failure you were, he knew that you would beat yourself up for “failing” a friendship, which was obviously bound to end.

- He wanted to give Y/F/N a piece of his mind too, but he knew you needed his support more than anything right now

- “Y/N, I want you to know that none of this bullsh*t is true. You're the kindest, most beautiful, smart and hardworking person I know and there is no way all those things could be true. I will help you out, baby, don't worry I will make all of this get better.”

▸ Kim Taehyung

- You had always wanted to create your own business, so when you graduated from university you began running your plans

- After some months your business plan has become reality and you were a businesswoman

- At first everything was going quite well and you believed that your company would become a multimillion one one day

- But then something happened

- You sales decreased and some of your employees decided to leave

- The money became a problem

- You were having a really hard time with everything and everyone could see it

- Of course, your boyfriend, Taehyung, offered you a certain amount of money, which would help you balance and continue working normally, but you wanted to deal with the problems of your company on your own

- And there was your flash of light

- A big company wanted to buy a huge amount of your products, but they wanted it to be all customary designed, with different qualities and properties

- You kept the whole project under your control

- The presentation went really well and you decided that you had a chance

- The boss of the company told you that they will call you in a few days

- You were genuinely happy, thinking that they will for sure buy your products and your company will succeed again

- But then the next morning your PR agent called you early in the morning

- It wasn't great news

- The company which was going to buy your products had a meeting with a different one, who created similar products to yours

- The boss didn't confirm that they will buy their products, but that meeting wasn't confirming that they will buy yours either

- All the happiness you felt after the presentation now turned into anxiety and despair

- You called Taehyung, literally begging him to come to your office

- When he came he was met with a very sad view

- You were holding your head in your hands, murmuring to yourself

- “Oh, God, what is going to happen now, what am I gonna do?”

- “Y/N? Baby, are you okay?”

- You lifted up your head, your eyes were teary, you were on the verge of crying

- “That company.. They have met another company like mine.. I-it isn't confirmed, but they might not work with me..”

- That was the point when you completely fell apart

- Just thinking about something was one thing, but saying it out loud was whole different thing

- it sounded real, the loss of your biggest dream might happen and you couldn't believe it

- “I failed. I failed myself, I failed my biggest dream, I failed my life, I failed all those people who work for me, I-I failed everything”

- Taehyung came closer to you and got your head in his hands

- “Y/N, listen to me carefully. Nothing has been confirmed, so there is still no reason to cry. If they don't buy your product, I will find a way to help you out. You heard me, Y/N, I will help you and your company will continue working. I won't let your dream flop, Y/N! Now get yourself together, Y/N, you can't let your employees see you like that.”

- “Taehyung” you whined, your head falling on the desk again

- Tae realised that such kind of motivational speeches won't help, so he decided to change the tone to a more gentle one

- “Shh, love, shh, everything will get better, I promise. Just calm down, baby, calm down. I will help you out, my love, I will always do.”

▸ Jeon Jungkook

- You and your boyfriend, Jungkook, have been together for 2 years

- It has been 2 fantastic years of your relationship

- You have never had a lot of fights and just got along really well

- You felt like Jungkook was the one

- Then some strange thoughts appeared in your mind

- Jungkook was such an amazing boyfriend, but did you deserve him?

- Would you be able to give him everything he asks for and needs

- He has always taken care of you, always considered how would you feel about pretty much everything he does, always been here when you needed him

- You started to overthink everything in your relationship and came to the conclusion that you were the good and beautiful girlfriend a man like Jungkook needed

- When you started to imagine yourself next to him you felt bad, as you were embarrassing him

- All those stupid thing that you have said must have made him feel so ashamed of you

- You wanted to end this relationship, but you were to afraid to do so

- Maybe it wasn't that bad

- Maybe you could change and make both of you happy again

- So you started to talk less

- You though you were clingy, so you cut down the affection to a minimum

- You spend more time on your appearance to look good for your boyfriend

- You didn't eat a lot so that you won't gain any weight, but cooked a lot for him and from time to time went to the studio and brought some food for his members too

- It took Jungkook some time, but after a few weeks he realised that something in you was changing

- He was afraid to confront you, so he gave you some time, hoping that everything will become normal once again

- The more time you spend becoming the perfect girlfriend, the more things that needed changing you found

- So instead of getting better, everything got worse

- You were looking gorgeous, but when Jungkook looked closer he was able to see the dark circles under your eyes from not sleeping because of stress and anxiety

- When at home, Jungkook was spoiled rotten, every single wish he expressed out loud

- Even the members realised that something was going on and told Jungkook that he had to confront you, so that everything gets better

- It was around 8 pm, Jungkook came home to you making a cake for him and his members

- You were also listening to an audiobook about he had talked about not a long time ago

- “Y/N, where are you?”

- “Kitchen!” you put your hair and your clothes in order, getting ready to meet your boyfriend

- “Hey, baby, what were you doing?” Jungkook kissed you

- “Nothing special, you? How was practice today, how are the boys doing?” of course, you wanted to talk about him, not about you

- “Just like every day, babygirl. And what are you making?” Jungkook put his head on your shoulder, looking at what you were making

- “That mint cake I did two weeks ago, but I am going to add some strawberries.”

- “Why are you doing it again?”

- “Why, don't you like it? Was it bad? It must have been the mint, not everybody likes mint and-” you were starting to panic, your brain was empty and your limbs were numb

- “No, no, baby, I meant that you were working so hard, you are practically making a six-course meal for me and the members every day.” Jungkook was holding your hands, trying to calm you down

- “Ooh, okay..”

- You truly didn't understand

- Was the fact that you were taking care of him and his friends something bad?

- “Y/N, I know that you re trying to be the perfect girlfriend. But there is no need to exhaust yourself or try to be something you are not. I love you for you. I love the simplest thing you do, your flaws and the best parts of you. So there is no need to worry.” Jungkook lowered himself, trying to look at your teary eyes

- “But, I-I am not, I am just t-trying to help you o-out..” you were whining, still not being able to understand what’s happening

- “Y/N, are you listening to me? You are the greatest thing that has ever happened to me, there is no need to change anything. Don't you understand, babygirl, I am going to stick by your side, so there is no need to change yourself for me. I don't deserve none of the things that you do for me on a daily basis, what about you spoiling me rotten. Don't worry, baby girl, we will be together forever, I can promise you that.”

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angelsfalling16 · 6 years ago

Text

Baz Met a Bloke

Read it on ao3

Pairing: Snowbaz

Words: 1719

A/N: Back when I was taking requests @watfordwallflower asked for a fic where Fiona and Simon interact. I don’t know if this is quite what you wanted, but once I started writing, the fic just kind of took on a life of it’s own. I hope you like it, and I’m sorry that it took me so long to write it! <3

Summary: I decided to rewrite that scene in chapter 56 when Baz visits Fiona. Simon is also there, which Fiona isn’t too happy about, but not so unhappy that she isn't willing to embarrass Baz.

Simon

There is complete silence between the three of us as Baz and I sit across from his aunt at the table in her flat. She glances between us, wondering why her nephew would bring me – the Mage’s heir – into her home. I’m not quite sure why he did either. I could have just stayed in the car or something. I know that she hates me, and I’m not all that fond of her either.

I expected her to try to kick me out as soon as she saw me. She did try, but Baz told her that I was with him. He wouldn’t give her an explanation for why I was with him, and for a reason that I don’t understand, she relented. I fear that this is some kind of trap. They lured me here so that I could be killed. That’s the only reason that he would have brought me along. I ignore the fact that I came here willingly.

I sit there with a death grip on the cup of tea that I was given. I’m afraid to actually drink it because for all I know, it could be poisoned. That’d be a great way for the Families to win, off the Chosen One with a cup of tea that he drinks willingly.

Maybe I’m being paranoid, but I doubt it.

“Tell me about Nicodemus,” Baz says. It’s not a question, and he says it like there isn’t a doubt in his mind that she knows about him and will tell him whatever she knows.

“Who’s been talking to you about Nicodemus?” She asks. I don’t miss the glare that she shoots in my direction.

“Nobody,” he lies, nonchalantly dunking some shortbread into his tea. “I’ve just heard that he’s like me.”

He means a vampire, but that’s where the similarities likely end between them. Baz would never turn against the World of Mages. Magic is important in Baz’ family, and he would never just give it up. He’ll barely admit that he’s a vampire, so there’s no way that he would turn away from his family and join them.

I hate that there’s a voice in my head whispering that I can’t know that for sure. I’ve always thought that Baz was up to something, so maybe this is possible.

He’s already a vampire, though, so it isn’t like he needs to be Turned like Nicodemus did.

“He betrayed us, Basil,” Fiona is saying in a low voice when I tune back into the conversation. “And he was stricken for it.”

“He was stricken because he’s a vampire.”

“That’s not going to happen to you. No one knows about you.” Her eyes cut to me for a brief moment. “Well, almost no one. Why did you bring the Mage’s heir along again?” She sounds less angry this time but not by much.

“Simon isn’t going to go against us.” He sounds more certain than I feel about this. I’m waiting for the moment one of them moves to quickly so that I can pull my sword out to protect myself.

“But he’s the Mage’s heir,” she repeats. “We can’t trust him.”

“And he’s here with me,” Baz says. “He’s not hurting anyone, and he isn’t going to run to the Mage with any of this.” He says it like it’s a given, but I’m not so sure about that.

His aunt thinks thoughtfully for a moment. I can’t begin to try to figure out what’s going through her head. After a slow minute drags by, there’s a small change in her facial expression

“Fine.” She still doesn’t sound happy, but she seems more welcoming now.

“So, is Nicodemus still alive?” Baz asks.

The two of them go on to talk about Nicodemus and what happened to him, but I keep my mouth shut. I know that my input wouldn’t be wanted here. Baz has made that perfectly clear in the past.

Fiona warns him against Nicodemus, telling him that there is nothing for Baz to learn from him. He tells her that he won’t bother him, but I’ve known him long enough and spent enough time with him over the years to know that he is lying. His aunt either doesn’t pick up on it or chooses to ignore it. Baz will do whatever it takes to find out who murdered his mother. I note that he doesn’t mention this little tidbit to her. I’m sure that the fact that Nicodemus may know what happened to Baz’ mother is something that she might want to know, but Baz doesn’t say anything about it. Maybe that’s for the best.

Baz stands, ready to leave, and I follow suit. She tells him to go home and study, but he reminds her that he said that he’s on break and that he’s going dancing. I frown at him, confused, but don’t say anything. He never mentioned anything about dancing. He never actually said what his plans were for today, which is why I even agreed to come along with him to visit his aunt. I didn’t know what I was agreeing to.

If he plans to go dancing after this, I am horribly unprepared. I can’t dance. And who would I even dance with? Where we would be going dancing? Why didn’t he tell me? Why is he still keeping things from me?

I’m busy running through these questions and barely hear Fiona’s next question.

“Basil. Have you met a bloke?”

Her eyes travel down his nice suit and black shoes. Then, her eyes flicker to me, and I feel horribly underdressed standing next to him right now. Most of what I’m wearing belongs to Baz, but I refused to dress up like he did because he wouldn’t tell me why I should. He just murmured something about looking half-way decent for once in my life before shoving his jumper into my hand and walking out of the room.

I try to process what she said while also trying to read the expression that flickers briefly across Baz’ features. He seems displeased with her remark and turns to leave. I stand rooted to the spot, stunned, trying to figure out what it all means until I realize that he will probably leave without me if I don’t follow him.

“Don’t forget that the front seat’s for people who haven’t been kidnapped by fucking numpties,” Fiona calls after us when we reach the door.

I turn to look at her to see what she means, and she’s laughing. Wait. Is that why Baz missed so much of the school year? Because he was kidnapped? Why didn’t he tell me?

“Let’s go, Snow,” Baz sneers, pulling on my arm. He sounds annoyed. I follow after him slowly letting the new piece of information sink in. I choose to forget what Fiona said before that. It’s easier not to think about things, especially things that don’t concern me. Baz being kidnapped is much more important anyway.

“You were kidnapped?” I ask. “By numpties?” I try not to laugh, but I still earn a glare from Baz. “Seriously, though. Are you alright?”

“I’m not talking about this with you.”

“Why not?”

“Because we aren’t friends. We aren’t even on the same side.”

“But you told your aunt…” I feel like a little kid, trying to figure out why someone doesn’t want to be my friend anymore. I guess we were never friends, and I shouldn’t have believed that that could ever change.

Because I had begun to believe it. The truce, staying at his house – in his room – and coming along with him on this adventure has given me false hope. I foolishly believed that he could change his mind about wanting to fight me. He’s just using me, pretending that we get along, until we find whoever killed his mother. Then, he’ll kill me. He’ll try to at least.

“I only said that so that she wouldn’t kill you. Not until after you help me find my mom’s murderer at least. After that, she can do whatever she wants, and I won’t stop her.”

His words sting, but they shut me up. Just like he was aiming for. I can’t believe that even after this truce between us, he still wants me dead. I should still want him dead, but I don’t. I don’t want to think about why that is, so I shove that thought away, too, and get into the car, not saying anything else to him.

***

After the rest of the day’s events, I find myself once again sitting in his car in a similar silence. It’s different this time. For one thing, the car smells of smoke. I’m used to the scent. It’s something that constantly clings to me because of my magic. This is different, though. It’s a reminder of everything that just happened tonight.

Another difference is the tingling of my lips as they remember what just happened. I kissed Baz. I kissed Baz. I kissed Baz. I. Kissed. Baz. The more I repeat it, the more unbelievable it sounds. Everything about tonight seems unbelievable, but I want to believe. I don’t want things to go back to how they were before.

Then, it clicks. This is what his aunt meant when she asked if he meant a bloke. Whether she was referring to me or someone else, she knows that Baz is gay.

“You’re staring,” Baz says, not looking away from the road.

“I know,” I say, smiling.

“So, stop.”

“I don’t want to. I never want to stop looking at you, Baz.”

“Nothing’s changed,” he says half-heartedly.

“Everything has changed.”

“Why?”

“Because I don’t want you to die, and I am determined to prevent that from happening.”

We turn into his driveway, and he doesn’t say anything. As soon as he has the car in park, though, his hands are cupping my face, and he’s kissing me hard, like his life depends on this one moment. I kiss him back with as much feeling, trying to express all of the things that I have trouble saying. I don’t want to watch him die, and I don’t want to ever let him go. We will have to find a way to avoid this coming war, and we will have to do it together.

#snowbaz #snowbaz fic #simon snow #baz #tyrannus basilton grimm pitch #carry on #rainbow rowell #baz met a bloke #ch 56 #red writing hood #my writing

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langst-wins · 6 years ago

Text

my personal favorite first draft writing tip: write it on paper.

i never ever ever write a first draft on a screen, ever. why? it's way too easy to go back and start editing before i've even finished a single chapter. when you write on paper, you're forced to just keep pressing forward no matter how big of a steaming garbage pile the story is, because you can't exactly go back and line edit every single sentence when you're writing on paper. you have no choice but to say "wow yeah that sucks, that's some abysmal writing right there," accept it, and keep going.

this is GOOD. you don't want to spend time polishing your first draft before its even done. because if you finish the first draft and end up realizing that scene wasnt even necessary and you have to scrap it, or realizing you need to rewrite that scene in an entirely different way, guess what? all the time you spent polishing that scene was completely wasted.

and that's only if you actually FINISH the first draft. i've never finished a first draft that i tried to write on a screen. it takes way too long when there's nothing stopping you from obsessing over what you've already written and trying to make it "perfect."

i buy a bunch of journals and I just...absolutely word-vomit onto the page. and i try not to go back and reread anything i wrote on previous pages if i can help it.

once the first draft is done, it's ugly and messy and not so great - but it's DONE. now you can take this giant lump of boring clay and shape it into something beautiful. but you can't make something beautiful if you don't have the clay there to begin with.

you might think the downside here is that you then have to go and type up all 200,000 ugly, messy words of your draft onto the screen exactly as they are, fighting the urge to change any of it as you go, so you can have a digital copy of your first draft to begin molding. i would disagree that that's a downside. i think this is VERY useful.

i used to think it was a downside and just the price i had to pay for writing my first draft in those pretty, portable journals. but then i realized: you know what? this is actually a GOOD thing. by typing up the words exactly as they are from the journal to the screen, I'm forcing myself to read the cringey bad first draft writing that I tried to avoid going back and rereading while I was writing it. I can take notes as I go about what I want to change, why, and how. i have plenty of time to mull it over and decide what my next steps are. by the time I start the second draft, I pretty much know exactly what needs to change and how I'm going to do it, because I've had so much time to think it through.

i just wanted to share this because i hear people talk a lot about fighting the temptation to go back and rewrite before they're even done writing. this is how i literally force myself to not do so.

just remember that the first draft is not your story. the first draft is just the big pile of junk you have to dig through so you can pick out the precious antiques, and THOSE are your real story. nobody else ever has to see that first draft if you dont want them to.

and here are some picture quotes on first drafts to aid in my point because i'm actually procrastinating on writing my own first draft by making this post hmmnnnnnmm

happy new year's everyone! writers, let's get this fresh 2019 bread!

#writing #writer #writing tips #first draft

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kingofthewilderwest · 6 years ago

Note

Don't worry, I take over my sleep time to read and write fanfictions. I wouldn't have time otherwise! I have an entire Word page with only links to fanfictions I still have to read! And it's all right to not read fanfictions if you don't want to. It's just an hobby among others. Anyway, you wrote fanfictions?? Now I'm curious, could I have a link, if you don't mind? Have a good night too and sorry for my grammar mistakes, english isn't my first language (btw, thank you for the likes

From this. Sorry I’m slow replying!! thanks for your wonderful messages! :)

No worries about grammar! Your English is great, and even if it weren’t, that’s no bother to me either. :) The fact that you’re communicating in a language that isn’t your first… just means you have extra skills and are even more awesome! :)

I love how dedicated you are to looking at others’ fanfictions, even creating a Word document page to make sure you remember them. That’s beautiful and cool. And I’m getting curious about what you’ve written, too!

Thanks so much for asking about my fics - this touches me! Sure, I’m happy to share! I tend to post all fics on tumblr and FFN, with FFN being my primary hub. On tumblr I use the tag #my fanfiction and tag all stories by their title. My FFN profile is kingofthewilderwest.

I’m so so so so so SO touched when anyone reads or interacts with my fics (though since I write casually, I ask no constructive criticism

THE VIGILANTE’S WAR

HTTYD. YEAR: 2014. LENGTH: 57,110 WORDS. A mysterious, antagonistic dragon rider dubbed “the Vigilante” crosses paths with Hiccup, and her increasingly violent actions appear to be leading to war against Berk.

He tightened his hands, loosened them again. Breathed in, breathed out. He could feel himself stooped in the dirt, his shoulders hunched over his head, his knees buried in the ground and tucked underneath his torso. His neck was bent low close to the earth, providing him a good view of his hands and the ground and nothing else.

Well, and the blood.

That can’t possibly be all mine.

- PROLOGUE: FROM OUT OF THE HAZE

HTTYD 2′s original drafts had Valka as the main antagonist. I found this so interesting that I decided to rewrite HTTYD 2 - with a few of my own spins - on this concept. One of my most well-known fics, “The Vigilante’s War” is where I’ve gotten the most thorough reviews and most emotional reactions.

THE VIGILANTE’S LEGACY

HTTYD. YEARS: 2014-2016. LENGTH: 20,546 WORDS. There’s been four years of war between three factions. Drago’s army. The Vigilante and her dragons. Berk and their allies. But now, Chief Hiccup believes there’s a way to end the conflict. Sequel to “The Vigilante’s War.”

Hiccup spoke up. Cleared his voice. Tapped his pointer finger apprehensively on the cell’s iron door. “You said we were making a mistake.” Might as well speak straight to the point of his visit. “Something about ‘you and every one of your warriors are making a mistake’ or – or something like that.”

For a moment Hiccup wondered if Valka actually would reply. The calculating gaze she gave him from the corner of her prison certainly did not seem a positive sign. However, then, with a steady, lilting cadence to her voice, she succinctly affirmed, “I did.” Just those two words. Nothing more.

- VIII. THE MISTAKES OF WAR

It’s unfinished; I haven’t updated because I ran out of steam and didn’t receive enough reader feedback encouraging me to continue. Though I did have a very vivid final chapter in mind… that I still love… which I never got to…?

MEMOIRS

HTTYD. YEARS: 2015-2016. LENGTH: 44,289 WORDS. My ongoing collection of drabbles for HTTYD. Angst, pain, comfort, humor, crossovers, crack, it’s all there. Favorites include “Family Portrait,” “Stubble,” “Buffcup the Brawny,” and “Remember When.”

He held her hand softly, one wrinkled hand laid gently on top of another. It was just her and him now in the house all alone – for their children had left on a voyage with the grandkids, and would not be back for a week yet, if even two. It evoked the quietness of the old days, back before they were old, back during the times when they were newlyweds and younger even than their grandchildren were today. Oh, but the smell of her hair was just as refreshing now as when it was blonde.

- REMEMBER WHEN

DINNER AT DRAGON’S EDGE

HTTYD. YEAR: 2015. LENGTH: 5,452 WORDS. The gang’s settling in at Dragon’s Edge. To make sure everything operates smoothly, Hiccup suggests a chore rotation system. That means everyone has to do their fair share of the cooking… but it doesn’t mean everyone is a fair cook.

“Oh my gods, is this dinner or what the rats threw away?” Snotlout exclaimed, terrified at the Unidentified Edible Object before him.

Tuffnut picked it up with one experimental hand and held it out before him at a safe distance. People would have held poisonous snakes or bloodied torture devices more cheerily. Squinting his eyes and peering carefully at the peculiar specimen pinched between his fingers, rubbing under his chin with his other, free hand, Tuffnut remarked, “Looks something like what Barf and Belch poop out after they get sick and…”

- 1. ASSIGNING JOBS

This humorous fic I think is where I do best capturing HTTYD character personalities and interactions.

[SUPER]HERO THE HARD WAY

HTTYD. YEARS: 2014-2017. LENGTH: 86,566 WORDS. In a modern world where Berk is full of superheroes battling the League of Outcasts, power-less Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third struggles to receive appreciation for who he is. Through his crime-fighting journey, Hiccup learns that, while he might not have powers, he can become a Hero the Hard Way.

“I wasn’t born with anything. Don’t have anything. I’m the son of Chief Stoick “Skullcrusher” and I don’t have anything. Not even a superpower to turn objects purple. Which frankly would be completely pointless but at least it would have been something.“

He realized he was babbling and promptly shut his mouth. He looked over at Fishlegs, who appeared to be wordlessly processing the information. The teenager appeared baffled moreso than anything else, which at least meant he was not outright rejecting him.

“So you’re going to train to be a superhero… and you don’t have any powers? I got that right?”

“You got that right.”

“Wow.” Fishlegs said.

Hiccup waited for more.

“That’s actually really cool.”

- CHAPTER THREE: SIDEKICKED

This started as me intending to write one crack chapter. It turned into me envisioning a ROB / DOB modern AU where all characters were superheroes. The final product became a retelling of HTTYD 1′s basic concept: Hiccup gaining his peers’ approval despite being different. Somehow, despite me 70% adlibbing by the seat of my pants (should I be admitting this?), I had great fun. And it brought in the most reviews, follows, and favorites of any of my posted stories! Thanks for the reads and support, everyone!!!

RESET OR RESUME

UT. YEAR: 2016-2017. LENGTH: 85,841 WORDS. Gaster’s research unlocks the secret of time travel. After the Royal Scientist’s untimely end, one of Gaster’s colleagues - Sans - finds himself with the power to Reset. Confronted with unpleasant timelines and dangerous choices, Sans must decide how to navigate through time… if it’s worth resetting for a better future, continuing with hope for the present, or simply giving up.

No longer timid and silent, the human happily babbled all sorts of nonsense to Sans, everything from how to bake snow pies to how weird Sans’ skull looked to how beautiful the ribbon in their hair was to their opinions of Papyrus’ ‘battle body’ to how their mom didn’t like the color black to their personal opinion of ferrets to a long narrative of their encounter with a snail-loving old lady they met on the other side of the Ruins door. Everything could be the topic of a conversation. There was no filter and even less sense of restraint for this child.

“How are you a SKELETON?” their happy little high-pitched voice squeaked. They flew gallantly over a twig that rested, flat, on the surface of the snow. Powder flew everywhere as they landed heavily into the snowbank. “That means – that means you should be DEAD, you know!”

“who says i’m not dead?” Sans trolled with a wink.

With a shrieking giggle, they exclaimed, “Don’t be silly! Only ghosts are dead!”

“i could be a skeleton ghost.”

“No you – no you can’t.” The human seemed to be quite confident about their knowledge in paranormal metaphysics. “You can be a skeleton. You can be a ghost. But nobody – NOBODY – can be a skeleton ghost.”

“is that so?”

“YES so! You CAN’T be both. That would be wrong.” Maybe the human mentally categorized skeletons and ghosts as separate Halloween creatures, ensuring they were mutually exclusive concepts. It was always challenging to comprehend a child’s train of logic. “Except…” and now the child paused, leaning down and tugging at the sleeve of their sweater. Something thoughtful – at least as much as one so young could be thoughtful – passed over their eyes. They cocked their head to the side and stared at Sans. In the same sort of innocence with which they had talked about ferrets, the human inquired, “…can ghosts also be dust?”

- 5. KNOCKS [[File 5.2 IH-20150701-3-3]]

I have particular fondness for this fic. I spent more energy and care with this than any other I’ve posted. Drenched it through with UT lore. Edited and revised thoroughly. Had two beta readers examine my ASL for accurate representation. I wrote extensive outlines that were several page long color-coded charts, had all this meticulous structuring going on…

The problem was, this was an impossibly ambitious project. Life got in the way, too. The 85,841 words here aren’t close to the end of Part 1. The final two Parts were going to explain the weirdness within Part 1 (the story doesn’t begin in chronological order - it gets pieced together like a puzzle). What I planned to write would have included a complex characterization arc for Sans, every human child that’s visited the underground, and multiple resets containing main character deaths… until the story would end with Sans confronting Frisk in the Genocide Route.

Hopefully, despite the incompleteness, this is enjoyable from its comedy to its angst! I would at least encourage people to read the first few chapters! Or “Socks” - an entire chapter devoted to Sans and Gaster pulling sock pranks on each other.

SOMEHOW THEY’RE STILL OFFICERS

FMAB. YEAR: 2018-2019. LENGTH: 6,036 WORDS. Ahhhhhh yes. Team Mustang. The hand-selected, elite group of military officers who effectively spend their time… doing nonsense.

Everyone was scrambling at once. Mustang rushed forward to greet their guest, perfect composure only broken by the fast pace at which he moved. In fact the colonel’s posture was almost a proud enough display to make his lack of shirt go unnoticed. But Falman chucked his cards away at the same time he tried to salute; Breda was ducking from Falman’s sudden card shower; Fuery was launching pants and underwear in Havoc’s face; and Lieutenant Hawkeye, obviously abashed to be in this room at all, was covering her eyes with her hand in what was either her life’s longest sigh, or a pathetic attempt to hide her face and identity.

- WE WERE JUST PLAYING CARDS

My collection of FMA drabbles, particularly stories of Team Mustang shenanigans. Prompts / requests welcome for more adventures!

I have a few other drabbles posted, too. I also have unfinished chapters of Voltron fanfictions on my computer that I could share, too? Maybe I should? I’m currently working on several Royai fanfictions, other FMA drabbles, and a longer Deponia fanfiction.

Thank you again for being so nice and connecting with me over fanfiction and fandom and FMA and more. You’re a really wonderful and cool person and you made my day.

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ayearofpike · 5 years ago

Text

Strange Girl

Simon Pulse, 2015 413 pages, 19 chapters + epilogue ISBN 978-1-4814-5058-4 LOC: PZ7.P626St 2015 OCLC: 936552329 Released November 17, 2015 (per B&N)

There’s a new girl in school, and something about her is unbelievably interesting to Fred Allen. Maybe it’s the way she carries herself. Maybe it’s the way she refers to herself as merely a vessel for conveying the knowledge she seems to have about our greater nature. Maybe it’s the remarkable power she commands, the way that happiness and healing ride in her wake everywhere she goes. Or maybe it’s her sweet ass. Whatever it is, she seems to connect with Fred just as quickly, elevating him to a greater happiness than he’s ever known. Of course, as with any powerful girl that people don’t understand, this happiness is fated to flee just as quickly when she pushes herself beyond what her body can handle.

Or, shorter: It’s Sati. It’s Sati set in high school with teenagers. It’s Sateen.

Part of the reason I took on this project is that I felt like my own writing was stagnating. Time was I couldn’t sit down without pumping out a thousand words of my own universe, my own characters and plots and desires and ideas. But at a certain point, I started to try to focus on bettering and refining one of my main tales, one I’d revisited off and on since sixth grade ... and I just burned out. I realized that I simply could not rework this story again, that it wasn’t ever going to be what I wanted or do what I wanted, or at least not in this fifth attempt in ten years. I couldn’t keep talking about the same thing again.

This might be indicative of why I’ve had a hard time pushing through as A Year (And A Half Now, Almost) Of Pike has approached its end point. There’s no denying that the man is a killer storyteller, and that some of his ideas and worlds were stunning and even revolutionary within the genre. But thirty years is a long time to stay in the game, especially when you’re pumping out more than three books a year for the main part of your popularity. It’s admirable that he was able to keep that up for so long without resorting to the James Patterson model of hiring someone else to write the books that have his name in large type across the top. But then, when you’ve only got one brain working on all these extensive ideas and under these onerous deadlines, you’re invariably going to start to repeat yourself.

Almost everything Pike wrote after the start of Spooksville (I can’t even be charitable and say after his car accident) has repeated or revisited some major theme from an earlier work (mostly his own; I see you, Black Knight). And as I’ve pushed through and read every single one of his published works, I’ve started to feel that same fatigue that I had when trying to rewrite and repair something I’d spent so much time on of my own. See, this is why I can never actually be an academic despite being a composition teacher: so much of studying English is finding your niche and continuing to write about the same topic for your entire career, and I don’t think I could ever devote that much of my professional life to writing about the same thing. I just got tired of my ill-researched writing about the complete works of my favorite childhood author, for fuck’s sake.

Still, if any book was due a revamp, Sati fits that mold. It was his first adult novel, it kinda got buried to all except his most devoted fans, and maybe it would be timely to publish a book about kindness and introspection and acceptance just as the muckrakingest American election in recent history was getting underway. But most of all, it’s still a relevant look at how we act and what we think about when we consider faith and religion and God. Considering how audiences and the book market have so drastically changed in the last thirty years, it totally makes sense that Pike might want to revisit the concept for a new generation. And honestly, I’m a victim of my own age and literacy here — nobody else who might be interested in this YA book in 2015 is reading its spiritual predecessor from 1988.

I’m mostly going to blast through the summary, because it’s been more than three weeks since I finished the book and I don’t actually want to reread it to remember specifics. Fred is a high-school musician living in Elder, South Dakota, and just like any other teenager in a small town is dreaming of escape. His parents own a hardware store and just barely maintain a rocky marriage, though all we know about that is what Fred specifically tells us. His best friend Janet, the presumptive valedictorian, has her own messy home life, but they always have each other’s backs, which is why Janet pushes Fred toward the new girl.

This is Aja, a beautiful Brazilian who relocated to South Dakota for some reason three months ago but didn’t start school until today. The teacher in the class they share is unreasonably mean to her for apparently no reason, but it doesn’t put Fred off buying her lunch and trying to learn more about her. He’s unsuccessful, largely, but she does learn about him and his band and their work before she takes off. They’re doing a gig at a nearby Air Force bar on the weekend, and everyone knows Fred is the real talent and pressures him to perform a little more of his original and quieter work at the show. This here is Fred’s difficulty: he wants it, he has the talent and the drive, but he second-guesses how much people actually want to hear his voice.

Aja gets kicked out of the class they share when she’s accused of cheating on her entrance exam (what?), so Fred doesn’t see her again until after their gig. The crowd is getting raucous and angry, and the drummer doesn’t take well to that, so the evening is just starting to devolve into a brawl when Aja stands on a table and tells everyone to calm the fuck down. She also helps out one of the servicemen, who has taken a whiskey bottle to the head but now isn’t even bleeding. Weird, right?

A local reporter sure thinks so. She posts a video of the event, with a suggestion that maybe Aja is more than she appears to be. Can she heal people? The folks at their next gig have the same question, surrounding her and generally pestering until Fred manages to pull her away. They drop her off at home, the biggest house in town, and Fred finally asks her out, sort of, by responding to her question about his unhappiness by saying she should stop accepting dates with other dudes. Like, possessive much already? But on his way to work the next day, he sees the teacher in the cemetery, near her son’s grave, and decides to talk to her about Aja. This opens a floodgate: the teacher blames herself for her son running outside and getting hit by a car, and apparently Aja knew more than she should have, which was why the teacher was so salty with her before. So what else does this girl know?

Fred goes to pick Aja up for their first official date, and ends up talking to her guardian, where he finally learns more about her past. It seems that Aja was a feral child living near a village in the Amazon, and she had a reputation as a magical healer and talent. The guardian was compelled to the village for some reason, and appointed herself the caretaker of the girl, and only uprooted them to South Dakota because Aja said they needed to go there. The guardian only has a vague idea why, but she’s pretty sure it’s related to Fred.

They go back to his house, because his parents are out, and he plays her a song almost off the top of his head that she’s inspired. Before they can start gettin’ freaky, Fred’s phone rings, and apparently his hot-headed drummer has gotten into it with some drug dealers and cops in a nearby town and is in critical condition in the hospital. So Fred and Aja go there, but when he calls the guardian’s valet (or whatever this dude is; it’s kinda muddy) to tell her what’s up, he gets pissed and freaked out and orders Fred to make Aja leave the hospital. Only he can’t find her. And when he does, she’s all dizzy, and passes out on the ride home, and when he drops her off the valet screams at him and slams the door in his face.

But the drummer wakes up, and when Fred goes to see him, he hears a story of two beings visiting him, and his realization that this was the end, only he wasn’t ready to go because it would cause too much pain. This is the only real mention of the subplot that the band’s bass player is gay and in love with the drummer, and even though the drummer is straight (I mean, I guess he could be bi, Pike doesn’t really go into details, but the point is they don’t end up together) he cares too much about his friend to just kick the bucket. So the smaller of the beings picked up on that and touched him, and then he woke up.

There’s also a reporter there trying to talk to Fred and his best friend about the miracle that Aja performed, and they do their best to brush her off only she isn’t giving up. In fact, she’s using a YouTube channel to promote the idea that Aja is a goddess or something, with a video of the way she ended the bar brawl and testimony from a nurse in the hospital that she touched the drummer not long before he arose from life-threatening injuries. Fred agrees to meet with the reporter and actually gets more information than he gives up: namely, Aja has been curing and healing people since her days in Brazil and that she spoke with all of the villagers about her decision to leave for the US, saying there was an important reason to do so.

Before he can confront Aja and her handlers about it, her guardian dies. The valet says she’s written a letter to Fred, but he can’t seem to find it. So while we wait, let’s go on a date! Only someone in the restaurant recognizes Aja and insists she heal her daughter. And this is where we find Aja’s limitations: she can’t help this girl; her fate is to live for a short time.

In blasting through the summary I might be glossing over Aja’s description of her connection to the cosmos and how her powers and abilities work. A lot of it ties back to the same things Pike loves to revisit when thinking about metaphysics: the oneness of Buddhist nirvana, letting go of desires and selfishness to connect to the unity of humanity, and being able to tap into superhuman powers once you’re linked. Aja calls the overarching all the “Big Person,” and her abilities come from what the Big Person tells her is necessary. She can act out of her own human desires, respond to the Little Person, but when she does it takes a toll on her health, which is what happened with the drummer. But how does someone so young get tapped into a consciousness so vast and lose her childish selfishness? We’ll get there.

Anyway, Fred goes to a band rehearsal the next day and is stopped on the way by a family who has another sick kid in the hospital, desperate for him to put them in touch with Aja. He doesn’t want to do it, knowing what he knows, but his friends accuse him of being overprotective. The best friend compares a lot of what Aja has said she does with practices she’s learned through yoga and meditation, to draw an explicit line for those in the audience who haven’t just read 94 other Pike books and didn’t look more deeply into Eastern religion because of it. And then Fred’s phone rings, and it’s the family, and they already talked to Aja and their daughter is feeling better so he doesn’t have to put himself out. What? The kid was in the hospital in another state. Aja explains that she’s not actually the vessel: the Big Person does the work, and all she’s doing is making it aware and asking the question of “can we?”

The will reading for Aja’s guardian comes up, and in addition to splitting her (holy crap immense) wealth between Aja and the valet, she has also left instructions with her lawyer that Fred should get an audition with a record label in LA. The laywer also has the letter, which basically says that Fred can’t protect Aja from the infirm and ill, and he shouldn’t try. I guess this lady would know, right, having taken care of the girl for something like ten years. But word is getting out, more and more people are asking Aja for help, national reporters are starting to show up, Fred has a weird encounter with a spooky fortune teller in a graveyard, and he can’t help but be concerned. So he helps the valet hire a private security firm to keep these people away from Aja, which (when they follow her to school on Monday) prompts an emergency community meeting about the disruption of education by these horrible rumors.

As it turns out, this is actually a racist move by the principal, who has a reputation as an evangelical Christian and has unfairly targeted minorities (especially our drummer, who is Mexican) for years. He’s trying to get a lynch mob together without exactly saying as much. Only too bad for him a lot of people in the community (the more open-minded ones, the ones who have actually spoken to her) already support Aja, because of their own first-hand experience with her help. But enough people are screaming about Jesus that they’re just about ready to light up torches and drive Aja out of town. Until she reveals the racist principal’s big secret: he had a child with a black woman, and could never reconcile his love for them with his love for pointy white hoods or whatever, and then the kid died and he has always regretted it. And Aja holds his hands, and talks to him, and suddenly here comes the creepy fortune teller who it turns out was the mother of Racist Principal’s child, and they embrace and apologize and forgive, and the meeting is suddenly over.

Somewhere in all the Aja hullaballoo, the best friend took off to New York to live with her mother. She won’t answer Fred’s calls, she won’t respond to texts, and Aja (the last one to see her before she left) insists that she can’t be the one to reveal her confidences. So Fred goes to see her dad and try to get more info. Now this isn’t the first time Best Friend has left with the mom: the first was right after they got divorced, only she moved back a year later without any explanation. And the divorce was just as sudden and explanation-free, only the dad just accepted it. And Fred realizes, while he’s standing there in the living room and picking up hints from the dad and looking at old pictures where both women look uncomfortable: he’s a sexual predator. He touched his daughter inappropriately, because his wife and her mother was somehow loveless (leading to the girl coming back the first time) and so he partook of some fucked-up urges. Only the girl has never been able to accept that it wasn’t her fault, and in talking to Aja and exploring herself is she just getting there. So of course she needs to not LIVE with the motherfucker while she’s coming to grips.

Fortunately for Fred so he doesn’t stab a bitch, the trip to LA is nigh. Aja goes with him, and he plays his demos live, finishing with the new song he’s still writing for her. Of course that’s the song they want, and they hustle him into a recording session with an engineer to lay down a single. On the way back, Best Friend calls and asks if she can stay with him and his parents long enough to graduate high school with her friends, and as their flights land within a couple hours of each other in Sioux Falls, they plan to drive home together. Fred and Aja get there first, and he has to intimidate the dad away from the airport before his friend gets there. Only that can’t work for the whole state: he’s waiting for them to drive out of the parking lot, and attempts to run them off the road to take back his little girl.

Did I mention that it’s winter in South Dakota? The interstate is a sheet of ice, and these assholes are playing chicken at 100 mph. Of course they wreck the cars, and the kids get off with minor bumps and bruises. The dad isn’t so lucky: his car has overturned and trapped him inside. Now the best friend is upset with him, but she’s not a sociopath and he’s still her dad, so they work to pry him out of the car before it explodes. But the way he’s bleeding and choking, he’s probably going to die anyway, so she wants Aja to heal him. And this is Fred’s great test of faith: do I argue against this and risk losing my best friend, or do I go along and risk losing my girlfriend? He finally agrees to let her listen to the Big Person.

Of course Aja collapses immediately upon laying hands on the molester. But by the time emergency response gets to the accident, he’s feeling better and Aja is fading fast. She can now finally tell Fred about her childhood, her past, which she has long avoided. It turns out that her dad was a drug dealer who stole from his bosses, and as punishment they sent three strongarms to kill the whole family. Only when they murdered Aja’s mother, her soul fled her body, leaving a gap for connection to the Big Person. The female enforcer sensed this and took the kid and ran ... and this female enforcer ended up being Racist Principal’s baby momma. No, I don’t know how it works, get your own globe.

But now she’s given her all to Molester Dad and is on her way out. Still, her reason for coming to South Dakota was a good one: love. She knew that Fred needed her, and she knew that he would benefit from the connection she might provide to the Big Person. And even though her time was fated to be short, she feels happy that she completed her mission of love, and trusts that Fred will continue to spread the message. One last kiss, and she’s gone.

They end up at a hospital, and of course they want to do an autopsy on Aja to see why she died so suddenly and unexpectedly. The valet is firmly against it, and manages to get custody of the body and take it home, where he and Fred say one last goodbye before he lights the shit on fire. It’s a good thing she already filled out a will, that gave all her money to Fred, and that the lawyer has a copy of it!

There’s a long-ass epilogue that talks about what happened to everyone. The best friend has kids of her own and almost never talks to her dad, the two other band members founded a holistic medicine company in San Francisco and got married but to other people, and Fred himself was never able to leverage his meeting and audition into his own performing career but now writes hit songs for other people. But I guess none of them are about Aja, because now he had to write a book about it? And it’s done! The end!

See what I mean? This shit has been done before, almost beat for beat, and by the SAME AUTHOR. Now I’m not averse to reading a book again (cf. this whole goddamn project), but at least I’m going into the book knowing it is what it is. I’m not expecting to see something that is labeled a new work that actually retells a previous story that I literally just read. Maybe James Patterson can get away with that, but I don’t read his books either.

At any rate, this post is finally done. I have this monkey off my back, and maybe now I can reflect and give some closure on the whole project. But I’ll save that for another post.

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happily-studious · 6 years ago

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College Success: How to keep up with your work.

I created this guide for college students, but it works for high school, too. This guide is designed to help all students, no matter your health status or major. I took care to include a couple tips for maintaining your mental and physical health while managing a college course load. I hope you enjoy, and I hope this helps!!!

1. Don't force yourself.

This is the most important tip. Self care is vital. When you're dealing with a fever, the flu, chronic pain, a stomach bug, or even major depression, it can be difficult to study effectively. Don't force yourself to study if you're not feeling well enough to get out of bed and do things. Making yourself get up to study helps nobody if you really aren't feeling well. You will only feel distracted and you won't be able to remember much of what you worked toward. Remind yourself that tomorrow is a new day to be productive, and if you're really feeling guilty for not doing anything, you can restart your day at 2 PM. Now, this isn't an excuse to procrastinate. You should still get up and do your work if you have a chest cold, are suffering from allergies, or even if you're just having a plain old bad day. Monitor how you feel and ask yourself if you're feeling well enough to study or not.

2. Divide large workloads into smaller tasks.

Having a big project to do or having a major exam to study for can be very overwhelming to the point of wanting to cram it all into one day. Here's a tip: DON'T do this. Your work won't be it's best and your grade may suffer. Instead, pull out your planner. Write down the date that the assignment is due. Write down your exam dates. Highlight it or put a star next to it to symbolize it's importance and to remind you of what you're working toward. Then, you may want to turn to the notes section or pull out a piece of paper. Some planners have sections where the month has individual days where you can write extended information. Go day by day. Start with the day the work was assigned to you. Create small goals to complete every day leading up to the due date of the assignment. For example, if a big research paper is due: day 1 may be spent searching for a topic, days 2 & 3 can be spent researching the topic and collecting information, day 4 will be planning and drafting the paper, day 5 will be actually writing the paper, day 6 will be editing and revising, and day 7 will be submitting the assignment. Chunking large workloads into easy to manage, bite-sized tasks will reduce the amount of stress you experience and allow you to to focus better.

3. Develop a growth mindset.

In my student success class, we watched a TedTalk by Carol Dweck. She talked about developing a growth mindset in order raise your grades and accomplish your goals more effectively. Basically, a fixed mindset looks like this: "I got a 67% on this test, I thought I did better, I'm a failure, I'm either good at it or I'm not, I hate challenges". A growth mindset, on the other hand, looks like this: "I got a 67% on this test, so what did I do wrong? Failure is an opportunity to grow and do better next time, I should try new study tactics, I like challenges, feedback is constructive". Having a growth mindset highlights the idea that failure isn't permanent, and that you can become better at something through hard work and a good attitude.

4. Develop a schedule.

To combat procrastination, you can develop a study schedule. Reserve time during the day, maybe an hour or two, to dedicate to a specific study activity. Write it down in your planner. For example, on Wednesdays and Fridays from 3 PM-4 PM, I like to copy down my notes from my laptop onto paper. This is my time to make my notes more understandable, and I can also convert information into visual charts and graphs to better see the material. This time is your own to catch up on work, review your notes, and focus on your academic goals. Use this time wisely.

5. Don't expect instructions.

Many college professors will expect you to come to class having already read the chapters and have notes taken. Their job is to teach you, not baby sit you to make sure you're coming to class prepared. Some professors will remind you to keep up with your assigned readings. Others will expect you to do it on your own. It's up to you to learn how your professor works, and to refer to your syllibi to stay on track. Do what you have to do to keep track of your syllibi; set reminders on your phone to check up with your syllibi, put your syllibi in a safe and easy to access place, just do what you think is best.

6. Don't stop studying.

A well-exercised brain stores information longer and learns how to process it using different strategies. In order to give your brain the exercise it needs, review your materials often and in different ways. For instance, rewriting your notes helps for one occasion, but next time create and use flashcards. Use different techniques for studying the same topic. This will teach your brain how to use the information you study in different situations so you'll do better on tests. Also, do not quit studying certain topics. If you completed the chapter on the cardiovascular system, for example, don't stop studying it just because you finished that chapter. Return to the information every week or two so that your brain retains what you've learned. You'll thank me when that topic from the beginning of the semester ends up on final exams.

7. Flash cards, flash cards, flash cards.

Ah, yes. Flash cards. The tool every studyblr swears by. But, they work! Now, how do you use this marvelous invention? Well, there's several different ways. They can be used for everything, from vocabulary terms to mathematical equations & properties. They're also reversible. For example, instead of reading the word then flipping over to see the definition, you can do the exact opposite. Start with the definition, then try to figure out the word. Flip the card over to see if you were correct. Cross-checking yourself in this manner also exercises your brain more! Another reason flash cards are adored so much is for their portability. Seriously, stuff them in your pocket or in your purse or laptop case and pull them out wherever you go if you find idle time. Review them at the doctor's office, babysitting your cousin, between tv commercials, waiting in line at the grocery store, walking between classes, or even during long car rides (as long as you're not driving!).

8. Know how you work best.

Assess yourself to see what conditions are best (or worst) for you to work in. Do you work better with bright light? Dim light? Do you focus better in the early morning, late morning/early afternoon, early evening, or late at night? Are you more efficient when you study alone or in small groups? Can you focus in large groups or not? Do you tend to procrastinate? Does music help you focus, or does it just hinder your progress? All of these factors are essential to creating an ideal study environment. You know yourself best. See what works best for you and try to create a comfortable study space for yourself.

9. Never settle for taking notes once.

If you take notes one time, sure they might be organized in a way that works for you, but are you going to be able to remember what you wrote? If you type your notes on your computer, make sure to write them down in a notebook later. If the notes you recorded during lecture are sloppy, rewrite them. Then, go back and highlight the essentials. Some important things to highlight include new terms and ideas, dates and names, and key concepts. Rewriting your notes is proven to boost memory. Plus, you get to make them pretty!

10. Remember to treat yourself.

After a long, hard day of studying, get up and stretch. You can breathe now, you did it! Reward yourself with some ice cream, a warm bath, some Netflix time, or whatever you enjoy! Rewarding yourself after doing hard work also teaches your brain to associate studying with a reward at the end, so you'll be more likely to want to work hard!

Good luck pursuing your dreams! ❤

#studyblr #studyspo #study #study tips #study motivation #study notes #how to study #college success #college #university #student life #student #student success #mine

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genesisarclite · 6 years ago

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There’s a vent post resulting from years and years of buildup under the cut. Today, I want to rant a bit about... romance fics.

Something that has bothered me for a long time is coming across posts that say things like “so-and-so doesn’t need a man”, or “a romance would just ruin it and be out of place”, and variations thereof. I used to have this attitude, considering romance fics to be self-indulgent nonsense that was good for a guilty pleasure, but certainly weren’t real stories. I even refused to watch movies with romance plots or play games with them. It took years for me to understand why love stories can be useful and powerful, and years beyond that to get any good at crafting them myself.

I think a lot of it has to do with the implementation of “multiple-choice romances” in games. I know they’ve been around a very long time, but games like Mass Effect and Dragon Age brought them into the mainstream. As much as many laud the romances and get invested in them, they’re really nothing special and are actually pretty dang clunky in part one of each story they’re in. Even Thane’s romance, my go-to for femShep, is a bit of a mess.

There’s quite a bit of vitriol and wariness surrounding implementing a romance plot into another Deus Ex theme. The issue seems to lie with many automatically thinking of “multiple choice” romances, rather than a single, canonical romance locked into the narrative. While I’m certain such a choice would be controversial, since your acceptance of it hinges hard on your interpretation of Adam himself, it would be the only way to make the whole thing feel natural. You’d have to pick someone to be his love interest, then fold her and their story neatly into the overall narrative. Adam’s love story absolutely cannot be rushed. Making it multiple-choice, avoidable, or developing too quickly would be bad.

But I think that, between that and lots of poorly-written romances in both canon and fanon, people are wary, and they’re right to be.

Romance fics are often the first type of story a new fanfic writer puts on the internet. It certainly was the case for me. I still have a copy of that story, sort of to remind me of how far I’ve come, and also to laugh at, because it is awful. But what no one tells you is that, romances? Are really hard. They are difficult. The audience has to care about the relationship, connect with the characters, and be invested in their arc or story. Too cliche or over-the-top, and you’re writing a Harlequin bodice-ripper (obviously, there’s an audience for that, but that’s not what I’m talking about here). Too little, and nobody believes it. Don’t show enough, and we have to go on their word that they’re soooooo in lurv.

I have spent years learning how to craft better romances. I’ve done everything from read blogs from writers and readers of the stuff who are serious about it, to things like Das Sporking and Plinkett’s Reviews, to understand what makes a good love story, and what turns a love story into a bad one. One of my better romance fics that I was really proud of back in the day, “Divisions of Time”, is cringeworthy to me now because it’s too over-the-top. Even “Suscitatio” isn’t free from criticism - if I could rewrite the thing and cut down on the melodrama, trust me, I would do it.

Don’t get me wrong. I like attractive men as much as the next person. But one part of writing a proper romance is understanding that these characters are characters. They are people, in all the ways that matter, with their own lives, needs, and desires. To write a proper romance for Adam, as an example, I had to disconnect my attraction to him and focus on the why. Why would this woman be into him, and why would he care in return? What do they do together? What can they talk about? What do they have in common, and what do they clash over? Why should we care?

We all have our fantasies. We fantasize about the relationships in fandom, the beautiful characters, or insert ourselves just to get with a fictional character. It happens. It’s a hallmark of less experienced writers more often than not (and trust me when I say, I wrote a lot of Suefic, I know what I’m talking about), but it can happen with experienced ones, too. I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t a little fantasy involved in writing about Adam and Aria. But the key is remembering that, first and foremost, I’m a storyteller. I’m using a romance to tell a story, and hopefully one that pulls people in.

If you want to write a romance, choose your demographic. Decide if you’re willing to write wish-fulfillment love stories, or something with more depth. There’s tiers to it. If you want to write wish-fulfillment, go ahead. There’s obviously a huge market for it. But if you’re like me, and want to write love stories that pull people in and tell a great story that will hopefully stick with your readers long after the story ends, take the time to learn. Writing a good romance is really hard work, but when you get those comments that tell you the reader felt everything that happened, that they cried, that they felt contentedly hollow, that it haunted them for weeks... it’s all worth it.

People are wary of romances in fandom and often in canon, and they have every right to be. But if you don’t like the stories that are being told, change it by crafting your own. Can’t find that romance you want to read so bad, the epic one that makes you grin like an idiot or sob like a little baby? Want to show that even the hardened warrior can fall in love and it doesn’t have to suck?

It’s worth it. It is so, so worth it. Some of the very greatest stories in history are love stories. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. It is so worth it.

#meta #ranty rant #sort of #also #deus ex #and others

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