#support asian writers

[iconicore]

atla live action is gonna change me

[rrcraft-and-lore]

For anyone wanting something nifty and free, this is a comic I made with the lovely Sachi Ediriweera -- Gang Violence (inspired by Bollywood tropes & tales about a good cop come to town with a supernatural twist.

Whole comic is free!

[nkjemisin]

well ain’t this some fuckshit

Just heard about the mess that YA author Maggie Tokuda-Hall has been dealing with. tl;dr, Her publisher offered her the chance to be part of an initiative that would’ve put her work in a lot more stores and libraries. It’s an initiative specifically aimed at amplifying Asian voices... but only if she removed the word “racism” from her author’s note. On a book about the Japanese internment.

I am very glad she rejected this offer, and I 100% agree with her that this is pure cowardice. I’m appalled at Scholastic -- or any other publisher who’s doing this but whose authors can’t take the risk of speaking out. This is the kind of crap that marginalized writers have to deal with all the time -- and it is also how fascism takes root:  “just business” decisions that perpetuate injustice, systematic erasure of targeted groups from their own damn stories, institutions choosing to do what’s easy over what’s right.

(I have been very fortunate to never have a publisher do this to me. Plenty of disrespectful bs from institutions and individuals within the industry, but never from the people who signed my checks. I’m also somewhat insulated from the book ban bullshit because my work is genre and isn’t aimed at kids -- though that’s coming, of course. Fascists don’t stop until they are stopped.)

Anyway. Pop over to Maggie’s blog to read the full story -- or better yet hop on a retail site and buy her books. It’s up to readers now to support marginalized authors, since it’s clear nobody else will.

[theflashjaygarrick]

Cassandra Cain is groundbreaking as a character because she wasn’t invented as a supporting character to a white man but her own protagonist. Sure, in the broader DC universe she was a part of the Batfamily but almost immediately she was given a solo ongoing where she was the titular figure. Batman was made a recurring side character in her own narrative. This is super rare in big 2 superhero comics. Most of the time women (especially women of colour) are introduced as a supporting character for a male character story, or as part of a white male dominated team, before organically gaining the popularity to ‘earn’ her a spinoff.

But with Cass they trusted that this stubborn, neurodivergent, Asian teenage girl was badass and compelling enough as a superhero to sustain her own solo series. And you know what? They were right. batgirl 2000 (her original run) is the first and longest individual batgirl run in DC comics history. Comic readers loved her.

And this only was possible because of a diverse writers room with a drive to push creative boundaries and a willingness to fight with editorial if necessary. Joe Illidge (the first black editor for Batman) recalled that the Bat creative team had to fight to have a non-white Batgirl. But they fought for it, they won, and Cass demonstrated that risks and moves towards more diverse comics pays off. And the fact that after countless attempts to silence her, ignore her fans, and pretend she doesn’t exist, Cass is back with a vengeance and a new solo only further proves they were right. Despite what the anti-woke crowd may cry bold, progressive storytelling can and does work, especially when the creative team believes in the character and plot and the people with the money let them do their thing.

[fiercynn]

poetry outlets that support a free palestine

after finding out that the poetry foundation/POETRY magazine pulled a piece that discussed anti-zionism because they "don't want to pick a side" during the current genocide, i decided to put together a list of online outlets who are explicitly in solidarity with palestine where you can read (english-language) poetry, including, except where otherwise stated, by palestinian poets!

my criteria for this is not simply that they have published palestinian poets or pro-palestine statements in the past; i only chose outlets that, since october 7, 2023, have done one of the following:

published a solidarity statement against israeli occupation & genocide

signed onto the open letter for writers against the war on gaza and/or the open letter boycotting the poetry foundation

published content that is explicitly pro-palestine or anti-zionist, including poetry that explicitly deals with israeli occupation & genocide

shared posts that are pro-palestine on their social media accounts

fyi this is undoubtedly a very small sample. also some of these sites primarily feature nonfiction or short stories, but they do all publish poetry.

outlets that focus entirely on palestinian or SWANA (southwest asia and north africa) literature

we are not numbers, a palestinian youth-led project to write about palestinian lives

arab lit, a magazine for arabic literature in translation that is run by a crowd-funded collective

sumuo, an arab magazine, platform, and community (they appear to have a forthcoming palestine special print issue edited by leena aboutaleb and zaina alsous)

mizna, a platform for contemporary SWANA (southwest asian & north africa) lit, film, and art

the markaz review, a literary arts publication and cultural institution that curates content and programs on the greater middle east and communities in diaspora

online magazines who have published special issues of all palestinian writers (and all of them publish palestinian poets in their regular issues too)

fiyah literary magazine in december 2021, edited by nadia shammas and summer farah (if you have $6 usd to spare, proceeds from the e-book go to medical aid for palestinians)

strange horizons in march 2021, edited by rasha abdulhadi

the baffler in june 2021, curated by poet/translators fady joudah & lena khalaf tuffaha

the markaz review has two palestine-specific issues, on gaza and on palestinians in israel, currently free to download

literary hub featured palestinian poets in 2018 for the anniversary of the 1948 nakba

adi magazine, who have shifted their current (october 2023) issue to be all palestinian writers

outlets that generally seem to be pro-palestine/publish pro-palestine pieces and palestinian poetry

protean magazine (here's their solidarity statement)

poetry online (offering no-fee submissions to palestinian writers)

sundog lit (offering no-fee submissions to palestinian writers through december 1, 2023)

guernica magazine (here's a twitter thread of palestinian poetry they've published) guernica ended up publishing a zionist piece so fuck them too

split this rock (here's their solidarity statement)

the margins by the asian-american writers' workshop

the offing magazine

rusted radishes

voicemail poems

jewish currents

the drift magazine

asymptote

the poetry project

ctrl + v journal

the funambulist magazine

n+1 magazine (signed onto the open letter and they have many pro-palestine articles, but i'm not sure if they have published palestinian poets specifically)

hammer & hope (signed onto the letter but they are a new magazine only on their second issue and don't appear to have published any palestinian poets yet)

if you know others, please add them on!

[art]

Meet the Artist: @joshualunacreations

Hi, I’m Joshua and I’m a professional comic book writer and artist. I co-created three series at Image comics: Ultra, Girls, and The Sword. After I went solo with my Image series Whispers, I started making online comic strips exploring my Filipino/Asian American identity and experiences. What began as a side project and organic outlet to process my thoughts and feelings turned into a seven-year journey that continues to this day. The more I write and draw, the more I realize I have to say—especially with the sharp increase in anti-Asian violence against AAPI and the institutional censorship that prevents us from addressing it adequately. I was told by my publisher that I wasn’t talking about AAPI issues in the “right way” because I tackle difficult, complex, and painful truths about Asian America. Despite these barriers, I’m determined to collect these strips into a book and publish them as Americanizasian. In the meantime, you can follow and share my work online and support me by pledging to my Patreon or donating to my PayPal. Happy APAHM!

Pleased to meet you, Joshua! He has shared some of his comics below for you all.

Check out more of Joshua’s artworks over at his Tumblr, @joshualunacreations!

-

We are highlighting some of Tumblr’s talented artists of Asian descent all month as part of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month!

[specialagentartemis]

every time I see someone recommending Benjanun Sriduangkaew in the name of supporting queer women and queer POC I’m always like. Yeah except for the ones she viciously harassed I guess. Maybe she turned over a new leaf and I’m being unfair by holding her old sins against her but I’ve never seen an apology or an acknowledgement from her that she did anything wrong.

And like. If you want to support queer Asian sff writers. I can name half a dozen off the top of my head who are amazing and creative and deserve more attention and have NOT spearheaded internet harassment campaigns against other writers. So.

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

Merle Oberon (Wuthering Heights, The Scarlet Pimpernel)—She was mixed race (born in India and her mother was Sri Lankan) and still managed to make it in the British and American film industries (by passing) despite a rough start in life and industry racism. She was the first Asian person to be nominated for any Academy Award (best actress in 1935)! She also survived a car accident in 1937 and kept on acting until 1973, despite potentially career-ending facial scars. Also, she met her third husband while they were filming a movie together in 1973 (her last movie and she still looks great!). They fell in love and got married in 1975 when she was 62 and he was 36. She died 4 years later in 1979. Iconic.

Jean Seberg (Breathless, Saint Joan)— Some of us watched À bout de souffle as a lil French undergrad and had the trajectory of our lives changed by Jean Seberg. She IS French new wave!! She is the moment!! She sadly had to work with a lot of shitty directors in her career but even so, she has this magnetic energy whenever she’s on screen. In her personal life, she was also very supportive of civil rights causes, and was even targeted/harassed by the FBI for financially supporting the Black Panther Party.

This is round 3 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Merle Oberon:

Beautiful. Talented. Biracial. Also please refer to the following promo from the aforementioned A Night To Remember, in which she plays the writer George Sand:

Her performances always give off this perfect blend of of being composed, refined, and aloof while still being deeply passionate and I eat it up every time.

Linked gifset

A rare example of a WOC working in lead roles in this era (mostly because she worked very hard to pass as white and had to hide her south asian heritage sadly). She has this very regal vibe but also a simmering intensity—even holding her own as Cathy opposite Laurence Olivier as Heathcliff.

I need all the gothic fans to STAND UP for our cathy!!

She has such a unique face when it comes to old hollywood actresses - a lot of them start to melt together in my brain - but Merle has always stood out to me<3

Jean Seberg:

anyone who plays Joan of Arc is kind of hot by default tbh

she's gorgeous, she's cool, she has the original blond pixie cut

She donated a lot of her money to civil rights organizations such as the NAACP and the black panther party as well as Native American school groups, as a result of this the fbi ran a smear campaign against her and a surveillance campaign which is thought to have led to her suicide tragically.

idk if this is propaganda but the COINTELPRO and the FBI are widely blamed for her death. If the FBI was after her for supporting the Black Panther Party you know she was good

[monnn]

When you know, you know.

staring: Idol! Mingyu x Non-idol!, GN! s/o

wc: 1.4k-ish

genre: slice of life(?), FLUFF. YOU HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO LOVE MINGOO, comfort-ish(?)

warnings: mentions of food, reader being sick(in love), tooth-rotting fluff.

a/n: hi omg hello, i am alive and finally out of my writer's block(ig?). i'm terribly unwell atm and i've never craved the comfort of a person as much as i do with gyu, so here's a highly self-indulgent fic! i hope you are doing okay and i just wanna say, i'm so glad to be writing again. have a great day/night and hope this fic reaches the person in need of a cutie mingoo atm! ��

the song rec for this fic would be Margaret by LDR ft. Bleachers!!!

Mingyu's on his way back, with your favourite meal and boba. Was there a reason to get take-out? Definitely not, he really just felt like it. If you had made food, Min could convince you to have it next day. That's how it usually went and he was mostly successful. With his manager dropping him off, he heads inside the elevator and straight to your floor. Since he already knew the code to your apartment, he quietly let himself in, eyes immediately searching for you.

What he doesn't expect to find, is you sitting in the dark on a chair, curled up in one of your fav blankets with a flask coddled in your arms. Your head's supported by a chair on the dining table, mouth slightly open as you doze further away. Min quietly trots through the living room to you, slowly putting the bags down, careful not to wake you up. He adores you for a good minute, slowly lifting you up to rest in your bed. Their neck must hurt, but they keep doing this >:( he wonders to himself while carrying you.

He lets you rest while he does all the chores that you weren't able to do cause of your sickness. A few hours pass by, you wake up with Mingyu sitting by your side, barely touching you in the process of waking you up. He knew how extra sensitive you were to touch when sick, hence he decided to call out for you than kissing you to consciousness. You wake up slowly while he adjusts pillows behind for you to sit straight, he really is a nagging Asian mum in disguise. Handing you warm water to hydrate, he looks at you with all the love in him to see if you need anything from him. You catch him looking and reach for his hand, realising the love you have for him is unbelievable.

"You know love, I can't ever thank you for being so kind to me. I feel like there isn't enough of me to be so damn grateful for you." you say, lovingly gazing at the love of your life. A faint pink's spread all over his face as he nuzzles his face to your hand.

"And I'm ever so happy to be the receiver of your gratefulness, regardless of the amount. It takes two to tango I guess." he says, ever so lightly pressing his lips to your hand. After basking in each other's presence for a while, he mentions about the food he's got, which gets you outta bed in no time.

You head to the kitchen to unpack the boba, while he joins you in heating the food up. It's then you think how freeing it is, to be doing the most mundane things with Mingyu. He just seems to make the littlest of things much more better and you love that about him. A bump against your shoulder gets you back, where the food to your side is all ready to be devoured. Quickly removing the covers around drinks, you move to place them on the dining table. One where you're sitting and the other next to you. That's the thing about you guys, Mingyu never likes it when he's not next to you. He hates how all the fancy restaurants have seats across and not next to each other. But now, he gets to have a meal with you next to him and he thinks about how this is his highlight of the day. Min loves being around you and having a meal, so it's like two of his favourite things put together. You spread out the mat for the hot pan to be put on while settling down in your seat, waiting for the food to arrive. Looking at this, Mingyu hurries to place the pan down while grabbing two spoons before sitting down. Both of you look at each other, nodding in agreement to start eating. It's absolute delight running through your body and eyes for Mingyu. He loves it when you enjoy things he does for you. Raising your boba drinks to cheer, both of you devour in silence, enjoying the food and each other's presence. By end of the meal, you're much more comfortable to let Min under your skin and he's never been so much happier to be as affectionate as his heart needs. Taking the last bite, you stand up to call dibs on cleaning up since he literally did all the leftover chores. And right when you're about to get the pan, Min's grabbing you by the hand, turning you to face him. You're glad to be seeing eye-to-eye since he's on his butt and you're standing.

"What's up?"

"Can you please let me do the dishes? You're literally sick, doing more work would just worsen it."

"But Min, you did all of the chores! It's really unfair if you don't let me, you know." you say as he scoffs.

"I don't care, I love you but please let me do the cleaning."

"I love you so so sooo much too my Min, but I cannot let you do the cleaning up."

"Okay, how about we rock-paper-scissors this?"

"Alright. On the count of three, two, one!"

And to his luck, you throw a rock while he throws a paper. The council has decided and you accept your fate, slowly moving away from the pan.

Right at the moment, Mingyu pulls you in a hug, nuzzling further to your middle while almost sounding like a puppy adjusting to fall asleep. You wrap your arms around him, leaning down to lay your head on his. But, you're suddenly pushed away just to be pulled back onto his lap, while he holds you dearly and continues to be adorable. Again, you have no choice but to stay limp for him to recharge himself. It's hard not to admit how secure and loved you feel in Mingyu's big beefy arms, you kiss him on the side of his head impulsively to convey the same. That loosens his hold on you, him whining on how you always catch him off-guard with your actions. Now, there's nothing but giggles filled in your living room, both of you so knee-deep in love and into each other cause when you know, you know.

-------------------------

a/n: comments and feedback are highly appreciated! hope you enjoyed reading this work of mine, thank you! x

[icedsodapop]

Like, you really think you are exempt from being antiblack just becos you are a non-diaspora Asian who considers themselves a radical leftist??

Sincerely, another non-diaspora Asian leftist who feels a little uncomfortable by the antiblackness of non-diaspora Asian (and other non-Black) leftists on this site.

Wish my fellow Asians from the homeland would stop shitting on the Asian diaspora in the West. Like, there's this sense of superiority among us, and it's so annoying becos it's honestly just a subtle form of nationalism and our politics aren't inherently better just becos we aren't from the West. And I want to specifically call out my fellow leftist homeland Asians, like just becos we were born here and lived here, our own beliefs aren't inherently more radical nor free from bias (like antiblackness for example 😒) or absolved from criticism. I've seen marxist-leninists Asians on this site literally say that all Americans benefit from imperialism, like bitch wtf? Some Americans are literally still being colonized (Native Americans) stfu.

[thisonelikesaliens]

jt620123 ig 05.20.24

writer/producer of the show posted a 520 (i love you) special that was pure domestic fluff with Qian and Yuan babysitting their niece. big disclaimer again, not a writer but tried my best to translate the joy i got from this piece and hoped i managed to spread some of that joy to this fandom

Not yet a year old, here Xiao Xiao Bao was again at her uncles' place. Xiao Bao had become a fairly well-known celebrity in the Asian entertainment world, and San Pang would be following her whenever she had to travel for work, which meant her brothers were on for babysitting duty.

Wei Qian never thought his sister's career would take off after getting married and having a child. These days, not many female celebrities would so openly talk about their partners and children, and perhaps it was exactly because of the way Xiao Bao set herself apart from the industry norms that she garnered so much support.

Wei Qian put down the magazine after reading the exclusive interview of Xiao Bao and her family (that he noted did not include her brothers). He picked up Xiao Xiao Bao who was happily entertaining herself and complained to her about her mom.

"That interview about your mom's family should've included your uncles, right? We're way more good-looking than your dad! Here, let me see…it's a good thing you look like your mom instead of your dad."

As if to show that she did not appreciate the disrespect towards her parents, Xiao Xiao Bao began to cry.

Wei Qian tried to pacify her but her cries became louder, so he picked her up and went to prepare formula, but Xiao Xiao Bao was still crying and wouldn't take the bottle.

Utterly defeated, Wei Qian had to ask for help.

"XIAO YUAN, HOW MUCH LONGER IS YOUR CONFERENCE CALL?"

Wei Qian put the bottle on the table and decided to check Xiao Xiao Bao's diaper.

"Sorry, give me a moment. I'll call you back soon." Wei Zhi Yuan ended his call and came downstairs.

As soon as Wei Zhi Yuan appeared, Wei Qian passed a still wailing Xiao Xiao Bao over to him.

"She's not taking the bottle, I think she needs a diaper change."

Yuan checked the time, checked the diaper, then picked up the bottle to check the temperature.

"It's too hot, run it under cold water for 30 seconds." Wei Zhi Yuan instructed as he handed the bottle to Wei Qian.

Wei Qian took the bottle and went into the kitchen, grumbling under his breath about the trials and tribulations of babysitting.

Wei Zhi Yuan sat down with Xiao Xiao Bao on his lap, wiped her tears and rocked her back and forth while humming. Xiao Xiao Bao's cries turned to sniffling and eventually stopped completely, then she grabbed Wei Zhi Yuan's finger and started to put it in her mouth.

"I'm so sorry, your little uncle lost track of time, you must be hungry! Don't be mad at your aunt, he can't even take care of himself…"

"Who did you call 'aunt'?" Wei Qian said menacingly while thrusting the bottle in Yuan's face. Realizing his mistake, Yuan took the bottle and corrected, "I'm the little uncle in charge of changing diapers~you're the best BIG UNCLE in the world in charge of feeding her~"

Pacified, Wei Qian sat down next to Wei Zhi Yuan and watched him feed their niece.

"I fed Xiao Bao like this when I was a kid too, and now I can't believe I'm watching you feed her and San Pang's daughter…"

That made Wei Zhi Yuan chuckle. Wei Qian yawned, then leaned on Yuan's arm, playing absently with Xiao Xiao Bao's little feet.

After Xiao Xiao Bao finished the bottle, Wei Zhi Yuan leaned forward to put the bottle back on the table and noticed that Wei Qian had already fallen asleep, his head sliding down and nesting comfortably on his lap.

Wei Zhi Yuan burped Xiao Xiao Bao while watching Wei Qian fondly, then bent down to press a kiss on Wei Qian's forehead.

"No matter who you are, from now on we will never be apart as long as we live."

[alexislunacreations]

One of my favorite moments in the book. If you know, you know 😏

Get your copy of 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐜𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐜 using this universal link to eBook retailers: https://books2read.com/love-in-the-occult-traumatic (includes links for Amazon, Kobo, Apple, Google Play, B&N, and more)

[zepskies]

DEAN WINCHESTER IMAGINES

Stories are Dean Winchester x Reader unless otherwise noted.

(**Notes 18+ only and/or smut)

You are Dean's one exception. 💚 In which Sam's in love with his brother's girl. (How Dean reacts.)

Sam crosses the line. ✨ You're dating Dean. Sam secretly loves you. He finally sees his chance with you after he's hit by a witch's spell. - [Sequel to You are Dean's one exception.]

⭐ Bonus: The conversation between you and Dean after you "find out" about Sam's feelings.

Reuniting with Dean.** 🩵 Dean returns from Purgatory. Will either of you be the same?

Texting Dean when he's on a hunt.📱 Sometimes he likes your teasing...other times he doesn't.

Dean gives you an impossible choice. 🫢 In which Dean is in love with his brother's girl.

Choosing Him 💞 You’re forced to make a decision between Sam and Dean. - [Sequel to Dean gives you an impossible choice. Contains both Sam and Dean endings.]

Say It Right 💜 You ask Dean for the truth: "Do you love me?"

Headcanon: Personality types Castiel, Sam, and Dean would be attracted to. ⭐

Vintage Collection** 📖 You and Dean discuss (argue about) his favorite magazine, Busty Asian Beauties.

Headcanon:** How Dean Winchester, Beau Arlen, and Soldier Boy (Ben) would react to seeing your breast reduction scars. ❤️‍🩹

Headcanon: How Dean Winchester, Beau Arlen, and Soldier Boy (Ben) would make up for pissing you off. 😤

Dean reads you wrong. 🤔 He likes you. The thing is, he thinks you might like Sam...

Headcanon: How Dean Winchester, Beau Arlen, and Soldier Boy (Ben) would react to you teasing him under the table. 😉

Headcanon: How Dean Winchester, Beau Arlen, and Soldier Boy (Ben) would react to you getting "morning" sickness during pregnancy. 🤢

Headcanon:** How Dean Winchester, Beau Arlen, and Soldier Boy (Ben) would react to you (getting caught) wearing his clothes. 👕

Headcanon: How Dean Winchester, Beau Arlen, and Soldier Boy (Ben) would act while you're in labor with his child. 🍼

Headcanon: How Dean Winchester, Beau Arlen, Soldier Boy (Ben), and Jason Teague would react to you sleepwalking. 😴

Dean Winchester Masterlist

Supernatural Masterlist

Main Masterlist

✍️ Writer Support:

Have you enjoyed my Dean stories?

If you'd like to keep supporting me as I continue writing, you can:

Ko-Fi Me ☕

Become a Patreon Member 🌟

💌 Get Notified:

Follow @zepskieswrites (with notifications on) to get notified every time I drop a new story.

[winterchimez]

PLS THIS IS THE SWEETEST & CUTEST THING IVE EVER RECEIVED ON THIS APP??!?!(!(!,! 🥺🥺🥺 i will literally ugly cry pls moni you’re too kind 😭😭😭🤧🤧🤧 i’m so so happy you enjoy my works & am glad to have met you as well!!! 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻🩵🩵🩵

all of moni's loves

in here, i like to mention some of my mutuals whose works i absolutely adore. i hope you could take some time to check them out.

➵ ally (@winterchimez)

she has a very keen eye for such interesting plots that you don't typically see in many tbz fics. ally is well-versed in different genres from thriller to pure fluff, and i think that's what sets her apart! also, i really love how she captures the members so well in her fics <3

➵ sponsored by @deoboyznet

if you would like to be part of my tag list, feel free to send an ask!

the boyz: @winterchimez

[scarefox]

The way some people straight up deny soft criticism of the BL industry (stuff that isn't even a secret if you don't close your eyes and ears!!!) Criticism by literally LGBTq people working in said BL industry in Thailand..... basically one of the only ones who's voice are most valid here in this discourse. That's not hypocrism of people working in the industry to open their mouth! That's called self-awareness and using this genre to convey a message and trying to fix issues. This is about Step by Step and Lovely Writer atm. But those are not the only dramas who brought up some critic but somehow people get salty now about that little poke from SbS? Did you sleep the past 3 years?? And it's not a coincident that it's always the same topics certain BL dramas brought up!

I feel like some people here don't get that you can criticize your own work place, your own industry, your own country WITHOUT hating, shaming or demonizing it completely! Yall need stop this black & white thinking and the constant urge to feel personally attacked by something like this...

Especially the message of LW (the same people who make SbS now) was that there is nothing wrong about loving BL stories and they do like producing them. BUT that there are some things in the industry that are bad and harmful NOT ALL OF IT, SOME THINGS! Like the treatment of actors and certain topics by companies and producers. And the main theme of LW: the toxic overstepping and overcontrolling shipping culture that can (and did) destroy real life relationships / friendships under the weight of the pretend relationship (pretend as in they are not dating for real (everyone knows that! or should know that! this is also not even a secret if you watch interviews outside of the fun and couple game shows) at least in most of the cases.... in some rare ones yes, in some very rare cases some actors actually date but they are too afraid to come out due to homophobia and the way the industry & fandom treats those cases (source Dr. Thomas Baudinette who studies the industry as a form of queer asian media and interviewed companies and actors since years... somewhere in this he talks about actor relationships, I can't find the time stamp atm))

ALSO the point about exploiting the LGBTq community is NOT about the fans or LGBTq audience who love these dramas. But about businesses and literal Thailand itself. For using those stories and actors / couples for advertising, for marketing, for tourism even. BUT at the same time some don't care for real life LGBTq issues and rights or the fact that Thailand is still not agreeing on equal marriage (which is not just about them not being able to marry but they get denied a lot of things married couples get. alone the fact that they can't see their partner in the case of an emergency in the hospital because 'they are not family'). In the said SbS scene they were literally discussing which pretend couple has the most fans and how they could use their fandom and fan clubs to gain profit. Don't you guys get how fucking frustrating this is for the LGBTq people and allies who work in the BL industry, to get paraded in front of the camera for money and image but still don't get treated equally??? THAT is what they mean with exploiting.... And it's a lot of producers, writers and some actors who voice those points, not just these few self-aware BL dramas. But doing it through the medium they adress is the best way to reach the right people, to make the right people aware and ask for their support. Since they can't say such things directly (even though they should) unless they want to lose their job, they still like to a degree.

And I am sorry but the opinion of actual thai people who are inside that industry is more valid than some random fan who just doesn't want to understand those things in order to enjoy their shows without feeling bad.... What if I tell you that you can do both and that this is not about shaming you or making you feel guilty (unless you participate in toxic overstepping behavior or are actually LGBTq-phobic, then yes feel guilty)! Acknowledging issues, supporting to fix those issues and still have fun with these dramas and actors.... Those things can and do coexist and nobody said otherwise!!

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

I'm new to a fandom's tumblr. I draw sometimes. After joining and posting my art I realised there wasn't much of a community here despite the fandom being fairly big. I'm basically unknown, still I got anons asking if I shipped others things and one persistent anon trying to know why I'm into a certain unpopular dynamic. Not my first rodeo, I blocked the anon and turned off asks for the time being.

Then I made a couple friends and joined a few discords from tumblr and twitter where I learned about some inner politics. Turns out there's a very popular artist (late twenties) who is one of those situationally leftist, functionally conservative types. They selectively highlight marginalized voices they themselves agree with, speak over the rest, harass people over fandom wankery, is an Asian but is known to hate Asians in mainland because we're all fetishizers or wrong kind of queers (for example they don't follow a single native Asian artist in a manga fandom because we're all gross "proshitters"), very big into cyberbullying people over fiction and idpol etc. They're trans too.

I've been to 10+ fandoms before and this is most puritanical one. This place is fractured and miserable. The community is built around hating people and characters.

This artist who is a fandom leader of sorts, with over 40k followers on twitter and of course a large following on tumblr, has a lot of fans who got popular by mimicing their style and that's a way to get endorsed by them. You're either a fan of them and in their community or you're a rogue fan who will not see one millionth of the notes they get, they'll actively avoid you if you indicate you're into things they explicitly hate, worse of all they'll flood you with anon hate on all platforms. Many of their fans are young adults or teens who keep secret accounts to view said gross things and secretly support said gross artists while harassing those artists and some writers in the name of this leadar. They say they're scared to disagree.

The more I learn (with proof) about what sort of community they have the more I want to leave this fandom wholly, which they'd like so I'm not gonna do that technically.

Instead I'm thinking about doing something I saw another anon here do, which is to make an image of myself as all the things this person hates, maybe make arts of ships and dynamics they hate and that way get all their friends and their two faced coattail rider fans to leave me alone, potentially gain likeminded friends in the process.

WIBTA if I did that because that'd be lying to the masses?

What are these acronyms?