#textbooks and school materials not included

[brooklynbornhaitian]

Books Read in 2024

Black Cake Charmaine Wilkerson

One True Loves Taylor Jenkins Reid

Thicker than Water Kerry Washington

Twisted Games Book 1 Ana Huang

Twisted Games Book 2 Ana Huang

It Ends With Us Colleen Hoover

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies Deesha Philyaw

Verity Colleen Hoover

Twisted Games Book 3 Ana Huang

After I Do Taylor Jenkins Reid

Ayiti Roxanne Gay

Twisted Games Book 4 Ana Huang

Black Girls Must Be Magic Jayne Allen

Riding In Cars With Boys Beverly (movie based on the book)

Dear Haiti, Love Alaine Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite

Breath, Eyes, Memory Edwidge Danticat

Daisy Jones and The Six Taylor Jenkins Reid

Somebody's Daughter Ashley Ford

Black Girls Must Have It All Jayne Allen

Black Girls Must Be Magic Jayne Allen

Before I Let Go Kennedy Ryan

[soon-palestine]

In a statement that was shared with The Nation, a group of 25 HLR editors expressed their concerns about the decision. “At a time when the Law Review was facing a public intimidation and harassment campaign, the journal’s leadership intervened to stop publication,” they wrote. “The body of editors—none of whom are Palestinian—voted to sustain that decision. We are unaware of any other solicited piece that has been revoked by the Law Review in this way. “ When asked for comment, the leadership of the Harvard Law Review referred The Nation to a message posted on the journal’s website. “Like every academic journal, the Harvard Law Review has rigorous editorial processes governing how it solicits, evaluates, and determines when and whether to publish a piece…” the note began. ”Last week, the full body met and deliberated over whether to publish a particular Blog piece that had been solicited by two editors. A substantial majority voted not to proceed with publication.” Today, The Nation is sharing the piece that the Harvard Law Review refused to run. Some may claim that the invocation of genocide, especially in Gaza, is fraught. But does one have to wait for a genocide to be successfully completed to name it? This logic contributes to the politics of denial. When it comes to Gaza, there is a sense of moral hypocrisy that undergirds Western epistemological approaches, one which mutes the ability to name the violence inflicted upon Palestinians. But naming injustice is crucial to claiming justice. If the international community takes its crimes seriously, then the discussion about the unfolding genocide in Gaza is not a matter of mere semantics. The UN Genocide Convention defines the crime of genocide as certain acts “committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such.” These acts include “killing members of a protected group” or “causing serious bodily or mental harm” or “deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part.” Numerous statements made by top Israeli politicians affirm their intentions. There is a forming consensus among leading scholars in the field of genocide studies that “these statements could easily be construed as indicating a genocidal intent,” as Omer Bartov, an authority in the field, writes. More importantly, genocide is the material reality of Palestinians in Gaza: an entrapped, displaced, starved, water-deprived population of 2.3 million facing massive bombardments and a carnage in one of the most densely populated areas in the world. Over 11,000 people have already been killed. That is one person out of every 200 people in Gaza. Tens of thousands are injured, and over 45% of homes in Gaza have been destroyed. The United Nations Secretary General said that Gaza is becoming a “graveyard for children,” but a cessation of the carnage—a ceasefire—remains elusive. Israel continues to blatantly violate international law: dropping white phosphorus from the sky, dispersing death in all directions, shedding blood, shelling neighborhoods, striking schools, hospitals, and universities, bombing churches and mosques, wiping out families, and ethnically cleansing an entire region in both callous and systemic manner. What do you call this? The Center for Constitutional Rights issued a thorough, 44-page, factual and legal analysis, asserting that “there is a plausible and credible case that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian population in Gaza.” Raz Segal, a historian of the Holocaust and genocide studies, calls the situation in Gaza “a textbook case of Genocide unfolding in front of our eyes.”

[sparrows4bats]

@vi-reads Thanks for the Inspo!!

Damian is smart, a genius to rival his father, everyone knows that, but what even the batfamily didn't realise is just how qualified he is.

Damian spent at least the first 10 years of his life with access to a multitude of tutors who were forced to change their ciriculums to adapt to how fast he learnt. By the time he joins his family, he has the equivalent of PHDs in many fields, including but not limited to Geology, Business and Finance, Engineering, and Zoology. He learnt classical instruments such as the violin and is fluent in multiple languages.

Now imagine a preteen Damian going from that to a classroom education with his age group for the first time. No matter how elite Gotham Academy claims to be, there is only so much they can do to keep him stimulated, and as Bruce wants him to learn social skills, he is stuck in tedium.

So he looks for other outlets out of pure boredom. As the stagnantation gets worse, so does his attitude.

The first one to notice is Alfred, predictably. The old butler remembers how Bruce was at that age and the terror he was in his boredom, so he took Damian aside and offered him a deal. If he completes all of his schoolwork, how his teachers want him to. (It takes Damian only two hours a week) Alfred has no issue procuring him learning materials on any subject he would like. Damian so frustrated at this point, agrees without hesitation. The Manor quickly fills with university level textbooks on Physics, Chemical Engineering and Mathematics.

But soon that isn't enough, and Damian, despite knowing more than ever, has nothing to do with it.

He start seeking out the rogues after he finds their research. Ivy, Quinn, Freeze, and Scarecrow are very confused but so happy and flattered to talk about their work with Robin, who has fascinating ideas of his own.

Barbara is the next to notice because while she is taking inventory of Batcave supplies, she notices chemicals and other raw materials are going missing, so she checks the cameras and sees Damian making gadgets, different antidotes and poisons, even a second flying Batmobile!!

So Barbara confronts him about it and he (and Alfred) explain what's been going on and Barbara feels her heartbreak a little because God does she understand this problem she herself is always pursuing at least one qualification or writing a research paper under a puesdo name. When she was young, her boredom and the lack of accommodations in Gotham literally led to her becoming Batgirl.

A bored genius in Gotham is a recipe for disaster, so she very quickly sets Damian up with placement exams in every subject she can think of. He passes every single one of them at a high school level and many past university.

Damian looks elated when the results arrive, and Barbara easily convinces Harvard (where she did her law degree long distance) to accredit him and formalise his qualifications. They even work it so Damian can write his dissertations in Gotham Academy so that he can still gain social skills and go to Gotham University to use their labs and libraries when needed.

By the end of the year, Damian has earned his official PhD. in Geology and Mechanical Engineering and plans on doing his next one in Chemistry and Bioengineering. He even easily completes an MBA and starts branching out to the humanities.

The family doesn't know about any of this until Damian invites them all to his graduation, but do note the improvement in Damians' behaviour. (Damian keeps forging Bruces signature on the paperwork).

To say they are shocked but happy is an understatement. Bruce has a crisis because Damian has multiple PHDs in Gotham! What if he becomes a villain!

Yet all of Damians' research is for the betterment of people and animals. The batfamily becomes very overprotective of him, especially around chemicals. Just in case.

Jon finds out about it after Damian and he start dating. He knew his best friend was smart but hadn't taken him that seriously when they were kids. Damian went to Gotham Academy and hated every second of it.

After he slept over for the first time and couldn't find him in the morning, Jon located him in the Manor by his heartbeat to Damians study, where his degrees were framed and hung on the wall. He was in awe of how many there were.

Damian proudly explained each one to him, and Jon kissed his genius for every graduation he missed. He now calls Damian Doctor just to see him blush. (In the privacy of his own mind, Dr. And Mr Wayne Kent has a nice ring to it.)

Damian and Barbara bond and give feedback on eachothers work regularly. The bats who are still in school come to them for help, and Tim is inspired to get his GED and join a university program. (Alfred is Delighted) The Wayne Family Library expands rapidly to accommodate research materials, and Bruce builds Damian a proper lab. (It's so much easier to make antidotes now!)

When Damian goes to med school, he quits being Robin as he has to be there in person at odd hours. Bruce mopes, but goes to yet another graduation. Damian still does some lab work but finds his calling in Surgery and Medical Research.

The thing is, outside of the family, and even inside of it, very few know how many qualifications Damian has achieved.

Until one of the rare times Damian goes to Watchtower and someone tries to correct him as he explains the very complicated biochemical pathogen that is being spread by a new villain.

Damian looks bored and asks where they did their degree when other answers he goes, "Oh yes, I know your advisor. I disproved his shoddy results last month. I published my paper last week."

The hero turns bright red and tries to argue, but Damian shuts him down at every turn. "Well, the expert in this field - "

"Is me, so if you don't have a better idea, sit the hell down and shut up!"

The bats look so smug, and Jon has to restrain himself from dragging his wonderful partner into the nearest supply closet. (He finds Damian so irresistible when he is both competent and verbally evisirating someone.)

[mostlysignssomeportents]

#RedForEd rides again in LA

I'm on a 20+ city book tour for my new novel PICKS AND SHOVELS. Catch me in CHICAGO with PETER SAGAL on WEDNESDAY (Apr 2), and in BLOOMINGTON on FRIDAY (Apr 4). More tour dates here.

The LA Teachers' Union is going on strike.

Fuck.

Yes.

The last time the LA teachers struck was in the midst of the 2019 #RedForEd wave, which kicked off during the last Trump presidency. All across the country, teachers walked out – even in states where they were legally prohibited from doing so. These strikes were hugely successful, because communities across the nation rallied around their teachers, and the teachers returned the favor, making community justice part of their goals.

This was true across America, but it was especially true in Los Angeles, where the teachers were militant, united, relentless, and brilliant. The story of the 2019 LA Teachers' Strike is recounted in Jane McAlevey's essential 2021 book A Collective Bargain, which recounts her history as a union organizer on multiple successful unionization drives and strikes, including that fateful teachers' strike:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/04/23/a-collective-bargain/

McAlevey learned her tactics from a lineage of organizers who predated the legalization of unions and the National Labor Relations Act. Accordingly, her organizing method didn't rely on bosses obeying the law, or governments sticking up for workers. She fought for victories that were won by pure worker power. The 2019 LA teachers' strike is a fantastic example, a literal textbook case about rallying support from the entire shop – including affiliated workers, like bus-drivers – and then broadening that massive support by bringing in related trades (the LA charter school teachers walked out with their public school comrades), and the community.

The LA teachers' community organizing was incredible. They worked with community groups to understand what LA families really needed, and made those families' demands into union demands. The LA teachers' demands included:

in-school social workers;

parks and green-spaces in or near every LA public school; and

a total ban on ICE agents shaking down parents at the school gates.

Environmental justice, immigration justice, racial justice – these issues were every bit as important to the LA teachers in 2019 as wages, working conditions and vacation pay. And. They. WON.

Not only did the LA teachers win everything they struck for, they built an enduring community organization that ran a massive get out of the vote effort for the 2020 elections and flipped two seats for Democrats, securing Biden's Congressional majority.

So now the teachers are walking out again, and while their demands include wage increases (the greedinflation crisis wiped out many of the gains won in the 2019 strike – though imagine how much worse things would be without those gains!), the demands also include a slate of bold, no-fucks-given, material measures to fight back agains the Trump administration and its fascism:

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-03-26/l-a-teachers-union-pursues-salary-hike-progressive-goals-amid-trump-agenda

This time around, the LA teachers are demanding:

"targeted investment in the recruitment and retention of BIPOC, multilingual and immigrant educators and service providers" – that's right, the DEI stuff that makes Trump's incipient aneurysm throb visibly in his temple (keep throbbing, li'l guy, I believe in you!).

"support for, defense and expansion of the school district’s Black Student Achievement Plan and Ethnic Studies" – the same programs that make wrestling faildaughter Linda McMahon get the fantods.

“strengthened policies to support LGBTQIA+ students, educators and staff” – take that, Elon.

"increased support for immigrant students and families, with and without documentation, including support for newcomers" – up yours, Stephen Miller, you pencilneck Hitler wannabe.

Where'd all these demands come from? 665 meetings that solicited input from "students, parents and other community members." In other words, these are our demands – the demands of Angelenos.

Trump is a scab. Musk is a scab. They hate unions. They've put the National Labor Relations Board into a coma, illegally firing a board member so that the board no longer has a quorum and can no longer take most actions. But the tactics the LA teachers used to organize their victory under the last Trump regime didn't rely on the NLRB – it relied on worker power. That power is only stronger today. The NLRB exists because workers built power when unions were illegal. Killing the NLRB doesn't kill worker power. Worker power comes from workers, not the government:

https://pluralistic.net/2025/01/29/which-side-are-you-on-2/#strike-three-yer-out

Now that Trump has canceled labor laws, all bets are off. Trump is illegally breaking the contracts of federal workers, as a prelude to eliminating unions nationwide. As Hamilton Nolan writes, this is the time to take a stand:

It is unreasonable to run around demanding a general strike every time a single union gets in a hard fight. It is not unreasonable to demand a general strike when the very existence of unions is under direct attack by a government that cares nothing about us, and does not respect our contracts, and is attempting to throw in the trash the union contracts covering hundreds of thousands of our fellow union members, as a step towards doing the same thing to millions more of our fellow union members. This is the bombing of Pearl Harbor, against the labor movement. Will we say, “We are filing a lawsuit against this illegal bombing, and we will keep you all updated as it progresses?” Will we say, “Pearl Harbor is way out in Hawaii. I’m glad those bombs didn’t fall where I live.” These are the terms that the union world needs to be thinking in, right now. This is not an exaggeration. If we do not go to war, the husk of American unions that emerges at the end of the Trump administration will be, probably, about half as big as it was when the Trump administration started, and immeasurably weaker. That is not an acceptable outcome if you believe that increasing organized labor’s strength is the key to saving this country, which it is.

https://www.hamiltonnolan.com/p/they-are-going-to-take-everything

McAlevey – who died in 2024 – agreed with Nolan. She wrote vibrantly about how union organizing, and the solidarity it nurtures, was the key to a revitalized democracy and a nation that truly takes care of its people, rather than lining them up in billionaires' feedlots.

I gotta go. I'm on my way to a Tesla protest. Maybe you could find one near you to join, too:

https://actionnetwork.org/event_campaigns/teslatakedown

But if I don't see you at this one, I'll see you on the picket line – with the LA teachers, the federal workers, and everyone else who's taking a stand against this scab presidency.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2025/03/29/jane-mcalevey/#trump-is-a-scab

[dr-spencer-reids-queen]

Courage

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Female!Reader

Word Count: ~1k

Warnings: fluff

Summary: You ask Spencer for help studying for an exam, and the evening takes a turn for the better.

Square Filled: lab partners for @spencerreidbingo

Author’s Note: any and all comments are greatly appreciated <3

x

You’re not a field agent and you have no desire to be one, but you are the team’s liaison which you do very well. JJ was the one who taught you when she left on maternity leave, and you stayed because she left for the Pentagram soon after. She’s back now but as a profiler, and now the position is permanently yours.

The entire team had been so welcoming when you first started, and now they’re like your second family. They are all so sweet and kind, but Spencer stands out from the rest like a sore thumb. He’s different than anyone you’ve ever met, and that includes all of your exes. He allows you to be yourself completely without having to fake anything, and he’s such a sweetheart. Not to mention he’s super handsome and smart.

He not only helps you with day-to-day struggles but also with your school work. Some might not think it’s normal to pursue a degree in your thirties, but the FBI has been a lot of help in that department. You can go to school while they pay for it, and you can earn a degree in your field of choice. While being a liaison for the team is a dream, it’s not what you want to do in life.

You love everything chemistry and have already dreamed of being a chemist for the FBI. Spencer has a PhD in chemistry so he’s the best person to ask for help. You don’t think he minds because he always does it with a smile on his face.

You walk through the empty bullpen and find Spencer by the file cabinets putting away past files he was working on.

“Hey, Spence.”

“Hey, Y/N,” he smiles. “What’s up?”

“Are you busy this weekend? Say, Saturday?

You miss the way his eyes light up at the mention of hanging out with you alone. He clears his throat and shakes his head while putting away the files. “No. I have no plans.”

“Great. Can you come over and help me study for this exam?”

You do notice the way his shoulders drop slightly, but he still has a smile on his face.

“Yes, I can.”

“Come over around noon? I can get us some lunch.” He nods and you kiss his cheek .”Thank you, Spencer. You’re the best.”

Spencer watches you walk off with metaphorical hearts in his eyes. Derek passes by you to get to the young doctor, and Spencer quickly looks away in hopes he isn’t caught.

“When are you gonna ask her out?”

Spencer blushes. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Spencer, that girl is into you. She doesn’t kiss anyone else on the cheek. Think about it.”

And Spencer does. He thinks about you the entire day. He thinks about you for the rest of the week. By the time Saturday comes along, his head hurts at the possibility that this weekend can go. Derek’s right. He’s seen the signs from you even if you don’t know you’re doing it. You’re both in your mid-thirties so there’s no need to be beating around the bush. He invited you over to his house instead of going to yours, so you’re bringing over a bunch of study materials for you two to go over.

This exam is one of the big ones, so you have to pass it.

“Hey, Spence,” you greet when he answers the door. “Thank you for doing this with me.”

“It’s no problem, really,” he smiles. “Come in.”

You bring the supplies to his room where he already has snacks, bottles of water, and books set up. He kept his textbooks from when he got his PhD, so you’ll be able to use them as well. The first hour goes great. You’ve answered all his questions right and even got candy as a reward. The second hour is a bit tougher but you powered through it with his protein bars and water. The third hour, however, is kicking your ass. You’ve been studying for quite some time now so your brain hurts.

“Okay, can you tell me the answer to this question?”

Spencer writes on the small whiteboard before showing you the equation. You take out your notebook and jot it down before trying to work on it. You learned this in class last week but for some reason, it’s not clicking in your mind. You wince when you turn the notebook around for Spencer to read, and based on the unsure look on his face, you know you’ve failed it.

“Don’t worry, you’ll get the next one.”

“I’m going to fail this test and this class. The deeper we get into the textbook, the harder the concept. I’m not going to be a chemist for the FBI. It’s hopeless,” you sigh and toss your notebook to the side.

“No, don’t think like that. What you need is a break.” He suddenly becomes nervous. “Why don’t we take a movie break? You can pick what we watch.”

“And you won’t complain?”

“I promise,” he chuckles.

“Okay. You’re right. We’ve been going at this for hours.” You get up and grab the remote to turn the TV on, but frown when it doesn’t. “It’s not working.” You turn it over and open the back to see the batteries are missing. “Where are your batteries?”

He wipes his sweaty palms on his jeans. “In the kitchen.”

You walk to the kitchen and search through the drawers for them. You open the last one and see a note wrapped around the case. You remove two batteries for the remote and take the note out. You shouldn’t be snooping like this through his business but the note has your name on it.

Y/N, I should have done this face-to-face, but I get so nervous whenever I try to find the words. I really like you, like more than a friend, like. I should ask you on a date first, but will you be my girlfriend?

You turn only to find Spencer standing right behind you. The poor thing looks so nervous that you’re going to reject him. He must have not gotten the best responses in the past. That changes now. You drop the note and fling into his arms happily. He catches you before you can tumble to the ground, and you pull him in close.

“Yes!”

You pepper his cheek with kisses and he laughs. He has to remind himself to thank Derek for giving him the courage.

x

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[j-richmond]

Why aren't comics more common in TTRPGs?

(This is about game design and presentation) In school one of the things I discovered is that I have trouble absorbing info from a big text book. And most TTRPGs are presented as text books. Once I understand the basic information in the book (chemistry textbook or RPG sourcebook or whatever) I can deal with the book on my own terms. I can dive into individual parts and learn, and slowly absorb the book as a whole. But I need help to get there. I need an access port. Sometimes this comes in the form of someone explaining the book to me. Explaining the rules of the game or the outline of an essay. This is great, and gives me a way in so I can absorb and master the book myself. But I don't always have someone in my life who can do that. Interestingly, I don't have this problem with novels at all. Narrative feels easier to access, at least for me.

In school I also discovered Scot McCloud's Understanding Comics. This is a pretty fantastic book which I'd recommend to everyone. It helped me understand how I process information. More importantly, it helped me understand the different people process information in different ways. I hadn't realized that at age 16, although I was starting to suspect it. Before I started making comics or games I used to be a teacher. As a teacher I could see that some of my kids were struggling with the information I was giving them, in the same way I had struggled in school. I started using comics in class to help reach these students. I'd draw little comics on my handouts or on the whiteboard to explain what we were learning. The goal wasn't to provide an entire lesson in comics form. I'm not Scott McCloud! Instead, I was trying to find an access point for my students. An on ramp. A port of entry to the ideas and material we were covering so they could engage and eventually absorb the information. It worked so well. It worked like magic. Why don't we do this more in TTRPGs? I used comics in my early games, Panty Explosion Perfect and Ocean. These were narrative comics, not rules comics, but the goal was to provide both an example of what play looked like (from a narrative standpoint) and a point of access for players who weren't sure what the game was or how to engage with it. My thought was that if you understood what the game was supposed to look like it would be easier to approach the rules. (A short comic from Ocean. The book has a bunch of these)

When my brother Nick and I started working on The Magical Land of Yeld I knew I wanted to use comics more directly as a teaching tool. Especially because part of our target audience was new and younger players who might look at a big text book (Yeld is a giant 400 page hardcover) and just bounce right off it. Like I did in school and like I often do with big games. So I needed to teach with examples and illustrations, and especially comics.

The first comics you'll encounter in the Yeld book are narrative, and designed to get you into the ideas and themes of the game. But in the first few pages we also start sprinkling in rules comics. These are presented along side the rules text. They don't replace that text, which is important. The text explains the rules in greater detail, and includes information that just couldn't be added in a single page comic. Instead, the comic is intended to be a point of access to the rules text. A player can read the comic, understand the basic concept, and feel comfortable engaging with the text. That's the goal, to make players comfortable and to make the rules text accessible.

We use comics to teach basic game mechanics, but we also use them to explain specific player facing systems. Sometimes these are things that really do need a comic to explain them, but sometimes we use comics as lures to draw player attention to mechanics that we're afraid they might otherwise not engage with. For example, in playtesting we found that when characters died during a fight the player would just sit there for the rest of the fight and not engage. It turned out, since you don't do anything in D&D once you die (except slowly die more), most players assume that's how all games work! So they hadn't even noticed that in Yeld you become a Ghost and get to ghost around and do fun Ghost stuff! I decided to create a comic that not just explained this but drew attention to it and showed why it was a fun (and important) part of the game!

Structure of play isn't always obvious to players, especially if they're new to TTRPGs or have only played D&D. You pick up habits from the games you play the most, and since most gamers play nothing but D&D there is a tendency to assume EVERYTHING works like D&D. Yeld doesn't, so we decided to take nothing for granted and make comics that very specifically show what a session of play looks like. In this example, it may not look a lot different from D&D, but the adventure is specifically divided into 5 parts. The comic illustrates these parts in a way that is easy to understand. The accompanying game text explains each part in more detail and illustrates how they are important to play. The comic serves as a ramp that gets players to the info they need.

Not all of our comics are player facing. Yeld has a rotating GM (which is awesome, btw), and this means every player gets a chance in the Game Master roll. Which means every player needs to understand how this roll works. Comics like this one, which explain how to build monsters to use in your game, help make the process easy to understand. Again, its about building a point of entry for players. A player might say "I don't want to GM, it sounds to complicated!" But its not. You just need to make it easy for them. Make the mechanics and responsibilities easy to understand. Show why they're fun! In Yeld, its important that each player takes on the GM role from time to time, since we're building a story together. Making it look fun is important! Comics help with that. What's more fun than comics?

Narrative comics are important too. At least for Yeld. I don't think every game benefits from them (although I always love seeing them). Narrative comics show players what the game is supposed to look like. What the characters do and say. What environments they visit. Narrative comics set a tone. Narrative comics let new players understand what a game is about immediately! We can hand a Yeld book to a new player or customer and they know what's up in seconds, just by reading a short single page comic. That's a powerful tool. So why don't more games use comics? Part of it is that game creators are usually not comic creators. There's not a lot of crossover. That always surprises me, but both disciplines take a lot of work. Who has time for both? Even when you have game designers that are comic creators, they often don't include comics in the games (Lancer???). I don't think this means game designers don't recognize the value of comics. I've had this conversation with so many game designers, and they usually agree that comics are useful tools. But if you don't know how to make comics, making comics for your game can be daunting. What rules should you focus on? How do you present that information in comic form? How many comics should you make? How do you hire someone to make comics, anyway? Hiring artists is expansive, btw. You know that, of course. Hiring an artist to make a set of comics for your game could cost you thousands of dollars (or more), depending on what you want. Of course, you can try to make your own comics. And you should! Really! A poorly drawn comic is not necessarily a bad comic. The point is to get your information across to your reader. to provide a point of access. You don't need great art for that (although great art can help attract people to your game). Stick figure work just fine. Here's an example, the layout for the Tea Dragon card game. Another artist took this layout and redrew it in their own style. But my goal here was to be simple and concise with my explanation of the rules. To make the game accessible.

There's a few more pages of this, but you get the idea. The purpose is to explain, and make the player comfortable with learning more. The art matters to the extent that it serves this goal. In fact, flashy or complicated art can get in the way! You'll notice in that most of the Yeld rules comics I posted above the art is pretty simple, with solid color backgrounds. You want to make your comics as easy to read as possible, and that includes avoiding clutter, overpacked word balloons and messy layout. Readers are easily distracted. It doesn't take much for them to set down a book at all. A complicated phrase or hard to read font can often be enough. And once they set a book down they may not every pick it up again. That's more true for a big text book than it is for a comics, but its still true for a comic. So our goal is to make our comic the easiest, smoothest point of access it can possibly be. So easy and smooth that the reader can slide right into the rules text without noticing! Here's my general process for creating a rules comic. This is from my friend Brian's game Scofflaws. I start by taking the basic mechanics that need to be illustrated and breaking them down into panels. The goal is to make each panel readable and not overwhelm the player. At this point I'm just doing a rough sketch. It may not eve=n be readable, but that's fine!

Next, I refine the text and art. I decide on the exact language I'll use, and I finalize where characters and other elements will be placed. As you can see, the actual layout didn't change much here. Sometimes it changes a lot!

Finally, I create the finished art. Honestly, the previous step was just fine. It explanans the rules I wanted to explain. But this last step allows me to add in some narrative flavor. The first panel contains a complicated background in order to present the game's setting. The characters look like the kind of characters you'll play in the game. This isn't nessacary for presenting rules, but it helps present the game as a whole. You want players to engage with every part of your game. The last thing you want them doing is picking up your dungeon crawling game and going "Oh, this would be great for playing Star Wars!"

(I probably shouldn't have chose than shade of red for the background. It makes the text a bit hard to read!) So again, why aren't we seeing more comics in games? Its not as if they don't exist at all, and I'm personally always excited to see them. I recently opened the Final Fantasy RPG box set and was so happy to find the rules were accompanied by cute comics. And there's lot of other examples (maybe you can post some in the comments). But I think comics are a clearly underused tool in game design and presentation. And as a comic person, let me tell you that you're leaving a valuable tool on the table if you're not considering using comics. Are they right for every game? Maaaybe not? But I think MANY MANY MANY games could benefit form them. Are they expensive? They can be. Are they hard to make? They can be. Are there people you can go to for advice? Hey, my door is open.

[study-diaries]

How To Study Anything At 10x Speed

This is not a bs guide, these are some tips that have actually worked for me and they can work for you too. The thing is, it's fairly really easy. I have sometimes managed to prepare for a test before 15 mins by just reading through it. It's fascinating if you break it down.

Mindset Change

A mind set change is everything. If you think it is easy. The topic will be more bearable. If you think it's tough, it's going to be more tough. So, first thing is first. Be open. You are not dumb, you can easily understand everything if you just remove the concept of "It is too hard or boring"

I once heard that the subject isn't boring, you are bored. So, change your thought process. Start with, "I can handle this"

Break It Down

Not your chapter. I mean the topic itself. Line by line if you have to. I did this exact thing for accounts whenever i had to do ratios. It was a pain. An unwanted pain. I couldn't understand anything. But i sat down one day and read every single line of the textbook for that topic. I made what i call "Line Visuals". This is simple.

You read a paragraph => You don't understand anything.

Read every line => Draw it

Understand the key terms used there

And then draw a single visual representation for that entire topic.

I'll guarantee you, you will understand it. Review it once a day for a week and then once a week.

Story Method

People remember stories more than normal facts or random pieces of data. Stories allow you to link different facts together and make it easier for you to process.

The easiest way to do this is using "FTF" (First, Then, Finally).

First, the main character (you or anyone else you imagine) will start on a journey. That's scene one. You will need to associate some points to this scene. This will mostly include the overall concept. Basic understanding.

Then, the main character will face a problem. This will include all the major questions revolving around the topic.

Finally, the main character will find the answers. Let's break it down more.

What i love about this is that it can be used for sudden test/ pop quizzes because all you need to do is just remember the story.

If you want to read more about it, check out: How To Study Using The "Story Method"

Use Mnemonics

Learn with this. It helps you to remember easily. Make catchy phrases to remember points/facts. These are like the building blocks of studying anything. Stick small notes to your books writing the phrases beside the topic so the next time you want to revise it, it's easy.

Connect Similar Topic

Connect all your related subjects. Everything in school is somehow connected. I usually used to connect economics and business studies concepts. Sometimes even computers so... Connect them.

Active Recall

Active recall is like the number one tip i'd recommend. It's easy and most of you probably do it already. You just have to keep revising and testing yourself at the materials periodically. It's easy and effective.

Teach What You Learn

You learn the most when you teach. I had taken my friends for this. Study and teach it to them. This helps because you have to have a clear understanding of the material first rather to teach them and you may end up with some important feedback. Your friends might ask a specific question you didn't know the answer to and now all of you are trying to perfect yourself with the material.

___________________

Additional Tips:

Tips for understanding complex topics

How To Self Study

Tips To Study Concept-Oriented Subjects

How To Study For Longer Hours

How To Study Multiple Subjects

___________________

I hope it helps! :)

By the way, all of these tips are from my previous posts. But honestly this is what i do to actually study faster. It actually works for me and i hope it works for you too :)

__________________

[ms-demeanor]

*screaming*

*continued screaming*

Okay. So. My introductory Visual C# class.

The professor for that class was Alice. Alice was the person who spoke in the introductory video and the person who we were supposed to email if we had any issues.

But all of the assignments, lectures, and quizzes were written and delivered by Bob. On the youtube channel "Bob's programming academy." The quizzes included Bob's name, like "if you do X will it return the string ProfessorBob, Professor, Bob, or Professor.Bob?"

This class was really frustrating for me because it was structured in such a way that you could easily pass the class with zero knowledge of the subject - it was totally based on quizzes that you could take an unlimited number of times and we *had* weekly programming assignments but they weren't graded so there was no incentive to do them (and look, if I wanted to teach myself programming with no incentives I could fail for several years to do that on my own, I don't need to pay fifty bucks a unit for that; the reason I am in a *class* and am not self-taught is because I need external motivation. That's why I sought out a class).

Also when there *was* a problem with an instruction that was unclear in one of the videos for the assignments, or if I thought I'd done something correctly that was very much incorrect, it wasn't Alice who had created the instructions, it was Bob - in 2017 no less - and I didn't really feel like I could ask Alice for help with an ungraded assignment that she hadn't written.

So. Now. My Python class.

Today is the first day of class. Professor is Charles.

I go to the mandatory attendance quiz and it is word-for-word the same mandatory attendance quiz as the C# class, down to the final question "what is your personal email address so I can keep in contact with you after the semester?"

I look at the syllabus.

Class grade is based on quizzes. We have assignments but none of them are graded. There's no textbook, just a series of videos from Professor Bob's Programming Academy.

So I'd been toying with staying at this school and trying to take more CS classes instead of going to another school, just to try to keep my records easier to manage, but since it seems like that *ENTIRE DEPARTMENT* is five Professor Bobs in a trenchcoat, I will probably be going somewhere else (and once again trying to force myself to do projects that I already know are *good for me to do* but *useless for the class and a massive time suck*)

I should drop this class. I should drop this class and apply for the other school so that I can start taking classes there in the spring because if I take this class and then go into the object oriented programming class in the spring and it's another professor bob sock puppet and I end up taking twelve units of programming classes where all I learn is how to google answers in a short time frame (something I already know how to do thanks) I am going to fucking lose it.

Also, again: I have a Bachelor's Degree. I spent five years at a community college when I was getting that degree. I took probably a dozen online classes starting in 2005 and going until 2011 in the process of getting that degree.

THIS bullshit, this "I'm your professor but actually I'm not and all the materials were created by someone else in the department or came directly from the textbook publisher and there is no writing and there are no assignments everything is multiple choice quizzes that are automatically graded" is *dogshit.*

This is NOT how online classes worked back in my day, not even online math classes, and as much as I know adjuncts are getting fucked over by academia in general, this isn't something that these professors should be getting paid as much as they are to do. Alice checked whether or not students turned in a hello world assignment and gave a pass/fail grades for three discussion boards that were responses to youtube videos. Nothing else in the class required her input. If this is the level of instruction that students are getting then the class is already automated and the students shouldn't have to pay for it.

This is crap. This is an incredible level of crap.

[mortalfaerie]

ᴡᴇʟᴄᴏᴍᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ʙɪʀᴅɪᴇ ᴀᴜ

(aka "y/n called birdie" ifykyk)

the birdie au is a reader-insert (wip) narrative + collection of one-shots centered on the slow-burn romance between ellie williams and the reader (nicknamed "birdie" in universe). here's what you need to know:

"ʙɪʀᴅɪᴇ" ᴡᴀꜱ ᴀ ᴄʜɪʟᴅʜᴏᴏᴅ ɴɪᴄᴋɴᴀᴍᴇ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ꜱᴛᴜᴄᴋ

your name isn't birdie - it's your nickname. to avoid using y/n, however, you have a nickname your grandfather used and now most people refer to you by. it's made very clear in the narrative that this is only a nickname, though your actual name is purposefully never stated.

so who are you? well, you. but your in-universe backstory goes like this:

your grandfather was a doctor in chicago before the outbreak who avoided initial infection out of pure luck - he had taken the week off and so not come into contact with infected patients. when the outbreak began, he and his daughter (your mother) were moved to the nascente QZ where FEDRA soon exploited his skills

you were born in 2009 in the chicago QZ. in 2012, civil war in the QZ broke out between the liberation groups and FEDRA. sometime between 2012 and 2016, your mother and father were killed in the crossfire. prior to that point they had been planning to escape, and now your grandfather took you (between 3-7) and escaped, heading west

by 2017 you had made it jackson, where the first settlement was being established and fortified. they had need of a doctor and so you two were welcome to stay. when they town expanded and the population grew, they helped convert an old walk-in clinic into a tiny hospital your grandfather oversaw. another settler was an experienced nurse (Tara) and joined him there, and you were practically raised there in the clinic watching them.

you learned most things on the fly in the clinic, and when you grew older, your grandfather decided to train you to one day take his place. the jackson public library and local school had textbooks and test prep books and materials he used to teach you the foundations of chemistry, biology, and practical medicine so you could begin assisting in the clinic.

by the time you were 14, you often manned the reception desk checking people in and writing down their concerns to take to your grandfather for triage. that's how you met ellie for the first time when she and joel arrived in jackson.

working in the clinic while other kids were outside, bonding and training and hanging out around campfires, you didn't have that many friends - but you had your dog, brontë, and you were pretty content with that. but after an initially hostile interaction and a forced apology from ellie, the two of you became something approaching friends.

bonus: brontë

brontë was born in the kennels as part of a litter (all named after old writers) meant to become patrol dogs. however, she was the runt with one underdeveloped back leg that was likely to need amputation. when you were 13, you overheard your grandfather being asked to put her down since she couldn't be a patrol dog and you begged and pleaded with him to be able to keep her. the leg had to go because it unbalanced her and made it difficult for her to walk, and so he caved and agreed to do the procedure and keep her on the condition that you were responsible for taking care of her. since then, she's been your closest companion and follows you everywhere, including the clinic - where she's a hit with the little kids. she's goofy, affectionate, and loyal, and you wouldn't trade her for the world.

a note about inclusivity; though i am writing the reader as 1) afab and 2) using she/her pronouns, i am making a concentrated effort to avoid any other physical description about appearance/body size/etc. that being said, i've never written a reader-insert as long as i intend this to be and i probably will slip up at least once! if you notice that (and since i don't have a beta reader), please *respectfully* notify me and i'll edit it out. :)

[milkoomi]

semester success. ᥫ᭡

[ 3 chapter mini series ]

in this series, i’m going to teach you all my helpful tips and tricks on how to succeed in the new semester in just 3 quick chapters! get ready to take notes, we’re diving right in!

chapter one — THE STARTING WEEK

the first week of a new semester can be daunting. how the rest of your semester will go depends on how your first week starts. so let’s make sure we start the semester on the right foot!

class is in session …

୨ৎ — the week before

if you can start preparations at least one week before the start of the new semester, do it!

here’s what you can do:

monday & tuesday - gather all your supplies

the basics…

backpack / school bag

folders / binders / notebooks / planner

pencil case / pencils / pens / highlighters

laptop / tablet / tablet pen / chargers

essentials…

textbooks / required materials

personal care & hygiene products (i.e. deodorant, perfume, lip balm, hair ties, hand sanitizer, feminine products)

headphones

in case you’re missing a few extra supplies, be sure to go and make those necessary purchases! create a checklist if you have to!

wednesday - check student email

be sure to check your student email for any new updates from your teachers/professors! you also want to make sure you give yourself a solid amount of time before classes start back up to keep checking for updates and/or important announcements.

** from this point up until the day before your new semester starts, keep checking your student email. i recommend checking at least 4 times per day! once in the morning around 8-9am, twice in the afternoon around 12-1pm & around 3-4pm, and then once more at night around 7-8pm!

thursday & friday - plan for the first week

grab your planner (whether it’s physical or digital) and take some time to plan out your first week! make note of what classes you have on what days & include the times those classes start, write down any important non-school related appointments/events that you have during that first week, and be sure to include time during that first week where you can rest and relax.

saturday - review syllabus & double checking

take some time out of your day to read and review each of your class’ syllabi! make sure you read through them thoroughly and highlight any important dates that show up in the course semester schedule. i also recommend highlighting your teachers’/professors’ contact information, and if they have office hours be sure to make note of that as well!

also, let this second-to-last day before the start of the semester be designated for last minute preparations. double check that you have all your supplies, check your student email again, and just make sure you complete everything else that might be on your to-do list.

sunday - relaxing & decompressing

the final day of your break before the semester starts should be used to just rest and relax. treat yourself kindly on this day; pamper yourself! do skincare, treat yourself to a cozy day in, watch your favorite show or movies, journal! do something that makes you feel at ease and makes you feel happy! it’s important to have a day where you can just relax and only focus on relaxing.

you might also want to ease your mind by doing some last minute cleaning and reorganizing! starting a new semester with a refreshed study space/room (whether it be an office or your bedroom) can help alleviate some stress that might still be lingering. refresh your space and clear your mind!

this little schedule might not be the exact one you follow, and that’s okay! i made this as an example of what you can do & what your week before might look like!

୨ৎ — academic weapon style

get dressed up for your first week back! wear the clothes that make you feel confident and that help you set the tone for yourself.

gather inspiration! dress like your favorite academic icons! hop onto pinterest & look for style inspo for different characters like…

rory gilmore

hermione granger

meredith grey

cristina yang

elle woods

spencer hastings

blair waldorf

cristina yang , blair wladorf , spencer hastings

୨ৎ — create a consistent morning & night routine

it’s important to have a routine, especially in the morning and at night. having a routine that works for you and your schedule will help smooth any rough edges that might come up during your semester!

go to sleep & wake up at the same time every day

incorporate self care/hygiene routine in the morning and night

include health & wellness aspects (journaling, morning yoga, etc.)

make your bed as soon as you wake up

set aside time to unwind/time for yourself

୨ৎ — chat with/get to know your professors

the first week is all about figuring out the vibe of your class, so get a feel for your environment and who your professors are! you will be working with them for the next 16 weeks!

use this time to ask questions, let your professor know a little bit about you, and take notes on what your professor asks from you and your classmates during this semester.

after you’ve taken the time to review the syllabus prior to classes starting, write down possible questions or concerns that you can bring up to your teachers!

before you’re dismissed ��

take on the first week with your full strength! create that good first impression for yourself and set the path for your incoming success!

with lots of love, faustina 🌷

[thestarstoasun]

Because the next part of this isn't where I want it to be yet due to packing and schooling, I'm going to post some (more) of my headcanons!

• The Hermes cabin treats all unclaimed demigods as their own siblings even after they get claimed (depending on how fast they get claimed).

• The year-round demigods are closer with each other, but during summer they tend to spend more time with the other campers more. The bonds they have are a bit obvious though.

• Travis and Connor Stoll have a running prank of convincing all new demigods that they're twins (at least until Travis leaves.)

• During Nico's brief stay at camp in The Titan's Curse, he made friends with the Stolls and a few other campers. (Canonically he met Will, but I did hc they met before it was confirmed.)

• The Ares campers are the best at every weapon, except bows. Some Apollo kids (Michael Yew included) take full advantage of bringing this up. When Sherman Yang brought up Will's less than proficient bow skills, Clarisse had Sherman apologize.

• Chiron teaches the year-rounders using Ancient Greek textbooks + books and myths, so they can understand the material easier.

• When Jason shows up, some people have to pay up because there were bets made on which of the Big 3 would have another secret demigod, when Hazel came more drachmas were exchanged to the Apollo cabin. (Drew: "How the Hades did you guess Hades would have another secret child!?" Will: "I mean, technically, it was Pluto?")

• After Beckendorf's death, the Hephaestus cabin seemed to dull until Leo showed up. He reminded them a lot of Beckendorf and yet was so different (starting with height).

• The Demeter kids hate the winter months and prefer spring and summer.

[noxiatoxia]

heyyy.. I’ve been learning Japanese because I’m very interested, I’ve only been using Duolingo so far and I’m not satisfied with it for a number of reasons

anyway do you have any resources you’d recommend for a beginner level in Japanese? I know the entire hiragana alphabet, including sounds like “pu” and “gi” (I can’t figure out the Japanese keyboard yet lmao)

Hi! I'm very flattered you'd come to me! Please keep in mind I do not have a degree in Japanese nor English or any Language Teaching, so this is just advice from a normal guy.

Firstly, it was a good idea to ditch Duolingo. Duolingo is good for learning the JP alphabet, or - and if you don't care/don't want to become fluent - if you just need to learn a handful of phrases to make your Summer trip to Japan survivable. If you wish to become fluent though, it's a really awful tool. For one big reason:

There are no 1:1s in language.

Put simply...there is no "English translation" to any given Japanese word. This is true of any language, I think - not just ENG <--> JP. Sure, some simple nouns can be reliably translated with accuracy - りんご ringo means "apple", or 犬 いぬ inu means "dog". But even then, context matters. There's idioms, sayings - and when you get to verbs, more complex nouns, adjectives...there simply is no 1:1 anymore.

This is why we get translations like Danganronpa which read (70% of the time) like they looked up the word in a JP to ENG dictionary and figured that must be it.

For example... "zetsubou" , "despair", doesn't actually mean despair, really. The way it's used in Japanese is much more common/versatile than how it is used in English. Really think about it. How often in day to day normal conversation do you hear the word despair?

In Japanese, 絶望 ぜつぼう zetsubou is sort of like...misery, negativity, the absence of any feeling of things will be good or okay. This makes it far more common in Japanese natural dialogue.

So please keep that in mind with every word you learn! Learn the feeling, write down as many example sentences you need to help you with it.

This may feel daunting, and it's okay to rely on basic definitions as a beginner if you need to. Everyone starts somewhere. But it's something to keep in mind.

Elsewise, I think toddler cartoons are actually good. Cartoons made for babies and toddlers are designed to help them learn basic things, such as colors, shapes, being nice...etc. Because of the simplistic nature, small words are used, speech is usually slower, and words are repeated consistently. Even just sitting down every hour once a week to watch a toddler show in Japanese is helpful.

The Japanese dub of Bluey and Peppa Pig are very good. Also available (and my personal favorite) is Paboo and Mojies. If you want some material for kids but not toddlers, NHK for School is good.

Watching the Japanese Dub of a show you know like the back of your hand (preferably a kids' show for easier to understand dialogue) is great too, as you can hear how the sentence gets translated into Japanese. The MLP 5 movie is great in Japanese, and I don't know much about Miraculous Ladybug in English, but I caught it on JP Disney Junior a few times and thought it was fun, and I think if you are able to understand some of the toddler shows with relative ease, these would be good places to move to.

Toddler shows are also careful to generally keep the words spoken normal since kids will likely emulate them. It helps keep you from talking like an anime character.

When it comes to reading, little kid books with Hiragana are good, but manga is actually helpful! Manga uses Kanji, but includes Furigana by the Kanji so you can see how to say it. The Yotsubato Manga in Japanese is a good one to start with. You can look up the words you find in a dictionary.

If you need discipline and can't learn without deadlines and such, a language school may be good. While Japanese textbooks can often be misleading for English learners, it's not necessarily incorrect info, and if you need the school environment, then I'd say the pros outweighs the cons.

Also, don't be afraid to use MTL for help, to look up words, and to google in Japanese.

Also for Hiragana and Katakana, this is a good site. I know you already know Hiragana, but just in case.

Watching Japanese vlogs and YT videos are a good way to hear natural Japanese as well. Finding people who know Japanese to talk to is important for practicing your speaking skills as well.

I hope this helps at all!

[ahhnini]

academic!rival! rafe moodboard + hcs

a/n - setting up an enemies to lovers? anyways new au!! requests are open for academic!rival! rafe :3 hope yall enjoy! <3

ೃ༄ academic!rival! rafe who’s the top of his class, on track to graduate #1, practically lives in the school library.

ೃ༄ academic!rival! rafe who loves pumpkin spice lattes (tells everyone its cold brew).

ೃ༄ academic!rival! rafe whos wardrobe staples include in his cardigans and scarves.

ೃ༄ academic!rival! rafe who comes from a wealthy family, who had sent him off to the best university in the country.

ೃ༄ academic!rival! rafe who has a superiority complex over his classmates. he thinks they’re not intelligent enough to comprehend the material, so he doesn’t talk to them.

ೃ༄ academic!rival! rafe who feels weight on his shoulders to uphold the cameron legacy. even if he wants to live the stereotypical “college life,” those temptations are crushed by his father’s words, “our family name depends on you, son”

ೃ༄ academic!rival! rafe who bit the inside of his cheek when he checked the class rankings, and saw you about to dethrone him from his rightful place.

ೃ༄ the first time you two crossed paths was in the library, hands reaching for the same textbook. it was a cliche moment that happened in every kiss-met romcom, but to rafe, it was the start of your rivalry. you quickly snagged the book away from his hand, turning around and speed-walking to the study tables. he scoffed, browsing the shelves and settling with an older edition of the textbook.

ೃ༄ from then on, rafe would always see you on campus. and he hated that. he hated that the person who could take everything away from him was almost always right in front of his eyes.

ೃ༄ you made it seem so easy. you’d study for one hour and get top marks on the exams, while rafe would have to study for days to get the material in his head. it wasn’t fair.

ೃ༄ so he ended up doing something he’d never thought he’d do. he was going to sabotage you, in a way you or he never expected.

ೃ༄ one thursday afternoon, you find a letter someone slipped through your dorm door. opening up the envelope, the letter read; would you like to go out to dinner with me, y/n?

signed, rafe cameron.

taglist - @nemesyaaa @julie123456897 @mfdoomdickrider @grxnde-dwt

click here to be added to my taglist!

[dayofaestheticorsubculture]

Studyblr

Studyblr is a portmanteau of “study” and “Tumblr,” referring to a subcommunity on the microblogging and social networking platform Tumblr that centers around academic motivation, study aesthetics, productivity, and educational self-improvement. It is part of a larger trend of internet-based productivity and self-betterment communities that use social media to share resources, inspiration, and personal progress. The Studyblr movement rose to prominence in the mid-2010s, particularly among high school and college students, and has since evolved into a broader cultural and pedagogical phenomenon. Unlike traditional educational tools or support systems, Studyblr is grassroots and peer-led, combining elements of digital journaling, lifestyle blogging, and academic coaching.

The Studyblr community emerged organically from Tumblr’s broader user base in the early 2010s. It was initially inspired by the pre-existing aesthetic blogging culture of Tumblr, which was characterized by curated visual content, moodboards, personal diaries, and thematic tagging. As users began sharing photos of their study spaces, handwritten notes, planners, and school routines, a distinct identity coalesced around the tag “#studyblr.”

This emergence coincided with growing global interest in academic competitiveness, mental wellness, and productivity among digital-native students. While the community had no official founding date or centralized leadership, key influencers—users who consistently posted high-quality, original content—helped shape its ethos. Over time, Studyblr expanded beyond static images to include long-form reflections on study strategies, mental health, goal-setting, and the lived experiences of students navigating academic systems.

Studyblr is perhaps best known for its distinctive visual and textual aesthetics. Content typically revolves around carefully arranged photos of notebooks, stationery, desks, laptops, and textbooks. These images often feature natural lighting, pastel color palettes, and neat handwriting in cursive or block letters. The emphasis on presentation serves both motivational and aspirational functions: it reflects the user’s effort and self-discipline, while also creating an idealized image of productive student life.

Beyond visuals, Studyblr content is deeply text-driven. Posts often include personal essays, daily study logs, motivational affirmations, study tips, productivity challenges, book reviews, and planning systems. Many users integrate bullet journaling and time management methodologies such as the Pomodoro Technique, Eisenhower Matrix, or Getting Things Done (GTD) framework into their content. The aestheticized academic life depicted in Studyblr is often aspirational, yet it can also contain candid reflections on academic burnout, impostor syndrome, and the pressure to perform.

Studyblr functions as a decentralized, informal learning network. Users share and exchange knowledge across disciplines, offering peer support, explanations, and curated resources. Unlike formal education systems that follow rigid curricula, Studyblr promotes autodidacticism—self-directed learning based on personal interest and need. It is common to find comprehensive guides written by users on how to study specific subjects, prepare for standardized tests like the SAT, ACT, or A-Levels, or learn foreign languages.

These peer-led instructional materials often emphasize metacognitive strategies, such as spaced repetition, active recall, mind mapping, and Cornell note-taking. Studyblr can thus be viewed as a space for educational praxis, where learners not only consume knowledge but also critically reflect on how to learn. In this sense, it parallels and intersects with the Open Educational Resources (OER) movement, albeit in a more informal and socially curated manner.

Studyblr supports a complex and multifaceted set of identities. Users often present themselves as diligent, growth-oriented individuals who are striving to improve their academic lives. However, the community is also interwoven with issues of self-image, performance, and socio-cultural pressures. Many Studyblr participants are women and girls, and there is a strong feminized aesthetic to the community, including a focus on journaling, pastel tones, and emotional self-care.

Despite its empowering potential, Studyblr has been critiqued for perpetuating perfectionism and romanticizing productivity. The aesthetic emphasis can lead to a performative culture where the appearance of studying becomes as important as the actual work done. This dynamic mirrors broader critiques of social media platforms where curated self-presentation can mask internal struggles and contribute to anxiety or imposter syndrome.

Studyblr also functions as a digital safe space for marginalized students, including LGBTQ+ individuals, neurodivergent learners, and those with mental health challenges. The community often provides emotional support, practical advice, and solidarity across identity lines, creating an inclusive environment that is often lacking in traditional academic institutions.

Tumblr’s platform design—featuring reblogs, tags, and anonymous messaging—facilitates the decentralized and viral nature of Studyblr content. The use of tags like #studyspo (study inspiration), #productivity, and #studentlife allows for rapid content discovery and thematic categorization. Reblogging allows users to build upon others’ posts, adding commentary or visual remixing, thus fostering a participatory culture.

Many Studyblr users extend their presence across platforms such as Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and, more recently, TikTok. These migrations have contributed to the cross-pollination of related communities like Studygram (on Instagram), Studytwt (on Twitter), and StudyTube (on YouTube). Each of these platforms introduces distinct norms and media affordances, but they share common themes of academic productivity, peer support, and aesthetic curation.

While not formally recognized by most academic institutions, Studyblr can have measurable educational benefits. Its emphasis on goal-setting, reflective practice, and resource sharing encourages students to engage more deeply with their learning. It can enhance intrinsic motivation and help students develop executive functioning skills such as planning, prioritization, and time management.

However, critics argue that Studyblr may reinforce elitist or exclusionary narratives. The idealized images often feature expensive stationery, minimalist furniture, and uninterrupted time—luxuries not all students can afford. Furthermore, the emphasis on constant productivity may inadvertently glamorize overwork and contribute to toxic hustle culture.

There is also a tendency toward Eurocentric and Anglophone academic norms, which may marginalize students in non-Western contexts. While some Studyblr users challenge these biases by posting in other languages or highlighting alternative educational systems, the dominant aesthetic and rhetorical style remains rooted in Western liberal education ideals.

A distinctive feature of Studyblr is its intersection with mental health discourse. Many users openly discuss their struggles with anxiety, depression, ADHD, and other psychological challenges. This openness creates a dual narrative: one of ambition and productivity, and another of vulnerability and resilience. It also reflects broader generational shifts in attitudes toward mental health, particularly among Gen Z and late Millennials.

Self-care routines, therapy experiences, and coping strategies are frequently discussed alongside study schedules and exam prep. This integration of mental wellness and academic performance represents a holistic approach to student life that stands in contrast to traditional educational discourses that often neglect emotional labor. However, this discourse is not without tension—there is an ongoing debate within the community about whether the focus on aesthetics and high achievement can undercut genuine mental health advocacy.

Studyblr is more than a niche interest group—it represents a convergence of education, technology, identity, and aesthetics in the digital age. As of the mid-2020s, while Tumblr’s overall user base has declined from its peak, the Studyblr ethos continues to influence newer platforms and educational content creation. The cultural DNA of Studyblr can be seen in online productivity communities, Notion dashboards, digital journaling apps, and even remote learning pedagogies that emphasize autonomy and engagement.

Its legacy lies in reshaping how students view learning—not merely as a path to grades or degrees, but as a personal, expressive, and communal act. Studyblr illustrates how digital communities can serve as sites of both empowerment and critique, offering new possibilities for how we understand motivation, knowledge, and the lived experience of education in a connected world.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Erum Salam at The Guardian:

The wave of book bans sweeping the US, typically reserved for works of fiction deemed controversial, has hit textbooks used in public schools, marking the next step in Republicans’ war on education. The board of trustees for the Cypress Fairbanks independent school district in Houston voted 6-1 earlier this month to redact certain chapters in science textbooks, including those about vaccines, human growth, diversity and climate change. The motion to remove the chapters was made by the board’s vice-president, Natalie Blasingame, and almost unanimously supported. Blasingame, who has served on the board since 2021, did not give a specific explanation for the decision, but said the subjects go beyond what the state requires to teach and creates “a perception that humans are bad”. Last year, the Republican-controlled state board approved textbooks for the schools’ science curriculums, rejecting several books on climate, so the local school district’s censorship of these textbooks is even more restrictive.

Education experts say the move could have far-reaching consequences, prompting similar decisions to omit information in other subjects, and by public school districts across the country. The board’s decision drew the ire of local parents and education groups. Bryan Henry, a local parent and founder of the non-partisan group Cypress Families for Public Schools, said he was concerned about the precedent this decision sets. “Will trustees at the local school board level be able to just delete chapters about civil rights because they just mentioned the history of same-sex marriage?” Henry, 37, said. “It’s really kind of alarming what this could mean for ideological influence and control over what is taught in schools.” Henry describes Cypress, a sprawling suburb of Houston with a population of nearly 200,000, as an increasingly diverse community with a loud minority of political extremists.

“A lot of Republicans in the Cy-Fair area, who are very conservative but are pro-public education, are having to now grapple with the fact that [the] governor, state representatives – they’re really not pro-public education,” he said. “And so people are struggling with how to reconcile that, because they don’t want to vote for Democrats.” Henry added this “level of oversight, micromanagement and interference” was “scary.” The Texas Freedom to Read Project, an organization that fights book bans, swiftly condemned the decision. “To ban entire chapters of textbooks and withhold that information from students is not only unconstitutional, but it is taking away their access to real-life ideas that exist in this world,” said Laney Hawes, co-founder of the group. “Access to a diverse and wide range of information is what prepares students to navigate this world successfully. When we ban books and limit students’ ability to access ideas, we are closing doors to their futures.”

[...] PEN America found 3,362 instances of individual books banned in public K–12 schools for the 2022-23 academic year – a 33% increase from last year, with Florida and Texas leading the way. These books mostly include novels with themes of race or sexuality, not core academic material.

Meehan said the censorships of textbooks is “a further escalation of this movement”. “Texas is no stranger to book bans or censoring other educational content areas or materials. The idea that we’re redacting chapters from state-approved textbooks is almost unheard of. It’s so outlandish,” Meehan said. Book bans have become a core element of platforms of well funded far-right politicians, who have tried to win a larger presence on school boards across the US. “I’m almost worried about a concerning trend where far-right Republican candidates are replacing moderate Republicans on school boards, not because citizens believe they are better suited for the job, but because rightwing billionaires and Pacs [political action committees] are starting to pour money into these local elections,” said David DeMatthews, an education professor at the University of Texas at Austin, who previously worked as a public school teacher and district administrator.

Public school textbooks are the next battleground item in the right-wing’s dangerous and censorious book-banning crusade in schools.

[aphelionwrotes11]

Hello people! :)

PT 1

Anakin!spiderman x reader

CW: descriptions of violence, light stalking, slow burn, enemies to lovers, pining, fluff, reader bullies anakin (hes into it), nerd anakin, academic rivals, banter, lemme know if I’m missing anything.

The reason he’s called Anakin parker instead of Skywalker will be revealed later >:D

As per usual ignore any and all spelling and grammar errors. Sorryyyy

WC: 4.7k

Another day in the quiet campus library hitting the books. Not exactly how you had planned on spending your early twenties. In the Ivy League school of your choice, New York City, studying fat old books so that you can excel in yet another midterm, and for what? Anakin Parker. That’s what. Your academic rival and determined thorn in your side.

You and Mary wandered through the seemingly endless shelves of books, fifteen minutes had passed and you still hadn’t managed to find the quantum theory textbook you needed to study. The two of you had gone through the STEM section twice, her fingers grazing the shelf as you studied the titles.

”Any luck?” Mary asks, grimacing as she pulls back her fingers to find them coated in dust. “Ugh, where could this dumb book be, dude? Like.. literally no one comes back here.” She whispers, glaring at the tall shelves.

You sigh, “no clue. It should be somewhere around here.” Your eyes narrow at the shelf in front of you, the library is ordered alphabetically, the book in theory should be right here.

“Guess someone got to it before you.. wonder who that could be.” Mary sighed, rolling her eyes.

You know who she’s referring to. You moved here two years ago and there has only been one guy that’s given you any trouble.

“No. He wouldn’t have. There’s no way he could know there’s gonna be a quantum theory section on professor Harvey’s test.” You whisper to yourself. “The TA told me himself that no one else knows.” You emphasize, Carl had swore up and down that not another soul knew what he had told you.

“Yeaaah, not gonna lie though, who knows how many people he actually told. It’s not like nobody else has a spare twenty to slip him for some test tips, girl.” Mary replied casually. “And if you’re willing to go that far then you know damn well he would be too, he’s like the only one on your level.”

”How would he even know to bribe the TA, Mary? Carl is literally never around for lectures, nobody in Harvey’s class even knows hes got a TA.” You reply, exasperated. Now that you think about it, he was quite quick to snatch that twenty from your fingers. It was too easy to get anything out of him to actually trust his promises of exclusivity.

Mary shrugs, “I dunno, he’s got his ways.” She sighs, “I swear he’s got sixth sense or something.”

”Yeah a sixth sense for how to be an absolute nuisance.” You grumble.

Mary chuckles quietly, turning the corner before coming to a halt. “Well, you’ve got that right.” She says with a smirk, pointing to something.

You furrow your brows, coming up behind her and following her finger to a stack of books, your book included, resting beside none other than Anakin Parker.

“Fuck.” You mumble, rubbing your hand down your face.

“Want me to talk to him?” She smiles.

”no, no, Ive got it.”

”Alright.” She shrugs, “I’ll be over here, lemme know if you need me to put him in his place.” She says with an evil grin.

“Okay psycho.” You giggle as she wanders toward the history section.

The sigh you release is heavy as you walk towards an inevitable headache.

You half expect to surprise him, given how engrossed he seems to be in the material he’s studying, but as if sensing you near he straightens and turns to you with wide eyes.

”Hey.” He says with a cool smile, a halfhearted attempt at nonchalantness.

You frown, “Hi.” Glancing over at his stack of books. “Do you need the whole library or do you think I could borrow one of those?” You say, pointing to his stack.

He looks back, “depends on which one it is.” He smirks boyishly, his lips curling over his teeth. You wonder for a moment if he’s had them whitened.

You give him a sour look. “The quantum theory textbook.”

He raises his brow and pulls the book from the middle, turning it over, “huh, really? Didn’t know you had an interest in quantum theory.” He says with clear faux surprise.

“Yeah, suddenly decided I just can’t live without it. So can you hand it over? I only need it for the hour.” You reply flatly.

He sucks his teeth, “eh.. I dunno. Thanks to you I actually just remembered that I was supposed to be reading this, so I don’t think I can give it up. Maybe some other time.” He grins. And again, your vision zones in on his mouth. His stupid mouth.

You shoot him a glare and he swallows thickly, glancing away as if he’s nervous.

“Listen, I don’t know how, but I know you KNOW there’s going to be a quantum theory part in Harveys test. And I also know that your nerdy ass has probably read that book from cover to cover. So please, do me this one favor.” You grit. Only two hours until Harvey’s exam, you picked the worst time to cram.

He stares at the book in his hands, not daring to look at you. “Well.. this is actually the only one I haven’t read yet.” He gives you a crooked smile.

Your eyes narrow in suspicion. “Really?”

He nods. “Yes, really.” He flattens his lips

you suck in a breath. He’s obviously lying, but you have no idea why. “Well what can we do then? Cuz I need to study and I really don’t have the time for this. Can we just take turns every thirty minutes or something?”

he raises his brows, “That doesn’t sound like it would be very productive.” He glances at you and the chair beside him. “Um… How about we just study together?”

You drop your shoulders, clearly disappointed at his proposition.

he frowns, nearly a pout, “not really any better options at the moment.”

You want to say he could just give you the book and miss a few points for once in his life, if at all, god only knows how much home research hes probably already doing about quantum theory and whatever else.

you sigh, he flinches as you toss your bag on the ground beside him and settle into the open chair.

“Guess not.” You reply.

He shuffles in his seat as if making space for you even though there’s enough distance to keep you comfortable. You glance at him expectantly, his hands still clutching the book to his chest.

You jut your head at the table, “Well? Can we get started?” You sound more impatient than you intended.

“Uh- yeah- well, do you wanna get setup first?” He asks, his brows furrowed and face tight, like hes afraid you’ll blow up at him or something.

You click your tongue, your cheeks twinging pink. “Right, yeah.” You say reaching for your bag. He waits patiently for you to lay out your materials before opening the book to a specific chapter.

“Is this what we’re meant to be studying?” You ask.

“Uh- yeah I think so.” He seems fidgety, you give him a look but don’t bother to ask why.

Time goes by fairly quick after that, the two of you sit side by side writing fervently. He clearly finishes his notes before you but always waits to turn the page. You don’t comment, but you do notice it. A quiet act of helpfulness. He seems to make it a point to press the end of his pencil to certain paragraphs that he deems important. If you weren’t so helpless when it came to this type of science you would ignore his cues to help you, but you decide to put your pride away just this once. And besides, if he notices you taking extra care in writing the notes on what hes pointing out he doesn’t say anything about it. He doesn’t even make a face, aside from the occasional smile when you lean in to read his notes.

Your phone pings, and that seems to pull the both of you out of whatever state you were in. He looks at you with raised brows and quickly glances down at his watch.

“Shit- uh, its 2:30, we gotta go!” He whispers, jumping up and all but shoving his stuff into his bag with surprising swiftness.

You jump up too, and rather gracelessly begin shoving your things into your bag. He helps a bit, gathers pencils and strewn about papers before passing them to you.

He throws a sideways glance at his stack of books before looking back at his watch.

“No time..” he looks to you, “we’ll have to come back for them.”

”right, okay, lets go!” You reply in a frenzy, herding him towards the door. Professor Harvey’s classroom is across campus. On a normal day it would take you twenty minutes to get there from the library.

Anakin walks ahead of you with haste, glancing back occasionally to see that you're still behind him. By the time the two of you are halfway there, you’re already out of breath and the distance between you and him is growing.

“Damnit, slow down!” You cry, you don’t even know why. It’s not like the two of you have to get there together. Hell, he could already be there by now if he left you behind.

He slows and turns to you, he doesn’t even look tired. “Come on, we’re almost there!”

You groan but his steps don’t falter, you lightly jog up to him, grabbing onto his elbow.

“How are you so fast?” You ask.

He doesn’t answer, but he looks down at where your hand is on him, and his expression is unreadable. You pull away as if you’d been scorched.

“Oh- sorry.” You mumble, struggling to speak and keep up with him.

“No- it’s-“ he cuts himself off, staring at your arm. “Here.”

He reaches for you and loops your arm with his before picking up the pace, you hadn’t even noticed that you two slowed down before. Now, he was practically dragging you.

“What the hell, Anakin!” You panted.

He’s throws you an empathetic smile, giving your arm a small tug. “You got this, we’ll make it.” He looks at his watch and sucks in a breath. “Gotta pick up the pace a bit.”

“Fuck- okay.” You groan.

What a sight it is, the two of you arm in arm jogging across campus. Well, you’re running, hes jogging. You’re too breathless to feel humiliated, you probably look a mess. Hair strewn about, cheeks red, panic etched over your features. By the time you’ve reached the building and Anakin whispers the time being 2:37, you’re hit with enough adrenaline to propel yourself up the two flights of stairs at his side.

You both reach the door with a minute to spare, you’re sucking in air like its drowning you and he looks as fresh as ever.

“Ugh- god.” You whimper, putting a hand to your chest to calm your racing heart, you notice him staring at you in awe.

“What?” You ask breathlessly. He cheeks redden, like hes surprised he got caught.

“Uh- nothing, you alright?” He asks with a worried smile.

“Just peachy.” You reply sarcastically, attempting to fix yourself. You straighten your shirt and move your hair.

“Ready?” You ask him, he’s got a faraway look.

“Uh, yeah.” He pauses, reaching up and hesitating when you furrow your brows at him.

“Sorry- uh- sorry.” He says quietly, reaching up and fixing a piece of your hair.

“Thanks.” You say softly as he nods and pulls open the door for you.

The exam goes relatively well. You notice anakin, more than once, turning to look at you from his spot in the first three rows. You simply catch the movement of his head in your peripherals the first two times, too focused on your exam to bother looking up. But by the third time you look up and raise your brows, he whips around as soon as you catch his gaze.

He finishes his exam first, your eyes follow him as he practically scurries out into the hall. You follow shortly after, giving Harvey a small nod on your way out.

You aren’t sure why you’re so surprised to find him waiting outside, leaning against the wall opposite to the door. He perks up as you walk towards him. He opens his mouth to speak-

”Wow, what am I chopped liver?” A sarcastic voice rings from the right.

The both of you jump, looking to find Mary with her brow raised and arms crossed.

You smile, “I didn’t know you were waiting-“ your smile falters, “Oh my god. I totally forgot you in the library, I’m so sorry.” You cross the distance to her side, giving her a pout as she glares at you. Her expression fades into a grin, “Well, how are you gonna make it up to me?” She asks sweetly.

“Actually, It was my fault. We got caught up in studying and had to get to class-“ Anakin started.

Mary groaned exaggeratedly, rolling her eyes for good measure.

“Fine, how are you gonna make it up to me then?” She snaps.

Anakin pauses, looking between you and her. “Well.. I could take you both out for lunch.” He suggests.

“What, you haven’t had enough time with her yet? Gotta take her out for lunch and make more moves on her?” Mary quizzes, you withhold a laugh.

Anakin flushes red, his brows furrow. “That- I wasn’t-“ he clears his throat, “you said you wanted paid back- and- I haven’t made any..” he pauses, looking away, “moves on her. We were only studying.” He mumbles.

“Oh yeah? How about when you two were skipping arm in arm to class? Surprised you didn’t cream your pants when she grabbed you.” Mary laughs, and you stare at her mortified.

“WHAT!” You cry.

Anakin's mouth gapes open, “I- what-“ he sputters.

Mary doubles over, laughing so hard it looks like it hurts. You can’t help but to laugh along with her, your stomach hurting from the force of your giggle fit. Anakin just stares at the both of you with mild horror.

”Cream my pants?” He whispers to himself. That makes it worse, tears stream down your cheeks, Mary slaps your shoulder as she cackles, the both of you losing balance.

“Oh my god-“ you try to say between cackles.

“Mary- you-“ You wheeze, “Bitch.”

She sucks in a breath and stands straight. “Yeah I’m hungry now, you can get us lunch.” She looks at her phone. “More like early dinner, but whatever.”

You feel a bit bad for Anakin after you’ve recovered from your giggle fit. At this point you’re quite used to their antics. Mary and Anakin went to high school together, their rivalry has always been in good fun and has apparently existed long before you came into the picture. As the three of you walk towards the decided sandwich shop on campus, Mary asks how the exam went and chatters about what she was up to when you forgot she existed. You glance back at Anakin to find he’s already looking at you, you give him a small smile and he gives you one back, his cheeks still twinged red from earlier humiliation.

True to his word, Anakin buys you both early dinner sandwiches, as well as one for himself. You all settle in the corner of the shop by the window.

“Hey, pretty sure you’ve paid me back, you can go now.” Mary says with a shooing motion.

”Yeah, you wish. I’m staying right here.” His usual well meaning sarcasm has finally returned. Your shoulders relax, you hadn’t even noticed they were tense.

“Kay, whatever.” Mary replies. “Hey, I don’t blame you, you wanna hang with the champ. Bet you’re hoping her smarts will rub off on you.” Mary adds, bumping your shoulder with hers. You shake your head and giggle.

”Yeah, I guess so. Doesn’t seem like her smarts have rubbed off on you any.” He quips.

“Hey! I’ll have you know I’m doing very well in my classes.”

“Oh yeah?” He raises a brow.

“Okay maybe I’m not top of the fuckin score board like the both of you, but I make do.” She growls.

“The both of us can’t be top of the scoreboard.” You comment.

“Well we all know you’re number one, beautiful.” Mary says to you with a saccharine grin.

Anakin scoffs, “we’ll see once the exam scores are posted.” He smirks at you.

And there it is, in just one afternoon you had completely forgotten your own rivalry with him, how could you forget just how much he pisses you off. When you graduated high school, you hadn’t expected to do so well in university. Your own passion shocks you at times. And at the very bottom of your list of things you expected to happen, was to have an academic rival. When you first met Anakin, he was a lot more cocky. You had chalked up his recent kindness towards you as having earned his respect, you’ve held your own in this little competition of skill. But now the stakes have risen, because there’s always a prize, which has become more than just keeping your ego intact.

You frown and shoot him a glare, he shuffles in his seat.

“Right. Guess we will.” You grit.

Mary, noticing the sudden tension, quickly changes the subject.

“Soo. Anakin.. got your eyes on new internships?” She asks with raised brows. You already know why she’s asking, the prize. What you and Anakin are both after. She’s hoping he’s trying for something new.

he sighs, he has the courtesy to look sorry. “No. Still trying for the Oscorp position.”

She sucks in a breath and looks to you quickly. Her nervousness makes you bristle.

“Well. May the smartest one win.” You reply tightly, and he nods.

This competition, whats it all for? The prize? An internship at oscorp working in one of the best labs money could buy. There’s only one opening and its reserved for the highest scorer in this round of exams. The realization that you had spent the day with the one person you’re competing against for something that will change your life makes you shift in your seat. Thats what its always been about. But now that the deadline is so close, it feels a lot more real.

The three of you finish your sandwiches in silence.

“Well, we better head out, don’t wanna miss the bus.” Mary finally says after a few long minutes of tense silence.

Anakin finally meets your gaze, he looks like a kicked puppy. “I can walk you to the bus stop-“ your glare cuts him short.

“No thanks. See you later, Anakin.” You say as you rise from your seat.

Mary and you part ways once she gets off at her stop. You’ve still got another three stops till you’ll be on your block. Plenty of time to overthink your bitterness.

For the life of you, you really can’t decipher why the internship is such a soft spot. Do you really doubt yourself that much? After all this time of the both of you head to head, suddenly you fear you don’t have a winning shot. You fidget with your fingers and glance out the city bus window. Today was a really bad day for your exam nerves to kick in. The first day of midterms, you’ve still got five more to take. All the grades will be posted on the following Monday. Your stomach feels as if its twisting in on itself. Why were you so relaxed today? It’s like you just forgot what the stakes were. Did you pay extra attention to the questions? Did you recheck your answers? Did you really get it all? Your brain whirs as you try to think of any possible slip up you could’ve made.

You’re still reeling from the fact that you were so distracted today as you get off the bus and begin your trek to your apartment. You’re relatively certain you did well on the exam, but you still can’t believe how easy time seems to slip away when you’re around Anakin. Did he do that on purpose? Usually he doesn’t hesitate to remind you of the stakes. So why was he so helpful? God, all it does is piss you off.

You’re too caught up in your thinking to catch the sound of footsteps behind you. Your brows furrow as you suddenly come to. It’s dark, you're still a good five minute walk from your apartment building, the street is empty, and whoever is behind you has been steadily getting closer and closer. You curse your distractible mind.

Fuck, fuck, fuck. You try to calm yourself, to hide your bunching shoulders, slow your breath and listen. The steps behind you grow closer, you pick up the pace just a smidge and they do too, that’s what sends you into a frenzy.

You break into a sprint, the feet behind you do as well. You race down the dark street, the corner light in front of you seems miles away. There’s a small alleyway coming up, you contemplate taking your chances on it.

When you turn your head you find your assailant to be hot on your tail, that makes up your mind. You whip to the left into the narrow alleyway and begin shouting, kicking down trash cans behind you. When you turn the corner, you find a dead end.

You turn, your assailant stands at the end after he turns the corner, a wicked grin on his face.

“Help me!” You scream. How cliche is this? The damsel backs herself into a corner. I mean seriously, running into an alleyway? Classic movie drama. Except this isn’t a movie, this is real life. And you are now alone in an alleyway with a scary dude who could easily overpower you.

he starts pacing towards you, mumbling incoherencies under his breath. You brace yourself, try to remember any self defense you’ve ever happened across. Go for the throat, the eyes, the nuts. Scratch him, get his DNA under your fingernails. God help you, fight like a madwoman. Thats what you remind yourself as you let out a final scream once he gets close.

you stupidly squeeze your eyes closed as he lifts his arm, a natural reaction you suppose, but the impact never comes. There’s a thud, you open your eyes. Evil guy is attached to the wall to your right, covered in what looks to be webs.

“Spider-Man?” You mumble, eyes wide.

”The one and only.” Says a voice beside you, loud, playful.

You whip around, there he stands. Tall, muscular, sporting a suit you’ve seen so many times. On the news, the paper, the internet, now here right in front of you.

He obviously notices your shock, he waves a hand in front of your face and you snap your mouth shut, you hadn’t even noticed it was open.

“You alright, ma’am?” He asked, his voice a gentle timbre, much softer than it was before.

You nod. “I’m not- hurt.” You sputter. “Just shaken up.” He nods thoughtfully.

“Would you like me to take you home? I can deal with this guy after. He’ll still be here.” He jokes, jutting his head to the man attached to the wall.

you blink, once, twice. “Take me home?” You repeat quizzically.

”sure. Would you like to walk or,” he points to the rooftop above, “swing.”

Spider-Man just saved you and now hes asking if he can take you for the joyride of your life.

you look up at the rooftop, and back at him. “Will you go slow?” You ask softly.

“Course I will. I’m sure you're scared enough.” He replies, he almost sounds excited.

“Promise?” You ask thoughtlessly.

He falters at that, nodding his head. “Promise.” He whispers.

He reaches towards you, you give him a look of apprehension.

“Can’t exactly swing without holding onto you, angel.” He chuckles.

You practically melt, your hesitance dripping away from you. You step close to him and place your hands on his sturdy shoulders as he pulls you into his body with one arm.

“Hold on tight, spider monkey.” You can practically hear the smile in his voice.

The quote snaps you out of your daze.

”Twilight?” You question, a smile gracing your lips.

“What? It’s a good movie.” He shrugs, and before you can even respond, he shoots a web to a nearby building and you are suddenly in the air.

You shriek, moulding yourself into him.

”Jesus Christ!” You scream as the two of you continue to ascend at an alarming speed.

“Slow down- slow down- slow down-“ you cry, burying your head into his neck, his hold on your waist tightens.

“Hey, easy, easy. I’ve got you.” He says softly. The movement stops, you’re clearly somewhere very high.

“Look at this.” He whispers.

You shakily lift your head from his neck and your breath stalls in your lungs. The two of you are hanging from a large building, so close to the top you can see the railing, but that’s not what caught your eye. The city, from this view, its beautiful. Thousands of dazzling lights, buildings, life everywhere. The wind whips through your hair.

“Do you get to see this every night?” You ask him, meeting his gaze. The eyes of his mask narrow, you suppose it must be from him smiling.

“Mhm, just about.” He says.

“It’s amazing.” You whisper.

“Yeah. Pretty amazing.”

The two of you stay like that for a bit longer, until the warmth of his body is no longer enough to subdue the cold breeze, the chill set deep in your bones causes you to shiver.

“Better get you home now, it’s late.” He says, swinging down.

You guide him to your apartment building, the ride down much smoother than the ride up.

He drops down on the ground in front of your building, setting you down and making sure you’ve got your footing. When his arm unravels from your waist, you nearly gasp at how much colder you get.

You look at him, still breathless.

“You okay?” He asks once again. And you grin as you nod.

“Thank you, Spider-Man.” You say softly.

He clears his throat. “Of course, just doing my job.” He straightens up, like he’s posing or something, and you can’t help but giggle.

“Well, I better head in.” You say, and he nods.

“Right. Have a good night ma’am. And uh- I guess if you ever need help again, just scream.” He says, backing away.

“You think you’ll be able to hear me?” You ask playfully.

He halts. “Yeah. I’ll hear you.” He says it like a promise, and just as sudden as he had appeared, he was gone.

Your bones were practically jelly by the time you melted into your bed. As you drifted into sleep a smile crept onto your lips.

Abrupt ending!! Sorryyyy anyways hello everyone I’ve returned. Dedicated to @chocolatepeanuttraveler happy late Christmas and late birthday. I LOVE YOUUUUU, im gonna edit later don’t worry guys. Mwah xoxo