#thanks aeide!

[leofrith]

Fic qs: 3, 40, 65?

3. Describe the creative process of writing a chapter/fic

For one-shots it's usually an idea for a scene or even a line of dialogue that I end up building the whole thing around, which is to say I have no fucking plan whatsoever and I'm just winging it. For long fics I need more of an outline or I'll die, but I also don't write in order so my WIP docs are basically a bunch of separate scenes in more or less chronological order which I connect together as a go. Which isn't really a good system. I need a better process but I'm still figuring things out as I go in terms of writing something long.

As far as chapters go, I mostly just write until I think I've reached a good stopping point. I don't really write to a specific word count or anything like that because the content is more important than having an even length for each chapter IMO..... all that being said, I do not recommend my creative process to anyone under any circumstances ever. 🥴

40. If someone were to make fanart of your work, what fic or scene would you hope to see?

I THINK ABOUT THIS CONSTANTLY and I have like soooo many moments from my long fic that I would love to commission at some point, but I feel like I should probably at least publish them first. 🫠 But there's a campfire scene (these bitches sure love a campfire huh) fairly early on with Eivor and Leofrith that would be a nice to have illustrated, and I would also kill to have someone draw Leofrith's Hidden One look as it exists in my head.

Unrelated to the long fic, I neeeeeed Eivor with the darksaber from the Star Wars au. I need it. That fic also has a lot of vision/dream sequences in mind that I think would lend themselves to some really cool art. I think all my fics would be illustrated if I had any artistic ability whatsoever. :(

I should also mention that beloved @sarma did a bunch of art inspired by my concept for a post Mando s2 fic that, if I'm being realistic, will probably never see the light of day. But they still make me fucking crazy when I look at them :))

65. Tell us about what you’re most looking forward to writing – in your current project, or a future project

I answered this one here! But I'm also going to add the little one shot that has been percolating in my brain ever since I finished the Dead Kings DLC for AC Unity. I need to write more about Arno and Leon and their accidental little found family. And I will. 🤪

send me a number!

[alethiometry]

WIP Game: Departures, please!

'departures' is the working title for my kasseivor/valhalla last chapter fix-it wip! it was borne out of my disdain for how utterly underwhelming the last chapter was, as well as just me using any excuse to shove kassandra into any scenario. my hope is that, although i don't plan on it being a very happy fic, and i still want it to end geographically in the same place as the last chapter, the emotional and narrative payoff feels much more earned.

the premise is that eivor convinces kassandra to join her raiders and come live in ravensthorpe for as long as she wants. kassandra knows she shouldn't stay long (and aletheia is in her head doubling down on this thought) but ultimately as a big fuck-you to aletheia and also because she has the biggest gayest crush on eivor, she does accept the offer.

the fic opens with kass arriving in ravensthorpe, and the general idea is kass and eivor growing closer as in the background other characters come and go. vili returns to snotinghamscire to finally accept his position as jarl. gunnar and brigid have a child. randvi finds her calling in joining the hidden ones (under both kass and hytham's tutelage) and accompanies hytham back east. rollo goes to france. the raven clan kids' trio are growing up. "dreams" by the cranberries is playing in the background despite not debuting for another thousand years and i'm crying my eyes out just thinking about it etc etc.

eventually aelfred comes knocking and eivor and sigurd clash over what to do; sigurd wants to resist aelfred's army by any means necessary (aka all-out war), but eivor (from her own experience fighting in the south, and advised by kass who has already observed the spread of christianity through her travels and feels this is a force that cannot be resisted outright the way sigurd thinks it can) is inclined to follow in her father's footsteps and surrender/come to some kind of compromise in order to spare her people.

and that's kind of where the details end. i've got maybe the first couple thousand words written and everything else vaguely outlined up to this point. i have some ideas/inspiration for how i want certain plot/character beats to go, but a lot of it is heavily influenced by the final season of black sails, so for the sake of @milfeivor who is still watching that for the first time, i will keep my mouth shut for now :)

the main issue is that i feel like in order to do justice to any of the characters i would either have to re-play the game (which is too fucking long and i don't want to do it), watch clips of character interactions and cutscenes on youtube (which i could do but am lazy), or read fics featuring the characters i want to write about (which i don't feel comfortable considering "research" because i don't want to mistake authorial interpretation for canon fact or unintentionally pass off somebody else's ideas as my own). so for all those reasons, this one is on the backburner. i do hope to come back to it one day, but for now i don't feel any real urgency to work on it.

also, havi/odin does not exist in this story or at least isn't narratively present, because i simply do not fucking care <3

[whereforartthoumisthios]

tagged by super cool(TM) @aeide!! You know I'll never say no to a tag game omg

Five Songs I Actually Listen To

"Actually listen to" makes it seem like you're just pretending to listen to the songs. How does one do that? Well, I promise I actually do listen to the following LOL

This is my favorite MJ song and I have no shame putting it at number 1. It is a bop and will always be a bop and I shall never tire of it!!!

2. If you come from a broken family, this one's for you lol nah but for real, this song meant so much to me in 2014 and it still gets me jamming when it comes on, even if life is better lol

3. This song do be tugging at the heartstrings but it's 100% one of my favorite Adele songs. This whole album tugs on your heartstrings what am I SAYING-

4. A more recent love of mine, BUT still a bop every time and I love - thank you

5. This album was the only Alicia Keys album I ever owned, and I basically loved the whole thing lol but this song I still find myself going back to. Sorry to say it again but - it's a bop!

Tagging (with no pressure ever as always!): @ainulindaelynn @solareias @wickedwitchofthewesninski @scottysketches @tashabanes @books-and-glitter @no-barbarians-here @d64d-n0t-sl66p1ng

[newengland-alligator]

I assume you have a list of favorite birds and shrike is number 1 or at least in the top 10? (and if you do have a list of favorite birds pls share)

Thank you for the ask!

Yes shrikes are my favorite birds! Here's eleven of my others that I hold dear to my heart!

Loons

Golden Eagle

Eastern Imperial Eagle

Geese

Chickens

Guinea Hens

Northern Goshawk

Eared Nightjar

Barn Owl

Wandering Albatross

Ravens (Corvids in general!)

Send me an ask with an assumption you've made about me, and I'll tell you if it's true or false. :)

[krankittoeleven]

AO3 Wrapped (author edition)

I was tagged by @softest-punk. Thank you so much friend, your output this year was stunning as always!

in chronological order, the fics i posted this year are:

we were hungry before (E, JJK, Nanago, slow burn, mutual pining, getting together)

i wish it were me inside your veins (T, JJK, Nanago, whump, hurt/comfort, curse effects/mission gone wrong)

what it tastes like (E, JJK, GetoNanaGo, pwp, getting together, somehow Gojo is the well behaved one?, WIP - UPDATE SOON!)

my life would suck without you (T, JJK, Nanago, feelings, emotional hurt/comfort, depressed!Nanami, angst with a happy ending)

just desserts (E, JJK, Nanago, pwp, humor, slightly feral Gojo)

that's how the light gets in (T, JJK, Nanago, humor, fluff, slice of life)

escape (the pineapple fic) (M, JJK, Nanago, Accidentally Stoned Gojo, humor, domestic bliss, marriage proposal only Nanago could pull off)

the sparking of the outlaw nanami kento by the right and honorable judge higuruma hiromi (M, JJK, Higunana, Cowboy AU, Judge!Higuruma, Outlaw!Nanami, WIP)

your heart that's a hole (E, JJK, GetoNana, GetoNanaGo kind of, cheating, toxic relationship, voyurism, jealous!Gojo, Baseball AU i guess lol)

and i'm feeling good (M, JJK, Higunana, flirting, first meeting, salaryman era Nanami)

nights in lonesome october (Various Ratings, JJK, NanaGo, jjktober ficlet collection that I didn't get far on but I want to finish)

committing to the bit (E, JJK, Getonana, beginning GetoNanaGo, fake relationship, getting together, College AU)

party favors (G, JJK, Nanago, slice of life, fluff, a silly ficlet to commemorate NanaGo reaching 3k fics on AO3)

*SECRET FINAL FIC* My last fic of the year is currently anonymous as it was written for a Secret Santa Exchange, when it is publicly revealed I'll add it here.

*****

Stats

Works Published : 14

Work Subscriptions: 253

Kudos: 3190

Comment Threads: 224

Bookmarks: 885

Word Count: 121,868

Hits: 31,437

*****

top 3 fics (of all years) by kudos:

(544) we were hungry before (E, JJK, Nanago, slow burn, mutual pining, getting together, 2024)

(427) just desserts (E, JJK, Nanago, pwp, 2024)

(352) i wish it were me inside your veins (T, JJK, Nanago, whump, hurt/comfort, curse effects/mission gone wrong, 2024)

*****

top 3 fics (of all years) by word count:

(86,992) water of life (E, AC Valhalla, Ubba/Vili, emotional slow burn, getting together, hurt/comfort, incomplete but I swear I want to finish it, 2021)

(30,965) we were hungry before (E, JJK, Nanago, slow burn, mutual pining, getting together, 2024)

(21,811) but like a refugee (E, Trigun 98/TriMax, Vashwood, fix it, 2023)

*****

top 3 ships:

Gojo Satoru/Nanami Kento

Geto Suguru/Nanami Kento

Geto Suguru/Gojo Satoru/Nanami Kento

Yeah, that checks out LMAO

*****

top 5 tags:

Humor, Banter, Fluff, Kissing, Hurt/Comfort...............I can't believe fluff was one of my top tags this year...WHAT HAPPENED? LMAO

*****

Thank you everyone that read, commented, kudos'd and reblogged my stuff over the year. I've be having a blast going mental over NanaGo and JJK. *cries* Thanks especially to @brasideios for the awesome beta work they've been doing for me. Literally life changing advice!! Also thanks to @uchihaprodigy and @ftld42 for being awesome people who just let me fill their discord DMs full of inane fic and JJK rambling. LMAO

i will tag @brasideios @beelzebby666, @madnessmadness, @ftld42, @togaki-kun, @lifewtr, @arquiving, @hopethepope26 (seriously just had a meltdown cuz I forgot you aren't anixit here and I thought I was going insane LOL), @findusinaweek, @aeide, @satonthelotuspier, @kentozone, @loveleffie, @sukunaaaah and of course any writers that i missed. No pressure of course!

Also, I'm still working on the WIP ask meme, I haven't forgotten about the submissions that are left!!

[brasideios]

Make Me Write

I was tagged by the wonderful @softest-punk & @krankittoeleven Thank you for thinking of me 🤍

The name of the game: Post your current WIPs with an emoji, people can then send you an ask with the emoji and ask for a fresh snippet!

OK - I’m restricting myself to what I have sitting in Ellipsus which I’m slowly chipping away at. I wish this was a sum total of my WIPs but alas! I will get to writing over the next week or so if anyone wants to make a request 😊

🌲 The House in the Plane Tree Grove - An AC Odyssey fanfic, Alexidas. Borne of the desire to write these two together without all the stress and grief of the Good Spartan - and, again, just vibing with these characters. Also, an opportunity to write about Sparta before I forget everything.

💔 By His Hand - An AC Odyssey fanfic, the second half of one part of the Thalexios saga (there’s a mouthful). They’re fighting about Alexios’ past again, this time about what Brasidas did or didn’t mean to Alexios.

🏺 The Silver Ploughshare - An extension of the Good Spartan, filling in gaps during the years 428-7 and the complicated events after the death of Arkhidamos with greater historical focus than I was originally willing to grapple with.

🌝 Crushing Hard - I guess I’m admitting to writing this non-RPF mcyt fic after all (it’s published anonymously). It’s Smallidarity focussed, a kind of fragmented, non linear, mutual-pining collection of scenes.

☀️ Time - original contemporary fiction, about err…well. Time being a flat circle, grief, the fading away of a town and the past - and such. Thus far also intentionally non linear and fragmented.

❄️ What Songs Were Left - original historical fiction, Roman. About family secrets and leaving the things one has always known behind, starting over etc.

🌊 The Hand of Fortuna (remix) - original historical fiction, Roman. Overhauling the published book of the same name to actually focus on the characters instead of the plot. The title will change. It’s really about disintegration and re-integration within a family. Will the Centre Hold type stuff. Also just vibing with my OCs :)

Tagging with no pressure at all @aeide @ainulindaelynn @findusinaweek @theinkandthesea @soronya @merelyafigment @ghostlycircaea @asneakyobserver @aro-pancake-writes

[ainulindaelynn]

Movie Tag Game

Rules: Without naming them, post a gif from ten of your favorite films, then tag ten people to do the same!

Thanks for the tag @friendly-wizard-bibliothecary <3 Circling back ages late! This made me realize how rarely I watch movies, which is weird all things considered. Took way way longer than it should have to pull them together lmao. We'll say we have nine of my favorite films here and one favorite wtf xD

Tagging from recent notes (with no pressure whatsoever): @brasideios @ithinkthiswasabadidea @aeide @findusinaweek @merelyafigment @anotherjauntat3am @desperate-confidence @mimbotomy

[b-plot-butch]

9 BOOKS I PLAN TO READ IN 2025

Thanks for tagging me @seiya-starsniper !! ☺️

Can’t be bothered to include the covers so:

Smoke and Ashes by Amitav Ghosh: Probably the third time I’ve ranted about this book in a tag/ask game rip. I started this book in May last year and I STILL haven’t finished it yet 😭😭😭

Mongrels by Stephen Graham Jones: WEREWOLF WEREWOLF WEREWOLF. I have it on good authority that this book is 11/10 and I can’t wait to get into more of Jones’s work (My Heart is a Chainsaw was such a standout of this year)

You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue: any book that gets @the-everqueen raving to this degree is an automatic 👀👀👀👀👀👀

Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Garcia-Moreno: I read Certain Dark Things by the same author this year and loved it, so I’m eager to dive into more of her work!!

The Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez: Still on a huge vampire kick and me and a friend are gonna read this book together! I should get started on it today…

Stardust Thief by Chelsea Abdullah: it sounds like a great fantasy adventure! It is the first in a trilogy and I haven’t committed to reading a series in a hot minute, but hopefully I’ll like this one enough to see it through the end! Speaking of series—

The World We Make by N.K. Jemisin: I read the first book in this duology last year and I really enjoyed it, but never got around to reading the sequel. I want to do that this year!

Things We Lost in the Fire by Mariana Enriquez: I read one of her other collections, The Dangers of Smoking in Bed, and I heard this one is even better, so I’m excited to check it out. Short stories aren’t generally my thing but I’m really liking Enriquez’s.

Organ Meats by K Ming Chang: it sounds so nasty and visceral. I hope it’ll be right up my alley!

This was super fun! Tagging Horse as previously mentioned @lucienne-thee-librarian @aeide @grecoromanyaoi @flower-dagger-gay @dreadfuldevotee @mimbotomy and anyone else who wants an excuse to ramble about books!

[anosrepasi]

Title: don't hold your breathe waiting for me 'cause the ocean needs you more Fandom: Assassin's Creed: Odyssey Pairing: Brasidas/Kassandra Tags: Modern Era, Modern Kassandra, Canon Compliant, Museum Visit, Grief/Mourning, if you believe in reincarnation this just makes everything worse, Tragedy Summary:

“Strange to think this is all a person may amount to, his ashes and his kleos.” -- Kassandra finds herself in Amphipolis after 2000 years on her way to answering the staff's call to return to the lost city.

This is my contribution to this year's Brasideia! I had this in my drafts for a while once I started playing AC:O again and it was awesome having an event to get me focused on finishing it. I've become a complete Kassidas fan over the last year and thinking about either Brasidas' death or Kassandra becoming the keeper of memories makes me cry so I decided to combine the two. Thank you to @aeide and @findusinaweek for hosting Brasideia 2024 and keeping this little corner of fandom alive and well. I really enjoyed participating and am looking forward to seeing what everyone posts!!

[starsandsteelandbrokenglass]

Tag game--thank you @cozy-fish-crow! (sorry it took a bit to get to it)!

Rules: In a new post, list 9 books you're planning to read this year!

Siren Queen by Nghi Vo- been on my tbr list for soooooo long but I finally have it checked out from the library so soon! (hopefully)

Norton Annotated Dracula by Bram Stoker- been wanting to reread Dracula for a bit and I love the Norton Annotated Editions

Ghost Stories by M.R. James- I want to catch up on my classic ghost stories, plus I physically own this one

House of Odysseus by Claire North- really liked Ithaca and hoping that this sequel will live up to it! (just have to pace my mythology retellings carefully)

Country by Michael Hughes- speaking of mythology retellings, this is another one I own that I am fascinated by the concept and eager to pick up

The Angel of Indian Lake by Stephen Graham Jones- a rare case where I liked the sequel even more than the first book, so I have high hopes for this conclusion

The Memory of Babel by Christelle Dabos- borrowed this from a friend ages ago and really need to get on with the series

The Girl in Question by Tess Sharpe- I wanted a sequel so bad when I read The Girls I've Been and now that it's finally here I need to get my hands on it

The Lotus Empire by Tasha Suri- I really enjoy this world and its politics (and I would love to finish more series than I start this year, though that's unlikely...)

I'm not generally very good at planning what I'll read since it's mostly library-dependent, but hopefully I can stick with these!

Tagging: @ninja-muse, @pink-lemonade-rose, @shfhthgh, @aeide, @therefugeofbooks and anyone else who wants to play

[reiverreturns]

tagged by: @meyerlansky and @redbelles 💕 thank you darlings!

rules: summarize your WIPs badly and let people vote on what they’d most like to read

and i'll reblog with a snippet of whichever fic wins! (or you can ask for one if you're feeling saucy)

tagging @aeide @artschoolglasses @leofrith @natashatrace and anyone else who is so inclined 😘

[leofrith]

ask game for eivor + leofrith (or ship of choice): 9, 25, 58?

yesssssssss YESSSSSSS😈

9. what are their thoughts on having children?

i don't think either of them would be against it, and they might even think about what could be, sometimes. but i think they both spend a long time operating under the assumption that they're not going to live long enough to have them. 😭 so neither of them really dare to consider it much until they've started to catch feelings for each other and one of them sees the other interacting with the village kids and starts feeling some type of way about it. better not to examine that too closely though!

25. do they have any hobbies they share?

killing and maiming and such. 🥰 but anyway seriously, they like exploring, and hunting fireflies (leofrith in my head is from glowecestrescire which hosts most of the firefly population in the game. do u follow). toying with the idea that leofrith likes to draw, and increasingly the sketches are of her. and sparring. and fucking.

58. who's more likely to hold a grudge after an argument?

eivor. one fucking thousand percent. Little Miss "Blood Feud That Lasted 17 Years" is gonna carry that shit for weeks at least (depending on the argument). in a game of chicken, leofrith will almost always fold first, the second eivor looks at him the right way.

send me a ship and a number!

[alethiometry]

top 5 tv shows AND/OR top 5 gossip girl characters?

tv shows:

1. black sails

2. parks and recreation

3. leverage

4. american vandal

5. derry girls

gossip girl characters:

1. blair waldorf

2. jenny humphrey

3. lily van der woodsen

4. georgina i forgot her last name

5. it would be chuck if not for the 2 assaults he pulled in the pilot so uhhh idk serena??

[ghostlycircaea]

AO3 Wrapped (Author Edition)

Thanks to @aeide for the tag ❤️❤️❤️ I too haven't put out a lot, but we're vibing so it's cool.

In chronological order, the fics i posted this year are:

Children of the Mountain My ACO stressed dad Alexios AU with a side of Alexidas (that has very much not happened yet bc we've only just gotten off of Kephallonia)! Chapter 5 is now in the works <3

Children of the Mountain Art The same art I've been posting here just all wrapped up into (at present) two chapters!

So fun fact, this is literally the only fanfiction I've ever written and posted! I've written my own stuff here and there (and somewhere is an old notebook from when I was 11 with some of the worst sonic fanfic but we're not going to talk about that...I wish I knew where it was tbh), but never anything I've posted. I'm proud that I got around to this one and everyone's been so great about it🥰.

Stats

User Subscriptions: 1

Story Subscriptions (bc they're all from this year lol): 40

Kudos: 58

Comment Threads: 8

Bookmarks: 31

Word Count: 14,015

Hits: 908

Top 3 fics (of all years) by kudos:

Children of the Mountain (44)

Children of the Mountain Art (14)

Top 3 fics (of all years) by word count:

Children of the Mountain (14,015)

Children of the Mountain Art (...0)

Top 3 ships:

Alexidas

Alexidas

Technically Alexios x Anais is there for a second but it's more plot than shipping 🤔

Top 5 tags:

Alternate Universe, Found Family, Canon-Typical Violence, Over-protective Dad AU, Art

Not sure who has/hasn't been tagged so count yourself in if you want to participate, just @ me because I want to see!

Happy New Year everyone!!

[newengland-alligator]

Rules : 🎶 when you get this, list 5 songs you’ve been listening to & tag 5-10 people.

Thank you @aeide !

Carpe Diem by Joker Out

The Curse of the Blackened Eye by Orville Peck

Che Vuole Questa Musica Stasera by Peppino Gagliardi

Tangaroa Whakamautai by Maisey Rika

My Love by Florence + The Machine

Tagging (with no pressure): @sihirbazi, @crystalromana , @ainulindaelynn , @illegible-scribble , @notebooks-and-laptops , @wikwalker

[whereforartthoumisthios]

Tagged by @d64d-n0t-sl66p1ng, thanks!! I agree with most of this, except me being the "definition of cooking". I am hardcore an ADHD fixation eater and will rotate through the same 5-10 easy meals over the course of a year LOL

But here is the quiz: what does your soul smell like?

Tagging with no pressure as always: @aeide @ainulindaelynn @findusinaweek @blue-mono @mimbotomy @solareias @scottysketches @ca1a-liinaa