#there are forms of media where I've only consumed the adaptations

[desperatecheesecubes]

Every time I see a post making fun of people being afraid to get into comics I think about how when I was first getting into comics I thought it would be fun to read Infinite Crisis because it was a HUGE event and it would give me an idea of what a whole slew of runs and characters were like. I made a post about some panel pretty early into the event (I think it was a build up comic that wasn't even officially part of the Road To Infinite Crisis so EARLY early) and some blog I didn't know made fun of me for not knowing the greater context of the panel I was commenting on. And while I was naively typing up a quick little 'ah sorry I'm new to comics and didn't know that. Thanks for the context!' they had gone through my blog and started doing the same for a bunch of other comics I'd read, and then mocked me for reading IC when I clearly new so little about comics.

Now, obviously, that behavior is ridiculous, and I just blocked them, but it did stick with me. It was one of my earliest interactions with comic fandom and I never forgot it. Most of the people I've intereacted with have been lovely. Even when I have gotten comic cannon wrong corrections are normally very kind. But not all of them are, and the ones who aren't are so vocal about it.

So i actually don't think it's the comics themselves that make getting into comics an unappealing prospect.

[spagyricqueen]

✨Writing Interview Tag Game✨

Thanks to @kalmiaphlox for the tag! (I'm sorry I've been so quiet lately. Best excuse I've got is 'life happened'... heh)

When did you start writing?

I started my writing journey way back in 1994. I was 12 years old. There was no Fanfiction.net, and certainly no AO3 or Wattpad. We had the good ol' "world wide web" and discussion boards, where there were FTP databases with root and sub folders, and all the fics were in .txt files. Read stories written by fans of my favorite TV show at the time, and thought I'd give it a shot. It was all downhill from there.

Are there different themes or genres you enjoy reading than what you write?

I honestly can't say that there are. I write what I like to read.

Is there a writer you want to emulate or get compared to often?

I don't think I've actively been compared to any one writer, nor do I necessarily write like any particular author. I read fantasy novels, for the most part, and if I were to try to emulate anyone (lately, anyway) it's Elaine Cunningham and her work for Forgotten Realms.

Can you tell me a bit about your writing space?

My computer is my space for everything, and I share a desk with my partner. We're both gamers with dual monitors. Occasionally, I'll sequester away in the bedroom with my laptop.

What's your most effective way to muster up a muse?

Daydreaming scenarios and writing back-and-forth dialogue for situations (that may or may not end up getting used at all). But that seems to get the flow going most of the time.

Are there any recurring themes in your writing? Do they surprise you?

Recurring themes? Hmm. Well, I suppose I've written a lot about disability and how it affects the characters, in their lives and interactions with others. Not every story I've written has this theme, but it certainly counts as 'recurring' for many of my works. I can't say it surprises me at all, as I've had great interest in disabilities (respectfully) since I was very young. Not exclusively for the sake of writing angst, though there is some of that too. But mostly for exploring how people can adapt and grow in the most astounding ways, despite what society at large deems a "disadvantage".

What is your reason for writing?

To put it succinctly, I enjoy it. I like having the ability to paint worlds with words, to evoke emotions in written form, and describe action, excitement, and romance. I have stories in my head, and I want to share them. Writing them down is the most accessable way of doing this.

Is there any specific comment or type of comment you find particularly motivating?

I adore any comments on my stories. The fact that someone takes the time to say even one word to me about my work is monumental. But of course, if I were being honest, the ones that really inspire me is when they engage with what I've written. When questions are asked, details pointed out, or even theories floated about what could possibly happen next... I live for those. They not only make me happy, but they make me want to deliver the goods, you know?

How do you want to be thought about by your readers?

I'm not sure I want to be dictating or hoping for anything in particular here. People will think what they will. I should hope that, if anything, anyone reading my work would appreciate my effort. I guess I just want to be thought of as a good writer, an entertaining writer. A nice person? A thoughtful person?

What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?

I had the benefit of starting very early in learning how to write, and I am by no means perfect at it. I'm always learning new skills, tricks and methods on how to present the story I want to tell. I have consumed a lot of media over my decades, particularly cinema. I think one of my strengths would be visualizing scenes of my story like a movie, with having a good balance of action, introspection, and dialogue. I had a mentor during my early years who was an English teacher, and learned the ins and outs of traditional creative writing.

How do you feel about your own writing?

My writing style has evolved over the years. My early attempts were, naturally, very juvenile, though I tackled themes that I was told were beyond my years. Writing adult male friendships, learning about the psychological impact of diability and how it affects those friendships and the character's personal life... these were not common themes for a thirteen year old to write about. But again, they were attempts.

These days, I have read many books and experienced enough life to be able to convey deeper, more nuanced interactions and situations. Gathering information, learning about fantasy settings, and having a better understanding of emotions have all helped me to get better. I like what I write, and I write what I like. I know I've improved a lot since thirty years ago, and I'm always looking to get better.

When you write, are you influenced by what others might enjoy reading, or do you write purely for yourself, or a mix of both?

It's only recently that I've catered a bit more to my audience in my work, though the idea starts with something purely for my own enjoyment and interest. That's how it begins. I have an idea for a story I think is interesting, write it, post it, and hope others like it too. For the most part, I try to keep the story as I envisioned it, but having the benefit of live interactions with readers has inspired me to insert little tidbits here and there that I felt would be enjoyed---as a nod to the reader, and because I found it fun to make it work within the context of the narrative. :)

And that's all she wrote! Maybe I have a couple friends who might be interested in joining in. @cassieuncaged @busy-baker @davenswitcher

[johannestevans]

BristolCon Looms!

Good evening!

BristolCon is coming up on the 21st of October, and I've ordered all the books I'll be selling there, plus have a bunch of badges ready to sell. I won't be on any panels this year, but I will be doing a reading in the evening, and I'll of course be available to chat, answer questions, or sign books.

If you're in or around Bristol, make sure to book your ticket and come along - if not, I'll be filming answers to questions on my TikTok, which I'll also repost on Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, etc. You can send questions here on this Google Form.

As far go media recs, I have a few - obviously I've been enjoying the newest season of Our Flag Means Death, and I've started a rewatch of Boston Legal, which is a classic show that I love absolutely to death.

I also have some movies to rec!

Talk To Me (2022, dir. Michael & Danny Philippou) - This movie has everything. Utterly fucked up miserable possession horror, scary jumps and slowly building dread, great character writing, incredible editing, TikTok trends, a pair of side characters made up of an extremely hot Samoan guy built like a rugby player and an extremely hot transmasc person who absolutely fucks shit up, good jokes, good banter, utterly fucked up gore and violence! It's so well-written, it's so well-paced, it fucking rocks!

Swallowed (2022, dir. Carter Smith) - Is this movie good? No. But must a movie be good? Can't a movie effectively be a bugfuck tortureporn flick where a straight guy with a huge dick secretly in love with his gay best friend who's about to leave for Los Angeles to be a pornstar is erect for most of the movie because he ate a magical bug that has an aphrodisiac effect on him whilst trying to traffic those bugs for money, and the gay best friend has to fist him to pull some of the bugs out of his guts? And also Mark Patton is in it and dressed gorgeously and fruiting it up the entire time?

Layer Cake (2004, dir. Matthew Vaughn) - This wasn't a groundbreaking flick or anything, but it was fun and it was pretty gay and sexy. It's got a great cast, really good pacing and choreography - as you'd expect from Mr Vaughn - and a really fun, tightly-written script. Lots of room for male objectification in this one, and that's honestly why I'm reccing it.

We also watched No One Will Save You (2023, dir. Brian Duffield) - I recommend this with a caveat, in that like... So Swallowed is obviously a bit of a shit flick, but has a lot of great stuff going on despite that - No One Will Save You is incredible... for the first two acts. The aliens are haunting in their movements and design, the world feels so real and rich, we get a deep insight into someone utterly consumed with agony and regret at the worst thing they'd done in their childhood. The third act is a complete fumble, and the last ten minutes particularly had me fucking raging. I still think that the rest of the film is so good the movie is worth watching - Kaitlyn Dever really carries it beautifully whilst having no dialogue at all - but just. Be prepared for a shit ending, that's all.

New Works Published

Our Flag Means Death Fanfiction Update: Repentance & Forgiveness

Rated E. Izzy/Frenchie. 49k+, WIP. On the Queen Anne, Frenchie can't sleep.

Desperate to just get whatever he can away from Blackbeard's crew, he knocks on Izzy's door and invites himself in.

Chapter 13 on Ao3 / Chapter 14 on Ao3

Romance Short: Workplace Connections

A junior secretary makes a friend at work, and some more besides. 

10k, rated M, F/F. A young woman makes friends with one of the only male secretaries in her workplace. 1960s Manhattan, featuring lavender marriages, period queerness, misogyny, etc. Light-hearted age gap cheeriness. Adapted from a TweetFic.

Read on Patreon / / Read on Medium

Erotic Short: Yes, Sir

A criminal accountant’s goon obeys his orders, then takes them a bit further.

3.6k, cis M/trans M, rated E. A criminal accountant has his big bear muscle guy fuck him, and the bear does so until the accountant is a whimpering mess. Vaginal sex, size difference, rough sex, objectification, implied overstim, power dynamics and role reversal, age difference.

Read on Patreon / / Read on Medium

Erotic Short: A Gift for the Wolfmen

A young man in a brothel is invited to join a quartet of hulking wolf-like warriors.

6.4k, rated E. Two trans men, both being gangbanged by four cis wolfmen with huge cocks.

Fantasy universe with adventurers and so forth. Featuring stuck-through-wall and grope boxes, body writing, vaginal, oral, and anal play, huge come inflation, size difference, knotting, power dynamics, virginity kink, objectification and dehumanisation, degradation, humiliation, breeding kink, body modification, mentions of lactation and pregnancy, and enthusiastic consent throughout.

Read on Patreon / / Read on Medium

[petrichoraline]

SLEEPOVER SATURDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🥳🥳🥳

what are your top 5 japanese BLs?

tell me about a fond memory or your comfort food (or both!!!!!)

[I LOVE YOUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

[LOVE YOU TOO MY SWEETESTTTTT💗💞💕💖💓💗]

these are suchh good questions omg okay

i suck at ranking things and don't enjoy it one bit because i don't do faves, im too fluid in my tastes and can't ever pick criteria but! let's try in no particular order

1. Kieta Hatsukoi

i think im in the habit of dropping things from my fave lists as time goes by and especially if they're well beloved by other people like "okay then I'll focus on this less talked about thing, my bby seems to be getting enough attention"; how and why I work that way im not sure but I do and by that logic kieta hatsukoi should not be on my list but it's an honorary member - I've watched it twice (with maybe a bit of skipping which is still a lot cause I don't really do rewatches) and I've read most of the manga. it's just so..easy to like, for a lack of a better phrase. it's inoffensive and suited to be a comfort piece of media in whichever form you decide to enjoy it (and it'd make an amazing anime, i guarantee people would be all over it)

the live adaptation also takes the events of the manga and mixes them around big time but it still makes sense and it keeps you a bit more on your toes when consuming the other version, whether you watch the show or read the manga first

it's also a show I've recommended passionately and I successfully made my then new acquaintance watch which I'm a bit smug about lmao

sweet characters, supportive friends, funny, light and warm 💖

2. The End of the World With You

*indescribable screeches*

this showwww, i dont know if i can call it a fave since i havent once come back to it, i dont feel the need to go watch compilations of my guys or anything and i acknowledge there were some elements i found a bit lacking but! it's amazing. idc, this show gave me proper complex relationship where i still end up rooting for a couple of people who were toxic towards each other and did nootttt know how to handle a relationship; the dynamic is compelling, the premise is interesting enough, there are heavy scenes and plot points but it is embedded with hope

it also helped me bond a bit with a mutual i like <3

i just am thankful for it existing out there in the world, it served fucked up relationship (that i root for wholeheartedly), sexy times, found family, amazing acting and it didnt have most of the chaos an apocalyptic piece would usually be dealing with

3. BL Drama no Shuen ni Narimashita: Crank Up Hen

listen. we're getting some pretty good jbls this year but i said this will be jbl of the year and i still think it's a solid nominee.

the romance is tooth-achingly sweet. the leads are adorable. the acting is perfect and manages to deliver the comedy very well. it's cute, it's fun, it knows exactly what it wants to achieve and works with its timeframe to do it. the side characters do not affect the plot negatively, the hurdles the couple needs to overcome do not feel excessive. if you happen to yell at them for being silly, it's lovingly. also we got more chemistry than i expected! and it was really good. it also set up an example for ''japanese actors working on bls'' (found the things like shooting promos and the portrayed bts process really fun) so now watching 25 ji Ajisaka de i can't help but think of this show

4. Utsukushii Kare

my relationship with this show suffers from the "enough people love it" thing as well, i think i rewatched it or skipped through the first season? and i enjoyed the second one as well but honestly it feels not only as if enough people love it but that they love it and get it way better than i do. i didnt watch the movie out of fear of having to say bye to my guys but i also feel more disconnected from it now. im sure its still a gem of a movie and im so so happy we got two seasons and a movie, the show and the cast deserve it!!

there is just so much beauty in their yearning for each other and the misunderstandings, the downright stupid decisions they make..they all just work in making this a neat story of love that blooms from something different, from worship and the desire to be seen and to be held and to be possesed. they're wild, i love them

5. Kinou Nani Tabeta?

this show i watched years before i got into bl and i didn't even know it was a bl when i started it lol, i was like "ohhh, theyre a couple? cool"

i rewatched the first season, watched the special and the movie, started the second season and kinda got stuck there, again with hte "i dont want to let them go"..and now ive lost momentum and ive got basically a whole season ahead (i started it when it was airing 😭)

these two love each other so much and support each other in every way that matters, my heart melts at every sweet gesture and even though the show portrays some real struggles they have to deal with, its still a very funny and light show. the best word to describe it would be "charming" - you see this couple's everyday life, you see how they came to be and what challenges they face, how they overcome them and you're left with no doubt in your mind they will grow old together, well loved and taken care of

now I wanted ti turn this into a top 10 but I felt like I was being disingenuous cause I can't overcome my need to talk about underrated shows rather than pick my faves..I can't make a faves list without turning it into a diverse recommendation list so I'll just. stop here.

favourite food.. faves again.. hahah

a fond memory involving food.. preparing food the whole day before my birthday (maybe my seventeenth?) - sushi, spring rolls, i think I made dessert too? and then having picnic with my friends who were all in awe and praising me. I felt very appreciated and truly celebrated and it was a fun party 💖

[cosmic-navel-gazin]

yo, I'm a Russian major looking for media to consume to improve my Russian, and your and @razielim 's art and blogging about Hard to Be a God have got me intrigued. Can I ask which of the media forms you would recommend for a newcomer? like, I'm seeing it's a book, and then there are two film adaptations--one in 1989 and another in 2013.

OOOOOO Hi! Hello! More than happy to talk about Hard to Be a God, I'm very normal about it I swear, it hasn't rewired my brain or anything *laughs nervously*!

Ok so,I would definitely recommend reading the book first, I've only seen bits and pieces of the films but from what I've seen the '89 is a bit shoddy/leaves a lot to be desired, and I have big problems with the new characterization of my beloved earthlings just from the little I've seen. Also allegedly, the Strugatsky brothers-the authors of the novel- kinda hated it, but I've yet to see the receipts on this claim.

The 2013 one is more of a test of endurance, pain-simulator, VR tour of a Hieronymus Bosch-like hell, than a movie with a clear plot per se. It's very much not for everyone, one of those very divisive experiences where you either love it or hate it. Now me, being a weirdo accustomed to more strange experimental films since I was a wee baby, really liked the clips I've watched, but it's very arthouse, and really not easily digestible. It's more about the vibes, the ambience, about dropping you the viewer on this alien planet and dragging you through the mud without any hand-holding or peace. Personally I think it's a hard thing to recommend to a newcomer, especially if you're not into/not used to that sort of thing, I feel like you would get much more out of it if you've read the book first, so that at least you have some clue about what is happening and who these people are.

I will say, that 2013 trailer is an absolute banger, it was my first exposure to it all. I saw this bit back in the day and had to know what this was all about:

I'm definitely going to see both films one day (I've postponed watching them because I wanted to draw fanart without them influencing how I saw the characters).

So, I would say, def try the book first to see if you vibe with it. It's not very long (my copies are just short of 200 pages), I personally, am a slow reader but I've a friend on here that read the whole thing in a day. I'll say this though, it might be a bit confusing at first (the prologue was confusing to me but also I blame myself for starting to read it at 4am), but I feel like after the first and second chapter you catch up on who's who and what's happening. Also that prologue is the gift that keeps on giving after you finish the whole thing imo.

If you decide to read it I'm always happy to talk about and help if you have any questions!!!

[agallimaufryofoddments]

For those of you who are also slow on the uptake, Chapter(?) 3 of the Baccano! ~from the 1700s~ manga released on January 25. The best time for us to buy it was release day, but buying it is better late than never. As always, (the prospect of) new Baccano! media depends on consumer support.

Buy it despite DMM's "DMN" DRM, for we have no choice.

On the one hand, I hate DRM. On the other, if selling this manga via a DRM-strict retailer/platform succeeds in making people purchase it when they would have otherwise tried reading it for free, then. Fine. FiNe.

Remember to rate each installment. I think it's possible to do it without leaving a review: read the chapter in your browser, click the star on the end page, then click five stars on the review input form that pops up. It seems to save my five star rating even when I navigate away from the form. Leaving reviews themselves wouldn't hurt, unless...they're in English...probably. Do you think we could get away with leaving machine-translated ones? How many strangely-written reviews would it take to sound the 'overseas purchaser' alarm?

Edit: Or maybe not. The ratings I ‘gave’ aren’t reflecting on the listings for 2 and 3. Maybe a review is necessary after all.

Chapter 3 reactions under the cut.

Looks like this depicts parts of LN11 Interlude II and Chapter 4. I did have to manually transcribe some of the dialogue. This took way more time than I can afford.

The opening scene depicts the killing of the 28th victim/witness, an aristocrat named Lord/Sir Alonso. This must be the murder that Larolf reports to Esperanza in the latter half of LN11 Interlude III? Larolf describes the victim as a "boy" who witnessed the Mask Maker right before Niki did in the novel, but this Sir / Lord Alonso is certainly not a child. Hm...

I believe the bit of Niki we see in this chapter is her telling Esperanza the food is delicious from the beginning of Interlude III. However, the manga seems to be omitting the part where Larolf reports [Alonso's] murder? It shows Niki walking away with a maid, whereas Niki runs away when Larolf makes his report...and there's no moment where Esperanza is angered by the bruise on Niki's face per the LN.

Moreover, am I right that the manga also omits Monica and Elmer's encounter with the bald man and Maiza in Chapter 4? There's no marketplace with children singing the MM song, no bald man, no Maiza...

...but the previous chapters also omitted Elmer's first encounter with Maiza, didn't they? So the mangaka's been deliberately holding off on Maiza's introduction from the start. I guess the manga's going to move the bruise reaction, Larolf's report and the bald man/Maiza-Elmer-Monica encounter to another day? How will that account for Elmer's wound, though, since Elmer doesn't show up to class after being stabbed?

I probably need to reread manga chs. 1–2 and actually take note of what was and wasn't adapted. I should do that anyway, since that would be useful for the wiki.

Okay, some positives...

Larolf depicted! (I only know because he was depicted in Chapters 1–2, so this is a belated celebration of a Larolf Hancletia design. Ch.2 gave us Huey's mother, too.)

Warehouse depicted!

Patisserie lady depicted!

Hey, it's Elmer's room at Esperanza's place!

Elmer wounded! Bandages on Mask Maker's arm are neat.

Monica has a lot of fun expressions. Manga is leaning hard into the classic twitterpated teen girl archetype and her 'tells' (big eyes, blushing), and these do serve the purpose.

Denkurou and Zank (albeit seen, not heard)!

Elmer's back scars...

Some mild complaints:

Zank's body should be as dark-skinned as Zank's head. Did the mangaka forget to color the torso? If this is a lighting thing where Zank's head isn't in range of a light source, then Denkurou's body should reflect that too. It's such a weirdly stark difference in hue that it really looks like a coloring error.

Am I allowed to feel lukewarm about Elmer's design? Maybe the fact that I've never seen Elmer with flat (slicked?) hair is throwing me off (aka it's throwing me off a lot), but there's something about his head's shape as well. The big forehead?　The eyebrows floating halfway up the forehead? The flat hair is contibuting to the forehead's largeness.

To be totally fair, this is gawky teen!Elmer, not adult!Elmer, and Elmer on the LN11 cover does have a rounder face (than adult!Elmer) that I guess the manga is honoring.

And...

Elmer's back scars.

I am whelmed. I guess I've built up my mental image of the scars for so long that probably any illustration is doomed not to meet expectations. It might be unfair of me, but I can't help think that a mangaka could go all out on the scars, since they only have to be drawn for 1—3 panels—honestly, why not just devote a full page illustration to it or one panel that fills most of the page?

Ex: Contain Monica's horrified expression + Huey going ??? to one panel. Overlay that (opt. and the next panel) with a small panel of Huey's face to emphasize Huey actively following Monica's gaze. Thus, rather than showing a Huey!POV of Monica looking at Elmer, you could dedicate one big panel exclusively to Elmer's full back and arms. Go all out.

There, one and done.

Here's the LN description of Elmer's scars for comparison.

Elmer was stripped to the waist, squeezing his clothes out, and his back…

…was covered in scars.

And it wasn’t only his back; uncountable scars covered the parts of his arms that had been hidden by his sleeves.

Currently, not a single wound was bleeding, but if all those scars became wounds again, he couldn’t even imagine how much they would have bled—

That was how mutilated Elmer was.

He might have had even more scars than Huey’s mother had in his memories of her.

They weren’t just cuts. There were marks as if something had been used to gouge out divots of flesh, and an enormous burn that covered the top half of his back. Not only that, but the burns appeared to be covering countless more scars.

Where's the enormous burn? Those scars are pretty countable. I see plenty of unmamrred skin. Yep, I'm nitpicking now. Please give my apologies to the mangaka; my expectations were simply too high. Ultimately, I am grateful that Elmer's scars have finally been depicted in an official publication.

(Quick! Enami! Draw Elmer shirtless as a 20th anniversary treat!)

Defying Description

Esperanza

[dubhdove156]

Rant/Vent Post:

My twin sister and exception attempted suicide the other day. The last few days have been incredibly stressful, and for the first few nights, no one was sure if she'd pull through. Currently, she's getting more stable and verbally coherent, but she's lost the use of her legs. Clinicians aren't sure yet if that'll ever return.

I have some thoughts on all of this that I can't really share socially or with family right now, so I'm just going to put them here.

First off, the way she attempted was... dramatic. Like, movie main-character dramatic. It wasn't a cry for help, that's already come and gone. This was a genuine attempt and I'm not looking to invalidate that. But she texted everyone highly emotional goodbyes, posted on all of her social media, and the method used just pointed to wanting to go out with a bang for a finale.

On that note, I've made observations my entire life about the people around me that Main Character Syndrome™️ is out of control, not only with this generation, but with generations prior. I also deal with it.

My sister is maybe the biggest weeb I've ever known; she watches anime like it's crack or heroin. It's gotten to the point that she's expressed to me that it's difficult to think of scenarios that aren't in anime format. In other words, her schema and worldview have been almost totally shaped by anime. She's been an anime fan since we were 4ish years old. It's consumed her world.

I think that maybe this was a chunk of why this happened. Not all of the reason, maybe not even a good chunk, but a contributing factor at the very least.

Think of it this way: someone who reads a lot of romance novels and watches a lot of romance movies is shocked by the hard truths of intimate relationships, they're poorly adapted to the reality of relationships, and they've created unrealistic expectations that cannot and never will be met. They'll be left with a void that some author's daydream put there of a world that doesn't exist. Someone who grows up watching DBZ, action movies, badass protagonists, playing video games where the player character is next to immortal, might have their worldview shattered when they can't John Wick their way out of a situation that they started and wind up in the hospital or worse.

In saying this, I'm not saying that anime is the devil. What I'm curious about is to what extent the media we consume affects our worldview, and how much of it is healthy. Media in the form of fiction has been a part of our collective history since we originated. I'm not saying it's inherently negative -- hero stories go as far back as Odysseus and Gilgamesh. It's ingrained in us. But I can't help but shake the feeling that something, culture maybe, shifted at some point (idek how many generations ago) that has led us to this point that I see at least some narcissism in everyone, but especially in the younger generations. It's difficult to find people my own age who aren't competitive; where it feels like this room isn't big enough for the both of us. This is become endemic to our species. We're evidently killing ourselves when reality doesn't and can't meet the expectations set on us by TV shows, movies, video games, animes, etc.

Idk it's just a thought I had.

Side note: recently, while trying to improve my condition, I've become a major fan of media in which the protagonist is just... a dude. Shows where there are multiple protaganists and any might die or fail at any moment. I've especially gotten into playing the Soulsbourne series because it checks me. I've become a major fan of ego-checks, and think we could all use a good ass kick in whatever department we're too proud of ourselves in. This world needs a major dose of humility.

[shinidamachu]

I’m actually convinced Kikyo’s role in the later parts of the manga was influenced by the anime. It’s no secret that if an anime adaptation becomes popular the manga artist will take note and talk to the animation director on which episodes gets more views.

I was actually a fan of the early depiction of Kikyo, such as the scene of her reappearing after supposedly falling to her death the first time and meeting the shinidamachu (which didn’t get animated). Also the part where she straight up murdered a monk in front of the child, which did get depicted but glossed over as the series went on. (Would’ve been a good atonement arc.) It had the appropriate horror feeling, just like the manga depiction of the man-eating Noh mask. This all got toned down or forgotten in the anime and later in the manga. Like compare early Naraku’s gross true tentacle form to his mega-ultra-super-eye-power-up-form.

which begs the question, if RT’s current series MAO is animated and becomes popular how will the anime affect the manga…

I'll be the first to admit that I don't know shit about the professional animation world, so please take this for the personal opinion that it is. Also keep in mind that I haven't reached the later parts of the manga yet, so knowledge is limited by fandom meta.

As a viewer who enjoys consuming media critically, however, I can't help but agree with you. Kikyo’s role in the later parts of the manga was probably influenced by the anime. I guess the real question here is: how much? I fear that is almost impossible to reach a right answer, or even a satisfying one.

But the influence the anime had on the original story wasn't limited to Kikyo's role. Take the toned down horror elements you mentioned, for instance.

But to be fair, we still have other factors to consider, Takahashi's tendency not to reread her own series once they're finished, regressing character development as a consequence, for example.

In Kikyo's specific case, the issue lies in the fact that the whole concept of her character is brilliant but Takahashi dropped the ball executing it and that reflected in Kikyo's relationship with Inuyasha, which ended up lacking substance.

Sunrise picked up on that and tried to retroactively fix it in order to milk the nonexistent love triangle, knowing ship wars equal money. However, they took the easiest, chepeast route, toning down Inuyasha and Kagome instead of truly building up on Inuyasha and Kikyo.

They told us when they should have been showing us and gave us quantity when they should have given us quality, failing to address the real problems with the character and the relationship in question: execution and development.

That's why every change they made in this regard was shallow at best and blew up in their faces at worst. It didn't solve anything, only created inconsistencies that ended up negatively affecting the characterization of other characters and consequently the story itself.

That being said, Inuyasha is the only series of Takahashi's I've ever took interest in. And after 2020™ whatever tiny chance of me engaging with another one of her works was annihilated, so I most definitely don't care about what happens with MAO.

Maybe I change my mind in the future, but currently, I think you'd be better off discussing MAO with someone else. I'm sure plenty of people in the Inuyasha fandom also loves it and will be able to contribute more to the conversation than I ever could.

Thank you so much for your ask, though. I hope you have a nice day.

[boxofbadaddiction]

Uh, but She-Hulk was historically portrayed as huge a "tall, slightly muscular woman" for most of her comic history; the "savage she-hulk" and similar depictions are like, from the last couple of years at most, and showed up in a handful of comics compared to the original and earlier depiction. Do some research. This isn't some point of outrage. You can't point to a recent comic and use that as an argument.

I'm assuming you're mad about these posts. Though the first seems to be the one people are taking wrong the most so allow me to elaborate like I have several times now.

The image used in my original post I admit was not the best example to reference. Something such as this:

Would have been much more appropriate to my point however I didn't expect people to take this much of an interest in the post and was prepared for maybe like 14 notes? So I just grabbed one of my favourite images of She-Hulk. The image I used was never in response to her character only her design which I made clear in the replies of that exact post.

"dO sOMe ReSErcH" actually, stfu. I know what I'm talking about. Okay I haven't read every single Marvel comic known to the planet but I'm not ignorant to the character or story. Something, again, I've made clear in that post and several others.

"This isn't some point of outrage" I dunno what rock you're living under but literally every post I have seen regarding the new series has been nothing but slander on their choice of design and CGI. I've seen no one actually LIKE her appearance only like that they're getting a new series to consume.

Fucking cowards

Why is She-hulk so small

Marvel fans slam She-hulk

Using the word Hulk is pretty generous

Skinny CGI disaster

Literally just google she hulk 2022, all top reports are talking about fan backlash. This list took me not even 3 minutes to get together just as a few examples.

"She-hulk historically has been described as tall and slightly muscular" She's hardly tall and doesn't even border on muscular. She isn't unfit I'll say that but she certainly isn't a good representation of muscular which is where this backlash and controversy is stemming from.

Give me a good reason, and I mean a good reason, without bringing up her "original design", why Marvel could not have designed her with more of a body builders physique? Why she had to have a snatched waist, large butt and larger breasts. Tell me why she couldn't have been much larger, and I'm not talking savage she-hulk, than she is right now.

Example body 1 @ moon_in_decline on tiktok

Example body 2 Natasha Aughey, fitness icon

Here's the thing by the way, you want to say that it's a modern character design and isn't what she's been drawn as in the past, why couldn't they use her newer designs as reference? New or old doesn't matter it is still her comic depiction, which makes it valid.

The only arguments I have seen in defence of her current design always comes back to the same thing. "That's how Marvel drew her in the past" and "Her size is contributory"

You mean in their misogynist past where every superhero woman was practically naked and always skinny with big tits? That past? Right.

So, you want to see her form adapt to her mental strength? That is very do-able. Go ahead and make her smaller than Hulk then with character development have her grow to a size similar to that of Smart Hulk. That's completely valid. But that doesn't mean making her super slim and only moderately tall. Give her a larger frame, that is possible to do without damaging your precious story arch.

Marvel could have easily made everyone happy in this series, they could have stayed true to her story arch in which she gets bigger when she realises her full strength and potential while also not making her slim. This is the point I'm making.

You're gonna look at me and tell me that the current design is better than the other modern designs?

Representation in media is a very important issue and Marvel had the opportunity to do great things with this character but dropped the ball instead and stuck with their usual bullshit.

An example that is commonly brought up in the reblogs is of Luisa Madrigal from Encanto:

And I think that's a great point!

Here you had Disney taking a bold step forward in representation, they nearly didn't go with the strong woman design but because they did they've seen such high praise for the decision.

She-Hulk was another opportunity to do that, for Marvel.

[solivagusdraco]

From the Depths of a Lab: Boundaries Between Nonhumanity and Creativity through the Journey of a Potential Silvally 'kin

I'm a dragon.

That's a fact I've known for over a decade at this point. It was pure chance that I ever even learned of otherkin - somewhere along the line, one of my best friends mentioned being a therian, and so I asked what that was. If I ever had any doubts about my draconity just being something developed because I heard this new fascinating thing… the fact that I still feel my wings and get sense memories when I search for them, even after this long, would eliminate those… we'll call them worries. Perhaps a poor choice of words, but it's what fits in my experience - I'm firmly in the spiritual otherkin camp.

And perhaps that, and my continued journey to understand psychological 'kin, is part of the "problem" that spurred this essay.

Again, perhaps a poor choice in words.

This isn't some discussion about facets of the community, or debate on origins. My experiences aren't another's, just as theirs aren't mine. This is an essay on personal exploration, and the adventure of trying to confirm or deny a kintype whilst sifting through muddy water, years after I've last done any serious introspection on such topics. But if you're still interested in the personal ramblings of this dragon, then I welcome you and will pull up a nice rock for you to sit on. All I ask is patience, for words are hard for me. Talking about myself is even harder.

I awakened as a Dragon in 2010. I found a hearttype in Painted Dogs in 2014. Both of which were… simple.

I found my dragon in meditation and introspection, finding memories of both sense and the more traditional kind. The senses persisted, and still persist. Perhaps one day I'll wake and realize I'm not a dragon, but that doesn't change what I am now, nor how I feel. I am a dragon, and I found that through soul searching.

I found a home in painted dogs during a chance trip to the zoo. They had just recently finished a new exhibit for those fancy canines, and for some reason I just felt so excited to go see these creatures I'd never heard of before that moment. And then I saw them and while I didn't feel like looking in the mirror… It felt like looking through a photo album. I'm not them, yet still they're so familiar.

But this isn't an essay about dragons or canines. Or perhaps it's an essay about them both, just in a different, chimeric form.

Pokémon has always been a part of my life. As of writing this, I'm 27 and the franchise is 25 - the only part of my life without Pokémon are years I don't even remember. I learned the TCG, my first video games ever were Gold and Silver, I had plush and played pretend with my friends. I had favorites… but I never made a character. Not a trainer, not a Pokémon. Rather, it was literal decades before I made a proper Pokémon OC.

Sev the Silvally was made out of a desire to try and run a Pokémon ask blog as a means to improve my art skills through regular practice. I don't even remember the thought process that made me choose a Silvally over any of the other hundreds of Pokémon - I just knew that I'd started drawing and suddenly I had a crime against Arceus with a broken RKS Drive. Granted, Type: Null and Silvally had been my favorite Pokémon of that generation, and my inspiration for the blog was a Type: Null blog.

Later on, Sev would become something of a comfort and coping character for me.

I had been abused by someone I considered one of my best friends in high school, and while I had since recognized it as abuse by the time of Sev's creation… It still bothered me. So I decided to have Sev's escape from the Aether Paradise be that he was stolen by an abusive trainer, and his evolution happened when that trainer turned her abusive hand to a Rockruff pup - an evolution not through love for his trainer, but rather through a desire to protect. Sev escaped his abuse and got the chance to learn how to live without the shadow of his trainer looming over him, just like I hoped to do. Escape that shadow. Let Sev be my guide through the nightmares and hate scrolling that still persisted.

He stopped being just a character.

But what does this all have to do with otherkin?

As I mentioned, Pokémon has been a part of my life for effectively my whole life. Yet despite that… There's never been a Pokémon that gripped me with the intensity that Silvally has. I've hungrily looked for merch, official and unofficial. I'm in the midst of making a fursuit, complete with electronics. One of my Tumblr usernames is multi-attack, and oftentimes now when making an account on a website, the first thing I check is if 'Silvally' is taken as a username. The design I painted on my mailbox is of my dragon and Sev, in a sort of "coat of arms" reminiscent style. This chimeric Pokémon latched on to some part of my mind and refused to let go.

And yet it wasn't until this past year that I even considered that Silvally could be something other than a "mere" favorite character.

Perhaps it's a hearttype. Perhaps it's a kintype. Perhaps it is just a mere favorite character. Introspection is the answer, regardless. My way to find just what Silvally is to me. But then there comes another question. Another problem.

With my dragon, the hunt for memories was clear cut. I had no existing thoughts to sway the hunt, and what memories I eventually found… They had little comparisons to various dragon media I'd consumed. But I start this investigation with Silvally at a disadvantage - I've made a character with crafted backstory, and consumed what little canon information exists on the species. There's no blank slate for me to start from - whatever search I do will always be colored by Sev and his tale.

So then I have to ask myself:

Is Sev his own character, or is he me?

I've never had a character that I was able to just write. Perhaps it's akin to soulbonding, but what I've read on that experience just doesn't quite taste right for the circumstance. I'll create a path for my characters, a baseline for their personality to grow on… but all too frequently, they end up bucking those guidelines and becoming their own person, as it were. They don't keep me company in my mind, but they still make their own minds clear should I try to direct their story or actions in ways they don't agree with.

Where does one find the boundary between self and other, when those "others" make their own decisions yet aren't their own entities?

To say nothing of my tendency to dole out my flaws and traits to each of my characters. Each little facet of myself being the seed from which a character will grow. Sometimes as the simple fact that the familiar makes creation easier. Sometimes as a means to work through a problem. But regardless of reason, it doesn't change the fact that almost every character I've ever made has had some piece of me in their core.

But… When every character you make is a facet of yourself, the moment you consider that they might be more than just a character gets muddy. Is it a hearttype, born from a facet of yourself that your subconscious decided you needed to care for more? Or is that facet just a part of you that recognized what you were, long before your consciousness connected the dots? And if kintype it is, then how do you determine what memories are real? Were the plot points and character biology you designed mere fabrication of the mind? Or were they flashes of another life, fleshed out, recorded, and/or adapted in the name of writing?

As if the discovery and determination of memories wasn't already complicated enough.

Sev's name was the only decision I consciously made whilst creating him - shortened from 'severance', as his creation was for the partial purpose of finally separating myself from old memories. Everything else just… happened. There was no rhyme or reason or choice to anything. Not his color, not the reason he and the other Silvally of his world were created. Every plot point, every musing on his biology was a simple moment of "Oh, so that's how it happened".

In what way is that different from how I found my dragon, with her quiet nights of meditation and introspection until the memories and feelings fell into place?

Now don't misunderstand - this isn't me saying that discovering a kintype is nothing more than making a character. That couldn't be farther from what I'm saying! Rather, I'm musing on the question of where the boundary is between the creative process and the discovery process. If Sev (or just Silvally in general) isn't a kintype, then it's still fascinating to me that his creation was so similar to me discovering my dragon. And if he is a kintype? Then is that particular creative process something to be mindful of when contemplating "original character" kintypes?

Perhaps this question would be easier to find an "answer" to if I knew what Silvally was to me… but I don't! That's almost the point of this essay - a vague attempt to knock some solid feeling thought loose from my mind.

It just happened to lead to a fascinating line of thought.

[hampterguts]

Wait crybaby got everything wrong? It's the only devilman media I've interacted with, and I only watched it bc an animator I like worked on it. And even now I feel like vomiting when I think about it bc it just fucked me up dude. The whole thing felt like the sole purpose was to shock the audience with emotional, psychological, physical, and sexual violence D:

👉👈🥺 what is...the good devilman media?

wwjhd aaaaa oh man im so sorry you had to experience all that!! i know how you feel!! it was so awful and gut wrenching i had to stop watching 😖

im really particular abt what the best version of devilman is, there's quite a lot of iterations out there with varying amounts of gore and genuine awfulness

imo The Best form to consume devilman is the original manga(from the 70s),

im not even completely sure what to say, its basically one of the best horror mangas ive ever read, features two girlbosses, its got a few accidentally really funny scenes, honestly it plays with emotions really well, there are scenes that are intended to shock you but i feel like theyre handled really well as dramatic plot points, like i think reading this was the first time i felt so much connection and dread thru any media that i could feel my entire heart drop in reaction to only a single panel. the gore isn't intensely graphic overall, there are a few scenes I'd consider fairly grotesque, but this is from memory so im not sure how accurate i am abt that..... tw for child death, body horror, im not sure if they did this in crybaby too but there's mild transphobia due to assigning certain genitalia to sexual orientation(tho i recently found out that was go nagai's only choice in order to get past censorship and include a gay character,,, so 🙄 idk. i think he did what he had to and what he had to do wasnt alright), tw for animal death, like brutal depiction of dead animals near the beginning, there's lots of nudity, lots of boobs... sorry its been a while, my tw list probably isnt as precise as I'd like it to be, but from my memory there's no sexual assault whatsoever, barely any direct references to having sex either(unlike crybaby)

and i gotta warn you about a version called "the classic collection" for the manga. its supposed to be 2 large books that feature the compiled full story, but wow i regret having purchased these at all go nagai added some really disgusting things(sexual assault, short comic literally depicting sympathy towards hitler[specifically a guy gets abused by a demon and a woman he loves is killed and the comic does a whole "and that man that u just sympathized with... that was hitler" like.... okay actually i am going to attack go nagai to death] like he did this short series abt real terrible people in history where the "reason" they were so villainous was "actually bc of demons uwu". AWFULLL.) like! be careful not to purchase these and then take too long to read them to get to these weird hyper fucked up additions placed randomly within the books and become unable to return them ;_;

and then there's the 2 ova's from 1987-1990, called Devilman: The Birth, and Devilman: The Demon Bird

these two are usually paired together, you can find them uploaded on youtube every once in a while, the dub is. well in a technical sense it should be considered awful but i personally think the ridiculousness and constant unnecessary swearing really fits. its considered the best anime adaptation but there's only 2 episodes, theyre long enough to cover a chapter each but.... man if only they finished. i should also warn there's some heavy violence in these. like its not *as* bad as other iterations of devilman but like.... its worse than the manga by far, and there's one second of violence that always makes me flinch in the first ova. (theres quite a bit of guts in these i think... but the 2nd ova is much worse on the gore in one rlly long scene)

i dont rlly like the second movie as much... its just kinda meh for me.. except to see and hear sirene... literally her voice actor did such a good job im so gay (dont worry abt sexual assault in the ova's either, sirene is safe from that kind of depiction)

but basically! i say read the original manga, and if u want more(and rlly want to laugh) watch at least the first ova, then the 2nd if u want. but i beg you not to purchase anything new literally please dont support this disgusting author in any way

[naancypants]

I'd never consumed any nancy drew media before and I fell in love with the show and now I adore nace only I'm just finding out nick/nancy is the ultimate nancy endgame in all other forms of nancy drew media and I'm in this place where it's hanging over my enjoyment of the ship I've been burned many times and I'm afraid(this is frankly a very likely possibility) they're gonna give us nace then circle back to nick/nancy endgame and I like fanerson but they happened too fast to last by cw standards

First of all, I’m so glad you’re loving the show! It is really, truly amazing.

Second, I know what you mean, I go through patches where this same thought haunts me 😂 I just had a rough time with it last week. It is definitely a possibility, I can’t lie to you about that. But you know what else?

Nancy/Ned isn’t necessarily the most popular ship within the general Nancy Drew fandom, either. Many people prefer her with a Hardy boy (hello Ace). A lot of adaptations tease the Nancy/Hardy connection but never end up there - and what is this show all about if not breaking the mold? The way Nace is being built is already so careful and intentional and truly epic - one for the ages. Their dynamic snuck up from behind and weaved its way into the heartbeat of this show. They created something unforeseeably captivating and special, and the writing in s2 is only making it better. As a writer myself, I wouldn’t want to squander that magic in the end for something that would be more of a risk just because it follows conventional canon.

Now that’s just me; I don’t know what the writers are going to do. But it’s a thought that provides me a bit of comfort.

I also realize the futility of worrying about endgames on a tv show. I still do it, literally all the time, clearly 😂 but sometimes it helps to remind myself that it’s a work of fiction, endgame is a long way away, and the best thing I can do for myself in the meantime is to enjoy the journey we’re getting right now!

[doorbloggr]

Friday 28/5/21: Media Recommendations #4

Its Friday again, so that means I gotta nerd out about things I've had on my mind lately and recommend other people go enjoy them too.

Today's topics of interest will be:

Manga/Anime: Fullmetal Alchemist

Videogame: Monster Hunter Rise

Music: Kiss from a Rose; Seal

In past weeks, I have picked my recommendations based on shows/music etc that are not as mainstream as I think should be, hence I am recommending them with the intention of increasing the audience. But this week, I am sure these three pieces of media are very widely known already. And its not wrong to like popular things, they got popular for a reason. So this week I'm gonna gush about why I like these popular things.

Fullmetal Alchemist (Fullmetal Alchemist)

In the vaguely European-esque country of Amestris, those gifted by natural or acquired powers can reshape the world around them using the power of Alchemy. In this world, magic users, called Alchemists, are publicly known and acknowledged. The government even employs many State Alchemists, who receive funding for their specific alchemic research, in exchange for their cooperation during military conflicts.

Fullmetal Alchemist has one of the most well put together and interesting fantasy settings in all of fiction (in my opinion). It is both medieval fantasy but also late 1800s europe, and this helps create a world where magic has very strict metaphysical and political rules.

The story within this world focuses on the brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric, who become the youngest known State Alchemists as part of their quest to restore Edward's limbs and Alphonse's entire body which were lost to a tragic alchemic experiment gone wrong. Ed has classic napoleon complex, and detests anyone looking down on him, but he often has more than enough bite to back up his bark. Al is much more calm and collected, but despite his soul inhabiting an imposing suit of armour, he is the younger brother and often emotionally immature. The two have an interesting dynamic, where the older brother is small and snappy, but still feels responsible and protective over his towering, intimidating younger brother who speaks with a very child-like voice, but could easily knock you out.

FMA is not a very complicated story, but it has depth. Its rich world, with a variety of interesting and endearing characters, make for a very engaging time. It is a story of growth, trust, bonds, and rebuilding what was once lost, while maintaining what you are still working on.

There are 3 ways to experience this story. I have gone back and read the original Manga, and if you prefer Manga as your story form, it is a very fun read. There are two anime adaptations, one that was in production and finished before the manga was complete, and another that came a few years later. The former has a different ending to the latter, and I can only recommend the latter, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, seeing as I never watched the original series. But I have heard on good authority that both are worth the watch, so it is up to you. I can't really decide on a definitive favourite anime, but Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood is easily always top 3.

Videogame: Monster Hunter Rise

Sometimes, the rich lore and story are what makes or breaks consumable media, but sometimes, all you need is pure stupid fun. Monster Hunter is a series built on a simple premise that does not need much fluffing to be enjoyed. You are a hunter: a very skilled and powerful warrior who weilds, often oversized, powerful weapons of many types, and it is your duty to go out and hunt monsters: powerful creatures who can co-exist with the world but on a case by case basis, put the people and wildlife around them in harm's way.

Monster Hunter Rise is the newest game in the series, and is on the Nintendo Switch. Many players I've talked to have said that this is the easiest game to get into, but that does not make MHR an simple, boring game, and top-level play is definitely a grind. The draw of Monster Hunter is that every "level" is a boss battle, and that battle takes place over a huge map. In this game, the hunter is tasked with finding the monster, and then using their own gear, plus the help of nature around them, to incapacitate the target monster.

This game has fourteen weapons to choose from, and using each is like playing a completely different action game. They can be grouped as Heavy, Light, and Technical Weapons, but the truth is, all weapons are unique, and depending on which specific model of a weapon you use, they can be even more unique within that weapon. Monster Hunter games are RPGs, but rather than gaining EXP, and stat changes indicating growth, Hunters use bits of the monsters they've hunted to make themselves stronger.

Both new weapons and armour require monster parts, and you're never guaranteed to get all the parts you need from one hunt. So the game encourages you fight the same monsters multiple times, learning patterns, honing your skills. When you have made your ideal weapons and armour, you have gotten significantly better at hunting those monsters. Monster Hunter Rise introduces Wire Bugs, a resource with a variety of uses ranged from spiderman-ing up and across mountains, to lending themselves as super moves for your weapons. Breath of the Wild held a place in my heart for ages because of how good it feels to traverse, but honestly, Monster Hunter Rise's wall-running and grapple-hooking blow BotW out of the water. Its just fun to move! If you enjoy action games and boss fights, Monster Hunter Rise is 100% a game you should check out.

Music: Kiss From a Rose; Seal

In my very deep Spotify library, there's a lot of music I will just sometimes skip. Not because I don't like it, but because I need to be in the right mood. But there's also a select handful of songs where I will never skip because I will always be in the mood to shout those lyrics, no matter when or where. Seal's Kiss from a Rose is one of those songs.

The song was originally part of the soundtrack for Batman Forever, but it is not a song explicitly about that movie. I didn't even know this myself until a while after I was obsessed with this song. Kiss from a Rose is an emotional, almost melancholy song with a very hard to place meaning. Seal has said it could've been about a difficult relationship, but I feel it is up to the listener how they interpret it.

The instrumentals are subtle yet powerful, soothing yet exhilarating. It is just a very engaging song and the lyrics are just hard to not sing along to. If you've heard it, you know. If you haven't, take a listen and meet your favourite song this week.

[kingcygnus]

So I've recently gotten into DC (I've always been a casual fan, but started watching/reading more content lately) and was wondering if you have any good, reliable source of someone breaking down the main characters and how they all intertwine and connect (or could give me a rundown yourself idk)? Like the batkids or superkids (?) for example. I've tried googling it myself but keep getting dozens of conflicting, confusing results. I just wanna know who the heck everyone is in all the seperate forms of media they're showing up in. (: Thanks in advance if you answer! I hope you're having a good day/night where you are!

anon, dear, idk why you'd come to me, but the best advice i can give you is to not try too hard to understand what's going on, for your sanity's sake, the more you think about it the more you lose. asides from that, I'd recommend watching ComicDrake on youtube, he has some pretty good videos on characters and their roles, as well as their versions in different adaptations, there's also CasuallyComics, for individual issues and recent comic events

now, if you wanna know who each character is in whatever media other than comics or video games you're consuming, worry not, because no matter what character they tell you they are, it will have nothing to do with their comic counterpart, it's basically free real state

in all honestly, i can't give you a rundown because while i do know quite about the batkids, the ones i'm more knowledgeable about are only jason, tim, cassandra and stephanie, and i could give you a rundown about these characters if you wanted, but for the rest i'm not that knowledgeable. same with flash family, the ones i know more about are just barry, wally and bart, while the rest i have just a bit above surface knowledge. so i'd recommend checking those youtube channels i mentioned first

have a nice day, too !!

[something-wicked-sims]

Dear Jade, I am writing this to ask a few questions I've had regarding writing in the sims form. How would someone start one of these sims stories? And how would someone keep it from becoming flat, and continue writing it past writers block? Some tips on developing a character inside the story would also be fantastic. Coming from someone who has only written novels and poetry, any advice on writing short pieces to go with photos is greatly appreciated! Sincerely, Mel. PS: This is 100% Real

Wow Mel, hit me with the heavy questions why don’t you Q_Q But you know, as someone who also made the switch from novel writing to sim story format, I kind of know where you’re coming from. Hence we begin…

Jade’s Mega-Fantastic Tips For Adapting to Sim Story Format 

#DearJade to block, as this is an extremely LONG post. 

Disclaimer: These tips don’t apply to everyone. The general rule of simblr is to have fun and DO WHAT YOU WANT. This advice is only really aimed at people who are serious about the craft and want to improve on their writing and how to present it in this medium. Not everyone takes it this seriously, and not everyone needs to. But for those of you who are looking for more direction with your writing, this is my personal, and humble advice. The fact that I titled this “mega-fantastic” was 100% sardonic. I’m just a chick on tumblr. I have a B.A. in English with a focus on creative writing, and nearly 6 months of simblr experience. These are my only qualifications. So, with that being said, don’t listen to anything I say from this point onward. 

How to Begin:Everyone’s writing processes are different. Some people like to map things out, while others tend to go with the flow. If your goal is to write some sort of cohesive linear storyline, and not just sporadic bouts of gameplay, then it’s good to have at least an idea of where you want to end up. Some point to make within your story, or some goal for your main character to accomplish. That way, all the things you do between point A and point B will have a similar thread, and you’re less likely to get lost on random tangents. 

General writing tips: Start with something interesting! Introduce your new characters in an exciting way. If you’ve never heard the phrase “in media res”, now’s a good time to learn it. Start in the middle, at the beginning. It’s nice to already have something going on at the beginning of your story, and don’t put too much time into explaining who all your characters are, what they do, what they like… right up front. It will engage people with your story more if you start off with action instead of description. 

Presentation: Since you’re writing a sims story, you have to think double time. Here, writing is only half of the work. Which is why simblr writers really don’t get enough credit! Think about how you want your scene to reflect in photos. The first sims story I did, I made the mistake of writing it in it’s entirety as a novel, and then having to take “necessary photographs” to go with each scene. I ended up with a great deal of pictures of people walking around aimlessly, or standing in the same room talking, or sitting on a chair talking, or on a couch talking… You get the point. You can still write as a novel and adapt it (which is still what I do), but I would recommend writing your scenes with your blog in mind. Think  “This scene could happen in their kitchen, but what if I moved it to a park instead?”, better scenery, probably more angles/more things to look at. Try to be creative with your screenies. Experiment with different angles. Think about your favorite movies, and the ways they are filmed. Try to incorporate those elements into your pictures. Sims stories have a certain cinematic quality to them, so write with that in mind, because how interesting your photos are will draw more people in to read your writing. Trust me. 

Character Development:Understand that the vast majority of sim stories and legacies unfold over enormous amounts of real life time. If you’re afraid of longterm writing commitments, you should probably run away screaming! No, I’m kidding (kind of), but they are huge commitments. I know people who have been writing their legacies for years. My first sims story took four months to complete and was around 75,000 words in its extracted tumblr form. My point is, it’s going to take a lot of time. Which is great! Because character development takes time. My advice for adapting character development to sims stories is to make sure every scene has a point. If you want to make a post just for fun, that’s great too! But when it comes to scenes that move your plot forward, answer the question “What does this accomplish?”, “Why is this particular scene necessary?”, “Would the story be the same if this didn’t happen?”. 

Simblr writers can spend hours putting together a post. I would think that is a pretty accurate statistic. From the writing, to building the set, clothing your sims, downloading CC, posing them, taking photos, and then editing the photos, each 3-4 pictures you take for a particular scene probably consumed precious long minutes of your life. So make sure that it’s an important scene that you’re spending all this time on. And, of course, just like most anime fans will tell you, FILLER EPISODES SUCK Q_Q (Not always. But sometimes). Anyways, sim story format sometimes forces you to consider what is vital to a story and a character, as we usually make posts to highlight specific moments in our sim-babies lives. I think development is really inherent to this medium, so I wouldn’t worry too much about if your character is developing or not.

General writing tips:

Dialogue is important!

How your character reacts to things is important!

Formatting:There are many different ways to format your sim story, and none of them are wrong. Do what you are comfortable with. If you’re coming from writing novels or short stories, then paragraph format is a great way to go. You can do caption writing, which is writing your text (typically dialogue and similar to playwriting in effect) directly onto your screenshots. You can do textual playwriting, which would be to have short exposition to setup a scene followed by tagged dialogue:

Maria: I went to the store yesterday.Bob: Really? What did you need to get there?Mari: Oh, I just had to pick up a few things for the party Saturday. 

These are the three most highly used formats I have seen used on simblr. I think they all work great, and you can even mix them. Just do what you are comfortable with and what you prefer. Don’t try to stretch yourself to change the style of your writing just to match what other people are doing. 

General writing tips:

One thing I will say is to be wary of your Point of View (or PoV). If you are using multiple PoV’s (as in you swap them between posts) then you should label whose PoV it is for your readers (I do so in my tags), if you use captions, usually changing font color to depict two or more players is the way to go. If you would like to switch PoV within the same post, I recommend using third person point of view e.g. “Bob walked here. Maria said this.”

And how would someone keep it from becoming flat… As I mentioned above, the best thing you can do here is just to make sure your scenes are vital to the plotline, or character development in some way. Don’t bog down your stuff with useless scenes, if your goal is to write a cohesive story. There is a #ts4 gameplay tag for a reason. It is not the same tag as #ts4 story, and people who follow one tag, may not necessarily want to follow the other. As a reader, I’m interested in the storyline. Is your character involved in some shady business? Are they going to find out that their loser husband is cheating on them? I don’t really want to see three different posts devoted to your sim cooking eggs for breakfast. SORRY. #justiceforeggs

General simblr tips:

@medleymisty has recently incorporated the usage of #simnovel for longer text posts. I think this is an excellent step forward for hobby sim story writing. So you can use this tag if you thing it applies to your work!

….and continue writing it past writers block? I can’t answer this! I am not a magician, unfortunately. Sometimes inspiration comes and sometimes inspiration goes. Writers block is a legit thing, and if I had a super-fix for it, I would hand it out lovingly to the world’s writers. But since I don’t, I will say that you shouldn’t pressure yourself ahead of time. Don’t think you need to post regularly. Go at your own pace. If you need a break? Take one. Just bounce right on out the door. I hear there’s a new Mass Effect game out. Go play it! Tumblr will still be here where you come back. 

Remember, this isn’t your job, it’s a hobby. As for how to get inspired or stay inspired, I really feel motivated to work on my sim stories when I am having fun, either playing the game, or putting together some scenes. So just have fun with it. Make Pinterest boards. Dudes, Pinterest is so great for writers, utilize it as a tool! Make character boards and pin things that you remind you of your babies and go look at the beautiful pictures when you’re feeling stuck. Share your boards, too! Lots of simblr’s have pinterests and you can follow them, they’ll follow you back, it’s great. Fantastic. But yeah, just have funnnn and do your thing and when you’re not feeling it, don’t try to force it, because you’ll just regret it and start to resent your stuff, and it’s just a bad time. 

This concludes my massive wall of pretentious text.