#there's a billion more fanfic ideas in my head

[jaxxwrites4you]

Current Fics I'm Actively Working On

So, since I'm doing updates, here's the fics I am focusing my efforts on right now!

First on the list is a long time project (I've been working on this longer than the other three fics on this list), my mass effect fanfic. It will be titled Twin Hearts and it follows my twin Shepards, Ambros and Rhodanthe. It will follow the story of the original mass effect trilogy, the planned pairings are going to be Ambros and Tali, Rhodanthe and Garrus, Joker and EDI (always, because I love them). It feels good to be working on this one again and I hope I can keep good momentum.

I am also going to renew efforts for a Lego Monkie Kid fic I've been wanting to work on, which is my fake dating with OCxMacaque. It's not anything too crazy, just very self indulgent and fun, with a little bit of drama sprinkled in. It's based off of a song I heard once and I really love the base idea, I just didn't end up being happy with the original draft I did.

The last two fics I'm going to focus on are both undertale fics. One is my Sans x Reader fic, Brave is the Heart That Loves, and the other is a Swapfell fic I've been stewing on for awhile.

I desperately want to finish out Brave is the Heart That Loves, it's one that I'm pretty proud of, even if I haven't gotten super far into the story yet. And I've really fallen in love with Swapfell (specifically the way @popatochisssp portrayed it), so I had an idea for a single parent reader swapfell fic. I still haven't decided if it will be just Sans x Reader or whatnot yet, but I'm really excited to get back to work on it.

[shelleysmary]

lots of fans have made valid points and written well-thought-out posts about the trop ai drama, so i'm not gonna rehash them, but i do want to bring up something that no one seems to be talking about and it's the impulse that leads people to plug these things into ai generators in the first place.

fandom over the last year especially has become increasingly toxic to the point that actual billion-dollar corporations are afraid it. the result is subpar, pandering films, books, and television shows that break no new ground, recycle old tropes, and sacrifice story integrity to avoid catching heat from the loudest, most entitled people in the room. i'm calling this an issue of entitlement first and foremost because the idea that the audience should have any say over a non-crowd-created media project is preposterous. deciding that the cons outweigh the pros of watching something and choosing to walk away without making a fuss is a lost discipline now because everyone with an internet connection and a social media account believes that their vision reigns supreme. "how dare this show downplay my favorite ship! they were supposed to kiss! that was the whole point! the absence of this one thing i had on my wishlist is a crime against me personally!" so they turn to ai and click some buttons and now these gifs exist and are being circulated with an air of "i've righted a wrong." worse, the use of ai in this way is being conflated with the creation of fanworks???

there are reasons why i don't believe the ai saurondiel kiss is on the same raft as, say, making them kiss in a drawing or a published fanfic, but my main concern is with the spirit behind each. fanworks are made in homage to the source material, even the fix-it fics. there is an acknowledgment, a separation even, between the television show and the fanwork. this separation is necessary and i would say even integral to the nature of fan creation, while ai closes that gap until it no longer exists. the elimination of space between creator and audience also happens on social media, when disgruntled fans who have taken umbrage with a fictional character or creative decision directly harass the writers or the actors involved. more and more, fans are demanding to be in the rooms, in the minds, and to exert control over the people who tell their stories, and it has only ever worked to our collective detriment. now i'm not saying that if you liked and shared the saurondiel ai kiss that you're the same as the internet trolls who harass (mostly) women and people of color online. but i'm begging you to do some self-reflection and ask yourself why you feel entitled to seeing what you want on your screen.

what has changed in the last few years that would make you dissatisfied with, say, reading someone's fic or making your own drawing? is it a matter of "the tool is there, so why not use it?" is it "i believe it should have happened and it didn't and i feel cheated?" or maybe there's been a pattern you've noticed in your recent media "consumption" (god, i hate that word) where, unless a show or television series goes the exact way you want it to, it feels like you've been defrauded somehow? i'm not being facetious. i'm inviting you to notice that what you're feeling is probably discomfort, disappointment, maybe even cognitive dissonance because you imagined it going one way, and now you're at a loss because it didn't. you built it up in your head, you had something to look forward to, you were convinced that it would happen, it was exciting and you were so eager to get to that point, and then.... and then...

we've all been there. and it sucks. but i also want to remind you of how important it is to preserve the separation. this space is ours. the writer's room, the filming set, the editing room, those spaces are theirs. the actors' likenesses are theirs. thinking beyond trop, the separation is how we get creative works that challenge us politically, emotionally, that make us uncomfortable and tell us important truths. writers shouldn't have to - and shouldn't FULL STOP - do what we want them to do. sometimes that means knowing when to walk away, when to say "i no longer enjoy this show, i will no longer support it" or "i will continue to watch but pretend things went differently," the latter of which has been the spark that has moved so many online fans to draw, paint, write, or sew. it's a type of creation that allows "canon" and "fanon" to exist parallel to one another. moreover, the effort it takes to make anything with your own two hands, with your own time, and with your own energy increases your appreciation for the creative impulse. films and books and television stop being "products" for your "consumption" because you're aware of what goes into them, and it becomes easier to look at things you don't like or disagree with and say, "you know what, i'm gonna pass," or "not in my headcanon."

oh, and by the way plugging things into an ai generator? is theft. the same way that it's generally frowned upon for people to use ai to, say, write the rest of an unfinished fic without the express permission of the fanwork creator, using the actors' likenesses to make them kiss goes against everything the actors' union fought for last year. i'll also add that it's incredibly creepy. almost all of us are in agreement that intimacy coordinators are a good thing because they act - again! - as a separation between what's "real" and what isn't, the same way going on ao3 and reading a fic that very clearly says on the tin that it's a fanfic, unaffiliated with the official ip, is a separation. it's another beast entirely to normalize fan-use of ai, to say you support creatives, support actors, support unions, and then do this in your personal life. i repeat the question: what impulse leads anyone to believe that this is okay other than a feeling of misplaced ownership?

tl;dr: ai nonsense does not belong in fandom spaces. (in my home state of california, it is illegal to use digital replicas of an actor's voice or likeness in place of their actual services without their informed consent [which, in spirit, is what you're doing by using ai to make your gifs]). we all just need to mind our own business and go back to writing our fix-it fics and complaining to our friends in relative peace. if you're finding it impossible to do so, ask yourself why. remember that fanart is our longstanding tradition. stop outsourcing it to an unregulated technology just because your two faves didn't kiss.

[topazadine]

Extremely controversial writing opinions that will make you mad (but I'm going to say them anyway)

I don't know why but I am in the mood to be pilloried. Before I start, I will show you a picture of my dog so you realize I'm not a heartless monster.

Anyway, obviously this is just my opinion and you are perfectly free to disagree.

None of this is some hard-and-fast rule or even a universal truth.

It is just my opinion as someone who has 15 years of experience, has written about 2 million words, has an English degree, tutored dozens of students, etc etc etc.

Even if it seems like I am universalizing, I am not. Take what you like and leave the rest. Ignore it all if you want. That's your right.

Here we go. Please, don't throw your tomatoes until the end of the post. It distracts me.

Your first book probably sucks (with caveats).

Ideas are pointless if you don't do anything with them.

You are not a writer unless you consistently write.

Making moodboards, playlists, etc, before you have started the project is a form of procrastination.

No one cares about your idea as much as you do and never will.

Most people in your life will not care about your book.

A lot of peoples' opinions about writing are useless to you.

You need to develop healthy self-esteem if you want to be a good writer.

You also need to be humble and have a beginner's mindset forever.

Being mentally ill doesn't make you a better writer. It just means you're mentally ill.

Your real actual life matters more than your writing.

You will burn out if you don't have other hobbies.

Okay, okay, let's make you hate me.

Your first book probably sucks (with caveats).

If this is your first ever long project in writing, it is likely not going to be publishable (or, perhaps, even readable). It takes years, sometimes decades, to learn how to write well.

Do not think that because you have one singular idea and have slapped a book together that you can publish it to widespread acclaim. People who do this are deeply overestimating the quality of their work, seeing it through rose-tinted glasses.

One of my first long-form writing projects as sort of an adult was utter garbage. You can read it if you want; it's a BBC Sherlock fanfic. And it's fucking awful. I had written a lot of smaller things before this, but nothing to this scale. That much is quite obvious.

I'm grateful I started my journey writing fanfic, because otherwise I would have thought this was brilliant life-changing stuff.

In fact, I actually put together a copy of all my Sherlock fanfics called 11 Ways of Playing a Stradivarius that is probably floating around somewhere on the internet (though it got smacked down for copyright infringement eventually, because I was stupid). It sold absolutely zero copies, and rightly so. It's bad.

And that is okay. Shitty writing is par for the course when you are learning. It doesn't mean you'll never be good. It just means you're not there yet.

I have, to my great relief, improved immeasurably over the years, to the point where I have felt confident selling my work for real human money. You can purchase the culmination of that hard work right this instant, if you so choose. Should you do so, I am certain you will see exactly how much I've grown as a writer.

Ideas are pointless if you don't do anything with them.

I know I have said this before but I just need to drill it into your heads. Your idea means nothing unless you actually write the damn thing.

Millions of people have story ideas. Most of them will never do anything with those ideas. At best, they'll daydream about it but make up a billion excuses why they can't. At second-worst, they will badger actual writers to do the idea for them.

At worst worst, they will use AI to do it for them and call it a day. And we will all hate them for it.

You do not need to be protective of your idea or hide it, because someone has already thought of it and then made excuses as to why they can't be bothered to execute it. You have to be the one who doesn't fall into the trap and does the damn thing.

Look, I'll give you all the story ideas I have if you want. I don't care. In fact, I share them frequently and encourage others to give it a shot if they want to.

I'm not hiding any ideas because I know you will not do it exactly as I will. My voice is unique and it doesn't matter if there are dozens of people with the same idea: my story will be mine, and no one else's.

You are not a writer unless you consistently write.

This doesn't mean writing for five hours every day, or even doing 100 words every day. When I get to the tail end of the project, I tend to start slowing down because I have to think more critically about how to tie everything together. During the active drafting phase, I might do 2,000 words per day, but things ease up at the end, both because I'm sad that this phase is almost over and because I don't have much left to do.

But you don't get to call yourself a writer if you write like 100 words a month and spend the rest of the time doing moodboards and talking about your ideas. Whatever your rhythm, you need to stick with it and develop discipline, or you just have an idea and nothing else.

Making moodboards, playlists, etc, before you have started the project is a form of procrastination.

Note I said before you have really gotten into the meat of your project. Moodboards are a great way to promo your project and get peoples' attention, because visuals are more interesting than a wall of text. (That's why I start these kinds of posts with a picture.)

Oh, there's another one!

The thing is that a lot of would-be writers get trapped by the "oh this is research, this is plotting, this is giving me ideas, this is inspo." It's not. It's visual daydreaming and nothing more.

Any time that I have done a moodboard before starting a story, I give up on that story, because then I feel like I've done most of the work when I categorically have not. When I do moodboards once I get to the halfway point, I'm already in the home stretch and have no reason to stop. When I do a moodboard after I am already done and in the revision stage, then I'm good to go and building hype for my project.

Do not waste your time doing moodboards and playlists and visuals before you do the real stuff: worldbuilding, plotting, hammering out characterization. Get started before you start playing around with pretty pictures because it's not really getting you anywhere.

No one cares about your idea as much as you do and never will.

This is pretty self-explanatory so I won't expound too much. Your writing is the most important thing to you, but everyone else has their own stuff going on. If you're building hype with other writers, they have their own projects and are not going to be your free promotional team. They want your attention for their stuff, not yours.

Most people in your life will not really care about your book.

Again, everyone's got their own things going on. Also, most non-writers don't really understand how difficult it is to write a whole book. They are consumers and see the finished project; it's content to them. They care about you, to be sure, but your book doesn't really click as a big accomplishment because they're not familiar with the process.

You may notice, and seethe slightly, that relatively mundane things like weddings, graduations, and baby announcements will get WAY more attention than your book. A friend showing their ultrasound pic will get dozens of likes and comments and congratulations, while like 1 person will say "good job!" when you announce your book.

This is because these kinds of announcements are more relatable to the average person. They may have gotten married, or graduated, or had a baby (and of course probably know dozens of people who have) so they are aware of the challenges and joys.

Unless you are friends with exclusively other writers, your achievement is abstract, and your friends can't really sympathize. Your book is just a way to pass some time.

A lot of peoples' opinions about writing are useless to you.

I do not really like getting beta readers from places like r/betareaders because I have no idea how much that person actually knows about writing. Being able to visualize and suggest ways forward requires an understanding of the craft, but many people think that because they like to read, they know how to critique, when they are completely different skills.

Yes, unknowledgeable beta readers can give you a "man on the street" perspective of your book, but they tend to forget that beta readers are meant to help you fix your book as it is. Not turn it into something they personally would enjoy reading if they are not the target audience.

This requires recognizing audience and putting aside one's own preferences to focus on how the book would come across to an imagined ideal reader. Not everyone can do this. Actually, most people can't.

Some of the dumbest comments I've gotten about my work are from people who want to wrest control away from me and make it their preferred genre/plot/etc. These are useless suggestions.

Wonderful beta readers help to enhance your story, and they are golden. Instead of demanding you do something different, they offer their honest reactions of the work as it is and suggest opportunities to enrich the writing, tweak it, deepen the characterization, and so on.

Helpful beta readers are typically other writers regardless of their specific writing level. Newbie writers can be an excellent resource! And you're helping them, too: they will see your mistakes and know what not to do, and they can learn from your strengths. It's a positive experience all around.

Writers must come to understand what is good advice and what is not. Essentially, anyone who suggests things that are completely out of left field and totally unrelated to what you're trying to do is giving bad advice, and you should ignore them.

You need to develop healthy self-esteem if you want to be a good writer.

When you constantly put yourself down, complain about how bad your first draft is, say you have no idea what you're doing, and insist that no one will ever enjoy your work, guess what: you're right.

But you're right because you're essentially telling other people that your work sucks and they should not give it a chance. What you say about your writing will influence how readers interact with your work. You are priming them to dislike your writing and telling them what to think.

Imposter syndrome strikes all of us at times, but you need to push through it. One of the best ways to do so is to just continue writing. Keep going. Soon enough, you will develop experience, and experience will create confidence, and that confidence will shine through in your work.

When you consider saying something self-deprecating about your work, stop. You're going to make it come true.

You also need to be humble and have a beginner's mindset forever.

Doing so means understanding the difference between being self-deprecating and being humble.

Self-deprecation is when someone says your work is great and you immediately go "oh you're saying that to be nice, it's awful, I hate it."

Humility is when someone says your work is great and you go "Thank you!" and leave it at that.

You're not gloating or bragging by saying thank you, but you're also not cutting yourself off at the knees and making people uncomfortable by self-flagellating.

Honestly, the best thing you can ever say when you get a compliment about anything, including your writing, is just "thank you." Nothing else. Maybe an "I appreciate it" or "I'm glad you think so!" You don't need to go into detail.

But humility also means acknowledging that no matter how long you have been writing, there is always something you can do better. You will always be learning and making mistakes. Thinking you've peaked is when your writing gets stale and boring.

I have been learning rock climbing, and one of my favorite things to do is to watch pro climbers critique their own technique. They're not self-deprecating or saying they're horrible, but they're also not claiming they are perfect and can never do anything better.

Magnus Midtbø is incredible because even though he is a truly masterful climber, he posts a lot about his fails or when other climbers make him eat shit. This is an amazing video of him getting wrecked by an Olympic climber and taking it on the chin! He doesn't whine about how bad he is, he's just like "hmm, yeah, I can see where I screwed up, I'm so glad that I got to watch you climb, this is an honor."

That is the perfect blend of confidence and humility. He knows he can improve, but he doesn't deride his own skill. This is the mindset you need as a writer.

Being mentally ill doesn't make you a better writer. It just means you're mentally ill.

Anyone can be a good writer. Mental illness does not give you a super-secret advantage. It actually puts you at a disadvantage because your brain is expending so much energy staying stable that it does not have the same capacity as other people.

Fix your mental health issues instead of using them as a crutch or deluding yourself into believing they make you special. Like half of the population will develop some type of mental illness during their lifetime, and insisting that you need your mental illness to write is trapping you by making you not want to get help.

I have severe bipolar. This does not necessarily make me a great writer. In fact, it can make my writing suck ass if I am not stable. And no, you are not somehow exempt from having consequences for refusing to take care of your mental health. I promise you that you will be a better writer when you have sorted out your mental health issues.

Your real actual life matters more than your writing.

This is related to the above point. Your mental health, your stability, your social circle are all crucial elements of being a good, productive writer, and you can't ignore them in favor of suffering for your art.

The quality of my work has skyrocketed at two significant points in my life: once when I got out of a relationship that was hurting me and once when I ditched a toxic friend. The first one was when I started writing fanfic again, and the second was when I finally began The Eirenic Verses.

I would not have written 2 million words if I still had those nasty influences in my life, and I would not be living my best life. I likely never would have found my favorite hobbies and started going to therapy if I was still trapped in those negative cycles. Attending to my real-life problems both enhanced my writing and made me a better, more likeable, more functional person. I expect you will find the same thing.

You will burn out if you don't have other hobbies.

Hobbies. I cannot stress enough how important it is to have other hobbies that have nothing to do with writing. Yes, it means you have less time to write, but it also means that when you do sit down and write, you have better focus because you've fulfilled your other needs.

I picked up horseback riding again in February of this year and go once a week. I can't stress enough how good this has been for my writing and for my overall well-being. I have pretty bad agoraphobia, but since I started riding again, I have been less scared of leaving the house and less worried about what people think about me. My world has become larger and friendlier.

Now I'm doing rock climbing too. The physical and mental stimulation helps me focus better when I write, and I get way more done in less time. Plus, the quality of that writing is better because I'm getting more bloodflow into my brain and nourishing the tissues. There's also the fact that when I do have time to write, I'm not burned out and frustrated because all I've been doing all day is writing.

I look forward to my writing sessions more because they feel like a treat, and I have gotten a self-esteem boost by doing well in the gym. I am happier, calmer, and sleeping better due to the exercise.

Well-adjusted humans need social outlets, physical movement, a strong support network, good nutrition, and opportunities to relax. Our horrible capitalist system makes it very hard to balance all of these, but you must at least try.

Your hobbies don't need to be expensive. It can be something as simple as drawing, or going for a long nature walk, or learning origami, or buying a used camera and learning photography. Go to your local library and take a free course! Join a cheap gym and go a few times a week. Teach yourself something using YouTube. Buy secondhand equipment on Craigslist. There are so many affordable options.

Again, caring for your overall well-being is a true godsend when it comes to writing. Having something else to fulfill you will help you push through those hard days when nothing is coming to you, and it offers your brain a break from plotting, writing, revising, etc.

So that's it. If you read this to the very end, you're quite the gem; I know this was excruciatingly long. And mean.

Since you're here, maybe you will consider purchasing my debut novel, which was written by applying all these tips. (And not using AI - fuck off, NaNoWriMo.)

9 Years Yearning is a coming-of-age gay romance set in a fantasy world with poetry magic. It follows two young men as they grow from sorta-enemies, to frenemies, to friends, and finally to lovers.

If you do read it, please don't forget to leave a review!

Even if it's mean. Don't worry, I won't be mad. Reviews are essential to getting visibility on Amazon, so every single one is golden to me.

[laughroditee]

Thinking about the COD urban fantasy AU that I will be writing a fic for. I have a background in fine art and comics and have experience with video editing, so because of this, this fic came to me as a movie trailer, which I plan on making an animatic of. (If I can get my husband to learn how to voice the characters, I may include voices as well.) But it came from the idea:

What if there was a necromancer who would raise your loved one, but if you didn't pay them, they'd take control of them?

And that leads us to the

"Repossessed" Trailer Script, starring necromancer!graves

(please note that I do not have any formal training in actually formatting scripts so these are just my notes for the animatic. Filmmakers, don't come for me.)

(OPEN on a cityscape at sundown, cue music, if any.) Voiceover: "The name's Graves."

(NIGHTTIME. cut to a scene of a man, back to us in a cemetery. Close in on headshot, he turns to face the camera.) V/O: "Phillip Graves."

(INTERIOR OFFICE, DAYTIME. Graves is seated behind his desk, feet up, leaning back in his chair, maybe playing with a Rubix cube or something, speaking with a client, whom we can't see yet.)

Client: "Phillip Graves? As in 'fill up graves?' That's a bit… on the nose isn't it?"

Graves (smirking bc he's a cocky mf): "I don't so much fill ‘em up as I do empty ‘em out nowadays."

(Cut back to scene of Graves in the cemetery where a green, eldritch light glows from his hand.) V/O: "As a necromancer, I can bring anyone back from the dead."

(Cut back to Graves in office, looking at client.) Graves: "For a Price."

(Graves leans forward, cocking his head): "What would you pay?"

(Flashes of the deceased, happy.) V/O: "What would you do...?"

(Flashes of the deceased and the client together, loving etc huehuehue) V/O: "...To have them back with you?"

(Cut to Graves sitting behind his desk, holding up photo of the deceased between two fingers, looking at his client, cocky and eager.) Graves: "Pretty little thing like this? What's it worth to ya?"

(Cut to John Price seated in the chair opposite the desk, looking grief-stricken, desperate, and determined): “Everything.”

(cut to black, dramatic pause if there's music)

(Cut to first person POV, looking up at Graves, giving you a hand.) Graves: “Welcome back, darlin', to the land of the living.”

When I post the art (storyboards and eventual video) for this, it will be on my art blog @momokeen and reblogged from there. (I try to keep my 18+ stuff here separate from my main blog, even though I update more here, currently.)

Issues I know I will have:

Time - my chaotic brain always has a billion projects going at once, which is why I wanted to at least put this much out. I have at least four other fics that need attention, not to mention actual real life, and running a small business. I will be doing it though. It may not be good, but it will be done, eventually.

Finding the right music. Currently I'm looking for good epic trailer music. I have zero money to commission someone to compose something custom, otherwise I would ask my friend if he'd take the job.

Voices (because I want them 😩)

The decedent. I had planned on writing the fic as a "x you" POV, but if I'm including a visual trailer, done in the way that I want, obviously I have to pick one way the decedent looks, which I know will leave many people feeling left out. This is why I tend to make OCs, as it's easier for me to make decisions that my OCD and trauma brain won't let me make otherwise, because "this person is their own person and this is how I've developed them." (Also I'm new to fanfic, pls forgive me. I know OC x Canon is the less-liked option here. I really struggle with trying to make everyone happy, to the point that it's debilitating and I honestly don't know what to do.)

And finally, ✨mental health✨.

But yeah, that's it. That's a thing I'm gonna make. This was step one. Thanks for reading. 🖤

[verbenaa]

for the fic asks: 2, 19, 29, 37, 40, 47, 57, 59! 🫂❤️

ahhhh tysm my friend 🥹🫂💕

(answering from this set of questions here)

2. do you plan each chapter ahead or write as you go? I already answered this question here, but the short answer is both, haha 😅. I am a very chaotic writer.

I will say though, the farther I get into writing to eden, the more I have planned for each chapter moving forward. In the beginning I had very little plans for the story and more of a vague idea, which gave me a lot of room to figure out exactly what I wanted to story to be and now I have a much clearer trajectory of where I am taking things. But even knowing that, I still technically only have a basic outline set up for the next 5 chapters or so (which puts us post-confession near the end of act 2)! Once I post the confession chapter, I definitely need to sit down and think about how to move towards act 3 for sure (though I've definitely already been thinking about it in my mind) 😅🫡

19. what is the most used tag on your ao3? I think it is a 3-way tie between 'Porn with Feelings', 'Soft Dom Astarion', and 'PWP' hahaha

29. what's your revision or editing process like? absolute chaos. Every chapter and fic is different during editing, of course, but I am very much NOT an organized person in any facet of my existence, and this extends to editing✨. I do a lot of rereads, change wording around, change it back, etc. The one thing I do in every WIP though is use the color red to designate something that needs attention, so it serves as a clear visual marker of 'hey something about this word/phrase/paragraph is off and needs a little more TLC'. I also utilize this while writing as a way to say ‘I like this idea but the English is not flowing and I can’t find the exact words’ so I can know to go back to that concept and flesh it out when the English DOES decide to flow again. I also like doing this because it means when I'm done editing, I get to see a word doc without ANY red which is a great feeling!

37. how do you choose where to end a chapter? straight vibes 😎. but honestly I never really know if I'm ending on the right thing, I just attempt to close stuff where it feels like a natural conclusion--like someone leaves, someone has a thought that ends, and so on so forth. (there's lots of leaving tents in to eden, ok? it's a thing.)

40. if someone were to make fanart of your work, what fic or scene would you hope to see? ooooooh certainly something from to eden, but I have no idea what scene? I think I'd be happy with any of them, honestly.

47. how many times do you usually revise your fic/chapter before posting? a million? a billion? it's an infinite number. all I know is that once my eyes start to cross and my head gets fuzzy when I'm reading over it and any obvious mistakes are gone, it's probably time to post.

57. do you prefer editing as you write, or waiting until it's finished? Either, really! I edit when I am having a not-so-great writing day typically so I can feel like I am at least achieving something! But in general, the bulk of my editing does happen at the end. But really it’s whatever suites my brain at that moment.

59. does anyone in your personal life know you write fic? If not, would you tell anyone? Aside from my husband, no! Family members know that I do write though, but I just tell them I am "writing fantasy stories for fun", which seems to appease them. I would probably tell someone I felt close to that UNDERSTOOD it, but I don't actually know anyone IRL who writes/reads fanfic believe it or not.

[iloveyanderes]

What I think of every bsd character (some of them I don't know so I'll be making wild guesses about them) also I got all these names off a wiki and sometimes there not exactly spelt right.

Fukuzawa: nice cat loving man who I respect

Yasano: best doctor in the world, would not recommend though

Atsushi: my cute little tiger boy🥺💕

Tanizaki:I kinda like to pretend he doesn't have a sister

Kunikida: dazais number one target

Kenji: adorable, would protect with my life

Kyouka: don't dislike I just don't really feel her

Dazai: suicidal maniac, best singer ever

Ranpo: I love him, smart but dumb, I would give him all of my food.

Katai: I have no idea who he is but he looks like he never leaves his bed

Naomi: I like to pretend she doesn't have a brother

Kirako: she looks nice

Mori: I fucking hate him, no pedophiles allowed near anyone

Elise: girlboss, someone get her the fuck away from Mori.

Ace: looks flashy

Chuuya: love him, small boy with nice hair and the best hat in existence

Rando: looks very random

Koyo: idk man, she looks powerful

Paul: where chuuya got his style

Akutagawa: in need of dazai approval

Higuchi: was annoying at first but she grew on me

Albatross: looks like he's constantly in a disco party

Doc: bad haircut supreme

Iceman: looks like a fireman

Lippmann: invests in great lips

Piano man: is great at playing the piano and knows it

Ryuro: this guy will die of lung cancer

Gin: is okay

Tachihara: I know who you really are

Karma: I know nothing about him except that Fyodor got to him

Yumeno: I'll stay on their good side

Kajii: I know he likes bombs and lemons

Oda: love him, fellow ginger, love his ability, without him this story would have never really began or at least Atsushi wouldn't be the Mc.

Ango: uhhhhhhhhh, cool I guess don't really like him

Scott Fitzgerald: the entire guild is probably his sugar baby

Poe: love Karl, fellow introvert, probably gets billions of dollars from writing x reader fanfics, I'd pay him any amount

Lovecraft: the only author I actually knew about before reading this book

John steinback: kinda looks like he could be kenjis distant cousin

Lucy: like her just not really attracted to her character

Margaret: I know nothing about this character but I despite the way her name is written, I prefer margrett it sounds more like it

Mark Twain: twains out of bad situations

Nathaniel: is more likeable because his name is closest to my fav boy name Nathan.

Fyodor: somehow I have a completely neutral opinion of him, I don't like or dislike him.

Nikolai: this may be bias but I absolutely adore white haired characters that have braids, there my type of people and I automatically like them, bonus points if there unhinged

Sigma: bro is the official Y/N I feel bad for him, the absolute shit he went through, also he has the best and most realistic facial expressions in all of bsd

Bram: I like him, I seriously hope him and that small red head gets a brother/sister relationship.

Oguri: studio bones got to him

Agatha: her name is like one step away from being majestic

Fukichi: bro is the reason why Kenji and Atsushi got hurt alot, not to mention he's planning world wide terrorism, and it was all because he got rejected by his childhood crush(this is totally what happened)

Teruko:my fav bsd character, love her absolute girlboss, pls I beg of you let me be your bestie, I will sell my soul

Jouno: pretty good, I love that he put others above his own self pleasures, also kinda terrifying in some manga panels and In others hes so cute

Tecchou: cute little boy, love him, also I ship him with jouno, it's mandatory if you enter this fandom, will probably end up being bestie with kenji

Aya: biggest girlboss in this entire series, hate her dad, she is best girl, if you dis her I will track you down and find you.

This is all the characters I got a the enger for, hope you enjoyed

[jo-harrington]

Thoughts about Writing and Creating

Earlier today I read an article that really resonated with me and specifically made me think about some things within the corner I exist in within the tumblr fanfiction community.

First an intro: Hi! My name is Jo! I’m a 28 year old professional designer and visual artist, and I write about a silly metal head from the 80’s. I’ve been reading and writing fanfic in some way shape or form since I was 12. (Way before I should have.) There are people who’ve been in fandom longer than I have. And some people who are new to this world.

The thoughts I’m conveying below are mine alone and you may agree or you may not. Me writing this is to get these thoughts out and, hopefully, inspire some peace in my community and impart some lessons on some newer members of fandom. If you disagree with my opinions, please feel free to make your own. Post about them or shoot me a PM and we can have a peaceful discussion.

This post is NOT meant as an open door to hatred. If you come to me looking to fight, or dehumanize me, you will be blocked. I have seen enough in my time on tumblr to know how to protect my peace.

That being said, let’s proceed:

The article (I’ll link it below) was about the new Little Mermaid movie and how this “live action Disney revolution” is just a signifier of how media is recycled and that no idea is a new one. In any creative outlet. And while the article itself delves into the history of the Little Mermaid or mermaids themselves and all of that, the nuance of reference versus inspiration, the final idea was: never stop creating, never stop being inspired, never stop exploring.

How does that pertain to fanfiction though? How does that apply to me?

There’s been a lot of talk recently of “this person copied this idea” or “this is just a ripoff of that.” Enough that it drives people off of tumblr or stops them creating altogether. Makes people think that they’ve done something wrong. Some of this talk is is done by creators themselves, some is done by devoted friends or fans. And it is truly a shame, and I think it’s time that we stop.

This is not saying “plagiarism” or “copy and pasting word for word with a bit of name changing” is ok. No, those things are not ok. And people are allowed to be protective of their creations! Writers and artists put their heart and soul into their work.

But in terms of people’s genuine creativity…we need to be more tolerant of overlap. Whether we create or consume.

I’m currently writing a Freaky Friday Alternate Universe featuring 2 characters from a Netflix show. My story would not exist if these other media sources and inspirations didn’t exist. Does that mean my story should not exist or be told? Does that mean my writing isn’t good? No and no.

I don’t profit from my work. I write for me. For my friends. For you. I have nothing to gain and nothing to lose. And if someone came to me tomorrow and said “hey, I wanted to write another Freaky Friday story,” so long as they didn’t copy my work word for word…well…you know what? I would be happy about it! Welcome it. Encourage them.

How can I tell someone no? Forbid them to try and use my idea—whether they were inspired by it or just…stumbled on it by chance as they got the idea organically themselves? What if they had genuine inspiration and could write this story better? Who, if they’ve never written before, might have just found their first chance to do so?

How could I dare to stop someone from being inspired? When I dared to follow the same inspiration for myself?

Now I know there are a lot more personal or original ideas and fanfictions out there. But at the end of the day, everything had been done in some way shape or form. We are all inspired by something. We have overlapping experiences. (I myself have found a good friend in this community who has life experiences so close to my own it’s frightening.)

There are 8 billion of us on this planet, thinking and imagining. Living. There is no one in a million idea anymore when we are consuming so much diverse media at any given time during the day.

Again, if you’re a creator, you’re allowed to be protective of your creation. But you are not allowed to stunt someone’s inspiration or growth. We are not fighting one another in fandom. We are all in this little corner together. Someone getting a like or a comment doesn’t mean that a like or a comment was taken away from you.

And if you’re a consumer of fanfiction, if you’re here to support a friend or just someone who created something you love…yes, it may be something you look forward to, but you should never hurt someone just because you think they might have “stolen” or “hurt” your writer friends. This is a place for all of us to feel safe.

Consider the Golden Rule: Treat others the way you would want to be treated.

There are no big blogs or small blogs. Notes aren’t important. What is important is kindness and community.

And we should all be welcome here.

Article: There’s No Such Thing as a New Idea

[lexxchinchillaa]

my school has a wrirers club and im part of it. todays thing was you have 2 minutes to write something, then pass the page to the person on your left and then 2 minutes to write on the next page so everyone has written something on everyones page. mine started as a broadchurch fanfic cuz im so original and... heres the final thing (different color means new person)

Alec woke up. He groaned as he got out of bed. It was early. He walked into the kitchen and made a cup of tea.

He finished the tea, got dressed, and left for work.

Alec walked into his office to find Ellie sitting, waiting for him.

He knew this was coming. He owed her too much money and now she'd come to collect. She sat in his chair with her head held high as she examined his desk.

Ellie curbed stomped (?) Alec and demanded he pay her back the 12 billion robux which Alec had spent on his super cute gothic lolita Roblox avatar.

She threw up all over him (tf???) in distress. He cried and gave her the Roblox password. Ellie scammed the shit out of Alec's card and bought Peter Griffin in (unintelligible). Ellie bought all the Fortnite emotes next. She was on a roll. She loved the idea of Alec becoming bankrupt (lmao). AND BANKRUPT ALEC SHALL BE(😭). Ellie was a sugar addict and her latest dose was making her crazy. (how did they write so much lol)

"Oh no, I hate being crazy." She said manically. Then she did a backflip (ELLIE'S GOT SKILLS) to illustrate her instability. However, she didn't think about how previously incompetent she was at gymnastics. She fell. It hurt (no shit), but the pain and mania created the perfect blend to allow her to be brought back to the present.

Ellie continued to buy more Fortnite emotes and skins. Especially The Weeknd. He looked mighty fine in that suit. (HELP???)Ellie whistled.

Ellie then went to Molly's(who tf is molly) and gave her a Fortnite skin to wear. She was obsessed. Molly staged an intervention but it did not succeed, as Ellie started throwing bricks on the ground (why lmao) and hopping in the air before flopping away.

Suddenly, Beethoven appeared (HELP LMAO??? BEETHOVEN WAS IN EVERY STORY NO JOKE). He was very evil. He wanted to impede the protagonist's goals (plot twist: there are no goals except to buy fortnite shit). How sinister.

Beethoven got into a fight with Karkat Vanks, from the hit webcomic Homestuck (ok free promo for homestuck ig. idk ive never read it). Karkat won, beheading Beethoven and spitting on his dead body (WHAT). Karkat then bit Beethoven in half and disappeared (tf-). The End!!!

basically the take away is never owe ellie any robux and never let anyone finish your story!

(wtf happened to alec and ellie lmao. whos molly??? WHY WAS BEETHOVEN THERE???)

[raccoonfallsharder]

Window Across the Galaxy ✧*:･ﾟupdated 1/9

18+ only | rocket x f!oc | 24/27 chapters | wip| word count: pending. ♡ check the masterlist for expected updates ♡ ♡ see the "holiday special" ⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅*̩̩͙‧͙ Winter Across the Galaxy * ‧͙*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ˚₊⋆ [new 12/5] ♡

girl falls first; racoon falls harder.

When Rocket enters their new bunk, Jo’s sitting on the floor: leaning against the edge of the bed, working diligently on some kind of woven thing. It’s a tapestry of sorts, the threads and flosses all hand-laced together. She’s put most of her tools and equipment in a closet down the corridor, and she takes them out when she’s practicing a new skill or brushing up on old ones, working on these little low-cost, low-sentiment projects that are the only ones she’ll take on board, and only for a few days at a time. She pulls out her little tools and supplies, and sits on the floor in the common area or — now, apparently — in their new bunk. She works, and then she packs up all her small things, and she takes them back out and tucks them out of sight in the closet once more. The idea of it gets under his skin, to be honest. A closet. Jo’s been shrinking her life ever since she met him, and he should probably back up out of it before he makes things worse — but it’s too late for that now. He’s too greedy to do it, even though he knows he should. And besides — if he’s pretending to be altruistic — he’d promised to not run her off. So instead, he decides he’s gonna focus on making sure she puts her name on every goddamn surface she can, everywhere they go.

[NEW 1/9] ✧･ﾟ:*Chapter XXIV. Space Would Be Better. in which Rocket ~ discreetly ~ claims the title of boyfriend. ❤︎❤︎

this was originally the last half of Chapter XXIII (the previous chapter) so if it starts a bit rough, i'm so sorry. as a result, we do jump into some smut pretty quickly in this chapter so if you need to, make sure to check out the warnings in the closing notes. i'm really excited about the next chapter, too! which is less smutty and more feelings-ish. ~♡

explicit lines or references* abbreviated explicit sequences ❤︎ detailed/prolonged explicit sequences ❤︎❤︎

General summary/notes + links to recently preceding chapters behind the cut.

let me know via comment, message, or ask if you'd like to be added or removed from my fanfic taglist ♡

Rocket is captured by a Ravager crew hoping to get rich off the excessively large bounty on his head. Throwing a wrench in everyone’s plans is the Terran girl they hired to do some freelance assessing on a recent haul of goods they’ve seized from a Xandaran luxury liner. Oops.

slight AU starting pre-GOTG volume 1 (but will hit most of the same major plot points). slow burn + eventual smut with a lot of pining in the middle. kinda enemies-to-lovers? (but only one of these idiots thinks they're enemies).

let me be real with you: this fic is really about wish-fulfillment. not just the eventual smut (but that too). mostly i just want someone to be nice to my best boy raccoon

*･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ:*✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ*

Chapter I. A Delicacy. in which our reluctant heroes meet atop a crate of Sovereign porn in the bowels of a Ravager ship.

Chapter II. Monster For A Pet. in which one hero wrestles with his inner Groot, and the other is quite possibly a moron.

Chapter III. A Kindness. in which Rocket gets in his own damn way: not for the first time, and certainly not for the last.

Chapter IV. Got There First. in which our heroes obtain an arsenal and street food.

Chapter V. Things No-One Has Said Before. in which one hero refuses to babysit and the other refuses to leave.

Chapter VI. Two and a Half Billion Units.in which we lean into the “they were roommates” trope. Jolie has misgivings, while Rocket has fantasies - about getting rich, of course.

Chapter VII. I'm Here. in which we visit Knowhere.

Chapter VIII. The Care & Feeding of Human Pets. in which our heroes practice breathing and we lean into a new trope: “there was (technically) one bed.”

Chapter IX. Scrapmetal and a Dream. in which we redefine homemaking.

Chapter X. Thin Fucking Ice. in which our heroes get fucked. Not in the good way.

Chapter XI. Let It Be. in which Xandar is saved and good lives are lost.

Chapter XII. So Much It Hurts. in which we try not to fuck up the vibes.

Chapter XIII. Don’t Wait. in which a lost sister is found and Drax grapples with the concept of sarcasm.

Chapter XIV. Exactly Like a Flower. in which comfort is shared.

Chapter XV: Galaxy-Breaking Shit. in which more comfort is shared, and life is good. Briefly.

Chapter XVI. Run. in which Rocket falls victim to his superstitions.

Chapter XVII. A Seedling. A Fox. A Little Girl. in which the party is divided.

Chapter XVIII. I Happen to Know a Guy. in which our heroes get fucked. Again. Still not in the good way.

Chapter XIX. He Was Loved. in which a planet is killed, a friend is made and lost, and nobody still has any frickin’ tape.

Chapter XX. Some Nerve. *in which an ultimatum is given.

Chapter XXI. I Very Still. ❤︎❤︎ in which our heroes get fucked. In the good way, this time. Finally.

Chapter XXII. Got There Worse. ❤︎❤︎ in which Rocket does not say "I love you."

Chapter XXIII. We're Gonna Need a Bigger Table. ❤︎ in which the galaxy continues to spin.

Chapter XXIV. Space Would Be Better. ❤︎❤︎ in which Rocket ~discreetly~ claims the title of boyfriend.

Chapter XXV. Little Love Stories. *

Chapter XXVI. Other Side of the Window. ❤︎

Chapter XXV. The Most Beautiful Thing in My House. ❤︎❤︎

⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅*̩̩͙‧͙ Winter Across the Galaxy * ‧͙*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ˚₊⋆ A Holiday Special *

Epilogue: Interviewing Rocket & Jo. ten years after Window ends. short/drabbly, silly fluff.

explicit lines or references* abbreviated explicit sequences ❤︎ detailed/prolonged explicit sequences ❤︎❤︎

taglist ♡ @evolvingchaoswitch ♡ @wren-phoenix ♡ @pretty-chips ♡ @suicidalshitstick ♡ @glow-autumz

[reminiscentreader]

I Bet You Think About Me

Chapter 2

“What could’ve been,would’ve been, what should’ve been you.” 

-Bigger than the whole sky,Taylor Swift 

It turns out they were meeting the Hawthorne heiress in the Hawthorne boardroom, this was not completely unexpected for Cordelia, she was expecting the main room but the boardroom was fine aswell, just more cramped. 

She was completely zoning out whatever Oren was talking about as she was too busy trying to prepare a mental speech in her head, that was a trait she had inherited from her father, everything had to be planned or it would all go wrong, just like Taylor Swift said, Cordelia told herself, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

                       ._._._._._._._ ._._

“Oh and all of the Hawthorne boys will be in there aswell, just thought you should know” Oren said as he led them through the main room, “even better” grinned Dorian. Dorian turned slightly to his right to check on his sister, only to see her running her hair through he long brown locks and muttering to herself, what the bloody hells wrong with her, he rolled his eyes, Dorian was covinved Della had somekind of paranoia issue but she was totally against the idea that she had anything wrong with her and that she had never done anything that should make him think that, being the good little brother he was he had scoffed at her and proceeded to list all of the reasons and times she had been overly panicky about something.

                   ._._._._._._._._._._._.

They were here, in front of the heavy oak doors embellished with the gold Hawthorne crest in the middle, on the other side of that door stood Grayson Hawthorne, his brothers, and the Hawthorne heiress. All people Cordelia didn’t particularly want to see, but if you were and heir to a 40 billion pound fortune, your life was filled with people you didn’t want to particularly see.

“I’ll be out here, the others are inside”

“Thank you oren” Cordelia bowed her heads slowly, in no rush to enter the boardroom, “Hurry up della!” Dorian whined, already heading toward the door.

Breathe in, breathe out

He pushed open the doors.

“Hello Ambroses’,take a seat”

._._._._._._._._._._._._

second chapter done! Again, sorry if the writing is a little sloppy, feel free to let me know how I could make it better or what you would like to see from this fanfic in the comments or my ask me anything <3

[c4ndyy-apple]

Love Languages (Creek Fanfic)

Summary: Craig explores the 5 Love Languages to see which one fits his relationship with Tweek the best, plus the 1 time Tweek tells him his actual love language.

Also on AO3

i.

“I think we should order in tonight,” Tweek said as he stretched out across the tiny couch. “I think my back has broken after carrying around all those boxes in work.”

Craig snorted at the complaint and also at the shapes Tweek was twisting himself into to try and stretch out and/or crack his limbs. His boyfriend had texted him earlier in the day to talk shit about how the new delivery manager his parents hired had fucked up the order, making Tweek carry around 3 times as many boxes of coffee bags than he usually would have to on a Sunday.

“I can check what’s open. What do you feel like eating, babe?” Craig said kindly, not wanting to make fun of Tweek just yet.

He gingerly sat down on the edgy of couch cushions so as to not interfere too much with the constant shifting of his boyfriend.

Tweek hummed thoughtfully for a few seconds before he decided solidly on chinese food. The shifting continued, even hanging himself backwards against the arm of the couch causing an audible crack to echo the room.

As Craig made an order of chinese food on UberEats he noticed a tab open on his phone that he forgot he was scrolling through during the day. The title of the article read The 5 Love Languages - Everything You Need To Know, the same article a group of women in his office had been fawning all over and discussing their favourites and how their respective partners do or don’t have the same love language.

Craig wasn’t sure what his love language was, nor did he know what Tweek’s love language was. He hadn’t given a lot of thought into how he loves Tweek, it just seemed to come naturally to him.

Deciding to give one a quick try he scrolled quickly to the first one, Words of Affirmation - Offer verbal compliments and words of appreciation.

“At least you don’t need to work out your arms now,” he voiced awkwardly, unsure about how to use words now that he was putting himself under pressure to use them.

“What? Why would I work out my arms?” Tweek stopped squirming and looked at Craig confused. “I thought you liked my arms?”

“Oh, I do.” Craig’s eyes swiftly glanced at the toned arms stretched out above Tweek’s head. “But, you know, this will have helped keep them the way they are.”

He couldn’t explain it, even to himself nevermind Tweek. But he was always attracted to his boyfriend's arms the most. During a game of ‘Truth or Drink’ in their college days Craig had been asked if he were more of a ‘dick or ass’ kind of guy by Clyde. In place of being asked ‘tits or ass’ like the straight guys at the party got asked previously.

Craig remembers immediately going on a drunken tangent about Tweek’s arms. Confusing the group and his boyfriend. He remembers telling the group he enjoyed their veininess, the forearm muscle, the hair, how they looked biteable when he rolled his sleeves up. He could go on and on, and he did. He still could.

“You’re weird man, they’re just arms,” Tweek rolled his eyes and used his elbows to lean up and look at Craig without having to strain his neck.

“They’re sexy arms,” Craig smirked. “I don’t make the rules, sorry.”

“I still don’t get the obsession, but whatever,” Tweek leaned all of his weight on one of his arms to grab at Craig’s shirt and tug him down onto their couch with him. “Now, cuddle me before the food gets here.”

ii.

Craig glanced at the obnoxious bunch of flowers in his left hand as he walked up the familiar street leading to Tweak Bros Coffee. His heart raced at the gray building, as if he had never met his long-time boyfriend for lunch before.

He had come to this exact place for lunch probably a billion times, but this was the first time he had come with a custom made bunch of flowers for Tweek. He had no idea how this would go down.

Before he reached the door, Craig took one last glance at the article he had saved in his phone. Receiving Gifts - Give thoughtful and meaningful gifts of any size, without an occasion. This one confused, he had to google ‘random gifts to give my partner’ and almost all of the search results pointed to flowers.

He, nor Tweek, were ever really into flowers or plants. Craig had no idea how this would go down.

The light jingle of the bell above the coffee shop door sounded as Craig tried to enter as unsuspiciously as possible. He let out a heavy breath as he watched Tweek turn around with a bright smile, which immediately left his face as he looked at Craig’s hand.

“What the hell?” His voice almost echoed around the empty coffeeshop.

“I got these for you,” Craig said nervously as he approached the counter and held the flowers out in front of him.

“Why?” Tweek asked slowly, his face scrunched up as he looked Craig up and down. “What did you do?”

“Nothing,” Craig said quickly. “I just, love you?”

Tweek glared at him as he accepted the flowers.

“What’s the occasion then?”

“There is none, I just lov-”

“You just love me?” Tweek looked unimpressed as he finished the sentence for an almost shaking Craig. The sceptical reaction was exactly why he was so nervous to gift Tweek anything.

“Yeah, man.” Craig rolled his eyes. “Sorry for being nice to you.”

“You’re always nice to me,” Tweek snorted and leaned over the counter to look at Craig expectantly. “Thank you, they’re very nice even though you’re being weird.”

Craig huffed out a laugh as he leaned toward Tweek in return, pressing their lips together gently. He felt Tweek’s hand that wasn’t holding the bouquet squeeze his bicep before trailing down and intertwining their hands together gently, making Craig’s heart skip a beat. Even after all these years.

Tweek pulled back to smile at him before he began to talk about a couple that had fought in the coffee shop over their breakfast. Apparently, he had texted Craig about the drama but he had missed the text over his flower related adventure that day.

At least Tweek liked the flowers.

iii.

Later that evening, Craig had planned his next move to discover his love language and potentially Tweek’s. He had set up their evening perfectly by looking up activities related to the next ‘Love Language’ on his list.

Quality Time - Give your partner undivided attention via exclusive time together . What the hell did that even mean? They lived together, how was Craig supposed to spend more time with Tweek?

On his way home from the coffee shop, Craig bought a variety of puzzles and games they could do together. He even bought a recipe book as the article stated that cooking together is great for this love language.

He had a ton of activities they could do together. Tweek would have his undivided attention all evening.

As soon as Tweek entered their little apartment, Craig leaped up to greet him and give him a tight hug before leading them to the couch.

“Ugh, that afternoon sucked.” Tweek slouched down and flopped his feet atop their coffee table. “I do not want to have to use my brain until I am back in that hell hole.”

Uh, oh. What activities required the least brain power?

Craig smirked as, actually, this scenario was perfect for this love language test. All he had to do was ask what happened and keep up eye contact with Tweek as he listened to whatever story he was about to tell.

“What happened, honey? More drama?” Craig sat down as close to Tweek as he could, shifting so he could see his face better.

“Dude, those two were insane! They must have jinxed my day, I should not have enjoyed the drama so much,” Tweek shook his head before looking directly at Craig. “Woah, you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m good. Why?” Craig stiffened his shoulders at the sudden question.

“You were looking at me all super intense, man. Is there something on my face?” Tweek frowned and touched his own cheek with his fingertips. “What were you looking at?”

“Oh, I was-” How could he explain what he wanted? “I just wanted to see your eyes.”

“My eyes?” Tweek was visibility confused, for the second time that day. “Okay, dude.”

Tweek shifted and looked at Craig straight ahead as he continued talking about his day, ranting and laughing at certain parts. Craig remained silent as he stared at Tweek’s face while he talked.

He wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do about the whole Quality Time thing when they were just talking. It felt weird just keeping eye contact without doing anything else, even though their eye contact would break briefly everytime Tweek rolled his eyes at certain aspects of his ranting.

This was nice, he enjoyed spending time with Tweek.

iv.

It was 5:30AM, two hours before Tweek had to be at work and Craig was standing alone in their kitchen idly waiting on Tweek’s daily morning coffee to finish brewing.

Usually, they would stay cuddled up together until the very last second they could and Tweek would swiftly run out the door and drink a cup of coffee at the shop while doing prep for their opening for the day.

But not today. Craig looked at the screen in his hand, almost with an evil glare as he re-read the paragraph titled Acts of Service - Run an errand for your partner, cook a meal, complete a household chore.

The most simple and most Tweek ‘Act of Service’ listed on the article was to make your partner a cup of coffee in the morning. Craig knew exactly how Tweek liked his coffee, it was difficult not to when he had watched him drink the stuff for almost 20 years.

“Craig?” He heard a croak from the hallway outside the kitchen. Oh, shit.

Craig locked his phone and immediately stuffed it into the pocket of his PJs. His heart almost melted at the sight of his boyfriend, who looked positively frazzled and unbelievably tired.

“Good morning, my love,” Craig said softly, he opened his arms toward the approaching Tweek. “How was your sleep?”

“It was fine,” Tweek mumbled into his chest as he snuggled his nose into the bare skin. “Why are you awake and not cuddling me?”

“I was making you coffee before you needed to leave for work.” Craig replied sheepishly, suddenly feeling guilty that he didn’t stay in Tweek’s arms for longer before they needed to part.

“You’re too nice to me,” Tweek mumbled back, a small smile spread across his face. “Do we have the right cream?”

Craig hummed out a yes before pressing a kiss into his boyfriends bright blond hair.

Once the coffee machine was done brewing, Craig made a cup for Tweek and a cup for himself to enjoy together on the couch before they had to face the world for the day. Tweek’s smile as he was handed the coffee cup made the extra early wake up totally worth it for Craig.

v.

It was almost 10PM on a Friday night, the TV had some random movie on, there were take-out boxes on the coffee table and Tweek was perched sideways on Craig’s lap laughing at the bad acting they had been too lazy to turn off.

The final love language on the list was Physical Touch - Hug, Kiss, Hold Hands. Which, out of all the love languages, confused Craig the most. Wanting to do these things with your partner should feel the most natural, in Craig’s opinion. Why be with someone if you don’t want to touch them?

Tweek was always hanging off of Craig, so convincing his boyfriend of a cuddle and movie night was a breeze.

Craig allowed his hands to roam wherever they could reach. The way Tweek had positioned himself in Craig’s lap, Craig had one hand on top of his thigh and the other on his upper back to keep him upright.

This may be Craig’s favourite type of moment between the two of them. Just in their own little bubble, enjoying each other and as close as possible.

“Do you think the sidekick is hot?” Tweek asked suddenly.

Craig diverted his attention from Tweek to the TV again to see the character Tweek was referring to.

“Not really,” Craig replied. “Don’t know if you noticed but brunette’s don’t really do it for me.”

He lightly tugged a lock of Tweek’s hair, just to make him huff in annoyance before smirking back at Craig.

“Oh? So, if I dyed my hair brown you wouldn’t be attracted to me?” His boyfriend challenged, a wide smile on his face as he wrapped two arms around Craig’s neck.

“Okay, maybe in that case brunette’s would do it for me.” Craig kissed his cheek before continuing. “What would you do if I went for a bleached look?”

“Oh god, I would so make fun of you,” Tweek chuckled and threaded one hand into Craig’s hair. “It would go so ginger because of how black your hair is.”

“Touche,” Craig said back before leaning in to kiss Tweek again who hummed in appreciation at the contact.

i.

“You’ve been extra sweet to me this week,” Tweek said as he pulled back. “What’s going on?”

“Hmm, nothing.” Craig said, trying to pull his love back in for more kisses.

“No, no. There is definitely something,” Tweek side-eyed him. “Is everything okay? Did Clyde say something dumb again?”

“No,” Craig sighed. “The women in my office were talking about love languages, so I’ve been trying them out to see which one is ours.”

Craig shrugged nonchalantly as Tweek’s head nodded in instant recognition.

“Not where I thought this was going, but it also makes sense.” Tweek nodded carefully. “What one do you think is ours?”

Craig sighed and shook his head.

“I don’t know, dude. I keep getting confused about which one is the most obvious way that I use to show you that I love you,” Craig explained, unable to look away from Tweek as he spoke. “They all seem so normal I guess.”

“They seem normal?” Tweek let out a laugh as he asked.

“Yeah, like why would I not do all 5 things for the person I love. It doesn't make sense,” Craig huffed as he watched Tweek burst into uncontrollable giggles.

“That’s because you use all of the love languages dummy,” Tweek said as if it were obvious. “You always have done, even when we were 10.”

“Wait, you know our love language?”

“We don’t have one collective one, Craig.” Tweek tilted his head to the side as he spoke. “I don’t know if you noticed during your research but my love language is physical touch.”

As Craig thought back, Tweek was right. He was always clinging onto Craig physically in one way or another when they were together.

“I wanna touch you all the time, because that’s how I show you love, right?” Craig nodded at Tweek’s words. “And you have a lot of little ways of showing me. Let me see, for Words of Affirmation, you constantly call me by a pet name. I don’t think I’ve heard you call me Tweek to my face in over a decade, actually.”

Craig let out a scoff at the over-exaggeration.

“For the gifts, you always buy me random stuff you think will help me out. Like all the snacks you bought for tonight because I was stressed, or the cruise you got for us last year.” Tweek looked fondly over at the photo frame of the two of them clinking their beer glasses together on the deck of the large cruise ship.

“Okay, so I pamper you a little bit.” Craig blushed.

“You really do,” Tweek laughed. “An example of Quality Time is this entire evening you set up for us. For Physical Touch, you always hold my hand and kiss my face. And Acts of Service is so obvious for you.”

“Is it? I found that one the hardest to try and do something for this week.” Craig confessed, making Tweek give him a frown.

“You do everything for me, Craig. Without me even asking or expecting you to,” Tweek said simply. “Now that I think about it, it’s probably your main love language out of the five.”

“You think?” Craig was surprised at the revelation.

“Oh totally, man.” Tweek confirmed with a peck on the lips. “Even when we fight, you can’t help yourself but make sure everything is taken care of. It’s really cute.”

“You’re cute,” Craig deflected and pressed his forehead into Tweek’s neck.

[duskforged]

State of the Author: January 2024

Normally, I wouldn't do a thing like this. However, because I have not actually updated y'all on my WIPs in a while, I thought I might as well!

We'll start with the thing most of you followed me for: long-form fiction. And I call it that since all of these will be over 15k words (hopefully). There are three novels I'm currently focusing on.

LONG-FORM FICTION

Lodestar is currently stuck in a worldbuilding spiral, since it's a near-future humanity in space. While I do love sci-fi, science and math are not especially my forte. I hope to start drafting by the end of the summer, around September.

Vespertine has started on the first draft, though I'm also outlining still - something of a combined process. I am excited to share more of it with you, though it may be tough since most of it still lives in my head. Such is the woe of the artist.

Unto Summer Kings is in the first draft and currently hovering around 15k words! So far it's the longest I've gotten on a novel, and if I stay on track I could start my second draft by May, and begin beta reading by August.

LONG-FORM FANFICTION

I hesitate a little to touch on this one, just because. However, for the pure self indulgence I will. I have three major fanfics currently posted on my AO3, all of them multichaptered.

The Hanged Man is a Naruto SI!OC as Hatake Sakumo, immediately before his death. I currently have 8 chapters out and the main beats of the fic are fully outlined as of this month, which marks a major turning point in the fic's planning.

The Ever-Growing Gloaming is another self insert, this time into the events of Baldur's Gate 3. Vespere, the main character, whose name is subject to change, has been plucked from August 2023 and has not played the game since early access March 2023. Therefore they know less than you might expect.

Finally I have my Supernatural series, For Want of a Broken Nail (Broken Nail Verse). And I know what you're going to say, it's super meta to have a self insert in that fandom, you're writing SPN fanfic in 2024 what is wrong with you, etc etc. But the concept seized me full on by the balls and I already have the first 5 seasons outlined. Sorry, not sorry? No one is obligated to read it anyhow.

I also have a billion ideas on the backburner, ranging from fandoms like Game of Thrones and the MCU (for some reason) to Avatar: the Last Airbender and Star Wars. I'll post 'em when I post 'em!

ART PROJECTS

Wolf in Shepherd's Clothing is a comic of humanity's first lycanthrope, taking place in ancient Mesopotamia, in what is modern day Iran. The main character, Lahar, is gender neutral/ambiguous. So far, I'm stuck in outlining and drafting but hopefully soonTM.

Witchboy (title wip) is a story I'm working on with my partner @fallenorpheus based on various YA novels we read growing up. So far we aren't super set on the story, but it's definitely about a boy who is (accidentally) a witch, his best friend, his adoring father, and his estranged mother.

Dame-Errant (title wip) is a story that, instead of in comic form, is a story that is illustration snapshots, accompanied by short story prose. It is about a butch knight, Dame Johana Talon, who is tasked by Queen Atossa to find her missing son, Prince Khosrow. Typical 'prince(ss) in the tower shenanigans' but then, politics. And boy does Jo hate politics.

I have other webcomic ideas (mtf vs bbeg accidentally breaking a prophecy, team of bipoc/minority characters getting thrown into a fantasy world for an adventure, etc) so feel free to ask.

PERSONAL

I hesitate to touch on this, really, since it's not something that just anyone needs to know, but I've been struggling to find a good name for myself. Hesperos is a good name, but doesn't necessarily feel like 'me' these days. I do enjoy the h/e sounds... I've considered Ezra, but that's just the name of an OC and I'd rather not get quite that meta.

Ah well, sure it'll sort itself out eventually.

THE END

Anyway, thanks for reading! I know that's quite a lot for this one post to cover, but you stuck til the very end. Not sure when I'll start posting again in earnest but I hope sooner rather than later!

[shdwycupcake]

🎶 Pick any lyric from your current favourite song (or just any song you enjoy). That lyric is now a fanfic title. What’s the fic about?

okay i'm going to do a few of these, because i've recently been listening to the song Rock In God's Shoe by Sushi Soucy and it has so many good lines you could entitle a fic with that it sent me into thinking about an animatic i don't have the talent to make, which is a very rare occurrence for me since i have aphantasia and struggle with seeing things in my head.

God is a 12 year old girl and we're living in a weird Sherlock College AU

This one would be a fic about The Stanley Parable, probably an AU, where the world appears to be glitching as Stanley goes about his day somewhere mundane and unfamiliar, like a university or working at a coffeeshop. The plot would probably end up being that someone, probably Employee 432/The Timekeeper or the Narrator himself, was trying to make some sort of New Parable with Even More Endings, creating a glitchy world that's just a bit Off, even to Stanley.

God is a kind and benevolent entity/God is a sadist getting off on our suffering

Post-season 5 finale Miraculous Ladybug two-shot, with Ladybug explaining the situation of who Gabriel actually was to Adrien, then suddenly wondering why Chat Noir is acting so distant. This is probably the one I'd like to see written/write the most.

God is a narrator, but he left his mic off

This one would be set in the story of @tillywunderwing's fic txtFileNotFound.pdf, specifically in the part of the timeline where, after the Skip Button Ending, the Narrator refuses to speak to Stanley for, well, quite the long time. Read her fic if you're a fan of TSP! You won't regret it!

It must be hard to be a single mother of eight billion kids in this economy

Princess Celestia deals with the aftermath of sending her sister Luna to the moon and all the angst and politics that comes with that. There's probably a thousand fics like this but I had to include at least one My Little Pony idea.

God isn't on our side, or maybe they are

I have so many Warrior Cats characters this could apply to. Some canon, of course, but mainly for my OCs. Petalshade especially, a medicine cat that only become a medicine cat to commune with StarClan, not because of any want to help his Clan-mates, fits well with this entire song. This line specifically, though, would be the title of a fic delving into his confrontation with his mentor from StarClan, who gave him a scar when he refused to fake a sign in order to depose his leader or something like that,,,I've not fleshed out his story quite enough, this is just me remembering the roleplay I did with him that his story is based off of.

[what-if-nct]

hello mrs hwang… i’m not doing alright.

for the past few weeks, i was never able to create a story out of scratch — not even a single one shot. i haven’t successfully made a story in months and i’m running out of stories to read. it’s really making me sad.

am i getting off kpop or writing? or is it just writer’s block? it has been happening for so long, i just don’t feel creative anymore. if you was my fairy godmother, i would of wished i could always be creative whenever i want. you are always very creative and talented in what you do. it was too much for me that i literally gave up on multiple tumblr blogs. how do you keep this one for many years and manage to bring out quality content? that’s what i think whenever i find a blog that is over 5 years old.

anywho, i’ll stop weeping in case you find me annoying. thanks a lot for reading my letter!

— Mr Kim (naked onew dream anon)

It sounds more like writers block. Writers block is hard you want to write but there's just nothing in your mind or nothing's working or every idea is bad and useless and it's disheartening and you want to give up. Classic sucky writers block. And I think the best thing is to not force it cause it will just be more frustrating. I have fanfic writers block right now too, there's two fics in my drafts that are incomplete and I'm not sure they will ever get completed. But I wrote 16 chapters in two months in July of a story that friends have read but it probably won't see the light of day. Writing is hard it takes a lot of mental work. Writers block is normal and what I suggest is try to create more different things, silly one sentence things, random scenarios with no real plot, I think it's important to not get bored and stuck. That's probably why I start creating random things, and started including Stray Kids . So I'm never bored of doing something and I always have a billion ideas in my head and I even take a break and do more hands on crafts like sewing, drawing, even doing my dolls hair so I'm constantly creating and keeping it fun and different. You just have to make it fun again and less of a chore once it feels like a chore take a break find something you enjoy doing and do that and get inspiration from everything. Music, shows, movies, real life, there's a lot of posts based on things that happened in real life, Just relax and do something that's fun for awhile and get back to fics when it calls to you don't try to force it.

[beobhcm]

SANDMAN FANFIC: IS THIS A DREAM, OR IT’S JUST HALLUCINATION?

CHAPTER 5

Desire opened their eyes and found themselves on their bed. How long had they been sleeping? They had no idea. The abyss of ruin caused much damage to them more than the Vortex used to. Until then, they were not yet recovered though it had been many days. An Endless could briefly regain their power once they reconnected with the living world, but this time was extremely strange. Desire’s head kept spinning around, which prevented them to leave their comfy bed.

“How are you doing, my sibling?” A figure was slowly approaching them.

“What the? Mo…Morpheus?” Desire startled as they saw the man in front of them was their late brother.

“I heard that you were terribly injured in your mission so I come here to check on you.” He crossed his arms.

It could not be... Were they hallucinating things? Obviously, they had been rescued by Dream, the new Dream, and escaped from the abyss. They were back in their threshold safely. Why was his illusion still following them?

“Look at you. I guess this is your consequence for being arrogant and stubborn.” Morpheus continued.

Desire went silent. They must keep their mind conscious, they could not be fooled by the illusions. The Endless glanced at the man and trying to figure out what kind of ridiculousness they were facing right now.

“Your recklessness and stupidity could have killed you. How many times do I have to tell you to think before act?”

He was complaining again. The younger sibling was triggered as they had listened enough, so they covered their ears with their pillow. Desire wanted to banish him out of their domain immediately but they were too weak, even moving their fragile body was also a big problem to them.

“Be more careful next time, my dear sibling.” Morpheus suddenly sat beside them and gently touched their hand, which made Desire pause for a moment. “I know I was talking a bit harsh, but I don’t want you to make bad choices and putting yourself in danger.”

His voice was such caring and he was paying attention to them. It felt so wrong, but the younger sibling somehow accepted it without protesting. They had not seen this gentle attitude for billions of years, back when Dream and Desire still got along with each other. They were once his favorite sibling. Dream helped them to acknowledge the wisdom, while Desire brought joy and liveliness to brighten up his gloomy feeling. Look at his face, they also recognized it was the happy face he used to have before, not the edgy pale face he always showed in front of everyone. Those were such beautiful memories and they had long gone. In a very short moment, Desire had experienced the brotherly love from him, the love that they never thought they would be able to feel it again in their existence.

“I have many things to do in my domain. Rest well, Desire. Takes care.” Morpheus interrupted his sibling’s mood as he vanished into the black mist. Desire tended to say something but a swirl of sand swiftly flew through their eyes and lured them to sleep.

Desire woke up once again. They looked around in confusion. The weird thing was they already woke up many times and seeing Morpheus by their side, but this time they saw no one. Instead, they found some sand on their mattress. What was going on then? They remembered there was not a single grain of sand every time their late brother showed up. So basically, the entire scene between them and Morpheus was…a dream? As realizing something, Desire ran to their gallery and grabbing the helm.

“My brother Dream, I am calling you right now. Please come to my place.”

“It seems you are in a hurry, my sibling.” The man in white appeared. Desire stared at him closely as they were checking on him, then sighed. They wanted to make sure whether this was the reality or not.

“What the fuck is this Dream?” Desire opened their palm and gave him the sand. The Endless like them never slept, not to tell they even had entered the loop of dream as Desire almost thought they were trapped there. “What the fuck did you do to me?”

“I did feel your presence in my realm. Such strange that you were the first Endless to enter the Dreaming through your sleep.” He collected the sand and began examining it. “I don’t have a clear answer yet. Perhaps you might be affected by the amount of sand I used to heal your wounds. Its effect will eventually wear off once you are recovered.”

“Uhm… It does make sense.” Normally, his sand would not work on an Endless being. The only explanation was Desire had been at their weakest state so they were vulnerable to any forces. Dream was not a part of desire, but they had finally dreamed and understanding about the purpose of dream. It was meant to make the living creatures experience anything they ever wish, no matter how unrealistic, impossible or crazy it was. Their late brother said dream had the ability to help the livings realize something as it could dramatically change their life, in a good or bad way. To Desire, dream only made them live in hallucination as the reality would soon slap them hard. Though they appreciated the sweet moment when Morpheus treated them kindly, it was a lie after all since Morpheus had gone forever. Dream was not a part of desire…and desire was not a part of dream either.

As the white Dream left, they still have so many questions in their mind. Desire changed their bed into a red sofa with soft cushions, then sitting on it with one leg crossed as they lightened up their cigarette. Their ivory dress also transformed into a black elegant vest. They tried to relax but failed. The smoke floating around was as suffocating as those churning thoughts surrounding them. As Desire could not handle it, they got out of their comfort seat and headed back to their gallery. Maybe they should call their twin since she was the person whom they could trust to express their inner feelings.

“Despair my beloved, I am standing in my gallery and holding your sigil. Please attend.” Desire put their twin’s ring on their finger and gently kissed on the hook.

“My dear brother-sister, I have been waiting for your call.” Despair quickly left her domain as she stepped to the threshold through the path between two realms. “I know you were badly injured and it makes me worried sick. I am glad you are okay now.” She pulled her twin closer and giving them a hug.

“I am fine. It has been days so I already regained most of my power.” Desire hugged her back. After that, they told her all the incidents during their journey with Dream. Well, not all, there were some missing parts.

“The abyss, it ruins every single sign of life on its path and devouring hope. It was such beautiful time. So much despair as the livings were taken away one by one.” Despair dug the hook on her cheeks and started scratching. The blood slowly ran down on her skin.

“I’ve been struggling when losing my way in the darkness. I don’t know how our brother could find the thing called hope among that cursed place. But…it was a shame as he took care of everything well, while I found myself totally useless.”

“When you held his helm and calling for him, it was the most desperate and beautiful scene I have ever witnessed.” She moved the hook to her eye as she violently tore it.

“I know… No need to tell me.”

“Are you sure that you are perfectly fine?” Despair was hesitant when she spoke up.

“Why asking that?”

“I am the embodiment of despair. I have the ability to sense your sadness as it is still here. But you just want to hide it, don’t you?” Despair knew her brother-sister was uneased when hearing her words. “Please tell me, maybe I could help you.” She pleaded.

“Uhm…”

Desire finally talked about the figure which had been haunting them recently. The abyss created Morpheus illusions in order to trap them, but then, his image continued to appear in their dreams, not once but multiple times. Years after Morpheus’s funeral, they remained cold as stone whenever someone reminded anything about him. But right after that mission, Desire had no idea why every time they faced his illusions, they could not control their emotion anymore.

“You are missing him.”

“No, I am not!” They protested.

“You never see our new Dream as Morpheus…”

“The new Dream isn’t him. He is…better than Morpheus in some ways. More careful, much more sarcastic, not moody, not arrogant… Morpheus would never. But they do have one similar thing, they are both good at humiliating someone.” Morpheus or the new Dream, Desire still used their venomous and hateful tone while describing him.

“Do you consider me as your twin sister?” The twin sister saw the sorrow in their eyes as she used her hook to tear off the skin on her shoulders, then digging deeper on her chest.

“What’s wrong with you? Why are you giving me another silly question?” Desire was stunned by her words.

“I also died, then reincarnated. I am obviously the second Despair, not the first one. Unless you accept the new Dream, do you accept me?” Despair kept the same flat tone while telling her reason.

“I…I…” Desire startled. “Please believe me! You are always my beloved sister no matter how many times you change and reborn.” They tried to explain so as not to hurt her. The more they tried, the more awkward and confusing they got. They had no word left to say as they looked away in embarrassment and closing their eyes tightly.

“Sorry for messing up with you, Desire. I have gone too far. You should take a break anyways.” Despair held their hand and pulling them over. She regretted confronting her twin with those harsh questions.

“Actually… You did help me to face my own feelings.” It was Despair’s function to reflect any creature’s sorrow. Desire had released anything hidden deeply in their mind and they were grateful for it.

“Hope your wound will be healed soon.” Despair touched her twin’s chest as she was aware that a crack on their crystal heart had vanished. Desire’s heart was almost broken as the abyss had brutally stabbed through it. The heart of desire was meant to be unbreakable, until there was a small hole appeared deep inside, the heart was no longer as consistent as it used to be. Dream’s sand had reconnected the broken shards but it only secured them from falling apart. Desire must heal themselves so their heart could be completely fixed, except for one unfixable missing gap… As soon as Despair went back to her domain, they leant on the wall and sighed. The wall rumbled since the heart of the threshold was beating uncontrollably.

The anthropomorphic of desire eventually went down to the living world after days staying in their fortress. Their eyes half opened as they felt a little sleepy. The first place they set their feet on was a big club inside an alley, a place full of lust and wanting. The humans knew how to entertain and fulfill their own desire with alcohol, drug, of course, sex. Under the colorful neon lights and music coming from a bunch of big loud speakers placing on every corner, the humans danced to the rhythms, forgetting about anything around them. The smell of cigarettes and vape, the reek of alcohol, those were the breath of desire. They enjoyed the atmosphere here, but not for long. The Endless started to feel dizzy as their eyes was blurry and had foggy vision, so they ran to the toilet. When looking at the mirror, Desire could see how exhausted they were. Strange, a place like this should have given them lots of energy to recover, but their eyes kept shutting as their entire body almost collapsed on the floor. They left their realm an hour ago and they already got tired? Could not believe Dream’s sand had strongly affected them, even outweighed their power. Despite the fact Dream was the one saving them, they swore they would make him pay next time.

“It’s been millennia, my dearest lady lord, my master-mistress.”

A black figure showed up behind Desire as his image reflected on the mirror. Morpheus? The fuck was happening? Were they dreaming again? No, he was not Morpheus. He just looked like him. They sensed a different type of energy coming from this man.

This was their perfect creation, Hallucination…

[veloriajones]

My sister said to me earlier that she "wishes [my] dnd notes were a fanfic so she could read more"

And oh BOY

As if I needed any fucking prompting to start writing fanfic/headcanon/what if scenarios about my characters

I already have a billion different ideas in my head and now I just

HDHAHHDAJHDJSHAHDHDKA