#there's for sure an audience but you have to like. really enjoy writing about conflict and difficult solutions to said conflict

[punch-love]

conflict anon here again and im SO GLAD you agree man. i think what really gets me about it is that i was specifically searching for conflict-packed fic and that's why i was so let down. i also feel like authors are entitled to write whatever they want forever but it just FEELS to me when im reading their fics like they would be happier writing something more domestic, and i want to find something where they're more feral.

i want the ID reveal and the relationship-confirming to cause MORE problems, hell i want them to get together and blow out into a massive argument and breakup then have breakup sex and get back together and then realize the sex didn't actually fix anything and then break up again but they can't stop being obnoxiously in each others space either way

but it feels like fic im trying to find like this fights the very concept of conflict so hard and wants one singular plot point to fix everything as quickly as possible without even walking me through the characters' insight as to HOW that fixed anything other than "problem over, let's be together forever now!" let alone the level of conflict that'd be so engaging like that with a million curveballs

im so aware its a personal taste thing its just been frustrating reading fic after fic after fic and finding so little of it. its no ones fault i can't find fic perfectly tailored to my tastes specifically, i just tend to ramble about my frustration. you and oprime and sci and a couple other authors are my favorite for writing it the way you do, she's not gonna die today will always be one of my favorite fics of all time because it gave me that ever persisting conflict driven by their obsessive need to stick together even when they're fighting every step of the way. i just always get into a longwinded ramble when this comes up and i was hoping youd like to share your thoughts so thank you for answering 🙏

I think this pairing kind of presents a unique challenge to writers (at least it did for me) that action and conflict is such a huge, borderline essential part of their canonical dynamic. If you're not used to writing/utilizing both physical and emotional conflict, your stories can often fall so, so flat for these two, specifically because that's the fuel that makes the engine run. The first true action scene I ever wrote was chapter two of love-punch, and I like, now I'm an action writer for life now (editing an action sequence as we speak) but I had to get out of my comfort zone because I realized that type of stories I wanted to write about them required them to beat the shit out of each other to work.

These two are definitely not problem solvers so much as shit starters. I feel like for them, the problems they actually have to solve are the ways they perceive each other (because both of them heavily project onto the other) and what that means long-term for their relationship - every other form of conflict, to me, is up for grabs forever when it comes to their relationship. The shit talking, ass kicking, and fire starting is what makes them, them.

I've said this before, but a lot of people write fanfiction as an exploration of their own ideal relationships. (which is absolutely fine) I think spideypool is a difficult sell though, for that specific fantasy, because their relationship operates on instability and violence primarily. I think most people aren't looking for a relationship where your communication consists of name-calling, beat downs, and moral differences so severe it makes you almost kill each other a lot. That, does not make a good, a good or healthy real world relationship but SUCH a fun fictional one. People are going to write their fantasies out, though, and that fantasy is that one kiss/one fuck/one confession creates relationship fueled bliss forever because many people, hate conflict - both experiencing and reading it. It sucks, if you're a reader who likes problems. I also always say this, but I encourage you to channel that energy into writing your own work. It's what I did, and it paid off so great for me because now I have 12 works specifically catered to my own personal needs exclusively. Fandom is always going to suck, but you can be the change! (and if you don't want to write, that's cool too, sometimes it's good just to get your qualms out into the world and find people who agree)

tagging @primewritessmut again so she can read your praise straight from the source.

It's a tough fandom if you really like their canonical dynamic more than their fanon one, I feel you man. I am always holding a prayer circle that more writers who like problems more than they like easy resolutions joins in and starts writing some real fucked up shit.

[chaifootsteps]

wr.t. leaks (spoilers, duh!). Viv really chose the most boring and uninspired rendition of Alastor possible, and I could not be more disappointed. The signs were definitely there in Season 1, but if you wanted to you could easily dismiss as sloppy writing and one-time reactions to extraordinary events.

Like, I know no fan is *entitled* to have their particular interpretation of a character be validated, but... really? He's been reduced to the form of a one-dimensional, entitled manchild you might find as the villain of a self-insert fanfiction. Ohhhh nooo luci hurt his feefees and Rosie didn't actually make him an all powerful god, so time to storm out and whine about it. Why make a deal in the first place? Well, duh, he gleefully murdered so many people for trivial inconveniences he didn't wanna end up a tortured soul in Hell. He's basically Valentino, but, on the 'good team', and not a rapist (yet.), or Adam, or Vox, or Mammon, or Stella (frankly, you could even put Stolas in this bucket, if he weren't so unintentionally manipulative). A parody of a threatening character, incapable of creating conflict in any way that doesn't involve waving around a big stick and reminding everyone and the audience who the author blessed with magical power don't you forget it!

I've said this about pilot!fanon!Lucifer too, but, the fandom interpretations are just objectively more interesting. It's not like you can't write a story, or even a good story, about an entitled man drunk on power obsessed with his own image and getting what he thinks he's owed. But why would you 1) choose an enslaved racial minority character (!!!) to do this and 2) do it instead of multiple more compelling options given you already have multiple of this exact character on the cast?

Fanon!Alastor has emotions other than anger and insecure whining, he just can't express them because decades of crawling his way up two different hostile societies have beaten into him never expressing vulnerability. His very smile is symbol of societies like Hell ultimately victimize both the powerful abusers and their victims. Fanon!Alastor had a deal with ___ not because he's drunk on his own desire to murder but because he's vulnerable to the very same weakness and temptation he's learned to exploit in others. Fanon!Alastor has a natural dual conflict with Charlie: Alastor's connections and practical knowledge represent a way of making her dream a reality, at the cost of potentially corrupting her and having her get there in an incorrect/immoral way. And Charlie's dream presents Alastor with a pathway to more power and stability, but unbeknownst to him threatens to unwind his entire psyche in allowing himself to care about something. Fanon!Alastor, far from being image-obsessed with a need to be constantly in the limelight, is capable of being subtle, fading into the background when it benefits him.

I could go on, but I'm just tired. It hurts me that, come release, fan works which I enjoy making and reading will be expected to comply with this. I don't want to write Alastor this way. I don't want to be told I'm writing him 'wrong' for not doing it. I hope that in some way the earlier fanons are preserved and kept alive even as canon is polluted with all this slop.

It's sad and exhausting, for sure. It also doesn't help that the standom will attack you pretty viciously if you have the audacity to prefer the pilot to the actual series.

[ennn]

Initial Agatha All Along Ep 7 Meta Thoughts + Reactions

This ep was a work of art and my brain is buzzing while my heart is in awe.

YELLING at how the show is just leaning into the gay now that we're in the endgame. This is the current star TV show product of Disney Marvel and I am stunned and delighted. Two of this show's lead characters flat out saying they're not straight / queer.

I can only hope this spills over to more open marketing and interviews. Yes, I'm still shook about it and will be for the time being.

"I'm your mom's ex [forever pause] best friend." Congratulations Wanda-Agatha shippers, I'm happy for you. Also Agatha's "oooh" at possible epic Maximoff drama? Nice.

We've hit Doctor Who levels of time shenanigans! And timey whimey storytelling is a sure-fire way to hit the feels. There's something so powerful and tragic about Fate.

I keep drawing parallels about how the show feels like such a spiritual successor to DW with the Agatha-Billy team up, and the incredible layers (and theatrics and cunning and drama) with Agatha. Now we're directly playing with time and it's glorious!

As much as Billy is giving Agatha a hard time now, it's probably a good thing and healthy this conflict is in the open. Billy's expressing his hurt and anger and making it super clear he doesn't trust Agatha – which of course, structurally means he will of course have to trust her by the end of this story.

Them snarking at each other attempting the trial? I enjoy these bitchy dumbasses.

What an incredible writing feat in how they did the time skips, with the focus centered on Lilia so we can experience her tragic journey. I can't wait to hear more about how Schaeffer and the writers plotted this out. A new masterclass in executing a series reveal, with stunning cinematography to match. (the colours! the framing!) This episode embodies how it's really the craft and execution that delivers, less of the idea or the plot point.

Patti LuPwn effortlessly grounding this episode with her performance. I'm glad a wider audience gets to experience this Broadway legend's talent. My only regret is we never got more of her singing.

Agatha's back in her active leader-y role in driving the trial to succeed (and of course saving her own skin): tackling Lilia so she doesn't get impaled, reminding them to hurry up, and ultimately saving them crucial seconds by putting down the Death card.

Congratulations to Agatha officially joining the monsterfucker club. The way everyone looked to her (look, everyone saw Rio's dumb scar confession) was gold.

Vindication for my Death's missing heart theory -- although now it looks like the wound is more likely self-inflicted? I wonder exactly when and how.

Vindication for my perception of Rio as not a liar (as I do love the contrast with Agatha's duplicitous nature and tendency to run). She literally told everyone she's The Green Witch. In a scary voice no less.

Excited to see how they tackle Rio being the original Green Witch. Death being a witch is certainly a new take? And I'm still not sure how human or not this makes Rio, which makes the last two eps rather unpredictable. Yes, she's got a skull face and can do weird shit with her body. But the Scarlet Witch was able to pull off some inhuman things in MoM.

[cripplecharacters]

Feel free not to answer this question as it's more a research-type question, I'm just not sure how to go about finding what I need: do you happen to know any fiction books with portrayals of medium to high support autistic people that are considered realistic and positive? All I can find is rep of low support autistic ppl (unless it's in semi-educational children's books) and it's making it harder to figure out how to write medium to high support autistic ppl myself.

Hello!

When I was diagnosed, it was before the levels were used (Or at least before they were used where I lived). I suspect that I would be considered 'level one autistic' today but would likely have been 'level two', bridging into 'level three' as a child. This is all just to explain my perspective with this.

That being said, here are some of my recommendations:

A Step Toward Falling by Cammie McGovern

I just finished this book earlier today and while it isn't specifically about autistic characters, it does feature several autistic characters with high support needs as well as other disabled characters. The book is written from the perspective of two characters, one of which is developmentally disabled (Belinda). Although her disability is never specified, I do see a lot of autistic traits in Belinda. The premise of this book is a bit heavy. It's about two characters (Who are not disabled) who end up volunteering at a centre for adults with developmental disabilities. One of the things I appreciated about this book was how well rounded the characters are. Each of them has their own stories, interests, and ideas. I also like how it discussed sex and relationships in the context of people with developmental disabilities. Something to note is that this does have some sensitive topics such as ableism, sexual assault, and bullying. It is also written by a parent of an autistic child but, as far as I'm aware, the author herself is abled. I did have some conflicted feelings about specific parts of it but I'll leave that for you to make your own decisions about. Target Audience: Young Adult

How to Speak Dolphin by Ginny Rorby

I also read this book recently and I personally really disliked it. There were several scenes that made me feel very gross and I found that the autistic character was dehumanized very often. One line that stuck with me was another character about a blind character, essentially saying, "I thought she was going to drown herself. If I was blind, that's what I would do." Although the character does get to know the blind character and changes her mind, it really felt awful to read and seemed so unnecessary -- especially given the target audience. The way it talks about blindness in general bugs me. That being said, I have seen several autistic people recommending the book (Which was why I read it in the first place) so I'll include it here anyways since my opinion seems to be in the minority around this book. Target Audience: Elementary/Middle Schoolers This is a brief review from another autistic person. [Link]

Planet Earth is Blue by Nicole Panteleakos

This book centers around Nova, a young autistic girl with high support needs. Nova is a foster child who is missing her older sister and the story is told through a mix of narrative, letters to Nova's sister, and flashbacks. It's been a while since I've read this book but I remember really enjoying it (And maybe crying a little bit too). The author is autistic herself and also consulted many other autistic people with a variety of experiences, which I appreciated. Target Audience: Middle Schoolers This is a more in-depth review on the book from a reader who (I believe) is also autistic. [Link]

These are also a couple books that I've seen recommended but can't personally recommend as I haven't read them myself yet:

Real by Carol Cujec

Remember Dippy by Shirley Reva Vernick

I know it's not very much but hopefully it's enough to get you started! If anyone has any recommendations for anon, feel free to mention them in the notes.

Cheers,

~ Mod Icarus

[that-left-turn]

Do you think they were just trying to change the audience from Carol (and Daryl) fans and bring in a bigger male audience instead? If it is this, what do you think will happen in terms of the show's success?

There are some showrunners who feel like they 'deserve' a certain kind of audience or that their writing is aimed at a specific type of viewer. (Invariable young, straight, white male from a middle class background.) If the actual demographics of the audience don't match, some of those showrunners essentially self-sabotage by trying to change the elements of the show that appeal to their viewership. I don't know that Zabel is that guy because he doesn't write procedural crime or (supernatural) action adventure—physical plotting is a particular weak spot of his and it makes him unsuited to write for TWDU (as envisioned by Gimple) because it focuses on action over character. I assume that's why Keith Staskiewicz was a new addition for TBOC; he doesn't have much experience, but he's written for Dead City, which is an action packed show written by dudebros for dudebros.

There seems to be a tug of war going on about what the tone of TWD Caryl should be, between Norman who wants an artsy exploration of the human condition (more in line with what we saw in S2 of the flagship show) and Gimple who prefers gore and grimes. The horror genre covers a lot of ground, so both of those options are valid choices, but they can't coexist in the same show. Either you aim for more psychological horror (not really what Zabel writes, but I suspect it's what Norman would like even if he doesn't know how to articulate it) or gore with its shock-value violence and novelty zombies. The latter works for Negan, but not for a Carol and Daryl spinoff. They're abuse survivors and the focus should be on psychological terror rather than grossing out the audience.

I think some execs at AMC thought that S1 didn't do well because the plot lacked action and excitement. They expected Daryl to bring in lots of (young male) viewers and the course correction for TBOC was to have him be a more traditional action hero who kills things and kisses inappropriate women. Throw in Carol as the Ripley/Connor stand-in and every gimmick in the "TV Book of Tricks," from riding a motorcycle and a white horse to shooting the crossbow and killing with gardening tools, and surely that big male-skewing audience will show up.

There are primarily two kinds of TWDU viewers:

those who watch for character(s) and/or ships

those who are interested in the mythology of the setting

The external plot of TBOC is incredibly weak:

The religious-political conflict goes nowhere, it's just a lot of characters spouting their life philosophy

nothing is done to move the needle on the walkers/virus

even the story engine, Daryl's quest to get home, doesn't drive the action but is instead in doubt (biggest no-no in TV writing)

The TWD Caryl characters are all stock characters:

the noble soldier driven to his own downfall by his misguided need for revenge

the villain whose lack of control and agency turned her into a power hungry monster and in the end, an actual monster

the madonna-whore representation doomed to be a plot device because she exists solely to service the arcs of the male characters

Carol and Daryl's dynamic is off-kilter and the latter has been turned into a Clint Eastwood lone ranger type of man

TBOC isn't giving anyone anything they enjoy, but it was an attempt at catering to a male skewing audience. I'm not sure what TPTB will do with S3 because, like I said, there are very distinct schools of thought on how to 'fix' the problems.

There was a production stop after the scenes set in the UK and the storm at seas were shot, so chances are, there were rewrites in response to the poor reception of TBOC. Any downtime once you've started principal photography is extremely costly, so it's only done when there's a legal obligation, like for an on-set death or if there's a showstopping emergency, like major last-minute revisions. Anything else, the production team tries to shoot around, so there won't be any delay. If you shoot on location, you have to house and feed everyone in addition to the costs of producing the show, so it gets very, very expensive if you don't wrap on time.

TWD Caryl won't be successful if the writing doesn't improve. A good showrunner puts the story first—there's always noise coming from all ends which has to be shut down or redirected. If the nunmance was Norman's idea, Zabel should've nixed it because it's literally his job to control the talent. If it was his own idea, how much hope should we hold that he's learned how to plot better in the last few months? Can Zabel and Richman, who don't write three dimensional women and haven't watched the flagship show, write a complex emotional arc for two traumatized abuse survivors?

My questions to anyone who's still reading this long post:

Do you think Zabel could write a romance you'd find satisfying?

If it's lackluster, would you still watch the show, find contentment in "at least there's finally canon"?

Would it be an okay tradeoff if Caryl's characterization is altered to accommodate Zabel's vision for canon?

Do you trust him not to refrigerate Carol?

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

You: *writes two small essays clearly, cleanly, and thoroughly going through issues you have with the writing in Miraculous, and how they affect what the show is actually saying vs what the writers are going for vs what the audience is taking away from the show, without treating the characters as autonomous people who actually exist a single time*

Someone who pisses on the poor: 'oh so you think this abused child, who was magically created from a feather, deserves to be maliciously lied to by his lifelong romantic partner and fellow 14 year old? After everything he's already been through?'

Media literacy classes should be a requirement everywhere

Thank you for your kind comments about that post. Comments like yours have been very validating after what was initially a really disheartening series of events.

I was quite pleased with what I wrote and thought that I had done a good job focusing on the writing and emphasizing that I was talking about the big picture of the narrative, not chastising or praising specific characters for what the writers had them do. But after I had multiple people go off on rants defending Alya and Adrien, I started seriously questioning my own sanity and communication skills. I even looked up the definition of betrayal to make sure that I wasn't somehow misusing it since that word really seemed to upset people. In case anyone was wondering:

Betrayal is the breaking or violation of a presumptive contract, trust, or confidence that produces moral and psychological conflict

After verifying that I hadn't been using "betrayal" wrong for well over a decade, I got a little annoyed and did my angry rant in the hope that it would save me from further backlash.

While it has been super validating to see that my two initial essays did in fact make sense to a good number of people, that last post did go a little viral, which I didn't see coming, so I want to take a moment to make it clear that I DO NOT want anyone go after the people who did the rants that spawned my rant. Nothing they did or said was worthy of any sort of pile on. They were just expressing opinions and that's fine. I even get it to some extent because a lot of people have unfairly salted on Alya, acting as if she's the problem and not the writing. And that can be really upsetting when you like her because she doesn't deserve those pile ons any more than Marinette does. They are both victims of bad writing!

I get the desire to treat fictional characters like real people, I really do, but Miraculous is frankly not a good enough show for you to do that. The hand of the author is far too blatant, making characters do whatever the writers want instead of what makes sense for what has been established. One of my favorite quick examples is that the writers gave us a full episode where Gabriel "proved" that Adrien wasn't Chat Noir only to have him figure out Adrien's secret identity because he heard his son use the words My Lady as if that's a super unique pet name that would make Adrien's secret undeniable.

It's all nonsense, which is why I focus on the writing issues, treating the characters like the tools they very clearly are. I simply can't do the kind of character analysis you can do in well written shows where the characters feel real and their actions make sense in the established narrative.

I'll close with this statement to explain how I try to run this blog: the characters in the show are fictional, the people you're talking to on here are not. In the grand scheme of things, nothing about Miraculous is bad enough to be worth fighting over. That's why I enjoy talking about it. With all the truly important fights going on in the world, it's nice to come on here and relax by talking about writing - a topic I adore - without having to care if people agree. It's also why I have this as a side blog. I want people to be able to avoid my content if it upsets them as my goal is first and foremost to have fun dunking on a show that is bad in interesting ways. If I only ever got upset replies to my posts, then I would not run this blog because Miraculous is not worth being miserable over. No piece of fiction is.

[s4pphic-sh3nan1gans]

hi! the bokris yapping never ends, so i'm here again 🥰 what types of stories about bokris do you enjoy the most? maybe some fave tropes or dynamic or kinks or plot points you enjoy reading about (the "creative differences" for example lmao or smth like that)? maybe you'd like to read something about them but it's not been written by anyone yet?

OOOOOO these are interesting questions!!!

I have to think about this for a minute lowkey 😭 honestly I'll read pretty much anything bokris-related, and I'm sure I must have read about 95% of the bokris fics on ao3. but as for my absolute favourite tropes, this is what I can come up with:

any variation of first kiss/getting together/confession of feelings - maybe I'm a bit basic for this one but I'm a sucker for reading about how they go from casual flirting to serious flirting to falling in love, and how the lines are blurred in between.

friends to lovers - again, basic 😅 but I never get tired of reading about them slowly falling for each other over the years.

enemies to lovers - now this one works perfectly when paired with the distortion saga or the creative differences saga. the drama, the conflicting feelings... AAAAA!!! I eat that shit UP!

mutual pining/miscommunication/idiots in love - this is an absolutely lethal combo but I kinda love it for bokris. both of them being extremely dense and not realising that the other has feelings for them fits them perfectly. it makes me want to bonk their silly little heads together.

teasing - in every sense of what this means, either sexually or non-sexually. and it's pretty versatile too: Bojan could be teasing Kris because he wants to see him flustered or to get a rise out of him, or Kris could be teasing Bojan because he's been far too cocky lately and could do with being taken down a few notches 🤭 basically, I like to read about them bickering or being a little mean to each other and using it as their flirting.

okayyyyy, and now some of my favourite kinks to read for them 😇 I have to say I'm a top!Kris bottom!Bojan truther, but only because that seems to be what fits most of my own personal headcanons 😭 I do enjoy reading all dom/sub variations between them so I'm definitely speaking broadly here for all of these:

praise kink - works for either of them, although you can't tell me that Bojan, golden retriever personified, doesn't have one of the biggest praise kinks in the world.

hair-pulling - all I'll say is that I'm sure there's many uses for Kris growing his hair out... (wow, I sure am doing a good job of "speaking broadly" about these 😭)

choking - I mean... we've all seen that video, right?

exhibitionism - sometimes, they can't keep their hands off each other, even in their rehearsal space. and I'm sure they wouldn't mind a small audience........

restraints - idk man I just think it's hot 😭 and it works pretty well with their dynamic.

and finally!!! the thing I'd really love to see more of is genderbent bokris as lesbians. there are a few fics (and, um... I confess I was writing one myself, which I am determined to finish at some point because I made a promise to myself 😭) but honestly? there should be more. they would be so hot as lesbians 🥰

so, there we are! I definitely rambled too much here (I can't help myself 😅) but I hope I answered your questions, anon! <3 there's loads more stuff too that I've probably forgotten, but these are the main things that I thought of straight away :)

[ophernelia]

! LONG READ

I heard you want to make a machinima. I think I could help with that. Welcome to the first session of machinima bootcamp!

Alright, stop booing me. I know I kept you waiting for months. It took time and I had so much more learning to do myself! I am by no means an expert, but I think I could offer some helpful advice. This is just how I do things so feel free to use what resonates. “Where do I start? It’s as easy as opening the game up and recording, right?” That’s one way to do it for sure. The way I do it requires a lot more planning. Blame it on me being a Capricorn lol. A LOT of work goes into making Lykaia. Episodes usually take me a week or two to make. From writing the script, to filming and editing, it takes hours upon hours to produce. I love doing it. It's like a passion project, so the hours of free time I pour into it are really healing. Whatever you create, make sure it’s something you really do love. Here’s how I made Lykaia and how I intend to make other series going forward. 

*Lykaia specific info is annotated.

One thing you have to have before anything else is a story. One that you are genuinely interested in and enjoy telling. It’d be best to refrain from doing whatever gets views or whatever you think the community might enjoy. In order to stay consistent, you have to enjoy what you’re making. You have to know what story you want to tell. You don’t have to have everything planned out from start to finish, but get a good idea of what you want to explore first. The first season of Lykaia was just for me to try out machinima making. I didn’t have much direction with the story. Lykaia is just the cinematic version of my gameplay save. Lou and Imogen were my current household, so I figured I’d tell their story. It can be something as simple as that. A favorite household you love playing. A favorite story trope you’re into. Whatever inspires you. Try not to focus on how the masses will react to it. There’s an audience for everything. The viewership will come. Don’t let that discourage you or be your main focus. Enjoy the process of creating. Create for creation’s sake, not for praise or viewership. 

What makes a good story? I’m not sure. Sorry! I still wonder if Lykaia’s story is good. Though, even if it isn't, I just like telling it! Having interesting or complex characters is a good tip though. I quite like the idea of there being very few or no true villain in a story. Complex lives, complex people. It’s good to get an idea of who your characters are. What do they like? What do they dislike? How do they behave around people they’re close with? What was their childhood like? How do they speak? What do they look like? Where are they from? How do they handle conflict? How do they handle romance? There’s a bunch of questions you can ask to work on building out your characters. Once you’ve got a good idea of who your characters are at this starting point, you can build outside of their world. Make their friends, make their family. Figure out where they’re from geographically. How does their environment impact their life? What’s the place they live in like? Do they like living there? Where is it? What’s the climate? Are you using in-game world names, making up your own, or using real life places? How does all of that impact the story line? Are they a small town person or a city person? Go in depth thinking about all these questions. I’ll include a list of these questions for you to answer. You don’t have to share these with me! It’s simply for you to plan things out on your own. Again, you don’t have to have everything planned out. Nothing has to be permanent. Watching characters grow and their environment change is entertaining. Just know where you want to start at least. Playing the game can help give you some inspo too! The sims have a habit of being pretty messy on their own. Once you figure out what story you want to tell, you’re ready to move forward. 

*Like I mentioned previously, Lykaia is essentially the cinematic version of my gameplay save. The stories I told myself when playing their household, I am now telling to you. However, over the course of making the show for the last few months it’s really grown and developed. With the addition of characters like Savannah and Owen, to developing a thoughtful storyline for Rory, all of that has come as I’ve worked on the show. I’ve always had a thing for storytelling growing up. Won young authors competitions all throughout my schooling, but never did much with it in adulthood until now. When I say I take the time out to really develop the cast, I do. Lykaia takes place in several worlds. I even develop those out too. I think about the culture there. How close they are to other worlds. All of that really helps build a deep lore for your series that your audience and yourself will enjoy. 

As for making the cast, I won’t go in depth about actually making your characters in CAS. That process is pretty straight-forward and solely up to you. Make your cast look however you want them to. Use cc, make the cast with vanilla TS4, it’s up to you. I can’t offer much advice about that. It’s a pretty personal process. (Personal as in, you do what you wanna do lol. Not in a ‘I don’t wanna share my process’ type of way.) 

The next step after that is world building. This part should be a lot more simple if you’ve planned out your story. I mean literally world building. If you want a really unique looking series, it’s time to start building babe. Build your own lots, edit the worlds, do it all. I mean really go in! You can use inspo from Pinterest to help. I do that often. Check out the world building inspo for Lykaia here. On occasion I’ll use a build made by the community, but for the most part I make my own. It makes you feel like you’re actually immersed in the world of Lykaia. It’s a different San Sequoia, a different Copperdale, etc. It’s important to make your worlds your own. Get an idea of street layouts and everything. Try to envision the world your characters live in. “But there’s only so much you can do with TS4!” I actually disagree (Well, since discovering these mods.) and there’s a few mods that really help drive that home. These are the most pivotal, but there’s a variety of other ones that are helpful too! Like the Better Build/Buy mod and even CAW by TwistedMexi but it isn’t out yet. Still in development. 

The TOOL Mod by TwistedMexi. The TOOL mod allows you to take objects off a lot, but that’s not all you can do. Rotate, duplicate, scale objects and more. If you ever wonder why my game looks different from the EA base worlds, it’s because I edit all of them. Add more trees, add more deco buildings, add more debug objects, etc. World customization is essential. However, it is a very tedious process. Editing San Sequoia for S2 of Lykaia took me about a week in total. Primarily because I’m still learning how to use TOOL effectively, but because I put a lot of details into my worlds. I add cars around. I use S4S to make hidden objects show up in-game. It’s a long process, but having a world that’s really unique is so rewarding. Sure, we all have access to the same sandbox but we don’t all make the same things. That’s the best part about the community. The creativity is boundless. Have you seen that one person with an Ancient China savefile? Bonkers. So creative. You can do some crazy stuff with this game. Don’t be afraid to push it to its limits. 

The All Worlds are Clickable Mod by Awingedllama works so well in conjunction with the TOOL Mod. I’d say it’s almost necessary to have both. This mod does just what it says on the tin. It makes all worlds in TS4 clickable. No longer will you see that red circle with a line through it. You can walk anywhere. It also helps to place objects using the TOOL mod. Sometimes figuring out the grid is hard, it's easier to point and click. I highlight an object with TOOL and click wherever around the world I want to place it. Now, this will cause some routing issues with your sims. They’ll walk through stones, lakes, etc. Taking the mod out is an easy fix for this whenever you want to just play your game normally. I rarely play my game these days, but when I do I leave it in, it’s kinda funny to see Victor Feng running through the lake in San Sequoia. 

Emptied Newcrest & Willow Creek by Awingedllama is also a great mod if you want to take things a bit further. It gets rid of everything and I do mean everything. Think TS3 empty create-a-world. It does so by hiding certain objects, so don’t be surprised if they don’t show up in game for other worlds. It makes things look a bit wonky, but if you really wanna start from scratch, then this is a great way to do it. You can completely customize the look and layout of your world. Add more tropical vegetation or more tepid vegetation. It’s up to you. It does take an immense amount of work and I’d recommend following this tutorial to get the backdrops for the worlds in game. Also this tutorial if you’d like to add custom debug houses.

* Lykaia’s world is based on TS4 worlds, but with real life influences. Copperdale is meant to give that east coast small town vibe. Heavily wooded areas that experience a lot of rain. (Just because I love really gloomy weather irl.) It also makes doing ambience easier. The sound of rain is easy to throw in. San Sequoia is meant to be like San Francisco. Del Sol too. I usually just go in and add more trees and vegetation. Place more cars and deco people to make the worlds feel more full. I also add in other little objects that are specific to the series. More places to sit. Just to overall make the worlds feel more lived in. TS4 can feel like a ghost town at times. Green Haven is a new area within Lykaia that I am currently working on. It’s a full town I’ve built from scratch using the emptied Newcrest and Willow Creek mod. Inspo for it is on my pinterest. It is supposed to mimic small towns in upper Cali. 

In the next session we'll start talking about filming, sets, lighting, etc. If you ever have any questions, just send me an ask!

[my-mt-heart]

What really confuses me:

If there's a show that could rely solely in nostalgia it's Caryl's. Carol and Daryl's stories are the wires that cross the whole show. They were there from begging to end. Their relationship was there from begging to end. They have all the nostalgia in their favor. There could be at least 3 seasons of Caryl only dealing with past trauma, callbacks to iconic moments, and dialogues composed of memorable quotes. And yet there's so much more to tell. There is so much conflict/tension to explore and resolve.

Even more than TOWL (Rick and Michonne left TDW at some point and Richonne's relationship only started later in the show. And I think all that needed to be explored/resolved regarding them was done in the main show and in the season 1 of TOWL. There's not much conflict left)

A lot more than Dead City (Negan's most iconic moments are of when he harmed other people and he already got his redemption arc/flashbacks in TWD, so there's not a lot of trauma healing left. Meggie's most iconic moments are with her family, which is, besides her son, dead, so there's not a lot of connections nor motivation left (they can't rely on her son forever). Meggie also left at some point and her relationship with Negan only started in season 5, in a horrendous context that doesn't leave a lot of room for development (and she already forgave him in the main show). There's not much conflict left)

So what I don't understand is, with such gold material in their hands, how can they screw up so badly? Even if they were lazy, all the material was there in plain sight, they didn't have to dig it up.

Do you think I'm justified in thinking that even a child with some critical thinking could do a better job? 2. To what do you attribute this writing mess (from season 1 to season 2.6 spoilers)? Is it just plain bad writing or purposely screwing Carol/Caryl (and even in-character-Daryl)? 3. And what would they gain with failing so hard? 4. Do you think there's more investment in the other spinoffs? 5. Are you still holding on any hope they could do Caryl/Carol/Daryl justice? 6. And what would you do differently if it was you in command? 7. What's your favorite nostalgic moment you'd like to see revisited in the spinoff?

I could have sworn I posted this already, but apparently it's been in my drafts for over a month?? Anyways...

1. Yes.

2. Both. Zabel only cares about his original characters/original concept and Nicotero was put in charge during the strike

3. In their minds? Freedom to tell a story about men by men for men

4. I think AMC invests too much time trying to market every show to the built-in TWD fanbase as a whole and to new viewers (new= more dudebros) instead of accepting that each spinoff has its own core audience who connect with specific characters and growing those separate fanbases and then diversifying with viewers who can enjoy different elements without stepping on the core audience's toes.

5. They can try to slap a band-aid on things. Not sure they're motivated to do that and as long as Zabel is showrunning, pushing the friendship narrative, and shipbaiting, then there's no way Caryl/Carol/Daryl will get the storytelling they deserve.

6. In addition to giving Daryl and Carol their own character development and writing a compelling external plot (that treats the audience like they're intelligent), Caryl's relationship needs to be the emotional core of the show. We need to e x p l i c i t l y see them grow together as a romantic couple in ways that honor their shared history on the flagship show.

7. Well, the painful thing is there are so many nostalgic moments and story beats that were left unexplored between Caryl that I've been dying to see, but I don't even want Zabel to touch them because I think he'll just ruin them. He doesn't understand Caryl's story well enough to do it justice. Melissa needs more creative control.

[pearl484-blog]

Has Miraculous Lost its Innocence?

Just got an ask from @tallwriter asking if Miraculous has lost its innocence permenantly, but my inbox ate it. Sorry.

So, just to be clear, I'm not really sure I understand the question, so I'll answer it in a few different ways.

Will Miraculous Ladybug ever return to primarily catering towards its younger demograghic again? No, I don't think so. It seems pretty determined to interact with older fans and grow up with its audience. I doubt it's going to backtrack. Which is kinda a shame, because one of the things it seems determined to lose is its episodic nature in exchange for an arc. Unfortunately, the episodic nature is not the writer's strength, and arc plots are...difficult for these writers. Their inexperience in this type of writing shows. Their style of arc building how also lead to them not being able to contain their stories in small chunks anymore, which leads to me ...not enjoying them as much, along with them following this weird piece of writing advice to make whatever is the most painful thing to happen to the characters happen.

On a side note, for any writers out there, please do not follow this advice. For a stronger story with a more coherent theme, figure out what your theme is and try to come up with conflicts that might naturally arise from this, and would enhance your theme instead of distract from it. Think of it like cooking. No matter how tasty all the ingredients in your kitchen can be, you can't make them all, and some foods do not pair well. Figure out what you're working towards, warm and savory? Cool and refreshing? Healthy and lean? Then go towards that. A triple layer chocolate came next to grilled salmon and roasted mixed veggies is an ...odd choice that would raise some eye brows. Is Miraculous always going to have mature themes? Miraculous has always had themes of bullying and child abuse from the beginning. Part of why I liked this show was its realistic depiction of emotional abuse with Adrien, and its refusal to adhere to the trope that is the school bully somehow being the most popular girl at school. Considering how its aiming towards an older audience now, and it's never shied away from subverting comon trope expectations, I do not expect this to change.

However, that is not to say that I enjoy every trope subversion that MLB has done, nor do I think that it has always handled mature subjects very well, but I'll touch on that a bit more in my next section.

Have I Lost My Faith in Miraculous Ladybug Permenantly

Short answer: No. But it's going to need a lot of back bedaling and extremely good writing to make me invested in the series again.

Most of this is related to one unfortunate plot point, the mishandling of child abuse. Of course, that's not the only issue. I also do not like Lila. She is my least favorite character in the entire series. I do understand what the writing team is trying to do with her. They messed up with her character during the episode "Chameleon" and they are trying to fix that error. It is an admirable effort, but unfortunately their attempts to fix that issue have not rendered a villain that is likable or is clever and easy to hate. Unfortunately, each time I see her, I see the hand of the author every time she shows up. Everything about her is contrived, and I do not believe that she could have all these lies. Furthermore, the handling of Chloe in Seasons 4 and 5 also seemed unnaturally spiteful and petty. Perhaps, they were trying to backtrack and make the character someone fun to hate, but unfortunately, they could not. Each time she appeared, I could only sense ill intent from the author, and it was not a good look. The absolute final straw was when Chloe is revealed to have a learning disorder, and Marinette takes the time to say that it is unfair for Chloe to get accomodations for her disability because she's been taking steps to mask it by having Sabrina do her work for her. This does not make me dislike Chloe in the way the authors apparently thought I would.

However, the biggest flub of all is Adrien Agreste. He is abused. I could use an abuse checklist, and he'd hit most if not all the boxes. The show is still one of the most realistic decpictions of emotional abuse in the media and a good demonstration of abuse, why people might not recognize the abuse, why a victim might make excuses for their abuser, why a victim might not believe they are abused, and in season 5, there was an excellent depiction of the honeymoon/apology part of the cycle. I am honestly so shocked at how realistic and well portrayed Adrien's abuse is compared to the stereotypical abused woman who's got bruises and blaming it on walking into a door. BUT dear god. There is so much victim blaming towards Adrien. Adrien is too weak to stand up for himself. Adrien needs protecting from his own fragile emotions. Adrien can't know information. Adrien keeps fawning. He keeps making VERY concerning statements about himself, his feelings, his relationships to people, and no one realizes how fucked up it is. No one challenges him. The narrative, at several points, ends with his fucked up abuse logic being the end-point of the conflict. In order for Miraculous Ladybug to regain my faith in it, I need for people to challenge the fawning. I need for Adrien's unhealthy behavoirs and mindset to be challenged. I need for those behavoirs to be shown as wrong. And I need for the victim blaming to be shown as wrong. I need for people to understand what they did was wrong.

The senti-monster thing, by the way, DOES NOT HELP. It is not a good metaphor for abuse. Gabriel and Adrien was a good representation of a parent abusing their own child, now it's a representation of a creator abusing his creation. There is so little representation of a parent abusing their biological offspring. Why destroy it?

Did the authors not think the audience would be able to understand why Adrien obeys without magic? By making him controlled by an item, they undermined the whole abuse theme.

Adrien should be controlled by the man who raised him. The man he loved his whole life. The man who should've loved him. The man everyone told him loved him and knew what was best for him.

Adrien has been emotionally crushed his whole life. Told he's impulsive, too emotional, that he never makes good descisions, and the only way for him to be worthy of love is to be obedient, to be unresisting, to be perfect. He should think that molding himself to whatever people wants him to be is right, is expected, and his friends should challenge that. But they don't.

Each relationship Adrien has has been carved away besides Marinette and Plagg. Marinette will not help him. She cannot help him. Plagg is an abuse victim whose also internalized worldviews similiar to Adrien. He teaches him how to rebel. He understands these rules, but Plagg cannot acknowledge them as healthy.

Miraculous can restore my faith by re-aligning its abuse structure. Backpedaling and saying that abuse victims are not weak because they bend their knee. That sometimes they see obedience as the only option to survive, and that's okay. That victim blaming is not okay. That accomodation is good and necessary, and its wrong to be a jerk about it. That fawning is unhealthy. That molding yourself to what others want you to be is unhealthy. That judging your self-worth on how useful you are or how happy you make other people is not healthy.

I do not think it will do that. But it could. And the fandom has done that, so I will continue interacting with the fandom.

[elkian]

What I'm getting from the "let Marcille be conservative" and Netflix erasing Sokka's misogyny discussions is actually a piece of pretty helpful character building device.

I have a hard time letting characters mess up - let alone make mistakes that impact the story as a whole - and I think I'm starting to grok why.

A lot of my characters' flaws fall into Anime Badass Flaws range, and that's not in itself a bad thing, *but*: what I've also done is planed smooth some smaller flaws to satisfy an audience I don't even actually have yet. Kill the cop in your brain etc.

My characters don't just need Angsty Brooding On The Rooftop flaws, they need Regular People Flaws. I'm talking shit that makes people go 😬 and suck air between their teeth, like Marcille's old-fashioned views and Sokka's sexism.

I'm actually gonna veer and talk about ATLA's character writing and how crucial it is to the story because I totally missed it until I started thinking about this very specific thing.

Sokka being sexist is crucial to the story. It's how he pisses off Katara until she accidentally frees Aang, bringing him back to the timestream and kickstarting the entire show! Speaking of kickstarting the entire show, Aang's avoidance tendencies are what put him on ice in the first place. The story would be wildly different if he hadn't run away, and he might not have run away if the elders he'd once depended upon had made their concerns more accessible to him, instead of trying to control his life and take away his most important guardian.

Sokka absorbing feminism and changing his ways is his first, and possibly biggest character arc in the show. Sokka being sexist impacts his actions at Kyoshi Island. I have to wonder - the Kyoshi Warriors seemed to enjoy a certain level of popularity on their isolated home island. Sokka crashing in and disrespecting them might have lead them to realize that the outside world didn't have the same veneration and views as they held. This might have lead to Suki and her gang heading out into the Earth Kingdom, which has impact in several later episodes, to say the least. Suki's presence is the reason Sokka and Toph survive the finale.

Every character in the show has little human flaws like that - not just Epic Anime Flaws, but stuff that makes them a little bit unlikeable, just like real people have. (And being unlikeable makes them more likeable because they feel more complex and real in turn.) Everyone's flaws affect the story in some way - Zuko's flaws motivate an enormous chunk of the plot and have substantial impact on the Gaang well before he joins up.

Iroh is so likeable that it's easy to forget that he spent months sieging a city and presumably letting hundreds of soldiers to die, only to pull out when his son died. He's wise and friendly to Zuko and the Gaang, but he has done some pretty selfish stuff that has affected the course of history (and that's not even getting into his casual sexism). He could have been written as totally flippant, or Angstlord Extrordinaire, but instead he's a complex and hurting old man who still has the time and energy to try and help the people in his life.

What I'm realizing is that to really drive a plot, and make characters feel alive, is they gotta be a little Problematic. I shaved off Ray's chivalry bc it was problematic, not thinking about how that means that trait causes Problems, or in other words, generates conflict that drives a story. If I want my characters to feel complex and alive, I think they need to suck a little bit! I think sometimes you gotta let your character be a True Believer in Astrology, or is rude to the waitstaff, or will walk 2 miles rather than pay for a cab, or what have you! They gotta be a little dumb and messed up! Sure, this character has no self-esteem, but how does that affect others? How does it make them uncomfortable and change their actions, and not just in a platonically perfect way to 'fix' him?

It's pretty interesting to chew over implications like that - I've read and absorbed "let your characters have flaws" over and over, but only recently come to realize that means they need to suck a little bit. They need to be kind of uncool. They need to have traits that would make you wrinkle your nose at if they were real people. Etc.

[pretentious-art-love]

Film Reviews #8 - Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate

When I heard that the reception for this movie was bad I decided to still keep going and watch it, people mentioned only the animation errors from the trailer, and well, nobody has Peacock, it's not like anybody actually watched the thing itself. The animation is indeed more cheaply looking and it can feel uncanny if you are used to the fluid animation of the Hollywood-tier film, but I love, love, the character of Megamind so I decided to give it a shot. The first Megamind itself is my favorite movie ever made by Dreamworks! I think it has some interesting plots,! Seriously! The purpose of villains, the need for conflict in life, and even topics present to today's internet bubbles like Incel culture! It was witty, it was funny, and it had something to tell. Even Megamind: The Button of Doom had something good talking about being authentic to yourself and what not!

Anyway, I thought that if you can get into the animation, you could enjoy the story. There structure of the story is good, having Megamind struggle with his new role as a hero with his self sabotaging, having Megamind pretend he is still a bad guy along other villains to not be destroyed, having Megamind to deal with his arrogance still. All these ideas have lots of possibilities for character progression and growth, but aside that, there is very little else for the original public.

In short, this is now a kids franchise. I see the love in the heartwarming performances and writing. Voice actors and writers for children's shows have a knack for simplicity and clarity. They are always vibrant and expressive making sure that complex ideas are presented in a simple way so the kids can get it. It works for them and it can be really charming when you get into it, but for the rest of the public this will not work. The humor will feel too obvious and dry, the characters will feel standardized. The music and design is very evident and in your face, there is no mood setting or build up, the music is used in short spurts to set up a punchline. The jokes set up are very obvious and simple. With kids there is very little space for subtext, so you set up things at plain sight. Sure, there are shows and movies that can talk to both children, and adults, true, but there is only so much you can do trying to gather both audiences. Sure you remember jokes and parts in Pixar classic movies that you didn't understand, or jokes that you didn't get or plot bits that bored you, I remember I couldn't watch Nemo when I was 6 because that bit where Nemo gets kidnapped absolutely terrified me, the niece of the dentist, she terrified me, Sid in Toys Story was way too scary. Maybe once you get a little bit older as a kid, you can then enjoy Pixar films. Disney films… well, I don't know, I never enjoyed Disney films so I can't comment about them. But anyway, yes, Pixar films can be enjoyed by both kids and adults, but you can only go so far with kids while still trying to talk to adults at the same time. If there is a scary villain without a face, showing him holding a teddy bear is a must go, if there is a bunch of bad guys attempting to destroy the city, if they are bickering with each other and being silly, that will help to see them as less threatening for a kid. With this movie and the TV show, there is a clear target audience, little kids.

I know that new productions are always rebranded as sequels for old properties to have a better chance to succeed, but for the people who enjoyed the first Megamind, this is not it. If Peacock management wanted to bring the kids to the platform, it might help, I'm not sure, a lot of kids around this decade aren't focused on feature length films exclusive for Streaming but in self made content and Indie Animation or also YouTube Shorts, they have a little kid character in the movie who manages to get more audience than Roxane through the internet and that constantly helps the main characters, the writers aren't oblivious about how the youth works, there are still famous and successful TV shows for kids nowadays as well, but I don't know really any of them. There is a dance scene and also some silly pop music numbers (the ending scene theme is actually very catchy). With the animation budget cut in, the movement is a lot less fluid, there are more frequent animations errors, the lighting is a lot simpler and the characters just look… different. But again, this is a kids show exclusive for Streaming TV, not a Hollywood-tier movie with a 130 million dollar budget.

It makes me a bit sad that their crew and cast got their work trashed by the internet like this because of another case of faux sequel and rebranding, it also makes me a bit sad for Megamind fans that were looking for a true sequel, but this is not what the movie is. As for the TV show, I don't think it will be my coup of tea.

Quick Chum or the city is gonna have a new ZIP code!

Hehehe, okay, that one was kinda funny.

4/10

[susansontag]

regrettably I also thought oppenheimer was just okay. don’t get me wrong, I liked some of it a lot, it was also a more vibrant take on a biopic compared to some of the shit we’re served. but in regards to oppenheimer himself it really revels in an emotional vagueness that I’m not sure is even necessary. we just do know more about this man than to absolve him of all responsibility for being fairly terrible in some aspects of his life, and that’s not even me talking about anything in the vicinity of the atomic bomb itself. it’s like oh he tried to poison his professor but can’t you see he was just a misguided, unacknowledged genius? yes he was bad with women but isn’t he so pitiable? why does nolan think audiences aren’t prepared for his main character to actually have a darker side and for us to still be fascinated by his story nonetheless? why must all his faults come with emotional excuses? it’s fine, I can take oppenheimer of all people not having been the greatest most tortured morally conflicted man on earth. I’ll take it and enjoy it anyway, in fact I might even enjoy it more for that honesty

but anyways this is all on the writing and characterisation level, and is a definite tendency that goes beyond this film to numerous other biopics and many other films in general. I just wonder why filmmakers feel the need to make creative choices like this when handling ‘morally grey’ protagonists. and it was a choice here to make him feel somehow emotionally detached from us, I won’t deny the intention there, but I don’t admire it much. it feels hollow and didn’t add much to my viewing experience. it was superbly acted, it looked great, it had you on the edge of your seat and rarely dragged (though it did at times during the middle) despite its length. there was a lot to like about it honestly but it’s harder to try and put words to the issue I have with it and many films like it

[purple-nightfall-writes]

EHEHEHEHE HIHIHIHI!!

Just finished the last chapter and I might screammmmm they're so stupiddddd and in loveeeeee and I hate them (i would die for them)

Anyway, before I actually ask any questions I just want to say how much I LOVE your writing, you put your all into this fic and it really shows, each chapter was AMAZING and I loved every single one. The way everything had the perfect mix of fluff, comfort, angst, suspense, hope, and dread was just. *MUAH* chef kiss. I hope to be here for any future fics you share because I am HOOKED.

now for the questions, I guess my main ones are:

How are you? How are you feeling about the fic? Because personally, it might be one of my favorites!

Your writing style is so fun, I think it perfectly fit the vibes of ruffled feathers! (i have no idea if that makes sense, but it does to me) Was there any part that was particularly hard or easy to write? Like any of the panic attacks or maybe flashbacks? Or any tips for beginner writers?

And lastly, if you are willing to share, what are some of your plans for the rest of this series? Any spoilers or fic concepts you want to share?

Feel free to answer as many or as little of these as you want, I'm not great at asking questions so... I tried my best lol!

(Also i do want to say i feel bad, because at one point i was going to scream about your fic to you/pos but i noticed you didnt have the ask option avaliable and i was going to tell you but i forgot and i feel baddd)

HIIII thank you so much!!!! that's genuinely so encouraging to hear agdljlfglksldf

i'm so glad it hit the right balance for you - the balance of fluff and angst, hope/trust and tension/anxiety, was one of the things i kept retooling throughout the writing process, so i'm SO GLAD to hear it worked out! :D

as far as how I'm feeling about the fic, I'm honestly really happy with it! Currently I'm really proud of the earlier chapters and I'll need a little more distance from the later chapters before I can have a solid idea of whether i like them a little or a lot hehe. I'd written up through chapter 10 or so (maybe chapter 11) when I started posting, so all of those chapters I had a good bit of time to keep polishing to my heart's content. i think i'm gonna really enjoy rereading it lol, my main goal with writing is to write the kind of fics that i would enjoy reading, because that way i can guarantee that at least one person (me) is going to like the finished product. it also helps me feel like i have a creative center and not get pulled all over the place by people-pleasing. this means i end up rereading my stuff like "damn this author knows exactly what i like" XD The number of times i would sit down to work on chapter 10 or 11 or something and get caught up rereading the earlier chapters is a little embarrassing lol, it's just exactly the kind of story that i would enjoy reading 😅

as far as parts that were harder or easier to write! the flashback scenes were, oddly enough, some of the most fun to write actually. there's just this energy and dynamicness to the conflict in them, and the contrast between those days and the trust they have in the current timeline was really fun to work with. I also really liked going back and figuring out what their dynamic would've been in the early days. which is how I ended up with Scar's past crush on CuteGuy - that wasn't in the original plan but just felt extremely correct when I was working out the early days. the fluff scenes were like. too easy to the point that it looped back around to being a challenge lol. like it's just so easy to write them being disgustingly in love and it was difficult to try to not overdo it. which i'm not entirely sure i succeeded at lol but i enjoy reading those chapters so at least my target audience is happy 😆

and parts that were harder to write - definitely chapter 11 (the cuteguy reveal chapter) was the hardest. weirdly, the panic attack(s) in chapter 4 weren't that hard for me, maybe because it was a very in-the-moment kind of panic (if that makes sense), whereas grian's angst in late chapter 10 and into chapter 11 are more of a sense of protracted dread about needing to start a pivotal conversation which was Not Fun to write from lol. it's a good thing that chapter 11 works best from scar's pov because i don't think i ever could have written it from grian's pov, and it would've been really hard to reread.

as far as plans for the rest of the series are concerned! i'm probably going to do a separate post about my planned upcoming fics (in this and other aus), but i'll tease a little here. the next fic in the canon timeline will be one where grian sets out to find a way to protect scar from the ongoing threat to his life. it will be relatively low-stakes (...if my current plan holds). it'll involve a trip to the under-city (which means i have SO MUCH worldbuilding to do askfdlkjldfj), and will introduce at least one minecraft mechanic and a life series mechanic. ideally somewhere down the road i would love to write a fic about the downfall of the Institute, but that is way outside my normal wheelhouse and i don't have any solid ideas yet, so it might be a while and no promises lol. i've also mentioned a few diverging paths fics for this au, sort of alternate versions of what could have been. i've got two in mind that are different sorts of role reversals, one of which i may or may not have already started writing aslkdfjlsjfkd. i just can't leave them alone 😂 there's another diverging paths one that i'm not... entirely sure whether i'll actually end up posting? i've kind of teased it at least once but i want to be noncommittal about actually putting it out there. it's an angstier version, diverges near the end of chapter 4 (bonus points to anyone who can guess exactly what point it splits off at), and would be pretty difficult for me to write due to heavier angst. it would still end on a good note but it would be really rough in places. i do want to write it, to explore that version of events myself because i find it compelling and i want to stretch my writing muscles. but i'm not gonna fully commit to posting it because i don't want to add performance anxiety to the existing writing hurdles for that one lol. so basically: that one might exist or it might not idk, apologies for teasing something that might not end up ever getting published 😅

that basically sums up my current plans for this au! i'm also leaving the door open to the possibility of exploring other characters in this au, though i don't have solid ideas as of yet.

thank you for the ask!! i had so much fun reading your questions and thinking through answers to them hehe. also no worries about the askbox thing 😅 i really should've checked a lot earlier sdfljsljgfklk

[panzerprincess33]

oh, i get that!! very real. hopefully you’ll get some time soon to work on the things you want, life is like that unfortunately. but it’ll calm down eventually

definitely agree with the weather changes too, i like this middle ground where its not too hot but not too cold either, and the leaves changing is pretty to see in real time. and, i did have a question! xx

would you ever do something similar to worship for a.h with the MC as a secretary again? maybe the roles are reversed and a.h is the lovelorn one? im just thinking!! and, another question sorry! xx who do you like to write for best? is there anyone you wanna write for that you haven’t yet?

have a good day/night!!

Ooh yeah that’s a great idea! Yearning men are always fun to write. I think I started to explore that hungry yearner dynamic with A.H in some of my other writings, but definitely not to the degree of that Himmler fic lolol..That would be super interesting..

I think prefer writing Himmler the best. He comes the most naturally to me for some reason, I’m not sure why. Don’t know how to explain it, but I feel like I understand him the most? Followed closely by Goebbels. He's got a serious sort of intensity that I really enjoy exploring.

Randomly, I sort of want to write about Hans-Joachim Marseille, or Bubi (Erich Hartmann) but I feel like there's probably like no audience for that lmaooo. I am open to out of the box suggestions though, I did fulfill an Otto Günsche request a while back. A little off the beaten path there.

It’s always funny to write about the men in this era because, of course, they've been dead for 79+ years and I’ll never truly know just what they were like, or what they would say. There's just so many different accounts and conflicting information and still so much secrecy about them, personally, that I always think, "Would he really say/do this? Oh well" and just go for it haha. Typically I just write what I think feels right or accurate to me.

Lol I went a little off topic there but I hope you have a good day or night too!! :D

p.s yess I love watching the leaves change as well :)

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

Do you think Gabriel and Tomoe trying to force their kids together when they never seemed to care about that before season 5 was too much drama? @tallwriter

Yes.

Here's a little writing tip: if you want to keep your audience emotionally invested, make the drama build and try to keep most of it tied to the plot. Miraculous is really, really bad at this. It has no idea how to build the drama up to a solid, satisfying, logical conclusion. Instead, it tries to keep people invested through extremely cheap, pointless drama that goes nowhere. I'll use season five to explain.

Season five's conflict is that Gabriel has all of the miraculous and the heroes want the miraculous back. Season five ends with that happening. But does anything in the season actually lead to that ending?

Here's a list of all (or at least most) of the multi-episode conflicts introduced and arguably resolved in season five:

Nathalie no longer blindly supporting Gabriel

Gabriel getting cataclysmed and slowly dying

Nathalie slowly dying

The reverse crush drama

Kagami having a crush on Adrien (and Marinette?)

Lila's lies and team up with Chloe

Gabriel and Tomoe wanting their kids together

Felix having the peacock miraculous

Marinette being unable to say that she loves Adrien

The senti plot

Adrinette getting together

The only thing on that list that kind of mattered to the final was Gabriel getting cataclysmed because it meant that he could die without it feeling like suicide since he was already dying. Everything else on that list could be cut and the ending would not meaningfully change because there is no story arc for season five. Stuff just happens.

This is what I mean by cheap, pointless drama. Season five doesn't care about setting up a good, powerful ending. It just cares about keeping you invested and asking "what's going to happen next?"

The is not how epic stories are told. This is how soap operas are told. The entire draw of that genre is melodrama. In other words, it's for people who enjoy drama just for the sake of drama. People who don't care if the characters are mostly shitty, awful people or if plots get dropped mid-season or resolved in wacky ways because the audience is not here to fall in love with the characters or to hear an epic story. They're here for the drama and that's about it.

To be clear, there's nothing wrong with soap operas. It's a massively popular genre for a reason. I'm sure that there are even standout examples that have fantastic plots, but that's simple not a requirement for something to be a good soap opera any more than a good romance requires the main couple to be healthy. The problem with Miraculous having a soap opera structure is that - as far as I can tell - Miraculous is not trying to be a soap opera. It's trying to be a serious narrative (which is why you have the writers claiming things like Marinette and Gabriel are supposed to represent individual creative spirit versus corporate greed), but it's failing and failing hard.

A show that was succeeding at telling a good, logical plot would have had multi-episode conflicts like:

Chat Noir and Ladybug figuring out how the miraculous powers are being given to people

Chat Noir and Ladybug trying to figure out if Tomoe knew that her rings got hacked/assuming the Tsurugi tech is behind everything and somehow infuriating the company, likely with Kagami's help

Chat Noir and Ladybug learning the truth of the butterfly and peacock and dealing with that/going to the mansion with purpose

Felix, Chat Noir, and Ladybug playing a season long game of cat and mouse

You know, stuff that would actually lead to the ending of the season instead of Felix randomly telling Ladybug what she needs to know right before the final without her actually doing anything to make that happen. (But don't forget that she's smart and clever guys. I promise you that she's smart and clever! The writers totally know how to write a smart and clever character!)

Another thing you may have noticed is that most of those suggested plot points build on each other. This is how good stories work. You should be constantly resolving subplots and, in the process of the resolution, you introduce new subplots. For example, they figure out that the rings are how the akumas are getting their powers, which leads to the investigation of Tsurugi tech. Two separate subplots that naturally link together to allow for a logical story flow while keeping things interesting.

This was a big problem with season four, which introduced the Ladynoir conflict that was just kind of there, looming over the story, but not doing anything for 20-something episodes. For all of season five's flaws, at the very least the writers kept things interesting. They just didn't keep it interesting in particularly talented way. It's all bullshit melodrama and, while I truly have nothing against soap operas, I'm not a fan of the genre.

All of the above is why I don't have any faith in the next season of miraculous. They writers clearly cannot handle conflicts that last longer than an episode because literally nothing they introduced set up the final. It actually weakened the final because season five spent a lot of time making Gabriel worse than he's ever been, which is not how you setup a dramatic, last-minute change of heart.

To end on a positive note, the one thing that I will give the writers some credit for is the reverse crush BS. Rumor has it that this season was originally supposed to have The Reveal and, if that had happened right after all of the crush stuff, then it would have been more satisfying than a reveal without the reverse crush.

While Adrien has always been a Marinette fan and him eventually developing a crush feels logical, Ladybug has been really anti Ladynoir for a while now, so having her backtrack that stance pre-reveal would have strengthened the reveal and the relationship that follows. It still will even though Ladybug's Chat Noir crush is now nothing more than a brief rebound that was quickly forgotten. That doesn't change the fact that it happened which means that we now know that she's okay with her and Chat Noir being in a romantic relationship no matter his identity when it previously came across like she was completely opposed to the idea until she learned that it was Adrien under the mask, which was something I always viewed as a terrible writing choice, so I'm glad they backtracked it instead of trying to solve it post-reveal.