#there's things i'd do differently but it was fun to try :)

[u3pxx]

happy tsukkiyama day to those who celebrate 🌙⛰️✨

like this art? it's a print, here! | like what i do? support me on ko-fi!

i'm so bad with dates i didn't even realize today's numbers were 11 and 12 ASKSKS (also i missed POCKY DAY? man, i had an idea for a doodle for that but oh well. i'll still draw it fdgfdhd)

i almost panicked about not having any art for tskym day bc cmon.... they're my boys........ but thankfully i had a deadline to finish some art prints last week and now here we are pftt

the process for this one is a little different from what i'd consider my usual way of drawing. i usually do lineart, flat colors, rendering, and yadda yadda, but maybe it's because i've been doing a lot of painterly disco elysium art lately that i decided to just paint over the scaled-up thumbnail and see where it takes me! (you can see in the timelapse me struggling over cleanly inking tsukki's face before i went 'screw this' LOL)

drawing this was pretty fun! i always wanted to try out my painterly style outside of disco elysium fanart and now i've done it! (well, done it again, bc i've kind of tried it for kghn day too pftt)

there is still something very charming abt the thumbnail in my humble onion, i don't think i was able to retain the exact silent tenderness in tsukki's face from the thumbnail in the final thing but oh well, c'est la vie dghdj (also me drawing yammers with visible nostrils jumpscare [this is only funny to me ASKSK])

[writers-potion]

How to foreshadow? Like a big thing is going to be revelation after few chapters so how can I drop subtle hints about it? Lots of love 💗

Foreshadowing Creatively

If you are trying to build up towards the 'big moment' throughout a few prior chapters,

Let's assume that we want to reveal the the fact that Character A's husband is cheating on her. The big moment here would be when she witnesses them kissing in the parking lot.

To drop subtle hints about it, we could:

Have the husband doing things that are just slightly out of the ordinary, but not enough to attract serious suspicion: taking call outside the bedroom, being more tired after work than usual

Insert direct evidence that Character A could've picked up on, but she doesn't because she thinks it's ridiculous to start having doubts.

Use symbolic motifs. The husband informs her that he lost is wedding ring - a complete accident. But this indicates a 'break' of their marriage vows.

Similarly, you can use color/animal/location that subtly hints at secrecy, infidelity and dishonesty.

It may even be enough to have seemingly unrelated bad things happen to her. Maybe she cuts her finger while prepping dinner for her husband, or suddenly starts feeling that their bed is uncomforatble to sleep in. There's no logical link between these details and the eventual realization, but the mood gets established.

Think about the big moment from two different points of view: someone who knows about it all along, and someone who doesn't. How would it look from an outsider's POV?

I find it helpful to think about howI tried to justify the bad events that has happened to me.

For example, I messed up on a math test. The logical reason for this was that I didn't study enough. But my brain would: - blame it on the weather: it was raining! And I hate rain! - the supervising teacher, Mrs. G, was my least favorite and that had affected my mood. - I always eat an even number of chocolate before tests, but I could only eat 3 that morning because that's all that I had left. - the bus came late

Drive your character's mood slowly towards the revelation. If it's an emotional one, I'd say the atmospheric/symbolic elements would be more important; if it's puzzle pieces finally clicking in place, you could provide a brief overview of how past events are finally put together by your main character at the end.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* . ───

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[nateconnolly]

I hate fake and arbitrary divisions between "high" and "low" culture, but I do think there is an important (and morally neutral) difference between a story that's trying to say something important, and a story that is just out here trying to be fun.

Like Terry Pratchett is genre fiction, which is typically regarded by academic institutions and establishment publishing houses as low culture, but it seems undeniable that most of his stories are about moral outrage and love and free will. That is literature that takes itself seriously.

There's also The Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers No. 1: Extreme Danger, which thematically boils down to "Don't you want to fight crime and dye your hair blue? Wouldn't it be fun to fight crime and dye your hair blue?" That is literature which is just trying to be fun.

I would argue that most of the former category tries to be fun, but isn't just trying to be fun. I'd also argue that a lot of things in the second category say more than they are designed to say -- many Hardy Boys books are pretty blatant American jingoist propaganda.

[saucyjothoughts]

I know the headcanon is that Jan has been around, but what if he hasn't? What if he was the different one, the only gay in the village, who didn't know what to do with girls or how to ask a boy to kiss him. What if he fell in love with Bojan, but nothing ever happened, because Jan wasn't sure if he was just flirting (and even if he wasn't he still wouldn't know what to do with him)?

What if it was Nace who's been around? Travelling on cruise ships, playing with different musicians, open-minded and experienced, and most importantly accepted himself. What if Nace was the one who actually saw Jan? What if he was the one who taught Jan how it feels to be manhandled and how to touch a man, and that's why Jan has these huge heart eyes for him?

I'd love to know what their first time was like.

Darling, I'm in love with this concept.

Jan's decade-long unrequited thing for Bojan because his little singer symbolises everything he thinks he wants but will never be brave enough to ask for. Jan burying himself in his music because it's the closest thing he thinks he deserves to intimacy. Jan trying to find himself alone because there has never been anyone else like him to show him who he could be.

Meeting Nace.

Nace who is quiet and wild in equal measure, hypersexual but never without respect and fun. Nace who is unashamedly queer and makes a point of never letting young people feel how he felt as not a normal kid. Nace who recognises that it's exactly because of all the brutality in the world that it's a moral obligation to be hedonistic at any available opportunity. Nace who sees exactly who Jan is the first time they meet, but it takes until the second meeting for Jan to realise he's been seen.

Nace who opened up whole new worlds for Jan (and even made him tea and pet his cat afterwards).

Jan who finally realises what happiness is supposed to feel like.

[asocial-lobster]

Snowball Mayhem

Wind stepped through the portal and into something cold and wet. The landscape in front of him sparkled in the sun, a gentle sea of white covering the ground. He looked down at his boots. The white stuff covered them, too. He lifted a foot. The white powder fell off his boot and disrupted the perfect white layer.

"What is this?" He asked.

The eight other heroes turned to look at him in various states of bewilderment, and Wind almost felt self-conscious. He didn’t like it when other people knew something he didn’t. It only worked to reinforce the idea that he was a helpless child, inexperienced compared to the others. Then a look of realization dawned on Warriors' face. 

"You live on a tropical island," he said. "Of course you wouldn't have seen snow before."

Wind frowned. "Wait, how did you know my island is tropical?"

Warriors' eyes widened like he'd been caught in a lie.

"It's called snow," Time said. Wind sent the captain one last suspicious look before giving in to his curiosity and turning to face Time. The Old Man had bent over – his armor creaking like the hull of a ship all the way down – and grabbed a handful of the white powder.

"When it gets very cold, it snows instead of raining. That's why there's so much of it here."

The sailor gasped. "This stuff fell from the sky?!"

Time smiled. "It did."

"That's amazing!"

The other heroes smiled now, too. Wind wasn't childish by any means, and he could certainly hold his own in battle. But there was something endearing about how the young boy lit up as Time explained.

"I remember the first time I saw snow," Wild said, a wistful glint in his eyes. "It was on Mount Hylia just a few days after I'd woken up in the Shrine. The view from up there..."

His voice fizzled out, the champion apparently unable to put his thoughts into words.

"Does snow mean something different in your eras?" Hyrule asked, tripping nervously like he was trying to keep his boots out of the snow and failing. "Because I'm not really looking forward to dealing with poison today."

"What?" Sky asked. "What does poison have to do with anything?"

"Snow is poisonous? I still have the scars after last time it snowed."

Hyrule wilted a little under the stares that followed.

"Rulie," Legend said, "with every thing I learn about your era, I get more concerned."

Wind frowned. "So is snow poisonous or not?"

"It's not," Warriors reassured. "At least not normally. Your era must be an exception, Hyrule."

 "Snow is actually rather well-liked," Time said. "Many children like playing with it because it can be shaped into small sculptures."

He pressed a handful of it into a ball between his hands in demonstration.

"It's a lot of fun."

He blinked at Wind. The small sailor barely had time to realize what was happening before Time launched the snowball directly into Warriors' face.

Everything was completely still for a moment while everyone processed what had happened. The captain blinked slowly like his brain was still catching up to the situation, snow dripping from his face. He raised a hand to wipe it away. 

"Sprite," he said carefully, "you're a dead man."

He bent over and grabbed his own handful of snow, shaping it into a ball in the same motion. He threw it after Time, who ducked behind Legend. The snowball, which had been aimed for the Old Man's chest, hit the much smaller Legend in the face.

Warriors held his hands up in surrender.

"Sorry, Vet, I wasn't aiming for..."

"Oh, it's on, pretty boy!"

The others were quickly roped into the fight as they were hit by the fallout of Legend, Time, and Warriors' fight, and suddenly, the snowballs were flying left and right. Wind had never made snowballs before, but he had a good aim. Soon, he and the others were covered top to toe in snow. It was cold and wet, but a lot of fun, he decided. And afterwards, they found a little cave and got a fire going. Wild made something hot and sweet for them to drink, which Warriors insisted was tradition after a snowball fight. 

It snowed more that night, and Wind sat in the cave and watched the white flakes float through the air in gentle swoops. It was cold, but with the campfire and a blanket around his shoulders he almost didn’t feel it. Wind had missed his home a lot since the first portal carried him away, and with the frequent monster ambushes, it felt like there was always something wrong or something to quarrel about. But today the Chain had felt like something more than a group of heroes on a business trip. It had felt almost like ... a family. It was nice to think of the others like that, Wind thought. He had a sister back at home. Perhaps he could have eight brothers while he was away.

That was Wind's last thought before he went to sleep that night. And it was with that thought in mind that he threw a snowball in Four's face the next morning when they woke to even more snow.

[marshmallowgoop]

no thoughts just Heiji Hattori (HD)

[tradingjack]

having fun with colors for once :P

thanks @creepycoffins for the awesome dtiys :D

[ask-boreal]

Java stood at the beginning of the sand, right on the edge of the forest, and watched as Boreal made her way to the shore. She sat down just far enough away from the waves to not get wet, as if she knew the ocean like the back of her paw.

They weren't sure what to make of her. Chipper, upbeat… and rather unfazed by a random stranger dropping out of a tree. Was that a common occurrence for her? Nah. Maybe? Huh. Either way, they felt a little more at ease after crashing in on her, and slowly Java walked towards the Shinx and sat down near her.

Java's ear twitched, then they glanced over towards Boreal.

>BOREAL: .. yeah! It's not bad, it's a more popular place so other Pokemon stop by a lot!!

>JAVA: Oh okay that sounds better! I guess I did stop by too huh.

>BOREAL: YEAH LIKE YOU!!! Maybe we can build a sandcastle??? Though I guess it is getting late…

Boreal looked out towards the ocean where the sun was beginning to set on the horizon.

>BOREAL: I guess next time…

Boreal stood up

>BOREAL: It was Java right…? Well.. it was nice meeting you today!! I hope you're feeling okay after falling, though I think you seem good!!

>JAVA: Yeah it's Java! Likewise! Umm… Have a good night?

>BOREAL: You too!

Boreal made her way back to the edge of the beach, just where the grass and trees began before giving way to the forest. Like every night, she curled up under the tree closest to the shore on a large pile of leaves. The sun set, and just like that the stars lit up the sky. Java sat alone, slightly unsure of what to do next.

>JAVA: … I guess I'll try to sleep too. The stars do look gorgeous though, that's impressive.

[sciderman]

(Idk if someone asked this already) since we’re on the topic of gender

sci what is gender to you and how do you see it in you and how you express it in your art?? (Just a young queer artist who wants some light shined upon them 🥺)

i 'unno ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[icewindandboringhorror]

finally finished all of one character's entire quests/optional dialogue/questions/etc.... 100,000 words... .... aughhh

[scentedluminarysoul]

Honestly, I was kind of done with the online left when people claimed you're a real life bad person if you

*checks notes*

Play the video game The Tenants (and similar)

Because you play as a landlord, and landlords are evil, and because you play as one, you basically are one, and you're therefor evil

No really. That's a discussion I had.

I tried to teach them the difference between real life and video games, between fantasy and reality, but no dice

I got blocked the moment I said that I'm anti-gun irl but still play shooter games every so often

Anyway. Many of the "progressive moral online left" would totally blame video games for real life violence

[pocketgalaxies]

marisha ray and liam o'brien truly will just sit there and roleplay and make me Think Things

[gideonisms]

The last time I got a bit drunk I started doing my dishes and messaging everyone I knew. I was having 3 conversations at once and finally accomplishing a task I'd been putting off all day. how does THAT work. I'm inventing new unique ways to be a failwoman (gender neutral)

[gentlethorns]

you know what? i'm gonna say it. i miss being seventeen. not for the "glory days," bc they weren't, by a country mile lol. if i had glory days i'd say they were in 2020. but i miss the electricity, the constant undercurrent of euphoria and deep plunging black. i miss the fight i had. i was literally known for being scrappy. i was self-destructive and coping poorly, but goddamn if i didn't burn bright and long. it took me until my twenties to finally start to fizzle out. does the candle with its wax melted down to the base of its glass cage miss when the wick was lit?

[motoroil-recs]

Did all the requests I could today, hopefully I can get more done over the weekend, I don't like having requests older than a week in my inbox. Once I'm down to single digits again I might try out other request types, but I've been debating what I should try...

[veillcd]

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