#this probably means less time on tumblr but

[a-dragons-journal]

I'm glad we figured out a better term, and i do appreciate your open-ness during this process.

But i must admit, as someone who is Intersex, I'm perturbed by the fact that you brushed aside Intersex voices when talking about the H-slur.

I'm not trying to brush aside intersex voices when talking about intersex issues, and I'm sorry if I've come off that way. But I do want to point out that

a) As I have said at least once or twice during this whole debacle, a big part of the reason I've been a little hesitant to jump at the snap of the fingers of a couple random anonymous people on Tumblr has been that I know intersex people who agree there's no problem with using hermaphrodite in its scientific sense, and outside of that personal sample I've seen enough intersex people on both sides of the argument that to be honest I'm still not actually convinced that there's actual community consensus on this (which is why I'm like. I don't have a problem with using cosexual as an alternative now that I'm sure it's an actual legitimate synonym, and I probably will do so myself, but I'm still not honestly going to tell people they're wrong for using "hermaphrodite" to refer to nonhuman animals). Maybe my sample's just skewed, but I can only do so much about that (any attempts to search for advocacy groups' opinion on this have so far only turned up results on hermaphrodite's use as a slur against intersex people, which isn't helpful).

b) My point this whole time has been that this is not about intersex people - and, in fact, while I'm not necessarily arguing this, I've seen plenty of intersex people of the opinion that insisting that hermaphrodite can only ever be about intersex people (and therefore shouldn't be used for nonhuman animals) is part of the problem, and is in fact only encouraging people to keep thinking they mean the same thing when they don't.

c) Just in general, "listening to [x] voices" does not, cannot, mean "never hesitating, critiquing, or asking a solid logical argument from [x] people when they say something that doesn't make sense to you". For one thing, there's the "is this actually an [x] community consensus or is this a handful of people being loud about their opinions" problem; for another, that then leads to the problem that now any random stranger on the internet can claim to be part of [x group] (and I will remind you here that people can and do lie about this on the internet) and immediately you're not allowed to argue with them at all ever, which is. a problem for what I hope are obvious reasons? Yes, listening to the people who are part of an affected group when talking about a thing that affects them is important, but that doesn't mean that every person in that group is always right all the time, and it doesn't mean they shouldn't be able to back up their position with a logical argument. (And no, no one is obligated to argue these things - but you're in my inbox arguing, so clearly we're past that point.)

Maybe my hesitance has been a little overdone, but it's not because I'm not listening to intersex people, it's because I've got enough intersex people on both sides of the argument that that alone isn't enough to significantly help in making the decision for me - meaning it's down to the actual arguments involved, and frankly I still haven't actually seen an argument that convinces me it's outright wrong and harmful to use the word hermaphrodite for nonhuman animals it applies to. That it's uncomfortable for some people, yes; that it's harmful, no. Given that I don't really have a reason not to switch to a different word now that I have one that's a legitimate synonym, that's enough to justify doing so, but prior to that, yes, I'm extremely reluctant to move to less accurate language when the more accurate language isn't doing harm in any way I can see, it's just uncomfortable for people to see because of the harm it's done in a completely unrelated context.

I'm rambling at this point. Sorry, I'm getting a bit worn thin here by the sheer amount of malice that has been aimed at me over this. I'm doing my best to not let it put me into a defensive shutdown about it and continue listening and discussing seriously, but I'm getting a bit tired of it. Hopefully the ramble at least gets my point across.

EDIT: Oh, the other problem with point c) - you're making an assumption that I'm not intersex myself because I haven't said I am (to the best of my admittedly-not-very-good memory, I've never specified either way, or at least not during this discussion). You do happen to be correct, in this instance, but if I was intersex, I shouldn't have to disclose the status of my sex to be allowed to have an opinion in the discussion, and the only way to make that work is to discard the idea that people outside of [x] group aren't allowed to disagree or debate with people inside [x] group.

[thirstkanaphan]

Mingi x Jongho Feelings

(Posting this on my lunch break lol)

In a recent exchange with @karmacharmeleon18 and @minjoongism about Mingi and his ability to be vulnerable / project vulnerability as one of his strengths as an idol, @karmacharmeleon18 brought up Mingi's relationship with Jongho as a example of how Mingi uses his own vulnerabilities as a way to connect with others with no expectation of reciprocation:

Or the times we see glimpses of Jongho being the clingy maknae with Mingi, and the stories we've heard of Mingi taking care of him, of Jongho pouting and whining if Mingi doesn't give him attention. Jongho is strong and confident, but with Mingi he doesn't have to be. Mingi's emotional vulnerability is an offering. If you accept and reciprocate, good. If you don't, he'll move on like it's nothing. Either way, nothing will be held against you.

I really love this passage because it reminded me of the Day 1 concert at the KSPO Dome where Jongho used his ending ment to apologize for what he considered to be a less-than-ideal performance of Everything and seemed quite shook up about it. Mingi interrupts his speech

It's so characteristically Mingi - a bit tactless and ill-timed but so enormously well-meaning and full of sincerity. That's who he is! No one else would've done that for Jongho in that moment.

So, this inspired me to repost some thoughts I had about the Mingi/Jongho relationship (I posted a few days ago, as an answer to an ask, but it got eaten by tumblr).

For their on-screen dynamic, Jongho often takes on the role of exasperated brother/caretaker/wrangler for Mingi, but it's an entertaining bit. Jongho acts like a hyung to Mingi, despite being younger, and Mingi is always asking Jongho to treat him with the respect he's owed as his senior, despite constantly acting immature to get a rise out of Jongho 😂

My favorite bit is when they're playing the "of course" game where one member makes an exaggerated statement ("you haven't showered in a week right?") and the other member has to say "of course" or lose. Mingi seemingly forgets they're playing a game lol

The members have alluded to the semi-parental role Mingi played for Jongho during their early years. I assume there's more than a bit of exaggeration here, but clearly Mingi was (and still is) invested in Jongho's well-being in the group. Given what we now know about Jongho's upsetting past experiences as a trainee, I'm sure Mingi sensed that there was a need for Jongho to have reliable and supporting hyungs in his debut group.

He makes it LOUDLY known that he cherishes Jongho and wants to protect him, even if Jongho seems impenetrable.

He's often very physically demonstrative towards Jongho (usually in "unscripted moments"), which Jongho cutely rebuffs. Mingi is so much bigger than Jongho (despite Jongho probably being more powerful!) so it's always a very sweet contrast.

But when Jongho initiates the skinship, it's because Jongho is either using touch to reassure and ground Mingi...or he's beating him up.

The fujo inside me also finds it pleasing to watch Jongho manhandle Mingi

I've also noticed that Jongho is the one to prompts Mingi to sing! He's always giving Mingi the mic to cover his vocal parts, whether in Wanteez karaoke or on stage during their performances. I think he understands that while Mingi is comparatively the weakest vocal performer in the group, he is the biggest fan of singing (perhaps next to San) and the logbooks are filled with Mingi solo moments and the members watching with fond tolerance.

Jongho has called Mingi one of his closest hyungs and they often go drinking and have long conversations. You can clearly tell that they have a deep bond and are constantly encouraging each other in large and small ways.

These interviews from a few months ago really sum up what I like so much about this friendship. Mingi sees the parts of Jongho that others don't notice and isn't afraid to share praise. Jongho is deeply observant of Mingi and wants to protect his smile.

[askagamedev]

Does the refund windows of digital stores have any affect on the overall design of a game? If you're expecting Steam to be the main storefront you'll sell on is there an extra drive to hook players within the first two hours?

The main element here is that it kills short games and short form game experiences, because players can play the game through and refund it before the refund window closes. Any short form game experience like that has pretty severe pressure to increase the runtime to avoid getting refunded. Other than that, it doesn't have a huge effect on things. Games have a huge incentive to hook players within the first few minutes, let alone hours, because we must. Generally speaking, the amount of effort a player is willing to put into a game is directly proportional to the cost for that player to obtain that game. When games are hard to obtain, we value them more. When games are easy to obtain, we value them less. Since games have become so easy to obtain, there is a commensurate increase in need to hook players faster.

When I was a child, new games were incredibly rare and difficult to obtain for me. Since I could only purchase a handful of games a year as a child, I spent a lot of effort determining which I would choose and I would spend a lot of time playing them because I wanted to ensure that effort and choice were worthwhile. I spent so much time playing and replaying those games because I wanted to squeeze every last bit of enjoyment I could out of them - even the bad ones. I would be willing to give any new game I got significantly more time before I gave up on it because I lacked other options.

Today there are huge numbers of games available for extremely cheap or free. Steam sales, Epic Game Store giveaways, Game Pass, Playstation Plus, EA Play, bundles, freemium games, and so on are all available. Most are available within minutes or even seconds. This means that there is almost zero cost associated with them to the player - the majority of the cost is the time it takes to install the game and try to play it. Since there is no cost, there is no inherent buy-in or effort the player is willing to put into the game. This means that any game that fails to hook the player within the first few minutes will probably lose the player's interest and the player will move on to the next thing. There is no reason for the player to bother spending the effort to get to the good part.

This is one of the saddest things to me as a dev, because every single game that gets discarded almost immediately for not having a hook within the first few minutes was built by a team who did their best to build a fun and compelling experience, and it means that players can easily miss a game this way that could be really fun and engaging for them. Unfortunately, this is the way the incentives line up and, thus, the expected outcome.

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[alms4oblivion]

So my friend and I are currently OBSESSED in the eyes of a child it’s so fucking good props to you! But she wanted to know (and not so secretly so do I) if you have read any avatrice fics that you’d recommend for us. We’ve read through nearly all of yours and simply Korra’s stuff but we need something that’ll keep us busy while we wait for your updates! (Bridgeton AU is 20/10 hands down best fic ever just saying)

🥹 First of all, those are "make my whole day" compliments, so thank you so much. Like make me want to cry happy tears compliments.

Second, do I have any Avatrice fic recs? Do I have any Avatrice fic recs!? I think most of my original following were people who liked my fic recs, but I guess I've fallen out of the habit. Must mean it's finally time for me to make a massive fic rec post!

I'm going to start with hidden gems, and move in no particular order through different categories and authors, with the goal of more or less ending with fics that most people seeing this will have read, because they're among the most popular in the fandom. I've read...a LOT of fics, so this is really just scratching the surface, and I probably should make an SMAU section at some point, but this should be enough to get you started.

HIDDEN GEMS

Beyond Our Space and Starlight - so good and creative it should be a novel or TV show or something, but the world fits perfectly for Warrior Nun's cast and themes. Brilliant sci fi, incredible action and emotional depth, and the FLIRTING. A must-read hidden gem of the fandom (since you mentioned SK, you'll find her in the comments section if you look, talking about how incredible this fic is). It's technically AvaBeaLil, but the Lilith side is just tension and feelings through the first seven-chapter arc (which is what's currently published).

Casper (daisychiansandbowties) - a person rather than a fic, they are the best prose writer in the fandom, in my opinion. Their writing is dense, the subjects are diverse, but if you want to get knocked flat by a phrase, read them. Notable fics: chess tournament AU, Alien (1979 film) AU, Interview with a Vampire AU, Pokemon trainer Bea AU, Critical Role AU, 17776 AU, Star Wars video game AU, Napoleonic dragon riders AU. Note that if you absolutely cannot stomach AvaBeaLil, chess, Pokemon and 17776 are your safe bets.

SCP AU - Stormy has a lot of great fics, including tboy Ava, a great AvaLil (unusually with zero Beatrice romance), and a Dragon Age Inquisition AU, but this is the one for me, Ava is a subject at a secret research institute for unexplained phenomena and Beatrice is the researcher who's just been assigned to her.

Summer camp AU - LongWindedAnswer is too well known for this to be as under-read as it is, so I guess it goes here. Ava's got some serious chronic medical issues, they meet at summer camp, and we've got sweet camp hijinks followed by angsty stuff as they grow up with a happy ending.

Post-It Notes AU - I can't believe this has been out as long as it has and is as under-appreciated as it is. Starts funny crack, then turns poignantly beautiful.

ONE SHOTS

Lots of one-shots are hidden gems all their own, and a lot of these authors have written a LOT of them, so check the authors' other works as well! These are just my favorites, or one of my favorites, for each.

Dead mom recipes - a MUST READ, the framing device and the emotional tenor are too good (and jt also does phenomenal ficlets here on Tumblr).

Citadel of Immortal Daylight - reads like the beginning of something bigger, or the middle of it, in the best way. Ava is undead, Beatrice might be a vampire, in a city that hates both.

Dog and cat AU - I'm a sucker for creative premises and I think Sheep absolutely nailed this one (another standout from her is Religion, but she has so so many one shots).

60s small town AU - waitress Ava x photojournalist Bea. One shot is kind of a stretch, this is really a long, deep romance novella.

Wedding artist x wedding musician - omomoification is a guarantee of excellence. Read all their stuff, they have some truly fantastic one shots, including this one.

Blood; Orange - post-canon angst with a happy ending, dealing with the trauma of the Holy War. Collab between MsWitsEnd, Wyper (willowedhepatica), and LongWindedAnswer (whose name got taken off the author list when she temporarily hid her ao3 account). Fantastic piece.

Museum AU - Ava is the curator of program animals, Bea is curator of the Planetarium. Just adorable fluff.

Artist Bea x actress Ava - it's just really good. No spoilers, just read and enjoy.

sunday people - roommates AU where Sundays are for the girls, until Bea starts dating someone who isn't Ava. Jealousy and angst and humor (happy ending of course).

You're My One Regret - Ava is an actress who gives an interview about the one who got away in high school. People figure out she's talking about Beatrice.

MATURE ROMANCE

Leaves of an October Sky - mom!Ava meets married Bea, soulmates but without any of the common soul mates tropes, they just literally get reincarnated and always find each other. This is part of Noel's brilliant Mobius series, which is arguably better read in order, and you really should read them all (chem professors in particular is a classic), but I think this one is my favorite so far.

a little broken, a little new - exes to lovers romance on a road trip. Nothing fancy, just really nice relationship dynamics as they try to work through what went wrong the first time around and forgive.

Call the Midwife AU - 60s midwives AU, tremendous depth and sense of place and time in this one. Lots of tough topics with a nice mature slow burn, and a fantastic early setup.

MOSTLY FLUFF

Timely Suited - demisexual autistic Bea my beloved.

Bookstore x coffee shop AU - Bea works at a bookstore and is roommates with JC, who works at the coffee shop across the street. Beatrice and JC as besties agenda is in full effect. Fluffy and fun.

Coda - ballet dancer Bea x lighting designer Ava (ambulatory wheelchair user Ava too!). Really sweet, plus Adler did some great art for it.

Museum curator - slow burn where Ava is helping Bea with a museum event, but it's really them falling in love.

If You Missed the Mistletoe - autistic coded nerd Bea gets together with her childhood crush, Ava. All fluff.

Hook, Line, and Tinder - pop star Ava goes on Tinder and finds Bea, who thinks she's being catfished. Very fun and cute.

DEADLY ANGST

Liturgia - ongoing at present, incredible music stars AU where more established singer Ava and up and comer Bea fall for each other, but struggle to make things work without damaging the prospects of Beatrice's band. They both have emotional trauma. They hurt each other. It's fantastic.

Failed LDR - Ava and Beatrice broke up when Ava moved away, they meet again at Mary and Shannon's wedding and they're both still broken as hell. Super angsty, really good, still in progress, they're not together but they're in a relatively OK place at the moment.

Frankenstein - Mary Shelley AU, this goes under angst because of chapter 3, chapters 1 and 2 are smut and humor, but chapter 3 alone makes this, for my money, the saddest fic with a happy ending in the fandom. The dialogue and prose are sensational in this as well.

holier than thou - Ava and Beatrice went to boarding school together, and Bea broke Ava's heart (BADLY). The run into each other again years later on the streets of New York. Pretty fluffy by the very end, but it's very angsty for a while.

FANDOM CLASSICS

Would You Be My Wife - not fair to Pinechips to call this a classic because it came out pretty recently, but it became an almost instant classic, one of the most beloved fics in the fandom despite releasing well after the show's cancelation. Fake marriage AU, absolutely brilliant.

Do a Flip - sunsafe's super fluffy slow burn told almost entirely from the POV of Diego as Ava's friend from the orphanage who becomes more or less her kid brother/son, with occasional interludes to show the POVs of other observers. My go-to "feel better" fluff fic and a big inspiration for my decision to make In The Eyes Of A Child from Mira's POV. Technically part of a series (and technically incomplete, even though the story has everything it needs), read it all.

Love Thy Neighbor - first long-form fic I ever read, puppybusby's classic "will they or won't they" slow burn romance where Ava moves in down the hall from Beatrice with the help of her more or less adopted sister Lilith, only Beatrice thinks Ava and Lilith are together. Hijinks ensue.

Art Therapy - Beatrice is an art student, Ava is a model who becomes her muse. Intense, emotional, erotic, a must-read.

Death Doesn't Dream - sled dogs AU, one of the best meditations on grief in the fandom.

Lumberjack Beatrice AU - more or less what it says on the tin. It's really good. It has Beatrice as a sexy lumberjack. Ava moves in next door.

Just to Stop the Thoughts - chem professors AU from the Mobius series. Funny, cute, romantic, fluffy slow burn.

Order for Ava Silva - Bea is a delivery rider who always gets assigned to drop off food for Ava, for some reason.

choose the devil I know (over the heaven I don't) - firefighters AU, all about grief and trauma, very well written.

pull back the curtain for venus - Alien!Bea AU.

The thing about love - college AU where they pass each other in the morning and develop crushes on each other and don't realize they're neighbors who annoy each other through the wall.

Sublime - pro soccer AU. Super slow burn, the confession scene and its immediate aftermath are CLASSIC, absolutely hilarious, some of my favorite writing in the fandom.

The to do list - changed how I thought about confident Bea, big inspiration for how I approached the Practical Guide, Ava makes a list of things that she thinks might turn her on if a woman did them to her and wants Beatrice's help experimenting with her sexuality. Beatrice gets competitive with the hypothetical person who inspired Ava to think she might like women.

Your vows - best use of second person POV in the fandom, professional level framing. Bea is an airline heiress who meets Ava at airports. Trust me.

can i get your house key? - forever roommates AU. Absolutely love this one. Slowburn where they're so clearly in love, but who will make the first move when there's so much to risk? OK, that sounds like a lot of fics, but trust me that this elevates the tropes, and is a classic for a reason.

will you find me (after life) - ghost Ava AU. Beatrice, Lilith, and Camila move into a house that happens to be haunted. Sort of. You'll see. Adorable slow burn.

The trials and tribulations of Snapchat - college AU, fluff and smut and a hint of angst and jealousy where Ava and Beatrice get each other worked up with risque photos.

5 excuses and a confession - 5+1 fic of times Ava finds an excuse to kiss Beatrice and Beatrice can't take the hint. Tagged as fluff, but I think it's actually fairly angsty for most of it. Really, really good.

divine intervention - what if they had sex and acted like they weren't in love with each other and THEN caught feelings? Angsty and smutty, and technically incomplete, but the author got to the love confession so read it.

Lakehouse AU - Ava is finally coming back to visit and get Bea back when everyone goes to Lilith's lake house, except "everyone" includes Beatrice's new girlfriend whom no one told Ava about. Super angsty with a happy ending, absolutely love it.

Mastermind AU - established actress Bea x up and coming actress Ava. A must-read.

in my veins - arguably THE vampire Bea AU, certainly the most popular, and for good reason. Funny, sexy, dangerous, a huge amount of worldbuilding that mostly serves as an obstacle to Avatrice being together as often as they would like. Incomplete at 209,069 words, but they're together, so read it.

Wrong Number AU - Ava texts the wrong number. It's Beatrice. Things get cute.

To climb a tree - the second long-form fic I read. Personal trainer Beatrice tries to help Ava reach her goals for physicality after Ava regains mobility and finishes physical therapy. Very smutty, but also very sweet.

on the run from a losing game - if I was forced to go back and told I could only reach one Avatrice fic but I could pick which one, it would probably be this one. Chefs AU, and it's so, so good.

...is that enough to tide you over?

[rottiens]

I'm so happy today. I hope you guys are having a nice day <33 💐

[lemonandtheart]

I refuse to draw the rest of the interior of this bus but here's more of my TMNT Iteration

[crimeronan]

i think the wildest cognitive dissonance i've had re: the realization that the average (?) tumblr user Truly Does Not Look At The News was when like. people started bitching and moaning that "everyone" was focusing on crimew being a trans catgirl anarchist without actually looking at the importance of her work in leaking the no-fly list.

when earlier that day i had clicked on a top CNN headline reading something like "hacktivist leaks US no-fly list, exposes racial discrimination, islamophobia, bans on two-year-old children"

(i don't remember the exact wording. i know it was About The Important Shit.)

and then i'd logged onto tumblr. and only THEN found out that the hacktivist was a trans catgirl anarchist. CNN's early reporting did not give A Fuck about that At All, because THERE WAS A LOT TO SAY ABOUT THE NO-FLY LIST.

so imagine my surprise scrolling thru tumblr's meme coverage like

me: oh shit the no-fly list leaker who exposed all that heinous shit is a trans catgirl? good for her that's delightful :)

a sizeable portion of tumblr's population, for some fucking reason: nobody would come to my house and click on article links for me so now i'm mad that my memes don't double as exhaustively researched current event bulletins :( HOW DARE THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA SILENCE US >:(

[spaghett-onaplate]

teehee i now have a very very wonderful photo

[council-of-beetroot]

I forget this is the don't vote, firebomb Walmart site so it no longer surprising to me that Tumblr uwuifies a group that in essence took the firebomb Walmart philosophy and applied it to a whole country.

"It'S nOt AbOuT tHe JeWs It'S aBoUt ZiOnIsM aNd CaPiTaLiSm" woah slow down your roll there Tumblr user doctor's plot

Yeah as per my last post this explains my feelings of foreboding

[moe-broey]

Man..

[elisedonut]

sudden itch to write a rare pair fic thats not Percy related

but like

the last time I did that it ended up becoming my top fic and lead to me deciding that you know... actually I hate that ship just out of spite so i'm not sure how good of an idea it is

maybe if i try like femslash or something super super rare with side characters or something

[withmytailtotheworld]

im so going to puke from all of this stress and anxieties im getting it’s not even funny

[danlous]

Sam Reid saying he likes to turn off his phone and literally go touch some grass. We all should do this

[original-cat-showdown]

ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS EVERYBODY

Tabby (@cure-icy-writes) vs Elle Chihiro (@cure-icy-writes)

Ni'iri (@sillysorcerer) vs Spirit (@spirits-of-kin)

Gull (@featherfrond) vs Paxel (@cat-skull)

Kitty Heels (@esmaelj) vs Ginger (@esmaelj)

Jade (@dragontoonss) vs Caitrionia (@kjmellow)

Vivi (@rainewintersnow) vs Apotheosis (@horizontalnobelcat)

Nico (@crownne-prince) vs Narciso (@crownne-prince)

Briarfang (@plaguedbutch) vs Leafcloud (@plaguedbutch)

Bobsyfella (@thunderwhenhepurrs) vs Jinna (@teknoctarkamacska)

Tumbledown (@sugarsprinkles) vs Caro (@sugarsprinkles)

Frozen Teeth (@element-kitten-klaws) vs Pawtree Purrety (@kdm13)

Mason Spectrespeaker (@2bu) vs Kat (@laceghost / @laceghost-art)

Mina (@spacedragonstar) vs Lara and Rio Coddsworth (@acromafireair)

Cherry Lipstick (@hyephyep) vs Lane (@hyephyep)

Round 1 brackets

Round 1 results

Polls will run for a week, and I should manage to set them up in a few days!

[nomaishuttle]

oh my god ive been on tumblr for nearly a decade. guys i have to get some bitches Now i cant do this anymore

[goldensunset]

Happy one month until tears of the kingdom 🎉

WAUGH YOU’RE RIGHT