#this was a lot of work but also a ton of fun^^

[silksongeveryday]

Drawing Hornet everyday until Silksong comes out - Day 731.

Well, after two long years of posting, I’m finally taking a break.

Thank you guys for everything for the past two years. It’s genuinely been so fun making daily doodles. But all good things must come to an end eventually. I’m tired.

What are the plans moving forward?

read below the cut if you’d like to know!!

Taking a break:

Life in general has been really rough lately. Tons of family drama, personal medical issues making it impossible to function some days, and my childhood dog recently passed away a few days after Christmas last year. So it was a real challenge to “keep up appearances” if you know what I mean.

I’ve said this plenty of times in the past already, however I’ll repeat it since there’s surprisingly a lot more new people that have followed since then. I’m taking a whole month off from posting entirely. So I won’t be active on Silksongeveryday until about March 14th. Why? Hopefully it’s obvious but posting daily content for two years straight really does something to you. I’ve grown tired of this blog just a little bit, and I feel stepping away from it for a month will help me reconnect. I still love the game and its community, and I’d hate for my disinterest in a single blog to ruin that. If a month long break could fix that then so be it.

I’m also taking a somewhat indefinite break from daily doodles. I WILL still be posting doodles occasionally every once in a while after I come back from my month long break. However I won’t be doing daily doodles.

So no daily doodles ever again?

There is only one condition that has to be met for me to return to daily doodles.

A Silksong release date is announced.

Which is…let’s face it, a release date might not happen any time soon. 6 years of near radio silence from TC? I’m not expecting much, especially not in a month.

But WHEN a release date is announced I’ll definitely return to daily doodles and do a sort of daily “countdown” until Silksong is officially out.

Will doodle requests still be open?

Yes! Even if I will no longer be doing daily posts I will still occasionally post every once in a while with doodles! So if there’s a specific doodle you’d like to request and you have an extra $1 hanging around, hornet doodle requests are open on my ko-fi!!

What about the current projects that were happening on Silksongeveryday?

I’m still working on them! Just as mentioned before, a lot of stuff happened irl so it’s kind of on the back burner.

For the Hornet Journal Series: I plan to post the remaining entries after I come back from my month long break. Whether I work on them during that month long break totally depends on how I’m feeling. But there may be a likely chance I work on a few here and there on my own time! But regardless, I do plan to finish this project. So no worries!

For Hornet’s Strange adventures: I know it’s been ages since this particular project finished on the blog. Development for the free game is slow going since I’m working on this project entirely by myself with a game engine I’ve never used before. Progress is being made but it’s unfortunately slow thanks for irl conflicts. But, just like the journal series, I do plan to finish this project so I promise it won’t be abandoned!! I just need a break first lol.

___________

I think that’s all I have to say?? But if anyone has any questions, asks are always open and I’m more than happy to answer just about anything!

Thanks again for the wonderful experience, it’s been an amazing journey with you guys <3

See you all in a month!!

[interact-if]

Our second edition of the Black History Month Author Spotlight series features beloved author, C.C. Hill (@when-life-gives-you-lemons-if)!

(CC is an absolute institution. What better way to celebrate Valentine’s than by doing a feature of the slice-of-life romance queen herself? CC is one the most inspiring, supportive IF writers out there, and it was a great honor to pick her brain! Read on for pandemic-setting feel good stories and Creole-based spells!)

Author: C.C. Hill

I'm from Haiti, born and raised. I love red wine, ice cream, and I'm obsessed with true crime podcasts.

Games: When Life Gives You Lemons (Slice-of-Life)

Synopsis: You play as an MC starting a new life in a small town called Lemon. It’s a story about self-discovery, love, and parenthood—a comfort story where the love interests want to sweep you off your feet.

Games: The Midnight Saga (Horror)

Synopsis: After finding yourself trapped in another dimension, you and your friends must fight for survival and defeat the monsters that lurk in the shadows. Make sure to grab a weapon as your quiet Halloween night turns into an out-of-this-world adventure!

Quote from the interview:

What mostly inspired Lemon in particular was the need for a feel-good story—a story where the character just needs a break. No magic, no monsters, just going through life and having the romance options fall in love with them no matter what. It was just the need for comfort, for feel-good moments, for romance, and a little bit of drama.

Read on for the full interview!

Tell me more about yourself! What are some things new readers or long-time readers might not know about you?

I'm from Haiti, born and raised. I love red wine, ice cream, and I'm obsessed with true crime podcasts.

Can you tell me a bit about what you’re working on right now and your journey into interactive fiction? What inspired the game/story you’re currently writing?

I'm working on so many things it should be illegal for my brain to operate this way. But mainly, When Life Gives You Lemons. My plan is to focus on the final part in March, do some beta testing, and submit it to Hosted Games in April for my birthday month.

I'm also under contract with Heart’s Choice, writing Spices of the Heart, with hopes of completing it this year. On top of that, I’m working on publishing my first visual novel, The Wedding. It’s close to completion, and I have the third quarter of 2025 planned for publication.

I only started writing interactive fiction in 2020. When the pandemic hit, I needed something to keep my brain occupied, and five years later, I’ve published three games and still have a ton of projects in progress.What mostly inspired Lemon in particular was the need for a feel-good story—a story where the character just needs a break. No magic, no monsters, just going through life and having the romance options fall in love with them no matter what. It was just the need for comfort, for feel-good moments, for romance, and a little bit of drama.

How has your identity, heritage/background, upbringing, or personal experiences influenced your storytelling or writing process? OR How does your work feature aspects of your identity / experience?

My first game, The Midnight Saga, was heavily inspired by my background and where I'm from. The story itself is based on an old Haitian folklore about not staying outside after midnight—if you do, the Keeper of Midnight will eat you. I took that idea and built the characters around it.

I even managed to include some spells written in Haitian Creole. It was a lot of fun to write, and even though Book 2 is currently on hiatus, this story has a special place in my heart because it was my first game. The characters are a representation of my people and the struggles they’ve gone through. I’m really happy that it was my debut story.

What are some of the most rewarding or challenging aspects of writing Interactive Fiction for you?

For me, it’s branching and being able to write an MC and other characters in a way that readers can truly connect with. Lately, I’ve been writing a lot of feel-good romance and slice-of-life stories, and I’m starting to feel like this is my comfort zone—and I want to stay here forever.

I never want to create a romance option that is inherently bad or purposely deceitful. My biggest challenge is writing characters who are flawed and complex—where readers can love them or hate them—but making sure they aren’t just villains for the sake of it. They’re simply existing in the world they were created in.

What does your writing process look like? Any rituals or habits? Any tips, tricks, philosophies or approaches that have worked very well for you?

My writing process is a mess. My brain gets pulled in so many directions. When I get an idea, I have to code it, shape it, and give it life—otherwise, it’s going to bug me forever. That’s why I end up with so many WIPs. I need to see them through, at least to a short demo, to see if they make sense.

My desk is also full of notes, and I basically write on anything—pieces of napkins, tissue boxes, whatever is nearby. One weird habit I have is that some of the best changes I’ve made to my games, those "spark" moments, happen when I’m in the shower. It’s weird and strange, but it works.

What’re you excited to tackle/implement/work on next? Or anything you’re looking forward to in the year ahead?

Keep writing romance and feel-good slice-of-life stories. Get When Life Gives You Lemons published this year. Focus on doing this full-time. Publish my visual novel.

Overall, just stay busy and be productive.

If you were to say one thing to your readers, other authors, and/or the interactive fiction community: what would it be?

To the readers—us authors don’t have all the answers. Sometimes, we start writing a story and end up forgetting certain plots or characters, which is easy to do when writing interactive fiction. So yes, we often write ourselves into a corner and just put a period there so the story can progress.

To the authors—write stories you love, something you would want to read. It makes it easier to keep going because if it’s a story you love, you’ll want to see how it ends, and that will push you to persevere.

This-or-that segment: (red = CC's pick)

Coffee or tea?

Early mornings or late nights?

Angsty or Cozy romances?  

Steady progress or frenzied binge-writing followed by periods of calm?

Introvert or extrovert?

Plotter or pantser?

[moonsinkfoxgirl]

Do the emojis that are things you could conceivably keep in a wallet

sure I can try that^^

🐰 cannot fit the bnnyu -- X

💌 folded up love note should probably fit... -- diary or journal?

journal, a diary is like casual and conversation themed, and while I could put elements of that in a journal it could never escape the air of faux-professionalism and flawed attempts at accuracy I would instill in it; not that I have the diligence to commit to either

✨ stars might be just a teensy bit too big, even if they look a little bit like the Revstar ones I see no hairclip attached to them -- X

💕 hearts are too big for wallets in all circumstances -- X

💋 lipstick mark can fit sure, just put it on paper or kiss the wallet directly -- kissing in the dark or kissing in the rain?

both are good, the former I do somewhat regularly so the latter is more exciting probably^^

🐝 I am so sorry Bee-chan this is gonna hurt and might be deadly but Em is forcing me to do it, goodbye ;_; -- describe your aesthetic in emojis

already answered but I can copy them I think: 💜❤️🦊🍵🦈🦊🌕🌗🌑🌦🌊👖🦊🚋💻🩷💜💙

🍼 baby bottle too big -- X

🌸 flower getting squished but maybe it will be fine -- what is your favorite flower?

hydrangeas, snowdrops, lilies and spider lilies^^

💖 you see, they simply cannot fit, for a cute girls heart is vaster than the sea -- X

🍰 caki.. the wallet would be so ruined if I tried that, nope -- X

🍯 a whole pot could not possibly fit, but I shall make an exception and say it's just honey in general so Bee-chan has some food in there if she's still alive, spoonful goes in-- describe your favorite smell

it's a cute girl smell I have absolute no idea how to describe it whatsoever in other terms

🎂 yet more caki, this time with added fire hazard, nope -- X

🍪 I can squeeze a cookie into the part for the coins, sure -- cookie dough or cookies?

I have never been in a situation where there was a cookie dough in eating distance where the idea of eating it seemed appealing, maybe I haven't been near the right ones?

☕ coffee cup does not fit nope, no exceptions for such a bleh liquid, maybe if it was tea I would consider it... -- X

🍃 a leaf fits for sure -- would you rather live in a sea with mermaids or a forest with fairies?

those are both incredibly excellent, how am I supposed to choose... hmmm mermaid option let's me accompany my girl for sea serpent searching so maybe that

🍂 and even more leaf... - what’s your middle name?

that's a secret because I am not doxxing myself that hard lol

💫 I can fit a shooting star no problem, just gotta wait until it's down here and cool enough to pick up-- what is your sun, moon, and rising sign?

I googled this and the first calculator that came up gave me the creeps, no thank you, here you can have your shooting star back

🌧️ raincloud way way too big -- X

🍭 lollipop can fit if it's a small one -- how tall are you?

167cm^^, average central europe girl size, hehe^^

💒 even if I was willing to try fitting in that playmobile looking church the hearts could never fit -- X

🎄 christmas tree way too big -- X

🍦 whole icecream cone too big --X

🎶 *girl awkwardly sings into her wallet while being incredibly bad at it*-- favorite song right now?

this season has way too much music for that, have 4 of them (also cries in Sasakoi music still not having released u_u):

💘 again, you cannot fit something larger than an ocean -- X

🍩 round tube caki also too big -- X

❄️ this is gonna melt real quick, but it should definitely fit -- what is your favorite season?

FALL!

💍 gods I would buy my girl a ring that looks so much better than this, this trash may go into the wallet -- your current relationship status?

happily girlfriends with @collectivenothingness, though we would not necessarily be opposed to get a third

📷 my camera is significantly bigger than my wallet -- X

💅🏻 better hope that that fresh nail polish smell keeps Bee-chan from stinging me... -- do you like being spoiled?

hehe, of course I do, getting cuddles and scritches is the best^^

🕊️ dove with olive branch too big --X

🦄 unicorn head too big as well --X

🦋 butterfly-chan too??!? sure bee-chan seems fine in there rn, but a butterfly would definitely die, those wings are way too fragile for that, no no and no -- X

🌈 rainbow vast and in the sky -- X

🍓 yet more food for my bee i guess --one secret about yourself

I think I've mentioned my imaginary ex-girlfriend called Emily from when I was a teen a bunch before, but I never described what she looked like, so she's a ~20 cm tall girl with silver hair and rainbow colored fairy wings, and she usually wears a plain white dress, and she's an outwardly super optimistic genki girl who secretly thinks she's never good enough^^

🍒 a feast of fruit for one lonely bee-- how do you act when you have a crush?

I deny it, I imagine what could be while cuddled up in bed, I deny it some more, I like their posts on tumblr and never say anything until they do; or at least that's how it's been the last time, it's been a while

💔 even if you split an ocean in half like some kind of heartbreaking girl moses, it still will not fit in a wallet -- X

💬 *awkwardly mumbles apologies to Bee-chan into the wallet, asking her if she's okay and whatnot*-- what your last text message says?

"gonna shake it a bit more often too maybe" <- this is about air fryer fries, they turned out pretty good with one extra shake

🎥 film camera also too big -- X

⛅ the cloud is too big and the sun is even bigger I heard -- X

💗 another heart, another sea -- X

🥀 maybe another flower to sit on in there will make her forgive me... -- last time you cried?

hmmm.. it's been a short while, was just the usual neet depression feels iirc

🎁 present package big --X

🔪 that would ruin the wallet if I tried --X

💤 the concept of a girl's sleep is at least mountain-sized -- X

🎀 a small bow fits probably, but this does not provide a question, I shall have to make one up uhh -- can you please let that bee out of your wallet?

sure ^^ 🐝 〜☆

[suntails]

🍎⚔️

[franollie]

i do sometimes wonder how the gang's chemistry and dynamics would shift if they actually did have to co-parent a baby because realistically none of them should have children. ever. but the idea of dropping a baby in the hands of five incredibly unqualified alcoholics is oh so very amusing to me

[reksink]

A Pair of Delightful Comms for a Friend 💚

[myonmukyuu]

markers #21

Happy Birthday, Ayumu! 🥳🥳

While I was in in Tokyo earlier this year, I passed by a crafts store and found lots of pretty paper flowers. I thought they'd make really pretty shikishis... 😊

I've been drawing Nijigasaki for 4 years and this would be the 3rd Ayumu birthday I've drawn for... Wow! 😅😅

Ayumu's my favourite by far - so much that it's kind of hard to word why but I'd hope that adoration comes across in my art. There was originally a comic I was making for her, but I couldn't finish it in time. I hope I can make one in time next year!

WIPs

[necrotic-nephilim]

What do you think about the fab five polycule

(Dick x donna x wally x garth x roy)

i'll be SO honest i wish i had like. insightful interesting opinions on them but i've always been a Young Justice kid and sort of. breezed past consuming Fab Five Teen Titans content-

but of what i *do* know, from the few comics i've read with these characters is this is one of the best ships for Dick, honestly. it always deeply annoys me when fanon content breezes past the Titans as if they're just some distant teammates and not some of Dick's closest friends, if not a second family. *especially* the Fab Five. for most, if not all of them, it's the first time getting to actually connect with other teen heroes. so there's something fun about how sort of terrible they are at it, at first. they all care about each other a lot. but they're kind of chucked into the deep figuring out how to work with each other and get along with *very* different personalities, so it's fun to see where the conflict comes.

as a ship, i do really love it. the Titans are a family. like we call a lot of teams found families, but for the Fab Five, that shit is the truest. they depend on each other and trust each other. when Dick and Bruce are on outs and Bruce fires him, he goes to the Titans.

i also enjoy how, to an extent, all of them are outsiders of some kind. Donna is alone in a new world she's never experienced, the same as Garth. Roy is still new and awkward to living the rich life with Oliver. Wally doesn't connect to his parents well. and of course, Dick has lost his parents and only has Bruce, who isn't the most emotionally available. of course they're going to cling to each other, as the first people they can really develop connections too. they're very clingy with each other and i think that's both cute and *fun* to explore like, codependency issues with them. how protective they can be of each other, how they default to trusting each other over their mentors, etc. it's all very interesting for a polycule, especially since for most of them, it's their first real relationship. i'm a big fan of "none of us know what dating looks like bc we've had such strange childhoods so we don't understand the Rules very well. we're all just going to date each other bc why would i date only one of you. do teamups count as dates now." vibes with teenage polycules. and the Fab Five just. have that on lock. they each fulfill a different "niche" in the group. Garth is the softer, more emotional one you can go to if you're upset. Donna is the one for planning bright fun trips and making sure you don't wallow. Roy is protective and can pretend to be suave, but he shows affection through gift giving and grand gestures where words fail him. Wally can cheer any of them up with jokes and distractions. and of course Dick is the logical one who makes sure they all keep their heads on and don't drown in the responsibility.

overall i think it's a really cute ship and i do wish i just. knew more about them to be able to write them/read fic of it because i do love their dynamic. and i'm just a firm believer in the Titans being Dick's family, just as important to him as the Batfam. they're a disaster and for that you gotta love them.

[greenleaf4stuff]

Adar x Celebrimbor (Silverscars) Edit

(screenshots via cap-that.com) (my other trop edits)

I used this edit as a base to make the banner for my current long-fic, but this version of the edit was created first - back in 2024 (late December, but still, oops?)

Could be a scene in Celebrimbor's forge, or another in Adar's camp. Worried discussions? Peace negotiations? Adar trying to help Celebrimbor overcome his Sauron-related trauma? Celebrimbor asking Adar about his past? Who knows! As always, people are free to come up with their own ideas and interpretations.

[puppppppppy]

bestieesssss /platonic

(Xīn Yá belongs to me, Sailor belongs to @crow-cap)

[david-box]

Some spinning memes for you all. Image ID in alt text

[pintobordeaux]

Oreo

I made this for the lovely and kind @moorishflower based on a little snippet when the first beginnings of "Beautiful, Strange, and New" were just starting to be written. The scene is from the end of part 1 (chapter 9) which you can read here!

[moreaujeans]

IM FREEEEEE

[al-luviec]

Here is lady pics from when I was MIA

[miodiodavinci]

i saw that you used to hint at oc stuff on twitter (don't ask me why im digging im looking for zola stuff lmao) why don't you post more about them?

i am simply terrified that if i post oc things online someone will steal the concept and run with it faster and better than i ever could have and then i will be devastated forever and ever

more seriously i have very little to show for any of my oc things (adhd brain making life difficult as per usual awawawawawa) and every time i've shared oc things in the past i've ended up never following up on it and it makes me feel bad and guilty so i've just convinced myself i will Never talk about my ocs until i have something substantial i can put out there

[ducktollers]

i cant stand when people are like “umm actually generative ai isnt bad for the environment, its just as bad as everything else you do online ☝️🤓” like no fucking shit dude. the point is that it has the same environmental strain as other technologies except this one adds subzero value to our lives and most people dont even want it in everything and its only IN fucking everything using up tons of water and energy to pander to shareholders as Our Revolutionary New Ai Tool™️ or whatever the fuck