#this was prompted by comments on reddit again lol

[redlyriumidol]

tbh I do think Sera being a lesbian is an integral part of her character just as it is for Dorian. Yeah it's not her defining trait (nor should it be) and it's not directly tied into her character arc (nor should it have to be) but I think it's still a relevant aspect of her character as much as any other. I understand why people see it as more relevant for Dorian since it's an integral part of his arc, but I also believe that writing a lesbian (or gay, or bi, etc) character shouldn't necessarily entail her sexuality being a central issue in her story. It certainly can be, and it can be powerful when it is, like with Dorian-- but ultimately sexuality is a neutral trait like any other, it is important but isn't the only important thing about a person. gay characters are still worth including in media even when their sexuality isn't a central aspect to their stories.

Sera is neurotic, insightful, opinionated, brash, funny, honest, compassionate, messy, and also a lesbian. it's just who she is. I definitely get the issues with Sera's writing, trust me, though i'd point out she's hardly the only character with some issues around her writing. but also.... I kind of feel that she's a pretty earnest portrayal of a lesbian just because she's so open and natural and unapologetic about it which I personally love to see! it's just normal for her, she doesn't even think about it because it's just an obvious part of who she is. imo that also makes her an important character in terms of representation.

anyway. my point is that i love my troublesome lesbian daughter heehee. and i'm glad she exists 💛🐝

[suebswrites]

20 Questions for Writers Game

Thank you for tagging me, @yanny-77 and @caeli0306!

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 14! Plus a bunch on fanfiction.net from back in the day...*checks* 23. 23 works on FF.net that I will not share with you unless you are my friend, lol.

2. What’s your total AO3 word count? 114,162 words

3. What fandoms do you write for? The Empyrean (Fourth Wing) is the only fandom I currently write for, including one crossover with Bridgerton. All of my back-in-the-day fanfiction was for Harry Potter, but I don't write for anything other than the Empyrean anymore.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos? Just Ask - 1,087 Xaden POV: At Samara - 350 Throne Scene: Xaden POV Microfiction - 170 Dear Brennan - 117 Bridgegiath - 110

5. Do you respond to comments? Yes! At least, I try to. Though when I get an influx of a lot of comments at a time, I get overwhelmed and a little anxious about wanting to respond to them all, and then I get avoidant, heh. So it may not be right away, but I try to respond to as many comments as I can, and often will go back weeks later and then respond to them once I'm less anxious. As any writer will tell you, comments absolutely make my day and I read them over and over again, even going back and reading them days or weeks (or months) later.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Probably Happy Birthday, Violet, which is a drabble I wrote for the "birthday" prompt from the RQ War Games events in June. It's not necessarily angsty so much as sad. (I was hurting again about Liam at the time, lol.) It's tiny and short, you'll be fine.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? I have no idea how to answer this. Almost all of them are happy! I think. Uh. Okay @yanny-77 tells me that the answer is Ridoc Talks To The Dragon, and I believe her.

8. Do you get hate on fics? Nope! Well, never on AO3 or Reddit. I got, like...three negative comments on my biggest HP fic on FF.net years ago, but they were only three comments among over 400, so whatever, lol.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? Yes! I have written M/F and M/F/M. I only want to write sex if there are feelings involved, though, so I don't write any pwp. I don't know that I could, to be honest. The only fic I've written that had smut, outside of Just Ask, is canon-compliant TO Just Ask, and leans on the context built in the main longfic, heh. So...therrrrrre you have it!

10. Do you write crossovers? Yes! But only one. Bridgegiath is a Bridgerton-Empyrean crossover fic where all the characters from Fourth Wing are in a Bridgerton-world, more or less following the plot from Bridgerton Season 1. The most common comment type I've gotten on it is "the crossover I didn't know I needed AND I NEED IT SO MUCH", lol. It's hilarious and delightful and I plan to get back to it once the summer is over and I have more time to write again!

Bridgegiath - a Riorgail, Bodoc, Immrick, Jesiam fic, featuring (among all the others), Lady Durranbury as Lady Danbury. It's a blast.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? No

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? I will steal @yanny-77's answer and say that I am not cool enough for that. Lmao

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Hell yes. Co-writing has become my love language. I've co-written with @yanny-77 and @sarahydeart and all four times were fucking awesome.

Dear Brennan The Book Cat Garrick's Snorkel Ridoc Talks To The Dragon

14. What is your all-time favorite ship? My favourite ship is Liam/Violet/Xaden, for many reasons, which I will list now lol.

I adore each of the dynamics in this triad: the obvious friends-to-lovers, protect-you-with-my-life, slow burn fall of Violet and Liam; the explosive chemistry between Violet and Xaden; and the love that would grow between Xaden and Liam, born of being fostered together after the trauma of losing their parents, being separated for two years when Xaden went to Basgiath, and then meeting again once Liam gets there--and then they both fall for the same person.

I think Liam balances out a lot of Xaden's dark-and-broody energy, and could bring out a more relaxed version of him. And I think Xaden could bring out a harder edge to Liam that would be incredibly sexy. Liam and Violet's dynamic I obviously adore, and I think the way they take care of each other is fucking delightful and healthy and sweet. I think there's such an easy likelihood that both Xaden and Liam would fall for Violet.

I genuinely don't consider either Liam or Xaden to be bisexual, but I think they could fall for each other in this specific scenario, because of the unique dynamic of trust they have with each other.

All of this to say...Liam/Violet/Xaden is my One True Polypairing, heh, and one day I might write it. But that is a very distant, very pipe-dreamy one day.

Shoutout to Harry/Hermione, though. I'll die on that hill to this day.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Oof. I absolutely intend to continue Bridgegiath once I'm less busy, this summer has been absolutely bananas, and I'm REALLY hoping I'll be able to take it to a satisfying conclusion eventually.

16. What are your writing strengths? I have been told, and I think I agree and hope that it's true, that I'm able to wring quite a wide range of emotions out of my readers. I have it on good authority that I can bring you from thrilling tension to desperately turned on to heart-stopping angst without missing a beat, and have a decent eye for knowing when to insert a funny little exchange to ease tension before diving back in.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? I hope I won't lose my fanbase if I honestly say "finishing", heh. Though looking back at my history, I actually did finish both longfics that I wrote for Harry Potter, and I'm on track to finish Just Ask in a timely manner. I'm not too worried about Bridgegiath, because I know I'm much more likely to be invested in it again once I'm done Just Ask. It's just my original stuff that I struggle with I guess...

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I would rely entirely on Google translate if I ever did this, and thus would probably butcher any attempt.

19. First fandom you wrote for? Harry Potter, waaaaay back in 2007, two days after Deathly Hallows came out. I couldn't accept that Harry and Hermione didn't get together. (And I still can't.)

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

Just Ask. It's probably the best thing I've ever written. I started writing it to deal with my intense book hangover after Iron Flame, I'm still writing it, and it will be finished before the release of Onyx Storm. I am fiercely proud of it.

---

Tagging: @taumoebaa and @ubiquitouslyme and @copperfirebird

[allwaswell16]

- 2023 Fic Fest Participation -

Number of fests: 5

Number of fics: 8 out of 13

Favorite fest/fic: @louisrarepairfest because it's mine lol. I get so excited not only to write for it, but of course, to read all the fics that get written for it. It feels like the greatest gift ever! I ended up writing 3 fics for my fest this year. My fav of those is probably: One 

Fests you would love to do again this year (if they come back): Obvs @louisrarepairfest and the newly reformed @1domegaverseficfest

Tagging: @voulezloux @enchantedlandcoffee @letthemusicmoveyou28 @justanothershadeofblue @nouies and anyone who wants to do this, just say I tagged you!

Fics & thoughts under the cut

Do You See What I See for @faithinthefutureficfest

T, 2k, Louis/Harry | vet Louis, humor, stray animals

I don't know what to say for myself here. I had already signed up for another song for this fest, but this one didn't have anyone signed up for it so I said I'd write a second fic for the fest. I apologize to SIBWAWC for writing the silliest fic ever for it. I have so so so enjoyed the comment section for this though hahahahaha! Loved everyone's screaming :)

Bitter Ends Turn Sweet for @faithinthefutureficfest

E, 30k, Louis/Harry | songfic, famous/not famous

Well, this is the fic I actually meant to write for this fest lol. The first time I listened to Chicago I was at an 11 waiting to hear what it sounded like and as I listened this whole story appeared in my head. And I was just like...nah, not gonna write a long kid fic, am I? Turns out I did.

All This Time for Knot in my Name (multi-fandom event)

T, 1k, Louis/Harry | omegaverse, flower shop

So this has a complicated backstory that I won't get into lol, but I noticed this event happening to counteract AI and was like ohhh that's very cool and when I went to the collection I saw @louisthiccsexyglitteryass already had fics there and I was like ooh there are already 1D fics there? So then I felt comfortable joining in, too!

On That Note for a defunct fest that is now @1domegaverseficfest

E, 6k, Louis/Harry | omegaverse, office au, epistolary

Someone suggested a prompt based on a Reddit post that I liked about co-workers who only spoke through random notes on their Dropbox folders. And I saw a post on Tumblr about feral omegas and so I put those things together for this. And I really loved the omega friendships in this one. And it was fun to write the little notes that went back and forth between Harry and Louis.

Ace of Hearts for @sevenseasofharryandlouis

E, 10k, Louis/Harry | pirates, sequel

I had been saying I would write the sequel for Ace of Spades for a YEAR when I saw this fest and asked if I could join way after sign ups closed because 1) it fit the theme and 2) a deadline was the only way it was going to get written lol

Crush for @louisrarepairfest

T, 1k, Niall/Louis | co-workers, office

I decided I wanted to write rare pairs I hadn't ever written before and Nouis just felt right for the prompt. I found the prompt on Tumblr about how some office himbos tried to cheer up their co-worker who had just been dumped by her boyfriend. And they thought maybe mac & cheese would help.

Daydream for @louisrarepairfest

T, 2k, Zayn/Louis | girl direction, coffee shop

Another rare pair I'd never written AND I'd never written girl direction before. I got the prompt from a fic I read in another fandom about two strangers who see each other at the coffee shop everyday and what happens after one of them doesn't show up one day. But then I started writing and it all got chaotic and a bit different than that prompt lol. I think it turned out really fun though!

One for @louisrarepairfest

E, 4k, Louis/Tommy Shelby (Peaky Blinders)

SO. Obviously a v rare rare pair. BUT I had been wanting to write Louis/Cillian Murphy for years and couldn't figure out the right story for it. And finally it occurred to me that what I wanted to write was Louis/Cillian's character on Peaky Blinders lol. And then it all fell into place. I really enjoyed writing this as a historical Peaky Blinders fic and playing around with the structure a bit which is why the title is One. You follow Louis from the start, then one month later, then one week later, then one day later, then one hour later...and it actually really worked!

[aicosu]

11 for the ask game

11. Has a fic you’ve written ever caused issues/controversy?

Hmmmmm. I could say Message Sent, but not because the only allegory Bioware left me for modern Dalish was native american. But because I have never recieved more harassment ever, even when I brownfaced for cosplaying, than for not updating that fucking fic.

The backstory being that my grandma died. I had to drive home from LA help with thr funeral. So two months went by without update, then my dad had a heart attack. Twas not a great year. After scores of tumblr asks, reddit callouts, and literal mean comments, I just got super spiteful? Why update when someone badmouthed my grandma for dying and give them what they want? Why update when I was being accused of depriving people of "their coping" it was bad.

After that Sy convinced me to update again, but right after Trespasser came out and tbh i fucking... HATE SOLAS with how they wrote him? It made me really bitter.

Then a reylo plagarized it. Lol. So I wanted nothing to do with it if it was that cursed. Especially since some reylos still post about wishing it wasnt deleted and praising scenes that were stolen from my husbands and Is personal roleplays. Yikes.

Message Sent was a fun prompt turnes nightmare. It doesnt help that next chapters would mean me writing them fucking YELLING at each other. Who wants to get into anger vibes on a tuesday?

[viscountessevie]

You don’t have to answer this anon and I will not even try to send an ask to Mimi because I saw that she agrees with an anon saying it’s Simone Fans that shade Simone rather than JB fans so…

Are we really going to do this again pretending JB fans aren’t shady as fuck towards Simone? And no not just 5 or 6 weirdos. There a so many of them on the Rant Reddit sub, there are so many in the Kanthony fandom who we know actually don’t care about Kate at all. I see Simone Fans attacked on Reddit Rants daily, heck they even made an extra Subreddit to hate on Simone and her fans in particular. And yes sadly lots of them ARE JB fans. they are on Twitter too but they are more subtle.

Simone fans always get put down by their own fans too, saying that she is a big girl and that does not need protection. Some fans constantly bringing down Simone fans is what gets me here. Pointing out how problematic they are because they like this or that. Instead of ignoring them they get hated on while when JB fans do it it is nothing because they are mutuals. They know them, it is no big deal. Yes we block half of the fandom for having an opinion that is not our own. Okay.

Simone has a lot of fans that thankfully are in a growing number Simone fans only and I cannot wait for the day she leaves the show and all of those who claim to be a fan of both JB and Simone behind. I know some have already a problem separating JB and Simone and that there are fans who just don’t care about JB at all.

Don’t answer this if you don’t want to. I just have personally been harassed by Reddit folk and JB fans up until the point I wanted to quit social media altogether. I wanted to let this be known. There are a lot who are afraid to say anything because the hive will attack them on all social media.

Prompted by this ask

This is another ask that I don't really have much to add on too - just letting yall express your opinions! Thanks for sending this in anon :)

I will comment on the "She's a big girl - she doesn't need protection" bit. I think there's nuance to this argument. I think you and I agree that haters or neutral fans who wanna "keep" the peace say this to get us off their backs for insulting Simone.

But on the flip side I have seen people infantisling her which is not fair to her either. I think we all need to find a middle ground to defend her and protect ourselves - I say protecting ourselves because I see myself in alot of Simone's background, interviews and ideals she talks about! So when people attack those commonalities they are attacking those parts of me. It's very hurtful. Like yeah Simone won't see this bullshit but I and fans like me see it.

Other than that, anon I completely agree with your points (but a note for you and future anons, I'll feel more comfortable leaving my friends out of the asks lol - it's fine to name drop to hype them but let's not compare our experiences within the fandom - thank you!)

[wildgoose97]

r/AkechiAndHisSecretDelinquentBoyfriend

Fandom- Persona 5

Words- 646

Persona Kink Meme prompt-  A dedicated Goro fan snaps a pic of Akechi and Akiren doing confidant things that, out of context, could be interpreted as a date. Thus beings the subreddit dedicated to shipping the Second Detective Prince and some Delinquent. *Akira joins the subreddit for the lols. **Who in the PTs ships it for real? ***Akechi never finds out, he's too busy angsting over killing his homoerotic life partner.

Enjoy~

“Akira! Akira! You need to see this!” Akira snapped awake at Futaba’s voice. He drowsily opened his eyes just as Futaba reached the top of the steps, phone in hand.

Akira yawned, “What…?”

“You need to see this,'' she said,” a smile on her face, she handed her phone to Akira. His eyes took a moment to adjust to what looked like the layout of Reddit the more his eyes adjusted the more he was able to make out, there was a picture of two people...perhaps a couple judging by how close they are...wait that are those his glasses….! 

“Is that…?” Akira asked as he stared closely at the photo.

“Yup.”

….

….

The so-called ‘couple’ in the photo was him and Akechi, from what he could tell it was from when him and Akechi played billiards. 

“I was on the Akechi Goro subreddit-” he was curious why she was on the subreddit but didn’t ask, “-and someone cross-posted this photo from a subreddit called: r/akechiandhisboyfriend.”

….

….

“Am I the boyfriend?” 

“Yup.”

Akira clicks on the subreddit above th post to get a look at it. Firstly the description read ‘Photos, info, and fanart about Akechi Goro and his secret delinquent boyfriend! *this subreddit is purely for shipping don’t disrespect delinquent boy, because you’re ‘in love’ with Akechi*’ “Secret delinquent boyfriend?” Akira laughed a bit through his grogginess.

“Jeez I can’t believe you didn’t tell me you have a boyfriend, and him nonetheless!”

Akira shakes his head, slides his legs off the bed, and sits up causing Morgana to slide onto the bed still dead asleep, “We’re not, you know how Akechi’s fans are.”

Futaba nodded and sighed, “Yeah I know, I’ve seen his subreddit.”

“That photo was just taken out of context,” Akira stated, handing Futaba her phone back.

“Hmmmmm, sure…” Futaba muttered as she turned away and made her way back downstairs while saying something about curry.

Akira yawned again, grabbed his phone from under his pillow, turned it on, and quickly navigated to Reddit. He quickly typed in the name of subreddit, wanting to scroll through it more…It sure was...interesting. It was crazy how much all these fans knew about him, and the time he’s spent with Akechi. The first post was, of course, the photo from earlier, the next one was a thread dedicated to figuring out who the ‘secret delinquent boyfriend’ was it didn’t take long it seemed for a Shujin student to come on and say ‘That boy goes to my school, he’s a really bad delinquent’....alright. Akira scrolled more, it was people talking about him and Akechi playing gun-a-bout together, then them sharing a date at the jazz club, someone talking about how they’d seen them sitting rather close in the bathhouse….wow this is...impressive.

His phone dinged and he quickly clicked the notification sending him to his message app and onto the Phantom Thieves group chat. 

Ann: Did Futaba show you the subreddit?

……

Akira: Yes.

Makoto: It’s kinda creepy

Yusuke: I like it especially the art, it’s rather nice

Futaba: Stop being weird Inari

Ryuji: Akira are you really um... dating him?

Akira: No, of course not.

Ann: Then what’s with all those photos?

Akira: They’re just out of context

Futaba: Mmmhm

Haru: Akira-Kun it’s completely okay we wouldn’t judge you if your dating him

Akira: We’re not dating 

Futaba: Suuuuuuuuure

Akira sighed and put his phone down, and couldn’t help but to wonder what Akechi will think of this.

-------------------------

Akechi laid his phone down, he tweeted at least once a day, just to keep up his celebrity status. He had gotten quite a few comments this day though, all about some subreddit, he wasn’t much for Reddit so he ignored them, after all, he had more important things to think about. A smile spread across his face as his thumb hovered over the metaverse app.

[raxistaicho]

A common claim in response to criticism of Edelgard for her starting of the war is that she only declared war on the Church of Seiros, not on Leicester or Faerghus. 

That’s true, actually, and supported by Three Hopes. Edelgard starts the war only against the Church of Seiros, and Dimitri widens and prolongs what would have otherwise been a very brief conflict by attacking Imperial soldiers pursuing Rhea with the intent to capture, not kill, her and end the war.

However, as to be expected, this claim is once again a lie as stated in the final chapter of White Clouds. https://houses.fedatamine.com/en-us/chapters/crimson-flower/12/outset-of-a-power-struggle 

I see this point bandied about on Reddit a lot and my rebuttal remains the same: what the narrator says does not match with what we see.

With this single attack, the Adrestian Empire officially launched its offensive against the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus and the Leicester Alliance. The unification of Fódlan has begun. 

The narrative says this and yet five years later, there is, in fact, no sign at all that the Empire has launched an offensive against the Leicester Alliance.

In fact, the Alliance attacks the Empire unprovoked in Verdant Wind, Silver Snow, Azure Moon, and Scarlet Blaze. The last needs a brief amount of explaining: all signs point toward the Empire being present in Gloucester territory by invitation from Gloucester and Acheron, given Claude doesn't even learn of the Empire's march on Garreg Mach until after the monastery is taken. In Golden Wildfire, on the other hand, Claude attacks the Imperial soldiers as they attempt to cross the Great Bridge.

As a brief diversion, something I see often brought up is Lorenz's claim in the non-CF version of Chapter 12 that the Empire might bully House Gloucester into working alongside them:

But this doesn't mesh at all with his explore quote in Chapter 12 of CF:

Lorenz speaks calmly and without any sign of uncertainty in this quote. Then there's the fact that House Gloucester helps the Empire to hold the bridge in the non CF versions of Three Houses, when helping to take it from them would be in Gloucester's best interests if the Empire were truly bullying them.

As for the Kingdom, Dimitri in Crimson Flower provides Rhea shelter much like his Three Hopes incarnation. We learn basically nothing about what prompted open hostilities between the Kingdom and the Empire in the other three routes, but it likely had something to do with Cornelia's coup.

Furthermore, the first chapter of Part II states that one of the goals of Edelgard is to conquer Faerghus and Leicester

This comes five years after the war begins, mind, and after Dimitri thoroughly sided against Edelgard by sheltering her enemy. What changed between the Empire and the Alliance is less certain, but certainly something did given Edelgard is no longer willing to risk a supposedly-but-not-really neutral Alliance sitting at her flank as she invades the Kingdom (a wise decision, given Claude attacks her in all three routes without the Empire apparently doing anything to attack the Alliance first).

and is supported by dialogue in Three Hopes where Edelgard explicitly states that is her intention.

I can't comment on this without a quote, I'm afraid.

On a somewhat unrelated note, because I know someone is going to try arguing it. In the translation of Chapter 12 by Nintendo of America in Crimson Flower, it states that the Church created the Crest obsessed society, however this is most likely an addition by the translation team, given the lack of anything close to that in the original Japanese text obtained from the Three Houses Datamine.

This part isn't related to the primary topic (as you said yourself it's an unrelated note, lol), but I thought it was interesting to address.

Whether the line existed originally or not, the Church (or rather, Rhea) did, in fact, create Fodlan's Crest-based society.

Yes, the Church of Seiros and Rhea didn't create Crests (Nemesis and his thugs did when they slaughtered the Nabateans at the Red Canyon), but without the Church of Seiros providing a deceptive theological framework under which Crests exist, all they are is an inherited superpower. Certainly enticing to some people, but the Church changed them from "might makes right" to being literally blessed by the goddess.

And yes, Rhea did this because her alternative was slaughtering the Ten Elites, but... actually it's a little more complicated than that. If ONLY the Ten Elites held Crests Rhea could have declared them unholy stolen power (which would more or less be true, actually), but because she and the Saints likewise empowered the forebears of the Imperial nobility (and knowing her, probably hyped up those Crested individuals as holy chosen warriors of the goddess), she trapped herself into needing to concoct that lie. It really is the story of Rhea's tragedy that, despite playing the long game, she doesn't think far enough ahead to see when and how all her millenia of accumulated lies, falsehoods, and deceptions might tumble like a house of cards, which is precisely what happens in Crimson Flower.

War of Fodlan

A common claim in response to criticism of Edelgard for her starting of the war is that she only declared war on the Church of Seiros, not on Leicester or Faerghus. However, as to be expected, this claim is once again a lie as stated in the final chapter of White Clouds. https://houses.fedatamine.com/en-us/chapters/crimson-flower/12/outset-of-a-power-struggle

Furthermore, the first chapter of Part II states that one of the goals of Edelgard is to conquer Faerghus and Leicester, and is supported by dialogue in Three Hopes where Edelgard explicitly states that is her intention. https://houses.fedatamine.com/en-us/chapters/verdant-wind/13/reunion-at-dawn

On a somewhat unrelated note, because I know someone is going to try arguing it. In the translation of Chapter 12 by Nintendo of America in Crimson Flower, it states that the Church created the Crest obsessed society, however this is most likely an addition by the translation team, given the lack of anything close to that in the original Japanese text obtained from the Three Houses Datamine.

[macgyvertape]

50 or so hours into Cyberpunk 2077

This should be roughly the correct amount of time, ive been leaving the game running as I get up to get food or do stretches. Quests are roughly in order I did them

non spoilers above cut:

 i haven't found a single hat/helmet i like, and since you can't hide them I just am not wearing any. It matters that much.

I posted the other day about bugs, every few hours I play I find new bugs. some require me to go back and reload a save others I honestly can’t tell if it’s a bug or just really poor development

there are several perks that don’t quite do what the description says, like the Anamesis perk. Based on reddit and trying it out it seems to just not do anything.

sometimes in car chase segments the passenger will say “look out” as cars spawn in my path and hit me. Can’t tell if that was deliberate or a pop in issue

Yeah I’ve just totally given up on doing pacifist things unless required by a mission. Given up on doing stealth too unless a mission objective, except for sneaking around to set up a fight.

:readmore:

the delemain car quest is fun. From the shock of the one going "beep beep motherfucker" and doing a hit and run to start it off, to the GLADOS car i see a lot of people talking about. It was fun to explore the city when i might have missed places like the landfill apparently there is follow up on T-bug's death if you go back to the quick hack shop in Kabuki. It's not much but better than nothing I made the pass with Panam of "what if the room just had one bed". I know she won't do a wlw romance, which is fine since I wouldn’t have chosen her.  I enjoy her as a character, don’t get me wrong, my V considers her as a friend, but it seems like theres always drama going on which would be tiring. I would have gone for a fling, i like her leotard-pants combo with all the straps

but also her questline was buggy as hell. Multiple cases of having to reload due to clipping into objects, including her in a driving section, or just insta-dying when collision physics with some rocks broke "your neural network can no longer function independantly of the chip" me slapping my desk: s y m b i o te!!! come on lets have some s y m b i o s i s

in the scene with hellman i really liked how Johnny moved around the room. It made him feel like he was really there. it was hard to follow the convo as I left the room, i would not have understood it without subtitles. But i guess Takemura fucking waterboarded hellman. :|

lol I hope the dialogue is different b/c i refuse to smoke for Johnny

i am level 18 and still can't beat the first opponents in the fist fighting quest. ffs

I looked up the romances options so I went to do the I fought the law quest as soon as i got it. ACAB, but like I literally just met River Ward 2 minutes ago, and I really like him. His earring and cyborg eye, his big fluffy coat. I'm definitely gonna sleep with him Ok i like how when River Ward is dealing with the tiger claws if you interject it leads to a fight. It goes better if you follow his instructions and let him deal with it. Seriously I enjoy that sometimes its good to not pick a dialogue choice.

during the red queen club part, there was no dialogue over the phone. So i reloaded a save and got myself spotted and attacked. Then River showed up to help me <3 and it was more enjoyable having him there. I honestly am not sure if him not going to the club level is bug or not.

then uuuuuugh the worst of irl police "cops are my family" from Detective Han. Again ACAB "FRATERNITY OF CITY COPS RESEMBLES A [Nomad] CLAN NOT AT ALL" ok a few minutes ago i was complaining about bugs, but the character modeling in this game is good (when they're there). You can see body posture, characters jiggle their legs when they are nervous. Like I though character A was just throwing a cigarette on the ground, but then character B flinches back; I realize Char A threw it at B as a fuck you

I'm honestly curious if "I fought the Law" quest will have any impact later on. My choices were that I thought there was more going on than Holt being the only person behind this (based on how complicated the main questline heist is, and keeping an eye on some of the in game news), and told him not to take it to internal affairs, and I loved his response of how he doesn't give a shit what we think, he's doing it anyway.

In the elevator to report in, Johnny said "this muck is deeper than you think, tell them nothing", so i just said that the case was complicated. anyway i love how much of a sarcastic asshole V is

I thought i was being nonlethal with the monk quest, but it seems i accidently killed someone. RIP, but thats kind of the problem with this game. Like when i do the non lethal cyberpychosis quests I equip my non lethal modded gun and hope for the est. I like how a go here kill things quest led to Charles the ripperdoc. He's getting all his parts from scav gang members so I felt obligated to take him out. I got a police bounty for it but w/e.

I merged the Delemain fragments with the whole. Guess he's the meta now. (Side note: some of my favorite rvb fanfic plots are Ai consiousness/memory merging with the humans, so I’m having fun with this game and look foward to introspective fanfic)

Honestly Jonny made some good points, the fragments didn't deserve to die; but also destroying the core and freeing the fragments, they couldn't really function alone.

I was able to rescue Saul fine with stealth. Using cameras and the synapse overload really made it easy.  Can't use the sniper rifle reward b/c I don't have the stats for it, and while it has a silencer the fact that it's a ricochette weapon and not a shoot through walls weapons, makes it not as good imo; and theres a legendary one that is stats free for only 100k.

Lol made a pass again at Panam, and she immediately shut me down. I then did Mitch's quest and I love every time someone tells V they area  good person.

I hacked the operation carpe noctem shard, and wow the corporations are using ai to make people have cyberpsychosis, or something like that. What a shocker /s, I've played Deus Ex HR before

lol driving through the unifinished interstate, past the fight from Panam's first quest I found a "batcave" with a very nice car, and a manifesto written by "muckman'. But here's my complaint about the loot, there is a legendary top, but it had 16 armor. My current top has 84 armor, like why would i switch?? then later i found a bunker with soviet spies in it. Wild

Doing River's second quest, love the timing of as soon as you ask, why are we breaking in, someone shows up to tell you he got kicked off the force. It's funny how Johnny comments how maybe River's into you, and V just doubts Johnny's words. Love how the first kid asks River if I'm his girlfriend. also wow like oof both the second parts of Judy and River's quest are SUPER fucked UP!! oof like i stopped doing first person mode on the braindances for those quests as soon as i could, just made me too uncomfortable seeing that in first person.

DRIVING IN THE GAME IS BAD! nowhere is it more apparent than the sinnerman quest, which took me 3 times to get the driving section done, as cars spawned out of nowhere to hit me. Then when you restart, there is a bunch of dialogue it doesn't let you fast forward through. The rest of the Sinnerman questline is interesting. My V took every option to tell the dude that he was messed up, and what he was doing was wrong. idk, I was surprised how much dialogue there was that let you buy into his whole "forgiveness thing" and how there wasn't any real dialogue to call him the fuck out, that in seeking forgiveness he continues to do harm both emotional to the mother of the man he killed, but also that he got the husband killed via cop. The later follow up quest, I told him that what he is doing is crazy, studio is just going to profit off this vid. Then I refused to join him prayer, and told him fuck no i wasn't going to hammer him to the cross, or even watch. Yes, the man is scared of dying, and the corporation is exploiting him, but he keeps creating burdens for others.  I think the discussion on this quest will be interesting to read, it's definitely my own personal experience with religion coloring my view. Anyway back to a main quest, yeah i don't trust Placide, especially in that scene where he grabs my hand, then jacks in. I ran off to do most of the sidequests here and got some criticism from him. I do love how in the cinema the western movie switches to a mission brief as the netwatch agent talks. its a fun enviromental detail.  I took the netwatch offer, i don't think he's being fully honest with me, but he didn't put a virus in my head. As I told Placide later, I didn't pick a side. I like how you can then talk with the agent, who is a fan of Western movies, b/c they show "a simpler time where all good guys carry badges" :eyeroll:, and then V recommends Unforgiven, which from the wiki summary goes against that theme.

Looks like the Voodoo boys all got killed by Netwatch, but I as revenge for them trying to set me up I'm fine with it. Honestly after speaking with ai!Alt I don’t believe their plan of trying to be on good relations with AI would work. 

doing the johnny flashback 2, and wow Johnny really is an asshole. Like I had gotten so used to him in side missions I forgot how self centered and unlikable he was.You constantly get prompts to drink or do drugs, which I ignored. But i do love the goth/punk love Rogue and others have.

lol i called it, when Hellman said that the engram would seek to override the host, put V on the engram. I really like how as the relic malfunctions, you wind up in the chair with a cigarette, which you can either smoke and say you are turning into Johnny or throw away. My dialogue "your problem is the ends justify the means", which is true!!! He and Rogue detonated a nuke downtown, does anyone know that, and like ask Rogue about it????

(Funny you can ask Rouge about Johnny silverhand, over the phone, then the game bugs out and spawns her npc where you are. She doens't say much about the nuke, but she does say no one trusts you for jobs). The line of no one trusting you for jobs is pretty funny at level 46 street cred where im at “respected” status. really loving the family atmosphere at River's 3rd quest. Also his big strong arms, and the fact he is no longer a cop. I totally let the kids win, and wow the family dinner where they GRILL YOU over the relationship and try to set the two of you up, then the water tower scene!!!!! I don't love the first person sex cutscenes but they do have personality. I'm glad afterwards you got to tell River about the biochip and that you might die. Because he's so far removed from your personal plot. So I took that option to back out of a relationship.

I do love that you wake up with "river's tanktop" that says "fuck the police" It actually has extremely good armor stats, so thats what I'll wear now.

panam 3rd quest, when shes like why did you help me, I'm like "because it's important to you". Basically the closest you can get to "when a friend asks for help you help them", which as an ex-nomad backstory I really choose the nomad options when ever i can Paralezes quest part 2! I love the piano song but I always think of it as ocean's 11 music. It's also fun to see the computer and see Judy recommended you for the first quest. The emails talk about "forgetting" to hire a staffer, on the balocony a strange antennia was scannable, the color of the roses was remembered wrong...  lol guess i was right with those giant wall screens. Its fun environmental details that spell things out before you can notice, and it ties into some other quests where people's behavior is being altered. Actually, this quest "Dream On" I love it! For a while I've been like "wheres the illuminati conspiracy! Here it IS! I chose to follow Elisabeth's wishes and not tell her husband he was being brainwashed. In best case they program him to forget again, in worst case he ends up dead. The gaslighting Elisabeth described is CHILLING, her husband describes a vacation she can't remember and she doesn't know whose memories have been messed with. On your way to the plaza you get a call from someone/something that says the know exactly WHAT you are, any you black out!!! It's such a great feeling of helplessness that you're just one person in a world so big that you can't fight every power. As Johnny said, could be a corporation, could be a rogue ai, either way Jefferson is fucked (and so are you).

[danfanciesphil]

hello! i was wondering if you have any tips for me since youre studying creative writing rn and im kinda in a writers slump. i wrote fics last year but then depression got to me and i stopped. i wanna find inspiration again but im lost and i dont know how to start writing again. im also scared that people will be mean when i post. also i read birthday sex a while ago and loved everything! its truly a masterpiece

hello, i sure do have some tips for this! everyone gets blocked sometimes, don’t worry yourself over it. Check below the cut for my protips (lol)

1. Don’t beat yourself up! Sometimes you’re not up to writing, and it can’t be helped. As I am fond of reminding whoever will listen, writing is kind of like self-torture in a lot of ways. It’s emotionally exhausting, because you’re essentially drawing on your (often painful) memories and experiences, and channeling them into a work of art. Sometimes your brain won’t cooperate, and it’s okay. You need to be in the right frame of mind. You haven’t lost any talent, you’re just tired. Try again when you’re in a better mood. 

2. Write what you love. Quiet that little voice in your mind that is asking who will want to read whatever you’re writing. It doesn’t matter. If you write something you want to write, your passion and creativity will shine through it, and people will learn to like it. Have you ever clicked a fic thinking ‘:/ im not sure this is my thing’, but then it’s written so amazingly that you end up loving it? I’ve had that happen a bunch! I’m really picky with reading fics lol, so I often start one assuming im gonna hate it, but then fall in love. 

3. Prompts! When you’re stuck for an idea, prompts are a lifesaver! I really recommend this reddit thread for when you don’t know what to write. Or, if you want a purely phan prompt go to @phanfic and look at their prompts tags! Not only do prompts give you a jumping off point, but they also guarantee you a reader! The prompter is going to want to read what you write, no question! They’ll likely be so happy that you chose to complete the prompt that they’ll love it regardless!

4. Fanfiction. This is a broad one, but what I want to say here is that fanfiction, to me, is the world’s best training ground. Think of it like the colosseum - you are a gladiator. You have these characters to play with, and an empty stadium to fill with whatever you want. Literally anything you can imagine. It’s daunting, sure, but the point is, go nuts! Try out that mermaid!phil au you’ve been thinking about on and off - see if it works! If it doesn’t, drain the colosseum of water, and put dnp in fucking tents on the side of everest. Try everything! Write write write, explore your talents, find what your strengths are!

5. Daydream! Fantasise your tits off, srsly. My secret is that I plan all my storylines as I’m falling asleep. I make it play out like a movie in my head, I imagine what they’ll say, how it will happen. Then, the next day, I’ll write it out. There’s nothing stopping you from making up this stuff in your head, so dream about it over and over, refine it in your mind until it’s how you want it, and then write it down!

6. Beta’s are everything. I’m gonna be lame and shout out my absolute fave @manschester for being the loml and the greatest beta a girl could ask for. Find a friend that likes your writing, isnt afraid to be honest with you, and will help u out with writing. My fave thing to do with Nova is open up a google doc of mine or her latest chapter, send her the link (or vice versa) and either she watches me write and comments/edits as i go, or i do the same for her. it’s honestly the most helpful thing ever to have someone else’s eyes on it. It also helps you to feel confident about posting! Beta beta beta. 

7. Patience. You’re not gonna go from 0-100. I’m 23. I’m pretty happy with my writing atm, but I remember feeling that way at 16. And if I look at the stuff I wrote when I was 16 I crrrringe. You’ll improve with time and practice. You just will. UNLESS you don’t keep at it. The best thing about the phandom is how fucking awesome and supportive it is as a community. There’s no better place to share and improve your gift. People will always want to read about our faves dip and pop. Just let yourself have the small victories at first. Treasure each comment, each nice review. And keep going. 

I hope any of this helps! 

And thank you so much for being lovely about Birthday Sex, I’m so happy you liked it :D xxx

[fanfictionlive]

Smutty Saturday (formerly freaky friday) A Fandom Blind Kink Meme [Warning: Explicit Content]

(Sooooo... apparently I keep forgetting it's Friday. Oops lol.)

WARNING: ALL CONTENT IN THIS THREAD IS RATED MATURE OR EXPLICIT

If you are under 18, leave now, lest your eyes be burned from your skull and your innocence be swept mercilessly away.

Welcome to Smutty Saturday, a weekly FANDOM-BLIND KINK MEME!

WTF?!

Yes, that's exactly it. What: the fuck!

This isn't your usual kink meme. Prompts are still given by the user base, (i.e. you lot (and me)) but there's a format to follow that will let people who aren't in your fandom answer them. I'll get to that in a moment.

First, though, I'd like to make absolutely clear that this thread is for smut prompts. Mature and explicit rated stories. Sex. Fucking. You know, the good stuff! Yeah, we know you read it, we know you write it, so why not have a place to get ideas and find it?

Secondly, some ground rules are necessary for everyone to have a good time:

Per Reddit’s TOS: pedophilia is not permitted.

Please tag your fic for any possible squicks!.

Announce the gender(s) of your pairing/grouping in your story responses. There's nothing more off-putting than getting into what you think is some steamy slash and suddenly everyone's got vaginas! (Or the opposite!)

THERE. WILL. BE. NO. KINK. SHAMING! I'm serious. You see it, push the "report" button.

This is going to be an "everything goes” zone. (except pedophilia) If you want to write incest/furry/cake-sitting porn, go for it.

If someone's story seriously offends you, again, push the "report" button. I'll review it and if it needs to leave, it will.

Subreddit moderators reserve the right to remove any story, at any time, for any reason. Not negotiable.

On to the fun bits! ;)

How are we doing this?

All top level comments in this thread will be prompts.

Anyone is welcome to make a prompt. Just put a sentence or three describing what your scenario is. The less detailed you are, the more responses you’ll likely get. Add a line at the end specifying your preferences for fandom and pairing.

If you see a prompt you like, do it! Reply to the prompt maker, it's just that simple.

But what if I get a story reply to my prompt that I don't like?

Step 1: Be happy that you inspired someone!

Step 2: Too bad, so sad, close it.

What if I’m embarrassed by my smut?

Make a new throwaway! All the cool kids are doing it.

What if I’m *not* embarrassed by my smut?

That’s absolutely fabulous! We look forward to the link to your AO3/Tumblr/whatever when you put up a story.

How are we tagging?

Honestly, just be sensible. If it’s something big like rape/noncon, murder, torture, incest, definitely put a tag on that. Other useful ones will be: BDSM, crack, unusual kinks, anything you think might squick someone, really.

Example Prompt:

Two characters caught in a rainstorm, in semi-public, clothes are pushed out of the way and they fuck desperately. The mood is urgent/needy. Preferences: Firefly fandom, Mal/Kaylee pairing.

There! See what I did? The main thrust of the prompt gave the details for a generic fill, but the bonus gave a challenge for people who know the fandom and characters.

Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.

Example Fill:

M/F pairing | Firefly | Mal/Kaylee Roughsex, exhibionism SMUT GOES HERE!

OR

F/F pairing | Cinnamon Toast Crunch Mascots | Square 23/Square 8237 Crack, BDSM, Torture SMUT GOES HERE!

Alright, enough talk. Let’s do it! ;)

Need more inspiration? Apr28 May5 May12

submitted by /u/Atojiso [link] [comments] from FanFiction: Where Magical Ponies battle Imperial Titans http://ift.tt/2pWncoA

[datingadviceonreddit]

Throwaway because we know each other's reddit handlesFew months ago I met this girl at a two-day trip organized by an university. One night, about eight people played a TT game until around 3 AM (note, no drinking). Afterwards when everyone else went to sleep we talked about a hour and half.Few days later, she found me on FB and sent me a funny video, out of nowhere. I proceeded to send her my own collection and not so long afterwards, we began talking about everything we did.Over the course of two months, I (looking back to it, pretty regularly every few days) initiated conversation about something, after which we intensively talked about it for few days.It turned out, we have so much in common.Programming? Check. Anime? Check. Piano? Check. 1984-like books? Check. Fantasy? Check. Terrible memes? Check. Trying to learn guitar? Check. Opinion about school system in our country? Check. Where to go to college? Check. Arch? Btw. sorryAbout a week ago I started playing LoL with her and this week I'm enrolling her in our D&D campaign, which she never played but mentioned that she wanted to try it for a long time.I'm really happy about this, I love our conversation and talking to her. We have so much in common, I've never met a person who I had so much in common with and could talk about so much.If only we weren't on the other sides of our country. I'd love to meet her again, but she's so far away. I'm trying to find any event near us to invite her and talk to her IRL again.Now I just try to keep conversation with her and worry about looking creepy messaging her every few days about a random thing.Our first conversation was prompted by her, the followups by me. She responds and seems to enjoy our conversations, but she doesn't initiate one after we end a topic. I just worry whether she's interested in me. I know I'm stupid and it's probably obvious, but it'd be great if you could give me your opinion. I really enjoy our conversations and would hate them to end because of a mistake I might make. Isn't it annoying to send her a message every few days? She always participates and seems to like them, but I really don't know. via /r/dating_advice

[preciousmetals0]

Aurora-Coke Rumors: All Smoke and No Toke

Aurora-Coke Rumors: All Smoke and No Toke:

Share a Coke With Aurora Cannabis?

Are you well rested from the holiday break?

I hope so, because I have a doozy of a conspiracy theory in the cannabis sector for you today. It involves the most widely held stock on Robinhood and the world’s largest soft drink maker.

Before we get to the speculation, let’s start with the facts.

On Monday, Aurora Cannabis Inc. (NYSE: ACB) announced that Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) Cam Battley was leaving the company. Battley was considered the face of Aurora, so his leaving hit investor sentiment hard.

What’s more, analysts at Jefferies downgraded Aurora to hold from buy on the news. “It is clear to us that the market is lacking conviction in Aurora, and this update will do little to help that,” the ratings firm said in a note to clients.

ACB plunged 8% on Monday as a result.

Now for the speculation. A gentleman by the name of “Gabor the Blind Guy” posted a video to YouTube earlier this week where he tries to open a new childproof lid his father designed for Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO). According to Gabor, this childproof lid is for a new cannabidiol (CBD) drink that Coke is releasing in Canada.

Coke childproof lids? Coke CBD drinks?

There’s nothing in the news about any of this … save for one article over at TheCannabisStock.com.

Anyone else remember the last company Coke was talking with to produce CBD drinks?

That’s right: Aurora Cannabis.

The Takeaway: 

Don’t go looking on YouTube for the video — it’s gone.

In fact, Gabor’s entire YouTube account is gone. So are his Facebook and Twitter accounts. I’m thinking someone accidentally broke a nondisclosure agreement here. Oops.

But this is the digital information age. Nothing is ever truly gone. In fact, you can find a mirror of the video here (while it lasts).

Now, I don’t need to tell you that Aurora could really use a boost … and a deal with Coke would be a major coup for the cannabis company. Aurora just rolled out its Cannabis 2.0 products in Canada, including a long list of edibles, vapes and drinks. A Coke-backed Cannabis 2.0 drink could send ACB to the moon.

What’s more, what if CCO Battley only moved out of Aurora (and into an Aurora subsidiary) to make way for a Coke representative ahead of a CBD drink deal?

The possibilities are tantalizing, aren’t they?

For an expert’s take on the situation, I reached out to Banyan Hill’s resident pot stocks guru, Anthony Planas. Here’s what he had to say:

I saw it on Reddit. I think it’s BS.

Clearly not the take we anticipated, but it’s a stark reminder that any potential tie-up between Aurora and Coke is purely speculation at this point.

Thank you, Anthony, for bringing us all back to earth on this one.

As it turns out, Anthony was right. Just before Great Stuff hit the presses, Coke issued a statement: “As we have stated many times, we have no plans to enter the CBD market.” Bummer.

Remember, the cannabis sector is quite volatile right at the moment. You need an expert to help guide you through the rumors and speculation. To that end, Anthony and Real Wealth Strategist editor Matt Badiali have come up with five pot stocks you “must own” right now … before more states legalize.

Click here to find out more!

Good: Tesla Smokes $420

It was bound to happen … and when it did, CEO Elon Musk was just itching to make a joke.

On Monday, Tesla Inc. (Nasdaq: TSLA) hit $420 per share. The milestone prompted Musk to tweet out: “Whoa … the stock is so high lol.”

All jokes aside, Tesla is smoking right now. The shares are up a whopping 1,600% since their initial public offering, with optimism over the new Chinese Gigafactory driving bullish sentiment right through that burning Walmart roof.

Analysts are even jumping on board, albeit reluctantly. Today, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives lifted his price target on TSLA to $370 from $270, citing strong demand for the Model 3. While Ives gave a nod to “massive short covering” for Tesla’s recent resurgence, he also pointed out “underlying fundamental improvement” at the company. After all, Tesla turned a surprise profit last quarter.

But the short squeeze story can’t be ignored. Tesla shorts have … well … lost their shorts by betting against the company. And there’s more to come. ShortSqueeze.com reports that 27.5 million TSLA shares remain sold short after a 4% decline in the latest reporting period.

Those remaining 27.5 million shares still account for about 20.5% of Tesla’s total float (or shares available for public trading). With TSLA still climbing, how much longer can these remaining bears hold out before they’re forced to buy as well?

Better: Riveting Competition 

When Tesla unveiled its new Cybertruck, the internet had a field day making fun of the “truck’s” odd design features. Not since the Pontiac Aztek have we seen a vehicle so, well … ugly.

With so few true competitors, it looked like energy-conscious truck enthusiasts (yes, they do exist) were stuck driving a truck designed by a six-year-old. That is, until Rivian secured a massive amount of funding.

Rivian is an electric vehicle startup that’s drawn considerable interest from backers as of late, especially after Tesla’s Cybertruck made its debut. Rivian’s trucks and SUVs look more like traditional vehicles than anything Tesla makes, providing a level of confidence to key backers.

So much so that the company announced it raked in $1.3 billion in funding in its latest investment drive — its largest to date. Big names are lining up behind Rivian, including Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) and Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN).

Rivian is expected to start delivering trucks and SUVs next year. Are we witnessing the emergence of a true competitor in the electric vehicle market?

Best: Breaking Records

I honestly don’t know why more people don’t shop online during the holiday season … or at any point during the year, for that matter. It’s like y’all didn’t get the memo: You don’t have to fight hordes of people to buy things anymore.

This year, online shopping saw more converts than ever. According to data from Mastercard, e-commerce sales surged to a record high, rising 18.8% from 2018 to account for 14.6% of total retail sales in the U.S.

Naturally, the big winner here is Amazon. The e-commerce giant said this past holiday shopping season was “record-breaking.” The company reported 5 million new Prime subscriptions (free trial and paid). What’s more, traffic at Amazon pickup points was up 60% year over year.

Here’s the surprising thing: Amazon stock is actually down more than 6% in the past six months. The shares lag the S&P 500 Index by about 8% for the past 12 months.

So, what gives? Amazon’s spending spree, that’s what. After the company posted its first profit drop in two years back in October, investors have been reluctant to push AMZN higher.

That’s a mistake. Amazon has proven time and time again that it knows how to invest in itself. This latest spending round was on one-day shipping and content for Prime TV. These investments will pay for themselves. We’ll see proof of that in Amazon’s holiday quarter earnings report.

Before I sign off and try to steal another Hawaiian roll — the King’s Hawaiian ones are OK, but homemade rolls help me feast like an emperor — it’s time for a helping of Reader Feedback.

But Great Stuff, you didn’t even ask us for any feedback this week!

No, but “readers gonna read” … and write in.

And I’m grateful for all the feedback and comments you send in.

This week, y’all got personal with the questions. The holidays bring out all kinds of folks. (Especially out on the roads by me … jeez, how many of you really went last-minute with the shopping?)

So, I thought it’d be a wholesome, festive Kodak moment to respond to some of your questions about the great stuff behind Great Stuff.

Brian E. asked:

When and why did you get into trading? I’m trying to convince my son to turn off Counter-Strike and start investing. Any advice?

Well, Brian, at least it’s Counter-Strike and not Fortnite. I don’t have the … umm … poetic license here at Great Stuff to tell you how I truly feel about Fortnite.

As a lifelong video game fan, I initially saw trading as yet another type of “game” to master. It was a challenge. With the right knowledge, I too could win this game played by billionaires.

Yes, I was young and naïve, but I never shrank from that challenge. To this day, I continue to search for that edge — that “cheat code,” if you will — that will help me (and now you) make it big.

Gwenn M. wanted to know:

Your movie references are all over the place (in the best way)! Any one favorite?

As you know, Gwenn, I have an affinity for ’80s movies — everything from Top Gun and E.T. to Indiana Jones and anything made by the great John Hughes. I also have a big weak spot for Monty Python and dry British humor.

But my real favorite, the pièce de résistance, is Star Wars. The Empire Strikes Back was the first movie I ever saw in a theater. It was a masterpiece. So, for better or for worse, Great Stuff readers get more Star Wars memes than any other.

I have spoken.

Short and sweet, Suze said:

Do you have a quote you live by?

Suze, there are, in fact, three quotes that I live by … one for investing in the market and two for life.

For the market, I live by the words of John Maynard Keynes: “Markets can stay irrational longer than you can stay solvent.”

For life, my favorite is by Robin William’s character, John Keating, in Dead Poets Society: “But only in their dreams can men be truly free. ‘Twas always thus, and always thus will be.”

But equally important is one my grandfather told me jokingly decades ago: “Don’t sweat the petty things, and don’t pet the sweaty things.”

I don’t think you can go wrong with any of those quotes.

And on that note, you can look forward to more meme-fueled festivities tomorrow.

Until next time, good trading!

Regards,

Joseph Hargett

Great Stuff Managing Editor, Banyan Hill Publishing

[goldira01]

Share a Coke With Aurora Cannabis?

Are you well rested from the holiday break?

I hope so, because I have a doozy of a conspiracy theory in the cannabis sector for you today. It involves the most widely held stock on Robinhood and the world’s largest soft drink maker.

Before we get to the speculation, let’s start with the facts.

On Monday, Aurora Cannabis Inc. (NYSE: ACB) announced that Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) Cam Battley was leaving the company. Battley was considered the face of Aurora, so his leaving hit investor sentiment hard.

What’s more, analysts at Jefferies downgraded Aurora to hold from buy on the news. “It is clear to us that the market is lacking conviction in Aurora, and this update will do little to help that,” the ratings firm said in a note to clients.

ACB plunged 8% on Monday as a result.

Now for the speculation. A gentleman by the name of “Gabor the Blind Guy” posted a video to YouTube earlier this week where he tries to open a new childproof lid his father designed for Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO). According to Gabor, this childproof lid is for a new cannabidiol (CBD) drink that Coke is releasing in Canada.

Coke childproof lids? Coke CBD drinks?

There’s nothing in the news about any of this … save for one article over at TheCannabisStock.com.

Anyone else remember the last company Coke was talking with to produce CBD drinks?

That’s right: Aurora Cannabis.

The Takeaway: 

Don’t go looking on YouTube for the video — it’s gone.

In fact, Gabor’s entire YouTube account is gone. So are his Facebook and Twitter accounts. I’m thinking someone accidentally broke a nondisclosure agreement here. Oops.

But this is the digital information age. Nothing is ever truly gone. In fact, you can find a mirror of the video here (while it lasts).

Now, I don’t need to tell you that Aurora could really use a boost … and a deal with Coke would be a major coup for the cannabis company. Aurora just rolled out its Cannabis 2.0 products in Canada, including a long list of edibles, vapes and drinks. A Coke-backed Cannabis 2.0 drink could send ACB to the moon.

What’s more, what if CCO Battley only moved out of Aurora (and into an Aurora subsidiary) to make way for a Coke representative ahead of a CBD drink deal?

The possibilities are tantalizing, aren’t they?

For an expert’s take on the situation, I reached out to Banyan Hill’s resident pot stocks guru, Anthony Planas. Here’s what he had to say:

I saw it on Reddit. I think it’s BS.

Clearly not the take we anticipated, but it’s a stark reminder that any potential tie-up between Aurora and Coke is purely speculation at this point.

Thank you, Anthony, for bringing us all back to earth on this one.

As it turns out, Anthony was right. Just before Great Stuff hit the presses, Coke issued a statement: “As we have stated many times, we have no plans to enter the CBD market.” Bummer.

Remember, the cannabis sector is quite volatile right at the moment. You need an expert to help guide you through the rumors and speculation. To that end, Anthony and Real Wealth Strategist editor Matt Badiali have come up with five pot stocks you “must own” right now … before more states legalize.

Click here to find out more!

Good: Tesla Smokes $420

It was bound to happen … and when it did, CEO Elon Musk was just itching to make a joke.

On Monday, Tesla Inc. (Nasdaq: TSLA) hit $420 per share. The milestone prompted Musk to tweet out: “Whoa … the stock is so high lol.”

All jokes aside, Tesla is smoking right now. The shares are up a whopping 1,600% since their initial public offering, with optimism over the new Chinese Gigafactory driving bullish sentiment right through that burning Walmart roof.

Analysts are even jumping on board, albeit reluctantly. Today, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives lifted his price target on TSLA to $370 from $270, citing strong demand for the Model 3. While Ives gave a nod to “massive short covering” for Tesla’s recent resurgence, he also pointed out “underlying fundamental improvement” at the company. After all, Tesla turned a surprise profit last quarter.

But the short squeeze story can’t be ignored. Tesla shorts have … well … lost their shorts by betting against the company. And there’s more to come. ShortSqueeze.com reports that 27.5 million TSLA shares remain sold short after a 4% decline in the latest reporting period.

Those remaining 27.5 million shares still account for about 20.5% of Tesla’s total float (or shares available for public trading). With TSLA still climbing, how much longer can these remaining bears hold out before they’re forced to buy as well?

Better: Riveting Competition 

When Tesla unveiled its new Cybertruck, the internet had a field day making fun of the “truck’s” odd design features. Not since the Pontiac Aztek have we seen a vehicle so, well … ugly.

With so few true competitors, it looked like energy-conscious truck enthusiasts (yes, they do exist) were stuck driving a truck designed by a six-year-old. That is, until Rivian secured a massive amount of funding.

Rivian is an electric vehicle startup that’s drawn considerable interest from backers as of late, especially after Tesla’s Cybertruck made its debut. Rivian’s trucks and SUVs look more like traditional vehicles than anything Tesla makes, providing a level of confidence to key backers.

So much so that the company announced it raked in $1.3 billion in funding in its latest investment drive — its largest to date. Big names are lining up behind Rivian, including Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) and Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN).

Rivian is expected to start delivering trucks and SUVs next year. Are we witnessing the emergence of a true competitor in the electric vehicle market?

Best: Breaking Records

I honestly don’t know why more people don’t shop online during the holiday season … or at any point during the year, for that matter. It’s like y’all didn’t get the memo: You don’t have to fight hordes of people to buy things anymore.

This year, online shopping saw more converts than ever. According to data from Mastercard, e-commerce sales surged to a record high, rising 18.8% from 2018 to account for 14.6% of total retail sales in the U.S.

Naturally, the big winner here is Amazon. The e-commerce giant said this past holiday shopping season was “record-breaking.” The company reported 5 million new Prime subscriptions (free trial and paid). What’s more, traffic at Amazon pickup points was up 60% year over year.

Here’s the surprising thing: Amazon stock is actually down more than 6% in the past six months. The shares lag the S&P 500 Index by about 8% for the past 12 months.

So, what gives? Amazon’s spending spree, that’s what. After the company posted its first profit drop in two years back in October, investors have been reluctant to push AMZN higher.

That’s a mistake. Amazon has proven time and time again that it knows how to invest in itself. This latest spending round was on one-day shipping and content for Prime TV. These investments will pay for themselves. We’ll see proof of that in Amazon’s holiday quarter earnings report.

Before I sign off and try to steal another Hawaiian roll — the King’s Hawaiian ones are OK, but homemade rolls help me feast like an emperor — it’s time for a helping of Reader Feedback.

But Great Stuff, you didn’t even ask us for any feedback this week!

No, but “readers gonna read” … and write in.

And I’m grateful for all the feedback and comments you send in.

This week, y’all got personal with the questions. The holidays bring out all kinds of folks. (Especially out on the roads by me … jeez, how many of you really went last-minute with the shopping?)

So, I thought it’d be a wholesome, festive Kodak moment to respond to some of your questions about the great stuff behind Great Stuff.

Brian E. asked:

When and why did you get into trading? I’m trying to convince my son to turn off Counter-Strike and start investing. Any advice?

Well, Brian, at least it’s Counter-Strike and not Fortnite. I don’t have the … umm … poetic license here at Great Stuff to tell you how I truly feel about Fortnite.

As a lifelong video game fan, I initially saw trading as yet another type of “game” to master. It was a challenge. With the right knowledge, I too could win this game played by billionaires.

Yes, I was young and naïve, but I never shrank from that challenge. To this day, I continue to search for that edge — that “cheat code,” if you will — that will help me (and now you) make it big.

Gwenn M. wanted to know:

Your movie references are all over the place (in the best way)! Any one favorite?

As you know, Gwenn, I have an affinity for ’80s movies — everything from Top Gun and E.T. to Indiana Jones and anything made by the great John Hughes. I also have a big weak spot for Monty Python and dry British humor.

But my real favorite, the pièce de résistance, is Star Wars. The Empire Strikes Back was the first movie I ever saw in a theater. It was a masterpiece. So, for better or for worse, Great Stuff readers get more Star Wars memes than any other.

I have spoken.

Short and sweet, Suze said:

Do you have a quote you live by?

Suze, there are, in fact, three quotes that I live by … one for investing in the market and two for life.

For the market, I live by the words of John Maynard Keynes: “Markets can stay irrational longer than you can stay solvent.”

For life, my favorite is by Robin William’s character, John Keating, in Dead Poets Society: “But only in their dreams can men be truly free. ‘Twas always thus, and always thus will be.”

But equally important is one my grandfather told me jokingly decades ago: “Don’t sweat the petty things, and don’t pet the sweaty things.”

I don’t think you can go wrong with any of those quotes.

And on that note, you can look forward to more meme-fueled festivities tomorrow.

Until next time, good trading!

Regards,

Joseph Hargett

Great Stuff Managing Editor, Banyan Hill Publishing

[crochetawayhpff]

Reddit Writing Prompt

WP:  Out of boredom, you went into a chatroom with some randoms who claimed "we need advice to conquer the world!" You jokingly suggested a couple of stuff and laughed it off. In the next few years, you began to notice... someone took your advice a tad too seriously.

. . . 

Well, the best/easiest way to conquer the world would be to own the banks. Like all of them. Once you own the banks, you own the world. If you can get an in with the Military-Industrial Complex in the US as well as all the big energy producers you'll definitely have a leg up to this silly 'world-domination' thing. Is this for minecraft or something? lol not a gamer, obvi

I finished typing my reply and hit enter. Reddit was so dumb sometimes, but the r/AskReddit sub was one of my favorites to lurk and comment on. Sometimes the questions were dumb, but this one was interesting. Especially after I got to thinking about how exactly would someone take over the world.

And if you really want to increase your the timeline of your take over - you need to cause a huge event that paints you in a good light. Think like 9/11 style event and what the US did to Afghanistan and Iraq. Or like all those Left Behind books where like 2/3 of the population just disappeared. It was almost easy after that for the anti-Christ to take over. The biggest thing to any world takeover would be how quietly you did it though.

I quickly added to my original comment. There that was a good answer.

"Brett! Hey, how are those TPS reports coming?" my boss asked, peeking his head around the corner of my office.

"Almost done, Steve. Just need another hour or so to polish up and I'll have them on your desk," I replied, closing the browser and getting back into Excel. Reddit break for the day was over.

. . .

I didn't think much about that silly ask Reddit question over the next few years. I was busy living life. I got married, had a kid, life was good. I didn't even mind the perpetual TPS reports I had to do for work. It wasn't a bad life, and the job was easy with a good raise every year. No, I didn't think much about my glib Reddit answer until this morning when I saw the following headline:

WORLD CORP. TO CONSOLIDATE WITH CHASE, DEUTSCHE & ICBC

Huh, that's weird, I thought as I skimmed the article. Three huge banks merging shouldn't have been legal, should it? Then about halfway through the article, I read:

Readers will recall that World Corp. had previously consolidated all of the major Chinese banks last year. This is in addition to the fact that under their Wells Fargo umbrella they had consolidated most of the U.S. banks. While a pending lawsuit in the U.S. federal courts was quickly called for, it was settled privately last year.

Suddenly, I was worried about just what World Corp. was up to. I still didn't think about my Reddit post from a few years prior, although something was clearly tickling my memory. That day, I didn't get any of my TPS reports done. All I did was google to see what other assets World Corp. had been acquiring over the years.

It was chilling, to say the least. The worst part, not a single mainstream media outlet was reporting on the fact that it was so worrying that one corporation had access to this amount of money and power throughout the world. Sure, there were a couple of subreddits full of conspiracy theorists railing against a take over by World Corp. but nothing beyond that.

I began an excel spreadsheet that day, tracking the largest banks and other corporations in the world, and when they eventually got bought out by World Corp. Less than a year later, all of the top fifty corporations were now under the World Corp umbrella. When I realized that, my blood ran cold and I actually shivered. Something extremely terrifying was going on here.

Then my phone rang. I looked at it, not recognizing the number. Normally, I wouldn't answer, but something told me I needed to take this call.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Brett. Or do you prefer iamthetortiedog?" a bright voice on the other end asked. I gulped. iamthetortiedog is my Reddit username. How would they know that? I didn't post that often on Reddit, nor had I ever been doxxed.

"Who is this?"

"Oh, how rude. My name is Lisa Pranelli, I'm head of operations for World Corp. and was wondering if you'd like to come in for an interview?"

"An interview? For what?"

"For a job, of course! My boss is dying to meet you after all." I had chills again, my hands felt cold. Something was wrong here, but for the life of me, I couldn't figure out exactly why they were contacting me.

"Doing what?"

"Special advisor to the CEO. I'm sure you've heard of us? Our CEO David Spotshine has been all over the news lately. You might better know him as gimmethesungimmethespot."

I frantically searched through my Reddit post history and there it was. gimmethesungimmethespot had asked:

If you had the time, money, ability, how would you take over the world?

And I had stupidly answered.

"Brett? Are you still there?" Lisa asked. "Listen, I get it if this is out of the blue, but you give great advice. And Mr. Spotshine wants to be able to pick your brain whenever necessary." Her voice was warm and encouraging. My office was warm, it was summer after all, but my entire body felt frozen. I looked at the follow up to my first comment. Fuck, had I really suggested he cause some sort of catastrophic human event? What kind of fucking psycho was I?

"Brett? Mr. Johnson?" Lisa tried again. I tried moving my mouth, I tried making words, but all I could think of was the fact that World Corp. had followed my blueprint.

Another google search and I found that not only did they own most of the major banks in the world, but they owned Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Raytheon, and Northrop Grumman, all huge military contractors. Walmart, Sinopec, Shell, ExxonMobil, Apple. All the top companies in the world and they were owned by World Corp. The list went on and on.

What the fuck had I done?

"Brett, really, it's all fine. I'll tell you what. We'll send a car, okay? You just hop in and we'll pop you over to headquarters and you can have your chat with Mr. Spotshine."

I nodded but didn't respond verbally. I didn't move. I couldn't move. How did my good little life turn into this? How did I become the monster?

"Great, see you soon, Brett!"

Twenty minutes later, the receptionist knocked on my office. "Brett? Hi! You have a visitor."

I looked up to see a man built like a Mack truck standing behind the receptionist.

"I'll need you to come with me," he murmured as the receptionist backed away and scurried back to her desk. I stood up, resigned. What was done was done.

Now I just had to figure out how to either live with myself or bring it all down from the inside.