#typical Night Vale weirdness

[hardly-a-p3rson]

it devours was hella good I really enjoyed it!

[3typical3]

Tip for non Hispanic ppl writing Spanglish

*I initially wrote this at 1 am so like, keep that in mind as you decipher this lol

*context is key when speaking Spanglish, if your character is in a professional setting they probably won’t speak Spanglish unless it’s to a fellow co worker who also speaks Spanglish. It’s more of a casual way a speaking yk?

Also parents, I avoid Spanglish with my parents unless we’re switching from just speaking Spanish to just speaking English. But that’s depends from family to family.

It’s typically like switching sentences and not dropping in random words.

Example “ es Que fui a la tienda, and they were out of milk”

Example “ te ves cansada, did you sleep last night?”

“La neta” is and extremely common Mexican slang term, typically means, honestly. It can also be used to mean ‘really?’

Honestly example:

“La neta, Im tired”

Or “La neta, estoy cansada. Im going to bed”

In the case it means “really?”:

ex.) “Neta?! They said that?!”

I personally say “ de que” which is basically saying “like”, it’s a filled term, before saying a sentence in either English or Spanish

example “ de que idk it won’t work”

I’m Mexican so I use “ósea” a lot in both languages. Another substitute for words like:

“I mean,” “it'd be,” ”like,” “so,” “that is,” “therefore,” and “or.”

Ex. “ ósea, it looks weird idk”

The famous “ pero like” I personally don’t use a lot but an example of how it’s used in Spanglish is “ pero like, how did it happen?”

Sometimes I Just say “ fuck” but like in my Mexican accent or in a sentence.

“ fuck, perdí mi pulsera”

When I get startled I cuss in both English and Spanish but a Spanglish example would be

*insert random startling noise

“ ala verga! That scared me” or “ hijo de tu puta madre!” when something REALLY scared the shit out of me lol

“Chingada madre, where did that come from”

Rlly insert any cuss word in there and it probably works in Spanglish.

Edit bc I thought of this the morning after

In Mexican Spanish for whatever reason the word “madre” can be used like kinda like a cuss word lol.

Example “ Me vale madres”

Which in English would translate to “I don’t value mothers” but in practice means “I don’t give a shit” or “I don’t care”.

Another Mexican deep cut is the word “pedo” which yes, means fart but we’ve really given the word so many alternative meanings like

“ no es mi pedo “ = “not my problem”

“Estoy bien pedo” = “in rlly drunk”

“Vas a la peda?” = “ are you going to the party/kickback”

There’s more but that’s like the basics lol.

Also another Mexican term is “Aguas”… which literally translates to “waters” but it’s used as a warning.

“Aguas, there’s car coming”

The most famous of Mexican slang has to be “wey” or “guey” depends on how you spell it. But it just means dude. Another term that goes in hand is, “no mames” which basically means “are you kidding me”.

*men for whatever reason hate when the girl they’re dating or are into calls them wey. I think it’s because it’s seen as either improper or as like friend zoning.

“Wey, you’re not gonna believe this”

“No mames wey, look at this”

Another term is “equis” which basically means whatever

“How was the party?”

“Estuvo equis”

Another example

“ now was she dressed?”

“Equis, nothing crazy nothing wow”

*I recommend for Mexican characters looking into the words, or you can just ask me I just don’t wanna make this longer than I already have lol, “mamar”/“mamo”/“mamon”, each you would think is the same but no, no they are not and using one in the wrong context could be catastrophic lol. They are vital words to our vocab

If you’re writing to a character from a specific country, take the time to learn some slang. Sometimes slang crosses over, sometimes even we use slang we learn from each others dialects. Personally I love “joder”/“no jodas” because of the shows from Spain.

But take the time because if you write a Colombian character using most of the slang I’ve used above, you’d get a lot of hate from Colombians lol.

Some bad Spanglish examples would be

“ why didnt you eat your comida?”

Like no. Just no. Inserting a random Spanish word doesn’t equate to Spanglish, at least not in most Latin peoples lives

“ you look cansada” also just no.

*Edit I saw someone post abt this and I felt like adding it in

If you do insert a random Spanish word or vice versa it’s because you forgot the word but that involves a lot of blanking and being annoyed you can’t dig the simplest word out of you sub conscience lol

Example: “ you look, FUCK what’s the word! You know when you’re cansada…TIRED. You look tired”

Another commenter addition I’ll be adding is using “eh” as a filler instead of “um”. I use both but even in English I default to using “eh” or “ehmmmm”

The worst is when you don’t remember the word, only to have it appear in your subconscious hours later lol

Another fav filler word is “deste” which equates to another more Central American term “vaina” but a less refined way of saying it. Essentially they mean “thing” but that thing can be anything. It’s kinda a word when you’re to lazy to say the actual word.

“Pásame el deste”

*passes them x ítem

“No I meant the remote”

*trying not to kill the person because they could’ve said remote the whole time but chose not to

Sometimes we use bad Spanglish on purpose just to be funny

“Que sad” “Que cute”

* i personally love inserting the word cute into my vocab in Spanish just cuz so to each their own

Something I do is like say something in English and immediately say the exact same thing in Spanish. Or like I’ll say an exclamation in one language then end in the other.

“ GO GO GO, VÁMONOS APÚRATE”

“Que asco, gross”

“WOW, que bueno”

Also if you’re writing like couples tbh nicknames in Spanish would be reserved for when you’re speaking in Spanish and same for English, but each couple is different so if you rlly want to leave a nickname in Spanish in go for it. If you rlly want the endearment to be “ mi amor” please remember that after like the first or second time the Spanish speaker would probably just refer to their S/O as “ amor” or switch between the two.

Which brings me to the terms “mami/mamita” and “papi/papito”. Now, while they Can and are by some used in a sexual manner, they can also be used as general terms of endearment. My mom will sometimes call me mamita or my brother papito.

Amongst couples though it’s just kinda said, I saw someone describe it was you just give motherly energy so “mami” is said lol which I get oddly enough.

Once a couple is well established or just comfortable the woman can refer to her S/O as “ viejo” which is old man lol, but it’s like cute. On the flip side idk it’s typically seen as offensive when a man calls his S/O ���vieja” but that depends on culture to culture.

Again mami and papi don’t have to be sexual but can be.

Another simple thing you can do is look up nicknames for certain names.

Examples:

“Mike” pronounced “Mique” for Miguel. Some people like to use “Mickey”, that gained popularity from an old Mexican singer lol.

“Ponchó” For Alfonso

“Ale” Can be used for Alejandro/Alexandra/Alejandra

Another thing I thought of is amongst siblings when referring to our parents we will say like

“Haz visto a mi mamá”

Which means have you seen “my mom” even though she’s both our mom… idk it’s weird but a nice little touch you could add to your writing lol

I get rlly annoyed reading bad Spanglish, sometimes it’s just painfully cringe and just obvious a non Spanish speaker wrote it, and I realize it’s bc most of y’all didnt grow up with it so like this is just what is typical Spanglish most Hispanic ppl grow up speaking, obviously not everyone speaks like this but figured I’d give tips from someone who actually speaks English and Spanish and switches between.

If I missed anything feel free to add on or if you disagree add examples

[ao3feed-jonmartin]

a new constellation in the southwestern sky

read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/habD7dF by ShowMeAHero Breathless, Jon asks, “What… What was that?” “That’s sort of a loaded question,” Cecil replies. “What are any of us, really? It’s hard to explain people.” “But you’re not— You’re not a person,” Jon insists, incredulous. After a heartbeat, he realizes what he’s said; he’s quick to try to amend to, “I mean— Not— Not that you’re not a person, but—” “Not a human?” Cecil asks. Jon makes a broad sort of gesture with his hands, helpless. “Neither are you.” or: jon and cecil meet and share a drunk cig. Words: 5231, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: The Magnus Archives (Podcast), Welcome to Night Vale Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: M/M Characters: Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Cecil Palmer, Martin Blackwood, Carlos Robles, Esteban (Welcome to Night Vale), Tabitha Blackwood-Sims, Original Child Character(s) Relationships: Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Cecil Palmer/Carlos Robles, Cecil Palmer & Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist Additional Tags: Crossover, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Post-Canon, Typical Night Vale Weirdness, Smoking, Drinking, Drunk Cigs, Established Relationship, Friendship, Developing Friendships, Crack Treated Seriously, Canon-Typical Nonsense (The Magnus Archives), One Shot read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/habD7dF

[ao3-tag-statistics]

3.8% of Welcome to Night Vale fics are tagged with "Tentacles"! For comparison, Venom is at 6.8%. Less than 0.1% of WTNV fics are tagged "Handcuffs," but 1.6% are tagged "Dom/sub" or some variant so I'm glad SOME of you caught that bit about the handcuffs in ep 166 "Delta."

Look how did you hear THIS

Oh, I also had Carlos bring a pair of handcuffs with him that he bought at –Target on his way to the station, and used them to shackle me to my desk.

said in such a suspicious tone of voice and not make Assumptions? I was expecting more fics about this! I'm not surprised at the amount of tentacle sex in here though, it seems quite plausible for Cecil to have Fun Non-Human Anatomy.

Shoutout to HOW MUCH GRATUITOUS SEX CAN WE PACK INTO 1000 WORDS by onesickmind for making me laugh out loud while skimming this list of fics. Summary was just "I'M GOING FOR HIGHEST SEX DENSITY HERE. A SEX ACT IN EVERY SENTENCE!".

7,445 Works in Welcome to Night Vale

7 come up in a search for "handcuffs" and 6 are tagged with Handcuffs

118 are tagged with "Dom/sum" or some variant on that

285 are tagged with "tentacles", mostly with Cecil having the tentacles

Fluff (1285)

Angst (575)

Typical Night Vale Weirdness (560)

Hurt/Comfort (369)

Crossover (315)

[apple-juice16]

Fanfics I found enjoyable. Like a lot. My personal favs.

Masterkey override or the one time when everyone realised that Lance was smart ClaraCivry (Kat_of_Dresden)

No Archive Warnings Apply, Lance & Pidge | Katie Holt, Hunk & Lance & Pidge | Katie Holt, Lance (Voltron)Pidge | Katie Holt, Hunk (Voltron), Matt Holt, Coran (Voltron), Smart Lance, Surprised Team, Insecure Lance (Voltron), Awesome Pidge, Types of intelligence, Realisations, People appreciatng Lance, Fluff

Basically, Lance asks Pidge to teach him some technical stuff, and it turns out that he is more intelligent than any of them thought (including Lance himself). A smart Lance fic, for all your smart Lance needs, featuring awesome teacher Pidge and startstruck team.

Words: 1,323 - Chapters: 1/1

Monopoly was a bad idea - AuroraDownTheRabbitHole

No Archive Warnings Apply, Keith/Lance (Voltron), Allura/Shiro (Voltron), Keith & Shiro (Voltron), Keith & Pidge | Katie Holt, Allura & Coran & Hunk & Keith & Lance & Pidge | Katie Holt & Shiro, Keith & The Blade of Marmora, Keith (Voltron), Lance (Voltron), Shiro (Voltron), Allura (Voltron), Coran (Voltron), Hunk (Voltron), Pidge | Katie Holt, Kolivan (Voltron), Ulaz (Voltron), Thace (Voltron), Antok (Voltron), Swearing, Team as Family, Board Games, Monopoly (Board Game) - Freeform, Chaos, Domestic Fluff, Dads of Marmora (Voltron)

The blade of marmora members really shouldn't have let the paladins play Monopoly,you know what they say you only play board games with the people you want to break bonds with ............. this was a big mistake.

Words: 660 - Chapters: 1/1

An Eye for an Eye - DpsMercy

Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Martin Blackwood & Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Sasha James & Tim Stoker, Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist & Tim Stoker, Michael | The Distortion & Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Helen | The Distortion & Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Martin Blackwood, Sasha James, Tim Stoker (The Magnus Archives), Elias Bouchard | Jonah Magnus, Not Them (The Magnus Archives), Michael | The Distortion (The Magnus Archives), Helen | The Distortion (The Magnus Archives), Other Character Tags to Be Added, Jon is from Night Vale, Crack Treated Seriously, Friendship, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Fix-It of Sorts, Jon becomes friends with most avatars, Spooky shenanigans, Jon is too chill to be scared, No beta we die like Gertrude's assistants, Typical Night Vale Weirdness, Typical Night Vale Violence, Canon-Typical Worms (The Magnus Archives), typical TMA horror

In which Jonathan Sims is not from the UK but instead, if you took his origins and turned them sideways twice then flipped them over, he technically would be from the US, the town of Night Vale specifically. Elias can’t do shit about it and gets a headache and slowly creeping madness instead. ***** On indefinite hiatus

Words: 15,555 - Chapters: 9/?

Welcome to...The Magnus Institute? - princeetheo

No Archive Warnings Apply, Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Carlos/Cecil Palmer, Georgie Barker/Melanie King, Elias Bouchard/Peter Lukas, Martin Blackwood, Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Tim Stoker (The Magnus Archives), Sasha James, Elias Bouchard, Peter Lukas, Rosie Zampano, Georgie Barker, Melanie King, Jessica Law (Fictionalized), Jordan Kennedy, Ben Below (fictionalized), Basira Hussain, Alice "Daisy" Tonner, Carlos (Welcome to Night Vale), Cecil Palmer, Dana Cardinal, Steve Carlsberg, Janice (Welcome to Night Vale), Abby Palmer, Cecilos are Jon sims parents AAAA, Non-Human Cecil Palmer, Cecil Palmer is Described, Autistic Carlos (Welcome to Night Vale), Trans Carlos (Welcome to Night Vale), Awkward Carlos (Welcome to Night Vale), jon sims and dana cardinal are childhood besties, steve carlsberg is the best uncle, Cecil Palmer's Fashion Sense, Dork Carlos (Welcome to Night Vale), eye avatar cecil palmer, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, FUCK CANON !, we ball, no beta we die like danny stoker, Pining Martin Blackwood, The Mechanisms Were Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist's College | University Band, Autistic Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, He/Him and They/Them Pronouns for Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Trans Martin Blackwood

Carlos 'The Scientist' Sims and Cecil Palmer are Jonathan Sims parents, that's it. that's the fic.

Words: 2,325 - Chapters: 3/?

jonathan sims: part-time archivist, part-time wanted murderer, full-time bitch

ceruleancats

No Archive Warnings Apply, Jon & Several Cats, Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Georgie Barker, Jude Perry, Michael "Mike" Crew, Basira Hussain, Alice "Daisy" Tonner, Elias Bouchard, Martin Blackwood, Humor, Comed, ya bit cracky, Based on a Tumblr Post, everyone thinks jon killed leitner and they revere him for it, Season 3, Season 3 AU, Canon Asexual Character, Asexual Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cats

Jon didn't kill Jurgen Leitner, but no matter how many times he tries to tell people that, they just don't seem to believe him! It's not all bad, though: while he is a wanted murderer on the run from the cops, Leitner was apparently so universally despised that Institute employees and Avatars alike are tripping over themselves to help him out. Now, he just has to figure out how to clear his name (though that's easier said than done).

Words: 17,189 - Chapters: 10/10

The White Wolf - JaskiersWolf

No Archive Warnings Apply, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier | Dandelion, Jaskier | Dandelion, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia, Triss Merigold, Nenneke (The Witcher), Shapeshifting, Shapeshifter Jaskier | Dandelion, Wolf Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia, Non-Human Jaskier | Dandelion, Feral Jaskier | Dandelion, Established Relationship, Protective Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia, Protective Jaskier | Dandelion, Pack Cuddles, Sleepy Cuddles, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Canon-Typical Violence, Mild Blood

Following an unfortunate encounter with a mage, Geralt gets cursed into a wolf. Jaskier and Geralt must travel the Continent in search of someone that can help them. - Can be read as a stand alone

Words: 6,018 - Chapters: 3/3

Five times Jaskier hid nothing from Geralt and one time the Witcher finally noticed the obvious

cucumber_of_doom

No Archive Warnings Apply, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia & Jaskier | Dandelion, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia, Jaskier | Dandelion, Jaskier can talk to animals, Geralt is so dense he might collapse into a black hole at any moment, can be read as pre relationship, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia Cares About Jaskier | Dandelion, curses gone right, 5+1 Things

Jaskier has a special talent he never tried to hide from Geralt: He can understand and talk to animals. He never tried to hide this from Geralt, but our witcher is a bit dense.

Words: 6,747 - Chapters: 1/1

The Viscount - pukner

No Archive Warnings Apply, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier | Dandelion, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia & Jaskier | Dandelion, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier | Dandelion/Yennefer z Vengerbergu | Yennefer of Vengerberg, Jaskier | Dandelion/Yennefer z Vengerbergu | Yennefer of Vengerberg, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia, Jaskier | Dandelion, Yennefer z Vengerbergu | Yennefer of Vengerberg, Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon, Original Characters, Eskel (The Witcher), Essi Daven, Valdo Marx, 5+1 Things, POV Multiple, Human Jaskier | Dandelion, Jaskier | Dandelion Being a Feral Bastard, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia is So DoneIdentity Shenanigans, Trans Jaskier | Dandelion, Genderfluid Jaskier | Dandelion, we're spicing things up yk, canon-typical weird euphemisms, POV Outsider, update it has feelings now, and yennskierand geraskierand geraskifer, why is it getting long

"I can't imagine just telling people I'm from Lettenhove, though," the man says, a smile caught in his voice, "How do you do it?" "Can I tell you a secret?" asks Jaskier, tone taking on a conspiratory tilt. Then, in a whisper that is no quieter than his earlier speech, "I think it's funny." "Funny!" says the man, laughing. Funny, thinks Geralt, bemused. Lettenhove isn't actually a real place. But Jaskier is certainly the Viscount of it. (Or, five times Jaskier tells someone he's the Viscount of Lettenhove, and one time he tells the truth.)

Words: 14,584 - Chapters: 4/5

[kinaesthetiqueer]

the thing about loving nora so damn much is that i legally have to Make Her Go Through It. sometimes though, it feels so so so mean. however. i have to make my headcanons make sense from top to bottom.

so. per my headcanons on how her semblance works... once she was struck by lightning and her semblance unlocked, her passive ability unlocked too. rather than dissapating the tiny bits of electricity that her body naturally produces, like everyone else does, her body stores them. it's up to nora as to how she can deal with it.

before she gets a handle on it, she's a walking static producer. ever walked around in socks on carpet in the winter? she's like that, all the time. discharging whenever she touches anything that can conduct electricity. some of the less helpful instructors at tocsin (the vale combat school that my ren and nora attended from ages 13-17) force nora to wear rubber gloves when she's in class.

this, of course, doesn't actually help. she's still storing it up. nora copes by energizing herself with the excess electricity and just. Being Hyper. she always has been excitable but now she just bounces off the walls, because she doesn't know how else to spend the energy outside of combat.

ren doesn't know how to help her either. his semblance is strictly defensive/supportive. he has always been under intense stress to make sure he keeps it under control. they aren't on the streets anymore but nora feels compelled to make sure, should they ever end up there again, that she can pull more weight when it comes to keeping them safe.

if nora is worked up or stressed, she starts sparking. arcs of electricity come off her skin and they can hurt whoever gets close. it's a easy way to help her discharge, if you can get a grounded lightning rod close enough.

other lesser signs that she's not quite keeping it under wraps are, in order of increased severity: increased fidgeting/stimming (hilarious as a marker, as she's audhd af), static field as observed by her hair strands lifting up as if rubbed by a balloon, indigestion & nausea (too much energy messing with peristalsis); uncontrollable hiccups (excess electricity causing her diaphragm to spasm), and finally, the sparking.

these first two markers goes pretty much unnoticed by nora herself, though the rest of jnpr is pretty good at noticing when her hair starts going flyaway. ren can tell the difference between normal nora fidgets and too much energy! nora fidgets at a glance. when nora gets so bad that these side effects show, she tends to skip indigestion and nausea and go straight to hiccuping. rarely, like if she's in an argument with someone who doesn't know her well enough to point out her hair, she might reach the indigestion stage (for example, cordovin). however, hiccups come on fast when she's having a breakdown. they are her major sign that she needs to find some way to calm down and rein in her semblance.

she has two choices for doing so: sequestering it for later (a choice she makes when she's likely to be in combat soon) or discharging.

sequestering (storing) it requires her to rein in the electricity and sink it into her muscles. typically this means her thigh and butt muscles, as they are the largest. she creates a circuit of circulating electricity deep in her muscles and they slowly store the energy for later. (don't ask me about the biology here unless you want to be here all night; that is a promise, not a threat). she can also then use it to jump and leap. this is also why she skips so much!

storing/sequestering is what nora refers to as "sinking". it's not a term she really explains to anyone. in fact, she loathes explaining her semblance to people. firstly, no one expects her to understand how her semblance works, because she's hyper and bubbly and girly. secondly, people tend to get weirded out and wary of her when she explains, at least they did at tocsin. ren loves that she knows how both hers and his works.

she gets a lot of confidence and joy from it as jnpr works in private to train for the vytal festival, because jaune and pyrrha think her semblance is super cool. by the time vytal comes around, she's just stoked to be able to show off for the first time, since jaune decided they should keep it a secret until then.

on the other hand, discharging it is exactly what it seems. it's what she does when she doesn't need the extra energy or wants to be sure she's safe to touch others. she can discharge into the air (which causes a thunderclap of varying decibels, depending on how much electricity she discharges) or into the ground or to any grounded source. she can also do this offensively by throwing a bolt or striking something with precision.

after spending most of her time at tocsin wearing gloves, she keeps them in her beacon outfit, though fingerless, because she likes to comfort and the compression, but also she likes to know she's capable of safely touching people.

the mean thing that i was thinking of, which prompted this post, was nora being threatened with, and perhaps once subjected to, tocsin's cruelest 'therapy' which is to forcibly break a student's aura so that their semblance won't hurt anyone until they get it under control. which. may or may not have happened to her when she took a shower while charged, knocking out tocsin's campus water plant and electrocuting anyone who was also taking a shower at the same time. 🙃

anyways. i want to write a series of oneshots and drabbles that contains all my headcanons for the main kids' semblances and how they work and how they've adapted to them over time. im just a big sucker for logistics and after blake's semblance driving me batshit for months, i think it's what i deserve.

[kerink]

249 react

bold of cecil to talk about sunshine with lauren running amok

obviously its not time to talk about the weather yet kdjgdkh

mommy ^_^ 💕

oh good night vale is finally seeing The Light

THE BOYS GROWING UP?!

no knives 🙄 oh ^_^ 28 knives! that's our kevin!

god mother lauren wasnt just a title huh... thats his mommy...

i love that this episode really feels like a classic nigth vale episode, idk what it is about it. the music? the way cecils presenting it? the presentation of one weird thing after another?

MOST ACCURATE SIMILE HES SO FUNNY

carlos busy with his beakers as kevin approaches. typical

HES NOT SMILING OH MAN

oh hes piiiiissed

HIS BEAKERS

sad that carlos and kevin arent gonna hash it out 😔

god what theyre doing with tamika is so sucks

mmm idk how i feel about this episode. i guess since it's technically not over until next episode i'll reserve judgements

[mudstoneabyss]

I cant sleep and I'm thinking about it so I'm go to talk about why I (to my knowledge) came up with the headcanon that Charles is a ghost <3

So the one thing that's repeated about Pine Cliff is that everyone who lives there is a ghost, it's a town where everyone is a ghost. it's been that way since the cataclysm of 2008, but from what glimpses we get of it, it still functions like any other town, which would, I believe, include having had multiple people move into the town in the 14 years since then, yet it still persists as a town where everyone is a ghost. that plus the typical Night Vale idea of living in these weird towns adapts you to be part of the town- that is, also weird- would suggest if you move to Pine Cliff you will become a ghost.

I also think the thought of him being dead or otherwise a ghost adds a lot to his reasoning for moving to Desert Bluffs. It's canon that, despite the towns theocracy and general large religious influence, Charles didn't move there for work, but rather for family. I typically see, in fics and the like, people say the move was because Donovan was going to start school and he wanted him to be around and grow up with other living kids, kids more like him. Which I don't think isn't what's said in canon meaning-wise, but what is specifically said is that he wanted to raise him in a "community based in happiness and positivity". The problem with Pine Cliff wasn't that they were ghosts, but that the towns atmosphere was dismal. Except I do think that those mean the same thing.

I think the town's fine, a wonderful town even, if you were someone living there before 2008. But if you move in afterwards, you're pretty much subjecting yourself to all the melancholic metaphors ghost represent. It's a town of loss and regret and unfulfilled dreams. It's a town of lingering loves and memories. It's a town where time is thin and the past is always the present. It's a town where nothing truly changes, nothing moves on.

The longer you stay there, I think, the more prevalent that is. The more it drains you, the more you lose yourself, the more you become a ghost yourself, even putting the idea it does so to you physically aside. I imagine it almost like depression and dissociation personified in a town. So it gets to a point where- theological intrigue be damned- he has to put Donovan's health and safety first and leave. Go somewhere so happy and positive and vibrant and alive that it's painful. Somewhere like Desert Bluffs.

[bookgeekgrrl]

My media this week (10-16 Dec 2023)

📚 STUFF I READ 📚

🥰 Second Chances in New Port Stephen (TJ Alexander, author; Aden Hakimi & Feodor Chin, narrator) - 2nd chance romance between 2 former HS sweethearts after Eli comes back home to his small FL home town (post-transition & unemployed due to proximity to an industry scandal) and reconnects with Nick (who left for college, came back, got married & divorced and became a (hot) dad). Also there is a fat ginger cat named Sweet Potato. I kind of love what a mess Eli is. Nick is also a bit of a mess but masking it better. I loved them both.

💖💖 +120K of shorter fic so shout out to these I really loved 💖💖

The First Rule of Book Club series (Deisderium) - MCU: stucky, 28K - reread for stucky bookclub; a forever fave where recovering Bucky joins a book club - just a warm hug of a series, with a fantastic OC (unfortunately does have period-typical reading of HP but I was able to just focus on everything else)

tattoo your last bruise (ftmsteverogers) - MCU: stucky, 9K - great post-WS recover fic

Blood, Sweat, Ambrosia (AidaRonan) - Stranger Things: steddie, 4K - amazing gift of a monsterfucking fic. aida has truly blessed us this holiday season

📺 STUFF I WATCHED 📺

Doctor Who: The Giggle (2023 special #3)

D20: Fantasy High: Sophomore Year - e8-15

🎧 PODCASTS 🎧

The Sporkful - How Do Michelin Stars Actually Work?

Pop Culture Happy Hour - Diddy, Hip-Hop, and #MeToo

The Atlas Obscura Podcast - Ol Pejeta Rhino Cemetery

Our Opinions Are Correct - What Makes Us Quit Reading a Book in the Middle?

Today, Explained - A concrete solution to climate change

Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus - Julia Gets Wise with Darlene Love

NPR's Book of the Day - Jordan Peele curates a new Black horror story collection 'Out There Screaming'

The Atlas Obscura Podcast - Knoxville Weather Kiosk

Pop Culture Happy Hour - 2023 Pop Culture Favorites [love that D20's Dungeons & Drag Queens made this list!]

Switched on Pop - Nicki Minaj's Roman Empire

The Allusionist - 186. Ravels

It's Been a Minute - Music trends that took us by surprise in 2023

Shedunnit - The Murderless Christmas Mystery

Vibe Check - It’s Like an Inspirational Relay Race

⭐ 99% Invisible #563 - Empire of the Sum

The Atlas Obscura Podcast - New Bedford Whaling Museum

⭐ Off Menu - Ep 216: Dawn French (Christmas Special)

Twenty Thousand Hertz+ - Tournament of Champions

Ologies with Alie Ward - Quasithanatology (NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES) with Bruce Greyson

The Atlas Obscura Podcast - Gourdlandia

One Year - 1990: Art on Trial

Sara & Cariad's Weirdos Book Club - Persuasion by Jane Austen with Andrew Hunter Murray

Not Another D&D Podcast - D&D Court: Sneaky Snowmen, Horny Dogs, and The PC vs The People’s Champion

Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus - Julia Gets Wise with Rhea Perlman

Up First - Gaza Post-War Plans, Ohio Prosecutor Misconduct, Comer Shell Company

What Next: TBD - Shein’s Newest Offering? An IPO

Pop Culture Happy Hour - Wonka And What's Making Us Happy

Dear Prudence - I Rejected A Friend’s Sexual Advance—Now He’s Being Weird. Help!

Endless Thread - This song wants you to stick out your what!?

⭐ Welcome to Night Vale #240 - He Is Holding a Knife

Today, Explained - Why millennials dread motherhood

🎶 MUSIC 🎶

Classic Rock Instrumentals

Presenting Stevie Ray Vaughan

Presenting Santana

Dropkick Murphys Radio • Familiar

New Blue Sun [André 3000] {2023}

Throwback Workout

my christmas playlist

[despite-everything]

I came from your post about being a station manager and the call number for the radio station : welcome to night vale, and I was curious to what FFC guidelines Cecil has broken in your opinion. -Kai

This is such a cool question to receive. Overall, I’d say that Cecil isn’t doing badly in terms of FCC violations, but there are definitely some red flags. Some can be dismissed, however, due to typical Night Vale weirdness.

Station Identification

In order to be compliant with FCC standards, a terrestrial radio station must identify itself when signing on and off for the day (24-hour stations do not have to do this), and must broadcast identifications as close to the start of each hour of operation as possible. We could suggest that the station is 24-hour, or that Cecil broadcasts for less than an hour at a time, but neither of those things really solve the matter. If we interpret Cecil’s “goodnight” at the end of each episode as the station signing off for the night, then he should be identifying the station’s call letters, followed by “Night Vale”. He could also add the station’s channel number, frequency, the name of the licensee, or other communities it reaches (as long as the licensed community is listed first). Even if Cecil isn’t really the last thing being broadcast, we know that he has to be on air for hours at a time, and we never hear call letters. Plus, it’s generally standard practice for hosts to include identifying information during their show, even if it isn’t occurring exactly on the hour. I suppose you could also argue that while he’s on air for long stretches of time, there’s some time dilation in-universe or through the format of the podcast which gives us shorter episodes, and you could argue that in that “missing time” between what is lived in Night Vale and what we hear in the podcast there are instances of station identification, but I don’t buy it. 

2. Programming Inciting Imminent Lawless Action

This violates FCC regulations, but would be prosecuted by law enforcement agencies, rather than the FCC. Would it result in fines? I’m sure. But still. The government can regulate speech if it’s intended to incite what is considered to be “imminent lawless action” and likely to produce such action. “Kill your double”, people. Though this is Night Vale, and instances like that may not really be a lawful concern. But if we’re assuming the FCC has jurisdiction in Night Vale, so too does federal law, which outlaws murder (18 USC Ch. 51: Homicide).

3. News Distortion

Let’s be honest with ourselves here. Cecil frequently misrepresents the facts. Broadcast licensees are prohibited from intentionally distorting the news, which Cecil has been known to do. This is something that would require extensive documentation to pursue, but it would be doable. That being said, in Night Vale? Yeah. He’s fine. Cecil sometimes has to distort the news in order to appease The Powers That Be and keep himself safe, and he’s also a bitchy guy who will happily present falsehoods on air if need be. But if we’re taking this thought exercise seriously, I’d add this as a violation.

But other than those? I can’t think of any outright violations on the top of my head! Some things came to mind, but Cecil stayed within the legal exceptions. For example, it is not permissible to broadcast advertisements for or information surrounding lotteries except in special cases. One such exception is if the lottery is hosted by the same community/government to which the broadcasting license is assigned, meaning the Lottery in Night Vale, which is mandatory for all citizens and occurs at City Hall, is an event Cecil can broadcast about if the station license is assigned to Night Vale as a locality. The nature of the Night Vale Lottery might also prove to be an exemption, but still, I think it makes a good example for barely skating by the rules.

I’ll admit that I work at a station that has a pretty unique licensing status (once described to me as a “unicorn” scenario: we are a non-commercial station with licensing that nearly mimics a commercial station. It’s weird.), and some regulations that impact non-commercial stations like mine wouldn’t apply for Cecil’s station, so when I listen to the show I notice stuff that wouldn’t fly at my station, but is totally okay at his. Additionally, I may have missed some things! These were just what came to mind when replying, and the only thing I looked up was confirmation that murder was a federal crime (since I knew that it's only prosecuted as a federal crime in certain cases, I almost tripped myself up. But like. Duh.) lol.

I'd say the biggest issue for me (beyond not identifying the station) is the incitement of murder. Yes, this regulation requires that whatever incitement being broadcast must be likely to occur, but like... with the way Cecil functions on air? It counts. Look at what happened to Telly. He can make things happen, y'all, and even if he couldn't, him advocating murder on-air being followed by people committing murder would be pretty damning.

Thanks for asking!!

[cheshiretears]

[Multivoice Podfic] Night Vale Community Radio Presents: The Practice Match

 Collaboration for Pod_Together 2020  by bluegeekEM | @bluegeekem

cover art by luna

Fandoms: Welcome to Night Vale, Haikyuu!! Rating: G Additional Tags: radio show, Volleyball, Practice Match, Typical Night Vale Weirdness, Cecil has a crush on Carlos, The Glow Cloud, pterodactyls, A Night Vale intern who lives- or do they?, Podfic, Podfic Length: 20-30 Minutes, Audio Format: MP3, Mentioned Haikyuu!! ensemble, Mentioned Welcome to Night Vale ensemble

Summary: A little desert community hosts a volleyball match.

lysandyra ( @unseelie-siren​ ) as Cecil | cheshiretears as Sydney

Music: Disparition

AO3 | Drive | Archive (26:17 min)

[eddysocs]

Introducing: Adyra Vale

Fandom: Supernatural

Face Claim: Ylva Bjørkås Thedin

Full Name: Adyra Cecily Vale

Nickname/Alias/Pet Names: Dyra

Age: 21

Myers Briggs Type: INFP

Hogwarts House: Ravenclaw

Love Interest: Charlie Bradbury

Occupation: Hunter/Mechanic

Collections: Owls

Style/Clothing: Adyra loves her layers. She always has several on, and doesn’t mind shedding a layer to loan to a friend in need. She wears what most hunters seem to, flannels, jeans, boots, etc, but she always puts her own special flair into it with her frequently dyed hair and interchangeable septum rings.

Signature Quote: "With as many vampires as I’ve killed, you might as well call me Buffy."

Plot Summary: When the ghost of her father possesses his former power tools, mechanic Adyra is a little freaked out to put it lightly. A few bumps and bruises later and a lot of late night reading, she figures out how to be rid of his vengeful spirit all on her own. And while she may not be your typical hunter, she takes to the life quite well. When she ends up on the same case as hacker turned hunter, Charlie Bradbury, sparks fly and they find that their specific brands of weird mesh together well.

Forever Tag: @arrthurpendragon, @borg-queer, @foxesandmagic, @carmens-garden, @chickensarentcheap, @endless-oc-creations, @unheolycs-ocs, @fawera, @themaradaniels

[cyberpawn]

🎄 CHRISTMAS TREE — what is your oc's favorite holiday?

💔 BROKEN HEART — what are three of your oc's negative traits?

🥯 BAGEL — what does your oc's typical breakfast look like? do they usually eat breakfast?

Details about OCs

🎄

I would say that Vale's favorite holiday is...Christmas! Which, I know, seems weird given the fact that Vale is such a huge fan of monsters! But as we know, Vale isn't your average, every day person! Some of their favorite parts about Christmas are Santa's vigilante behaviors (breaking and entering to deliver toys), ghosts making rich assholes face adequate punishment (Christmas Carol), and of course...TOYS! It's also a time of year where acts of kindness happen, so Vale appreciates seeing joy in Night City!

💔

Vale is impulsive, stubborn, and has a very hard time asking for help. They don't think first before acting or speaking, and it gets them in plenty of trouble, just because they're shooting from the hip and saying whatever with no filter!

Their stubbornness shows up a lot when they are discussing their thoughts on police and corpos and governments and such, when they don't understand why people aren't willing to stand up to their bosses, when people are complicit, when people uphold a broken system. They get stubborn and frustrated, which then leads to that impulsive speaking.

Finally, Vale doesn't ask for help a lot because they hate feeling like a burden. They feel like if they're a burden, they're going to get thrown away and abandoned. They won't ask for help when they need it, which usually leads into them getting in worse trouble or getting hurt, and then people are upset because Vale got hurt.

🥯

Vale is a get up and go kind of person once they're up in the morning, or whenever they've woken up! They'll forage through their food supply, normally settling either on reheating some leftovers, or just having a bowl of cereal. They like sweet, sugary cereals, like Lucky Charms! But knowing Cyberpunk, Vale's favorite cereal probably has little marshmallows in it that look like hazmat symbols or dinosaurs.

[ao3feed-jonmartin]

a new constellation in the southwestern sky

read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/HtMQDNr by ShowMeAHero Breathless, Jon asks, “What… What was that?” “That’s sort of a loaded question,” Cecil replies. “What are any of us, really? It’s hard to explain people.” “But you’re not— You’re not a person,” Jon insists, incredulous. After a heartbeat, he realizes what he’s said; he’s quick to try to amend to, “I mean— Not— Not that you’re not a person, but—” “Not a human?” Cecil asks. Jon makes a broad sort of gesture with his hands, helpless. “Neither are you.” or: jon and cecil meet and share a drunk cig. Words: 5231, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: The Magnus Archives (Podcast), Welcome to Night Vale Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: M/M Characters: Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Cecil Palmer, Martin Blackwood, Carlos Robles, Esteban (Welcome to Night Vale), Tabitha Blackwood-Sims, Original Child Character(s) Relationships: Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Cecil Palmer/Carlos Robles, Cecil Palmer & Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist Additional Tags: Crossover, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Post-Canon, Typical Night Vale Weirdness, Smoking, Drinking, Drunk Cigs, Established Relationship, Friendship, Developing Friendships, Crack Treated Seriously, Canon-Typical Nonsense (The Magnus Archives), One Shot read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/HtMQDNr

[itsybitsylemonsqueezy]

Really depends what kind of narrative you're interested in. There's actually a lot of options these days!

Welcome to Night Vale has a fun, weird vibe that occasionally dives into horror, the supernatural, political commentary, and heartfelt messages about the nature of humanity. Narrative arcs are very fulfilling and you'll know right away if it works for you or not. Much of the series is locked to Cecil, especially in the early seasons, we occasionally branch out to new narrators later in. But broadly, if you don't like Cecil, you won't like the show. Strongly recommend trying the first episode and if it's not hitting you right, try the next thing.

There's a lot of horror lovers out there who will sing the praises of The Magnus Archives. While it's a bit of a gateway drug to horror, it's not my favorite tbh. So I'm going to make a pitch for Old Gods of Appalachia. If you're from the United States, I think this podcast is a must listen. If you're not from the US, I think it's still great, you just may not enjoy it as much. The Old Gods of Appalachia is horror, yes, but it's also fairy tale and myth, it's historical fiction, it's an examination of some of the most tragic and ugly roots of US culture. There are some pretty rough descriptions here, a lot of nasty looking monsters and violence, I won't lie. But it has powerful, fulfilling narrative arcs and if you're at all interested in magic, there's a pretty compelling magic system here. I have a personal fascination with some of these foundational stories, reworked in this eldritch setting. I think it's doing great work, but some of the bloodier chapters are not for everyone, that must be admitted. I'd try the first season to see if it works for you. The first couple of episodes set up a pitched overplot that surfaces from time to time as more linear plots take up season arcs. I do recommend, even if horror is not typically your bag.

Also gotta give a shout out to Malevolent, if you're a horror lover. Malevolent is loosely based on The King in Yellow by R. W. Chambers, but so much more than that. I can't say very much without spoiling, but if you like your stories dark and twisted, look no further. Also, it's voiced almost exclusively by one guy, did I mention that? Harlan Guthrie is a powerhouse if you want to see some excellent voice acting.

Moving on to lighter fare, the Amelia Project has recently become a love of mine. Boisterous, delightful, funny, it's about a death-faking company whose clients will never be as bizarre as the staff. It's really funny, especially in the first few seasons which are mostly self-contained episodes, sort monster of the week except it's a client with a dumb problem that our eccentric Interviewer must solve. There's cocoa, champagne, and a much longer story than you probably expect. There's eventually a turn as world governments begin to investigate our little gang of criminals and our stories, while still about death-faking, become ever more about the people who perform these services. There's a lot of meditation on what it means to die, what it means to live. I'd say if you like parts of Doctor Who, up to you what that means, or if Night Vale was working for you, then this will probably be your jam. Much like with Night Vale, try the first episode and you'll probably know right away whether this works for you or not. Oh, and for reference, the deaths are never cruel or grisly, this is a comedy; the more unlikely and ridiculous the disappearance, the better.

Those are my favorite currently producing shows. I'm also a big fan of Within the Wires, Stellar Firma, and It Makes a Sound but there's no new episodes for those and there's unlikely to be any for awhile, if ever. But it can be nice to experience something that's over.

Within the Wires is a woman-centric story about an alternative 20th century. It even has a novel end cap, You Feel It Just Below The Ribs, that hits like a hammer blow. Each season is a discrete story which can give you a chance to sample 1 or 2 to see if it's something you like. I recommend starting with season 1, it's still my favorite, but after that you could kinda listen to any season you liked.

Stellar Firma is... a disaster. The Brothers Meredith, of Magnus Archives and Rusty Quill fame, put together a screwball comedy about a planet terraforming service in the distant future starring Trexel Geistman an extremely entitled idiot whose parents never loved him and his long-suffering clone servant David 7 who does his best to keep the whole place from burning down in one of Trexel's tantrums. It's fantastically funny and largely improvised except for general plot threads.

It Makes a Sound is about living with dementia, losing your mother, your identity, your sense of the world and the struggling connections that make all of it bearable. It's about being willing to see the beauty, even if it's cringe, even if you look like a dork and feel like a dork. The music, and there is much music, is excellent and the story is heartfelt. There are no spooky monsters or wacky hijinks, just a lot of people doing their best. I have cried listening to this and I will again. It's a sweet, funny, sad story and it makes me feel very, very alive.

So there's a lot of different flavors out there. Eventually you'll find yours. Happy listening!

So I now have a >1hr commute 3-4x a week. I need narrative podcasts and I know nothing about podcasts.

I'm considering getting into WTNV? I guess? It's literally the only one I know of with a narrative.

Suggestions????

[nightvales-resident-fox]

Tags under the cut.

Relationships:

Cecil Palmer/Carlos Robles

Original Character(s)/Original Character(s)

Characters:

Cecil Palmer

Carlos Robles

Carlos' Family (Welcome to Night Vale)

A Vague Yet Menacing Government Agency (Welcome to Night Vale)

Strexcorp Synernists Inc.

Additional Tags:

Tags Contain Spoilers

Angst with a Happy Ending

There is a light at the end of the tunnel

cecilos - Freeform

Cecilos but I break them up first

Cecil is human-ish

POV Carlos (Welcome to Night Vale)

Canon Related

Other Additional Tags to Be Added

Canon-Typical Violence

Typical Night Vale Weirdness

Typical Night Vale Violence