#untitled fishing game

[vertebrae-entertainment]

1.25.23 - ‘Anchor’

Hi y’all! Its been a while since we did a proper blog update, so i figured it was time i talk about the thing people usually talk about when i bring up the main character of our fishing game: “whoah, he’s a big dude huh?”

Designing a tough guy

When me and Åge first discussed this project, I told them two things would make me automatically passionate about it. The first was that the main character should be a hot dude, and the second was that he should be transgender. Now, at a glance it doesn't seem that complicated (and it really isn’t). I like hot dudes, I like to draw bulk, and I am a trans man myself. Seeing as we are a two-person team, there’s no CEO to tell me what I can and cannot do, so naturally this was how the basic concept ended up.

Following from there I started designing. I took some amphibious inspiration, building him sort of like a frog- top heavy and with long legs, lending itself well to animating acrobatics. I wanted to make him tall and menacing, with a shadow covering his face to make him seem mysterious. At the same time I couldn't forget his fishing lifestyle. In the end he ended up somewhere between Batman and Popeye, with a sprinkle of elegance for good measure. It turned out to lend itself really well to build him like he was hunting monsters for a living, as that was what the game was turning into.

After settling on a color scheme of black, white and red, and taking inspiration from the simplistic designs of the UPA-revival movement for ease of animation, I figured he needed a tattoo- both to top off the design and hint at his marine connection. The anchor seemed obvious! A symmetrical object right on the middle, plenty of body hair, and our main man was ready for the screen!

The tough guy through a queer lens

I have a huge soft spot for towering tough guys, it's no secret. From Conan to the T-800, this hyper masculine archetype may seem dated and boring to others, but personally I cannot get enough of it. What kind of pressure does it take to make a man two steps from a monster? In an odd sort of way, I suppose I find it relatable. Furthermore, I always find masculinity as a topic lends itself really well to a transgender lens- it's like free nuance! It is one thing to be born into this cruel, limiting role.. But what does it tell of a character, their story, when it is a choice?

Some people express confusion learning that this fisherman is transgender, which drives the question: should you be able to tell? Frankly, I think there should be a hell of a lot more trans men in media before we tackle this question. Assuming someone can’t be genetically tall and bulky due to the gender assigned at birth is an awfully dated idea to begin with, in my humble opinion.

I am out here making what I  would like to see a trans man in a videogame do, which is be huge, wrestle monsters and kiss cute guys. A topic me and Åge started tackling back in the Liquid State days was the concept of a trans power fantasy- which is exactly what it reads on the tin. While there are few men (trans and not) who fit into the shapely mold of a hyper masculine, sword-swinging barbarian god, many admire these characters and live out their fantasies through them.

Besides, you can tell! We specifically make excuses to show off his shark-teeth patterned top surgery scars because we want people to know. Hey, are you a trans guy that likes bulky dudes? This one’s for you!

In conclusion

While my inspirations are deceptively simple and reasons are uncomplicated, I often catch myself thinking about this design. Is it realistic? Is it alienating? Is it empowering? Is it wise? Even if he was designed straight from a trans man’s gut with no worries about the greater question of good representation, I often find myself thinking as though the task of representing all trans men lies solely on my shoulders. It is an unrealistic, unfair expectation. I am not all trans men, neither is he. 

His design and background is a love letter to one of my favorite types of characters, no doubt mixed in with years of queer, man-loving brain soup. He is what I like, and what I want to see in a video game. At the end of the day, I can only hope that what I enjoy also appeals to others.

So far, all signs point to yes. :)

This is our fanart wall, right by my desk at our office. I put them right where i can see them every day. Thanks for the support, folks- it means the world to me.

-Hauk Want to know more? Follow us here or on Twitter for regular updates on this project- or click here to join our discord!

[scottbaiowulf]

my main characters so far, donny and marina

[ham1lton]

masterlist ♡

any requested works have a ♥︎ besides them and any works containing sexual content have a 18+ mark besides them <3

one shots/smau ♡

wrong number - charles leclerc smau. ↴

-> the one where y/n gets a new phone and tries to text her auntie… only her auntie is not the other one at the end of the phone.

her silly rabbit - lando norris smau. ♥︎ ↴

-> just lando being the most supportive wag ever to his gymnast gf. bare minimum fr.

manifest it! - logan sargeant smau. ♥︎ ↴

-> logan manifesting a relationship with the girl of his dreams. the incredibly gorgeous, talented and famous you. at least you can’t say he doesn’t aim high.

i fell for you - lando norris smau. ♥︎ ↴

-> after being injured in a hit and run in a grocery store with a trolley, lando swears he’s found the one. oscar thinks it’s just the concussion talking.

mysterious girl. - lewis hamilton smau. ♥︎ ↴

-> lewis has just released that he’s just gotten married and the whole world is scrambling to find out who his secret wife is. spoiler alert! it’s you.

i’m with the band - lando norris smau. ♥︎ ↴

-> pop band CHANGE! has just released their anticipated third album; however, fans notice that the songs seem to tell an unsavoury story….

hungry eyes - carlos sainz jr smau. ♥︎ ↴

-> carlos’ post-race interview goes viral and not necessarily for the reasons one would think….

glue song - oscar piastri smau. ↴

-> after looking at some old photo albums, you stumble across an old photograph of your first love. you post it online and internet sleuths attempt to track him down.

good old fashioned lover boy! - lando norris smau. ♥︎ ↴

-> lando is in love. his girlfriend is the perfect girl in every way possible, except for one thing: she’s a pescatarian, and lando hates fish.

semi charmed kinda life! - jenson button smau. [18+] ♥︎ ↴

-> simple story. girl meets boy. boy is her older brother’s best friend. boy is off limits. then boy sees her all sweaty post race. you know the rest.

just a normal girl - charles leclerc smau. ♥︎ ↴

-> just a normal girl is a stand-up netflix comedy special performed by actress and comedienne y/n l/n in which she discusses her childhood, her horrible first meeting with her boyfriend and being a twenty something in london.

don’t trust the bitch in apt 33!- max verstappen smau ♥︎ ↴

-> your new apartment in monaco is amazing. it’s close to your friends, family and work, it has incredible amenities and your neighbours for the most part seem kind. the only issue is your upstairs neighbour, who games all night and sleeps all day, and is insufferably loud while doing it.

if we were a movie - charles leclerc smau ♥︎ ↴

-> need for speed, out in cinemas feb 31st 2026, follows emma, a coffee shop owner, who falls in love with christopher, a formula one driver. the film's marketing manager decides to take you and your co-stars to the next f1 race where you meet the original inspiration for christopher and maybe, find a love story of your own.

homewrecker! - oscar piastri smau. ↴

-> it is common knowledge that you’ve had an anonymous long time boyfriend since your school days. so when oscar piastri starts flirting with you in your comment section, no one seems to care. that is until you start flirting back.

the winner takes it all! - oscar piastri smau ♥︎ ↴

-> when your boyfriend wins his maiden grand prix, you’ve got to show up for him. that proves difficult when no one believes he’s dating you.

untitled lewis hamilton smut. [18+] ♥︎ ↴

-> does an orgasm help with migraines? lewis finds out!

good luck, babe! - charles leclerc smau/written ♥︎ ↴

-> friendships don’t always survive, you and charles would know.

the princess diaries! - charles leclerc smau/written au ↴

-> it’s one thing finding out you’re the crown princess of a small country. it’s another thing to figure it all out while ignoring the totally hot monegasque ambassador.

nasty girl! - oscar piastri x reader smau ↴

-> slut, whore, bitch - all the words that have been used to describe famous party girl yn yln. so when you show up to the grid with a shiny diamond ring on your hand, people are trying to figure out just who would choose you.

multi posts ♡

— random boyfriend texts w/ charles/oscar/lando/carlos.

— drunk texts ♥︎ w/ charles/oscar/carlos/lewis/mick/max.

— texting him ‘she’s busy bro’ w/ max/carlos/charles/daniel/oscar/logan/lewis/lando.

— wet dreamz w/ seb/lewis/fernando/jenson/nico. 18+.

— morning/night texts ♥︎ w/ oscar/logan/mick.

— vroom vroom! ♥︎ w/ lando/carlos/charles.

— suga mama. w/ lando/lewis/oscar/mick/max/charles.

— pretty girl rock! w/ lando/lewis/max/charles/oscar/carlos.

series ♡

diva anthems - hiatus. ↴

-> a list of short smau/one shots based on some of my favourite songs.

dream girl universe - lewis hamilton/jude bellingham/lando norris/max verstappen/oscar piastri smau ♥︎↴

-> being the personal assistant of sir lewis hamilton has been the highlight of your career so far, even when he has you fetching organic vegan dog food for roscoe at six in the morning. but that was to be expected, what wasn’t expected was a certain athlete taking an interest in you.

nepo sister universe - ongoing. - lando norris smau. ♥︎↴

-> two time f1 world champion. face of multiple different famous companies. part-time bassist, part-time model, and full time older sister to you. your older sister breaks barriers every time she breathes and you’re coming along for the ride.

— featuring. charles leclerc x fellow driver’s bff!reader.

maneater - ongoing - f1!female driver x grid (platonic) ↴

-> what if you were the first female driver in formula one?

summer lovin’ - ongoing - interactive logan sargeant x oscar piastri smau. ↴

-> after their rookie season, in a bid to repair their friendship, the two drivers decide to take their new paycheques and go explore the sun, sea and sands of greece. what they didn’t anticipate was to bump into you.

raceway retail - collab project - ongoing - multi ↴

-> an alternate universe where instead of the guys being formula one drivers, they work in a shopping centre/mall. one in which which you frequent often.

follower’s celebrations - ongoing/on hiatus - multi ♥︎ ↴

-> a bunch of smaus requested by my followers as a celebration for hitting 500! — masterlist.

-> a bunch of fics requested by my followers as a celebration for hitting 2k! — masterlist.

drabble masterlist - complete - multi ♥︎ ↴

-> random prompts that were requested!

[phil-isms]

dream dapg uploads

untitled goose game. need i say more.

4 hour long asmr video of them exploring in breath of the wild/tears of the kingdom

dan and phil react to tatinof

50 part full play through of baldurs gate 3. i need to know who they romance.

solo phil apex legends video. he gets so pissed off he spends the last 10 minutes sat playing in silence.

parallel play building legos next to each other

dan vs phil : guilty gear strive

solo dan aquascaping project. he goes off on a 15 minute tangent about fish care and how fish are often neglected as pets

tier list maker every ffxiv mount ranked

dragon city spon making dragon themed soap/bathbombs

it takes two part 2

[fagnightsatfreddys]

A little web weave for @zeteri-art for the @mcyt-halloween gift exchange!!

I tried going for a theme of Watcher Grian and the ending of Third Life with a little bit of Scarian if you squint (I love over-dramatizing cubes) I hope you like it!!

Image credits and link sources under the cut

Together (Baphometkun)

Phrase - Wings - Eye - Image composition: Myself

Phrase, drawing (existentialterror) - Background image (Baphometkun)

X

This must be the place (Naive Melody) - Talking Heads

X

The Man Who Sold the World - Nirvana

Picture - Phrase (lilsquiddymcinky, top comment on this video) - Editing: Myself

Phrase (Fruiteas) - Photo (Fedor Vasilev and Anna Ivahnenko. Manchester 2020) - Hands: Myself

World of Flesh and Blood (Fruiteas)

Telephone line - Electric Light Orchestra

Image editing (_journalsandjunk_) - Picture they used (Elk at the Game and Fish Department - Lucas Foglia)

Snow day (Baphometkun)

Image (flesh.png) - Text (that-house - Untitled.)

The Man Who Sold the World - Nirvana

Holy bird (Julianmiholics)

Together (Baphometkun)

[lavenderleahy]

Seven Sentence Sunday

Sharing a bit from my untitled bee fic that I will hopefully post tonight or tomorrow morning!

Tagged by the lovely @bidisasterevankinard @evanbi-ckley and @girlwonder-writes

“Did I ask for a lesson in California law?” Gerrard snaps. Buck ignores him. Fuck if he’s gonna let Gerrard become a bee murderer. “Yeah, it’s kinda cool, ‘cause, like, the Wildlife Fish and Game Code technically defines fish as any, umm, mollusk, crustacean, invertebrate, or amphibian,” here, Buck counts on each finger as he names the creatures, “and since bees are invertebrates, they’re protected.”  Gerrard pinches the bridge of his nose. “Firefighter Buckley, I do not have the patience for this. Go get the vinegar before I lose my everloving mind.”

Tagging a few mutuals who might be interested! @queerdiazs @didsomeonesaybuffet @herrmannhalsteadproduction @theotherbuckley @inhiswill

[veronae-buddie]

Teaser Tuesday Thursday

Tagged by @queerweewoo, thank you lovely!!

From my steadily-being-written untitled handcuff wip.

“And…” Eddie falters a moment, then blurts, “You’ve done that?” “I’ve done all of it,” Buck says easily. “I’m what they call, ‘up for anything’.” “Anything,” Eddie breathes. His astonished eyes rove aimlessly about the room. “Wow.” “I mean, I make sure I’m safe,” Buck says, taking a nonchalant sip of his bourbon, clinking the glass against his bottom teeth. “Like I said, some of it you only do with someone you can trust.” Eddie’s eyes dart back to Buck, and words tumble from his tipsy lips. “The only person I trust that much is you.” Slowly, Buck’s eyes widen and he looks at Eddie as though he’s never seen him before. Thoughts flitter through his mind, a sharp and desperate wondering at just what Eddie means by that. Hope and excitement unspool through him, slowly and tentatively, but undeniably. Fishing through the alcohol muddling his mind, Buck chooses careful words. “If you want me to be that person for you … I’m game.” “That … person?” Eddie’s voice is a terrified whisper. Catching his lower lip with his teeth, Buck nods slowly. “If you wanted to … play,” he says, echoing Eddie’s chosen word. “I’ll play with you.”

Tagging!

@shortsighted-owl @disasterbuck @serensational @blue-winged-boy @emotionallyencumbered

@gnoeltop @inell @verdimundi @darkrose6578 @littleblackraincloudofcourse

@deliriousbean @idealuk @oldfangirl81 @ronordmann @shealwaysreads

@queenofthesydrianites @marvelgirl9326 @graendoll

[thunderlina]

LOST MEDIA: Gorillaz - Plastic Beach Web Games

I come to you tonight with one request: I want help in tracking down the Plastic Beach point-and-click adventure game from the Phase 3 (2010-2012) Gorillaz website.

In 2010, coinciding with the release of their third studio album, British virtual band Gorillaz gave their website a huge overhaul, including the release of several new flash games. The centerpiece was a point-and-click adventure game (untitled, usually just referred to as "Plastic Beach") in which the player was able to explore the island of Plastic Beach, similar to the games available on earlier websites where the player was able to explore Gorillaz HQ Kong Studios.

Along with this game were a few others: Escape to Plastic Beach, a three chapter long action/adventure game (the third chapter of which cost €1.50 to play, and was available both for PC and iPhones.) Just recently the developer, Matmi, hinted at trying to re-release these, but they went silent regarding it and nothing has come of it so far.

There were also two smaller Flash titles, Submatronic and Gorillaz Fishing. Not entirely sure what these two entailed but they were listed on the website and, like the adventure game and Escape are not playable via the Wayback Machine nor are they archived elsewhere.

From my research, it seems the website had some kind of DRM software that the older websites (which have been archived over at zombiehiphop.xyz) didn't, since the Plastic Beach game used full tracks from the album and EMI was worried about piracy. Before anyone suggests it like was done in other places where I've asked about this, no, the game was not released on a CD or DVD. Because of this, all four games unique to the Plastic Beach era website are lost. The iPhone port of Escape to Plastic Beach was also removed from the App Store years ago, and as such is also completely lost.

As of right now, all that still exists are low-quality videos of the adventure game in action, a few screenshots, and a handful of Flash files I've dug up from the Wayback Machine.

The loss of this game represents not just a loss for Flash preservation, but a huge loss for Gorillaz fans as it was an integral element of the story of the Plastic Beach era. Without it and much of the other content from the old website, the already incomplete story that Jamie Hewlett and the rest of the Zombie Flesh Eaters team were trying to tell lives on almost wholly through secondary accounts. While recordings exist, it is simply not the same as having access to the full experience.

I ask of you all to please consider my words and help me do something about this, instead of wallowing in hopelessness as it seems the community has been doing for oh so long now.

Thank You.

Footage of the adventure game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUnvkZFPu1Q https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmAo_POMRHY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DW6KHLLgBss https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWIkwVDIJNQ

The handful of Flash files I dug up via the Wayback Machine: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1RKpP9o-j-4jFkdQEDN54ye5LGZIrBd_7

[imakemywings]

do you have any good female fics to rec?

DO I. LOL. Putting this immediately under a cut because there are a lot! There are so many talented writers in this fandom who do ENORMOUS justice to female characters, both original and book-based. Couple of blog recs at the bottom too!

(I'm assuming this is asking for Tolkien fanfic since that's mostly what I'm on about these days, but if you'd rather see Mass Effect or Dragon Age I can do that too.)

I'm glad you asked! φ(*￣0￣)

I'm going to keep all of these to 1 rec per author just so we don't get totally out of control here.

Forging Gold by @swanmaids ft. Curufin's wife, Dwarf OCs. Heather is an amazing source of female character fic in this fandom; she has well-developed OCs for all of Feanor's daughters-in-law and treats canon female characters with such care and love. Absolutely recommend checking out the rest of her stuff!

Prick a Finger, Cut Your Hand by @welcomingdisaster ft. Indis, Miriel. A really great look at the dynamic between these two. Lena has lots of other good takes on female Tolkien characters too!

Friendship and Stern Demand by @polutrope ft. Elwing. Fantastic exploration of what the communications between Elwing and Maedhros might have looked like!

Untitled by @outofangband ft. Aerin, Morwen. Nelyo focuses a lot on the human characters so if you want to read more about what the mortal women went through in the First Age, definitely browse through their blog!

Abide, Abound by Elleth ft. Arwen, Tauriel. Elleth also has lots of works centering on female Tolkien characters.

And by their blazing signify that a great princess falls, but doth not die by TheLionInMyBed ft. Elwing. One of my favorite takes on Elwing's suicide.

Keeper of Kings by batshape ft. Lalwen. What did Lalwen get up to in Middle-earth? Seeing a lot of people die, for one thing.

Into the Heart of a Fey Thing by @amethysttribble ft. Aredhel, Galadriel, Luthien. Fun "behind-the-scenes" look at some adventures with these three!

A Fish Hook, an Open Eye by simaetha ft. Elwing, f!Maglor. Fascinating AU take on a meeting between Elwing and Maglor prior to the Third Kinslaying.

The Sleep of Flowers by Innin ft. Galadriel, Melian. Very beautiful scene, and plenty of other female-centric works by Innin!

Light Words About Nothing by Margo_Kim ft. Dis, Belladonna. I ship it.

Elwing's Strategy by lifeisyetfair ft. Elwing. Another great take on Elwing at the Third Kinslaying.

Out of Dreams, Into the Sun by solanaceae ft. Miriel, Indis.

Games and Fantasy by Genesis_Grey ft. Arwen, Eowyn. Ohh it captures that chivalric WLW so well.

Over the Unclear Eyes of Memory by Loriand_Lost ft. Anaire, Aredhel. Addresses Anaire's complicated feelings about Fingolfin's return to Valinor. This author also has a number of other great female-centric fics, highly recommend!

The Carriage Held but Just Ourselves by @starspray ft. Luthien, Elwing, Arwen. Amazing look at the line of Thingol's relationship with death. This author also has a whole series on Lalwen and an OFC!

Before the Breath of Storm by tinnurin ft. Dis, Dwarf OC. "Behind-the-scenes" look at the Dwarves before the battle of Azanulbizar.

This Now, This Us by crownlessliestheking ft. Indis, Miriel. Indis and Miriel talk after Miriel's return to Valinor.

The Tapestry by Zdenka ft. Thedowyn, Miriel. The ghost of Miriel Serinde offers some aid. This author also has a lot of female-centric works!

Not Undevoted by SatiricalDraperies ft. Galadriel, Melian.

Winter Sea by Tallulah ft. Finduilas, OFC. Finduilas had a girlfriend in the Falas. Another author with a great selection of female-centric works.

The Hunt by @cuarthol ft. Amarie. Amarie is trans and closeted in Valinor, but Finrod understands.

Come Home to Chaos (Get a Crush on a Queen) by ncfan ft. Arwen, Firiel. When Firiel of Gondor takes refuge in Rivendell, Arwen takes an interest.

Do I Hurt to Hold? by Anonymous ft. Galadriel, Melian. A darker look at their relationship.

That Time Elanor Gardner Had A Crush On Her Employer by Anonymous ft. Arwen, Elanor.

All My Shadows Fade by amyfortuna ft. Arwen, OFC. Unsent letter from a female friend of Arwen's as her wedding to Aragorn approaches. This author is also a good one to look at for more female-centric fic!

Orlaya by yeaka ft. Arwen, Tauriel. Cute!

Of All the Stars, the Fairest by whatiwouldnotgive ft. Arwen, Eowyn.

Or They Would Go On Aching Still by Farasha ft. Arwen, Tauriel. Oh, the grief!

Berrypicking Time by swamp_diamonds ft. Finduilas, Nienor.

Things They Don't Talk About by eris_of_imladris ft. Findis. Findis and Feanor have a complicated relationship.

Easily Sever What Never was One by vauquelin ft. Haleth. If you like Halenthir at all as a ship, you'll like this.

The One With All The Birds by clothono ft. Elwing, Nerdanel. I've said it before I'll say it again--my favorite Elwing fic.

Greensleeves by bravelittlscrib ft. Nerdanel. Little scenes of Nerdanel's life and her relationships.

Emerie by the_artifice_of_eternity ft. Erendis, Ancalime. Ancalime's last visit with her mother before taking the throne.

In the Family by arriviste ft. Celebrian, Galadriel.

At the Water's Edge by crackinthecup ft. Elwing, Idril.

And that's what I've got for you right now, I hope that helps! I would also advise checking out the blogs @tolkien-heroines and @sapphictolkien both of which focus on female characters in Tolkien's work. Happy reading, anon! ♪(^∇^*)

[behind-you-gem]

Considering Grian’s fishing obsession lately, I’ve seen suggestions for various aquatic bird hybrids he could be. Heron Grian, Kingfisher Grian, Duck Grian, Penguin Grian….

I see you all. I hear you. But consider:

Goose Grian.

The ultimate “untitled goose game” style annoying goose.

[beefrobeefcal]

WIP Tag Game - thank you @burntheedges for the tag! 😘

rules: list the names/titles of docs in your wip folder + open your inbox to asks about them!

Untitled Joel Miller fic - @perotovar's frith celebration Joel finds his purpose.

Untitled Frankie Morales fic - @burntheedges 's roll-a-trope fic challenge Soul mates are real, this much is true.

Part 5 of There Are Other Fish in the Sea (Ezra x Mouse/Little Birdx Frankie) How much is too much for Ezra?

Like a Cigar (Max Philips x f!reader) Max helps... ish.

On the Waterfront Ch 9 (Big Fish Morales x f!reader) Who's dead? Who's Alive? Who's POLLUP?

AU OTWF Omegaverse (alpha!bfm x omega!f!reader) bc why the fuck not

Untitled Tim Rockford Sex Pollen fic (Tim Rockford x f!reader) hitting all the buttons: procedural, coffee shop, sex pollen, voyerism, bathrooms, publics sex...

No Pressure TagList: @strang3lov3 @whocaresstillthelouvre @ace-turned-confused @wintrwinchestr @bitchesuntitled @xdaddysprincessxx @maggiemayhemnj @goodwithcheese

[vertebrae-entertainment]

art i drew of alaska dying in a glue trap

[und8e2ff]

Saint Seiya AU where everything's the same but...

okay, so- I was browsing Wikipedia looking for material to make more historically accurate shitposts.

As I do...

Pisces Aphrodite's symbol, much like the goddess he's named after, is the rose. A red rose specifically.

However, did you know that another symbol of the goddess Aphrodite is lettuce?

fucking

✨L E T T U C E 🌈🥬

it's okay if you don't know where this is going

so-

Saint Seiya AU where everything's the same but instead of Aphrodite's powers being based around and channeled through roses, his powers are based around and channeled through LITERAL LEAVES AND HEADS OF LETTUCE

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

Fuck a rose, mans is walking around with a whole leaf of lettuce just hangin. out. his. MOUF

You can't tell if he's late to anime school or late to the salad bar.

HE'S NOT EVEN CHEWIN IT, IT'S JUST THERE-

Imagine him standing there looking all cool and beautiful yet intimidating (as he does), but instead of holding a rose, it's a whole head of Romaine.

Walkin around the sanctuary with iceberg lettuce leaves tucked behind his ear instead of something normal like an anemone or narcissus (flowers, other symbols of Aphrodite).

Just out here looking botanically confused.

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

Shun and Seiya get to the Pisces Temple and it's just a farm...

🥬🥬 A LETTUCE farm 🥬🥬

Pisces Farmodite AU???

And he has all different kinds planted.

There's butterhead, frisee, arugula, mesclun, little gem- You Name It

Seiya runs ahead as usual.

Instead of it being a long stretch of rose-covered stairs up to the Pope, the whole way up is covered in liek, idk... Endive???

For those of you who may not have looked into the food facts of lettuce (you not missin out on anything), lettuce is basically nutritionally-bankrupt, crunchy water.

Specifically, raw lettuce is like 95% water.

Instead of Seiya being slowly poisoned to death, he's having his Flintstone gummies siphoned out of his body until he dies of malnutrition.

Shun gets hit in the chest with BLOODY RADICCHIO

Instead of a white rose sapping out his blood, Shun gets hit in the chest with a white, translucent leaf of lettuce.

Once the leaf has completely sapped out his blood, it looks like this:

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

Imagine Aphrodite being the Bubba Gump of his universe.

Instead of him obsessing over all the ways you can cook shrimp, it's over all the different kinds of lettuce and how best to prepare them.

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

Away from the whole lettuce thing...

There are many animals associated with the goddess Aphrodite. Among them are hares, bees, fish, and geese.

I can't decide which idea I like more:

Pisces Beephrodite/Bee Keeper Aphrodite AU - Aphrodite with his usual roses and flowers but he also keeps bees as pollinators and as his lil striped buzzy frens.

Pisces Bunphrodite AU - Where everything's the same but he just has a pet rabbit. It can also be combined with the Pisces Endive-phrodite (Lettuce Aphrodite) AU where the bunny/bunnies live on the lettuce farm and it's their favorite snack.

Pisces Aphrodite but with a Ranchu Goldfish AU - Where he has a ranchu goldfish that just kind of floats there... It's the center of his universe and if you even look at his fish wrong, YOU'RE DEAD.

Untitled Goose Game - In which Aphrodite has the most ornery pet goose on the face of the planet. It only likes him. And much like the Ranchu AU, this goose is the center of his whole world. Aphrodite doesn't care if his goose just stole your identity and ruined your credit score. Keep his goose's name...

OUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH

goose is probably named Rutherford or smth

[libraford]

I *love* the motif deck; the composition, the flexibility, your watercolors are wonderfully done, and while I'm hoping to be able to buy it eventually, I'm desperately poor and can't rn (if I can sell some earrings I maybe can though lol) but every time you post a sample reading it's... also dragging me to filth, and strangely tiding me over, so thank you and also wtf how do you do this

I'll be honest, I don't know how I do anything. I'm just trying to make it to Friday.

The Motif Deck was born from an idea I had a couple years ago, which was an oracle deck with no words attached to the cards so that the reader was encouraged to free-associate. But when I was sketching out the thumbnails I only had four colors in my pen set and I was working on it while at a laundromat so I couldn't get more because someone might steal my laundry. But I ended up really enjoying the simplicity of the color scheme so that got stuck in my head for a bit.

The drive to do an oracle deck with no standard meaning came from doing tarot for like six years (at that point, it's more like 10 now). I've always been a really talented reader and I picked up on the concept right away, but the symbols in tarot seemed a little hard to connect with (which lead me to make @thesweeneytarot ). So I started reading based on vibes. Like... what colors do I see most of in this spread, where are the cards facing, what seems out of place, how do we create a story based on what we have in front of us.

Proved effective! I was doing really well on tarot readings. It felt less like divination this way and more like a puzzle, like a story, like a game.

So what if there was a deck that was made for this style of reading? How do you even start that? What would it look like? Could I make something like that? Where do I start?

Then my friend introduced me to a game called Dixit, and it's sister game Mysterium, which uses untitled surreal art cards to tell a story. And I noticed that sometimes the art cards would have similar objects in them, like red ribbons or gold keys or blue fish. And it was interesting to me how the person in the storytelling position would make different associations than I did and I considered this a feature, not a bug.

I toyed a bit with doing divination with Dixit cards, but I found them a bit too obtuse for my liking and there were too many details to get caught up in.

So I was like... okay, I like this. What do I like about this? Let's do this but make it simpler.

...then covid.

So the idea sat on the backburner for awhile.

Then i got back into doing tarot readings and got the itch to try something new, started thinking about That oracle deck again, but now I'm thinking about those primary colors and how I tried like four different color combinations in my thumbnails and couldn't remember what they were meant to mean between them.

Then thinking about color theory. Like actual color theory but also the meme. And how the red ribbons in Dixit could be the strings of fate or they could be streaks of blood, or the red design on the hospital floor could be 'energetic and positive' or they could be... streaks of blood...

Like... sure, colors might have set meanings... to some people. But they also have meanings in their context. The color of a thing tells a story just like the thing itself.

So this is how I came up with the idea of repeating the images in different colorways.

So now we have my elements: no words, no inherent meaning, simple images, repeating objects interacting with each other, and cards repeating in different colorways.

And then the hard part, which was making it. I do actually have an art degree, so making the paintings wasn't difficult for me, but the logistics was hard. Because I had to decide which objects were common enough to be understood by everyone, and I had to pare the number down to something reasonable because this deck was bound to be massive.

Which took another year.

And now it's done! The slow parts go slow and the fast parts go fast.

I'm the kind of person who like... if I get into my head that I want to make something, I'll find a way to make it. And like... my philosophy for making things has always been that I intend to sell one, and that's to myself. But if I like it, someone else might, so I make it available for other people.

But I'm really glad that other people like it or are even just curious. Like, when you're making a 'product' (which almost feels rude to call something that I did for myself) the hardest part is getting people interested in it. So the fact that so many people think it's cool makes me so happy. (Am I cool now???)

Thank you!! And sorry for the overshare. I just got really excited.

[illarian-rambling]

Thanks for the tag @gioiaalbanoart!

Writblr Interview

Short stories, novels, or poems?

Oh, definitely novels. Even my short stories are pretty long lol

What genre do you prefer reading?

Fantasy, sci-fi, anything fun :)

What genre do you prefer writing?

Definitely fantasy with some heavy steampunk flavor

Are you a planner or a write-as-I-go kind of person?

I'll usually plot out a vague plan for each chapter, but no further than that. Short stories, I pretty much just wing it on.

What music do you listen to while writing?

It's gotta be instrumental or I can't pay attention. I tend towards a mix of video game music, classical, and jazz. Each of my characters has their own spotify playlist linked in my pinned post, so if you're looking for 6 to 8 hours of instrumental music, be my guest :)

Fave books/movies?

Favorite books are anything by Sanderson, the Foundryside Trilogy, and the Kingkiller Chronicles. My favorite movies are the lotr trilogy.

Any current WIPs?

My rotating roster is Honor's Outcasts and The Mystery of the Mortal God. The Final Voyage of the R.S Starbreaker is one I keep on backburner, and I'm currently working on an untitled short story.

If someone were to make a cartoon out of you, what would your standard outfit be?

Probably my work clothes ngl. A fishing shirt tucked into cargo pants, tucked into mud boots with a sun hat and mosquito net. My hair is in pigtails and I'm covered in bug spray. I probably smell musty as hell.

Create a character description for yourself

A tall young woman with a fuckass blonde bob, probably a checked-out expression on her face, and really awful tan lines. She's always wearing a necklace and usually some painted boots. The aesthetics are somewhere between punk and rustic.

Do you like incorporating people you actually know into your writing?

Nah, it's never appealed to me

Are you kill-happy with characters?

Not really, but I've been known to make exceptions

Coffee or tea while writing?

Girl, water. I need hydration lol

Slow or fast writer?

I'm not sure what the metric is exactly, but I'd say decently fast, though it depends on how my life is going also.

Where/who/what do you find inspiration from?

My own brain, books and shows I like, dreams, all sort of places

If you were put into a fantasy world, what would you be?

Probably some sort of alchemist who lives in a basement and eats toads

Most fave book cliche?

Thwarted prophecies. I love it when something goes wrong in a way that's correct to the letter. This is a little ironic, as if never written a prophecy once.

Least fave book cliche?

When characters are overly whiny, but especially when they whine about cool stuff. Like, sorry your shape-shifting abilities are making you question your humanity, but rip to you, I'm different. The only exception to this dislike is if they're whiny in a funny way. Anything is forgivable in literature if it's entertaining.

Fave scenes to write?

Probably those high tension fight scenes or anything with emotional stakes that isn't just a ton of dialog

Most productive time of day for writing?

I'd say early afternoon, but I have more free time to write at night

Reason for writing?

These characters are my friends. Giving up would be abandoning them. Also, I legitimately enjoy reading my own writing.

I'll tag @thecomfywriter @albatris @sm-writes-chaos and anyone else who wants to play :)

[sarandipitywrites]

writing patterns tag game

rules: list the first line of your last 10 (posted) fics and see if there's a pattern!

thanks for the tag, @adhdavinci! let's pretend this wasn't sitting in my drafts for a month 😅 go check out their lines here

passing the tag along (with no pressure) to @i-can-even-burn-salad, @macabremoons, @fanged-writer, @innocentlymacabre, @winterandwords, and an open tag for anyone who wants to share

sooo I'm gonna have to break some rules here bc I don't think I've even worked on 10 fics recently, much less posted them (not more than, like, a snippet at a time, anyway). so i'll start with what i've actually posted, then just... fuck it, we ball?

yeah that sounds good.

'Just stuff my dad into a bag,' she'd said. 'He'll fit, of course he will. Have you seen how small he is? He's bluffing, he won't really turn you into a fern,' she'd said. (Dead Roots, Dark Water, Ch 1)

For all his research, Daxter had never figured out who'd designed the Krimzon Guard Fortress. And it was a good thing, too, because if he ever did, he would shoot the architectural anarchist in the foot, run them over with a hellcat, and throw them in the port. Then he'd fish them out again just so he could shoot them in the face. (DRDW, Ch 2)

Magic and blood sit heavy on V’s tongue. (Untitled Cyberwitch WIP, Ch 1)

The silence amplified everything: the squeak of rusty nails in the boards beneath Luka's feet; the rat-a-tat rattle of the loose panes in the windows; Jules's unsteady breathing as they tapped on their phone; Luka's own stammering heartbeat. "I don't think we should be here." (I Am Alive)

I have always been here. (A Haunted Home)

'The monster is not your enemy.' A half-crushed note, faded and bled, written in his own hand: the only familiar thing in the room where Lienzo had awakened. (The Art of Empty Space (V2), Ch 1)

It was the pain that woke him. (TAES (V1), Ch i-don't-know,-i-didn't-section-this-thing-into-chapters)

The air coated his lungs in a thick layer of smog and exhaust, vapor and sweat and noise, cacophonous clanging competing for his attention. Engines, alarms, voices. Jak let them all in, let them bury him in a landslide of stimulation. It wasn't stale, silent, recirculated air. It was alive, and so was he. (DRDW, Ch 3)

Metal shrieked against metal. Violet paint streaked across the green of his speeder. Screaming. Crackling eco slugs reached out with staticky tendrils as they whizzed by. (DRDW, Ch 10)

The ocean breeze brought with it decay: rotting seaweed infested with sandflies; drowned fish with oil and eco caked in their gills; algae and mildew and rotting wood. Its icy fingers trailed goosebumps down his skin, cooled the blood beneath. (DRDW, Ch 13)

so, if we're looking for patterns, i think it looks like... i really like character voices; starting en media res; and starting with some really vivid descriptions. anything you guys see that i missed?