#we haven’t explored THAT chemistry enough

[doomed2repeat]

Something about hyping up Nicola Coughlan with Luke Thompson right now doesn’t sit right with me when it comes from a place of crapping on Luke Newton.

[lovelyyandereaddictionpoint]

Yandere Cheerleaders + Football Team

The thing about cheerleaders and the infamous football team is that they’re quite accurate to their stereotypes

Now not every cheerleader team is run by a head girl who’s a massive bully 

Or that the football team is filled with dumb jocks that are just as violent if not worse

But they’re nothing to scoff at 

They’re beautiful

They’re athletic

And they're disciplined with confidence that comes with successful games and competitions

Such perks might give them quite a bit of power

Power that’s doubled when they’re working together

If you’d like to be happy you’re better off not figuring out just yet 

Since your arrival to the University, you’ve noticed more of your things have gone missing

Maybe this move made you more frazzled than you thought

Because you’ve found that you haven’t been able to keep friends like you used to

At least not without some help

“So you’re the new student, huh? Welcome to Energi University. As cheer captain, I’m really happy to welcome you finally!”

As she drags you along throughout your schedule, you’re waiting for the punch line

The moment she switches to embarrass you or smile coyly as she says something underhanded about your appearance

But she doesn’t 

Only twirling her hair as she asks you where you learned to glow like you do

You find it odd but you’re not complaining

Movies taught you that she and her team were top of the food chain 

so if they liked you enough maybe it’d trickle to some friends eventually

“Looking for a partner? Me too. How about we uh work together, freshie. If we finish before class ends you can have my varsity jacket and I can have yours.”

It seems it works as the beefy but beautiful captain of the football team partners up during chemistry

Between the two captains, you think you’re making progress

Finally beginning to make friends

But you couldn’t be farther from the truth

Already you were skipping right into the pitfall that was their playground—Energi University

It started with the cheerleader’s captain, gorgeous, rich, and with a serious attitude problem

She was making her daily rounds with her two main girls

‘Putting the worms in their place’ as she’d report to her team

Until she found something interesting 

a glasses-wearing nerd had been holding a file, scrolling through someone’s social page with such dedication they didn’t even realize they were being cornered

And its not just someone—you

while her girls were exploring the use of pins on the human body, she was going through this fairly thick file

A file all about you

Filled with hundreds of pictures of you some with consent some not

Extensive organized lists of your likes and dislikes

And a neat report on your current whereabouts and social circle

By the end of it, she was intrigued

She’s never been one for reading but she just can’t put it down

Having to be brought back into the real world when her girls are done playing 

“Already? Ugh, let’s go find the next one this little report of his might be worth selling to those stupid jocks.”

That’s just an excuse 

she’s combing over your photos again as she re-reads about the mundane drama in your life

“Babe, I thought you said you wanted to spend time with me? Not lose braincells studying!” 

Her boyfriend–captain of the football team is trying to draw her attention with kisses and inviting touches

But she’s just too focused

Eventually, he’s going to snatch it all away, taking a look at it

“Who’s this? Your latest victim?”

“Puhlease they don’t even know me…yet.”

The nights they spend together is searching you on socials as they filter through these words about your world

There’s just something about you that has them enraptured

For them it’s like when they first started dating, running off from their teams to gush about their latest finds about you

Texting all through the night about schemes to meet you

Whispering on the bus on their way to seasonal competitions

It isn’t long before the nosey teams start poking around

All it takes is a whispered mention of your name and they’re stalking your socials 

Some hire private investigators to tell all they can get their hands on

It’s like a virus how the whole team is eventually letting your distant lovely little life take up all of theirs 

At some point words and posts just aren’t enough

“Yo Cap, why don’t we just get them to come here?”

“Yeah! I know I can get my dad to extend a scholarship and dormitory if something happens at their old school.”

“Hmm, I do still have those lighter fluid canisters.”

“Oooh and I can get them out of the dorms for awhile!”

“Then  we can swoop in and be the knight’s of shining armor they’ll need!”

“C’mon, captain! Let’s bring them home, aren’t you tired of looking at them through the screen?”

“Don’t you think it’d boost our morale for the championship?”

“Yeah!!” Pleaassee!?”

What terrible captains they’d be if they let their teams down now

So the plan is set, you conveniently are stood up on a date when your dorm and campus is burnt down killing so many friends you made+

The mysterious fire destroying their security footage and all your belongings too 

Its natural you start looking for a new college, a safer option

“Hey (Y/n) why don’t you come to our next game? Forget about that horrible fire and cheer us on!”

“Wait how did you know–”

“Grapevine cutie! Now what do you say to a sleepover!?”

“Not after we do our victory party!”

“Oh, you’ll have to try our captain’s famous jello shot! It’s going to knock your clothes+ socks off.”

Both Captains will watch happily as the group swarms you 

Your questions about the slug you made plans with prior were drowned out in their shouting and giggling

Their goal wasn’t to make you worry 

After all, they had the power to dissolve all of that 

The Captains and their teams

“Now that we have them I don’t see any reason, why our teams won’t be planned for an all-around victory in the nationals.”

“Of course, though we could do it without them. Money and pure talent are a given for people like us.”

“Still there’s nothing wrong with sharing a good luck charm.”

“You are absolutely right..”

“Aren’t I always? That being said we’ll have to talk about the…hoarding issue.”

“Oh yeah, I wanted to talk to you about that. The next time one of your cheerleaders interrupts me, they’ll be dealing with more than broken legs.”

“And your players should know the next time they take my time with (Y/n) away they won’t just become paralyzed.”

[joekeerys]

I find it interesting how we’ve never seen Jacaerys show any interest in women. Even in being betrothed to Baela, they act more like cousins than anything. His dance with Helaena was done almost entirely out of spite for Aegon, whom we’ve seen him show more interest in/affection toward as a child than anyone else. Then we have Cregan, whose relationship with Jacaerys in the book is…a whole other story. Jacaerys seemed quite fond of him in the short scene we got in the show too.

i’m gonna make a lot of people angry by saying this but i agree. i don’t think it’s any fault of the actors but jace and baela do not come off as a romantic couple at all. that’s entirely due to how condal & co chose to write them and their lack of scenes that would imply they’re anything other than close family. it’s unfortunate because i’d really like to see them explored more and they’ve already treated baela’s character poorly enough as it is. i highly doubt we’ll even get a kiss between them before jacaerys dies.

it’s obvious i’m a big jacegon shipper and, regardless of whether you view it as platonic/familial or not, the way they acted together as kids and the tension between them during the dinner because of that fallout is undeniable. we haven’t seen jace act the way he did with aegon with anyone else. i think some people downplay how much he looked up to aegon as a child (as they do with all of aegon’s relationships), especially considering it’s the reason why things were so tense between them after aegon very publicly betrayed him in 1x07. i’d argue that “everyone knows. just look at them.” coming from someone he admired so much is one of jace’s biggest reasons for feeling so inadequate his whole life. this got out of hand lmao but YEAH i think it’s interesting how affected jace and aegon are by each other and i do not see it as entirely platonic.

jace and cregan are a whole other story indeed. i’m not much of a jacegan shipper but cregan’s devotion to jace long after his death is interesting to say the least. i never bought into the whole sara snow thing and the absence of her in the show doesn’t bother me since it’s up in the air whether she existed at all and i take everything mushroom says with a grain of salt. i like the ship more as an idea. them seeing themselves in each other, jace finding someone he can be more comfortable with, and them finding a sort of intimacy in that. another instance where the he chemistry between them is pretty apparent and it helps that harry and tom are such good friends outside of the show.

i think there’s a reason why jace is normally written as gay in fanfics where he’s paired with a man, while the other party is usually written as bisexual. i wouldn’t go as far as to say that the showrunners write him that way intentionally because that would be giving too much credit to someone like sara hess who has called hotd “the gayest show on tv” for reasons beyond explanation.

i’ve always seen show jace at least as being more interested in men because that’s what we’ve been given. book jace is another story and harder to pin down. ultimately, i agree with you!

[erraticprocrastinator]

Reposting this on Tumblr because, why not?

I’d like to add, now that I’m free from X’s character limit, that I am aware that there are a select few people out there who do write or make art for certain ships with the goal of criticising or “fixing” the relationships and identities in canon, but, at least from what I’ve seen, I truly don’t believe that this is the majority of Hazbin shippers (or non-canon shippers in general). Especially for a show with such heavy queer representation, with a largely queer audience, where most of the popular fan ships are also queer, I don’t think most people are approaching this with erasure in mind.

I know that I, for one, definitely didn’t start shipping RadioApple because I wanted to ignore or change Lucifer and Alastor’s identities in canon. I just found myself drawn to the characters, and their potential for chemistry outside of a canon setting, and decided to let myself have fun with those ideas — which, until now, I kind of thought was supposed to be the purpose of fan content, anyway. I don’t ship them because I don’t like who they are in canon, or because I want them to ever get together in canon (I don’t!), just like I think it’s generally assumed that most people who make gender-bend content don’t actually want the characters to be a different gender, or that people who kill off their favourite characters don’t actually want it to happen.

I’ve truly never seen this be such an issue in any fandom other than Hazbin, even for other LGBTQ-friendly animated shows. I know that this fandom can be pretty hostile in general, but I can’t pretend that I don’t find it disheartening when the comments of almost every adorable piece of fanart I find are littered with things like “but Charlie is with Vaggie!”, “Alastor is ace so this would never happen” (a topic that honestly deserves its own post), or “Angel can’t be with XYZ because HuskerDust is confirmed!”. We know guys. We know. That’s why we sit here writing fanfiction, making fanart; to explore ideas we haven’t seen in canon, or that haven’t been expanded on yet. Fandom is supposed to be a safe space for people who want to test their creativity, not a place to jump on each other because of it. As always, if something isn’t your cup of tea, you’re free to scroll past, click back, or filter out. There’s no need to rain on content that ultimately isn’t harming anyone, especially, and I really can’t emphasise this enough, especially if you support non-canon ships in other fandoms.

[devine-fem]

why don't you like jayjon? Genuinely asking btw and I'm neutral btw I don't really ship superheroes kids, so yeah

Alright, firstly I have always come across damijon shippers that ship them as kids because their purest connection peaked when they were young so you kind of permanently keep Jon and Damian as kid in your head because of what DC did to them.

We ship them in a ‘wholesome crush on your best friend, twisting inside you over time that you snub out till you reach your adulthood and have the maturity to deal with it’ type of way. The beauty of Damijon is not the fact that it’s Bat x Super. I honestly don’t care for this dynamic ergo not shipping superbat and not liking Timkon at all. The beauty of Damijon is that they could become something with a friendship to back it up, then continue to push each other’s characters forward while being in a relationship if the writer cared enough. It’s a plus that they care for each other so much and have the personalities to really balance each other out.

I enjoy ships like Daminika, Dami x Colin and other Jon ships as well. I just only post damijon and talk about them. It’s only Jonj*y I have issues with. It’s not about ‘getting in the way of my ship’ nothing can ever get in the way of me enjoying damijon and fandom is just gonna have to deal with that. We all come here for enjoyment because we should supposedly enjoy DC for DC and find community in that, enjoy our ideas and takes on it and one person is not going to perceive or enjoy something the same way but we are so damn MEAN to each other. Damijon gets a lot of heat, mostly because twitter damijon stans are annoying and horrible and damijon antis are just as bad.

So the problem I have with Jonj*y is just deep rooted.

Firstly, I hate the way it came about. The last thing Jon’s character needed was to be in a relationship period but then for it to be a queer relationship used as a tool to garner sales? There’s nothing in the world I dislike more than queer baiting. The last thing we needed from DC was to pull something like this and as a queer person it just really gets under my skin - as it should anyone, to be honest.

Even regardless of that Jonj*y is the relationship equivalent of stale bread. They have no chemistry, Jay has no character besides catoring to Jon’s sexuality, and even if they were to explore him there’s no point because objectively they’ve tarnished Jon Kent way too much to be wasting comic ink on Jay.

I don’t like aged up Jon Kent as a whole, it’s not like I want him to stay a kid forever - obviously not. The fun of a comic book character is their growth! Jon over time should have never been able to get to the age he is now when other comic book characters struggle to get near that age in decades. I MEAN HE’S NEARLY OLDER THAN KON RIGHT NOW. Bendis did what he did to Jon because he ain’t even like him.

There are real serious issues with Jon Kent’s age up than him getting with Damian. I know how to seperate my ship/fanon from canon. I can go on and on about the problems with it without mentioning Damian once.

I had to put “JonJ*y apologist DNI” in my bio because the stans kept coming to my page and spewing BS 24/7 so I thought it was my absolute right to make sure they knew this page was not for them.

If you enjoy the ship at all then you will not like me because I have almost every single active Jonj*y poster blocked because I have fought with them at least once because they wanted to be stupid and spew nonsense on Jon Kent when you can tell they haven’t read a damn comic besides SSOKE and it really shows.

If you enjoy it, just block me. It’s only a matter of time before we fight anyway, so don’t waste your breath because the whole time you could be trying to open your mouth, you could open a comic book instead, how about that?

Thanks for the asks though, LOL.

P.2

[steddieunderdogfics]

This week’s writer spotlight feature is: blipblot! @blipblot has 20 fics in the Stranger Things fandom on AO3 and 19 of them are in the Steddie tag!

Our anonymous nominator recommends the following works by @blipblot:

Do You Have a Mirror in Your Pocket?

A Lick and a Promise

I'd Build a Home with You

"Their work is always so incredible and fun and they’re just so talented!! And they’ve got so many fics out, and each one is just wonderful — especially their most recent big bang fic, A Lick And A Promise. The worldbuilding is breathtaking, the characterisations are flawless, and it’s so full of love and passion, it’s just all around a perfect fic ❤️" -- anonymous

Below the cut, @blipblot answered some questions about their writing process and some of their recommended work!

Why do you write Steddie?

I absolutely adore the chemistry that Steve and Eddie have together. Their stories build off of each other so well! The different aspects between being popular and unpopular, growing up rich and growing up poor, alongside the benefits and downfalls of both of those lifestyles and how they impact each other is something I love writing. They’re fantastic narrative foils for one another.

What’s your favorite trope to READ?

I have tons but I would say idiots to lovers and enemies to lovers are some of my favorites. I love watching Steve and Eddie figure their shit out while also falling in love, it gets me every time.

What’s your favorite trope to WRITE?

Is unconditional love a trope? I just love writing stories that focus on love, whether that’s brotherly love, romantic love, platonic love, it doesn’t really matter to me. I get the most enjoyment writing when I’m writing about how all these different types of love affect our lives for the better and for the worse!

What’s your favorite Steddie fic?

There’s so many to choose from! Right now I’d say at the top of my list is gayjinkies phenomenal ‘I’m a lover, boy’, if you haven't read it please go check it out and send my love to them if you do!

Is there a trope you’re excited to explore in a future work but haven’t yet?

This is such an excellent question, I’m not sure! I just finished my first Historical AU, I’ve written Fantasy and In Universe so I guess the next one I’d like to tackle would be a Modern AU. I think that sounds like an absolute hoot, I’m brainstorming ideas for one as we speak!

What is your writing process like?

It’s so chaotic, it’s ridiculous. I normally just write down everything that comes to mind in the moment and then slowly whittle it into something more legible bit by bit. It is very rarely in order and I very rarely know how it’s going to end but that’s part of the fun!

Do you have any writing quirks?

Quirks, I’m not sure! I feel like I’m known for how I write dialogue but anything more specific I’m not sure I’d be able to pick up on. Maybe pillow fights, I feel like those end up in my fics more often than not somehow.

Do you prefer posting when you’ve finished writing or on a schedule?

In a perfect world, I’d prefer to post when finished but I write pretty slowly so I hate not having anything posted for months at a time. That being said, my posting schedule is nearly nonexistent as well. I just post when I have enough free time to finish a chapter!

Which fic are you most proud of?

I would say Put the Lights Out and Cry. It’s the first one I’ve ever written and looking back on it now makes me really proud that I decided to take that leap of faith and post it. It’s not perfect and there are things I wish I could go back and change but at the end of the day writing it and seeing everyone’s responses to it were incredibly rewarding and I feel so lucky that I got to share my goofy diner au with everyone.

How did you get the idea for I'd Build a Home with You?

It was for the Omegaverse Valentines Day Exchange event so I was sent a few tag ideas from the lovely MysteriousMidnight and let those stew in my brain for a while. I really struggled at first to come up with something but eventually everything sort of clicked into place plotwise.

When writing I'd Build a Home with You, what was something you didn’t expect?

Oh god, for it to be so long! It was all supposed to stay in the school building but that didn’t work out with the plot I had in mind. But once I mulled it over for a bit I just kept writing until the ending felt natural. I’d say it worked out alright in the end!

What inspired A Lick and a Promise?

Watching old Westerns with my partner! It was right around the time that the first Big Bang was happening that I came up with the idea and I slowly added stuff to it in my mind until the next Big Bang came around and I thought, why not give it a shot?

What was your favorite part to write from A Lick and a Promise?

The dialogue between Steve and Eddie at any given point. I LOVED writing them bicker and tease each other while also learning more about one another. Writing dialogue is often my favorite part of writing in general but for this fic it all came so naturally that it was a joy to see how it all came out.

How do/did you feel writing Do You Have a Mirror in Your Pocket??

It was a lot of fun! Writing Steve still in high school isn’t something I do often so that was a fun challenge in itself, figuring out how to write him with where he was on his self discovery journey, not absolutely reformed but not totally at the beginning of that journey either.

What was the most difficult part of writing Do You Have a Mirror in Your Pocket??

I really wanted to find the balance between writing Steve being humbled without going too overboard with it so I sort of struggled with that. I wanted it to be realistic without humiliating the poor guy too badly. Good thing Eddie was there to help out in the end!

Do you have a favorite scene and/or line from any of your fics?

The one that’s coming to mind now is one from A Lick and a Promise, “Death may be in front of him, but Steve Harrington is standing beside him. He can’t ask for much more than that.” I’m pretty proud of how that came out.

Do you have any upcoming projects or fics you’d like to share/promote?

Right now my plan is to finish up Cosa Nostra, my Mob AU, and then *finally* finish the last two chapters of the sister fic to Put the Lights Out and Cry which is titled In the Alley if you want more of that universe in particular!

Outside of these questions, Is there anything YOU would like to add?

I wanted to thank the moderators that work on the Steddieunderdog blog for all the amazing work they do sharing work that deserves more attention! Y’all are the bees knees and I���m so thankful for the work you guys have done for the fandom <3 

Thank you to our author, @blipblot, and our anonymous nominator! See more of blipblot's works featured on our page throughout the day!

Writer’s Spotlight is every Wednesday! Want to nominate an author? You can nominate them here!

[michelleelizabethtanner]

Fanfic asks 5 & 20!

Ty so much for the ask!

5. Which WIP is first on your list to complete this year? Will you post a snippet?

I am DETERMINED to finish at least one entry into the 2024 Brio Fic Week. Idk what suddenly happened where my brain no longer can make Brio kiss and instead is just rotting on Animal Crossing Happy Home Paradise, but here I am, designing adorable cottages every day instead of smut writing. 😂

I have a good start though, I swear. It’s gonna happen. If I have to take a PTO day off work and make it happen, this fic is happening.

A Raw Snippet (I haven’t read through yet so this may change, but this is kinda the general feel I was hoping for):

20. Any plans to work on original fiction this year?

I don’t think this will ever happen. Original fiction is hard because you have the task of worldbuilding and characterization from scratch, which requires so much skill to do well. For me specifically, I also would need to feel some sort of passion or attachment to original characters to feel moved enough to invest the hours and hours it would take to create all this from scratch. And idk if I have it in me right now. Creating chemistry is difficult, as we know. Because as consumers of media we know that we don’t always feel that chemistry from fictional characters. So it’s kinda like all these stars have to align for the magic to happen. I suppose there are fictional genres other than romance, but pfffft, who wants to write that? 😂

But also listen, I am TELLING y’all, the GG fandom writers are so far ahead of the traditional romance authorship currently monetizing the most lazy and cliched trope, it isn’t even a competition. Maybe I’m biased because I especially love the Brio chemistry and I love reading original takes on what it looks like, I am yet to find a published work that executes the way you all do. There is so much self doubt in fic writing. But please believe me, if Colleen Linear-Storytelling Hoover can hoover in those bucks, the masterpieces we have gracing our AO3 fandom tag would have no trouble. The world-building, the use of character-affirming symbolism, the subtle exploration of the personal psyches and an unlikely kinship between two damaged, guarded people… We HAVE all that. Our trope is tailored. It’s sprinkled with believable, in-character pieces of structure that make it something unique and beautiful. Our “stuck in an elevator,” or our “high school dating AU,” or our “jealous of new love interest who won’t work out anyway,” is so much more immersive and visual than all these romances I keep trying to tolerate but can’t take seriously because those authors aren’t you guys. Fic has absolutely ruined me.

New Year Fic Asks

[thebluestbluewords]

the leaders of tomorrow (could be canon fodder of today)

“Auradon Preparatory Academy is a boarding school focused on building the leaders of tomorrow,” Evie reads off one of the glossy brochures they’d snagged from the lobby. “Explore our rigorous academic programs, competitive athletics department, and much more.” 

“Guess we’re the ‘more’,” Mal snarks, lifting her hands into the most sarcastic air quotes she can muster. “Villain kids aren’t exactly brochure material.” 

“Maybe you’re not brochure material, babe,” Evie says, flipping her hair over her shoulder in a sweet-smelling swoosh. “But I’m the most beautiful one on this campus, and I think it’s a travesty that they haven’t reprinted all their brochures to feature exclusively me.” 

“And me.” Jay adds, leaning over to snag the pamphlet out of Evie’s hands. 

Mal grins. “I could probably do that. Magic can do a lot of cool shit now that we’re not locked away. You want me to find and replace every stupid prep kid in this thing with your face?” 

Evie laughs, and the sound is so sweet that it makes Mal want to hit something. In a good way. “That feels like a waste of magic, babe. We probably have better things to do with our time.” 

“Yeah we do,” Carlos interrupts. He’s got the brochure now, and is flipping through it faster than Mal can follow. “Look. Dive into science with our state of the art chemistry lab, where students blah blah blah, nobody cares about teacher-student ratios, but look.”

Mal looks. 

“A science lab.” 

Carlos makes a gloriously disdainful noise at her. “It’s a state of the fucking art science lab. This is the best science lab money can buy. And we have student access.” 

Great. 

“So that means,” Mal starts, waving a hand. “We have what? Chemical weapons? Kingdom secrets?” 

She could go for a good chemical weapon. They used to throw colored smoke bombs at each other for fun, but if they can get their hands on better supplies, that means better smoke bombs, better fireworks, and potentially better weapons they can stockpile for when her mother inevitably tries to have them all killed again. 

Carlos shrugs. He’s a talented liar, but after so long spent in each other’s pockets, Mal knows his tells too well for him to get outright bullshit past her. He’s excited about something in the lab, no matter how cool he’s trying to play it off, “We could have chemical weapons, sure.” 

Mal narrows her eyes into a poisonous green glare. “Or?” 

“We could synthesize a chemical to melt through steel. Or get actual organic material for making melt away stitches that aren’t shit. Or explosives, if we want to blow the whole isle to hell.” 

His eyes are fucking lit up with the potential, and Mal doesn’t have the heart or the willpower to tell him that they’re not going to blow up the isle. 

Probably. 

“I wouldn’t mind blowing up my dad,” Jay says slowly, leaning over to peer at the picture of the science lab. “Like, we should probably follow through with the original plan, and get our parents through the barrier before we plant explosives around their beds, but I’m down for some chaos.” 

“Chaos sounds great!” Evie says brightly. “I was thinking that we should steal enough chemicals to glue Fairy Godmother’s office door shut so we never have to go to that ridiculous goodness class again, but I’m down for murder if that’s what everybody else is feeling!” 

[etaindelaserna]

Hello....Because you also love shipping, can I ask your thoughts on these ships : GoYuu & SatoSugu (JJK), NaruSasu (Naruto) and ZuTara (ATLA)?

Hey! You can ask me anything✨

Let’s see…

GoYuu

Personally I haven’t dived into this ship yet but I can see why people are interested in it: whenever Gojo and Yuuji are together they seem to share on brain cell and are just one big doofus force to be reckoned with.

Him and Yuuji have the same energy and they just click on that level. There is no awkwardness, no uncertainty, they just understand one another. Also they don’t seem to have any concept of personal space whatsoever with each other. Then there is the fact that they have had their fair share of losing important people to “the dark side” and being helpless to stop it. I can see Gojo looking at Yuuji and comparing him to Suguru. And because Yuuji isn’t losing faith in his purpose as a jujutsu sorcerer, it might help Gojo to make his peace with the past. I see them as a fluffy ship for the most part. Gojo perfect at everything being completely smitten with and supportive of Yuuji who has to try very hard. Then there is also the sensei/student dynamic and, if we bring Sukuna into the mix, a lot of animosity from Sukuna towards Gojo (with potential for situational comedy) and possessive behaviour from both Gojo and Sukuna. Also: Gojo is a shameless flirt while Yuuji is just cute and a ray of sunshine and maybe even wouldn’t realise it when he is flirted with. There are so many story building ideas and questions you can do with this ship.

SatoSugu

It does have a lot of NaruSasu vibes for me and yet SatoSugu works where NaruSasu failed. It is able to pull off comedy, fluff, tragedy and sexy with ease, which as a combination can be very addictive. Two characters who have a very deep connection and friendship driven apart by circumstances and the clash of their ideals. That’s heartbreaking stuff. There are so many What-if? questions you can ask about their story. Suguru left a wound that will never really heal. Also: they are both ridiculous handsome and talented characters whom I can see bickering about the most unimportant things just for the fun of it and because they cannot control their temper and ego around each other. The shameless flirt and the thoughtful one, the overachiever and the one, who can’t follow. I think they work pretty well as a ship because they have got so many dynamics you can explore.

NaruSasu

One of the big, popular Naruto ships that never clicked for me. Maybe because I didn’t like Sasuke much. Maybe because Kishi was just about to develop their friendship when Sasuke left. Sasuke’s motives never resonated with me and that’s probably why I had a hard time understanding why Naruto wanted to bring him back. It seemed due to obligation rather than friendship. BUT I can still somewhat see the appeal. Naruto yearning, thinking he can save him, fix him, wanting to show him that their friendship is enough, that he doesn’t have to seek vengeance, that love is worth feeling and that without loss or pain there can be no love to begin with. Also: they are constantly at each other’s throats, they both have grown up for the most part without their parents, they can relate to each other because of their trauma AND although they have different personalities they do share the same kind of humour. Much to work with but I never saw potential for something more than friendship. Even “friendship” was a hard pill for me to swallow the moment Sasuke tried to kill Naruto and Sakura. I see the drama, the tragedy, even the brotherly aspect of their bond, but not romance.

ZuTara

The classic tale of “from enemies, to reluctant allies, to friends, to we have deep but also complicated feelings for each other”. It’s the “love that was meant to be but never came to be” trope. And I’m always down for it.

Their chemistry was off the charts from day one. Both are incredible fierce, stubborn and loyal. They played well off each other due to the circumstances of Katara’s parents having been killed by the Fire Nation. I always got the impression that there was a deep connection and understanding passing between them every time they met. Almost like a constant “What if…?”, a “I understand where you are coming from but I still have to do this”. There was a certain something in the way Zuko looked at her. I never exactly understood why it wasn’t meant to be. Him throwing himself in front of her to protect her from the lightning?! I was a goner. They gave me the Dramione feels but with much more fan service in the canon storyline. In my head they’re endgame. End of story.

[holly-mckenzie]

Hey! What were your thoughts on S3 of Starstruck? It went in a very different direction than I was expecting and as a viewer I feel conflicted - I think it’s brilliantly written and reflective of reality and there’s a lot of beauty in what’s been explored this season, but emotionally I also feel a bit thrown.

hi clara!

Okay. So I have spent the last week thinking about it (I even explained to my counselor how I was a child of divorce now 😂)…. But I still fully haven’t grasped all of my thoughts so this may all sound a bit rambling. Spoilers Ahead!

First and foremost, in my most recent re-watch of Starstruck I kept on thinking about how Jessie loves Kate but… kinda brushes Kate’s friendship as not as important as a romantic one (e.g. - the speech she gives to Joe in S1E5). With this in mind, I do really love that most of the relationship tension and the overall love story of S3 is between Kate and Jessie. Their friendship is so precious to me and I adore it so much. So I do love the way that’s explored in the new season. Kate and Jessie are the real love story of Starstruck.

Other things I LOVED is Sarah and Steve’s relationship. They are honestly so funny, and I adore them so much! I also did like the evolution of Joe's character. Minnie Driver is always amazing as Cath, Shivani is so funny, and I loved Alice Snidden as Amelia (more on that later).

Now unto the important things. I kinda knew that S3 would go this route bc I felt like if it had followed traditional romcom tropes the next step would be marriage. Which I really couldn’t imagine Rose doing.

So when S3 was renewed I had a feeling that it would either go the marriage route, the we are never ever ever getting back together route, or something else completely.

But realistically it would be the breakup. I was hoping that the ending would be kinda unresolved where there was a chance that Jessie and Tom could get back together in the future. But Alas. However, this did not mean I was not in a complete in a state of panic leading up to S3 (if you follow me on Twitter, you know).

Honestly, imo if S3 was doing the we have different partners I FIRMLY believe that Jessie should have been with a woman, and Tom should have been with a woman of colour.

Me at Clem:

The new characters fell SO flat to me. Clem is nice enough and so agreeable, which I think is supposed to act as a foil to Jessie. This is obvs in the way that Clem wants marriage and kids. But I also feel like you see it in the way that Clem isn’t threatened by Jessie, which is a very stark contrast to the way Jessie reacts to Tom’s co-star in season 1, and the fight they have after.

And Liam is just there. No offense to Liam, but none of his scenes really felt like they could compare to the banter and chemistry between Jessie and Tom throughout the seasons. To quote the modern philosopher of our time:

So it was really hard to care about him and the relationships. Also something about his very existence reminded me of this interview Rose did during S1. Though that could be a nothing.

Overall I really didn’t care about these new relationships, bc watching Jessie and Tom in S1-2 is just so electric. The banter, the back and forth. The way they smile at each other, and make each other laugh.

But maybe that’s the whole point, that you could have electric chemistry with someone. But it could also all be meaningless bc that person is not the person for you.

As for Tom, I recently got asked if he was written as an asshole. But I don’t know how to answer that. Was he shit for cheating on his fiancé? Yes. But did I care that he cheated on her with Jessie, no.

I do feel like I’m not a huge fan of the way that Tom was written in this season. Throughout the show he is only shown in relation to Jessie or his work, with the exception of the Christmas episode. But I bc in the new series he isn’t with Jessie we REALLY see how his character is flat.

Now I do realise that it’s bc the show is about Jessie, but it still felt lacking. The fact that Tom doesn’t seem to have friends outside of Jessie’s circle is wild. The fact that he is getting married, and we don’t see his parents or brother is so 💀

Especially since Tom is a full Brown man (that is apparently somewhat religious). And somehow his family isn’t part of any of the wedding prep? That’s so wild and unbelievable (for me as a brown woman). I do realise Vinay is an asshole but I genuinely wish he had made an appearance in S3. It could have been so funny and it would have added some nuance to Tom's character. (We see Dan again, but not Vinay or the rest of Tom's fam? Come on!) I would love to see Vinay’s opinion on Jessie changed and his feelings toward the wedding, kiss, stag, etc.

I do understand Rose and the writers wanted to explore these ideas. And this is something she has clearly been thinking about since Baby Done. I also do think that in the latest series, we explore the anxieties through a queer lens by way of Amelia's speech. It strikes me as fascinating that Alice Snidden is openly bi, and her character is one of the only ones single.

Merryanna Salem, one of the most prolific film critiques of our time, articulated an idea about the queerness of Starstruck, and Queer Relativity in such a nuanced way. I highly recommend you read it. With this in mind, Amelia's speech, and Rose's feelings towards babies, its really not that surprising it ended the way it did.

But at the same time, it really seems like such a shift from the first two series in a way I simply don’t like (or understand). As I previously established Jessie and Tom are SO good together. Their chemistry is unreal, the show is just so bloody cute.

The show sets out to be a romcom, and that is what it does brilliantly in the first two series. Yet in S3, we really see a departure from that genre. It feels more a romantic drama, with comedic elements and I think its REALLY discombobulating. Specifically bc in most romcoms the couple gets together, and in dramas there is more grey area. Because I didn't read S1-2 as anything but a romcom, I didn't even entertain the idea of a break up. So to have it thrown in, in S3 seems so forced somehow.

Especially bc we have seen Tom and Jessie conquer the odds again and again. So to have the writers articulate they just aren't a good fit, and Jessie to say we want different things is strange. Maybe, I was watching Starstruck with blinders on, but it seemed in the previous seasons they were somewhat on the same page. Like even with this idea of Queer Relativity, Tom seems to understand it. He seems content to NOT get married to Jessie in S2 ending and what have you. So to suddenly be presented with a Tom who needs marriage and babies is discombobulating. Again, maybe I watched the show with blinders, but I did not catch the seeds of Tom and Jessie not being compatible, so S3, as you said threw me off.

And on some level I do think it’s kinda a redundant deconstruction of the romcom.

Join me next time where I dissect Starstruck through the lens of Race and Politics (or the lack there of).

[vanaglorie]

When did you start writing on Tumblr? Who was your first muse? OTP for your muse? NOTP for your muse? Have you any old muses that you’d love to bring back? What’s one random headcanon about your muse that people mightn’t know? What do you look for in a rp partner? Favourite trope? Least favourite trope? Are there any AU’s you’d like to explore but haven’t had the chance to yet? What about your muse are you most proud of?

munday meme

When did you start writing on Tumblr?

a very long time ago... like... somewhere in the period of 2012-2014 and it was also khr rp

Who was your first muse?

byakuran LMAO it was wild

OTP for your muse? NOTP for your muse?

i kinda ship him with everyone tbh i dont even care if its crack but the normal ones like 10051 and 10069 are pretty pog. but no specific OTP preference for me, as long as theyre strong enough to handle whatever comes their way

also no NOTP comes to mind i'll ship byakuran with anyone bc he's insane- really depends on the chemistry/plot

Have you any old muses that you’d love to bring back?

for khr characters i used to have bel and fon. lowkey would love to bring either of them back HAHAHA but byakuran will always be my one true love

What’s one random headcanon about your muse that people might not know?

byakuran can be a very attentive lover? ( ⸝⸝´꒳`⸝⸝)

What do you look for in a rp partner?

someone cool and easy to talk to, so that we can be goblins together and plot crazy shit, and a lot of you are really cool :3

Favourite trope? Least favourite trope?

fav: enemies to lovers, hurt/comfort least fav: hanahaki xd i always avoid ones that are just angst with no happy ending or comfort-

Are there any AU’s you’d like to explore but haven’t had the chance to yet?

all the cliche ones like office au, high school au i just think slice of life ones are cute :c also it means byakuran can be little shit living a normal life, sometimes i want good things for him

What about your muse are you most proud of?

i think he just does and says whatever he wants without caring about the consequences and i love that for him which means i just have to close my eyes and hit 'post' and apologise profusely for his rancid behaviour

[secretswiftymarvelfan]

I would love to hear some director's commentary, but I'm indecisive lol

So I would love to hear some of your thoughts to either Demigod from Asgard, Memory Served or Paradise Island (because those are some of my favorites of yours) 🤗

Haha well there is absolutely no limit at all on the amount of questions you can ask! Us writers absolutely love talking about our work so no question is too small! It would fill us with so much joy to see our ask boxes full of questions after we post a new fic! (As long as they aren’t mean questions ofc)

Since you haven’t asked for commentary on a specific scene etc i’m gonna tell you how this these fics came to life and where I got my ideas for them! But let me know if you have any more specific questions!

The Demigod From Asgard is to date the oldest WIP I ever had. I first got the idea back in late 2016 (funnily enough while having a shower 😂) and the basis was that Steve and Thor have this massive thing in common of learning about the 21st Century world and it is barely explored in the MCU and it could have created a brilliant friendship between the two of them (i mean look at the chemistry between the two Chris’!) I understood why it wasn’t explored because Thor is off planet a lot but it just made me wonder what it would be like if there was a female version of Thor that stayed on the planet and thus our reader was born! I had written Canon compliant oneshots before but never interlinked l them and I loved the challenge of filling in the gaps between the movies and showing exactly how all the characters develop between each movie. I wrote and planned a lot of it as I could from where the MCU was at that point however I ended up abandoning it because the prospect of it was so daunting, I still continued to day dream about it though and even using elements of the characters and plot points in other oneshots. Fast forward to my final year at university (2020/21) due to the population of my university town being predominantly elderly people we had extremely strict rules for COVID and basically weren’t allowed to socialise outside of our flats, and because I was living with a bunch of strangers and all my lectures were online that year at University was extremely lonely and I was basically alone in my bedroom 24/7. So to pass time I re-watched MCU movies and daydreamed more and more about my DFA story and felt much less lonely dreaming about this group and so with all this time on my hands I started re-working and re-writing my original draft (which was pure 2012-2014 MCU fanfic with thor eating poptarts and clint in the walls 😂😂), even now there’s parts i think I could improve on, Its a fic I could forever work on and re-write just because the sheer length of it means my writing skills have improved over the course of writing it and it would be like one continuous loop 😂 Whoa that was long but I promise the next two won’t be 😂😂.

Memory served first came about halloween 2021 after I saw a programme on gogglebox about a woman who fell down the stairs and loses her memory of the past year and basically has to put pieces of her life back together and her family are all a little suspicious. I thought the amnesia trope was really interesting and wondered what it could be like if you lost ALL of your memories and how someone could manipulate you into living a life they’ve created and though damn that would be a great halloween mini series! So i started working and planning it for halloween 2022! It was such a difficult fic to plan and write because of the thriller and mystery elements, trying to foreshadow things but not make it obvious, throwing in red herrings to throw people off! So so difficult so I’m very proud of that miniseries!

Island paradise is from my 2.5k followers challenge (which is forever open so if you wanna get involved you can!) it was requested by the wonderful @sweater-daddiesdumbdork (who also wrote an amazing Mob!Ari for the challenge) and it was so much fun to write! I literally could not stop laughing as I wrote 😂 I was mid Glass Onion obsession so I couldn’t help throw references and I got to take a shot at Elon Musk and influencers in it which I loved 😂😂😂

Ask me for some directors commentary!

[shelby-bach-books]

It’s hard to have capacity for all the changes on your plate if you’re beating yourself up all the time. 

It’s hard to make room for someone else’s pain if your own mind is busy stabbing you in a tender place. 

Some of this mental stabbing comes from brain chemistry, which usually needs to be treated with expert care. 

Some of this mental stabbing comes from experienced trauma, which—at this point in our history—we now all share. The degrees differ, and every person’s exact experience is unique. But I haven’t yet met a person who emerged unscathed from the past few years.

But some of this wounding, perpetuated by our own brains, comes from habits made normal by the culture we have inherited. 

That’s what I want to speak about. 

For example, we writers may speak casually about our “inner editor,” a voice in our heads that tells us what we’re making is terrible or worthless. At best, we may trade techniques on how to shut this voice up long enough to keep on writing in spite of the noise in our heads. 

We don’t often speak about how often this cruel voice shows up in other areas of our lives. We rarely mention that many of the writers we grew up reading—including those assigned in our writing classes for their artistic brilliance—struggled with mental health. Quite a few committed suicide. Who has emerged from high school without studying Virginia Woolf, Ernest Hemingway, or Sylvia Plath?

It is immensely human to want to end pain. I can’t fault anyone for that impulse.

It is however cultural to accept that creativity must be paired with stabbing yourself with your own thoughts—and perhaps other more physically dangerous forms of self-harm. 

I challenge that belief. Instead, I encourage an alternative:

Make your mind a nicer place to live. 

Commit to retraining your brain’s habits until it’s a safer space for you to inhabit. 

Experiment. Use as many modalities as are effective. Allow your creativity to support your emotional wholeness.

Investigate the stories, whether internal or inherited, that are giving your mind a knife to cut you with, and rewrite them until you dull that blade—until it loses its power to cut you. 

Explore Further:

This quote came from the very first piece I posted on the JourneyPen Project website, way back in March 2020. With everything happening back then, I wouldn’t be surprised if you missed it. I titled the piece “How to Navigate Chaos,” and I’ll link to it here in case you would like to read the rest of it.

Over the past few years, I created the collection that this idea—and the whole piece—belongs inside: “Renewing Capacity” is the theme. 

Making your mind a nicer place to live IS one way to renew capacity. You can reinvest the energy you’re losing in self-criticism for something more useful. More here.

As I’ve shared before, I’m speaking to this from my personal experience. I too was immensely hard on myself, and one year, I made it my 2018 New Year’s intention to accept myself. From there, it took a little longer to work up to self-compassion. I talk about that process in this video.

But I recognized the need for self-acceptance in Fall 2017, while I was taking an online writing course. I described that moment in People Are Stories-in-Progress here. 

At the time I had that realization, my life was in chaos due to family crisis. In that moment, I didn’t have the time, energy, or capacity to make any actual changes. It wasn’t until a few months later, when the family crisis had settled, that I circled back to it. I got sick, and forced to slow down, I tended my frayed edges and committed to changes. That’s why I make time to integrate experiences—it helps me to respond to a troubling situation by making changes that improve my entire life, not just a part of it.  More on integrating here.

Creative Lineage Credit: 

“Put down the knife you are holding to your own throat.” 

- Elizabeth Gilbert, author of BIG MAGIC and host of Magic Lessons Podcast

[sahilkhan201]

The Best Time to Join Sikar NEET Coaching: Tips for Early Preparation

When it comes to NEET preparation, timing plays a crucial role in shaping a student’s success. The earlier a student starts their preparation, the better the chances of mastering the extensive syllabus and developing strong problem-solving skills. If you are considering joining Sikar NEET Coaching, understanding the ideal time to begin your coaching journey can make a significant difference in achieving your medical aspirations. In this article, we will explore why early preparation is essential and provide tips on the best time to join a NEET coaching institute in Sikar.

The Advantages of Early Preparation

Starting your NEET preparation early offers several benefits that can make your journey smoother and more effective. By enrolling in coaching well in advance, you allow yourself ample time to:

Master Core Concepts: NEET covers a wide range of topics from Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. Early preparation ensures that you have enough time to thoroughly understand the basics before diving into advanced topics.

Reduce Pressure and Stress: NEET preparation can be overwhelming, and last-minute cramming only adds to the stress. Starting early provides a steady and manageable pace, allowing you to review, revise, and practice without feeling rushed.

Build Consistency: Regular study habits formed early on can help develop discipline and consistency in your routine. Consistency is key to mastering the vast NEET syllabus.

Identify Weak Areas: Early preparation allows time to recognize and work on your weak subjects or concepts, ensuring that you can improve and perform well across all subjects.

When is the Right Time to Join Sikar NEET Coaching?

The right time to join coaching depends on various factors, including your current academic standing, study habits, and goals. However, there are some general guidelines to help you decide:

After Class 10: Many students opt to start their NEET coaching after completing their Class 10 exams. This gives you a head start in preparing for the entrance exam while still focusing on your board exams. Starting at this stage allows you to gradually ease into the NEET syllabus without feeling overwhelmed.

During Class 11: For students who feel confident with their Class 10 fundamentals, joining NEET coaching during Class 11 can be an excellent choice. At this point, you’ll already be familiar with the basics, and coaching will help you delve deeper into the subject matter, building a strong foundation for NEET.

Early in Class 12: If you’re in Class 12 and haven’t started NEET coaching yet, it’s still not too late to begin. However, you’ll need to commit to a rigorous schedule and manage your time efficiently to balance both NEET preparation and board exams. Starting early in Class 12 can give you enough time to prepare and revise the syllabus before the exam.

Maximizing Your Coaching Experience

Regardless of when you decide to join Sikar NEET Coaching, the key to success lies in how you approach your studies. Here are a few tips to maximize the benefits of coaching:

Stay Consistent: Consistency is essential to mastering complex concepts. Stick to your study schedule and make time for regular revisions.

Practice Regularly: NEET is a competitive exam that requires practice. Focus on solving mock tests, previous year question papers, and online practice sessions. This will help you get used to the exam format and improve your speed and accuracy.

Stay Organized: Organize your study materials, notes, and resources. Being well-organized helps reduce confusion and makes it easier to track your progress.

Seek Help When Needed: Don’t hesitate to ask your coaches or peers for help if you’re struggling with a concept. A timely clarification can save hours of confusion and frustration.

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, while the best time to join Sikar NEET Coaching ultimately depends on your situation, starting early whether after Class 10, during Class 11, or in the early stages of Class 12 can provide a significant edge in NEET preparation. By giving yourself ample time to absorb the material, practice regularly, and refine your skills, you increase your chances of success in this highly competitive exam. Remember, the key is consistency, discipline, and a well-structured approach to your preparation.

[platinum-iridium]

“i felt like her character was lowkey pandering, it was pandering to ME so i was like ok.” lmao exactlyyyy. she was exactly what i wanted in a young new gen detective plus the actress and her voice were fine af to me so i was having fun lol. and then they just took the actress away. every time they add new women to the main cast they phase them out without a valid excuse or don’t explore her enough to make her care. and idk if you were talking about liv when i said they could make a long time main gay but liv is the obvious choice. i didn’t catch it when i was younger but once i got it i got it. like the liv x cabot shippers were on to something… but im also biased against wlliot and liv like i see the chemistry but at this point they’ve dragged it beyond interest. these are adults! ik they haven’t gone there because not enough of the audience would like that but still. pushing 65 and playing around with a crush is crazy.

yes to everything you said about kat plus it would’ve been good to see a character struggle with what it means to be a cop with marginalized identities plus in the higher awareness around police brutality era but the writers are very much trying to avoid any deep nuance there. i think that’s their downfall. they want to be socially conscious but it’s a fucking police show lmao. so it’s always going to be half baked. and if the social commentary sucks, the cases suck, and they won’t give us anything good with the characters, what else is there? i mean i still enjoy it but they need to bffr.

that time where someone told olivia she had a “gay vibe” is easily in my top 5 svu moments. but personally i want them to have barba come out and if he snatches up his mentee well that’s just the cherry on top

olivia and elliott kill me. like literally what are we doing here. it’s unbecoming at this point. the will they or won’t they was fine 15 years ago but now it’s past it’s expiration date. i never liked the ship much but after olivia pointed out how one sided their relationship was it really deaded it for me. i’m beyond over it. the only fun part is watching elliott suffer over it