#whether that’s picking up a hobby that a character you like has or sewing for cosplay or learning another language bc you wanna go

[seveneyesoup]

btw learning something for a silly reason still learns you the skill. in case you were wondering

[oleander-nin]

For the sentient bot au (rottmnt)

How would they react if their darling was able to crochet? Like every time they we’re watching the show, they’d be a little distracted with making a plushie or a piece of clothing. Would they be jealous that they aren’t paying attention, or if they bring them to their universe would they ask them to make something for them?

A/N, not important: This was super cool to write because I do a *lot* of needle work lol. I knit, crochet, sew, embroider, etc. I did headcannons for this, mostly because I didn't know how to write this as a proper fic and it's easier to get back into the groove. Apologies for my absence(and the fact this was requested back in September of 2023). Any criticism is welcome, constructive or not. This is supposed to be a gender neutral reader, so if I screwed up somewhere, please tell me. - Ollie

CW: Stalking, being watched without your knowledge, sentient show characters, obsession, yandere themes, dark themes

Words: 849

Summary: You crochet, oblivious to the constant eyes on you.

Mikey:

He thinks what you do is absolutely charming. Whenever the screen flickers and they can gaze back, he loves to watch you work. He admires the deftness of your craft, even going so far as to see if he could pick it up too. He sees it as a great way to bond. Whether he succeeds or not in picking up the needle work as well doesn’t matter much to him. He’s just delighted you’re a fellow artist in your own right.

He loves to design patterns for blankets or create his own unique stuffies for you to bring to life. He wants to bring his own touch into your work, to try and intertwine the both of you as much as possible. What better way than to combine your hobbies?

Obsesses over what you make to see if he can figure out what you like. He’ll take note of the colors you use, of whether you kept what you’ve been working on or gave it to a friend, or even sold it. He’ll see if you make more stuffies or sweaters, whether you prefer blankets or hats. He’s internalized every choice you’ve made, from the yarn fiber you prefer to where you most often work on your hobby.

Donnie:

Watches you in interest. He finds your hobby interesting and calming. He loves seeing your fingers curl around the yarn and how your hook moves so smoothly. It’s almost soothing to him, so much so he’ll do anything to keep watch. Home security system? Donnie can find a way to weasel his access from just your streaming devices to every electronic in your vicinity. He wants to keep an eye on you, and see what else you create.

Keeps a lot of knitted and crochet works for you to try and match what you have in your home. He’ll collect sweaters, blankets, stuffies, pillows, and anything in between that happens to be made via needle craft. He wants to make the lair seem more at home to you, and what better way then to find every sensory pleasing work he can?

Glad you have a hobby so you’re distracted while they work on bringing you ‘home’. Having you so focused on your work, while at times hurtful, makes their plans to cross the interdimensional barrier a lot easier. The less you pay attention to them, the more they can plan. Of course, once you’re actually in his arms that’ll change. He’s not fond of being ignored.

Raph:

He’s ecstatic about it. He thinks it’s incredibly cute and uses it to solidify his image of you being some soft, fragile soul. He’ll internally coo and croon over you whenever they’re able to look back at you, eyeing your newest project with interest.

Raph has a lot of respect for your craft, especially since he’s tried to knit before. He hopes you’ll be able to teach him and let him work with you. He can hardly wait to snuggle next to you while you explain the steps to him.

He can’t help but hope for you to make him something when you’re finally able to come ‘home’. He wants to add your personal handiwork to his collection of stuffed animals. He’ll put it on his top shelf where no one can mess with it, only taking it down to cuddle on special occasions. It’ll be his pride and joy, something for him to treasure immensely.

Wanting to make it easier on you, he’ll start looking for patterns to give to you, some for when you’re finally with them and some for Donnie to nudge in your direction online. He’ll find yarn and hooks, creating a giant collection just for you. He wants to show you his love, show you that he can give you everything you need and more.

Leo:

Thinks it’s sweet. He can’t help but view it in a cutesy way, no matter what you make. He sees it as part of your charm, knowing you at least have a hobby to keep you busy when he’s away. He just can’t help but wish you wouldn’t do it when you’re supposed to be watching him.

Leo wants you to pay more attention to him. As much as he adores your hobby, he despises how you only seem to do it when you’re watching them. You never give him your full attention, never have your eyes on the screen for the entire time he is. It makes him seethe inside. He’ll make sure to fix that habit once he has you in his arms though.

He always feels a bit bitter when you give something away in front of them, knowing he’d never be able to hold that piece himself. He wants nothing more than to hoard what you make. He can’t help but assume whoever you gifted something to is taking advantage of you. You shouldn’t give away your handiwork, especially when you could save it for him! He plans on finding everything you’ve made when they’re finally able to break the barrier between worlds to take you.

Tag list: @f1oricide @itsyagurlchip @lordfreg @acutiewithagun @rottmnttmnt2012 @lixnininotnay @lexiechr @ssak-i @rottmntsimp

[nyarlathotep-thecrawlingchaos]

I'm soooo sorry you're under the weather and dealing with crappy stuff! I hope things get better for you, physically and mentally 🙏 Get lots of rest if you can, and drink all the fluids!

Headcanon requests, is it? How about the OPLA men (Shanks & Mihawk, but also take your pick, etc) with a multi-tasking reader who delights in various hobbies to keep busy, and occasionally drags them into getting involved? Whether it be container gardening, knitting, baking, sewing, artwork, etc.

Bonus if they're also contending with where exactly reader stores all of her crap when it's not in use, not at all guilty of this myself 🙈🤣

Thank you so, so, so much. It’s been a really bad day and this has honestly helped a lot.

Like I feel this hard. There’s guitar picks and tuning peg winders and little notebooks full of story notes and recipes and origami scattered all over my house.

Just gonna do Shanks and Mihawk this time, because they very much are my main comfort characters right now.

The fact that one of my comfort characters is so murdery probably does not say good things for my mental health but whatever

Hobbies

OPLA! Shanks and Mihawk x Reader

Cloyingly fluffy, here is a spoon with which to gag yourself, just in case c>===

Shanks

He is absolutely so game for all of this.

Such a child about it, if you’re trying to do anything new he’s just so excited about it and needs to know everything.

Completely in your business, asking ten thousand questions, along with the inevitable starry-eyed, “Can I help?”

And you’d have to be heartless to turn down those puppy-dog eyes.

It might not turn out to be his thing, and he might get in the way more than he actually helps, but he’s going to enjoy the experience with you regardless, and his enthusiasm is just so precious that it makes it more fun for you as well.

The exception here is knitting. Knitting can get fucked. He tried, holding one needle in his hand and the other between his teeth, and somehow ended up nearly giving himself a tracheotomy.

But if you knit, sew, or crochet something for him, he’s going to unironically wear it everywhere and brag about it to anyone who will listen.

Baking, though, turns out he has something of a knack for it. And now his go-to solution if you’re sad or upset about something is to bake you cookies, because “How can anyone be sad when there are cookies?” And, well, he’s not entirely wrong.

The captain’s cabin is just completely cluttered with arts and crafts supplies, with so many signs and knickknacks of your many and varied hobbies, and he sincerely loves it because there’s just so much of you everywhere he looks. He’s always felt at home on the sea, but this just makes it feel even more like home.

Mihawk

Not quite as perceptive to participating. He might if you ask him, but some things might take convincing.

He’s an utter perfectionist about everything, so if you do convince him to try anything, he’s probably going to fixate on it until he’s a certified expert and compete with you over who’s better at it.

More refined and traditional artistic endeavors definitely appeal to him more—you could probably convince him to try painting or drawing pretty easily, but things like sewing or crocheting are going to be a little more of a stretch.

Gardening in general is honestly fine as well, container or otherwise.  The more you can grow on the island or around the castle, the less he has to concern himself with leaving to deal with other people. And it is fairly convenient to have fresh herbs growing right in the kitchen.

Fairly adept at cooking already—he’s spent most of his life in solitude, so cooking for himself was something of a necessity. Baking isn’t exactly his forte, but he will partake if you ask him to.

He acts like the clutter of your supplies irritates him, but really only so he can give you a room or two of the castle dedicated solely to your hobbies. No point looking a gift horse in the mouth, and you know he’s just being surly to protect his pride.

You know because even if he isn’t interested in it himself, he does enjoy watching you work, sitting off to the side with a book and a glass of wine, glancing up every so often to see your progress.

[junewongapologia]

The fact is tho that no matter how you look at it, no matter how insufferable she is, no matter how Out Of Touch, regardless of whether she’s doing herself no favours: Eloise is right about society and just about everyone else in the show is wrong.

Like, she’s not got the full picture, she’s blinkered and her political philosophy is not very in depth or well thought out. But she’s right, and I think that’s why a lot of people watching really don’t like her because she’s breaking the illusion. All in all, the 1810s were a shit time to be alive for most people, and you can “well actually” it all you like, but the Luddite movement existed for a reason, the Chartists existed for a reason, Porto-feminist writers like Wollstonecraft and de Gouges wrote what they did for a reason.

So when you keep being reminded that it was a terrible social order for women - in a show targeted mainly towards women for escapist purposes then that character is going to come across as irritating, because she’s ruining the immersion.

Really, her attitude isn’t more anachronistic than the dresses, or the hairdos, or the diamond necklaces (men and women had been advocating women’s right to vote since before Eloise was born, lads), but it’s a problem because people are watching the show for the sweeping romances and the general regency vibe, they don’t want to think about how the regency was for most people. Which inevitably leads to some incredible projection, when watchers of a show with the central conceit of only being interested in the love lives of the top one percent of the one percent of the British aristocracy acting as though Eloise is the only privileged person on the show.

And yeah, she is better off than most of the people who exist in all of Regency Britain (though if you were to take the show as read, Britain is made up of about 70% aristocracy, 1% gentry, 5% urban bourgeoisie and 24% urban workers), but she’s the only one whose privilege is harped on out of her whole family and social circle. 99% of the speaking characters in the show come from a posher background than Beau fucking Brummell.

And! Eloise is literally just about the only main character who ever has to question her privilege! And when she is in season 2 she doesn’t throw a shitfit, she’s willing to learn! She goes out of her way to hear perspectives that she wouldn’t have heard in her social circle! But the narrative punishes her for that, and that’s because for all the criticism she gets about needing her privilege checked, they don’t actually want her to learn, they just want her to shut up and enjoy the trappings of regency decadence as much as they do.

Also - I know it’s really fashionable to rag on “pick-mes” and “Not Like Other Girls” - but actually, no, “traditional femininity” has never been socially unacceptable for women the way being GNC is, and it is in fact ruthlessly socially enforced against GNC women, even more so in the 1810s. Eloise is a teenaged girl in a society that stigmatises her for her wish for more legal autonomy, the idea that she’s somehow the villain for not being able to enjoy “feminine” hobbies without seeing them as just another element of the way women’s education is trivialised as ornamental, is farcical. “Sewing is a valuable and useful skill” so is cooking, but there’s a reason my mam, and not my dad, had home economics lessons, and that reason is still misogyny, despite the fact that it set her up better for being able to operate independently as an adult.

Idk I’m just kind of uncomfortable that in a world of rising reactionary political sentiment towards women, and this seemingly increasingly re-normalised view that women need to be wives and homemakers, people feel that the person on the show who needs to do the most introspection regarding their politics is an eighteen-year-old who is vocal about the fact that she has limited legal rights, and not any of the adult men in the show (a lot of whom probably have seats in the Upper House!!!) who never mention politics at all.

And frankly, given the shower who were Having Political Opinions in the long eighteenth century, Eloise’s brand of semi-anachronistic protofeminism is infinitely preferable to Hannah “I refuse to teach the poor how to write in my schools” More, or Edmund “don’t read my big thesis on revolutions too closely it’s definitely not all lies and junk history” Burke, or even a load of prominent members of the Bluestocking Society.

[krys-in-the-playhouse]

[Profile] Ophelia of Revaire - IkeSen OC

Full Name: Ophelia of Revaire Preferred Pronouns: She/Her Age: Mid-Late 20s Appearance: Average height, slim build, before coming to the Sengoku, she kept her hair very close to her head with a crown braid. After joining up with Kennyo, she cut it short to just below her chin. Her hair is white, can appear very light blonde in some lights. Has beauty mark on her chin. Pale skin. Eyes: Red, like Nobunaga's eyes

Birthday: March 13th Main Suitor: Kennyo Special Interests: Sewing, Gardening Signature Colors: Red and Black

-Like Houki before her, Ophelia was originally a Seven Kingdoms: A Princess Problem MC. The basic premise of the game is that you are sending your MC to a diplomatic summit meeting to form alliances with the other countries. Whether those relationships are political or romantic (or a secret third option) in nature happen through choices and stat raising within the game. At the beginning, you go through dialogue choices that let you choose your character's base nature, intelligence, how pretty they're perceived to be, how charismatic they are, etc. Then, you are given a basic background based on the stats your character has the most points in.

-For Ophelia, she was my third MC build in the game after Houki and another MC that I didn't develop as much. I had mostly figured how the game worked and flowed at that point, so I wanted to play around with some of the other stats and what the other backgrounds were like. I also had played two relatively good-natured girls with Houki and my other MC up to that point, so I wanted to see about some of the… let's say darker routes the game could take (as if Houki getting poisoned and almost killed a few times wasn't dark enough, lol).

-Ophelia's base background is called An Ambitious Widow. Set against the political turmoil going on in her homeland of Revaire, Ophelia comes from a poor noble family that puts on the image of wealth when they don't actually have that much, often going into debt to keep up appearances. As the eldest daughter, she social-climbed as much as she could to keep the family afloat. When she was considered old enough, she was married off to a man old enough to be her grandfather. She had no strong feelings towards the old man either way, so long as her family was okay, she would do almost anything.

-The marriage lasts for about a year before her husband mysteriously dies. Ophelia had no hand in his demise, but the rumors surrounding his death didn't do her any favors. And when her family came to her in need again, she takes up her social-climbing ways once again, her sights now set on this Summit meeting, hoping to remarry once again, only this time she wants to aim for someone with more money, maybe someone of royal status so that her family doesn't have to worry anymore.

-That plan goes right out the window once she gets wormholed, ah geez…

-This part is still a little fuzzy for me that I might clarify it at a later date and I need to redo Kennyo's route to remember some of the events that happen in it, but Ophelia's story from here loosely follows his route from this point on. She helps out Nobunaga initially, but afterwards, the two get along like oil and water that's on fire, eventually leading her to running away from him, running into Kennyo and she chooses to stay with the monk, not wanting anything to do with the Oda Forces anymore.

-With Kennyo is where she begins her healing journey, away from the politics and toxicity of home. She's allowed to be herself and to let the wounds of the past staunch and scab over, finally growing to trust others again. She picks up her old hobbies of sewing and gardening again and spends her days teasing Kennyo and Ranmaru gently, when she sees them. 

-Ophelia is also in a weird place for me in that I don't have any major plans for her future as I do with Houki and Clara. At most, she wants to see if her family is okay, to at least know the fate of her younger siblings, but it's probably for the best that she's away from that toxic environment. If nothing else major happens in IkeSen, she'll probably continue as she is with Kennyo and Ranmaru.

Some other fun facts:

-Ophelia is the eldest of nine siblings, six younger sisters and two younger brothers. She and her sisters are named after Shakespearean ladies because I wanted a theme and since Ophelia was named after a Shakespearean tragic lady, her sisters were named in a similar manner.

-Ophelia and her siblings in order:

Ophelia (eldest daughter) Sister #1-Cordelia Sister #2-Rosalind Sister #3-Portia Nicolai (Brother #1) Sisters #4 and 5-Bianca and Beatrice (Twins) Frederick (Brother #2) Viola (The Baby and Sister #6)

-Other suitors for consideration: Shingen. He's too smart for his own good and she admires his intelligence and charisma. And they're both notorious Nobu haters, so they would get along in that aspect. He's too flirty for her, personally, however, thus why they're not together. He's also dying secretly and her world doesn't have the technology to save him like MC's world does. Even if she could take him back home, she couldn't cure him of his illness and she doesn't deserve having a second husband suddenly dying on her, this OC parent isn't that cruel (but damn wouldn't that make for some delicious drama?)

I can see her getting along with Kicho too, but since his route and motives balance on a world and history she wasn't a part of, it's a little harder to gauge how they would get along based on that.

-Not that it would be relevant in any stories in IkeSen between her and any suitor, but I've made the executive decision to have her be infertile, as a mercy to her because of her first marriage. She also has a little trauma from seeing her mother withering away from her and all her younger siblings. Her mother was happy about each and all of her children, blissfully so, but Ophelia saw it a little differently with so many mouths to feed, an appearance to uphold, not to mention the Revaire of her childhood was… not a good place to be, especially depending on if you supported the old royalty or the new one.

-The suitor I had for her in the original Seven Kingdoms game (now completed! It's on itch.io in early access!) rekindled her love for gardening. The suitor, Emmett, was a sweet soul that loves travel and just loves animals and all kinds of plants. The two had been walking together and he was pointing out various plants to her, telling her their names and interesting things about them. Ophelia, having spent the majority of her years clout-chasing, admired this chatty young man because he was so unabashedly himself, and so kind and gentle. They grew closer with their time at the Summit, becoming friends despite Ophelia wanting to keep him at arm's length. She's supposed to be here to marry a rich nobleman or a prince and gain as many political allies as she could… yet his kindness and sweet personality kept winning her over. I think, when she is worm-holed and is on her healing journey, she takes up gardening in his honor, to the first person that really showed her kindness that wasn't family or wanting something out of her.

-Though it wasn't intentional with the birthday randomizer putting her in March, it makes a lot of symbolic sense. It's a transitional month between winter and spring, thus symbolizing her narrative journey of new beginnings after the cold. Even in-game, winter symbolism was tied a bit to the Widow. In a conversation over dinner with Clarmont (another suitor also from Revaire), the Widow MC tells a story from her childhood, when she and her sister watched their first snowfall together. She recalls it as the last moment she can remember feeling truly innocent and at peace with herself, before things started going to hell. Even Ophelia's inspo playlist is titled 'Even winter must come to an end…'

[meraxes-of-new-albion]

Tag games! Thanks for the tag @sparklehoard <333

(readmore because i ramble)

Are you named after anyone?

Yes! my parents are nerds. i got named after a doctor who character.

also trying to decide if i'm gonna use a new name... if i do it'll probably be Best Bland Bioware Man My Beloved

(Kaidan Alenko <3)

When was the last time you cried?

uhhhh.... more recently than usual. couple weeks ago i think? stubbed my toe or something and that's the straw that broke the camel's back, yall know how it is

Do you have kids?

nope! and noooo thank you, if i ever wanted kids i'd adopt a teenager

What sports do you play or did you play in the past?

I'm gonna be That Guy since i was a marching band kid for 8 years. that's some cardio, man.

Do you use sarcasm?

Whaaaaat noooo never (yes constantly)

What's the first thing you notice about people?

i'm a very bad Things Noticer in general so... maybe hair color?

What's your eye color?

That kind of blue-gray most blue eyed people have in my experience

Scary movies or happy endings?

I'm not much for horror but it's growing on me. It has to feel like it's *saying* something, though, i HATE paranormal stuff and mindless slasher flicks. But saccharine endings are no good either. so... i guess happy endings, if you make me pick.

Any talents?

Pedantry? uh. i'm very good at fucking around and still managing to mostly accomplish my original goal. Whether it be crafts or technology or even career stuff, I can usually approximate a result pretty well pretty quickly.

Where were you born

idk a hospital. apparently people actually give a damn about this stuff. there's lots of hospitals in my hometown so idk which one even lmao

What are your hobbies?

god i have SO MANY HOBBIES HELP. sewing. knitting. i weave rugs out of twine i get from work. i play warhammer 40k, and may end up getting into the fantasy side of it (i got an army as a gift for christmas lol). lots of video games (mostly FPS RPGs, and roguelikes, but a bit of everything). theoretically i like baking, although i hate doing dishes and don't own a dishwasher, so i... don't :( OH OH OH i write sometimes too... i never publish anything because i never finish anything but i do like writing

Do you have any pets?

How tall are you?

I HAVE A CAT HIS NAME IS WALL-E AND I LOVE HIM

LOOK AT HIM

5'9, or... ~175 cm

Favorite subject in school?

Biology :) though i don't like the cell stuff, i do better with things i can touch or see without a microscope.

Dream job?

zookeeper :) which i'm doing!!! but like. living wage zookeeper. would be great. with like. yknow. paid time off n stuff. that would be nice.

(don't feel pressured if i @ you <3)

@the-many-children-of-the-void @bonewhiteglory @zumer-feygele @testostergnomes @starspeckledabyss @cuntwrap--supreme and anyone else who wants to :)

[grokebaby]

🌼🎹🎯🌂❤ for Nan, Grandefel andd Maiju maybe :333 answer as many as you want I just wanna know more about the ocs of all time <3 (also hi me again)

(Hi you again !!)

🌼 = How old? / age group

🎹= Hobbies?

🎯= What do they do best?

🌂= What genre are they in?

❤️= Best memory/ies?

I'm not sure if you meant that all these questions for every single character, or like?? Some other way?? But you said I can do however I want so I shall °w°

AGES:

Nan being an elder is somewhere between 50-60, I think developmentally she's the oldest character here (not chronologically bc Grandefel has for sure existed for over a thousand years but ykno. What's equivalent to their species). Ofc nan has likely also existed for a little longer than that chronologically speaking? Can't say for sure but she's in the Early elder category. Maiju is AT MOST (equivalent to) in her 40's but I'd put her in late 30's. Middle aged to some capacity. Grandefel is funnily enough youngest of everyone despite having existed the longest lolol, for an angel she'd be considered to be in her 30's approx. She's in the generation between Kxxxtr and Lamera.

HOBBIES:

Grandefel - What hobbies? 😔 Yall got free time from your all consuming societally enforced role in life? Most her free time is spent with Deirdre and the kids, but if not she's out in the sky exhibiting cat behaviour (lounging on sunny clouds, napping in strange poses and knocking stars off counters their course just bc)

Nan - Something very grandma esque probably. I mean I'm sure she does alot of "hobbyish" activities but moreso because it's been a vital part of her duties growing up (sewing, gardening, cooking ect). But how she entertains herself? Pinecone cows. And talking to them. (Google Käpylehmä, it's a thing wi/ Finns)

Maiju - What hobbies? Looking at picturebooks. Not bc she can't read or doesn't care about reading but she likes to look at nice things especially if she hasn't seen them before. Either that or sitting around and thinking about cool things. If she's feeling extra adventurous probably going on a walk or something, stopping to smell the flowers and all that jazz

DOES BEST:

Maiju - I feel like I could put so much here and it'd be really obvious. Like decapitation. Wielding a Warhammer. However I think she's the best at being an advisor and second in command to Xerxes when he's Going Normal™ about things (as he does), and keeping the anchor down on stuff. However she's also great at supporting him in his decisions so who's to say..

I'm honestly a little unsure how to answer this for the other two, I'm not saying there aren't things they're good at but I can't think of something they excel either. I think I'll just say both Nan and Grandefel are great at defying the will of unfathomable cosmic forces, whether that be deities Or societal expectations (guess which one is for which character I dare you)

GENRE:

Funnily all these characters exist in the same setting haha? Minus for Nan being an intersectional character in another story of mine as well. Anyway I will go off of vibes

Grandefel - Gay workplace drama

Maiju - Doom with animal crossing music

Nan - that brand of horror where you're stranded in the forest and find yourself in a strange village.. / maybe the monster was the generational trauma all along

FAV MEMORY:

(prepares myself emotionally)

I don't think Maiju could pick just one, she can't pick favorites in anything. The first time Xerxes took her to earth to show her sunflowers? Having a ladybug land on her nose? Learning her hair isn't red but Maroon? Getting a tie in a duel against a Power angel? Seeing herself in a mirror for the first time? There's just so many

Grandefel would probably claim it was the day she was made the primary Persecutor after her mentor (father) stepped down, however in reality it was her opening up about her feelings to Deirdre for the first time and crying in the presence of another person. For the first time also.

I feel like.. Nan's favorite memory is still yet to come, because.. (side eyes my story outline) bc ykno (starts tearing up) because b

Future memories aside I too think she can't pick just one. The choice floats between the rare few heartfelt moments with her dad, the support of her relatives after That Tragedy, getting Siru some friends (at all), messing around with her friends at the cow barn, ykno..

[nullanythorm-ao3]

Just some Camilo Headcanons -

Hi yes, I just wanted to talk a bit - about my favorite Encanto character. I've been thinking about Camilo's character a lot and working on building my own interpretation of his character for upcoming fanfiction and AU ideas I've gotten because I'm prone to crackshipping and wacky crossovers. These will be relevant to a lot of Camilo content I create -- and apply primarily to a modern AU but are also mostly applicable in canon -- also I just love him a lot and want to share with the class. Thank you ~

Headcanons Under the Cut

○ Camilo is the absolute most creative Madrigal In my head, Camilo is basically just the "artsy kid" almost personified. I like to think all the Madriagals have some form of creative hobby, but Camilo has so many it makes the other family members' heads spin. To list them all: Theater, singing and dance (goes with theater), styling(hair and makeup), fashion design (and sketching by extension), and photography. Maybe an instrument.

Why? Because he wants as many ways to express himself as possible. When you struggle to find your own identity, having activities that can help you express it is important! He picked up theater naturally, of course. In a modern AU more as a way of escaping family pressure by being "anyone but him" and then getting lost in it. In canon - well, he got into it for the obvious reason. Song and dance go hand in hand with it, especially since he's particularly interested in musical theater, but coming up with music and dances all his own is a fun way of self-expression outside of theater as well.

Almost everything else, though, allows him to express who he really is. He picked up sewing by hanging out with Mirabel when the two were young since they were the same age. He actually grew to really enjoy it, but while Mirabel went more for handicrafts and embroidery, he's all about fashion and making his own clothes. In fact, most clothes he wears are self-made (except for the stuff Mirabel embroiders for him). As a natural offshoot of his interest in fashion, his interest in hair and makeup came along. He grew obsessed with taking painstaking measures to present and express himself through his appearance. Photography was a random interest he picked up because, while being the center of attention and in front of a camera is fun, he found that spending time behind the camera is a great way to take the edge off. He likes taking photos of people and places around the Encanto, away from the Casita and his family. ○ Don't let this boy in a kitchen.. unless it's for tea or coffee Yeah, cooking isn't really Camilo's thing. He spends most of his time eating Julietta's cooking - he never really bothered to stop and learn himself when he has so many other things to learn. He tends to eat more than cook, and tends to let his auntie handle any cooking that needs being done. He's tried to help a few times. It didn't really go well.

That said, he makes a mean cup of tea or coffee. It's gotten to the point where he's skilled at making any form of warm drink for his family. Mirabel or Antonio are upset? Hot cocoa and some jokes or venting will solve it. Mami is stressed? What do you want to drink? Sit down, he'll take care if it. Pa wants bonding time? Alright, he'll make some coffee and they can talk. Town gossip and boy talk with Dolores? Oh, one sec sis. Let him get the actual tea. He's become an expert at this one thing when it comes to helping in the kitchen.

○ I know the campy gay is overplayed, but... Whether you ese him as gay or bi, he kind of is. I don't know if it's a bad thing to combine the fact that Camilo's definitely a campy, dramatic gay with the fact that he's both a theater kid and a fashion kid, but oh well? He's not super excessive or effeminate about it or anything, mind you. He's just very sassy, and very eager to talk about whatever cute boy has caught his attention whenever his family is willing to listen. He's flirty, excitable, and has zero inhibitions. It is not a secret, nor will it ever be a secret.

Mini headcanon: He sees a cute boy and just starts fanning himself with his hand, because this kid talks emotes with his hands constantly. If his hands aren't moving, something's wrong with him.

On the topic of romance, though. When it comes to significant others, obviously, if you give him food he'll love you forever. But also. It's a common fanon that I've seen that has him as playful and flirty. And yes, of course. But also consider - he can deal it, but can not take it. I love characters that like to flirt when they don't know how to interact with their crush, but then when their crush flirts back their brain just shuts down. That's Camilo. "Wait what? No, wait. You're supposed to be flustered that's not how this works".

○ Lowest Grades of the Madrigal Grandkids Let me preface this with: He does not get bad grades. If any of them got bad grades Alma would probably have their hides. Rather, while Mirabel and Isabella (and Antonio, when he's older) are perfect students, and Luisa and Dolores made really high grades, Camilo is kind of middling. His grades are pretty good, with some just passable grades in there - but nothing below a C grade average on an American grading scale (because I don't know Colombian grading scales). The thing with Camilo is this - if it's a class he's interested in (Language, Arts, Biology) he's really good at it. Top marks. If he's not interested in it though (History, Math), he tends to slack off a bit. He just doesn't really have a mind for anything that doesn't catch his attention and interest. He'll put in enough effort to keep from getting scolded, but lets it go otherwise. Even then, he winds up getting scolded sometimes because of Alma's high standards.

Study sessions with Mirabel are common.

○ Third most likely Madrigal to argue with Abuela In a modern AU without magic, this shoots up to #1 by the way. We all know that Mirabel and Bruno are prone to butting heads with Alma. They've done so - and will probably continue to do so if there are issues (or have in the past). Consider Camilo, however. He's a bit of an interesting case. He kind of sets himself apart from other Madrigals due to his passion for creativity. Add in the pressure from being one of the lower-grade grandkids in school and Alma's strong desire for stability for her grandkids, and you have an absolute recipe for disaster.

Still, he's just as stubborn as Abuela at times. And with his creativity and free spirit and her desire for stability and safety, they've definitely clashed before. This curbs a bit in canon after the events of the movie, as Alma is more lenient and willing to let her free-spirited grandson just kinda do his thing.

In a modern AU, though, this is made even worse. If the whole family is average, I'd be willing to argue that Mirabel, as smart and creative as she is, would be one of Abuela's favorite grandkids. They'd still clash, but not as much. Same for Bruno, who wouldn't be ostracized without the prophecies, really. Camilo, however, is still very prone to arguments with his grandmother.

In fact - in a modern AU, without the family status to rely on (though in some modern AUs he might still have that), Abuela is even more adamant on the importance of stability. Focus on school, Camilo. Try to work towards a good university, Camilo. Creativity is fine as a hobby, but you need a stable job, Camilo. A driven creative mind can only take things like that so much, and this boy is nothing if not driven. He and Abuela are constantly butting heads because of it.

○ People think he takes after Felix? This is a thought that a lot of townsfolk seem to have. He inherited a good bit of his father's humor and laid-back attitude, but he's far from taking after him. If he takes after either of his parents, it's Pepa. Consider.

A) Big emotions, constantly. Camilo and Pepa are both excitable, expressive, and emotional. Camilo a little less so, but I still think he'd be prone to pretty erratic emotional fits. Not only that, but I feel like Camilo would be just as emotionally repressed as Pepa at times. Not with the dire weather-based consequences mind you - but keep in mind. Camilo's whole thing is making people smile. He's the jokester and trickster that's meant to keep the townsfolk happy and help cheer people up when they're down. So naturally fits of anger or sadness or other negative emotions would probably cause some issues - so he's probably put under the same emotional stress as Pepa at times. It's just a bit more lenient.

Mini Headcanon: Camilo was a rambunctious kid. It could cause some serious stress for Pepa, so she'd end up reflexively using her "clear skies" chant a lot around him. Before she realized it, it started calming him down too. She started to use it to soothe him, and before long he adopted it and now they both do it as a calming mechanism.

B) These two can be really vindictive when they want. At the very least, they're the types to hold grudges over sibling squabbles - even if it's jokingly. They're sassy, a bit prone to outbursts, and love to get the last word in. Try winning against either of them in an argument, it's not easy. Especially if you're unlucky enough to get the mother-son double team against you.

C) The gremlin middle child energy is strong with these two. I can imagine Pepa was prone to getting into trouble a lot as a little girl. Especially considering her siblings were the mild-mannered Julietta and timid Bruno. They all were probably prone to getting into trouble at some point, but Pepa more than the others. Always leading the trio on little adventures that ended in chaos. Camilo has the same energy. The middle child that is constantly poking his nose into things he shouldn't be and stirring up trouble. The most outgoing of his siblings. You get the picture.

Anyway that's about it for now. I'm sure I'll come up with more in the future at some point, but this is a general character-building basis that I came up with. Of course, these are all just headcanons, so take them as you will. Like I said earlier, they're going to be relevant to content I create, but don't necessarily have to be relevant to anyone else. I'm quite fond of them though.

[my-headcanons-academia]

Inko chews out Endeavour

Characters: Inko Midoriya, Izuku Midoriya, Shouto Todoroki, Endeavour

Genre: Angst, a little bit of fluff and catharsis

TW: Mentions of child abuse, abusive home life, mental drain

Word Count:3 K

A/N: This may be a teensy bit long :3

•Okay listen

•Midoriya is god damn horrified when he hears what Endeavour did/does to his kids. He had obviously guessed that the second-best hero there is who is training his family to also become heroes would have some extensive regime but what Shouto explained wasn't "training" it was just abuse.

•He immediately offers Shouto and his sibling's a place with him and his mum without a moment's hesitation. They're not as rich as the Todoroki's or live in as big a house with as good food, but they're happy. •And when Shouto declines, Izuku isn't really sure what to do.

• it's not his place to tell any media or higher authorities, it'd drastically change the lives of Shouto and his siblings and would affect all of them the rest of their lives. He feels like he can't do much and a part of him feels like doing nothing means he's condoning the abuse that still happens in that home like the emotional neglect and things Shouto may not have mentioned. But he can't do anything about that right now, simply because Shouto won't let him. And while Izuku is fighting every instinct he has which is to take the Todoroki siblings out of there and into a therapist's office, it's not his place to do that.

•So instead, he does what he can for them, like offer to go places more so they're out of the house. Offer free anonymous therapy sites. Have their own improv therapy whenever needed. Promise to be there for whoever trusts him and for those who it may take longer to trust him.

•But with all his good intentions, he starts to bite off more than he can chew. Even when it's not in the midst of midnight therapy or distracting days out, it's constantly nagging at the back of his mind that he wants to do more and he isn't doing everything he can. He doesn't want to "fail" at being a good friend, since he hasn't had many experiences to base off (or any for that matter) but he is running out of emotional room.

•Contrary to the Todoroki household, Inko Midoriya actually notices when her child is going through some rough times and tries to do her best to help.

•I imagine Inko and Midoriya have a close relationship. With no other reliable parent figure in the house, they spent a lot of time together. Not only are they parent and child, but they are also friends who enjoy each others company. Inko may not always understand his fascination with All Might but she'll always ask questions and prompt him to go on about the differences in All Might's costumes and moves, even if she knows all the answers already in the same way Izuku may not understand why she enjoys sewing so much ever since she made him his hero costume but will not hesitate to help her go shopping for and carry new fabrics as she talks about the colours and texture helping boost peoples confidence. (She wants to get better at sewing so she can make a new costume for him that's better than ever before.) •And because Inko and Izuku were rather close, she knew his tells. she'd learnt well from their daily game nights to know when he lying and when he was hiding things. But that was during games. This was far more strenuous. But before she rushed in and crowded him, Inko thought that if there were really something he didn't want her to know, then she shouldn't know. So long as it doesn't hurt him. So, respecting the fact he is now a teenage boy and not a child anymore, she knew he was smart enough to make his own decisions.

•But also being herself, she still wanted to help, even if she didn't know exactly what was going on.

•At first, she thought Izuku wasn't sleeping enough because of the stress of UA so she'd plan days to the seaside or mini-holiday or they could try to make a new dessert or do a movie marathons to distract him from it. And she always took note of how very time she offered, he'd always insist some way or another that the Todoroki's join them which of course she had no quarrels with, she was delighted he loved spending so much time with his friends!

•When that didn't help she offered to get him a tutor, maybe he was anxious about his studies? She didn't trust her own education enough to tutor him as he was always impressing her with fun trivia and general knowledge but she'd taken a break in her sewing hobby to save up some money to be able to pay for a tutor.

•But when he began not eating as much, mind always preoccupied with something else than his usual hero ideology and theories, the day of the annual parent-teacher meeting and Izuku hadn't uttered a word since he got home, she sat him down on the couch, held his hands, his scarred and trembling hands, and she asked him. "Are you alright?"

•She's asked this many times before, every time he came home from school, every time she found him up in the middle of the night shakily drinking some water while staring at his phone as if expecting some death from the family. But this time? •This time her words echo in Izuku's head, getting louder and louder with each reverberation, picking up speed and other voices with every hit to his mind, the sound of text messages, quiet telephone calls, rushed breathing, stifled words, hearing footsteps from the other line, the need to help all drowning him in a cacophony of utter helplessness. •And he crumples against his mother, clawing onto her shirt like a life-jacket barely keeping him afloat above the ocean of noise only he is in and he cries. The tears stain Inko's cardigan and she wraps her arms around him, pulling him onto her lap like she used to when he was a child, she holds her son, her baby boy, as his tears dampen her clothes and his voice breaks choking on sobs.

•It was a long day.

•Izuku and Shouto had talked before about telling Inko or an adult or just anyone but there was always some reason, some excuse why it couldn't happen yet. It would be a decision all the siblings would have to agree to as it affects all their lives. Fuyumi was always hesitant, so cautious and making sure if anything were to happen nothing could be left to chance and all outcomes had to be planned. Natsuo wanted whatever would help everyone the most, and if no one was ready to do anything right now, then he'd wait. Shouto thought long ago that if what his father did to his family ever came to light, it would be brought up for the rest of his hero career and he'd never be able to truly escape his dad's hold if it always followed him like that. And until he met Midoriya, that's what he thought for years.

•Shouto was warming up to the idea of saying what happened to him specifically to someone. To see what would happen.

•And that is what Izuku could let slip. The things Shouto had told him at the sports festival, the reason for his scar, his spiteful technique and motivation to be a hero. •It was a long day. •The moment all was said and done, that he had run out of tears to cry, that he had ruined his mother's cardigan by stretching it with his grip and made it soggy with his sobs, that he could breathe without a hiccup or tremor interrupting him, he was completely drained. There was a mix of hollowness after spending so long building it all up, unsure every step of the way whether he's doing the right thing or not and the relief of finally letting there be room for him to breathe.

•But in his hollow chest was a stab of guilt, anxiety, crawling back up his throat and blocking his lungs like a thick mucus of worry. Had he done the wrong thing? It wasn't his place to say- He should have talked with Shouto more about this- Was he wrong to have done nothing so far?- Oh god he's done nothing right- this could hurt them-

• "Shhh," Inko gently held the back of his head and rubbed small circles with her thumb into the back of his neck, like she used to to do calm him down as a child, it still worked "It's-..." Inko collected her thoughts. It was certainly a lot to process, she had her suspicions but she thought she was being paranoid. She'll learn to trust her gut more. "It's not alright right now, but one day it will be. For you and for them."

•And that worry in his chest turned to blunt guilt, he shouldn't be the one crying while Shouto and his siblings have withstood literal torture all their lives, he should be stronger, he needs to be stronger to help them-

•"You are children. And none of you should have to deal with this. I know you're growing up faster than I can blink and you're being a hero more and more every day, but that doesn't mean you were prepared for this exact situation. They train you to fight villains and criminals and how to save those in immediate peril who want saving. Not thins like this." Inko continued to speak softly, pulling Izuku closer and soothing the back of his neck "Thank you for telling me and I can understand why you wouldn't want me to meddle as it may be out of my depth, but, two people helping them is better than one."

• Midoriya told Shouto what had happened and apologised for spilling too early, apologised for not doing enough, apologised for being less than open about the emotional and mental space he had to spare, promising to be more aware of it so long as Shouto continues to trust him and talk when needed. Shouto was confused as to why Midoriya was apologising so much as always and despite the apprehension in his movements, Shouto had spent enough time with Inko to trust her. And also to know that while Inko is kind, that isn't all she is.

•Shouto had seen her repay the kindness people had shown her tenfold with gifts, acts of service, compliments, reassurance and more. And something about that deep-rooted kindness tipped him off to the idea that if someone were to take advantage of her kindness or her son, that injustice too shall be repaid. And, as slow as it was and as long as it took, he knew she considers him her son too.

• Overall, the parent-teacher meeting was going well for most students. Most students were in their more casual clothes except those who had been too lazy to change out of their school uniform for the day albeit having their shirts scandalously untucked and top buttons undone (Except for Bakugo who in the presence of his mother for the first time had his tie actually tied, truly it was a sight to behold and blackmail photos to be used for months.)

• Amidst all the parents gathering together while waiting for the respective teachers to be free of their current appointments, there he was. Enji Todoroki, Endeavour in his hero costume supposedly fresh from the job. • And thus, politely fuelled by karmic fury the 5'2 force of nature marched up with a smile to the flaming rotting piece of shit excuse she can barely call a human being and greeted him.

• "Oh, hello Enji." Inko smiles. Izuku stands back with Shouto on the sidelines, watching the encounter unfold. • First of all, the informality caught him off guard. Usually, he'd be used to fans being "Overly-friendly" but something about the smile in her voice didn't sit right with the way fans usually say it. This turned a few heads.

• "And..who are you?"

• "Why I am so glad you asked, my name is Inko Midoriya, the woman whose house your son goes to every day but I suppose you wouldn't know that since as long as he's keeping up his work then there is nothing else to do with him at all," she coughed ", like parenting," and continued "Speaking of being in public I could never be as confident as you are to go to a casual event in a full-on hero costume but I suppose if it helps boost your ego then go for it! Although, speaking from the perspective of a concerned parent, aren't all of those flames a safety hazard! what if you were near a flammable thing like, oh I don't know, civilians clothes in a place you know where said civilians are tightly packed together, or there could be someone well-known to have a flammable quirk nearby or just a building's structure being, on the whole, a rather flammable thing?" Her head turned to the overgrown vermin who lead the school who had entered the room upon hearing there was a commotion "Not that I doubt UA's defence measures and predicted disastrous occurrences as no such thing has ever failed in the past. It's just the safety of children and the future generation of heroes after all." and just as quickly turned back to Endeavour

•"You know I noticed there are plenty of other pro-heroes here who are just fine in their everyday clothing because they recognise this get together is about their children's achievements and not their own. Why, if I didn't know any better I'd say you really are that insecure in your title slipping because that's what being a hero is all about, the title, that you'd distract entire families from the point of being here just to pay attention to you because it's not like being the second supposedly best hero there is credits you any attention."

• Enji barely had time to stop the flames protruding from his hero suit from dying out as peoples heads turned to pay attention. By now every student had pulled out their phone to record the situation.

•Nedzu was on his way over, laughing awkwardly ready to diffuse the situation but had miraculously been needed for a sudden important event in the teacher's lounge and was immediately escorted by Aizawa and Present Mic.

•"Oh and may I go on and say you truly are an inspirational story of how being raised as a gifted child must have been really difficult for you. Always a commodity, never a human being, not a single person in your life thinking you’re worth a damn without your quirk so you made it your entire personality until you developed your own actual personality because of course you, the Number Two hero would outgrow such a childish nature. That sounds rough," she pouted in mock sympathy.

• Endeavour snarled behind gritted teeth, barely stopping himself from acting out of hand at the public slander. "Just who do you think you are-"

•"Like I said, my name is Inko Midoriya, the pleasure is all mine I'm sure, or did you not hear me the first time while that fire was covering your ears? just like how it must have covered your eyes with choosing that outfit to be approachable. Oh do excuse me if that seemed rude, I'm a seamstress as a hobby you see so I tend to have an eye for when things are just wrong in every way. Honestly, if you didn't parade your title everywhere you go I'd mistake you for a villain on sight. You see, I'm only a seamstress and not a hero like you as you love to flaunt no matter the situation or need for it, but it must be so rewarding to save all those people every day and return to a home with your loving children and children who want to do the exact same thing and be exactly like you because you must be such good role-model and parent to have accomplished so much in your career and of course spent enough time on each of your children to help them grow to be happy, full of inspiration and their own dreams to fulfil. Oh, and of course your wife who must be so proud of the person you've become!"

• By this point the flames had been sputtering at random, a rare purple and even blue flamer erupting once and again as this woman continued talking and the parents out the corner of his eye who thought they were out of his sight nod their head and faces contort into realising the full weight of the truth they already knew but now understand.

• But Inko was nowhere near close to done, Endeavour could hear as much when she took a small break to smile and take a bigger breath to continue. • And blinded by the public's disapproval of everything he had convinced he had Done for the good of the civilians, he could feel the ground, just like his title, being pulled from under him as quicker heroes hit the back of his knees as Inko swung her handbag with the metal buckle across Endeavours face while she was being pulled safety away from the punch Enji hadn't realised fast enough he had thrown.

• The videos uploaded by students went viral in seconds

•"shocked" by the number two hero's emotional outburst with malicious intent to harm an unarmed civilian, Inko let it be known she found it unsuitable that he go back home to his children and instead of that they live with her and make a record with either police or a licensed therapist to make a note of any other emotional outbursts or strange and potentially dangerous behaviour in complete confidentiality.

[thecomposerofstories]

Information on Amy.

(Be warned it's a ~little bit~ long, any other pieces of information you want to know I'll gladly answer if you ask.)

~General Information~

Fandom: Toy Story.

Name: Amy the Ragdoll.

Nickname, if any: Amy, Ames, and Doll-Face(usually by more villainous characters or used in a joking manner).

Gender: Female.

Sexuality: ??? (I mean I know the gender of who she has a crush on, but I'm unsure on what her actual sexuality should be tbh)

Age: Mentally, mid-twenties in the first story second movie, thirties to forties in the third and fourth. Physically, she doesn’t have an age, but in regards to when she was made (the 1950’s) makes her fifty to sixty.

City they currently live in: San Francisco, apparently that’s where Toy Story takes place.

Any pets: Would Rex count? He just follows her around like a nervous puppy.

Current occupation: I mean she’s practically a therapist, but she’s a toy and she only treats Rex so it probably doesn’t count lol

~Physical Appearance~

Height: 10 inches.

Body type: Stocky, but a bit gangly too, similar to Sally from The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Eye colour: Black.

Skin tone: Light.

Clothing style: Pale green/turquoise shirt with short puffed sleeves, with a denim dungaree dress with a daisy print in the centre over it. She wears yellow rain boots.

Hairstyle: No style, it’s just there. It’s messy and gets in her face easily and is made out of dark brown thin string.

~Speech/Language/Communication~

Amy speaks quietly and politely, rambles a bit if left without a reply or under pressure, very nervous in front of intimidating characters.

First language: English.

Learned languages: A bit of Spanish (Ya’ll remember Toy Story 3!)

Accent: American.

Pitch of voice: High, but soft, not quite annoying, unless she’s stressed, then it gets very pitchy and shrill.

~Behaviour/Habits~

Amy tends to just stand there when she can’t find anything to do, and will immediately try to find Rex, Hamm, Buzz or Jessie if surrounded by strangers (Though she’s not sure if it’s for their comfort or her own) Amy is very polite.

Spending habits: She doesn’t like to be made a fuss of at all, the very fact of someone giving something to her is unnerving (even if the thing never costed anything at all) and she feels compelled to give the giver something in return.

Morning routine: She gets up same time as the others, but wishes she could stay in bed a bit longer though. Before she came to Andy’s room, her sleep pattern was all over the place.

Bedtime routine: Similar to above, now she goes to bed the same time as the others, but before she just slept and got up willy-nilly.

Nervous habits: Amy will try to find Rex if she’s nervous, and she’ll pretend it’s because she’s worried for him, which is quite true, but she also just feels most safe with him. Speaking of, Amy will let Rex hold her hand and squish it whenever he or Amy is nervous, it’s calming to the both of them.

Bad habits: Not a very good exerciser, but then again, she’s spend basically half her life in a small attic, so I’ll give her a break.

Skills/talents: She’ very logical, mind-over-matter, (mostly, very good at calming others down and/or convincing them. She’s very good at spelling and knows quite a lot of words, some of which others haven’t even heard of.

Hobbies: Reading, talking (especially with Rex, Jessie or Hamm), and generally just lazing about or walking around somewhere, on her own or with a friend.

~The Past~

Amy’s first owner was a little girl called Alice. Alice loved nothing more than to read Amy stories (Mostly fairy tales), but of course, Alice grew up like all kids do, and she left Amy in the attic for someone else to have her.

Amy waited for many years, and all that time she’d never given up that someone would find her.

She thought she’s hit the jackpot when Andy and his family move into Alice’s old house, but they don’t go up into the attic to collect her. Some weeks later, though, Andy’s mother brings a set of boxes filled with junk into the attic and leaves. Woody, Buzz, Slinky, and Rex were trapped in one of the boxes (Call me a cheater but this part was actually inspired by a Toy Story comic, where those four toys get stuck in the attic that way and have to escape. It struck me odd that they never met at least one new friend there, so I made one. It was also my first story, I needed some inspiration!)

Amy, in a fit of panic, goes and hides.

But then she’s found by Rex as he and the others try to find a way out.

They then decide to let the strange, dust-covered ragdoll come back to Andy’s rom with them. (well, Rex did, anyway.)

Home town: Would Alice’s old room count? But it’s now Andy’s Room, so it won’t count will it?

Happy or sad childhood: Pretty normal to be honest, as normal a life as a toy could have anyway. And as for sadness, having spent all that time on her own for all those years, having missed out on so much, is a little sad. But Amy made sure she never became bitter over it or used it as an excuse for anything.

Earliest memory: Waking up in her toy store, with a friend of hers for company (a ragdoll Prospector, a much as she remembers) and as she gets bought by Alice’s Auntie, she says she hopes he gets picked up by a kid. (Unbeknownst to her, she would meet him again in a while to find out he never got to experience it)

Saddest memory: One, being left by Alice, yet being so happy for her and how much she’s grown up, if she could cry tears of joy for her owner, she would. Two, some (or most) of the days she spent waiting for a new owner to arrive. And three, watching Rex have a mental breakdown of anxiety.

Happiest memory: One, the time she and Alice went to the park, (Amy absolutely adores nature) Two after sliding down a drainpipe to get to Andy’s room, and three, having known she’d helped her friend out.

Significant events: Being bought, being left in an attic, being rescued from the attic, while gaining some new friends.

~Family~

The entirety of Andy’s room, whether they like it or not, they’re all in this together and are some kind of mish-mash, found family in a sense.

Siblings: I’ve been thinking of giving Amy a brother (since I based her on Raggedy Ann, a matching bootleg Raggedy Andy seems reasonable) bur I’m unsure about it, since I’ve already mapped out Amy’s entire series of stories (Around six or seven all together, so far I’m currently writing only the third) and I can only fit him in the fifth or sixth if I can.

~Relationships~

Romantically? I’d like to say she has a crush on Rex, I don’t know why I thought of it, I was contemplating it one day as I sketched a rough (and terrible) sketch of her, and I drew Rex too because he’s just so fun to draw and I wanted to make a scale for Amy’s size, and one of my friends (who had been watching me) immediately said “I ship it!” and well, the rest is history, I made the decision to ship it too.

Friends: Jessie, Hamm, Buzz, and Rex are her closet friends, but she’d like to say that all the Gang are her friends. Later on she becomes good friends with Mr. Prickle Pants, Buttercup, Trixie and Totoro, and she absolutely loves the peas and Forky.

Best friend(s): Hamm, Mr. Prickle Pants, Jessie, and Rex.

What do people like about them? Amy’s pretty easy to talk to, she’s polite and attentive and will sit in companionable silence with someone if they need it. But she won’t hesitate to give hard truths and advice if it’s needed.

What do people dislike about them? Amy is quite a doormat, if someone is rude to her or breaches anything she just lets it happen, and sometimes she’s too indecisive about her own stuff, unsure whether she’s going to offend others or not over the smallest things, which annoys others quite a bit.

~Mentality/Personal Beliefs~

Amy is a toy of logic, and though she believes others can do it if they set their minds to it, she doesn’t quite believe in herself. She believes she must follow the rules of being a toy at all times, no matter what.

Phobias: Dust. She hates it. It took a good five weeks to brush all the dust out her hair and clothes, and even so there’s still some in her pockets and places she can’t reach. And being alone, too. Now she can’t be alone for more than an hour before she starts to get antsy and nervous. And for a short time books gave her a strange tiredness, after reading them for so long and for so many years she couldn’t even stand the sight of them.

But of course, not for long, since Amy found out Andy had a copy of Red’s Dream by a Mr. William Reeves.

Optimist or pessimist: Depends on the situation really, if her mind can’t come up with a solution, then there’s no point in trying anymore. Unless someone else can think of something, that is.

Personal philosophies: “You are here to make good things happen. No person here is made for one reason only, or even only one. There’s no point in pretending to be someone you’re not just for the attention of others, no matter how cool they are. We should find are own meaning, as we’re the only ones who have control of it.

It’ll take a while, but I swear, it’ll be worth it.”

Biggest dream/wish: Amy wants nothing more than to find meaning for herself, but finds it rather hard to do so. Of course, that doesn’t mean she’ll settle for someone else’s meaning. As cheesy as it sounds, she just wants an adventure. She doesn’t necessarily want to be the hero, though, she’s just happy to go along with the ride so long as it gets her out the house for a few hours. She also, above all else, wants Rex to find meaning too, even if she never does, it would be nice to know that he had.

Greatest strength(s): Persuasion, story-telling, logic, and good grammar.

Biggest flaw: Despite being a ragdoll, Amy can’t sew because of her fingerless hands, which are just soft mittens in shape. Amy is also quite a doormat, as I said before, so if her calm persuasion and reasoning doesn’t work, she’s left to be walked all over.

Regrets: Staying in that dratted attic too long, the window was open, she could’ve just climbed out, but no, she had to stay there for some mind-rotting decades. But if she had just escaped, she would never have met her new friends. Amy just wishes she had met them a lot sooner.

Achievements: Escaped the attic, slid down a drainpipe, leapt onto the windowsill (though nearly knocking Woody and Buzz over in the process) stopped her friend from having a panic attack, and managed to remember the entire Dictionary and is able to recite it down from A to Z, and even Z to A.

Secrets: Not much, just strange feelings for one of her friends, but it’s not much of a secret, Bo knows, and Mr. Potato Head and Hamm could see it from a mile away, and the others have their suspicions.

Goals: Read the entirety of Andy’s (and later Bonnie’s) bookshelves, become more confident in herself, have her own book-worthy adventure, and figure out what those strange feelings for her friend is.

~Likes/Favourites~

Favourite colour: Even before meeting Rex, Amy’s favourite colour was always green. Every time Alice had taken her to the park, Amy adored watching the sunlight pour through the leaves with a golden-green glow.

Favourite book(s): Because it’s sentimental to her, being her owner’s favourites, she loves Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Peter Pan, and The Wizard of Oz. They all hold similar plots (a little girl in a blue dress goes to a fantasy land, has a few adventures, and then leaves said fantasy land to go home to her family and responsibilities) but it reminds Amy of her old owner Alice (who was actually named after Alice from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland) and their playtimes together.

Favourite Book Quotation(s):

“Green is the prime color of the world, and that from which its loveliness arises.”

“There is no living thing that is not afraid when it faces danger. The true courage is facing danger when you are afraid.”

Favourite movie: Amy does much prefer books, since they allow her to imagine the setting and characters in her own way, but doesn’t mind movies, and isn’t picky on what they watch, though she does quite like horror films.

Favourite song: Amy likes any kind of music, new or old.

Favourite game: Amy never really cared for games, the competitiveness always bothered her and stressed her out. But she’s more than happy to watch Rex play his video games and cheer him on.

~Relationships with other characters~

~Rex~

- Hit it off pretty quickly.

- Amy helps him with his anxiety, and helps him find confidence in himself, she acts as a certain therapist to him.

- Both become very stressed without the other around.

- Rex will hold and knead at Amy’s hands sometimes; it calms him down.

- Rex will let Amy ride on his back if she’s tired or needs to see something (Because she’s so short).

- One of them can basically be talking about the most boring-est things ever, yet still the other will hang on to their every word.

~Jessie~

- Became friends pretty quickly.

- Will drag Amy along anywhere.

- Get along fairly well.

- Jessie does the talking and Amy does the planning.

- Jessie always pranks the other toys and makes Amy tag along (along with Hamm).

- Introvert/Extrovert dynamic for sure.

- Both were left in alone for years so like to find solace in each other.

~Hamm~

- Hamm begrudgingly warmed up to the timorous ragdoll.

- Surprisingly good pals.

- Have full conversations without saying anything.

- Like to sit and look out of the window together.

- Hamm makes Amy laugh when she really shouldn’t (mainly when he makes fun of the other toys, mainly Woody).

- Hamm makes fun of Amy having a crush on Rex every once in a while, though he doesn’t mean any harm.

~The Potato Heads~

- Mr. doesn’t really interact with Amy much, but finds her surprisingly tolerable, if a bit high-strung and annoying.

- Like Hamm, Mr. makes Amy laugh at the most wrong moments.

- She and Mrs. Are quite good friends, and she sometimes lets Amy take care of the aliens if she and her husband are busy.

~Woody~

- Are aquianteces.

- Don’t exactly interact much, even though the whole room practically revolves around him, in Amy’s opinion, though she would never say it to his face.

~Buzz~

- Amy thinks he’s super cool (then again, he is Buzz Lightyear, he practically invented coolness)

- Both are just as clueless as one another when it comes to social cues and interactions.

- Amy helps him with vocabulary and spelling every once in a while.

~Mr. Prickle Pants~

- Are absolute BFF’s.

- Go back and forth with book quotes to the point of driving the other toys insane.

~Bo Peep~

- Amy's not exactly sure if Bo has befriended her or not.

- (She has)

- They later become good friends.

- Amy misses their talks, Bo was one of the only toys she could talk to that could keep a secret.

[daily-dose-of-imagines]

(っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ Matchup ♥

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* 　　 *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

Heyyy! I hope you all are having a good day 😚 I'm requesting a matchup for naruto, jjba and haikyuu please😊

I’m 19, 5'6", leo, pansexual, she/them ENTP, long brown curly hair, wears glasses, looks alt and is conventionally attractive, and i used to be a professional athlete so I'm kind of built but still somewhat slim. I am often told i look intimidating to men but women are quickly at ease with me.

I have ADHD and anger issues. I am very spontaneous and impulsive and have like 3 working braincells so i find myself in weird spots way too much, but i got street smarts and am a fairly good judge of character. I get along with most people and am fairly decent at making friends. I'm kind to everyone and am quite sensitive. I'm the one friend that ppl come to when they're in trouble and need help, whether it's about some project or them needing to fix something or somebody is looking for a fight with them. I'm also pretty good at giving people advice so they come to me when they need to get something off their chest.

My hobbies are basically making art (i believe myself to be a good artist), reading books,mangas and comics, sewing and DIY-ing stuff. I’m a polyglot and really like learning about mythology. I am physically strong and will not hesitate to fight someone, so no matter their size, age or gender, i will punt them like a football. I'm also a HUGE nerd, i love sci-fi and comics and fantasy worlds. That's basically it 😊😅 thank you and have a good day 😚

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* 　　 *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

Hello and thank you so much for requesting with us! I am so so sorry this got out so late, but I do hope you enjoy it!

>Admin 𝕋

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* 　　 *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

𝐼 𝓈𝒽𝒾𝓅 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽...

Hinata Shouyou! Oh you and him would make such a cute couple I swear! The fact that he has one braincells and you only have a few, and when you combine you both to make more? A match made in heaven! He’s impulsive and your impulsive which is a recipe for disaster, but for you too, it’s a recipe for fun and adventure! 

Hinata will love that you get along with everybody, it will make him see that you are open and kind and not afraid to be open with people, and he will really appreciate that! He will love that fact that you someone that people will come to with your problems because it shows him that you are trustworthy and good at giving advice, something he will need from time to time. 

Hinata will love to have you teach him about your hobbies, art being the main one! Art, to him, is similar to volleyball (trust me, it makes sense) and will definitely want you to show him how you work and what you like doing the most. He may or may not ask you with ulterior motives, envisioning you holding hands and teaching him how to stroke on a canvas and how you to hold a pain brush, definitely not. (He most defnintely will)

All in all, I feel like hinata will be the perfect man for you in the Haikyuu universe! He will love your spontaneity and shared impulsiveness, he will love they you are passionate about your hobbies and he will absolutely love the factr that you are someone who is open and kind to everyone you meet! You better be prepared for an onslaught of love and kisses!

So, for the Naruto universe, I wanted to go match you up with someone that was rather quite opposite of you, but also wouldn’t mind the way you acted! And I picked Gaara for you! I feel that with his calmness and your impulsiveness will mesh really well! He will enjoy the fact you can be so energetic, finding yourself in random places; he’ll think it is cute! He will also like the fact that you a good judge of characters. The way that his childhood was, he will need someone who is a good judge on people, and good at weeding the bad from the good. He will definitely appreciate someone like you near him! 

Gaara will love how open and friendly you are to everyone, and never seeing you be too awkward with them. He would envious, but at the same time, he will see that he needs someone like that in his life, someone who is full of love and kindness, someone who is easy to to talk to! He will also always go to you for advice, acknowledging that you are really good at it!

When he sees you doing you hobbies, either reading or sewing, he’ll just watch closely. He’ll love you how you look when concentrating, barely noticing that he is in the room with you, and ever so slowly, he will move closer to you, so he can watch at a better angle. By now you see him, but you don’t say anything, you just keep going. He will see this as quality time with you, being close to you and learning about the things you love!

All in all, I feel like Gaara would be a great fit for you, his calmness and balance out your energetic nature, and he will be your guiding light when you get lost in random places! I hope you will love him lots!

Okuyasu would probably be intimidated by you at first, but then he’d simp hard. You have three brain cells and Okuyasu has none (cause it's Josuke’s turn with the brain cell). Combined you make two halves of one whole idiot, but in the cutest way possible.

With the aforementioned lack of brain power, you both would get up to some wacky hijinks. Since you’re so personable, he would not hesitate to bring you into the squad, and you would probably fit right in (Now Koichi isn’t the only one with a partner ;D).

Okuyasu would probably make bets with you over who was stronger, and you would bond arm wrestling (which you’d probably win because he gets distracted easily). He’d be butt hurt about it but would then brag to all his friends how his partner is the strongest person he knows.

Being a huge nerd is a plus, Okuyasu would love to indulge in your interests, and maybe even discover some of his own hidden talents.

[nenuials]

A day in the life of Lothrin

How does a day in the life of Lothrin, Lady of Twilight, Sage of Annúminas and aid to the Dúnedain look like? More uneventful that one would expect. In order to better paint a picture of her daily schedule, I shall be using LOTRO canon, thus using the geography and settlements presented therein. Secondly, this schedule is applicable between the years of TA 2500 and TA 3019.

Lothrin’s usual residence and where she might be found most of the time is the keep of Tinnudir, in the heart of Evendim. Though depending on the season, she may move to the encampment at High King’s Crossing, the farms in Barandalf or the camp in the heart of Annúminas. More often than not, when not in Evendim, Lothrin can be found in Sarn Ford, Esteldin, Falathlorn or Imladris.

Mornings

If residing in Tinnudir, Lothrin is usually the first to stir awake, way before dawn. Elves sleep but a couple hours a night, usually about two to four, and can go entire days without rest. Early in the morning, she will rise and make a start on the chores of the day. Tinnudir, a keep of such size and the surrounding land are always in need of hands to tend to them.

She will quickly leave the keep and make her way to the animal pens. While LOTRO doesn’t show this detail to us, I strongly believe there were animals raised on the island. She will release the chickens and ducks from their coops, collect the eggs, feed the cows, goats, sheep, horses, and pigs and if time allows milk the cows and goats, then clean their spaces. If she is not present or otherwise occupied, someone else will take care of these duties. 

With a big chunk of the early morning gone, she will either help in the kitchens to prepare the meals of the day, or simply eat and be on her way. Depending on the season and food situation, in the morning or noon she may either go alone or take some company to cross the lake and hunt in the hills of Evendim.  Evendim is home to a big population of bears, so bear meat is plenty available to make stew or rugs from. 

Afternoons

With the time-sensitive chores out of the way and still plenty of daytime left, when in Tinnudir and not otherwise occupied with administrative duties, Lothrin’s hands would ever be busy with spinning thread or sewing clothing, as tailoring is one of her hobbies. In medieval societies aside from food, the two most important resources people needed were thread for cloth-making and wax for candle-making. The process involved in cloth-making is long and laborious, so everyone was urged to give a hand: from picking the plants, to dying the thread, to spinning it, to sewing the cloth itself and more. Making even one piece of a garment may take anywhere up to three hundred hours, depending on the complexity of the piece. 

If the weather is otherwise not foul, Lothrin will join the dúnedain in the small gardens surrounding Tinnudir and tend to the vegetable plantations. What gardening needs to be done wholly depends on whether it is planting or harvesting season, but she loves the harvest best and all the work that comes with the season. One may always find her carrying entire baskets of vegetables, and helping with the making of jams, sauces, pickled vegetables and more. If strong arms are needed, she will help with woodworking and the upkeep of the various buildings, mainly repairing rooftops, as the dúnedain do not possess her elven agility and ease of movement. On more than one occasion messengers would find her high atop a roof, hammering nails.

Evenings

One regular activity she pursues in the evenings is patrolling the roads up to the King’s Crossroad, for any signs of trouble. If all the other sentries are away on errands, she will gladly take their posts and stand guard the whole night. If present in Tinnudir, she will help with serving dinner to the whole encampment of roughly fifty people, then either tell a story or leave for her study and pursue various scholarly duties in candlelight. As she is the sage of Evendim, every couple of years she rewrites her various notes on the life of the northern dúnedain. She has kept meticulous notes that date back to the inception of Arnor, detailing genealogies, customs, lineages and more. Her various manuscripts have been a treasure to the modern-day dúnedain, mainly with helping them remember their customs and their lineages. 

Tinnudir is a keep with various floors. The ground floor is home to a small library, a study, a storage room, the kitchens, and some sleeping quarters placed around the inner pool. The upper floors are accessible through an inner stairway and are home to more sleeping-quarters and storage rooms. On the third floor rests the Study of Lothrin, a room filled to the brim with treasures of ages long past, scrolls and books, weapons, armour and in the middle of it all sits a desk, where Lothrin does her scholarly work. The room though cramped, is luminous.

If the evenings are calm and quiet, she will delight in teaching the dúnedain children their history, with as much detail as she can muster. She will speak of the marble columns of the throne-room of Elendil, of the beautiful gardens at the heart of Annúminas, of the various gatherings the nobles of Evendim used to have, of all the kind and brave working-people who fought so fiercely for their kingdom. 

Deviations

The schedule presented above may suffer alterations depending on a myriad of factors. If orcs have been spotted in the area, Lothrin will join patrols and guard the borders. If the harvests have been lacking, she will hunt more and gather whatever plants and roots available for eating. If the coffers are emptying, she will join in the making of various products to try and trade them in Bree or the Shire. If the day allows and no pressing matters are ahead of her, she will often train herself, then train some of the younger dúnedain in close, then ranged combat. She is a strict but fair teacher. 

Seasonal Work

If the summer weather is especially kind, she would often be found at the farms in Barandalf, in south Evendim. The farms are the main source of food for the dúnedain of Evendim, so tending to them is of utmost importance. The farms, though small, are close to hobbit lands, so trade often occurs. If the farms are otherwise staffed, and the sentries are away on various errands, she will stand guard at the bridge of High King’s Crossing, inquiring the business of any travellers that wish to pass into the heart of Evendim. If the day is particularly slow, she may talk to the others and try and tend to the bridge, although she is no stoneworker or architect. 

Although, she has long pled to the dúnedain that maintaining Annúminas is of utmost importance, the dúnedian are simply too few and too far spread to tend to a city the size of Annúminas. If present within the white-city, when not reminiscing about the past, Lothrin will help the sentries stationed there to maintain a road throughout the city, free of rubble. If otherwise unoccupied, she will scout the various half-flooded buildings for any objects of importance. If at Sarn Ford, she will act as a sentry and report to the on-field commander. Though her visits to Esteldin are rare, she will more often than not come for administrative business or high-councils, thus partake less in the day-by-day chores.

One of the big advantages elves possess is that they live for thousands of years. The lifespan of Lothrin, as of the War of the Ring is equal to that of fifty to a hundred human lives. In modern terms, in takes one human one lifetime to become an absolute expert in whatever domain they choose, can you imagine what we could do with fifty lifetimes? Lothrin, as an elf, had millennia of time to hone her skills, and thus can lend a hand to whatever needs doing.

She will do anything that needs doing from more household oriented activities like sewing, cooking, baking, soap-making, wine and beer-making, house repairs, cloth beating/washing, childcare, makeshift barbering, to more scholarly pursuits like candle making, writing, chronicling, teaching, book-binding, sending messages, to more administrative pursuits like tax-keeping, act as a clerk, act as a judge, act as a baliff, hold council, to more agricultural pursuits like bee-keeping, cattle-raising, farm-management, hunting, animal-skinning, bird-plucking, to more military pursuits like commanding guerrilla troops, maintaining armour and military strategy. Though it is worth mentioning that just because she can do something, it does not mean she can do it as well as someone whose job is only that specific thing like a full-time farmer or woodworker.

I hope you enjoyed reading this and that this small essay shed some light on my character.

[persephonaae]

I know you probably get a lot of messages but I wanted to say I adore your cosplay!! You do a truly beautiful job and you yourself are stunning. ⭐️✨💗🌸 I was wondering if you could give any advice for new cosplayers? 👉🏼👈🏼

Aaa thank you so much!!! (>^ω^<)

I’d love to give some advice! I really love when people ask about cosplay, I love being able to help where I can!

Let’s see what I have off the top of my head.... Okie dokes

So I think the biggest thing is have fun! Don’t be too concerned with being “perfect” on the first try! Cosplay is first and foremost a fun hobby! I think it’s also really important to choose characters who have meaning to you; like most of the characters I cosplay have personalities who I feel really resonate with my own. But that’s not to say that’s how you should always pick a costume! Sometimes I just really like the design of a character and that’s it!

I think with cosplay, there’s this whole unspoken thing about “perfection” especially since it’s gained a lot of popularity. It’s really easy to get discouraged when you see post after post of people with painstakingly crafted armor, intricate wigs, professional makeup, fancy sewing skills, etc..... But it’s also really important to remember that these people have probably been doing it for a while! I myself have a lot of skills I can improve upon, but I do consider myself pretty skilled in cosplay, and for a good reason too: I’ve been doing this for about ten years now! My best work is going to look different than the best work of someone just starting out, or the best work of someone who’s been doing this for even longer than I have. It’s all about trial and error, you don’t learn skills in just one night!

That being said, “canon perfection” doesn’t have to be the top priority someone strives for! Like I said before, cosplay is about fun! You don’t need the most expensive wigs, or fancy makeup, and what have you. Sometimes it’s just nice to pull something out of your closet and just throw something together with what you have! (“Canon perfection” also can discourage a lot of other things in cosplay that really shouldn’t be discouraged. It shouldn’t matter your technical skills, your body type, your skin tone, whether or not you’re able bodied, etc... cosplay is about expressing your creativity!)

I’d also like to say, never feel bad about buying a ready made cosplay! Especially if there’s a costume you’d like that you don’t feel up to making yourself! It’s totally valid to buy cosplays!

I think I made most of my “conceptual” side of things points? Now I’m gonna drop a few helpful things when looking for cosplay materials and the likes:

Don’t have too much money? Big name fabric stores can be nice, but sometimes they can put a dent in your pocket! I always try to find things I can modify at thrift stores! Much nicer on your wallet!

Likewise, a lot of drugstore makeup works just as well as designer brands! Don’t be fooled by a high price!

If you’re looking for special effects makeup and/or facepaint, there’s many routes you can take! You can find snazzaroo face paint at just about any Michael’s or party store, and it works pretty well for the low price! If you’re looking for something in the $15 range, Mehron has really nice cream blend face paints, they go on your face really smoothly! This next one, I’ve never tried, but I hear good things about them! Ben Nye sells both face paints and special effects makeup, though I’m not entirely sure how their prices compare since I’ve never used them! Last but not least, I really love the makeup brand Kryolan. They also have special effects and face paints. They can definitely be on the pricier side, but if you have a little extra money one day and want to play around with some professional grade makeup, I’d say give them a try!

You can find loads of cheap wigs on eBay, and there are lots of great tutorials on YouTube on how to fix them up and make them look amazing, since they are often not the most high quality wigs. (Though sometimes you can find hidden gems!) If you don’t feel too keen on having to fix a wig and think you can splurge a little more on wigs, my favorite wig supplier is Arda Wigs. In my opinion, their wig quality just can’t be beat, and they are great to play around with learning how to style wigs!

Speaking of tutorials, look them up! YouTube has so many resources, from makeup tutorials, to wig styling guides, to sewing help, you name it!

I think that just wraps up what I wanted to say! Sorry it was a bit of an essay, hope it wasn’t too hard to read! But yea, I really do love when people come to me with questions about cosplay! It’s my favorite hobby, and I love being able to share any of my knowledge of it with others! Anyone is absolutely welcome to come to me with questions any time about tips and tricks, even questions about specific costumes I’ve done! Happy crafting! ✨🤗✨

[cam-the-orange-cat]

A Master-Guide for Overcoming Writer’s Block

Writer’s block is the woe that befalls every writer at some point. To overcome writer’s block, however, you must identify the source of the blockage. This guide will go over common reasons writers find themselves stuck and will offer some simple suggestions that can help. Although suggestions are catered to each problem, don’t hesitate to mix-and-match possible solutions; everyone is different.

The Common Blocks We’ll be Overviewing:

Problem vs. Solution

Fear & Doubt

Perfectionism

Boredom

You Have No Ideas

You're Easily Distracted

Procrastination

Problem vs. Solution

You’ve crafted an incredible conflict, a far-reaching problem that your protagonist must solve. Then you realize: you must solve it. Or you’re making progress in your first or second draft when you discover a plot hole. It’s not something easy you can cover over with a rug, it’s something you wonder you didn’t see sooner and are now overwhelmed with how to fix it and still preserve your progress. You have “painted yourself into a corner” and now you have to paint yourself out.

How do you overcome this block? 

Take a shower.

Take a nap

Go for a walk.

Or  — as Margaret Atwood recommends  — iron some clothes. 

Repetitive, mindless activites seem to work best for stimulating the mind. Most writers can testify that taking a shower is a magnet for interesting ideas. The more mindless, the better. 

Exercise gets new chemicals flowing through your brain; showering stimulates new senses; ironing is a hands-on-activity with a bit of danger involved — these are palate cleansers for your mind.

Sometimes this sort of block requires doing additional research for your story. 

Maybe there’s something in mankind’s military history that can help you solve how your protagonist’s army is to cross the uncrossable river. Maybe there’s a modern-day cure that would work against the disease you made up, and it has humble origins your protagonist can discover. Maybe your protagonist will lose this battle, but go on to win the war in a way you hadn’t considered before.

Fear & Doubt

The blank page mocks you. And the mockery hits a little too close to home. You’re afraid of criticism, you’re afraid of not doing the story justice, you’re afraid you’re not actually a good writer at all  — you’re afraid you’re a fraud.

The sucky part is, some of that is true. First drafts do tend to suck. There will be people who don’t like what you write. But what is absolutely, definitively not true is that you’re a fraud.

You’re a writer. 

You are a writer.

Say the words aloud. Say them again. Say them louder. 

You are a writer.

Now, how do you overcome this block?

Free write

Write stream of consciuosness

Brainstorm ideas in bullet points

Work on a writing-prompt for five minutes

Try your hand at a whole new genre or category

Whatever you do, write. Practice makes perfect, and practice is also the best way to conquer Fear and Doubt. Refuse to give Fear and Doubt power and soon Fear and Doubt will stop pestering you. 

Interestingly, the antidote for Fear and Doubt are similar to the antidotes for Perfectionism, writing’s most infamous villain. The next subheading, however, will go over this particular monster in more detail.

Perfectionism

You’ve been crippled by your own standards. Your story just doesn’t make sense. Your characters don’t feel right. Your writing sounds atrocious.

At least, that’s what you keep telling yourself.

Perfectionism is a choice. We choose to criticize ourselves until we’re beaten to a bloody pulp and have no will left to go on. We run ourselves through the consequences of this headspace and, despite how painfully frustrating it is, we don’t let ourselves escape.

Fear and Doubt grow from perceiving unrealistic expectations of perfection from others and being afraid of not measuring up to that standard. Whereas Perfectionism is not a fear of external criticism, but is a person imposing an unrealistic desire to be perfect unto themself. This is why Perfectionism is a cycle that cannot be broken by friends and family reassurances that you are, in fact, a great writer. You, and you alone, are holding yourself back.

In order to break free from Perfectionsim, you must accept that your writing will never be perfect. Let go of the ideal of perfection. There is no such thing as the perfect story. Writers are imperfect people as is everyone else — even the holy god of fantasy Tolkien was human. And because we are imperfect, so too is our writing.

Acceptance is not begrudging. Acceptance is contentment with the present. 

So, how do you find contentment in imperfection?

Read bad books. Make fun of them, laugh at them — enjoy them. See how beloved these awfully written books are and embrace the idea that you don’t have to be perfect. You, as you are, are more than enough.

Write badly. Do it purposefully. Research overused cliches and tropes and then write them as awfully as you can. 

Then, share how bad it is. Laugh with your friends and family over it. 

Most of all: don’t compare yourself with others. Admiring and learning from other creators and their work is healthy. Comparing yourself with them is never healthy. 

Now that you’ve faced your fear of imperfection and realized how fun it can be, writing won’t seem so daunting. Free flowing creativity relies on realistic expectations.

Boredom

You are no longer excited about writing. You’ve been working on this story for too long. You’ve been dragging yourself through it. You don’t want to give up, but this is becoming a chore. Or you love this story dearly, however writing in general has become a chore. You’re just plain bored, but that’s something you don’t want to admit because losing your passion for writing feels like your first death.

First: it’s entirely possible you have moved on from writing. That is not a bad thing. Far from it, in fact! If you’re bored, your feelings are telling you this isn’t the right fit for you right now — so try new things! Maybe, after a while, you’ll get that zeal for the written word back. Maybe not.

Don’t become discouraged, though; your time as a writer is not invalidated just because you’re not writing currently. You were a lovely writer. You have written much. Don’t be hard on yourself, but give yourself a pat on the back. You have enjoyed a very turbulent and difficult hobby for likely many years! That is something to smile fondly upon.

If, however, the above sentiments don’t settle in your stomach very well:

What can help you overcome this unending boredom?

Hands-on activities are good at jumpstarting the creative battery:

Play — play a board game with friends, play an RPG video game, build a lego house, mold with Play-Dough.

Apply your creativity to a different outlet — follow a Bob Ross tutorial, cook a new recipe or decorate a cake, crochet a scarf.

Change is a good stimulus for your mind:

Change your environment. Try going to the park and writing. Go to the library. Go to a room on the other side of your house.

Change your medium. If you often write on your computer, try handwriting; pick out a nice notebook and use a smooth-flowing pen. If you often handwrite, try typing; explore different word processesors, like Microsoft Word or Google Docs.

Listen to music or a podcast as you write. Or: if you often listen to classical, try rock. If you often listen to a podcast about true crime, try a comedy channel. Or listen to absolute silence.

You Have No Ideas

This is the essence of the blank page fear. It’s not self-bout, it’s not perfectionism, it’s not a plot hole you’re trying to fill. You simply have nothing to write. You are uninspired.

How to overcome this blockage:

Read good books. You could even study literature: follow along with Shmoop as you read Solaris; Sparknotes as you read Hamlet; or Cliffnotes as you read The Life of Pi.

Research writing: there are many books, websites, blogs, and services that offer advice and tips on writing. Whether you can afford the hefty $180/year subscription to MasterClass, or you’d prefer borrowing a book from your local library, learning something new about your craft could get your brain back to storming.

As a writer, it is your first and primary responsibility to live your life. Creating your own experiences is the best thing you can do for your writing. You write what you know — so try new things!

Spend time with friends: chat over the phone, play Jack-Box over zoom, or (when circumstances safely allow) get coffee at an obscure coffee shop.

Play with your pet; brush your dog’s teeth, or try giving your cat a bath (it will at least be entertaining for those around watching you).

Pick up a new hobby: painting, drawing, cooking, sewing, running, biking, hiking, gardening, dancing, guitar or piano, darts, soap-making, scrapbooking; here’s a list you can browse through.

Introduce yourself to a stranger (not online) — make friends with the person ahead of you in the grocery store line. Characters come from someplace real, so meet more people!

You’re Easily Distracted

It feels like there’s a toddler in your head, and the little devil is hell-bent on driving you absolutely mad. What’s that song on the radio? Let me look up the lyrics and follow along with them for an hour on loop. What’s a synonym for epitome? What’s a synonym for essence? — Extract is a movie? Let’s watch it.  

I personally feel for writers who struggle with this block. We hear time and time again: just limit your distractions! Or try this new web-browser or add-on!

But I don’t have the money to spend on a weird looking typewriter or a monthly subscription for a browser add-on. And far from it will either of those options save me from the toddler in my own mind! The typewriter doesn’t stop me from feeling like eating some ice cream. The browser add-on doesn’t keep me from scrolling through Instagram on my phone.

I have Good News, though: We’re not a hopeless case.

And no, this isn’t a self-discipline issue. As someone who grew up with an impulse-monkey of their very own running rampant inside their head, I’m still an industrious and ethical worker. 

So what’s the secret to overcoming this block?

Self-compassion. 

Instead of shaming and punishing yourself for falling down the YouTube rabbit-hole, take into consideration the toddler when you first approach a task. 

If the toddler often gets sidetracked by music with lyrics, try listening to classical music. There will be no chance then of wanting to sing along with the lyrics, and the toddler will be satisfied while you get some work done.

If the toddler often gets peckish, prepare some healthy snacks (like fruit salad, yogurt with granola, pretzels and peanut butter) ahead of time, get a large thermos of cold water, and the toddler will munch away happily while you work on your magnum opus. 

Set up a dedicated space for writing:

Maybe you don’t have a spare room — or even a desk. But you do have a soft lap pillow and a comfy chair you can move to a quiet corner. Drag your writing supplies over and dedicate this as your safe space for writing. Only write here. Don’t eat breakfast here, don’t do homework here, don’t chat with friends here. 

This may seem straightforward, but teaching the toddler is another story. To start, then, use this dedicated space only for a few minutes at a time. Spend fifteen focused minutes on a project while you sit here, then take a break. Overtime, you’ll find you can focus for longer and longer intervals in your writing space.

Procrastination

The Final Boss. The End-All Villain. Procrastination often doesn’t appear on its own. It’s inspired by something. Maybe it’s something we’ve already covered in this guide. The first thing you must do, therefore, is identify the source of your procrastination. Which may vary from project to project.

Once you identify what it is that’s deterring you from action, remember that you hold the power to break through this cycle. So when you put a plan into action, stick to it.

What are some ways you can beat procrastination?

“I’m overwhelmed by this big project.”

Prepare short-term goals: Long-term goals just about beg to be procrastinated. They’re far away and easily forgetable. Short-term goals, however, offer an opportunity to check something off a list. And boy — is that satisfying to do!

Make a list of what you’d like to get done. Prepare achievable goals; SMART goals are goals that are Specific, Measureable, Attainable, Relevant, and are set within a Time-frame. So, for instance, if you have a book you’d like to write, make it a goal to write five hundred words during the next hour.

“There is only one way to eat an elephant: one bite at a time” — Desmond Tutu

“This is boring.”

This kind of boredom which inspires procrastination is not necessarily the same as creative boredom. This kind of boredom exists because you do not feel challenged in your writing. Whereas the boredom we previously discussed is caused because you are not excited about your writing. So how do you challenge yourself? — Some previous suggestions can be applied:

Try your hand at a whole new genre. Do you write a lot of Fantasy? Try Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy, or go as far out of your comfort zone as you can, like Contemporary Romance. Or have you ever written NonFiction? Jog your mind with a memior prompt or an essay topic — just make sure it interests you!

Research writing: there are many books, websites, blogs, and services that offer advice and tips on writing. On Tumblr alone, some include: @writingwithcolor, @referenceforwriters, @ wordstuck.co.vu, @writing-problems​, @thewritershelpers​, @youreallwrite​, and @fuckyeahcharacterdevelopment​

Try throwing a monkey wrench into your story! You can try picking a random prompt to try and incorporate into a scene. You can kill a character. Add some spice into your writing to renew your writing zest!

If all else fails: archive this project. Don’t delete it — never delete what you write; put this project aside for now. Step away from it. You may be too close to it to see what about it isn’t working, or what about it is making it unattractive to you. Give it some time. When you feel ready to return to this project, it will be waiting for you. In the meantime, enjoy creating a new story.

[ginnyzero]

Writing Romantic Chemistry: Pt 2

For a very long time in my pre-original writing career, I considered myself a romantic comedy style writer. The idea that I could write adventure stories with romantic comedy elements in them wasn’t an epiphany of sorts but rather something that gradually happened over time and by rejecting the notion that all urban fantasy or dystopia or science fantasy had to be mysteries and solving crime. I don’t really know how to write they solve crime.

I came at writing through an aspect of trial and error and lots and lots of reading other fiction works. I played with other people’s characters for years and had to work out of a really dark place before settling on creating original characters that I loved as much, if not more, than other people’s characters. All those years writing other people’s characters though gave me a good foundation on which to build my original writing. I had a fairly decent following in some very specific places so, I must have been doing something right. (I hope.)

So, here are some of the things I do when I’m writing romantic chemistry.

Attraction:

Both characters need to find the other character attractive! I mentioned in my post last week about Writing Romantic Chemistry that there are many types of attraction and that physical attraction is usually the first thing we notice about each other. (Unless you’re me and I go, oh, that person would make a good werewolf.) Short, tall, skinny, curvy, flat as a board, round, sharp, blue eyes, brown eyes, brunette, blonde, red head, no matter what your two characters are, the other person should hopefully find them attractive one way or the other.

Many times in my stories I try to find a feature that each character likes about the other, a feature that may set them apart from the 101 other generic romantic lead characters out there, freckles, the odd shape of the eyes, a distinctive hair color, the way the other character smells (very important in werewolf stories), in order to give the reader a point of reference and a way to say ‘this character is unique.’

Acknowledgement that the Other Character Exists:

Now, attraction is all well and good and I know there are readers who love the whole unrequited love angst trope. When I’m writing a couple though, each character has to know that the other character exists in the same sphere with them as a man or a woman to be desired and loved. If one character doesn’t acknowledge the other is there and available then the whole relationship is never going to get off the ground.

In fact, that can be a good conflict. One character loves the other. The other sees them as friend, acquaintance, nuisance, surrogate sibling, insert relationship of choice here. One is physically and sexually and romantically attracted to the other and the other is completely oblivious. It may take work and effort before the one who is oblivious can ‘see’ what is right in front of them. Yay conflict! Yay story! After that you can add some denial and bargaining and unresolved sexual tension. Lots of fun.

Opposites Attract:

In some fashion, characters need to be opposites of each other. Usually I go for either habits or personality traits. Neat freak versus mess. Laid back versus perfectionist. Wing it versus plans and lists. Because as people and readers we like opposites, tall versus short, light versus dark, hard versus soft. Compositionally, something has to be big and something has to be small to make a painting or sculpture or drawing feel dynamic. It’s the same way with fictional relationships. There has to be a contrast in their present or pasts to create a foil or compliment for each other.

Commonality:

Of course, like yin and yang, each having a little of the other inside themselves, the two must have something in common. Something that will keep them together after the external conflict is done. Something more than good sex and kids. (You can’t base your relationship around your kids. It’s not healthy.) Whether it’s a shared love of a certain style of music, sailing, horseback riding, hiking or extreme base jumping. There has to be something that our two main characters do together that keeps them together in the long run.

Sure, they should also have separate interests. Maybe she likes sports and he likes reading or he plays in a band and she knits/sews/makes lace. There needs to be a hobby or a love of ren faires or medieval culture or art shows or beach bathing that they do together in order to strengthen their bond outside of cuddling and sex. (I find cuddling to be very important.)

Respect:

Lastly, the characters need to respect each other for who they are, their strengths and weaknesses, and their boundaries. Part of respect is honesty and communication and acknowledgement that you cannot change another person. Unless they want to change, who they are now is who they always will be. I don’t try to feed into this fantasy that a man or woman and really good sex can save another person.

It doesn’t work. Period.

Yes. There are people who like to write unhealthy relationships. I get it. That’s fine. And a lack of respect or boundaries and learning about them and how to communicate can make for a really great conflict in a story. Another person realizing that they are wrong and are willing to change in order to be a better person not only for themselves but for their partner or their kids is a very powerful thing. But personally, for me, to feel that there is true romantic chemistry and that a happy ever after is in the offing, there has to be mutual respect.

Humor:

As I said. I originally felt like I was a romantic comedy writer. I want laughs. I want things to be funny or silly. I like putting characters into outrageous situations and seeing what they’ll do. Love can’t thrive without a little laughter, without people not taking themselves too seriously. (I mean I can be a very serious person, but I don’t take myself too seriously.)

Human can be in the situations the characters are placed in or the way they interact with each other. To me putting a six foot ex-military laid back male soldier werewolf with a five foot two over planner with lists female motorcycle club VP werewolf is funny. He’s clueless about the motorcycle life. She’s been in it her whole life and forgets to explain! Thus, silly things happen. And Gideon is fortunately laid back enough he takes things well. She picks on him about his lollipops. He picks on her about her lists. She's simply not used to being teased. They get along.

To be clear, I’m not a fan of the Bridesmaids type of humor where people are trying to one up each other and the writers are trying to get you to laugh at a character’s pain. That type of humor just makes me cringe and feel embarrassed and humiliated for the character. My type of humor is more along the lines of Mr. & Mrs. Smith. “Man, these sliding doors really do come in handy.” Good humor is like a good prank. It doesn’t hurt anyone. It’s easy to clean up. Everybody laughs.

Attraction, Acknowledgement, Opposites, Commonality, Respect and Humor, these are the elements that I use when I write a romantic couple to create a spark between them.

[ferdinandshair]

I would like a match up if that is alright. I am a 22 year old bi woman. I am a Bioinformatics (bio + comp sci) student who focuses on viruses. In my spare time I like to draw, read, play games, and sew. My favorite genres are horror and fantasy. In friend groups, I tend to end up being the "mom friend" making sure everyone is okay. I am also a part of a historical recreation group where I am currently learning how to sword fight. Hopefully that is enough. Thank you for your time.

I, Ferdinand von Aegir, match you with...

Seteth

As if Mom friend and Dad friend separately wasn't good enough, combined you are the parent friends

Everyone knows that they can turn to you guys if they ever need any advice

And if one of you can't help, the other somehow miraculously can

You both have had multiple friends call you Mom/Dad at some point and at this point you don't think it's on accident anymore

Seeing you care for your friends and watching you check up on them never ceases to make him absentmindedly smile

He's taken aback when you inform him about your historical recreation group and how you are learning how to wield a sword, but he absolutely loves the idea (as long as you don't get hurt)

Although, it may take some time Seteth will try and learn the basics of your hobby

Seteth absolutely adores your intelligence

The more you ramble about bioinformatics and what you are currently learning, the more he falls in love with you

It's rare that Seteth has someone explain something to him, but he loves every second of it

If you sew him anything, he will keep it forever and cherish it

Scratch that, if you create anything for him (whether written, drawn, or sewn) he will cherish it with his whole heart

His room is littered with everything you've made him

Watching horror movies with Seteth can be… Interesting

He always confident that the movie the two of you picked won't scare him, and for the most part he's right and you two can enjoy the movie in peace

But if the movie involves a father/daughter duo or any character that resembles yourself, he's beside himself

He will walk out of the room to call Flayn and make sure she's okay

"Are you absolutely sure you're okay, Flayn? Is your door locked? How about your window? Do you hear any strange sounds? Anything? Any nightmares?"

And with horror movies involving a character that resembles you, he is constantly holding your hand, his grip tight, and he will be looking back and forth between the movie and you

💫Admin Ferdie💫