#will make a proper post once i finish just wanna share the sketch before we go to dinner lol

[ao3dorian-gay]

in celebration of me passing the bar (!)...

made a lil sketch of an awkward elevator ride between a paralegal and opposing counsel on his case on the way to a mediation...will sparks fly, creating a potential ethical conflict??

[comicteaparty]

June 13th-June 19th, 2020 Creator Babble Archive

The archive for the Creator Babble chat that occurred from June 13th, 2020 to June 19th, 2020.  The chat focused on the following question:

What is your physical and digital workspace like when you’re working on your story?

🌈ERROR404 🌈

LOL it really depends on what stage I'm in of the process - My storyboarding space is at home, as comfortable as I can be, a beer and some food at the ready and pure silence. The cats have to be freshly fed, otherwise I'll be harassed and lose my headspace entirely LOL. I usually work on my story boards digitally, just at a very small scale, with my script/outline on my computer and working on my ipad! The double screen helps a LOT, although i would just print out the script if I had access to a printer, haha. When I'm working on the actual page itself, it's a very different story. I usually just try and work on it in tiny little batches during the day when I'm stuck at home, and usually work around the animals as best i can, lmao. Truthfully, I really prefer to be in a coffee shop when I'm working on finishing pages, it makes me so much more productive than i am in this house with so many things to take care of right in front of me, but, obviously, that's a bit difficult to do these days. ;; I usually reserve food and drink until after I pass a milestone in inking/sketching to help motivate me to keep going for as much as I can before taking a break, and I need some kind of music or video playing in the background to keep myself from being absolutely bored out of my mind. My shading process, since it's in black and white, is very easy and i can finish it in one setting, easy, no matter what I'm working with. I also work digitally for my pages, of course, although I don't need more than my ipad and clip studio for it!

DaeofthePast

freshly fed cats

🌈ERROR404 🌈

They are BEASTS when hungry, the little bastards (love them)

I may only work in peace when they're post-food napping lmao

DaeofthePast

we only have one, but same

LadyLazuli (Phantomarine)

I work almost entirely in the corner of my IKEA couch at home I used to work at a proper desk with a Cintiq, but when I switched to Procreate on an iPad, I migrated to the couch and surrounded myself with a nest of clothes and blankets and books and... here I am, bein' cozy. With terrible posture But when I was between jobs last year, I did rent a little coworking space down the street so I could get out of my pajamas and go get comic stuff done there. It was a godsend. I like drawing at my favorite coffee shop every so often too, but I tend to hide my work while I draw, and there, everyone can look over my shoulder The coworking space had a tall artist desk that was rarely used, so I often grabbed that one. Not cheap, but to stave off cabin fever, heck yes, worth it.

🌈ERROR404 🌈

Ahhh I've been really thinking about getting a studio space one of these days I really shouldn't rn, with my finances as they are, but I could REALLY make use of one recently

LadyLazuli (Phantomarine)

I loved the space I used last year. They recently had to close for... current-event reasons... and are going to reopen with all sorts of plexiglass barriers between the desks I feel so bad for them. Good studio spaces are wonderful, I would support them again if I ever was out of a job!

🌈ERROR404 🌈

it's good they've found ways to make it safer, though!

carcarchu

My old workspace was in the basement of my home in canada and it was always perpetually freezing even in the summer and i was frequently visited by spiders so my current workspace is a huge improvement in that regard. I do miss my old ergonomic desk chair though. I'm definitely not the kind of person who can draw in bed or on the couch. I need to be in workmode and having a designated space just for that is necessary for me to get in the right headspace for that.

DaeofthePast

my workspace rn is just my desk with my laptop and my drawing tablet. my laptop is stacked on top of a pile of books so i can see the screen (otherwise my tablet blocks my line of sight). it's kinda simple

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

Depends. I have a Cintiq Mobile Studio, so I can draw pretty much every where and sometimes in the oddest position, but most of the time I am on my desk with the cintiq hooked up to a second monitor so I don't have to look down so much.(edited)

Holmeaa - working on WAYFINDERS

For Wayfinders: Thumbnails are somewhere cozy and the only physical work. Me and Q sit and plan them out together. The rest of wayfinders are made on Photoshop, and flat colors in clip paint studio. In the world I would love a nice studio place in an office with others. During corentine I have been working from home, and I am not that good at it, being quite the extrovert. Before corentine I was in a artist residency where I worked on Wayfinders which had a workstation and all the programs we could need. It is so nice and me and Q are going to return there when it opens up again!

Miranda

I have an iPad so usually on the couch, cozied up with coffee and pillows and blankets. But sometimes at the table. But usually on the couch like the gremlin I am

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

I have a large drafting table, a mini drafting table, and a lapdesk in my papasan when we ink/draw! Toning and letters are all done on the desktop in its own space

Miranda

I need to get a good lap desk. But that sounds like a grand setup!

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

My first time hearing about a lapdesk

Omg I need one

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

They are the best things ever Mine has just the pencil holder !(some come with cup holders and its a waste of space imo)

Joichi [Hybrid Dolls]

Wow I like your setup of the drafting tables

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

I wanna show pics of them....if im allowed in this chat?

Joichi [Hybrid Dolls]

I hope so, I'm not sure which channel we can post studio photos at? I did see some did before?

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

Ill post in shop talk since creator babble gets archived

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

my current space is uh.... a bit better than my last one. I used to work on an old writers desk for a decade and I did most of my comic work sitting there cramped up with my desktop taking most of the space. Now I have an L shaped desk where I have my desktop on the shorter end. The longer end it's my pen, pencils, and watercolor stuff. my display tablet occupy the space at times so switching from digital and traditional without worrying about setup hassle is a lot better than what I dealt with before lol.

I'm glad the days I had to curl up and draw with no privacy are long gone now

kayotics

I’ve got a little drafting table where I draw all my comic pages. I’m messy with my pens so they’re kind of strewn about until I start to lose them. Then I put them back. I’m not particularly neat. I spend most of the comic process off the computer, so most of my digital work is just on an iPad where I can sit anywhere. I try to keep good lighting around my drafting table and there’s always loose eraser shavings all over.

Natasha Berlin (Pot of Gold)

I got myself a lil corner desk by the dining table. Not as well-lit as I'd like, but it's decently ergonomic and I started putting posters on my wall Plus I can leave work mindset easily by turning off my computer and forgetting about the dark corner in the dining room XD(edited)

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

My desk is really sloppy and covered in all kinds of junk. I have a harmonica, a ball of yarn, a bunch of ink bottles, etc on my desk. I have my sketchbook under my tablet and usually a notebook somewhere for writing. My tablet sits to the right of my laptop (on top of sketchbook) while I'm not using it and when I'm using it it goes over my computer keyboard. I sometimes have a glass of water or some food sitting to the lefthand side

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

The only thing I wanna share about my workspace is this

once i spent over three hours looking for that damned pen

never again

🌈ERROR404 🌈

Ajkdhfkjs the models for hte magazine im crying

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

Oh my God

shadowhood (SunnyxRain)

mad giggling

Deo101 [Millennium]

youre gonna manage to lose the string

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

omg

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

i know in my heart deo is right but still i hope

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

You should weld a metal chain to it

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

Watch me lose the whole tablet

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

Oh nooo

I believe in you!

TaliePlume

My workspace is a black table with a white, yellow, blue and green tablecloth with 3 black chairs. It's next to the kitchen. On it, is my laptop and the left side is my clipboard, 3 blue folders full of writing. Then above it, is 3 sketchbooks and another blue folder from a class that I took in community college.

June 16, 2020

sagaholmgaard

I have one long desk at almost three meters. On the left side is all my coffee and tea supplies, in the middle is my work space and on the right is my dining table xD I get everything done from there, despite having a mobilestudio so I COULD sit anywhere and work, lol. It's a blessing during holiday seasons to be able to bring it everywhere, but at some I like my designated working space. Although I am moving in a few weeks, so who knows what my new workspace will be

Moral_Gutpunch

My workspace is anywhere I can draw or write. It's more of a "Will I be interrupted over something petty or stupid" issue than space. Not that I don't want more space.

Mitzi (Trophallaxis)

My workspace is a big, broken corner desk I managed to lug out of an old apartment when it was gonna be trashed. Before then, I'd just draw in bed. I don't remember, but I'm pretty sure the folding chair I sit at is a similar affair. It's got a Dollar General throw pillow on it so I can at least say I'm trying to save my back. The top of the desk is a mess of mostly old bottles and cans, pencils, incense ash, and my old tarot deck. I love this setup dearly. This is the first time I've ever had my own desk space, much less a space I can decorate or leave as messy as I want. Got my own art up on the walls with sticky tack and all! Also the cat's scratching post is directly behind me, because we've learned the cat won't use it unless it's as in the way as possible. What can ya do, lol.

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

Oh cats...

Desnik

I got spoiled with an adjustable desk. It is six feet long, and has a whiteboard top for noodling with dry erase markers

my main computer is set up on an adjustable stand so it floats over the desk, and then I have my cintiq, which we tried to mount on a similar stand but then it was just too heavy

I keep my dice collection nearby because fidgeting helps think things through sometimes

and rolling to make odd decisions never hurts

lately during the quarantine I've been sharing the office with my spouse so we've had to establish rules over when it's okay to bug each other(edited)

oh yeah and we also have a whiteboard installed in the office, and it rules!(edited)

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

Mine is pretty simple: I have a laptop that's long stopped being portable and is now mostly just sitting at my desk at all times and a 19 inch Ugee as my display. I usually keep a lot of stuff on top of my desk, but it's mostly just a mess because I have been using it for work too for a while now

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

I suppose I'll talk about my setup too :) My main setup is where I do digital art. I share an office with my SO, so we both have workspaces on opposite walls from each other. I work on a corner desk that holds my beefy computer, two monitors, and a Huion Kamvas GT-191. That's where I draw my comic and pretty much everything else done digitally. Ngl, it's a mess right now. I have comic notes and location floor plans in sketchbooks and DnD character sheets spread out all over the surface, and random pens and sticky notes. In the corner of the room, we have a nice large-format printer where I produce prints for conventions. I actually sketch my pages on an iPad pro in Procreate, so during the sketch phase, sometimes I'll just bundle up on my couch and do it, or before quarantine, sometimes I'd sketch on the go. My other workspace (which hasn't gotten much love as of late tbh) is a drafting table in the corner of our living room. I keep a tabletop easel on it and my Copic markers, as well as whatever I'm working on at the moment. (RN it's some ink washes.) The drawers hold all my ink, pencils, erasers, etc. Next to the drafting table is where I keep all my large charcoal, graphite, and oil pastel drawings (mostly school projects), and my large paintings. Other than that, I have a nifty little cart where I keep painting supplies :) I will say, this setup is by far an enormous improvement from my previous setups.

[franeridart]

Hi! Idk if you read fanfic, but would you happen to have any kiribaku fic recs? Or any bnha fic rec?

I’m pretty sure there’s stuff tagged as fic recs on this blog, yes! Nothing particularly new tho, I haven’t had the time to put down a new rec-list in a while ;-;

Anon said:How long does it take you to finish a drawing with and without color?

That honestly depends on a lot of factors - which tools I’m using, how many characters there are in the drawing/if it’s full body or not, how used to drawing the character I am, how big is the canvas, if I already have a clear idea of what I mean to draw or not, how precise I want to be with lines and stuff. 

That Yuuto sketch I posted yesterday took me about 40 minutes I think, and over half of it was spent trying to figure out how I was supposed to draw him since it was the first time I drew him - the tools I used are the ones I use when I want to be fast and don’t care about being sloppy. A small random Kirishima bust properly lined and colored could take me five minutes to sketch and line and as many to color on a good day, cause I’ve drawn him so many times by now I don’t even have to think to draw him. Deku, on the other hand, can take me an hour even just to sketch, I can’t seem to grasp how I’m supposed to draw him at all.

Sorry, it really depends on a lot of things, I can’t give a proper answer to this :(

Anon said:Ive been tryin to find ur art of sero carrying baku for like 20 minutes n i cant find it :(

Are you talking about this one? Or this one? There’s also this one I guess...? And maybe this one lol 

Anon said:yoooo, hey man, that cat kiribaku thing ya got going on is some 👌👌👌👌👌

HECK THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!

Anon said:Has anyone ever considered Hadmie. Hadou x Camie before?? It just seems like it'd be a cute ship to sail with, tbh. That just might be me tho.

I dunno if anyone has before you, but I can’t say I have, sorry! If I gotta ship Nejire with someone after all it’s gonna be Yuyu haha

Anon said:Hey do you do commissions? I really love your art and I'd love to get a commission from you!! (and also I just wanna know if there's yet another thing that I have to save up for XD)

Not right now, sorry! Maybe after I’m done with the zine things!!

Anon said:*runs around like an excited puppy* DAVEDAVEDAVEDAVEDAVEDAVEDAVE!!!!!!! :D

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D

Anon said:AHHH i love your ocs so much also Nico looks so cute and i love learning new things about them

AAAHHHHH THANK YOU SO MUCH OH MY G O D!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anon said:KIRI + PINEAPPLE PONYTAIL = THE BEST THING EVER

I’M GLAD WE AGREE ON THAT

Anon said:your oc's literally kill me!! i already love nico, and i think i speak for everyone when i say that we definitely want more of him and luca!! i don't know if it's just me, but I love when the angry, swearing types fall for someone.

SOB thank you so so much for the kind words about my kids ;^;

Anon said:OH MY GOD LUCA IS BACK!!!! YESSSSSSSS FUCKING KILL ME THIS IS A BLESSED DAY I LOVE HIM SO MUCH. MORE OF YOUR OC'S!!! (only when you want to share of course, I'm just trying to convey my enthusiasm here. not demanding at all ^^)

I think that might happen soon enough, actually!!!! Thank you so much for the interest in them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anon said:Are josh and chris still not dating?

Sadly until I’ll sit down to write their story that specific part of it won’t go anywhere :( Chris gotta deal with a bunch of things before he’ll be ready to put a name to what’s between him and Josh 3 one day I’ll let him work through it !!!

Anon said:I'm so paranoid I'm going to repost one of your post by accident but the thing is is I never even repost anything at all but just because I know you don't want them to be I'm so scared that by accident I'm going to have something screenshotted and forget it's yours and like Ugh😂

Well, my name’s written on all my drawing so I doubt you’ll forget it’s my stuff lol to make sure you’re not reposting anything the author doesn’t want reposted you can always just ask before reposting it, tho~

Anon said:I was just scrolling through your OC stuff and I just. Love them so much. Thank you for the babies ❤

GOD THANK YOU ;O;

Anon said:Okay I've never seen your oc's before and Dave is the cutest green boy I love him

AAAAHHHHHH I’M GLAD!!!!!

Anon said:kamijirou getting together? :3 also if there were ever a scenario where jirou would confess first, what do you think she would be thinking?

I actually have half a thing planned for that :0 gimme a while to get around to drawing it!

Anon said:How do you feel imagine kiri’s parents???

Actually since I’m still hoping one day Hori will give us the official versions I try not to think too much about it! I don’t wanna grow attached just to have to give them up once I’ll have the canon versions haha

Anon said:hey quick innocent question ive been following for a long time and saw a lot of your art do you have a thing for feet

Are you asking because I draw a lot of people barefoot? Feet are just easier and faster to draw than shoes, anon

Anon said:I love how you answer asks all at once. It’s nice to see that you’re getting in bulk appreciation

THANKS I honestly just don’t want my blog to be more asks than art, so I let them pile up before answering - it does mean I make people wait a lot for answers tho orz sorry

Anon said:I LOVE YOUR ART

THANK YOU!!!!

Anon said:You've open a sea of possibilities with red pineapple kirishima. You're a legend :prayeremoji:

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I wouldn’t call myself that but I’m glad you appreciate him too hahaha

Anon said:i cant help but notice nothings been added to your sero tag in 4 months

That might be because I rarely use single characters tags! Try looking under #bakusquad and #seromina :D

Anon said:Hahaaa hi this is probably really really awkward but I just wanted you to let you know that you're super awesome!! And the fact that your art is something that I can look forward to is absolutely amazing (no pressure tho)!!! So yea, thank you for being cool and creating beautiful art~~ :D ✧✧✧

SOB it’s not awkward at all!!!! thank you SO MUCH!!!!!!!!!

Anon said:Would you mind adding some more Tokoyami art to your shop? More specifically the pieces where hes hanging out with Kiri, and the Tokoshoji piece :D Im desperate to bury my notebooks in stickers from your shop rn and the bird boy needs more love ❤

AHW I’m sorry anon, but those are definitely too small to be of any use on the shop ;-; if you’re okay with it I could add the last one I posted? I should seriously draw more of him..................

Anon said:That jacket that Kirishima has on...I NEED!

I drew it and that’s still a mood t b h

Anon said:I went so far back in your blog that it kicked me back to the beginning ;-; I was just getting to the D. Greyman stuff too

AW ;-; (..........it’s good tho, the further you go the least worth it my stuff is l m a o)

Anon said:Do you ever draw kiribaku or something else in paper or some kind of sketch book if you do i would love to see them❤(sorry if my english is bad)

I do have some doodles on paper posted on here somewhere? But tbh I rarely draw traditionally anymore unless it’s just random doodles :(

Anon said:Aahhh!!! I really love your kiribaku shit its so cute!!and you draw so goood too literally when i found this ship i instantly found you and you are so perfect in my eyes and your art!!!!! I looooooovvvvvvveeeeee yoooouuuuuu thank you for being here and showing us this stuff!!❤❤❤❤

HECK thank you!!!!!!!!!!!

Anon said:i adore your art so much and your bakushima comics make me smile a lot! :) you’re one of my favorite artists now dldksjshskdk

tHANK YOU OH MY G OD ;^;

Anon said:Consider this: fantasy Kirishima meeting normal bakugou, thinking that's his Katsuki 😂😂

.........................you literally got no clue how long I’ve been thinkin about drawing this............ he ck

Anon said:Your drawings give me life 😍❤️

sob thank you so so so much ;-;

[1000-directions]

Annual Writing Self-Evaluation

*All answers should be about works published in 2017.

tagged by @imlouisaf <3

1. List of works published this year (in the order that they were posted):

o jeez, they were all really short but i published 14 stories on ao3 altogether

even if it’s a lie, say it will be all right

spinning on that dizzy edge

a praise chorus

lay your hands over me (written before everything else on this list but posted to ao3 months later as a backdated work)

baby, here we go again

i don’t care, i’m not scared

amsterdam without you

show me you can handle this

girl crush

she’s a good girl

see where this thing goes

boy, make me believe

are you that somebody?

part of your world

2. Work you are most proud of (and why):

this is hard because i’m proud of different stories for different reasons. some of these i just never would have thought i was capable of writing, and that feels awesome. but i’m going to go with even if it’s a lie, say it will be all right. writing this felt like torture sometimes, and by the time i published it, i’d spent so much time up close inside it that i couldn’t tell if there was anything good or redeemable about it at all, and i was embarrassed to even show it to anyone else. but when i read it now, i’m really pleased with it. i like the different relationships in the story, i like my use of flashbacks to sketch in backstory, i like the way louis and eleanor use sex in different ways to illustrate the complexity of their relationship. i love the interplay between past and present, and i think overall it has more emotional complexity than anything else i’ve written. i poured a lot of myself into it, and it sucked, and it was hard, but i’m so happy with how it turned out. also, i got some really amazing feedback about it, especially from people who were not sold on the idea of real-life elounor but found this portrayal sympathetic. i really loved being able to change some people’s minds and get them excited about louis’ real relationship.

3. Work you are least proud of (and why):

lol fuckin spinning on that dizzy edge 😩😩 my most kudos-ed work currently and probably forever, rip me. it’s not even a story, it’s literally just me describing louis in two different outfits, i think it took like an hour to write, it’s just...not...anything? i know that i’m too hard on this story, but actually, i’m nOT!!!

4. A favorite excerpt of your writing:

i do like this little paragraph from boy, make me believe, part of the louis/bebe truckstop au.

She didn’t know it could be like this. When she’d imagined her sexual future, she always thought it would be the same sort of adequate sex she’d been having before, just with progressively older guys, until she married one of them, and then they’d get older together. She’s only ever been with boys, is the thing, and Louis is such a man that’s she giddy with it. He has a job and a family and a kid. He knows a trade, and he lives alone in his own house, and he can fix mostly anything. He’s muscular and strong, and he smells like beer and cigarettes most nights. He’s all grown up and self-sufficient, and he knows who he is and what he wants. And he wants to worship her, and he knows how to do that, too. She didn’t know there would be gentleness. She didn’t know there would be selflessness. She didn’t know that being manly could still leave so much room for being soft.

5. Share or describe a favorite comment you received:

you know, it’s so funny to look at the kudos counts for the truckstop au, because they’re so much lower than i realized. and that’s because every comment i’ve gotten on that series has been so thoughtful and excited and loving and kind that it makes me forget that that series is SUPER NICHE and almost no one read it. but the people who did read it were just amazing and supportive, and even just a handful of people buying into that world and getting excited about it and talking shit out with me in the comments and helping me develop that world more and consider things differently than i had before, it was really just the best most rewarding thing.

6. A time when writing was really, really hard:

every second of writing that pig dog story was torture, especially as the deadline loomed closer and i still had almost none of it written. and also especially because i was really inspired at that time to work on my louis/briana story, but i didn’t have time, and i resented having to work on this one instead. i reread it today, and i swear it’s the first time i’ve actually even liked it. writing that story was brutal.

7. A scene or character that you wrote that surprised you:

writing two stories with harry as a narrator was a weird surprise. i really love writing through or about louis. i’ll read lots of different pairings, but it’s hard for me to get excited about writing a story that doesn’t involve louis. so i really didn’t expect to enjoy writing my hamille stories so much, but that’s been such a fun relationship to explore, and i expect i will write more of them next year.

8. How did you grow as a writer this year:

my philosophy this year has mostly been to only write what i want to write, and i mean both in terms of pairings and in terms of actual content. i don’t like writing plot and backstory and worldbuilding and all that shit, so i just...stopped. and i really focused in on the bits that i do like, the internal monologues and little scraps of dialogue and emotions and sensations, and i think it made my writing sharper and more concentrated. i think i reduced a lot of filler this year and really focused on writing undiluted, strong emotions and metaphors. if something was boring or dragging, i skipped it. i know that’s not for everyone, but it many writing much more enjoyable for me personally.

9. How do you hope to grow next year:

i would like to try some new pairings. this is weird, but i’ve never really written a true nouis story? it feels like i should have, but i haven’t, and that’s something i wouldn’t mind tackling next year. also, when i first started out, i didn’t feel comfortable leaving canon behind because i worried that i didn’t have a strong enough grip on my characters yet, and i feared that if i started writing AUs or whatever, my characters would become unrecognizable. but i’d like to keep venturing out and trying new worlds and tropes. i want to write more trans characters. i’d like to write an ace fic. i’d like to bring my eye to things i haven’t written before and see what happens.

10. Who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer or beta or cheerleader or muse etc etc):

jeez, everyone? you know what, i’m gonna go ahead and single out @alligatornyc as someone who doesn’t write but is such a positive and uplifting reader. if you get on her good side, she will make you feel like the greatest person who ever wrote a single word, and that is such a rare and wonderful gift. @mildlymaddy is also really phenomenal about showering her friends with amazing comments and feedback. @queerlyalex more than anyone else i’ve ever known is just...super positive about encouraging people to be creative and do whatever makes them happy, and they are so celebratory about whatever you end up producing.

11. Anything in your real life show up in your writing this year:

louis’ depression in even if it’s a lie, say it will be all right is my depression. also, this from see where this thing goes is 100% me dropping out of school and being ashamed to tell most of the people in my life:

“Do you figure you’re going to head back home?” Jay asked when they were both finished eating, and Bebe imagined what that would be like, to give up after so much planning. She remembered the going away party they had thrown for her at the old diner, the balloons and the cake and the card they’d all signed for her and the gas station gift card they’d all chipped in for, only forty bucks but it melted her heart that they’d all believed in her and wanted her to go off and be a big star. She couldn’t go home. She couldn’t face those people again until she became someone, and her eyes welled up with tears just thinking about it.

“I can’t go back there,” Bebe had said.

12. Any new wisdom you can share with other writers:

there is room for you to write the kind of stories you want to write. you don’t have to follow those “avoid these writing mistakes” posts that drive me fucking crazy. show don’t tell? who cares. if you wanna tell, then tell, it’s your story. people get very focused on word count and writing every day and forming proper habits, and if that works for you, good, and if that doesn’t work for you, that’s good, too. if forcing yourself to write every day makes you feel shitty and inadequate, then don’t do it. if writing when you’re uninspired feels bad, don’t do it. you don’t have to do this the way everyone else does. you’re doing this FOR FREE. it should feel good. if you’re not enjoying it, figure out a way to do it differently.

13. Any new projects you’re looking forward to starting (or finishing) in the new year:

louis/bucky barnes is a thing, and it is happening, and i am getting really excited about it. louis/briana is happening. cis girls hamille is probably happening. more truckstop au will hopefully be happening. trans louis is theoretically happening, but that one is only just starting to coalesce in my mind. and once louis’ album drops, i’m sure way more elounor will be happening.

14. Tag three writers/artists whose answers you’d like to read:

i hATE TAGGING 😩 if we are mutuals and you wanna do this, tag you’re it! please tag me in your response. if we aren’t mutuals are you wanna do this, tag you’re it! please tag me in your response. fair warning tho this thing takes F O R E V E R to do

[write-this-way-please]

INKED

INKED [Zelo gets tattooed] Rated: Mature

You sighed heavily turning the page of your book. You’d been bored out of your mind lately. A lack of motivation and inspiration was going to be the death of you. It was like you wanted to tattoo, but you just couldn’t find the right client.

You needed a new muse.

Sleepy walked up the narrow staircase holding a bag of from your favorite street cart. “Hey, I brought ya somethin~”

“Oppa!” you grinned seeing your older brother make his way inside “You can be amazing when you wanna be” you chimed reaching out for the bag. “Gimmie”

“Ah- say please” he held the bag just out of reach.

“Yah, Sleepy-Oppa! Give me my food you tree”

“Alright here” he set the plate of tteokbokki in your hand. “You really should consider eating something other than tteokbokki”

“Give me one good reason why?” you pouted, shoving the skewer in your mouth. “If you’ve already found perfection, why seek anything else?”

He groaned, raking a hand through his hair. “Why are you like this?” He made himself at home, flopping down on the tattoo bench, and resting his arms behind his head. “Where is everybody anyway?”

“Jooyoung-Oppa, doesn’t come in until the afternoon for his appointment, and Jiyeon-Unnie is out of town for the weekend, so I’m really just shop sitting.”

He hums in agreeance before glancing over at you. “By the way, did I miss the memo or did you suddenly stop needing money?”

“Hmm, what do you mean?”

“I figured you suddenly got rich since you’ve been turning away clients. Word on the street is, you’re the hardest person to make an appointment with.”

“You make me sound so stuck up…” you frowned, swirling the rice cake in the sauce absently. “I just...I’m not struggling anymore...All my life I worked hard so that I can afford to be picky… It kills me doing simple tattoos… There’s no personality, no passion….”

Your pickiness has left you with a lot more free time than you originally anticipated, but you haven't been missing the little quick flash tattoos people asked for on a whim. But you were starting to miss the vibration of your tattoo gun.

“Well, you shouldn’t be so picky… you’ll never find your motivation if you keep turning people down.”

“You sound like you’re speaking from experience” you eyed him suspiciously. “Why the sudden care in how I get my clients Oppa? I turn down someone you know?”

He chuckled and nodded “Actually yeah. A Dongsaeng from work had been going on getting a tattoo for a long time, and he was upset with this mystery artist he followed on Instagram.” he smirked looking down at you. “Apparently they only accept appointments through Instagram and they’re really exclusive. Imagine my surprise when I saw that the artist that turned him down was my precious stubborn little sister.”

Pouting you shoved another piece of tteokbokki in your mouth. “Ah- the idol kid, right? You know I don’t tattoo idols Oppa.” The mystery artist persona wasn’t something that you intentionally built, but it just became who you were. Your SNS was minimal. You only posted photos of your work, no selfies, no personal post, just your art. You didn’t even post the name of your shop. All appointment request were made through your Instagram. People could send photos, or a description of what they wanted and if you agreed, you’d give them the address for a real consultation.

If you were being honest, his message did intrigue you. His idea was refreshing and you’d even sketched out a few ideas for it, but they were both too risky for your traditional clients. Your sketches were a little out of the box, and the chances of him agreeing on something so over the top were zero to none. He was an idol after all.

“You tatted Dean a few weeks ago. What’s the difference?”

“Dean’s not an idol. I don’t wanna be a part of that whole idol tattoo trend.”

“Hey, Junhong is in my company you know he’s not like that. Me, Daehyun, and Yongguk all love tattoos. It’s not some whim. He’s actually thought about this for a while. And you know other artist would be jumping at the chance to tattoo an idol.”

“Then let them do it. I can even recommend him, someone. You know Natasha-Unnie’s protege? She’s really good, she’s Taeil’s artist and-”

“Junhong really wants to be tattooed by you.” he shrugged. “I didn’t tell him how, but I told him I’d put in a good word for him. Just meet with him...And if you still don’t wanna then go ahead and recommend him someone else. Besides, I think Natasha would be a little upset that you turned down her little brother’s dongsaeng.”

“What?” you frowned “You mean he’s in Yongguk-Oppa’s group?” Natasha was a good friend, to you. The Seoul tattoo scene was decently small so you all looked out for one another. It was a family. She even bailed you out of some pretty bad situations with the police so maybe this was a favor worth granting? “Alright….I’ll meet with him.”

“Oh you’d do it for Natasha but not for your big brother”

“Natasha-Unnie is a queen!”

“Yeah, yeah” he smiled standing up, and ruffling your hair. “Well I have a schedule, but I’ll let Junhong know the good news.” He reached for your tteokbokki only to have his hand smacked away. “Yah- Oppa, you wanna lose that hand?”

“Come on share.”

“No. I’m already doing you a favor. Shoo-Yah!”

He chuckled stealing a bite before pecking your hair. “Leave your schedule open for Junhong.”

And that’s exactly how you wound up sitting across from Junhong later that night. When Sleepy told him he got him a consultation, he cleared his schedule immediately and made a beeline to your shop. And Jooyoung had even come into work, finished his client and gone home for the night, leaving you in the most awkward atmosphere with your hopeful client.

Junhong himself was very outgoing, and kind. You two actually vibed really well together. He was just a little too friendly. He was a lot less intimidating on his SNS. Perhaps it was because his height was so understated, or maybe because he was a lot more strikingly handsome in person. He truly was an idol after all.

Junhong stared at you expectantly, a bright smile on his face. “So you’ll really do it Noona?”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, I only sketched out a couple ideas…” All he’d messaged you was a quote, a simple line and said that you had free ranged to sketch what you wanted. Honestly, he was an ideal client, save from the fact that he was an idol.

Their Life Is an Art.

All of it.

After seeing your sketches you two managed to combine the ideas, he gave you proper feedback and you found yourself making a stencil for him. You wanted to do a take on Marina Abramovic’s A Relation In Time. You wanted to come up with a tattoo that showed movement, and it wasn’t an easy concept to bring to life but Junhong put his faith in you. He wanted to get it as soon as possible, and you honestly were kinda itching to do it. Glancing over your shoulder you caught him slipping his shirt off to prepare for the stencil. “You sure you want it on your lower stomach? It’s kinda oddly placed?”

“Nah, Noona. I’m sure” he smirked walking over to you. “You almost done?”

As he got closer you pulled back, eyeing him. He was just so tall… And naked...And so damn close. “Back up” you huffed, shooting him a glare.

“Why Noona, you nervous or something?” he smirked “I thought you were a bad ass tattoo artist~”

“I am” you pouted grabbing your tattoo gun, the loud vibrating buzz that emanated from it was enough to at least get him to move back. He crossed his arms over his chest towering over you as you tried to get back to your sketch. “Why’d I have to be the one to tattoo you anyway?” you glanced at him, trying to not let his body distract you from your drawing.

He smiled seeing you shy away from looking at him. “I saw your style and I knew it had to be you...that’s all. You were the only one that could draw what I wanted.”

“Charming me isn’t that easy” you huffed, finishing your stencil.

He shrugged watching you prep your table. “Maybe it is~” Raking his hand through his hair he grinned. “Ya know Noona, I had no idea you were a girl. I just kinda pictured you to be a guy from your SNS, it’s very minimal. Kinda like Yongguk-Hyung”

“Well, I’m full of surprises” you shrugged.

“I’m sure you are.”

“Lay down” you regretted your words the second you saw his sleazy smirk. He strode over to your bench and laid down, brushing his bare body a little too closely against yours. You slid your gloves on and moved to prep the stencil but sighed deeply seeing that he needed to unbutton his pants in over for you to properly fit it. “Can you…”

“Hm? What?” he smiled innocently.

“Yah, forget it. I didn’t need to do this tattoo anyway”

“Relax Noona” he grinned unbuttoning his pants and tugging down his zipper. “I was just playin’”

“That’s fine. You can stop now” you huffed, grabbing his wrist, stopping him from pulling his zipper down any further. Who the hell was this Kid and why were you getting so flustered? You were a professional. This wasn’t your first tattoo, you’d done plenty in more intimate areas, so why were you letting him get under your skin? Admittedly he was good looking, anyone could see that he really was an idol.

But once you were able to lay the stencil down and get to work on the tattoo he’d calm down and his teasing seemed to subside. He looked like he was trying to focus on his breathing and not think about the fact that seven tiny needles are stabbing into his abdomen thousand of times. You didn’t know Junhong very well, but he was being eerily quiet. Maybe he needed a breather? You were so wrapped up in wanting to finish this tattoo, you didn’t even check to see how he was doing. This is his first tattoo after all. After two hours into lining, you wiped his stomach with alcohol. “Alright kid, let’s take a break.” When you finally got a good looked at him he looked so pale, clammy even. His breaths had gotten more shallow over the course of an hour.

He peaked over at you and winced. “I’m alright, we don’t need to”

“Nah, my hand’s cramping and I’m starving. You eat?” you noticed that Junhong was bleeding a little more than he should have for this type of tattoo, and it’ll help him tons to have some energy to tolerate the pain better. “I’m going to grab some chicken from the place next door, you want some?”

“S-sure.”

He was noticeably too drained to even flirt, this tattoo was taking a lot out of him and you felt bad for not taking the proper protocol when prepping him. Something bad could have happened if you didn’t take a break, him passing out during his tattoo would have been horrible.

After eating some chicken and tteokbokki he seemed to be getting his energy back. He was smiling again and vividly just telling you about his life, mostly his dog Mochi and his members. “Hey Noona…” he called out seeing you spacing out. There was something he noticed while he was trying to not pass out during his session. He’d always been surrounded by people with tattoos. Both artist and collectors. From his member to Yongguk’s family. Most of them he could see their ink from a mile away.“If you don’t mind me asking… Why don’t you have tattoos?” he gave you another once over, your arms and chest exposed from your V- neck t-shirt, and a good amount of your legs peaked through your ripped jeans.

Leaning on your hand you smirked. “Who said I didn’t have tattoos?”

His brows furrowed as his stare lingered on the parts of your skin that was covered. Snapping your fingers you smiled. “Hey, eyes up here Kid”

“But where…?” he asked before his reasoning caught up to his curiosity. “Is it a small tattoo or something? Like Daehyun-Hyung’s?”

“My tattoos are intimate” Seeing him pout you laughed “For example…I have a whole back piece...And I have these” you showed the inside of your wrist. If the light hit it properly he could see a small star, made in white ink. It was damn near invisible, and about half an inch big “I have seven of these.:

“Where are the other ones?” he licked his lips, eyes raking down your body again.

“No one’s ever found all seven” you smiled proudly.

“I want to” there was such a dark look in his eyes as he stared at you. His gaze lingering on the parts of your skin, where there could be a hidden star.

“And that’s enough of a break” you laughed standing up and taking a swig of your water. “Finish this, and drink your juice box. We need you hydrated and need to keep your sugar up.” Stretching your arms over your head, you loosened up your muscles in anticipation for the next leg of the session.

Junhong poutily sipped on his juice box. He couldn’t help but watch you stretch. It was a relatively innocent act. He’d seen the dancers in his company stretch similarly, but he was never compelled to watch them. Your shirt rode up just slightly, displaying the top of your hip bones. That was a pretty intimate spot, there had to be a star there.

“Can I help you?” you glanced over at him, he probably didn’t realize how focused he look. A small pout on his face, and a deep furrow in his brows.

“N-no.” he blushed, settling back onto the bench.

The rest of the session came and went and honestly his tattoo was some of your best work. Cleaning the tattoo one final time you nudged him. “Alright, kid you’re done.” Seeing his face light up as he looked in the mirror, reminded you of just how much you loved tattooing.

“Noona this is perfect” he grinned.

It was just about midnight when you finally finished up. “Man I’m tired” you yawned removing your gloves. You got him bandaged up and closed up the shop, walking him to the street.

You could feel Junhong staring at you as you walked down the street, as if he was trying to find the nerve to ask you something. If there was one thing that bothered you more than his flirting was him being nervous about it. Sighing you raked your hand through your hair. “Are you gonna ask me out or what?”

“Y-You want me to?” he stuttered blushing.

Shrugging you smiled. Maybe it was because it was so late, or maybe it was because it’s been awhile since your last date, But something about him made you feel like reciprocating advances. It was obvious that his flirting was all talk, he was just trying to see if he can get a rise out of you. But what would he do if you pushed back? “You old enough to drink kid?”

There were definitely worse things in life than finding yourself at a bar with Junhong, and after your third drink, you’d admit that he was even kind of charming.

He leaned his head on his hand and you tossed back another shot. “You’re really pretty…” he mumbled more so to himself; pouting over his drink.

“Oh yeah? You think so?” Smirking you leaned into him, quirking a brow. “Then make a move”

“Can I?” he eyes you hesitantly.

“You know for someone who was so flirty before you’re kinda shy when it comes to initiation”

“I’m not sh-y” his voice broke as you moved closer, your nose brushing against his. He took in a shallow breath as you stared at him with hooded eyes. He cleared his throat wanting to save face. “I’m just not a fan of rejection…”

You grinned seeing him shy away, trying to avoid eye contact with you. “Junhong-ah...” you whispered grabbing his attention. The moment he turned to face you, you pressed your lips against his; Pulling him closer by his jacket.

You could feel him hesitate for a brief moment before taking over the kiss completely. Grabbing you by your lower back, he pulled you into him. Pressing your body against his as his tongue flicked over the roof of your mouth. You grinned threading your fingers through his hair. “Mmmm…”

And over tangled limbs, desperate kisses, and hooded eyes you two somehow managed to make it back to your place. It was farther than his but being that he lived in a dorm, you really didn’t feel like taking those chances.

You’d dropped your keys three times, while trying to unlock the door. Your hands shaking at his teasing. “Nnn...Yah..” you huffed.

“Open the door Noona” he whispered huskily against your ear, pressing himself against your back. His long fingers teasing the waistband of your jeans.

“I would if somebody would cool it for a sec.” you blushed heavily turning the key finally. “I have neighbors you know.”

He chuckled walking you inside, and shutting the door behind you. “They’re gonna hear you anyway.”

Grabbing your hips, he lifted you up easily and set you on your bed. He made quick work of his shirt before tugging at your jeans playfully. Leaning back on our elbows you giggled as he struggled with your skinny jeans. “You do realize that your tattoo is gonna hurt like hell if we try to have sex?”

“You say that now?” he scoffed. “I’ll manage” he grunted finally getting them down your leg. He crawled back onto the bed, moving toward your lips.

Smiling, you bit down on your lower lip, moving back teasingly. Sliding his hand up the length of your long, soft legs. His fingers lingering over the tattooed script on your upper thigh. He smirked, pressing a soft kiss against it. “Found one” His eyes darkened as he flashed them up at you. “I’m gonna find all your stars too.”

“You’ll try~” you winked moving back

He gripped your thighs and tugged you down toward him. “Gottcha”

You couldn’t help the soft laugh that escaped your lips as he pinned your arms down. “I guess you did. What are you gonna do with me?”

“I can think of a few things…” Lifting your t-shirt inch by inch, he grinned at each new tattoo he exposed. The beautiful arrayment of ink that decorated your body was breathtaking. He’d trace each one, following his touch with a kiss. His smile widened seeing the intricate geometric flower between your underbust. “This is beautiful…” he smiled kissing his way across your skin. “I found a star…” he flicked his tongue against the seemingly empty spot, due to the white ink. It was small and subtle, but once he saw he couldn’t shake it.

Your back arched at each of his kisses but feeling his tongue you let out a whimper. “You plan on just teasing me all night?” you glared down at him, your wrist still trapped under his grip.

“Maybe” he grinned against your skin. “I like how you react to my teasing…” his kisses moved up to your breast, his lips ghosting over your nipple before taking them into his mouth. “Mmm..”

Your head fell back into the mattress feeling him tug on them. “Besides your moans are so pretty Noona~” He moved to hold down your wrist with one hand, keeping them above your head as his free hand teased your nipple, flicking it playfully.

“F-Fight me” you huffed, trying to fight back your blush. You hated being helpless. It was more so a turn on than anything, you just weren’t expecting it from Junhong of all people.

“You may not know this Noona, but you’re not very intimidating in this state” he laughed softly. “You’re actually just really cute” he whispered against you, placing a peck just beneath your ear.

“Junhong-ah...” you panted, turning your head toward him.

Junhong was pretty confident about the whole situation. There was something so satisfying about hearing your sweet moans. But despite having you pinned beneath him, hearing you called his name got him all flustered. He turned toward you, letting you pull him into a kiss. Smiling against your lips as your mouth coaxed his open. “Mmm…”

You grinned tugging his lower lip, between your teeth. He was so distracted by your kiss and holding you, he hadn’t even noticed he let up his grip on your wrist. Your hand slid down his muscular chest, and abs, grazing carefully past his new tattoo. Gripping his waistband you undid his zipper, stroking him. “You’re so hard…”

“Your fault…” he blushed kissing your neck.

“Mine?” you giggled. “Then let me take responsibility for it?”

“S-Seriously?” he pulled away from you, to get a better look of your face.

Laughing you shook your head. “What type of one-sided body worship did you think I was into?” pushing him onto the bed, you crawled over his body. “I like reciprocating affection” You winked, running your hand through your hair. “But I’m a little more into instant gratification” you made you way lower, pulling his length out of his pants. Your hands wrapping around him and stroking him harder. “Mmmm…” You slid your tongue down his base, grinning as he whimpered. “I kinda like you like this”

He chuckled. “Hell, I like me like this” he chewed on his bottom lip.

Feeling you nip at his member he winced, clutching his eyes shut as you teased him. Your thumb rolling over his head, spreading his precum. “Sex might be a little too hard on your tattoo...I don’t wanna make it too sore.” You placed a soft kiss, just below his tattoo. “But we can still do everything else” you grinned.

He hummed happily. “Can I get an I.O.U?”

“Deal~” you giggled pecking his lips.

This was by far the most comfortable you’d ever slept. You were usually pretty cold in your bed, but Junhong was a giant radiator. Although it was pretty hilarious to see him try and cram himself onto your bed. It took a little finessing and involved a lot of cuddling but you two made it work. You smiled feeling kisses down your neck. “Mmm… How long have you been awake?”

He buried his face in the crook of your neck and tugged you into his chest. “Not long” His fingertips danced along your hip. “I was so distracted by everything else last night, I didn’t see your sexy back tattoo…” he nipped at your earlobe. “I even found another little star…”

You giggled. “Four more to go”

Rolling you onto your back he grinned, his nose brushing down yours. “Noona...I think I know your body pretty well...and I promise you, there’s no way you could have four more stars anywhere…” he tugged on your upper lip.

“I guess you weren’t all that thorough” you stuck your tongue out at him.

“Then I guess we’re gonna need another round” he tugged your blanket away, tossing it off the bed.

End?

Man I can’t believe I wrote 10 pages of this ;__; I’ve been working on this since the day Zelo showed his tattoo, I was so inspired. If you guys liked it please let me know! Your messages mean the world to me <3 There might even be a part two for you guys if you’re interested~ 

Also, shout out to @baby-you-are-just-write for beta-ing XD If you guys read her amazing Love Written In Ink series you would’ve caught my reference of her MC in the beginning ;) Woot cohesive tattoo universe!