#yes this is about twc

[friendlyfaded]

if the universe didn’t want me writing about epicurean philosophy and the concept of ataraxia in a fanfiction about an emotionally unavailable hot vampire then it shouldn’t have given me the ability to comprehend language

[agentark]

Bobby learns about the supernatural and immediately starts a gossip rag

(du mor-sham inspired by this comment from @agentnatesewell 💕)

[itsmistyeyedbi]

Quick question about A, especially for all my beloved mutuals who are on the ace spectrum:

What do you think A "suddenly" (I suppose it's not sudden, but I can't find another word that fits this context right now) feeling sexual attraction towards the detective (or N👀 or any other pairing with A you have in mind👀) would look like? Or...feel like, for them?

Do you think it would be different if they had never experienced that kind of attraction before? And if they did, would it still be surprising or unexpected for them considering they've gone 900 years (or maybe 600 if we're going with the A x N ship) without that feeling at all? Would it be an "Oh...oh" type of moment lol, like a more gradual thing that kind of snuck up on them, or would they be able to identify what it is immediately?

And what would that look like from the perspective of A's love interest?

(Please let me know if my wording is even slightly acephobic, I'll rework this question as much as I can to make sure it isn't because I do not tolerate queerphobia of any kind and I'd hate to post something that perpetuates it❤️)

[agentnatesewell]

I hope the dance is not like the blood drive where its just shoved in with no real connection to the overarching storyline :/

🫣 I liked the blood drive - I thought it was a nice break from everything going on and a good way to get to interact with people from town. And if you ‘pass’ the blood drive, then the LI will talk to the detective about the draw of their blood, and how they handle the draw of their blood (which comes up at the end, of course, with the LI POV!)

But in terms of overarching storyline, yes, you’re right! And it was brought up in a way that it would be the main storyline rather than a side storyline that’s resolved in the first half.

As for the masquerade - I am looking forward to that, and especially the masks, outfit, and the dance! As for its role in the storyline, I am curious! I had a feeling that something big and bad would happen but I am not sure!

[grapecaseschoices]

[She] has not a correct idea of my soul's depths and shallows. But if [she] did know them [she] would still be my friend -- Mary MacLane, "January 20", The Story of Mary MacLane

Chariot - Mega

Stand By You - Rachel Platten

We Go Down Together - Khalid, Dove Cameron

Wannabe - Spice Girls

look up - Joy Oladokun

Deep End - Holly Humberstone

I Melt With You - Modern English

Someone To Stay - Vancouver Sleep Clinic

Stayed At The Party - Hope Tala

How Beautiful Life Can Be (Single Version) - The Lathums

Fellowship - serpentwithfeet

You've Got A Friend - Carole King

Umbrella - Rihanna, Jay-Z

The Middle - Jimmy Eat World

Chosen Family (Acoustic) - Rina Sawayama

Good Time - Owl City, Carly Rae Jepsen

Hold Onto Me - Valerie Broussard

Heavy - Birdtalker

Spinning - GROUPLOVE

North - Sleeping At Last

for @happyhauvillebday; day 2: Friendship. A spotify playlist about loyalty, belonging, devotion, and finding joy even when the world is shit. Just best mates things!!

[ambrosykim]

help im falling back into wayhaven😩

[not-sewell]

the fact that i can be OBSESSED with not one but two loverboi (gn), low-key snobbish vampires with a monster complex in this economy is INSANE

[moderarato]

✨ Celeste “Este” Davies (she/her) for The Wayhaven Chronicles

All her life, she just wanted to study psychology, now she’s working at a supernatural agency where she’s stupidly in love with two equally stupid vampires. How’d that one happen?

also I had to include an outfit progression bc why not 🫠✨

[krampuscrump]

So lately I’ve been having Wayhaven Chronicles brain rot and I planned on making bracelets to wear while at my local Pride festival so I was like why not and made bracelets inspired by Unit Bravo 🥳

[the-pale-goddess]

Is there any M!Detective/Ava Du Mortain smut piece or do I have to write it myself 🥲

[itsmistyeyedbi]

Your wish is my command @carriehobbs ! I'm making a separate post because this might be a long one lol.

I've talked about Zuri's feelings about marriage over here, so know that if she's getting married it's years into her relationship, with it not even coming up in her mind as something she and her partner can do until someone else brings it up. From the moment any type of proposal happens (there'd definitely need to be a conversation long before about what marriage would mean for her LI and how they'd feel about their relationship - otherwise her abandonment issues would flare up and the prospect would make her anxious) to the second she's walking down the aisle, she will be an emotional wreck.

She'd be so excited about getting married that the wedding planning would take a while - that level of emotion would make her take forever to even form an idea of what the wedding should look like. But whether she elopes or has a big wedding with all the fanfare, her outfit will be on point, always lol.

Eloping:

If she's eloping (which I think would probably be what happens if Morgan is her LI in twc), I think she'd wear something in her wardrobe. It would either be a slip dress with a shawl (I think that's what it is?) like the one on the left, or an asoebi dress she wore to one of her aunt's weddings on the right (asoebi translates to "family cloth", and symbolises unity and solidarity, so everyone who was her aunt's close family member wore dresses identical in colour and style).

Full On Wedding:

Traditional Wedding

If she's having a full on wedding, with a reception and ceremony and some cultural practices (and family flying over), she'd send her measurements to a designer in Nigeria that her family has been working with for years and a designer in Kenya that designed her father's wedding clothing (it would be hell trying to get this information out of Rebecca, but she'd be determined). There might end up being a lot of outfit changes, lol.

Honestly, I've been thinking on this for a while and I'm not entirely sure which culture she'd lean into the most. I think her Yoruba culture would be the main one considering her relationship with her grandma (Rebecca’s mom). Her relationship with her grandpa (Rebecca’s dad) is a lot more on the distant side, so her incorporating Igbo culture in her wedding is debatable. She doesn't have much family from Rook’s side, considering the fact that her grandparents had passed away long before he even met Rebecca, and his sister passed away when Zuri was still really young. Too young to even really remember her beyond what she's seen in pictures. But she'd want to incorporate his Kenyan culture in some way - I'm just not sure if that would include an outfit change or not.

So if she has a traditional wedding, she'd definitely have a slightly more modern Yoruba wedding dress with a gele (a traditional headwrap) and ipele (a cloth that's usually worn as a sash draped across one shoulder - she'd have it on her sleeve instead like it is in the picture), but the Igbo and Kikuyu (Kenyan) ones are a maybe

So the pictures of them are basically just me wanting to show what she would wear if she did lol - I spent too much time looking for them to not include them in this post. These are the dresses, respectively.

*If her partner has cultural practices that they want to have in the wedding, she'd stick with her Yoruba one so that there's enough time in the day for both. In twc, I can see Nate possibly having his Persian culture in the wedding. And if Farah had any desire to include union practices from the Echo World, Zuri would be so down and so excited to do them (but that may have to happen on the day of their white wedding since Zuri’s very human family would be here for this one).

Considering the fact that Zuri's extended family will be there, there will be money spraying. How comfortable each member of Unit Bravo would be being surrounded by people spraying them in money is interesting to think about lmao, Zuri would probably have to ask them to keep that part of the celebration short. I can see Farah loving it though.

White Wedding

I don't think she'd have a white wedding on the same day as the traditional one - it would be too stressful for her. This one would definitely be smaller, with mostly close friends - including some supernatural ones, Elidor, Tapeesa, and Unit Alpha are definitely invited.

Zuri's wedding dress would be an off the shoulder, mermaid (I think?) dress with a flower motif. Where the flowers come in is something I haven't completely decided on - having them on the dress can be really pretty, but be mistaken for regular lace if it isn't distinct enough. Having it on the train or veil instead is a possibility.

It would probably happen in a smaller venue than the one they had the traditional wedding in, and they could use the money they got from the spraying to fund it lol. Zuri's aunt's would not hold back in that regard.

[choicesficwriterscreations]

August Creator of the Month: Mavidraws

Please welcome this month’s Creator of the Month: @mavidraws

Each month, CFWC highlights one of our talented fanfic writers or artists. The writer or artist is selected at random. More info can be found on the navigation page. Past COTMs can be found here.

Tumblr Blog Name: Mavidraws

How do you want to be known on Tumblr? Mavi

Quick Links:

Tumblr Blog Commissions Info

1- When did you start playing Choices? What was the first book you played? 

2017. Most Wanted.

2- When and why did you join Choices fandom?

In 2023, after playing Blades 2. I spent years without playing Choices, but this book really inspired me to create some art, and I began interacting with the fandom after that. 

3- How did you pick your blog name?

It’s a combination of my nickname, Mavi, which is short for Maria Vitória, and “draws”, since this is (mostly) an art blog.

4- Pull up the first post in your archive, and tell us about it!  

It's a drawing of the main characters and my MC from an interactive fiction called Keeper of the Sun and Moon (@keeperofthesunandmoon), which was my first digital drawing ever. I was fascinated with this IF and wanted to share how I envisioned these characters.

5- Do you write fanfiction, create fan art, or are you one of those really gifted people who do both? 

I create fan art.

6- How long have you been creating for Choices and for any other fandoms?

I’ve been creating for Choices since late 2023, and for other fandoms (such as KOTSAM, Golden and TWC) since 2021.

7- What is your favorite Choices book, and what is your favorite Choices book to create for?

Honestly, I can’t pick just one—The Elementalists, Endless Summer, and It Lives in the Wood are some of my favorites. But Blades is definitely my favorite book to create for.

8- Share your first Choices fanfic or fan art that you posted with us. Do you still like it, or would you change it if you were creating it today?

I absolutely love this piece and wouldn’t change anything about it. This was the drawing that helped me establish my current art style.

9- What is your favorite piece of fiction or art that you created? 

This drawing of Tyril and my MC from Blades. I think it was the most emotional piece I’ve ever created and I’m really proud of it.

10- Do you have a fic/art that you didn’t expect to be well received, but it was? What about one you expected to do well but found it could use a little more love?

I think this drawing of f!UB from TWC did exceedingly well, and it was even noticed by the author—which I never ever ever expected.

I think this drawing of Valax could use a little more love.

11 - Do you ever recognize yourself in any of your MCs or in your writing?

I see a lot of myself in Theodora, my MC from Golden (an IF by @milaswriting). Her personality and internal struggles are very much my own, as well as her interests—like myself, she’s a law student (I’m currently an attorney) with a passion for fashion.

12 - What element of writing/art do you struggle with most?

Backgrounds. I’m much more comfortable drawing people.

13 - Do you have any neglected work you really want to finish?

Currently not.

14 - If someone you know in real life (who isn’t involved in fandoms) asked to see your work, would you let them? If yes, what would you show them first? 

I already showed my work to my boyfriend and many of my friends a long while ago. But if I had to pick an art piece to show them today, it would probably be this one —I’m really proud of how these wings turned out.

15 - Are there any writers (published authors and/or fanfic writers) who influenced your writing or art? Are there any artists that influence you?

I don’t really have an artist that inspired me. Most of my art style comes from my love of makeup.

16 - Which one of your creations would you like to see a fiction written about? 

This pre-battle moment from Blades 2 between Tyril and MC.

17- Do you write original fiction or create non-fandom art? 

No.

18-  What other hobbies do you have?

I really love makeup, and I consider myself to be a great makeup artist. I’m also a huge film nerd. 

[transformativeworksandcultures]

Fans of Color Prize Winner!

Transformative Works and Cultures is pleased to announce Osarugue Otebele as our inaugural Fans of Color Prize award winner for her article “The (anti)fan is black: Consumption, resistance, and black K-pop fan vigil labor”! Otebele’s article will be published in TWC’s upcoming special issue “Centering Blackness in Fan Studies” on December 15th. 

The Fans of Color Prize had 15 submissions, covering the breadth of TWC’s publications from 2021-2024, while providing an incredible glimpse into the impactful work happening in (and outside of) fan studies. Otebele’s submission stood out because, as one reviewer noted, it was “conceptually ambitious.” 

Otebele, a 4th year PhD candidate in the Department of Film & Media at UC Berkeley who goes by Osa among friends and colleagues, is a K-pop fan! She’s been an Epik-High fan since middle school and is also a fan of UKISS, SISTAR, EXO, BOYFRIEND, and others. As a fan, Otebele’s hope is that the K-pop industry will continue to thrive. 

We sat down with Otebele to discuss what brought her to her research, what she’s working on next, and where she sees the field heading. As a little sneak peek to the upcoming issue on “Centering Blackness in Fan Studies,” we’ve shared some of her remarks below. 

TWC: What brought you to this specific research topic? Otebele: I’ve been a K-pop fan since I was in middle school. When I was a younger fan, I wasn’t as aware of the racial tensions in fandom spaces. It wasn’t until I got to high school that I realized that my lack of involvement was also due to not knowing where to locate other Black K-pop fans. This was partly because it was also in high school when words such as “woke” or “conscious” became part of my vocabulary, so I was always looking for ways to bring attention to my Blackness and, as a  K-pop fan, it was difficult to do that. Both the industry and many non-Black fans wanted to escape from having conversations about race.  TWC: Could you briefly explain the key problem or question your article, “The (anti)fan is black: Consumption, resistance, and black K-pop fan vigil labor,” addresses?  Otebele: My article is interested in the ways Black K-pop fans engage instances of appropriation within the industry (from artists and fans), while also attempting to maintain their status as fans. Some of the key questions of my article were, “what makes an anti-fan?” and “how do Black K-pop fans employ digital media platforms to perform their fannish affect?”  TWC: Were there any unexpected challenges you encountered during your research? Otebele: I would say the biggest challenge was working against my own knowledge and love for the industry to write an article that was quite critical of it. In a way, this challenge is also what my article describes, because I’m really invested in how, for Black fans, the identities fan and anti-fan often require their simultaneous performance.  TWC: Are you planning any follow-up research or new projects based on this article?  Otebele: Yes! I’m currently working on another article focused on narrative coherence in the aesthetic performances in K-pop eras. In that paper, I examine how K-pop engenders a critical addition to the instability of cultural identity while on the other hand, it necessitates and reproduces the fungibility of Blackness, where groups can enter in and out of a performance of Blackness that best fits a particular era. My concerns are with how the narrative coherence of each era (hip-hop era, afro-beat era, Y2K, or house music era) requires a commitment to the performance demanded from these various musical genres.  TWC: Where do you see the field heading in the next few years, and how do you hope your work contributes to that?  Otebele: I think much of K-pop studies is focused on transnational fandoms and cross-cultural exchange, but we should also be having the difficult conversations about cultural extraction, about race, about gender and their relationship to fan labor. The industry is growing even more global with many K-pop idols emerging from the United States, Canada, Japan, and more. We really have to turn our attention to the kind of social ideologies that these idols are bringing from their various cultures and locations and how that changes not only the sound and look of the industry but also its fandom. 

Otebele also emphasized to us that receiving this award as a grad student really gave her work a sense of validity and importance, while also encouraging her to continue working on Black fan experience of K-pop. When asked if she had any advice for early career researchers aiming for impactful publications, Otebele shared: “Revise, revise, revise!” 

We can’t wait for you all to get to read Osa Otebele’s award-winning article, “The (anti)fan is black: Consumption, resistance, and black K-pop fan vigil labor,” which will be published in our upcoming special issue “Centering Blackness in Fan Studies” on December 15. Congratulations again, Osa, from everyone at Transformative Works and Cultures! 

[grapecaseschoices]

Wait Adam x Farah 👁👁 you hooked me...care to elaborate

hehe yesss, come into my web dear fly ... i mean mootie, @pinayelf.

i have actually did a post spreading my f x a agenda little bit ago [here, now with comments from the converted other twc fans]

but i don't mind getting into it a bit more. i think this time i will go through my f x a tags to evidence back my proposition.

so, i imagine that you were lured in by this post:

and what IF! what if?

might it take the form of something like this?:

or how about this?

[both gifs taken from this beautiful gifset by @/cuddlybitch]

what i like about f and a is how different they are. i know that is so obvious -- but i really enjoy not only how technically they SHOULD [and at times] grate on each other, because they're both very 'come as you are' type characters they are open to receiving and working with each other's differences. in fact, they find value in each other's differences.

yes, A [Adam in this case] is stubborn and judgmental and would like F [Farah in this case] to take things seriously -- but Adam wants EVERYONE to take meetings seriously, it isn't targeted at Farah because 'Farah is immature'. The more they know, the better things can be handled, and the better things are handled the SAFER everyone can be. Adam doesn't try to make Farah someone she's not -- and as mentioned in the previous post, Adam believes that Farah coming in as all that she was made the unit become a family.

Farah, on the other hand, is much the same. Sure she teases and pokes at Adam but she has so so much trust in his capabilities. In fact, Adam does for Farah as well. I also like - as I mentioned - how Farah isn't any more afraid to call Adam out then Adam is afraid to tell Farah to chill. I feel Farah has a sensible, no bullshit way of calling things out that works very well for and WITH the pragmatic, 'no nonsense' commanding agent.

However, it isn't all what Farah can do for Adam. Adam is a protector and quite capable of taking care of himself. We also know in the Sanja situation he was glad the choice was in the detective's hands ... because he would have chosen the detective. We know A would challenge anyone who hurt or endangered their loved ones, and would be more than willing to make sure they found out if they dared fuck around. Farah is so desperate to be chosen, but she is also very desperate to keep her loved ones safe. As I said, Adam can handle himself but WHAT IS MORE, he can help Farah feel more confident in her own abilities and what she contributes. He would listen and would never dismiss her, try to placate her. I think that is something Farah needs, not just the sounding board but the certainty that she CAN save and protect what means the most to her.

Plus isn't the Sunshine and the Sunshine Protector the cutest? A bright star and their human shield & sword? Ahem.

Also, an A[dam] that teases is so much fun. The way he can taunt and joke when he's more relaxed is not only endearing, I can just picture how delighted it would make F[arah]! I deserve some F and A banter. I bet it would be the cutest, and I get the feeling that A would be able to keep up with F or shut it down in a way that would keep F guessing [which A would be so smug about lmao].

Adam deserves unfiltered, bright pure happiness [Farah] and Farah deserves a sturdy, ever-firm yet capable of yielding landing* [Adam].

to end with another quote:

[carriehobbs]

Hello hello! I'd love to see your answers for these questions from the fandom oc ask meme, for at least two of your twc and two of your mindblind ocs if you please?🥹

What canon character gets annoyed by your OC?

Which canon character annoys your OC?

Is there someone your OC liked at first, but then grew to dislike?

Is there someone your OC didn’t like at first, but then got along with later?

I'd love to!! Spreading the love around for the Detectives and the Buttons! 💕

I'll answer this for Lauren and Syd (my detectives) and Ellie and Elle (my Buttons).

What canon character gets annoyed by your OC?

Lauren annoys Tina somewhat. As much as they're friends, Tina thinks that Lauren is an overly-pessimistic spoilsport who wouldn't know fun if it hit her over the head.

Syd annoys Adam, lol. Yes they are best friends. Yes he finds her annoying. Both things can be true. (Yes she annoys him on purpose :p)

As much as he absolutely adores her, I think Ellie annoys Nick every once in a while. Ellie can get so negative about herself (such as being so convinced that things are her fault or, in the case of her relationship with Gray, that things are entirely one-sided and that Gray will never like her the way she like him). And Nick can hear all of these thoughts and he disagrees with all of them. He does what he can to make her see how awesome he thinks she is and to show her how much he believes in her, but it can get annoying (or, maybe a better word is frustrating??) to try again and again to get someone to see themselves the way you see them only for them to just... never change their self-image.

I think Elle annoys some of her classmates, lol. She's definitely the kind of classmate that tries very hard to get the most out of her education (which often means that she doesn't stop to consider her classmates' educations. Maybe some of your classmates would be more engaged with the lesson if you stopped and let them answer some of the questions or participate in the class demos, Elle!).

Which canon character annoys your OC?

I said that Lauren kind of annoys Tina, but Tina also kind of annoys Lauren! Lauren thinks Tina is just so... peppy. She's very high-energy. And while, a lot of the time, Lauren can really appreciate these traits of Tina's (like when dealing with the public, Tina is so much more personable than Lauren), sometimes they can be really grating. (They do care about each other, to be clear - it's just that sometimes people you care about also can annoy you).

Bobby annoys Syd quite a bit. I've talked a bit about Syd and Bobby's complicated relationship before, but overall Syd generally tries to have a good relationship with Bobby, mainly because she still cares about him in some way. But boy does Bobby make that fucking hard. It would be a lot easier for Syd to try to have an earnest conversation with him if he didn't (predictably) turn around and try to use their conversation to sell his next paper.

Ellie sometimes gets annoyed by Glitch. They work well together on Operation Hemera and they do become friends by the end of Mind Blind, but sometimes Glitch makes jokes at what, for Ellie, are really inappropriate moments. Ellie is having some of the worst weeks of her life right now - maybe she doesn't want to hear a joke at this exact second and she just wants to know what she has to do to get her brother back and fix this whole mess, please.

While this is generally untrue (she loves him very much and is very close to him), Elle is currently pretty annoyed with John! He and Hope went behind her back to try and get her application to Aeon rejected because they were being overprotective and underestimated her capabilities, and then he shows up to lunch and doesn't even act apologetic about it when she's still feeling pretty hurt. She loves her dad and she's not going to let this ruin their relationship, but an apology would have been nice. (Especially after she went behind their back to apply in secret, since she knew they wouldn't like her applying to Unity.)

Is there someone your OC liked at first, but then grew to dislike?

Lauren used to like Bobby (or, at least she liked how Bobby made her feel, and she liked that Bobby wanted to be around her (even if it was only to use her)). Their relationship fell apart after the whole plagiarism thing in college and now she uses him to self-sabotage.

Syd had originally thought that Captain Sung would be more involved with the police department than he actually is (in part, this is because she knew that Sung worked with Rook, and she'd always heard so much about how incredible Rook was that she had somewhat assumed that Sung was cut from the same cloth). After a few weeks at most, she became pretty disillusioned with Sung. She's (mostly) still on his good side, but that's only because she can lay it on thick when she needs to.

It's kind of unsatisfying, but Ellie and Elle don't really have this kind of relationship arc with any canon characters. The closest they would come is Andy/Antonio, but they never really liked him, he was just a waiter they had for a few seconds and didn't really think about at all. The people they work closely with are all people they generally like (though they may find them occasionally annoying or tedious, they don't dislike them), and the people who aren't in their close social circles they don't care enough about enough to really dislike or hate them now.

Is there someone your OC didn’t like at first, but then got along with later?

For Lauren, pretty much all of Unit Bravo if I'm being honest. She viewed them mostly as an obstacle in her way (especially Adam, who was the most in-her-way as the commanding agent of his team and as someone who is equally stubborn to her). She gets along with them all and cares about them now, even if she doesn't think that they care about her the same way.

For Syd, she didn't like Adam (he's got a stick so far up his ass she's sure he can taste it) at first, but after they got to know each other better he became her best friend :).

Ellie got a really poor first impression of Ambrose when she first met him. She thought he was unnecessarily rude to Stephanie Valero, one of the cadets he talks down to during orientation (Ellie doesn't get along well with people that are unnecessarily rude or cruel, and she thinks Ambrose putting down a student in front of all of her classmates on the first day is both of those things). However, as she starts working with him, she begins to appreciate other qualities of his (how good he is at his job, how hard he's trying to get her brother back, etc.) and starts to understand that he's hard on people because he wants them to do well and survive the dangerous situations their line of work puts them in.

Elle has a similar arc with Ambrose - she initially thinks he's an obnoxious hardass, but she quickly comes to see him as a mentor figure once they start working together on Operation Hemera.

[not-sewell]

crazy how someone (a poc) must take accountability for the mental health of a (white) person after bringing to attention their racism but said (white) person absolutely can wash their hands off of the reaction the poc receives from others after they completely miss the point and put the poc on blast

cool cool cool