#i had a ton of ocs and was even planning on making a murder mystery visual novel w them

[carynsilver]

Favorite Fics: Darcy Edition

It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these. Things started going on that hurt my soul, and I just felt like, who cares about some fic recs when people are getting hurt? But… I don’t know. I still find solace and comfort in reading stories, even when things are hard—especially when things are hard. So, I finally felt like maybe it was time for another. If the fic writers out there are giving me escape, warm fuzzies, and enjoyment during these weird times, then they deserve some love directed back at them.

So far, I’ve listed my top 10 favorite Stucky, Drarry, and Stony fics. I love them all, but… that is a lot of dudes. I decided it was time for a little girl power in my fanfic recs. One of my favorite BAMF female characters is Darcy Lewis—one of the best and most under-rated, under-explored characters in the MCU.

I love Darcy as the every-girl who has the moxie and chutzpa to hold her own in a life full of superheroes. The girl tased the God of Thunder because he was freaking her out, for goodness sake! I love her being BFFs with Jane, being Thor’s lightening sister, and creating a found family. I love her living in the tower and caring for all the superheroes and science geniuses like they won’t care for themselves. There’s enough leeway in her backstory for fun twists, too, like being Jewish, or—one of my absolute faves—secretly being the daughter of Tony Stark.

There are a ton of good Darcy fics out there, but these are my top 10. Thank you, writers, for sharing these amazing stories with us!

Casa de Island Avengers by @inkbert

I clicked on this story because of WinterShock (Darcy/Bucky), which is a favorite ship of mine (I feel my love of Bucky has been previously discussed at length, lol), but it has become one of my favorite fics of all time. Not even just in the MCU—if I were listed my top five fanfics ever read, this one is on the list.

The concept is simple—post-Ultron, the Avengers started falling apart as a team, so Steve spearheads the effort to get them all on a two-week vacation to Tony’s private island in a last-ditch bonding effort. Every character (except Thor, but he does get some good screen time) has his or her own point of view for at least a chapter or two. Sometimes, this leads to characters sounding the same, but @inkbert really grounds each character in their own backstory and makes their inner monologues sound unique. Then, so many wacky hijinks ensue—camping, drinking, movie nights, girl bonding, sailing, pranks, and the most competitive game nights and challenges you’ve ever seen.

The ships included are Darcy/Bucky, Steve/Natasha, Pepper/Tony, and Clint/Wanda, but this story isn’t only about the ships. It’s about all these crazy characters bonding—found family at its finest. This is probably my favorite Darcy/Jane BFFs story ever, and the Bruce/Tony science bro connection is classic. The story is fully seated in cannon (up through Ultron and moving to the ccmpound), except no Clint/secret family and Pietro lives. Read it. Read it now! And if you enjoy it, there are several one-shots that follow, including a Wanda-centric one that shouldn’t be missed.

Best Supporting Soulmate by Valeris

I love a good soulmate fic, and this is an excellent one. The first thing your soulmate says to you is written on your skin, and there are both romantic and platonic soulmates. Darcy has Jane as a platonic soulmate, but it’s her other soulmate who made her life crazy before she even met them. What are you supposed to do when your soulmate’s first words to you are to let them die? 

The two primary ships in this fic are Wintershock and Stony, which work well together, but the story delves into a lot more relationships. I don’t love the whole amnesia trope in a Stucky fic because losing all that history and friendship hurts so much, but in a WinterShock fic, I have a real soft spot for Darcy being able to help post-HYDRA Bucky learn how to person again, and she does that in spades in this one. She also cultivates friendships with just about everyone in Avengers Tower and beyond. Darcy/Johnny Storm BFFs are amazing, and the deep friendship Darcy develops with Tony in this story gives me all the feels. This is a great version of BAMF Darcy who can see what the tortured characters need and is able to help them get there. And there is some interesting conflict with the Fantastic Four, as well.

This was one of the first, if not the first, WinterShock stories I ever read. I had been trying TaserHawk, but it wasn’t really my cuppa, and then somehow found this one and got hooked.

Road Trip of Champions by @leftennant

Natasha and Steve are going on a road trip. Steve wants Bucky to come with, but they feel like they need a fourth to make things even. Natasha bribes Darcy into coming with, and over the course of the trip, we get a lovely WinterShock romance. The road trip concept is fun, and Darcy and Bucky have a light enemies to friends to lovers vibe going on. Bucky is recovering, Darcy isn’t going to take anyone’s crap, and Natasha and Steve really just want a little private time along the way. And the bit at the end of the main story when they play paintball—classic and a scene that has stuck in my mind long after reading many other fics. The protective vibe Bucky has for Darcy after all this and how it even affects paintball is adorable. There are other one-shots in this ’verse as well that should not be missed. You might never think of lemons the same again.

Daybreak by @anogete

Anogete has a really good touch with snarky, caretaker Darcy. I love all her WinterShock stories, but this is the one that’s stuck with me the most. The concept of Darcy trying to help dismantle Bucky’s trigger words by creating new memories for each one was so compelling. The therapy aspect did give me pause (a personal thing; it is dealt with as respectfully as possible in the story), but it all works out in the end. The fact that I loved it so much despite a mild personal ping with the concept speaks to how well it’s written, honestly. :-) And, if this one isn’t to your taste, Anogete has plenty of great WinterShock to read, so definitely try one of them instead!

The Run ’Verse by themonkeycabal

Though it eventually becomes a WinterShock story, my favorite thing about this universe is the Tony-Stark-is-Darcy’s-father trope. This is probably my absolute favorite version of that relationship. There is also time travel, and BAMF Peggy Carter. And even though I don’t love the Darcy-becomes-a-Shield-agent thing as much as Darcy the Scientist Wrangler, this story has a great, cannon-compliant reason for why Tony, Clint, etc., weren’t able to come help Steve, Natasha, Sam, and Maria in CA:tWS. There are a ton of stories in this ’verse, and I enjoyed every single one. My favorite, though, is the one where Darcy and Tony go visit Howard’s forgotten secret bunker and have three generation’s-worth of overdue conversations.

A Morbid Taste for Ice by sitehound

This is probably my favorite TaserTricks story, though I haven’t read nearly as much Darcy/Loki as I have other Darcy ships. I think it’s because writing Loki in character and making it believable to me that Darcy would fall in love with him, especially post-Avengers 1, is a fine line. If the fic apologizes too much for Loki’s wrongdoing without enough repentance/reformation, I don’t buy that she would legit be able to fall for him, but, go too far on the redemption and Loki gets OOC.

This story hits all those beats pretty perfectly and combines them with the whole Darcy/Jane/Thor (and now Loki) found family thing, Thor/Loki brother angst, Jane/Darcy BFFs, and a really compelling murder mystery to boot. There is also an interesting subplot with Loki being what basically amounts to a magical mechanic that I found really interesting amidst the snark, romance, and mystery solving. I’m sad this writer only has the one story up because it is so good!

Bygone by @inkbert

This story is Shieldshock (Steve/Darcy), not WinterShock, so even though I do try to only choose one fic per author (mostly), I’m totally fine having two by @inkbert on this list. Besides, this fic is amazing, and it’s not like there are anyone’s rules to follow on these fic rec lists but my own, lol! This is hands down my favorite ShieldShock story ever. 

Jane’s experiment goes awry and sends Darcy into the past—specifically after Bucky left for basic but before he shipped out and Steve got tapped for Project Rebirth. Darcy ends up living with Rebecca and Mrs. Barnes, and she falls head over heels in love with tiny Steve, so much so that they get married despite not knowing what the future holds for her. Then, the night before Steve is going to report to basic, Darcy blips out again, and when she blips back in, Steve is dead. The rest of the story has Darcy blipping her way through time, making friends with Howard, Peggy, and the Howling Commandos. Ultimately, though, it’s her brother/sister relationship with Tony that is the most poignant, especially by the time they catch up to the present again. And Darcy is a complete BAMF the whole time—going on missions, learning to fly anything with wings, doing anything and everything to keep her found family together. This story also gave me a plan for what I would do if I were ever shot back into a timeline like this where I couldn’t sew or cook or make a living—become a typist… genius, Darce!

Their Hearts Said by @anogete

Another Anogete story because I just can’t resist. All her stories are really good, be they WinterShock, ShieldShock, or even her really good Loki/OC fic. I would definitely suggest giving all of them a try.

This ShieldShock story is my favorite post-Infinity War tale. It picks up a few weeks after the snap, with everyone grieving and trying to figure out what to do next. Steve is barely holding it together while the remaining Avengers try to figure out what they can do. After Jane and her family disappear, Darcy heads to Avengers Tower, hoping against hope that maybe Thor knows what’s going on. Darcy and Steve start sleeping together as more of an escape from the awfulness around them than anything else, but as the team works on a plan to save the day and bring everyone back, they develop real feelings for each other. There is also time travel and I really loved the minimalist way she wrote how the day was saved in this. It balanced well with the character stuff. This story is much preferable to End Game—too bad cannon didn’t go like this!

Good Madness by Em_Jaye

Normally, I prefer my Darcy embedded within the MCU cannon. I adore that every girl keeping up with superheroes thing. But, I do enjoy a good AU on occasion, and this is one of my faves. It’s ShieldShock and kid!fic. Darcy runs a bakery that was left to her by her mother (real You’ve Got Mail tones there, but no creepy identity porn), and Steve comes in for treats on occasion. One day, he brings his daughter, and the rest is history. I love the Steve/Darcy romance in this one, and Steve’s daughter is a sweet character. I love the Full House thing Steve has going on co-raising his daughter with Bucky and Sam. And there is a nice Bucky/Natasha subplot and some really good Tony, which I would say more about except that I don’t want to spoil the surprise. My favorite story in the series is the five rules one at the end, so definitely keep going long enough for that. And if you like Em_Jaye’s writing, you should check out The Long Way Around—a Shieldshock, time travel, Endgame fix-it WIP that is excellent, as well.

One Year by @steeleholtingon

This story is WinterShieldShock. OT3s aren’t my favorite trope, but somehow with Bucky/Darcy/Steve, it works. Maybe it’s something about the boys’ history and Darcy dragging them into the future. Kind of what she does for each of them individually in WinterShock and ShieldShock, but with even more oomph. I haven’t read the whole tag, but One Year is my favorite.

Bucky’s Winter Soldier recovery has pushed both Steve and Bucky to the edge. Steve ends up leaving (at Bucky’s demand, but also because the team is afraid he’s going to do some kind of suicide via superhero duty if he doesn’t get his head on straight). The wrinkle—the night before he left, Darcy and Steve had a comforting one-night stand that resulted in two pinks lines on the test. The resulting story takes place one month at a time. Steve tries to piece himself back together and put his feelings for Bucky in the past whilst falling for Darcy over text messages. Bucky, on the other hand, realizes how he fucked it all up and vows to be there for Darcy and Steve’s baby while Steve is gone. Darcy navigates the waters of an unplanned (but wanted) pregnancy while balancing her feelings for both of them. And all the rest of the Avengers, science crew, and other Avengers-adjacent peeps support all three of them through it all. Angst, recovery, and a happy ending. So good!

So, after all that, what are you guys waiting for? Get to reading all this Darcy goodness! :-)

And now I need to figure out what fic rec list to work on next. I have a Stranger Things one (Harringrove and Mileven) almost ready to go, and then I need to decide what to do with the ships and characters that I don’t have a full top ten for. Group them together, perhaps? Bughead and LoVe might be a good combination, lol. And WinterHawk and WinterIron.

#darcy lewis #darcy x steve #darcy x loki #darcy x bucky #wintershock #shieldshock #tasertricks #fanfic #fanfic rec #quarantine reads #highly recommend #thanks for writing these fics #bucky barnes #steve rogers

[drunkdaisychains]

Aera the Fair

full story updated regularly  @

https://www.wattpad.com/story/258839356-aera-the-fair

Pairings: OCF/OCM, OC/Brynjolf

Warnings: Smut, killing, theft, fluff

Summery:Between the Butcher murders, lovers spats, and the war going one, it’s a wonder that there is any peace in Windhelm. Valun Stormcloak, son of  Ulfric, has taken an interest in a fair maiden adopted into clan Shattersheild. But she has an incriminating secret. Can she keep her man, avenge her family, and keep her secret or will she be cast out of the city, never able to see her family again.

An excerpt from Chapter 4

"Stop! Assassin!" The Markarth guards chased her towards the city gates. She had successfully planted the incriminating letter on her target but was caught sneaking out of his room in the keep. She dodged and swerved people as she sprinted from the scene. She just needed the shadows of the night to conceal her. As she stepped briskly down the steps and away from the city she tried not to concentrate on the burning building in her legs. Farther and farther they carried her as she dipped and dodged arrows flying from the guards bows. She finally saw it, the shadows along the side of the road that she'd slip into. As quick as she appeared she vanished, not even an invisibility spell needed tho she did have that power. As she controlled her breathing she heard the crunching of dirt as guards flew past her. 

"Damn. We lost her," one said after a moment of looking around. After another bit of sniffing the air they turned to return to their posts. She waited with a hand over her mouth until she couldn't hear them and her shoulders relaxed. She decided it was best to stick to the shadows the rest of her way back to the sanctuary. Forsworn had been attacking travellers for months and she knew they attacked in numbers. She was skilled but not against an army. Her journey was uneventful aside from the occasional wildlife, she made record time back to the sanctuary. Little did she know as she passed through the door, she would be met with aftermath. She was able to piece together the scene in moments and listened anxiously as the family discussed the moments that had just transpired. 

Oh Cicero. You should have waited until I got back. Thought to herself as Astrid had furiously turned to her. Her objective was simple, she wanted her husband home and alive… and avenged. 

"Take Shadowmere. You'll notice he's one of us," she suggested and Aera turned on her heel. She needed to get to her friend before that werewolf did and she needed to fix this. As she approached the black pond outside the sanctuary doors it began to boil. The sounds of galloping could be heard mixed with the bubbling and finally with a grand rear, Shadowmere appeared. 

"That's showy, even for you," she giggled at the horse. Shadowmere was more apart of the brotherhood than Astrid but Aera was not about to let on that she knew it. The Dark steed had been fabled in the Brotherhood as he was Lucien Lachance's ride. Shadowmere was family quite literally and had always wondered why she was not the one to inherit him. For her surname was LaChance, she was always destined to be an assassin like her ancestor. She dropped the last name,in favour of her nickname given to her in Bruma, when she crossed over the border. She didn't know that it was the same as the Jarl in Solitude but to change it after would have been suspicious.

She mounted Shadowmere and kicked him in the direction of Dawnstar. 

Upon arriving she was met with the scene of blood and a clearly injured Arnbjorn. She gave him a healing potion from her satchel and offered him Shadowmere. 

"Oh don't worry about me. I'll make it back, just make sure that bastard regrets it." He muttered before stalking off. 

"What is life's greatest illusion?" The ghostly voice belonging to the door asked. 

"Innocence, my brother," she answered. 

"Welcome home," as it opened toward her. The sanctuary was in rather nice shape for being abandoned. Desolate and home to only spiders but she could find comfort here if she had to. She summoned her ancestor to fight alongside her, greeting him as an old friend. 

"Ah Listener, the Night Mother has told me of your devotion," he growled. She was in awe but had no time to be struck as a spectral assassin materialized from the wall. Cicero's voice could be heard taunting her. She hoped he hadn't turned on her as well. She sliced through spectral assassin after spectral assassin, nearly being run through by traps set or set on fire. The cold ruins of whatever tunneled into the sanctuary made her breathe freeze. She could hear a weird growl before Lucien jumped past her and began fending off the troll. Once she shook off her shock she too joined in the quarrel. Finally after a gruelling tour through the snow and cobwebs, she burst into the door where Cicero's voice was clearest she had heard since she stepped through the door. She sheathed her swords and rushed to his side. Her friend was in a bad way and could use a potion. She dug through her satchel and uncorked the small red vial handing it to him to drink. 

"I won't kill you," she confirmed. Cicero had warned her that Astrid was a traitor and she had more reason to trust him than her. Lucien mumbled about a purification, much like the Cheydinhal she had begun at despite it being considered the Bravil chapter. 

"You must leave Cicero here so Astrid believes I am dead!" He exclaimed. 

"She'll have no choice but to believe me. I just hope she doesn't come check for herself," she said out loud. 

"Go now! Go tell the traitor you killed Cicero," he said scooting closer to the fire. She nodded and turned on her heel to make the journey back. 

While the journey back wasn't as bad now that she was on the best steed for an assassin to be paired with, she was worried about Cicero. When she wasn't worrying about his well being her mind wandered over to Valun. She would reminisce their tumble together and how he gave her what she couldn't find in Brynjolf or the sailors who would always propose to her. She had even considered Thrynn before he showed how belligerent he was on mead. They all had excitement and mystery. They would all be able to give her a fair life, but whether they wanted to or she wanted them to was up for debate. But with Valun she also received a comfort she had never had. It was easy to be with him and forget about her secrets with him. It was just when she would think of them again they would hit her like a ton of bricks and he would be right there kissing away her worries, trying to convince her to be his bride. 

Thankfully Astrid not only believed her, but sent her on the next step for the grand scheme they had planned. She had to find the author of the popular cookbook "uncommon taste" and steal his identity. First she needed to go to Markarth to locate him. She used her travel time on Shadowmere to prepare her alibi and to make her travel decisions. She would prepare for the possibility of an extended time away while they dealt with the final mark. Killing the emperor was no small task and she wanted to ensure there was no way she would be compromised if she had to stay away longer. The chef in Markarth was easy to get the information from, and simply having the kitchens closed off already while he slept made it perfect to stuff a cloth in his mouth when she took his life. This job was far too easy, the cook, innkeeper, and even the bard at the inn almost jumped at the opportunity to tell someone the orc was in their basement room. Foolish of them to not be more discrete. Lugging the large Orsimer into the hiding place was the hardest part. It made her arms burn to pull herself up the ladder after. It was finally time to make history. She rode up to the Solitude gates, Jarrin root in her pocket. She had changed into fine clothes and a chef's hat so to look the part she was playing. 

The writ worked to allow her access and soon she was in the kitchen with the regular castle dour cook stirring away at the base of a potage le magnifique. She took some creative liberties while cooking before placing the Jarrin root into the stew and watching it dissolve quickly. The cook picked up the pot and carried it painstakingly slowly into the dining room where the Emperor sat with nobles from all over Skyrim. She placed herself on the side of the table closest to the door for a quick escape. When his face landed in his bowl she was already turned around and sprinting to the door. Unfortunately that's where she would be stopped by Commander Maro, angry and vengeful. 

"As of right now your sanctuary is being put to the sword," he growled, the words were like fire in her ears. Her last home, destroyed by the Empire. She must have looked as crazy mad as Cicero did because there was an unsure look in Maro's eyes as she ran up to him with her swords drawn. Immediately she used both blades to slice his head off, as if he were softened butter. It rolled down off his neck and to his guards feet as she sheathed the bloody blades and sprinted down the tower steps. She dodged soldiers left and right knowing she had to get to the sanctuary as fast as she could. She used the city walls the same way she had when she killed the Vicci girl at her own wedding. The walls were able to limit her exposure to flying arrows and pursuing guards, her lungs burned as she pushed to keep going as fast as she could. 

She burst through the gate doors before they could lock them and took a running start at Shadowmere, who seemed to know exactly what to do as he began trotting in the other direction before launching into a sprint before she was properly seated. 

"We have to go home Shadowmere, they need us," she said to the steed as she fumbled with a stirrup to give relief from the bouncing. Her eyes watered both from the worry and from the wind. When she made it up to the sanctuary she could see the horses and soldiers waiting. Shadowmere charged them, rearing and attacking them as Aera hopped off. She spun with her blades out, cutting through the skin exposed from where the armour couldn't protect. She whirled around ensuring no one but her and Shadowmere would survive this fight. Finally as the soldiers lay in pools of their own blood she turned to the door and rushed in. 

Fire, oil that was used to cause the fire, and bodies were everywhere. She stabbed the two soldiers who advanced on her almost as if they were an afterthought and rushed deeper into the burning hall to find survivors. Veezara and Festus' bodies were burned and almost unrecognizable. Gabriella and her spider were nowhere to be found and Arnbjorn was a werewolf, attacking a group of soldiers at once before succumbing to his injuries too. She rushed to the dining hall to find Nazir fighting more of the assailants and she immediately joined in. 

"You're alive!" Nazir yelled over slashing and clashing. 

"Can't say the same for everyone else," she yelled back clearly distraught. The last soldier was run through with a final slash of her sword and she was able to turn to the blood splattered Alik'r. They both launched into a search for survivors until she heard the ghostly voice calling to her. She was in the night mother's room and she was requesting her to step into the coffin. Aera was hesitant but obliged as she is the chosen listener.  She closed her eyes trying to block out the heinous trauma that had just occurred. 

  "Sleep…" the voice soothed.

#skyrim fanfiction #bryjolf #The Elder Scrolls #fanfiction #romance #action #the dark brotherhood #Assassin #cicero

[blarrghe]

Fic writer meme!

Was tagged by @hawkeish @inquisitoracorn @hollyand-writes @musetta3 and @noire-pandora so it’s probably time I do this thing. Will tag @midnightprelude @oftachancer @silversynthesis and @fandomn00blr who have probably all already done this or at least been tagged but I lose track (let me know if you did this already) Name: I’m blarrghe on here and blarghe with only one r on AO3, keepin’ it simple. Fandoms: Just Dragon Age really Most popular oneshot: Anders, Attraction, Other Things That Start With A Most popular multichapter: The Merrill Sessions, by like, a lot. Which is a tad distressing because I’m not 100% on where it’s going yet... Actual worst part of writing: research probably. The other day I went “Halward Pavus is a venture capitalist!” and then I had to go learn what venture capitalists even do and on god it’s so boring. How you choose your titles: Depends. A few have shakespeare-inspired titles (regardless of any actually related shakespeare inspiration in the plot, but y’know, it’s shakespeare, so it’s in there somewhere.) My wips usually have silly titles so I just try to grab on to something from the story. Do you outline: Yes, to varying degrees. I usually write out a sort of point-form plan of events, and in places it might be elaborated on to the point of having full blocks of dialogue or basically perfect scenes. And it changes as the story shapes up. Every now and then a one-shot just pops out fully formed all by itself though. Usually between 2-4am or while I’m on a bus.

Ideas I probably won’t get around to, but wouldn’t it be nice?

- prequel fic to my longfic Shall We Not Revenge? that follows my OC Leila through the Fifth Blight when she was a child fleeing Kinloch Hold to the point where she joins the Inquisition, which would feature my Warden Surana and my Hawke both as background characters since she passes through both of their stories unseen. It would be very OC heavy, feature a lot of bardic intrigue in Orlais, and probably no one would read it but it would be a really fun and cool way to connect all my stories.

- Prequel fic for Taren Lavellan because wow I really did not have to go so hard on fleshing out his backstory but it’s all there. Would feature sexy sailors, a ton of Dalish lore that I just fully make up, and the Found Family trope. Would love to do it as a handful of comics one day or smth.

- post tresspasser “Veronica Mars style” canon-compliant college mystery fic where Taren goes to the University of Orlais to be a giant nerd/guest professor. It would feature Dorian being framed for murder and silly college roommate drama.

- Um, finishing Shall We Not Revenge. I’ll get back to it eventually. And then probably rewrite half of it because it’s a goddamn mess.

- A bunch of heavy metal power ballads about gay elves.

Callouts @ Me: I’ve never kept a regular schedule in my life. Best writing traits: People have said I am good at capturing character voices and I’d tend to agree. I think my dialogue is pretty good and I’ve definitely gotten better at descriptive metaphor of late. Also my OCs are very fleshed out & you should care about them.

Spicy Tangential Opinion: I’ve read so many good takes in response to this question over the last few days that it’s hard to think of something new to say! @inquisitoracorn in particular said something really good about recognition being more luck than skill which was true and also comforting.

Ok this has probably been said in a lot of ways but yesterday I went on a little rant because in this house we read a lot of comics and a lot of mythology. So recently it’s been the Poetic Edda and I found myself thinking about art and stories and human nature and Thor, who in Marvel comics is so wholly divorced from his Eddic origins. He’s walkin’ around in blue jeans and kissing scientists in a modern setting while having plotlines that are vaguely Norse-mythology-inspired and also other things. Meanwhile the mythology itself is just an accumulation of years of oral traditions that changed over time, and so on and so on. And so if a writer were to take the Thor of the MCU and stick him in a story based on like, a Jane Austen novel, the only difference there between that person and a Marvel writer is whether or not they’re getting paid.

Anyway the point is one part “fanfic is real writing” and one part “Information Wants To Be Free”. We talk about fanfic being great practice as if it’s practice for real writing, and while it is great practice, it’s also not actually any different to tell stories for free with characters and tropes and themes you took from other places because that’s all art ever is, anyway. And people do incredible things with themes and new riffs on existing thoughts and references to classics and on and on in fanfic! For the most part I think people in fandoms tend to understand and appreciate this, but because Anyone Can Put Anything On the Internet (even if it’s bad!) there’s a bit of stigma over the “realness” of the art. But making stories is what humans do and they should get to do it in whatever capacity they want. Art should be weird and personal and stolen from everywhere; there’s no such thing as a wholly original idea because that’s not how skills are learned. You gotta learn ‘em from somewhere -- from other people’s art. As long as you are not actively harming others or inciting harm then just like, make shit.

Oh also, that all said, you should definitely read real books to get better at writing.

#fic writer meme #about me #writing things #blarghe

[thisweekingundamwing]

This Week in Gundam Wing: October 22nd - 28th

Happy Sunday Gundam Wing Fandom!

We have tons of super awesome things for you to check out this week!  Many many thanks to those who submitted and tagged us in content - it makes our job so much easier! The fandom is growing, and being part of that is a privilege and job to watch, but it does sometimes make it hard to keep up!  If you’ve created something we missed, please feel free to let us know so we can feature you too!

Remember, if you find something you love, please please make sure you let the creator know how much you enjoyed it!  Every little comment/like/reblog goes a long way towards fueling their desire to do more!  

Thank you for all that you do, and keep submitting your great content to us!

This update was delayed by the Great Tumblr Crash of 2017, please accept our apologies!

-Mod CB

Below the cut!

Fanfiction:

(please take note of any warnings within the fics themselves, do not rely on this list as exhaustive)

@amberlyinviolet​, @yourbloodlikewine

In This Light, Chapter 3: Eli

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12386715/chapters/28402484

Duo x OC, Trowa x OC, Solo x OC. AU, child abuse mention, Sexual Assault Mention, homophobic parents, Re-Written Characters, Drug Use, Violence, off screen murder

Duo spent the last semester working in his older brother's coffee shop. He's resigned himself to a boring spring when a stranger appears, shaking up his entire life.Eli left home last fall, choosing to spend the last six months living out of his van on his travels from the Midwest to the East Coast. By the time he arrives at Ink's, the novelty of traveling alone has started to wear off. Still, the last thing he's expecting is to meet someone who's going to change all that for him

@anaranesindanarie​

Never Forget to Breathe

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12462762/chapters/28362603

2+5, 3x4, 1xR. 

Accident, motorcycle, Drunk Driver, Injury, Recovery, Physical Therapy, Pain, Depression, Anger, Self-Hatred

An accident leaves him with a new outlook on life. After a long recovery period, he decides to travel the world, eventually settling down in a small college town to peruse a degree or three. There he runs into an old friend who he hasn't seen in years.

@chronicwhimsy

Saudade, Chapter 12: Fővárosi Nagycirkusz

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11352189/chapters/28440536

Eventual 3x4, 2+3 bromance throughout

Everyone is fed up of Trowa being useless so they take matters into their own hands. Trowa doesn’t handle it well.

@claraxbarton

This Feeling, Chapter 1

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12520764

2x6, eventual 2x3x6, slow burn, post canon, angst

A dozen years after the wars, Trowa is still trying to find a place for himself. A glimpse into the lives of Duo Maxwell and Zechs Merquise makes him wish for things he had never before considered.

@cosmostar​

Desire Told In Colors, Chapter 16: Navy (Now Complete)

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11227302/chapters/28488556

Zechs x Noin. AU, from sex to love, canon het relationship, heterosexual sex, unplanned pregnancy, violence, torture

"There were kisses printed all over his shirt, some playfully smeared, some carefully stamped, some surpassing touching his collarbone, too many for not being remembered. With a swift movement, he pulled off the shirt and found a message written on the back, the lipstick so red it made him think of blood: 'Call me.'" A 2017 Summer of Zechs submission. Color prompts. 

@cynfinnegan​

Omnibus, Chapter 5

http://archiveofourown.org/works/7373635/chapters/28558204

3x4

Another piece of Shatter Me inspired by a writing prompt.

Note that this fic is a collection of smaller bits, so please note individual chapter pairings and warnings.

@fadedsepia

SPF

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12532780

2x3x5, beach, one shot, innuendo, nudist!Wufei

Wufei, Trowa, and Duo discuss sunburn and beachwear.

Kaiser Chris

Fall of the Lightning Count

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12692159/1/Fall-of-the-Lightning-Count

Zechs Merquise the Lightning Count, a legendary MS Ace and hero of OZ. In July of AC 195, Zechs chose to commit treason against OZ, defying the Romefeller Foundation for honor in order to duel a Gundam. What Zechs did not predict that others would find fault with his actions, and strike him down for consorting with the Gundams. A mistake that cost him his life. (AU miniseries)

@kangofu-cb

Belonging

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12473872

1x2x5. Kinktober entry. PWP. Double penetration. Threesome

Heero and Duo help Wufei relax after a rough day at work.

Reflection

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12527160

2x?, Kinktober entry, mirrors, lingerie, mild kink, pwp, rimming

Duo comes home to a much-appreciated surprise.

LittleMouse

Warcraft, Chapter 2: Waking to Us

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12429339/chapters/28489976

AU, fantasy

Alternate Fantasy World - A world where people have ‘Talents’ that allow them to control certain elements. Different Talents can ‘Join’ to become a specific entity - some can heal, some can repair damage to land and buildings, some are weapons. The Talents you ‘Join’ with are called your Others. The perfect Joining is of five separate Talents. One lonely Fire Talent far to the North has given up waiting for his Others - good thing they haven’t stopped looking for him.

Lord Raa

Heero Sandwhich

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12594063/1/Heero-Sandwich

Nobody asked for this, especially not Heero Yuy, but here we are all the same. Prepare for a "comedy" with some adult content. If the chapters feel truncated, then you might want to look for a certain Fanfiction Forum on the (dot) net for a more complete experience.

Luvsanime02

Engage, Chapter 1

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12458772/chapters/28352415

Post-Series, Politics, Friendship, Canon-Typical Violence, Minor Character Death, Government Upheaval, Language

The time has come for all of their plans to finally start being put into motion. This is the eighth story in Navigation, a fem!Heero series.

The Fullness of One’s Life

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12442440

Sally x Une.  Kinktober entry.  Fluff.  Bathtub sex.

Une takes a bath after a long, difficult day, and Sally joins her.

Back Against The Wall

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12483552

2x3.  Explicit.  Kinktober entry. Exhibitionism.

“We’re just bros being bros and doing something 100% platonic, but somehow we’re turning each other on because of not-so-buried feelings for each other, and we can’t make it stop” sex. Trowa's tired of painting all day, but at least he has a nice distraction in the form of Duo Maxwell.

Tequila Toasts

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12483604

1x2. Kinktober entry.  69. Explicit sexual content.  AU.

Duo's having some bad luck lately, but he'll feel better after hanging out with his ex, Heero Yuy.

With Words and Deeds

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12498892

Une x Treize. Kinktober entry. Mild kink. Mild sexual content.  Boot fetish.

Une is a young woman, and when she puts on the uniform, she's a soldier. To Treize, she is both.

MaryDBlack

Life & Death, Chapter 4

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11788950/chapters/28386924

Duo x Harry, Harry x Tom Riddle, Harry x Voldemort.  Dubious Consent, Dubious Morality, Soulmates, non graphic sex, Rape/Non-con Elements, Reincarnation, Harry is Solo

We see a little of who Solo/Harry is/was. Mentions of child abuse.

Maldoror_Chant 

Flayed Horses

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12458172

1x5. Angst.  PTSD. Trauma. Depression.  Suicidal thoughts.

Wufei found Heero a few months after the war had ended and spent over a year helping him find that end of the war for himself. It was...a lot of work. There were still no go zones and things they could not do together as a couple, but a museum should be safe enough-Wufei found Heero a few months after the war had ended.The war had ended. Ended. Ended.never ends never ends never ends never ends never ends never ends

The Arrangement, Chapter 39: The Distance Between Need and Want, Part II

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12131427/chapters/28523116

1x5. Veeery long fic ahoy, Not a romance per se, sex and violence, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Angst and Humor, Preventer missions, war-time missions, mature themes, mentions of torture, background threesome, communication and emotions are for pansies as far as the main character is concerned

Wufei, struggling with his demons, agrees to a wartime fling with Heero, no affection needed or wanted. But the 'arrangement' lasts and grows as they join the preventers. It could become a source of strength for both. If they let it.

The Source of all Things, Chapter 8: Intersection, Part I

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12121344/chapters/28556848

3x4, eventual 2x5, eventual 1x2x5. Science Fiction, Fantasy, Plot Twists, fairly graphic depiction of sex, Mild description of self-harm, Mathematical Magic, weird science, crones - Freeform, Magic and Technology brawling and eventually screwing, Eventual Threesome, Kinda, Insanity of arcane origin, The universe is a pile of marbles and other dubious allegories

Center, a planet where magic and technology blend. Or more accurately, fight tooth and nail. A planet of Sources, holes in our boring dimension letting through arcane power, chaos and pseudo-deities. In this hot-house of myths and very real dangers, Trowa and Quatre find a mysterious man at the end of a shamanic voyage. Portents suggest this Heero Yuy is crucial to Center’s survival. He’s important enough to have some interesting enemies after him, at any rate: a devious killer and thief called ‘Shinigami’, and a very irate Dragon. Beyond them looms an even greater threat. Indeed, the greatest of them all.

Megumi_L1

Mission Accepted: A Gundam Wing Fanfic, Chapter 7

http://archiveofourown.org/works/7682083/chapters/28450684

1xR. Love's Calling, Dangerous Deeds, Mild Language, Non-Explicit Sex,Low Violence

One year had gone by since the last time they had seen each other face to face, since the people of Earth and of the colonies had made a true peace with each other.Things had changed. It was safe to walk on the streets again. It was all right to voice one's opinions in public again. It was perfectly okay to live.But Heero had always been suspicious of this new existence. It was too peaceful. Those suspicions had led him to a new path, a new adventure, and the young woman next to him, wanting a break from her predictable new life, had decided to join him on that path....

Murshmallow

Mountebank

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12453362/1/Mountebank

AC 205- 25 year old Heero Yuy has been living comfortably in space for the past 5 years as an engineer named Dr. Odin Lowe Jr., heading the life support effort for the Mars Terraformation Project. When he is arrested for the disappearance of Foreign Minister Relena Darlian, he must prove his innocence, while tracking down the person responsible, from behind bars. 

NEW *M* RATING

Dossier

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12449464/1/Dossier

Heero Yuy had spent time soul searching. He had spent time trying to be human. When his birth certificate is handed to him on a harddrive, he may have to do it all again. [1xR]

Mythical Rose

Andromeda, Chapter 1

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12482704/chapters/28413824

1x2, 3x4, 5x6. 

Five years ago Heero Yuy and Duo Maxwell met, fell in love and married. Three years of happiness was thrown away when Duo thought Heero had cheated on him. Now two years later, they meet again on the Battlestar Andromeda where Duo is Commander. Sent on a mission together, will they find their love is still there or will saving Earth finally tear them apart.

nagi_schwarz

Unknown Roads Lead Away from Home

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12528300

Stargate and Supernatural crossover. Part 23 of the Good Hunting series.  Dark, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Drug Addiction

Rodney and the team's progress toward opening the gates of Atlantis is sidetracked by a child asking for food.

Nemesis13

The Trials and Tribulations of a High Society Shinigami

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12690364/1/The-Trials-and-Tribulations-of-a-High-Society-Shinigami

Duo was a very caring woman, an open book so to speak, always there to help those that needed it with a smile on hand. The problem was she was surrounded by insane men who needed to be watched over like kids and her fellow women left her to it. Resigning herself to being the team mom Duo did her best, but she hadn't planned on Heero admitting he loved her. Things are weird now…

@noelleian​

Leather and Cream, Chapter 1

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12488244/chapters/28427404

3x4, 1x2x3x4x5. Fivesome - M/M/M/M/M, Smut, BDSM, Fluff and Smut, Sex Toys, Spanking, Rough Sex, Restraints, Pet Names, Aftercare, Rimming, Crack Treated Seriously, Dom/sub Play

In a strangely Freudian fashion, the purpose of such an experience was to know your own mortality. To knock the human ego down a few pegs and remind yourself that no, you are not infallible. To feel the terror of losing control while hidden safely behind a fortress built from steel and mortar. It was like staring Death straight in the eyes and knowing that it wasn't your time. Your body, your life, your soul, placed in the hands of those who would lay down their own to protect them.It was, to put it bluntly, the best of both worlds.

Relena For President

Civil Wars

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12500874/1/Civil-Wars

A.C. 210. Four years after the end of his marriage, Heero Yuy finds himself on a familiar, destructive path. Will it lead to redemption, or pure revenge? [1xR/broken pairing]

Red Moon Rise

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12593127/1/Red-Moon-Rise

A.C. 213. Heero and Relena are reunited after months apart and, at long last, planning a future together. But, as all too often with this fated pair, complications never fail to arise... Sequel to "Red Moon Glow."

@renmaxwell​, @shinigami-of-excellence​

We Don’t Belong, Chapter 3

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12353439/chapters/28336371

Alliance won AU, gundam pilots lost, oz lost, white fang lost, just everyone lost except the alliance, Sexual Slavery, Pedophilia, because let's be real these pilots are still 15, Forced Prostitution, Forced Sex, yes i'll tag them when they happen, Quatre isn't a sissy, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, romefeller is a huge player here, angst for YEARS, just so much angst, Dark, Execution, Alternate Universe - Dark

A look into Wufei's new life, with a terrible surprise. The one who would long to be his savior is now just like him and forced into despicable actions. When the would-be savior fails to even do that, torturous punishments follow.

This chapter contains graphic descriptions of rape

Relena’s Glam Squad

The Edge of Oblivion

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10163755/1/The-Edge-of-Oblivion

Heero Yuy returns after a 10-year absence, and much has changed. Meanwhile, the abandonment of large scale weapons didn't end all wars. All it did was lead to the rise of new weapons. Biochemical ones. When that happens, even the best kept secrets can have deadly consequences. [Rating has been changed for violence and adult themes]

Shadow-Hawk2

Imperial Guard

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/12559874/1/Imperial-Guard

Duo Maxwell is trapped in another part of the galazy far from all that he knows and the woman he loves.  He must learn to survive among primitive violent people and accept that he may never be able to return to Earth.

Shini02

Connect the Space Between, Chapter 2: Salvage

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12462054/chapters/28361337

AU, Crossover with Transformers

One man's trash is another's treasure.

Strawberrywaltz

The Forgotten, Chapter 13 (Now Complete)

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11686344/chapters/28344810

1x4, past 3x4, implied rape/non-con, amnesia, abuse

The entire universe thinks that Quatre Winner is dead, but when Heero starts having strange black-outs he begins to realize the rumors of Quatre's death might not be true.

Sylvieforaday

They Say it was a Concussion, Chapter 10

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12347688/chapters/28382840

2x6. AU. Surgeon Zechs.  Dancer Duo.

Duo takes a spill and Zechs is just what the doctor ordered.

Moving On

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12529256/chapters/28531688

2x5. Angst,  Hurt/Comfort, eventual smut, mention of past sexual abuse, past character death

Duo is trying to find his place in his own world without his crutch - Heero Yuy.

Synthesis

Soldier of OZ: Walker’s Account

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7977074/1/Soldier-of-OZ-Walker-s-Account

In AC 195, five Gundams come to Earth in Operation 'M', testing the strength, virtue and intelligence of officers and soldiers of the world's armed forces. After failing his first encounter, one ex-engineer has a chance at a better outcome, and takes it. An effort to reconcile 'Gundam Wing' with 'The Glory of Losers', from the perspective of those in OZ.

TheManwell

May Demons Rest, Chapter 29: The Contract, and Chapter 30: Cleansing

http://archiveofourown.org/works/10944786/chapters/28475736

2x3, post-canon, bad language, underage drinking, suicidal thoughts

A re-write of my 2004 fanfic "Shinigami Sleeps" - To find and free Duo from his demons, Trowa leaves his uneventful life at the circus for the mean streets of an obscure colony in L2.

Snippets

@amberlyinviolet​

https://www.tumblr.com/dashboard/blog/amberlyinviolet/166746291404

@claraxbarton​

http://claraxbarton.tumblr.com/post/166786678750/wip-wednesday-from-an-angsty-hopefully-smutty

@kangofu-cb​

https://kangofu-cb.tumblr.com/post/166802586037/wip-wednesday

https://kangofu-cb.tumblr.com/post/166856627484/happy-hour-so-claraxbarton-suggested-cocktail

https://kangofu-cb.tumblr.com/post/166764577257/youve-been-fic-tagged-share-a-few-lines-from-a

@lifeaftermeteor​ :

https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/166894505417/an-these-next-few-take-place-over-the-course-of 

 https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/166749934674/spoilers-lam-next-gen-pt1

 https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/166749950869/spoilers-lam-next-gen-pt2

https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/166749982359/spoilers-lam-next-gen-pt3

https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/166654396842/winner-family-compound-outskirts-of-douz-tunisia

@maevemauvaise

http://maevemauvaise.tumblr.com/post/166895175271/youve-been-fic-tagged-share-a-few-lines-from-a

@vegalume

http://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/166797758640/wip-wednesday

Fanart

@alpha2nd2006​

http://alpha2nd2006.tumblr.com/post/166498596662/inktober-day-17 Inktober Pilots Mashup - Clothing Swap

@drkstars-art​

https://drkstars-art.tumblr.com/post/151774942317/inktober2016-number-13-ive-been-wanting-to-draw Grown Up Cathy

@gundamwing-ellesmith​

http://gundamwing-ellesmith.tumblr.com/post/166872401739/voyeurism-dx1-theres-a-story-behind-this-which-i DX1 NSFW 'Storyboard' art

@jamyuyu​

http://jamyuyu.tumblr.com/post/166774279087/get-u-a-girl-who-can-do-both-inktober2016-with Inktober Relena

@landoftherisingspark​

https://landoftherisingspark.tumblr.com/post/166586179885/day-322-theres-nothing-deeper-to-choosing Gundam Wing inspired military garb

@lighteningavenger​

http://lighteningavenger.tumblr.com/post/166722654853 OC drawing for @gwoc-october​

@looklingart​

http://looklingart.tumblr.com/post/166612238149/request-im-always-here-for-anything-duo-duo-x Duo and Quatre

@noromax​

https://lbro009.tumblr.com/post/166874263965/cynfinnegan-noromax-gwepisode50-noromax fanart of unnamed canon character “Hamilton”

@outofworkshinigami

http://outofworkshinigami.tumblr.com/post/166672006472/i-needed-a-full-ref-of-my-treize-so-here-you-go Treize reference

@pawedprints​

http://pawedprints.tumblr.com/post/166690000118/inktober-day-22 Inktober Relena

@vegalume​

http://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/166871514440/finally-got-off-of-my-procrastinating-posterior Painting of Sally on cardboard

Meta/Headcanons

Duo and dogs: https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/166862137342/additional-thoughts-below-the-cutmore-ive

Pilots’ scars https://gw-ficrecfriday.tumblr.com/post/166544768116/scars

Dr. Jay Null http://the-indomitable-bhg.tumblr.com/post/166698167092

Heero being alone https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/166620174301

Dorothy http://simulacraryn.tumblr.com/post/166896646418/so-yesi-have-a-head-canon-ya-all-know-about

Sweepers https://the-indomitable-bhg.tumblr.com/post/166838833457/the-sweeper-group-and-a-brief-history-of-space

Duo’s memory https://the-indomitable-bhg.tumblr.com/post/166763174897/its-one-of-the-reasons-he-fills-silence-with

Silly Trieze headcanon http://outofworkshinigami.tumblr.com/post/166783624947/this-is-just-a-silly-thought-but-does-anyone-else

Calendar Events

Unnatural November by @gwblockparty

Begins Wednesday, November 1st, and runs the entire month!

A fanworks celebration of all things weird and supernatural.

Participation information here!

AO3 collection here!

Eve War Event by @gw-evewar​

Posting December 23rd - December 24th.

A fanworks Science Fiction event.

Participation information here!

OC October by @gwoc-october

Ends Tuesday, October 31st - don’t forget to get your submissions in!

A fanworks celebration of Original Characters.

Participation information here!

#This week in Gundam Wing #thisweekingundamwing #october 20th - 28th #mod cb

[burndownthehousetonight]

RPing Advice

I had an anon ask me about any RPing advice, I think twice. I'm pretty new to RPing, so I can't give tons of social advice for the RPing community, but if you're looking for more general writing advice, I've got some tips, sure. I tend to be a bit longform, so the most important points are bolded in case you don't want to read through the whole wall of text below the cut. If you want somemore specific advice, feel free to ask!

THE BLOG ITSELF

Make sure that your blog is both easy to read and navigate.

Yeah, sure, that theme might look pretty on it's own, but are the links intuitive or do you have to search to find them? Can you read the text without straining yourself? People are going to be reading off of your blog, not just your dashboard. If you can't read it easily, there's a serious problem

Your muse(s) should have some kind of an easy-to-access biography.

I'm not saying write out their whole story, just something to give people an idea of who your characters are. Yes, even if your muse is a canon character and not an OC. You're still interpreting a character in your own way, even if you're trying to keep it as accurate as possible. If someone doesn't know who your muses are, there's no real way they can start an RP with you.

You don't have to have a tagging system, but it can be a nice courtesy.

Just in case someone doesn't want to see RP memes or RPs with a certain partner, or even if they want to see a certain type of post.

STARTING RPS

Don't be afraid to be a little social.

Talking as someone with social anxiety here, I get this sounds hard. Sometimes, what I do is compose the message in another tab and then force myself to send it, if I want to ask someone about plotting or otherwise. But you aren't going to start any RPs if you aren't willing to instigate anything.

Say how you want people to contact you.

If you don't have any preferences, great. But if you want to chat through IMs specifically or you don't want any IMs, be sure to specify to save yourself some grief.

Don't be a snob.

I cannot stress this enough, don't be too much of a snob about who you want to rp with. You don't want to RP with someone who's a dick, that's fine. But don't go being rude to newbie RPers. Give them a chance, offer advice, don't just brush them off because they haven't been to RP university for ten years.

Do not godmod unless you've gotten express permission.

'Godmodding' is when you write dialogue, and depending on the partner, actions for another person's characters. This is generally considered the cardinal sin of RPing.

THE RP ITSELF

Be flexible.

Your story's not gonna go exactly how you would plan it to. You want to write like that? Write on your own. You're two writers with two different ideas of how you want this to happen, things are going to change from both of your plans.

Matching writing length is generally considered polite.

If you don't want to write the same length, or if you're fine with your partner and you writing different amounts, be sure to specify that.

Do not kill off/seriously injure another muse without the other person's consent.

Even if your character is a murderous psychopath, do not kill them unless you've gotten the go ahead. This can't be stressed enough.

Don't just answer their questions or replies straight.

Yes, it's easy to respond to a yes-or-no questions with a single word, but your partner's going to need to write something off of your response. Give them something to work with! Introduce a new mystery, ask them a question, throw some trouble their way, do something that's going to get a reply.

Think of what you're writing together as a story, not just an RP.

What's the main conflict? What are the subplots? How do your characters feel about ______? What is going to keep not just you two engaged, but the people reading your RPs engaged? Is it the character interactions? The action? Witty dialogue? If you just stroll from scene to scene casually without any idea of what's going to interest people, you're going to have a boring RP.

Have some kind of direction.

You can't write a good story without knowing vaguely what's going to happen. I'm not saying plot down to the tiniest details, but have a vague idea of where you'd like your story to go. A meandering series of pointless scenes that builds to nothing is a bore.

Format or use icons if you want, but don't let people tell you there's a 'right' way to RP.

It's creative writing, for heavens sake, these things are completely subjective! Sure, those pretty icons might look nice, but do you want to go through the trouble of using just the right image for every occasion? Do you really want to bold and underline every other word, or would you prefer to let the punctuation and words carry the emphasis? Do whatever you think feels right.

MY STRANGE ADVICE

Have some way to read through your old RPs.

Compile the text while you're writing them, or something of that nature. It gives people a clear way to read the kind of writing you do, and learn about your character. You're essentially writing a story, give people a way to read it! This is especially important if you have one long ongoing story for your whole blog. You can't expect people to trek through your posts and reassemble them in the right order, have some convenience. 

Like I said, this is only some basic stuff. If you guys want more of a critique on your personal style, I can try and give you advice. But for now, I think this is all the main stuff to get y'all started!

#RP advice #roleplaying #RP #Writing advice #The Real Me

[comicteaparty]

June 8th-June 14th, 2019 Creator Babble Archive

The archive for the Creator Babble chat that occurred from June 8th, 2019 to June 14th, 2019.  The chat focused on the following question:

What was the original incarnation of your current comic?  What has changed over the lifespan of the idea, and what has remained the same?

Nutty (Court of Roses)

My comic, Court of Roses http://courtofroses.thecomicseries.com/, was originally built around my first D&D character, a half-elf bard named Merlow the Rose. The comic was going to be strictly based on D&D, but as I started going gung-ho on the worldbuilding I started deviating away, making my own variations on races, making my own pantheon, and even formulating different magic rules and creatures. It's still largely inspired by D&D, and other fantasy works like Lord of the Rings, Elder Scrolls, etc., but I'm also trying to make the world my own, too!

Pencilz

My comic the Caraway Crew https://tapas.io/series/The-Caraway-Crew was originally based on my childhood friend group. Actually the very first incarnation I had with the Caraways was where we were all self-inserted into some large crossover fanfiction... it was pretty bad aha.(edited)

I just realized I said that twice oops

Draco Plato

The first incarnation of my comic....world was a Sailor Moon parody I believe. There was a boarding school and magical boys and girls that fought aliens or something. Firosofi was the "priest" of water and Affinity was the "priestess" of light (ironically her character hasn't seen the light of day in years). Apus was still around in that incarnation since Firosofi and Affinity were affiliated with it there too I think The initial premise still makes up the core of the Apus ideology I think; people fight in pairs against forces that threaten Earth. The focus since shifted to be much more character focused and on characters who were made much later (Damon and Lyall primarily). http://khyatix.com/

ErinPtah (Leif & Thorn | BICP)

But I'm A Cat Person http://bicatperson.com/ basically sprang into being (heh) fully-formed, but I pulled a bunch of the characters from earlier fanfiction incarnations. Jany and Kara Lynn got started in a Neopets RPG; Timothy was created as an OC member of Section XIII in Hellsing; Reseda and Cybele were from the same Sailor Moon exoplanetary team.(edited)

Leif & Thorn http://leifandthorn.com/ started as Colbert Report fanfiction XD It was so far removed from the source material that I spent years thinking "I should file off the serial numbers and try to publish this as an original work"...but it didn't click until I got away from the idea of doing a 1:1 adaptation of the fic's plot, and just used it as the foundation of a world where I could set all kinds of other stories.

AntiBunny

My comic AntiBunny http://antibunny.net/ started out as an all pencil sketchy comic about depression. It experimented a lot early on artistically as I tried to tear down my old style and build a new one. As it's changed over the years I've built up a new art style, and as I've changed as a person I'd say it's become its own story driven by the characters. The protagonist's depression and anxiety is still important, but I think the significant thing is that I'm seeing depression from the outside rather than the inside, and my writing has changed a lot as a result.

mathtans

Interesting topic. I might be unique in that my math comic started as a web serial (though I didn't know that's what it was at the time). Meaning text, but supplemented with drawings, because the point was that the graphs were character hairstyles: https://sites.google.com/site/taylorspolynomials/series/openbar

I gave it up after several years due to lack of interest, then brought it back as a web comic with many of the characters redesigned (parabola having twintails instead of bunny ears, for instance). http://mathtans.ca/ It then crossed over with the serial, meaning both sets of characters are canon and take place in the same universe. https://mathtans.blogspot.com/2017/04/math-character-bible.html

So the more it changes, the more it stayed the same? (As to plot, that tended to be whatever math concept I thought would be interesting, from archaic trig functions to fractals... I never knew where that'd be going.)

kayotics

The original incarnation of Ingress Adventuring Company https://ingress-comic.com/ was, like many other fantasy comics, derived from a D&D campaign I played in. I really loved the character I played (Toivo), and the campaign had finished, so I decided to keep using him in more stories. While the basic idea of the character is the same, I completely removed him from the campaign that he was in so I wouldn't have any issues with having to ask my friends to use their characters. Toivo has essentially remained the same, but large parts of his backstory and the entire setting has been changed from the original game I played him in. And, since I'm no longer tied to D&D with a comic, the rules of magic are a lot more vague. Similar to what Nutty said above, my comic is still largely inspired by D&D and other fantasy staples, but at least I can deviate from them as I continue to make my comic.

MJ Massey

Black Ball http://welcometoblackball.com/ is a much more recent idea of mine and hasn't really changed too much in terms of the overarching story, though minor things have shifted such as Maude becoming more of a main character, giving her a brother who is also getting more involved in the plot, and changing the role of a future character. But it's always been Emily and Chester solving a murder mystery.

MJ Massey

The shifts have been so minor and over time that it's hard to find where the "first draft" ends and the "next version" begins. But I've been mentally shifting things as I go along and see that certain aspects of the story need more attention for the ending to pay off or for the character to get well developed

Who the murderer is has stayed the same and how it happens and why. Just the circumstances around it have been smudged and fixed

Tuyetnhi

The OG plans I had for https://oiydcomic.com/ occurred after I was fiddling with twine to make a one shot short story, and an illustration series/zine project after having an intense dream. At first, I initially wanted to create it into an ero-romance comic about a woman having a one night stand with her dream lover, eventually living together after seeing each other for a few weeks. After thinking about it further (and some beta readers later lmao), I decided to develop into a romance-focused drama about acceptance and making life more than what is instilled in our dreams. I fleshed out Cara's (main character) modivations, her background in regards on courtship and romance somewhat seen in the asian-american experience (specifically Vietnamese-american rituals; some that retained after viet dispora came to the US in the late 80's - 90's and the effects on their children). Basically, from intense escapism to a general exploration on romance. With some common themes I've liked in 90's shoujo with some criticisms here and there.(edited)

Respheal

Galebound (http://www.galebound.com/) started off as what was going to be a short story. I posted it up on deviantART just for fun, and I was totally pantsing the plot xD I had an idea of a magician who for some reason couldn't ask questions, and the stablehand he kidnapped when he wasn't getting a horse fast enough. The original idea was that Din was on the run from something? And Conan was that hapless stablehand the protags burst in on like "I need a horse!" before escaping $antagonist or chasing someone. Originally Din was supposed to be a good guy, for real, just...more of a trickster to Conan's straight-faced act(edited)

Since its inception, the plot got way deeper and a gazillion times more horrible I think at one point an Obligation wasn't necessary for magic, and probably wasn't even totally compulsory But then the Pascal Incident happened and making the Obligation compulsory suddenly became much more integral to the plot and world. And once that happened, Din's backstory got more fleshed out and his character got darker. I still really wasn't sure what to do with Conan at that point, though. That didn't hit me until like seven years after the original five chapter draft going up on dA, and knowing Conan better changed everything It's fun :'D

snuffysam

Super Galaxy Knights Deluxe R (http://sgkdr.webcomic.ws/) started off as a short film I made for an introductory film class in college (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibRdxNLd3Q4). The film is about a fan of a really bad anime forcing his boyfriend to sit through an episode. The production quality of the film is honestly really bad in retrospect (still got an A though lol). At around the same time as I was making that film, I had just watched... I assume Food Wars, and I was on a real "you could make a battle series out of anything" stint. Like, I would just have a notes document full of ideas like "a shonen series about math olympiads". One idea I really liked was "a shonen series, but it's actually just The Wizard of Oz". After I had finished the short film, I wondered what the actual series that the "anime" took place in would be like, so I decided to build out a comic. I outlined five books, the first being based primarly off the Wizard of Oz. And... the rest is history.

deo101

The first incarnation of millennium (http://millennium.thecomicseries.com/) was pretty much a "chosen one" story where the main character had to go kill an evil space queen and was the only one who could do it. I made about 6 more stories that I later decided I could put together, and the easiest way for me to combine them all was a highschool space story, which I developed for quite a while... Later I changed them all to be adults and started building the current iteration of the story (which has also changed a ton)

Desnik

My WIP comic (which has an ask blog: http://ask-a-warlock.tumblr.com/) started out as a video game idea incorporating Banjo Kazooie collectathon platforming with Ace Attorney trial mechanics....obvs I'm not much of a programmer or 3D modeler, so I went with skills that I actually know how to do: Write and draw(edited)

It had one incarnation where the characters run around all of Europe but it was much too much to develop within 250 pages so I scrapped that and focused on one standalone story, which I'm thumbnailing now and I'm hoping to get into the art stage by the end of the year

and now the page count is about 170 so hopefully that's an easier project to wrangle, when it comes down to it

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