#i have .... 16ish pages done ...

[burntheedges]

Congrats on your follower milestone, you deserve it!! 🩷🎉 You have been nothing but so welcoming and sweet in this space, and I’m so happy we connected ☺️

❓For the ask, what is your writing process? Is there something that motivates you or helps you to write?

Jamie!! Thank you!! 🧡 I feel the same way 🫶🏻

this is a fun question! I had a lot to say apparently lol

So in terms of actually sitting down to write, I do a lot of it on my couch, tbh. I like to write in coffee shops so I try to do that sometimes, I like the vibe. I like background noise. Mild deadlines (without like a ton of pressure) motivate me which is why I like challenges, probably. They’re friendly but still something to work towards. I try to take breaks and let myself come back to things if it’s feeling like a slog. (Breaks are good for your brain!!)

I definitely prefer writing on my computer, not on my phone. When I wrote Maintenance Request I tried out Scrivener (since it was for NaNo) and I do like it, but the way Google docs sync across my devices is helpful for when I need to make quick changes or edits. Or write down a sudden thought.

I try to always have an outline before I start. For a oneshot that might be like… 3-5 bullet points. Basic plot outline and anything I know I want to include. Longer, depending on the length of the fic. Sometimes I’ll have specific scenes that I know I want to happen so I’ll list those.

I like to have a full outline, especially for a fic I know will be long, so I don’t lose sight of where it’s going. And so I can tell if all of the beats are there. But I’m also an almost-or-fully-finish-before-I-post person (MR was mostly done when I started posting, other than a couple of chapters near the end and the epilogue. But also thank god for @katareyoudrilling because without her as my beta it would not be what it is now). The outline doesn’t have to be fancy, it’s usually bullet points and incomplete sentences.

I think part of the reason I like to write this way is because I like to empty my brain of all of my ideas for a fic to help me brainstorm, and that becomes the outline. It also helps me not worry if I’m forgetting any ideas. And seeing it all laid out helps me find gaps or like places where I need to add things. I also skip around when actually writing within the outline — I don’t just go in order.

Mild spoilers for Maintenance Request under the cut (but not past where you’ve read, just for anyone else reading this).

For Maintenance Request I had an extensive outline — almost everything that is still in it up to chapter 16ish was in the outline, just not necessarily in the original order. (I just went back and looked, the outline is 6 pages 👀.) I knew I wanted the beginning scenes where they’re at odds, and the scene outside the building when she kisses Joel was actually the first scene I thought of for the fic. Some of it developed as I was writing (like the date and what’s coming this Friday 👀) and a lot of the outline was vague, so there’s still the element of surprise lol. And Joel likes to do what he wants. 🤷🏻‍♀️

was this too much information? 😂 thank you for asking!! 🧡

followers celebration

#ask me anything #bte600 #writing #writing process

[heirloommtomatoes]

i have 3 projects due by friday and i have only sort of started all of them can this school year just like. be done please <3

#:| hey guys this isnt funny anymore i wanna go home . #my roommate moved out and i havent interacted w/ another person....in person....since then . i AM losing it <3 #i cannot . focus. for the life of me lmaaoo #i have .... 16ish pages done ... #23 more to go ... ish #2 pages on this 6 page paper and idrk know what im saying for it :/ #my last paper i handed it i had no clue what i was saying the whole time jakdlfj #like i KNEW what i was saying i just didnt have a super coherent argument? my topicwas WAY too broad? #as is this one? but i think the guidelines for this essay are a little more forgiving so its not AS big of a deal #as long as i engage critically w course material #plus the prof extended the due date til friday which is nice #i just wish! i could focus on what i actually need to do! #and not hyperfixate on like. the one uncomfortable thing i said x amount of time ago #bc my brain is so. Understimulated all the time uHGHhhhHH LET ME GO HOMMEEEE LMAOO #hey can these papers just write themselves <3 please <3 #i literally am gonna walk across canada at this point. #someone please throw me some adderall gd. #or ritalin. #ive stayed away from meds for a whole host of reasons for a while now but its moments like there where im like. #hey this isnt funny anymore drug me up please #i just wanna get home to being around People again #and not have to stress about school #im not in a bad mental place or anything its just the past 2 days have been. #🙄🤬🙄🤬🙄🤬🙄🤬!!!!! im OVER IT! 🙄🤬 #lmao!! #ellie yodels

[thisselflovecamebacktome]

Before The Storm thoughts

So before starting, I want you all to know that I went into the first two episodes spoiler free. Like I watched no trailers, saw no posts, just really knew nothing about this game to the point of thinking that it was going to be about Rachel’s downfall with Frank and Jefferson. I was then told that that wasn’t the case just before this episode came out. To be honest, and I’ll talk about this more later, in short I wish it was. I think my overall “eh” ness reaction about this game comes down to two issues. 

Firstly, by having a game with Rachel in it, they take away a lot of the mystery that made her interesting in the first place. Like the reason she was such a fan favourite in the first game was because there was a mystery to her. Like every single character in the game saw Rachel Amber in a different light so we couldn’t help but be like “What was she really like? Was she the perfect girl, a master manipulator or somewhere in between?” and left to our own conclusions. This isn’t to say that you could never have a game where they get it right with her, but it’s such a thin line and I just personally don’t think they nailed it.

On the topic of perceptions of Rachel, I do want to make a few notes before we go on. To be extremely honest, I’m super surprised that people felt this game villainised her more than the first game and made her seem “selfish and manipulative”. I won’t lie, as much as I shipped Amberprice in the first game and understood that Rachel was meant to be a troubled soul hiding under the mask of perfection, that was the overall impression I got from that game, In comparison, I feel like they did a lot better to push the “troubled” part of her in this game. I still think she had her selfish and manipulative tendencies, whether meaning to or not, but it’s clearer to me now that Chloe wasn’t just some midway point or escape for Rachel and I do think that the fandom needs to realise it can be both. Like she can care for Chloe but also have those moments just as Chloe did with Max in the original game.

Just on that note, I need to lowkey rant. I said it during the original games and I’ll say it now; this game and it’s fandom continues to villainise Max for the smallest shit. Like the way you go on about how horrible she was to Chloe for not getting in contact? She was what, 12 when she left and 14 when Chloe’s dad died? When I went to a different high school than my peers/friends in the same city, do you know how many of them I was talking to a year later? 0. Same with when I left year 12. Not to mention Max could have quite easily had just as dramatic stuff going on in her life at the time. All we ever know is Chloe’s side and Max’s guilt when she comes back. Like yeah, in a perfect world everyone would keep in contact, but shit happens and the fact that is still a thing I see in like every second post is just exhausting tbh.

Now that I’ve said that, back to Rachel. I like that Victoria didn’t like her before everything to be honest. It allows us to keep some of that ambiguity surrounding Rachel. What I didn’t like is that the one character who was alive that brought up legitimate issues surrounding Chloe’s behaviour since befriending Rachel ended up being a insanely jealous arguably abusive stalker as opposed to actual concerned friend. And before people come with me saying Chloe wasn’t exactly a saint before, I know, but she please do not act like the shit she did in those 3 (?) days wasn’t on a higher level than her actions before. Like here’s the thing, I never expected Chloe to listen to anyone telling her to stay away, and hell, they didn’t even have to be completely right. Like regardless of how he went about it, Chloe had the right to tell Eliot that he wasn’t at the meeting where she got expelled so didn’t have the full picture. But to have him go from “I’m concerned and here for you” at the hospital to flat out fuckboy mode with “I was here for you when no one was. No one loves you but me!” at Rachel’s house without having another character who was alive to also share legitimate concerns was kinda offputting to me. It also took away from that ambiguity of Rachel in my opinion.

My second issue with this game is that it just felt too disconnected to the first one. I know that they didn’t want to have it have anything to do with the first game, but honestly, I think that was a mistake. Don’t get me wrong, the idea of having Chloe and Rachel meet in the game was great. The fact they showed Rachel was troubled was great. But the truth of the matter is that some random story about Rachel’s biological mother that wasn’t even important enough to mention in the first game despite it being extremely hinted as the start of the end for Rachel just seemed too far left wing and out of the ballpark to me. And I get that two separate companies made the two different games, but to be honest, I still would have liked something a little more relevant.

And that’s where I think perhaps they should have gone with the “safe” option of Rachel’s downfall and left this as dlc. And by that, I don’t think it needed to be page by page like a full episode on Rachel and Jefferson getting closer or her fucking Frank or whatever to show she’s gone off the rails. Like I would have been happy if we had an episode ending with Jefferson walking in and introducing himself, next episode Rachel saying she joined the photography class and just mentions from there of how well she gets along with Jefferson. I mean if they were going to put that implication at the end of the game that she had gone off the rails before her death scene, they could have at least done something to lead up to it. Like at least show us how Chloe and Rachel get to the point where Chloe flat out believes Rachel left her behind. Also to be honest, as much as Frank/Rachel is creepy full stop considering he’s what 30? and she’s 16ish, I kinda expected them to be a slow grow relationship. Like idk, I expected him to actually dislike her at first and not show feelings until they hung out more, so to see him just check her out straight off made me feel even more uncomfortable at their relationship.

Alternatively, if they really wanted a Chloe focused game, one on her reaction to Rachel going missing. Show us her searching for Rachel. End it with Max coming into the picture. Idk, just something.

I also felt this game just didn’t work with the cannon of the first game very well. Like I already mentioned about the biological mother story not even being a mention, but there’s also little things like Rachel’s bracelet being found with Frank (? It was Frank right, or was it on the body) despite Sera or Chloe potentially having it at the end of this one and so on. 

Not to mention I really feel like they took away everything the first game tried to push about Nathan. Like the first game really pushed that yeah, he fucked up, did horrible things and had psychological issues, but a lot of those were a result of being severely manipulated by Jefferson. Meanwhile this game implies he beat Samantha to the point of her having broken ribs (at least that’s what I got from his father threatening her mother at the hospital) and that her leaving caused him to snap. Both of which happens long before Jefferson shows up. Like just her leaving I could get because quite frankly, loneliness leaves a person open to manipulation, but the broken ribs? Nah.

Basically what I’m saying is that the game probably could have worked okay as a standalone game, but I felt it, and specifically episode 3, was rushed and doesn’t work work in relation to the original Life Is Strange game.

#life is strange #before the storm

[generic-url-name]

Michaela LN headcanons

Mostly about Crowley’s squad aka the templars who were his bffs and got maybe 5 pages about them before being killed off and why am I even writing about the most minor of minor characters in this stupid series. 

Gustavo:

hates being called ‘Gus’

salt incarnate

literally 5′3-5′5 of condensed anger, spite, and grumpiness

jk. sorta. he’s not really friendly or outgoing like Victor or even Gilbert.

not a social person tbh. can come off as cold and cross, but once you get to know him he loosens up a bit

he does have a soft spot for newer recruits, squires, ect and those under him especially his adorable kouhai

despite usually coming off as a sack of salt, he’s pretty selfless and caring. just don’t expect him to always show it, outwardly at least. still willing to lend a hand and save you if you need it and won’t be an ass about it later

also sassy and sarcastic af

Gilbert Chartres:

has done nothing wrong. ever.

cinnamon roll

also a puppy

ugh, probably not really but I can’t help but picture him as this really cute and innocent type. at least before the war

seriously though, the way he addresses Crowley and the other Templars above him

it could be the fact that he’s a bit of a formal person, but I also want to say that he does have a few lost puppy tendencies and follows his senpais around more than some of the younger knights

this changes after the war though

he hasn’t exactly lost his faith but it definitely wavers, but ultimately his strongest motivation is always his comrades

the power of friendship is beautiful

but he’s actually pretty selfless too and cares a lot about his comrades and friends like 120%

also a try hard. but not obnoxious about it. more like “i have to become stronger for my comrades!!1!” type

protect Gilbert at all costs oh wait too late oops nvm gdi Crowley

Victor Roleine:

the opposite of Gilbert

jk not really. in some ways yes, but in others no

he does slack off. a lot. especially if there’s a woman involved

he’s got a lot of natural talent, not just in sword play but he suffers from extreme selective participation syndrome

playboy extraordinaire

all the ladies (and some guys) want some

sinnamon roll

pretty bright and sunny, popular with just about everyone

actually nice and caring especially when it comes to his comrades but also won’t hesitate to tease some of them mercilessly or play pranks on them

still loved by all tho

extrovert extraordinaire

if the ‘sodomy is bad!!!1! very bad!!1!’ wasn’t a thing he probably would’ve made a pass at Crowley since I hc him as bi

btw him and Crowley are like bfffs

Commander Alfred:

hard

hasn’t exactly seen and heard it all, but has seen and heard most of it

prbly tired

take no shit do some harm

a veteran solider who joined the Templars later in life. has no biological kids of his own, just an entire unit of 20 something year olds and all their respective squires

not really but sorta yes. is a father figure to a lot of the knights, including Crowley

he gives off a sort of intimidating and intense aura, which partly stems from his extensive experience as a solider (and having lived to tell of it)

literally no ones mouths off to him. ever. he may be caring, but he is a strict dad

lots of tough love

like the others, he cares a lot about his comrades/subordinates but its even worse because he’s their leader and feels that responsibility a lot

right before the war/on their way to Egypt he feels terrible. tries not to give it away and generally acts confident in front of the troops to boost morale and also not to scare them

but Alfred has seen war already. he’s a veteran and knows that for most, if not all the knights, this is their first time participating in a full scale war and not all of them will come back home

Alfred himself isn’t too worried about death or dying. he’s a bit older, and multiple times he’s had to accept the fact that he might die (his many scars are a testament to that) but it just seems so much worse to him that these kids (literally kids bcs the squires are usually 15-16ish) are being forced out onto a gruesome battlefield with no hope of winning

gives zero fucks about anything except the safety of his unit when the fighting starts. was conflicted about giving orders to retreat before he was wounded and they started suffering even worse casualties but that would’ve also meant abandoning the other troops/units which he wouldn’t do unless under the most dire circumstances

overall died feeling bitter, but more saddened by what had happened than anything else. felt a lot of responsibility for the deaths of his men

Roy Rouland:

big

no but in the LN they even say he’s about as muscular as Crowley and he’s probably as tall as him too (maybe even a bit taller)

a bit of a try hard

can be stubborn and a bit tactless w/o realizing it sometimes

usually serious, doesn’t joke around too much unlike some people *cough* victor *cough*

ALSO CARES ABOUT HIS COMRADES A LOT (all…well, most of them do)

isn’t as close to Crowley as Victor, Gilbert, or Gustavo but is still one of his friends.

he’s a younger knight like Gilbert and the two of them are fairly close, especially after the war, but were close even before the war since they were about the same age

used to think Crowley was cool. still does, just doesn’t want to admit it as readily as before the war

was always excited/happy when he got to sit with the Cool Kids (Victor, Crowley, Gustavo, and Gilbert) or just hang out with them because everyone wanted to be around them, but Victor and Crowley in particular

i mustache you a question

takes pretty good care of his mustache, and it actually looks good on him

Jose:

lost puppy cinnamon roll

smol

also a try hard

Gilbert probably would’ve loved having Jose as his squire

they would’ve gotten along great

OK OK BUT GILBERT PROBABLY WAS WELL AWARE OF JOSE BEING CROWLEY’S MAIN SQUIRE

and probably totally had Jose reporting to him about Crowley’s status, condition, well being

told him to make sure Crowley was eating right, wasn’t oversleeping or undersleeping or slacking off on training

and in between all this they’d simultaneously grit their teeth over Crowley but still fawn a bit bcs its Crowley

i can totally picture Gilbert occasionally telling stories of their exploits and shenanigans before the war, involving Victor and Gustavo and Roy usually eavesdrops

Jose never mentions it to Crowley, but he really wishes he could’ve met Victor.

#1 Crowley fan

#Crowley Eusford #Gustavo #Gilbert Chartres #Victor Roleine #Commander Alfred #Roy Rouland #Jose #owari no seraph #ons #aaahhh why were alfred's so sad #i didn't mean to make his so sad i need to writer happier ones for him