#love that these folks know what they're about

[dduane]

What are your thoughts on companies like this that offer 'coaching services' for hopeful unpublished novelists?

This smells of scam to me but maybe I'm just a cynic:

Publishing Your Book

Query Letter Coaching/Editing – $550 per book (this includes two passes)

Synopsis Coaching & Editing – $750 per book (this includes two passes)

Proposal Coaching & Editing – $1,500 per book

Traditional Publishing Coaching – $200/hour (finding an agent, crafting your proposal, etc.)

Indie Publishing – $1000 (distribution to all platforms for optimal international exposure, guidance on pricing, blurb-writing, logistics, and keywords)

ISBNs for Indie Publishing – $150 per book format. Free if publishing through [the company selling these coaching services]

Briefly: before I got involved with any such operation, I'd want to talk to (multiple) people they'd worked with previously and find out what kinds of experiences they'd had. And in line with this, I'd be extremely cautious about any operation that wasn't run by professionals with a verifiable track record, and which wouldn't offer verifiable examples of feedback from people whose reality as non-sockpuppets could also be confirmed. And whom you could contact without having to go through the company in question.

On other issues: I'm looking kind of askance at some of those prices. (Here adding the disclaimer: I know people who do this kind of work out of a grounding of significant expertise and in good faith, and I'm not clear on what they're charging because I haven't really looked into it... not particularly needing it myself at this late stage in the game.)

At least part of the problem I'm having with the prices being charged in your example is based on the knowledge of how very much information of this kind is available free online. And yeah, there's the old chestnut about "The advice is worth what you've paid for it"... but that has sort of an unspoken negative corollary: "Except when you've paid for it and it nonetheless turns out not to have been worth much."

The trouble with the non-independent-publishing suggestions is that all of them deal with imponderables. Even if all the advice you purchase from those people at all those varied prices is absolutely right on the money, there's still no way to guarantee that any of it is going to lead to success in getting query letters, synopses or proposals actually looked at. Which puts this whole concept squarely in the nature of a gamble.

Not that luck doesn't have a role to play in a professional writing career. Sometimes you're just standing in the right place at the right time with a manuscript in your hands. But getting the idea that you can depend on that luck for any reason is unwise... as divine Fortuna is anciently famous for wandering all over the room, blowing on other folks' dice. (And if this makes me sound like I fall well down on the "Fortune Favors The Prepared" end of the spectrum: yeah, that.)

My advice would be to spend a good long while online, thoroughly researching all the free sites that have info to offer on all the traditional-publishing-facing topics. Then, after exhausting the available possibilities, if you still think you need to engage paid professional assistance... make inquiries among as many verifiable professionals as you can non-invasively query, before parting with any money at all.

As regards the indie-oriented fees: I'm finding those pretty steep. The prices for ISBNs in particular bother me. (Especially since in many places you can routinely buy packages of ten for about what these folks would charge you for two.) Yes, they're free if you publish with them: that sounds lovely. But publishers would normally buy many of those packages of ten. Or packages of a hundred: the more ISBNs you buy at once, the cheaper they get. And if you're paying the company for other services, who cares about the ISBNs? They're making money off you in different ways. Possibly equally overpriced ones.

So to finish: this is very much caveat emptor territory. There will inevitably be scammers out there, claiming their rates to be less than "bigger companies" are charging, but still too much. Therefore... advance only with utmost care.

...And adding this: @petermorwood glanced at the price list over my shoulder and said, "I wouldn't touch any of those with a barge pole."

At any rate: HTH!

...And now a word regarding our regrettably fickle non-sponsor, via Ol' Blue Eyes. :)

#writing #writing advice #paying for breaking-in coaching #writing meta

[chemicallywrit]

Happy Audio Drama Sunday!! When I was a non-teacher adult I thought to myself, surely as a child I exaggerated the desperate need for summer break. Now that I am a teacher adult, I can admit that I was. Wrong. I need a break, but luckily I have time for this.

Here's what I listened to this week!

@ourstoriedinsight's season finale was this week and wow. Wow. The way this show so effortlessly dances on ideas of trust, truth, and ethics while telling a story of four (five? Sir George count?) ridiculous and reluctant heroes who have only a dead friend in common is staggering. This episode especially, as you can see how they really drew together against (and then with) Sage. I love them, your honor. And I would also let Rain be my lawyer. Everyone listen to Our Storied Insight.

Jeez louise @camlannpod, can you give a girl a break? I am so glad Gwaine’s okay, and I’m fascinated by the mistrust Peredur has for him, even after they tried to track him over hill and dale. And I am SO worried about what's about to happen next. I wonder what Dai's going to do about it. I wonder if he'll do anything (please, Dai, do something).

This week's episode of Josie’s Lonely Hearts Club had me rolling. Look, I knew the title going in ("It's French for A Horny Party") and I still cackled when the line appeared in the episode. Josie, I hope you continue changing for the better. Also it inspired me to make beans and rice for dinner and that was a wild success.

When Karim Kronfli showed up at the beginning of the season of Among the Stars and Bones, I was excited, but holy heck. The performances in this show. Oh, right, and the twist at the end--you know, I really should have expected things to get a million times worse, based on how last season went, but this is a MILLION times worse. How are they gonna get out of this one folks???

@keepitsteadypod KEEP IT STEADY IS BACK KEEP IT STEADY MY BELOVED. Things are REALLY going places between Zach and Gabe now and neither of them know it. I love high schoolers, they're so dumb. Admit you like each other, dummies. Shoutout to our great good school nurse trying to fight for kids, and I thought the reveal about Zach's past was remarkably done. I love this show.

In relistening news, Life with Althaar again (what's up, @geminicollisionworks!). I rarely relisten to shows, but this one is worth my while every time. Listen to Life with Althaar, a silly space sitcom that gets Not So Silly when the story decides to commit to the bit. Althaar, I would die for you.

Inn Between is truckin right along with 5.9 this week, which I found absolutely delicious to watch the actors bring to life. It’ll be outdone only by the episode next week. In zombie news, boy oh boy, this week we're doing some recording for The Dead that I'm very worried about but ready for the challenge of. It involves directing singers in a language I do not speak! Lol pray for me. If I can make it til school ends, maybe I'll have some other news as well! Keep a weather eye out.

Hey, want to help me satiate my sudden summer cravings for fun drinks? Buy me a ko-fi!

See y'all next week!

#audio drama sunday #audio fiction #audio drama #fiction podcast #freaking podcasts #josie's lonely hearts club #camlann #our storied insight #among the stars and bones #keep it steady podcast #life with althaar

[msmargaretmurry]

"how many drinks would it take for you to kiss leon draisaitl?" (x)

#uploading this here for posterity because it makes me laugh every time i watch it #love that these folks know what they're about #unfortunately because of who i am as a person i do want the fanfiction version where someone is asking other nhlers this #and matthew goes #oh i'd lay one on him in a heartbeat but we all know he wouldn't let me #leon: 👀 oh really? #and shenanigans ensue #hockey for ts

[royalarchivist]

[A sad violin song plays over an image of a sad hamster]

Pac: This doesn't have anything to do with me – I wear a blue sweatshirt, you're crazy, this mouse doesn't even have a sweatshirt, this hamster! [Reading chat] Am I a depressed hamster?

[ Transcript continued ↓ ]*

–

Pac: Actually– that's fine! I embrace that idea – of course I'm going to be depressed, are you crazy? [He hits his desk, then starts counting off people on his fingers] Fit is gone, Richarlyson is gone, Ramon is gone, Bagi and Empanada who were always there when we were there are also gone, I haven't seen them! It's just me and Tubbo, and sometimes Philza shows up.

Pac: I lost Chume Labs, I lost the Favela, I lost Murder Mystery, I lost Ilha Chume Labs, it's crazy! Look at how much I've lost, and I've gained nothing! Of course I'm going to be depressed, are you crazy?! How am I supposed to be happy?!

Pac: [Reading chat] "You have us Pac," that's true, thank you. No, that's true, sorry.

* NOTE: Please note that this is an incomplete transcript, as I was primarily relying on Aypierre's translation mod at the time and if I am not confident of the translation, I do not include it. As always, please feel free to add on translations or message me corrections.

#Pactw #QSMP #Pac #March 18 2024 #As much as I love keeping people updated about Pac / the other Portuguese-speaking creators #I think I might not make as many transcribed posts for their clips anymore #I just don't think I'm qualified enough to be transcribing things for a language I don't know #like yeah we have the Qlobal Translator and Aypierre's translators to rely on #And I'm always upfront when I'm not 100% sure about a translation #but I've been thinking about it a lot and it kinda makes me feel a bit icky. Idk. #I might be overthinking this but I just I don't want to spread around translations I'm not super confident about #esp. since I know a lot of people cite my clips in analysis posts or link them to other people as resources #and 90% of the time I'm like ''Hell yeah I love seeing people getting a lot of use out of the archive'' #but sometimes I get a bit anxious like ''Did I do a good enough job translating this'' #''Am I ruining someone's entire perception of a conversation or character because I left one word out or mistranslated something?'' #And like I said that's normally not a HUGE concern since if I'm not certain about a translation I just won't post a clip. but you know #idk it might just be the anxiety talking but I really really don't want to spread bad info #Happy to hear other folks' perspective #I'm really grateful for people like Bell and Pix and others who translate clips and I always try to reblog those #but we don't have a ton of people posting clips & translating things on Tumblr since we're so English-centric #which is part of the reason WHY I like sharing clips of the non-English-speaking CCs #but at the same time I want to do an accurate job representing what they're saying #Maybe I'll just start posting things and give a TLDR context of what they're talking about but not a transcript #that way native-speakers can hop in and add translations if that's something they're comfortable doing #and if not then well. at least I'm not sharing something that isn't super accurate #idk I'm just thinking out loud a bit in the tags #But I'm open to hearing other people's thoughts on the matter #Anyways giant rant aside. q!Pac is NOT doing ok rn

[musicalchaos07]

Stranger Things AU - Jancy as Paranormal Investigators Moodboard

Jonathan Byers was 13 the first time he saw a ghost, he screamed so loud he nearly woke the neighbors. Seven years and one brief stint in Pennhurst later, he's crisscrossing the country with his girlfriend, dispelling rumors, exorcising poltergeists, and trying to bring families closure. Nancy Wheeler is first and foremost a skeptic, so naturally, it's her boyfriend who can see spirits. And if it weren't for her own personal experience with a haunting she wouldn't believe him. She doesn't trust half the stories they hear, but she's not about to let him go investigate the paranormal on his own.

#I told y'all AU no 4 was silly-goofy #Me: WHAT IF I TAKE THE SAD BOY AND MAKE HIM SADDER #Jonathan has powers actually #picture it they're 20 staying in shitty motels when they can solving murders using jonathan's I see dead people powers #super in love but it's the 80s so they lie that they're married #and then ppl are like you're too young to be married do your folks know and they dodge that like the plague #Nancy 100% ran off with Jonathan and only Mike knows where she is meanwhile Jonathan calls home every other night #Jonathan frequently feels guilty about not being good for Nancy and Nancy is like u r the saddest boy ever I'm gonna fuck u #Love that for her tbh #idk how they have money maybe Nancy sends in articles don't think to hard we're here for a silly goofy time #also Lonnie's bitchass def threw him in Pennhurst #I have too many thoughts about this AU #stranger things #Jancy #st au #jancy au #jonathan byers #nancy wheeler #jonathan x nancy #nancy x jonathan

[july-19th-club]

was looking up the only ash wednesday song ive ever loved (offering of ashes. btw. or just ashes. tom conry 1978 i know nothing else about this man except that he wrote this song) (for fic purposes) and stumbled upon a forum full of catholics discussing the revised version that was included in the 2021 hymnal and boyyyyyyyy the trads HATE this song. it was a 70s piece and a bit hippydippy in the sense that, for a catholic song, it is low on guilt and strong on self-forgiveness, and the first guy in the thread just has to point out that the unrevised version was too pelagian to be properly catholic

#pelagianism is one of my favorite heresies and i dont even know how this song could be that #next commenter 'i wouldnt use either in church if you put a gun to my head' third commenter 'i love it when heresy is removed from hymnals' #so far im feeling great about what i want this song to DO in the fic. like i knew i liked her for a reason #she's actively contrary to the spirit of lenten guilt! she's doing her own thing! and she's doing it hauntingly #lots of the commenters dislike the fact that the song contains the refrain 'an offering of ashes' because the ashes of ash wednesday #are not an offering they're *an outward sign of penance* #which even as a child i thought was sort of self-aggrandizing. like ohhhhhhhh we get it you went to church and we all see it #it always made me feel like a guilt trip if i washed mine off #i love when religious folks get SO up in arms about theology of lyrics in songs. girl i think he was just trying to make it rhyme #do you not have bigger things to worry about. religiously? #theology is like grammar. to me. it's fascinating to learn about its history and usage but some people treat it like the laws of physics

[captainshadowgirllostfan]

God, I miss this trio.

#if young justice comes back for a next season it needs to bring Raven to complete the trio #I just need these three to hang out and crack jokes #they're freaking hilarious #best part of Teen Titans 2003 #as much as I do love Robin and Starfire #I always preferred and liked Cyborg Raven and Beast Boy as a group #best friendship! #Teen Titans #Cyborg #Victor Stong #Raven #Rachel Roth #Beast Boy #Garfield Logan #this is why I'm angry Cyborg is NOT in DC Titans #like yes it's great there's bbrea or potential of it #but folks I could care less about bbrae #what i loved about Teen Titans the show was THEIR FRIENDSHIP #and I'm sad we're romanticizing Raven and Garfield's friendship #if Cyborg was there you know we'd be looking at their dynamic as friendship #and it would be sooo much more #as much as i like the ship i value the friendship sooo much more

[aziraphale-protection-squad]

right. so. i'm taking the angel and i'm wrapping him in a soft blanket and i'm telling him that NO ONE has the right to touch him without his consent.

no matter how well they know each other and got along previously.

or how angsty the person feels about possibly never seeing him again.

or how much Aziraphale might even possibly WANT to be intimate with that person on some level, someday, when they're okay again.

there are no ways around this:

if he's not READY for it, or if he's not in the MOOD for a kiss, then NO ONE SHOULD BE KISSING HIM. PERIOD.

#pretty sure this is not a controversial statement but the things i've seen some folks say today has been. um. #disheartening to say the least and alarming at worst. #please fucking tell me i'm not the only one who knows assault when they see it even if they find both characters attractive. #like. holy fuck. i love(d) crowley too but what the fuck. #how is THIS being overlooked while Aziraphale is taking all the blame for how shit went down in the finale. #~ooh they finally kissed!!!!!~ ugh but STUPID ANGLE!!! >:( doesn't he know how sexy and emotional crowley is??? he should ENJOY this!!!! #<- some of y'all's apparent attitude and it Concerns me deeply. #call it what it fucking is even if it sucks. it was a violation. period. it's 2023 we don't tolerate Blurred Lines bullshit here. #goddamnit this was my safe fandom and now i'm like. y'all scare me tbh. #i hate fandom drama but the way the majority have elected to ignore a literal assault so they can UWU Sad Demon Puppy their blorbo is just. #what is this? spn??? #he was my blorbo too but holy fuck i have lines. i have boundaries. and he crossed them when he crossed Aziraphale's. #if u think u know who this is no u don't #i am conflict avoidant leaf me alone lol #i just need to know that i'm not the only person here who um. respects boundaries and consent and all that. because y'all got me Concerned. #like. i wanna rant about this in my fandom friend groups but they're all UWU CROWLEY DESERVED BETTER so um. i no longer feel safe there tbh #good omens spoilers #go2 spoilers #go spoilers #good omens 2 spoilers

[vivanightcity]

My favorite meet-cute

#saints row #saints row 2022 #The Nahualli #nahualli is such a good character okay i love everything about him #if i'd remembered to turn of subs they wouldn't be there so they're not meant to be readable #but for folks who want to know what they say: 'you have more courage than brains' - 'you're goddamn right i do' #and 'you're too predictable' - 'am i?'

[ereborne]

Song of the Day: March 15

“Over Yet" by Hayley Williams

#song of the day #very exciting to have one of my brothers tell me entirely unprompted that he's enjoying the current playlist #a very big win #I spent most of my work day today doing what I've been thinking of as 'evil rubber-ducking' #where the IT guys throw me the especially Difficult faculty members--the ones who can't be helped because they won't listen-- #and I trick them into actually talking me through what they're doing so we can find the problem and fix it #(eternally amazed by people who request help and then refuse it. you called me bud. you submitted a service request ticket on purpose. #oh you can't do your job without connecting to the vpn? that's great we can't fix it until you tell us what's fucking stopping you) #mostly this 'tricking' takes the form of me being a sweet young butter-wouldn't-melt Southern girl in over my head with mean IT guys #bless them (derogatory) these folks who won't let IT even attempt to start working through the 'have you tried' scripts #because they know they're getting something wrong but are too angry-embarrassed to admit they don't know what #are still delighted to mansplain the idea of a remote connection to me #--that's not fair. I shouldn't mischaracterize them it's mostly not mansplaining. #the two today were yankee-splaining me. city-splaining maybe. #what would a hick like me (y'all is one person. all y'all or some'a y'all for multiple people) possibly know about enterprise networks-- #anyway they were using the wrong login credentials and were so sure of themselves they'd never even tried the other set just to see #bless. their. hearts. #(IT owes me so many little favors like this now. the latest database tweak I asked for got done live while I described it to them) #anyway anyway! love the chorus on this song #'to get out of your head yes break a sweat / baby tell yourself it ain't over yet' #makes me move my head every time

[lurkingteapot]

okay, this show wins, best show forever simply for calling out Google Translate for the unreliable bs it is "if it doesn't mean that, why does it translate it like that" because it's a machine and incapable of interpreting nuance or context. you're so lucky Yang likes you, kid.

#love in translation #love in translation the series #รักไม่รู้ภาษา #恋恋不懂 #love in translation ep 3 #I'll grudgingly admit #machine translation can sometimes be a useful tool for folks who know a little of the 2nd language they're working with #but when you go at it with near zero knowledge like Phumjai is here #that's just a recipe for disaster #and honestly 'well that's what google translate said' does not strengthen ANYONE's argument #grah #shutting up about my hate for thoughtless mtl use now #gotta finish this episode #my nonsense

[found--family]

Helluva name for an ep! I'm thinking it's a trifecta: 

Steph dealing with her father - again, though hopefully less heartbreaking than last time; maybe something happens and he comes around to her way of thinking ie. her mom needs professional help. (I hope Steph gets someone on her side) 

Duela's mom visits her for her birthday - she got out of prison, maybe escaped? Or maybe Duela goes to visit her for her birthday. Either way, Duela's mom reveals The Joker is not her father. (I'm still on the Duela Dent train but I don't know if they'll reveal that as well; if Duela's father is fugue!Dent, her mom might leave clues for her to figure it out for herself which would mean a second reveal maybe at the end of the season, maybe just before or after Harvey's Two-Face incident leaving a cliffhanger for season 2.) 

Harvey encounters his father. The way it's worded - 'collision course' - is intriguing. Will he encounter fugue!father? Will fugue!Harvey encounter his father? Did he think his father was dead? We've only had scraps of his past and whatever the comics say, GK is doing it's own thing so who knows what could happen. If his father is alive and it's a surprise maybe fugue!Harvey will kill him? But there's still the possibility that fugue!father is in league with the owls somehow (how else would they know about the piano trigger? Unless fugue!Harvey himself gave it to them..) 

I love the crew's passion for creating this story! They care about good storytelling, they care about the details, they want to entertain and surprise us! They're taking the best bits of the DCU and giving us something new! I'm very excited for the possibilites of this ep. This story continues to keep me guessing, has me caring about the characters, and keeps me invested in how things will unfold. 

#gotham knights #thoughts #harvey dent #duela dent #just tacking on a disclaimer here to remind folks i'm not a dcu fan so that probably skews my opinion but idgaf #I've never read any of the comics or seen the various shows nor cared much for the movies (Batman bores me tbh) #so I don't have any of the annoyances or reservations DC fans have with what GK is doing with the characters and #and plot deviating from canon; they're taking the best bits and spinning their own tale and I love that because #it keeps us theorising and enjoying a true mystery! I love speculating! And I love that they've created something #that you don't have to be a diehard DCU fan to enjoy or appreciate - but which incorporates so many versions of canon #that even if you are a fan and make your guesses you still might be wrong - and that's a good thing! why watch something #new where you know everything that's gonna happen? that's boring and not what GK is about. GK is about #going on a new journey together. it's bringing a rich universe into the modern era and discovering #new ways to tell its story. it's a batman show without batman! it's a major villain before he was a villain! #its a group of young unlikley friends coming together not only for themselves but for the greater good! #this probably deserves its own post but it was in my head while speccing on 1x11 so i'm putting it here.

[dutybcrne]

It’s easy enough to tell just how much something really got to Kaeya based on the air around him. He’s so carefully in control of his own emotions and Vision alike, his true feelings tend to go unnoticed or masked as something else. But if it really threw him or a loop or upset him in some way, a notable change in temperatures ( proportionate to how much he was affected ) is the surest sign, regardless of his poker face.

#hc; kaeya #//You know it's BAD bad if ice actively starts forming on himself/nearby without him noticing or in spite of him trying to keep calm #//But that usually only happened if something's truly threatening a loved one and he can't do a damn thing about it #//Or otherwise brought out of him by certain folks he's attached to. Like a certain claymore user for instance #//If Diluc ever tried to initiate reconciliation abruptly or even began to pry into his business; Kae is deffo bound to freeze something #//And he would sure hope Diluc wouldn't try to grab his shoulder or otherwise touch him unexpectedly; bc he'd give the man HELLA frostburn #//Pyro and Cryo do Not mix well; especially not if he was already stressed to begin with #//Anyone else trying to pry would get a chill in the air; whether bc of annoyance or rising stress #//Though Jean could also get him to freeze smth if she catches him off-guard a lot easier than most #//Especially if it flusters him--he would accidentally make a flurry burst of ice crystals the moment the feeling hits #//She and Diluc are the people he is/was most attached to; so ofc they're the ones who can get the strongest reactions out of him #//Diluc genuinely angry; whether at Kae or someone near; is also v likely to make him freeze the ground or smth he's holding #//Same with Jean; he assumes--he has yet to see her actually angry; but he genuinely Fears how it would go #//And the thought alone makes frost spread #//The traveler is depending on what exactly it is they do. Angry with him; it's a chill. Hurt; chill; maybe some frost depending #//Otherwise he's got a good handle on his emotions around them #//Y'know how in Frozen when Elsa froze her own room & then later in the prison when she froze her cell & shit started breaking? #//Yeah; that was what happened the first sleep after The Confrontation and during his stay at the Winery #//Both bc of Diluc lashing out and bc he was finally able to process Crepus' death #//Mans could not sleep Anywhere without the room ending up sealed in ice #//And only got worse each and every time Diluc's Vision flickered and dimmed #//He is thoroughly convinced the fact that he kept it on his person constantly is the reason he didn't get himself sick or worse #//He felt so awful for the staff and Adelinde especially if it got bad enough that she needed to get him to come out so it all could melt #//Or otherwise pull him out of his spiraling so he didn't actually compromise himself; the structure; or anyone else #//Would always act like she needed him to fetch her something; but he Knew. He Knew; and was mortified each and even time #//It got easier to control as the years went by; especially after/whenever Diluc replied to his letters #//But occasionally a particular nightmare would get him. Sometimes does in present day; but he's quicker to recover than back then #//When Jean got sick; her desk space had frost coating it while he worked. And when he heard she disappeared on Barbara? #//He froze and broke her inkwell; his coffee mug; and several pens #//All of which he replaced and swore Noelle to utmost secrecy

[whatudottu]

Hmm Junji Ito making me think of horror and @gr3y-etiola making me think of how different alien cultures would treat horror in their own way from the DMs, all leading me to galvans. What do the galvans, one of the smartest species in all of the Ben 10 universe, fear the most to the point where they would create horror media? What could a species, who knows everything there is to know about the universe and otherwise would find out if they don’t, fear as a collective that they would have their own horror genre?

Junji Ito has my answer, and it’s the fear of ‘everything you know is wrong’ or just in general ‘things that by all logic should act and behave this way, but rather it doesn’t’.

From planets eating and consuming others to the absurdity of being haunted by spirals, things that are wrong and do not act as the brilliant galvan had theorised - perhaps even proven because they have the tech and lifespan to do so - are the best chance at horror to develop in Galvan Prime culture.

Who knows, it is perhaps this wrongness - this ‘not-quite-right’ness - that Malware is seen as this feared being who cannot even garner a shred of sympathy because he’s not like other mechamorphs, a species created (even if accidentally) by the galvans themselves. How can a being, a member of a species made by proxy of making a neighbouring moon habitable, be born to tear and sunder?

How could something that they created be formed so wrong?

#galvan #galvanic mechamorph #malware #ben 10 #headcanon #this isn't really horror it's more talking about culture... #xenoarchaology #maybe lmao #me and grey were talking about horror- specifically what would ben 10 aliens find as horror #for folk that have a predator they could easily fear being hunted or eaten #for folk that have a notable weakness they could easily fear that weakness being exploited #and for folk that by proxy of just [insert alien world building] could just write about the horrors present within their societies #thinking about galvans- they cannot know the fear of the unknown save for the paradoxical recursion of not knowing that fear #they're smart as fuck and will absolutely figure that shit out #unlike cerebrocrustaceans who could feasibly fear the true nature of the self (their egos are large and inflated yet so fragile) #the galvan do not have much in the way of [insert global personality quirk/stereotype] to judge on that facet #but what do those that know everything fear the most? that their knowledge is incorrect and forever will be #love me some horror stuff (except for video games never get me to play a horror game)

[justthatspiffy]

there's such a jarring difference in watching dating reality tv when you're single vs in a healthy relationship

when i was single i watched it almost as an exposure therapy to people being vulnerable and performing romantic gestures, and while i had many moments of "no! that is not how we communicate with our partners!" and awareness of the hilariously compressed timelines of these shows, i was not overwhelmed in cringe

now, while i don't have any more romantic experience than the people in these shows (tho i may have plenty more communicating-in-healthy-ways experience), the romantic performance is thrillingly novel, the vulnerability is alarmingly rushed, and it's overall not as interesting to watch

#potential other thing is love is blind isn't as good as it was the first season or two #but that doesn't seem likely i think this was always beautifully gilded trash tv #about people who can't communicate effectively in no small part bc of the demands of filming #and getting engaged in ten days and married a month later #anyway i was super bored and thought i'd give myself a lil girls night by myself w/ my stuffed animal pabo #and watched ep 1 from the new season #and i was excited to see some mid-30s folks really vibe with each other #but at the end of the ep she falls asleep at an inopportune time #and he's so so upset he thought she left #like i think one thing that is never addressed in love is blind is body language #and basic knowledge such as MY DATE FELL ASLEEP #lots of people would feel dismissed by that but also i think it could be an indication of someone's comfort with you #other than they're not actually in each others' presence #anyway what i was getting around to #is i was screaming at production #please tell him she's asleep #he deserves to know she's asleep she didn't ditch him #anyway this show stresses me out more since really coming to terms with the level at which i'm impacted by other people's movement #how you stand how you eat how you position yourself in relation to other people on and on #right what i didn't get around to saying was i was hoping bc this couple was older #they'd. act grown #but of course not #of course no one is acting grown on this show

[gideonisms]

Noticing horrible tense mistakes in my old fics and bad wording choices and formatting fuck ups SO tempted to just spend the afternoon editing little errors from 2019 instead of either a) working on my new fics and short stories or b) studying like I'm supposed to be doing!

#also noticing some themes that correspond with my life in ways. #why did all my fic get depressing and about love as entrapment post 2020 #i mean i know why. #but watching myself shift from like. light funny stuff where if something was fucked up i just kind of didn't give it that much weight #to thinking things through more but in the process losing some of that joy #conflicting feelings on everything i've ever written #even the fluff from 2020/21 is like. well they're trapped together huh #it's a nicer trap but it's still like. they are choosing each other over options that maybe would be better for them #I didn't know how to write a sweet healthy relationship not that that's par for the course for any fandom i've ever been in but like #i'm going to be real folks are not healing from the trauma of canon in my fics even when it kind of seems like they're trying #which is something i didn't realize as i was writing them #anyway that's not what i'm editing out people can have good relationships irl. but the tense errors my god