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tracle0 · 5 years

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22/11

I was tagged by @joyful-soul-collector (thank you this is possibly one of my favourite tag games) ... Okay also also before I could finish this up, @hyba also tagged me so uh it’s 22/11 instead, ty ty. You two might want to check the tag list cause uhhh you might be there who knows not me c:

The rules are: Answer the 11 (22 this time but hush) questions, make up your own 11 and then tag... I think it’s 11 people but I don’t know 11 people who I haven’t already tagged so...

I sort of started spamming pictures to answer a question so I’m gonna... put the pictures under the cut.

1. Have any of your OCs ever stolen something? What did they steal, and why? Oh yeah sure - the first one I can think of easily is Cain. He used to live on the streets so had to steal to survive. But he’d also work for money. He’s not heartless, just desperate.

Also now I’m thinking about it, Tag would definitely be the kind of guy to just... hey I know I’m meant to hand this gear in but... no-one will miss it so.... he steals to amuse himself with the gadgets he gets.

2. Did you ever have imaginary friends as a kid? What were they like? I copied my sister in having pretend animal friends, but not really. Who needs imaginary friends when you have real-life ones lol I was a lot more liked as a kid.

3. Do any of your OCs have a favorite article of clothing? Why is it their favorite?

Uhhhh

Um.

Yeah, you could say that.

Andy likes his hoodie because it’s a thing that is only his. He didn’t get it from Murdock, I honestly don’t know WHERE he got it from, but it’s his, and the fact he owns anything means a lot to him.

Cain likes his because it’s one of the few things left over from when he was younger and again, it’s his. He didn’t steal it. It belongs to Only Him. He feels comfortable in it.

4. What do you fist develop about a character when you make one up? Do you think of their appearance first? Their personality? Their backstory?

Honestly? It depends. Backstory always comes after, but personality and appearance often intersect. I know for WIP 3 I thought of personality and traits first, and for Collateral it was appearance first. I think for Sonder it was more.. their role in the story? ‘Oh hey this is the antagonist, this is the protagonist, this is the love interest wait I hate romance, okay, side kick’ etc

5. Fluff or Angst?

If it’s not romantic? Fluff. I made myself angsty enough when I was younger, I want more happiness in my life.

6. Remember the color of that dress that everyone was debating about however many years ago? The one that was blue and black, or white and gold? What colors did you see?

The correct colours.

7. Pick your bubbliest, happiest OC. Now tell me what will make them turn into your worst nightmare. I wanna see what makes them the angriest.

Oh boy, let’s see uhhh... Tag. Tag from WIP 3 who is undergoing the process of a name change.

Seeing someone he loves die would twist him. Being isolated would eventually break him. Being unable to do what he loves would definitely upset him also.

Also idk if you’ve heard about it but in his world, there’s a nifty ability called being a silvertongue and I know at least one silvertongue is not gonna exploit this but I also know of another who would even on this19-year-old kid so maybe it’s not by choice but that could make him a nightmare. Just sayin’

8. Now pick your angstiest, most emo OC. And tell me what would make them blush and giggle like an idiot. I wanna see what makes them the happiest.

Okay for this one it’s a tie I write a lot of angsty characters.

>Andy - seeing something just. Really funny. Oh did Sam just fall over in a ridiculous way? Fantastic. That’s actually how they first have a proper conversation. Sam falls over, he laughs, they talk.

>Cain - anything awesome that Duck does. Oh hey what’s up Goose oh you drew this radical picture? /tearing up/ it’s so great oh my gosh you’re so talented. That’s more being happy than giggling but can you see Cain giggling? No, me neither.

9. If you could have any mythical creature for a pet, what would it be?

Dragon, next question.

10. What’s your go-to thing for when you’re hungry but don’t have time/energy to cook something?

Fruit! It is! Very good! And tasty! Apples have a good cronch! Oranges are mmmm juicy. Banana? Yes nice thank you. Oh wow we have strawberries? What a sweet treat. Also healthy!

11. Do any of your OCs have scars? Would they be confident enough to show them in public (like at the beach)?

Oh yeah sure man. Andy’s got multiple from... ‘training’. He doesn't show them off. Cain, Duck and Theo have all been badly burnt on the arms, and Cain ‘’shows it off’’ just because it makes him uncomfortable to have his arms covered. And uh Raya probably has some sort of scar on her knees or elbow from rollerblading. Because you do fall over and it does scar.

And now for Hyba’s questions, lez go bois

1. What cultural value do you see in writing/reading/storytelling/etc.?

I think that without storytelling specifically, humans would be so... mundane? We’d be no different to any other animal on the planet. Creating anything, be that stories or art or literally anything is so... human. To take that away would be like taking away humanities soul. The cultural value isn’t really measurable - storytelling makes up the culture.

2. Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?

Honestly, I have no idea. I try to entertain myself, and if other people like it too, then that’s neat. But because I’m writing for myself, I anticipate everything, so I don’t know if it’s original or not. I know it delivers what I want! But is that readers want? Who knows!

3. As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?

Crow. Not even as a writer, just... dude crows are so damn cool.

4. What do you think most characterizes your writing?

I’m not quite sure about the phrasing so uhhhh represents? Google is telling me ‘describes’.

In which case, a midnight fever jolting you out of bed, moments before you could fall asleep, and puppeting you to a writing surface so you can splurge ideas onto it sounds about right. 66% of my WIPs have elements in them that were based on dreams.

5. How do you select the names of your characters?

Mostly? Spite. ‘Oh Trade, you can’t have a bad guy named Andy, all Andy’s are good’ NOPE NOT ANYMORE SUCK IT. I also have a friend who is really good at coming up with names that fit the exact mood of the character so I go to her a lot. Sometimes they’re puns.

6. Choose one of your OCs (or more). How would they want to be seen by others?

Sam from Sonder wants to be seen as someone people can talk to, but also someone who pursues a science because yes sociology is a science to her, shut up, don’t talk to me if you’re going to mention the words ‘paradigm’ or ‘objective’ thank you.

7. How do you find or make time to write? Are you consistent or do you write whenever you get the chance?

Hahahahahhahha.

In the past few months, I’ve not been writing because I’ve had exams. Before that, I wrote at every chance I had - being a student, I had a fair bit of free time during the day, so I’d use that to write. But for a while, it was a nothing on the ‘what has Trade written recently’ chart.

Going up again boiiis

8. What does literary success look like to you? Is it important for you as a writer?

Literary success? That’s... a very interesting question. I think I’d be satisfied and feel successful if one person told me that my book helped them through something.

Jokes on me, I’ve already had that, my books helped me, I have already succeeded, see you losers in hell.

Also fanart but uh who needs fanart when you draw enough for five armies?

9. Are there any scenes that you’ve had to edit out of your WIPs? Can you tell us about them if they don’t spoil the book?

YES oh lord yes okay so in Sonder, chapter 15, I decided around draft 2 that I wanted a scene where Atlas got drunk. I made up reasons for it, asked lots of friends about what it was like to be drunk (as I personally have never been drunk), attended parties to get first-hand research and did so much preparation.

Wrote the scene, was pleased with it, left it to fester. Two years and two drafts later (now), I’ve come back and realised oh hey that scene is utterly useless and de-rails the plot. Time to remove it I guess.

I rationalise it as ‘well you wrote it and you had fun but it’s not needed, move on’ and that works well for me.

10. Would you feel comfortable publishing or sharing your writing using your real name, or would you prefer a pseudonym?

Pseudonym 100%. As cool as it would be to be able to go ‘hey I wrote this’ to people, the terrifying ordeal of being known is horrific, and people being able to track all my past activity from when I was literally seven is my worst nightmare. I wouldn’t even tell family or friends if I could get away with it.

‘Hey [real name], there’s a book at Waterstones called Sonder? With the exact same characters, plot and writing style as you have? But it’s under [pseudonym]?’ ‘oh hey, really that’s wild. Anyway,’

11. When writing, do you try more to be original or do you prefer to deliver to readers what they want? Do you think that a book can do both? Which is more important to you as a writer?

Oh hey, this is like question two but MORE. Standing by my previous answer, I think a book can do both - people want a happy ending, usually, but you can always be original in how you do that. No two stories can be told in exactly the same way. And hey - even if people do guess what’s coming up, that’s good.

As a writer? It’s most important to entertain. I don’t try and catch people out, I just deliver the story I have in my head and then edit it mercilessly until I’m pleased.

Questions!

1) Design a mask for an OC to wear. Would it cover their whole face? Is it a mascarade mask? Is it fancy or simple? Bonus cool kid points if you draw it.

2) Which OCs like spicy food?

3) Which OCs can take care of a plant - an orchid, to be exact?

4) Do you tell stories in any other medium beyond writing? eg: art or roleplay or...?

5) Do you have any irl items that you have because ‘oh dude this is something that’d totally be in my story’? Can I see them?

6) What’s the first book you remember buying?

7) Do you have any weird collections of things? As an example, I have a skull collection and a collection of... what’s best described as doll body parts. Anything just... weird that you have a lot of? Can I see it?

8) Which OC gets distracted by watching birds and which OC is like ‘dude stop watching the birds we’ve got STUFF TO DO’

9) Have you ever met a published author? Who?

10) Are you a person who likes tea or are you a person who prefers coffee? If the latter - dude c’mon tea is so much better smh

11) Have you backed up your files recently? Do it now. Please, for the love of god, back up your files.

Tagging!

@hyba @joyful-soul-collector (dunno if I’m allowed to tag the people who tagged me but fukkit here’s some more questions you eggs) @kaatiba @albatris @timetravelingpigeon @note-katha (hi we have barely interacted but nice new username) @nymph-of-diana (on your main if you want, idm c:) @writing-and-nutmeg @futurity-writing @osteoprecocious and @thatfizzyyyy

Honestly, the fact I made it to 11 is - wowza. Uhhh if you don’t want to then don’t, if you do want to then PLEASE do and then tag me so I can see your answers, I’m curious.

Ciao.

#writing #am writing #my writing #writerblr #writeblr #tagged in #Wow this went on #but seriously this is possibly my favourite tag game #coming up with questions is hard but #hey piece of advice #put stuff you love into the questions #I like masks for example #so #questions about masks lezgo

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boglog · 6 years

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Wholesome Questionare Tag Meme

Tagged by @80sglamcowboy Rules are: -Post the rules -Answer the questions given to you by the tagger -Write eleven questions of your own -Tag eleven people

This is long as Hell, friends and I apologise.

One inquisitive bitch has asked me:

1. Name one person (real or fictional) that you think you could 100% take on in a fight

Foaming mouth guy from Avatar. He’s got no stamina, barely any health, no skill. He’s unfocused and weak and my noodley nerd-ass could take him. (Though I am a little concerned he has rabies.)

2. What’s your favourite snack rn

Grilled cheese w veggies, mustard, and grilled tofu w a side of ketchup made by my roommate. It’s honestly the purest thing.

3. Which apocalypse do you think you’d do the best in? (i.e. Nuclear winter/ robot uprising/ Too many vampires, etc)

O man. I love apocalypse movies and I love survival horror (that one episode of the X Files where they’re trapped in a cabin, anybody?). I also genuinely love camping and I’m a bit of a medical hobbyist. I also watched an unreasonable amount of prepper videos on YouTube. That said, as mentioned above, I am a couch potato weekling. Furthermore, I don’t do well in conflict so if the world hierarchy collapses into a power vacuum where you have to Orange is the New Black-style intimidate ppl for supplies, I would melt and die quickly.

My best bet, it would seem, is an Arrival-esque alien apocalypse where the ones who have enough patience and sci fi knowledge to communicate w aliens are at the top of the food chain. And worst case scenario it’s better for my ego to die at the hands of an alien than a human.

Sci go apocalypses are just cleaner y'know ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 4. Best and worst fandom you’ve been in? Or have you somehow managed to avoid fandom completely?

Worst has to be Steven Universe. I regret not just moving on after I got bored. Ah well.

(I also think celebrity/real ppl fandoms are a dead end.)

My other fandoms all have various pros and cons and it’s hard to pick a favourite.

Adventure Time has great fanart, great meta and ppl have yet to descend into Homestuck-ian chaos. That said, they’re quiet af. People also fixate way too much on the fake fanfic AU Fionna and Cake. I have yet to read a really good Bonny/Marcy fic and that is a tragedy (a few have come close tho). Bottom line for AT tho is that it’s my go to wholesome cartoonist fandom. I like that it has depth but that it’s generally very simple and fun and that the fans are mostly shut in animation adults.

AtLA/LoK fandom’s biggest pro is that it’s huge and you literally never ran out of quality content. I’ve even made a few friends via this decade old franchise. It’s also enjoyably rich and complex. One of my favourite (now inactive) blogs was one that connected world building and little background Easter eggs to real Chinese history and culture. That wAs so cool!! I defs think as a Chinese person it allowed me to connect to non-western culture in a socially acceptable way.

The downsides tho are many: it can be overwhelmingly complicated (esp as someone who knows jack shit abt Chinese history), people take it too seriously, The Great Shipping Wars, it’s so big it’s a little lonely, the show itself has so many flaws upon greater inspection you wonder why you wasted your time on anything related to it, it’s an Asian themed story created by white dudes who make fun of their fans, the best parts of the show were written by other writers but those same white guys get k the credit. Also as w any fandom related to POC culture, racism happens. Anyways most of you know this already. IMO the best thing to have happened do the fandom is korrasami. Now it’s just abt Asian lesbians ruling the world.

(Though I also thoroughly enjoy the Family Rivalry part of the fandom. There are so mNy dysfunctional families to choose from!)

Rick and Morty is technically speaking my newest fandom. It’s got a lot of obvious cons (pickle Rick sexists, Szechuan sauce racists, asfhkkh incest) but one other con is just how pedantic and overly analytical people are abt the world building. I can’t breathe wo being corrected. RM has a misleadingly complicated high sci fi aesthetic that begets the kind of overanalysing my brand of overanalytical nerdiness can’t handle. Too many alternate universes. It’s just too complicated.

However one thing I like is that conversely I can overanalyse the writing and characters’ psychology/relationships (which I LOVE) and ppl take me very seriously. (At least they used to.) it’s kinda validating to have your 3k word essay on an old man’s bedroom and what that signifies for his depression get over 1k notes.

Rm also attracts the fun, super talented animation crowd so there’s boundless fanart and memes. I never knew I would like a gravity falls crossover retirement home AU btwn Rick and Stan so much but the art is objectively gorgeous?? So ??

I really dislike the lack of attention the female characters get from fandom bc they’re all really great? Female rep is limited but both canon and fic really do their 2-3 tokens justice. Also the jerry hatred is getting old (that male aggression… Like… Calm down, Jake) but it’s a refreshing departure drom when Megg from family guy was the butt of the joke.

Harry Potter, one of the pillars of nerd society, has both changed my life and irreconcilably annoyed me to death. (W no thanks to the racist creator herself!) One can’t underestimate how huge the hp fandom is which offers you as many reasons to love it as reasons not to. Harry Potter’s canon has complex world building that’s also charming enough not to take itself too seriously and much the same could b said of fanon. To a degree. Certain corners of the fanbase are fantastic shitposters and meme-ers and can draw you back in like a black hole. Casually enjoying Harry potter imo is where it’s at. The fanfic is probably one of the most impressively vast. Strangers at Drakesaugh, believe it or not, still updates and not only that, I still read it.

Not casually enjoying Harry potter is, um, yikes? HP and Hunger Games love to insert themselves appropriately in real life political traumas and honestly the dedication of the fandom can be overwhelming.

The HP fanart corner of deviantart circa 2010-12 and @flocc HP comics however are the best.

Meet the Robinsons, Ye Olde Fandom, still stands to this day. (Thanks in part to me ngl) As Iroh might say, they are a proud people. MTR is so bizarre and tiny it’s the only fandom I was able to read EVERY fic summary in existence (ones published on obscure sites excepted). The fandom has never ceased to surprise me for better or worse and mostly due to its age range. The original movie was intended for 8-12 yr olds and their (jaded) parents which means that now, ten years later, the fans are anywhere between 12 and 25. It has approximately 20 pieces of professional-grade fanart and fic and I am downright serious abt the quality and thoughtful complexity of this minority of fanart. Like I shit you not some of it’s almost too dark. However, tragically, one can’t talk abt obscure Disney fandoms wo also mentioning the incest ships (this is what happens when middleschoolers have to resort to cartoons to explore their sexuality in an anti sex ed world), the disorganised crossovers, and the blinding lack of imagination. Nonetheless, that a fandom of any kind could sprout from a 90 min cgi movie before the recession, based off an obscure but objectively fascinating children’s book, is still impressive. The fandoms smallness can in many wars work to everybody’s benefit: it’s a tightly knit community w little to no drama. And lots of memes (that I mostly make) to enjoy sincerely or ironically.

I’m also going to mention, very briefly, the Twin Peaks fandom, most of whom, even the die hards, are v casual when it comes to fan content (I need more fic damnit). Nonetheless it’s a decidedly cool art kid crowd for an art house show and I really enjoy befriending twin peaks watchers.

5. What’s one hot food that you prefer cold? (or, alternatively, one cold food you like hot)

Is it snobby to say I like food to be the temperature God intended?

Like I like cold pizza and salad-y pasta but I wouldn’t mind if everything were room temperature as long as the food itself was well made.

6. ya like jazz? What music do you enjoy listening to? Can you recommend any songs/ artists from that genre?

I think in some contexts I can like jazz. It’s very cosy and nostalgic, it can make you feel like a grand dame stepping out of your limo into your martini filled mansion as records pop around you and your fur carpeted living room. I also occasionally like jazz covers and alternate genres of jazz like electro swing etc.

Generally though I also think jazz is a little antiquated and a little all over the place. I lean more towards the ambiguous minimalism of mellow techno music like Jonna Lee, Grimes, Björk, early Lorde, Yasmine Hamdan, Austra, TRST, etc

I mean I don’t stick to just one genre (I imagine most ppl don’t). I like alternative (Tori Amos, Regina Spektor, Joanna Newsom) and some musicians who seem to completely exist outside of genre like iMonster and the Gorillaz. Not to mention straight up pop like broods, Ellie goulding, lady gaga and Lana del rey. (I mean technically Ldr isn’t pop but u get the ideer)

7. What binge worthy show do you like?

So many man. There are so many out there! Twin peaks, Transparent, Love, Grace and Frankie, Adventure Time, House of Cards, Bojack Horseman, Rick and Morty, Mad Men, Girls, Broad City, Black Mirror, Avatar TLA, 6Teen, Chowder, Over the Garden Wall, Flapjack, the first season of Downton Abbey, Game of Thrones, etc

The list goes on. I’m a TV fiend.

8. What’s an old meme that you miss and wish would be brought back?

Always liked the Gothic [x town or whatever] meme. It was like a text post version of the cursed images meme. Currently I’m really enjoying the song from another room meme and I hope even after it gets old it’ll make a comeback.

9. Tell me your aesthetic  

O man. That’s a can of worms! Okay. Deep breath.

I like futurism, of all kinds. I like strong lines and clear shapes. I like colour blocking and minimalism and glass and holographic LED neons. I like white Japanese urban tiled buildings. I like aliens and ruins and cubes and white and colour blocking and black. I like technology and aliens and Comme des Garçons and Issey Miyake. Rooms that are empty but for one light and one window and one plant. Love that.

I like the midcentury cubism and Mod and 30’s futurism. Clear and strong industrial shapes and curves and post modernist abstractionism.

I also love nature, I love most every Björk and Iamamiwhoami music video. I love the mountains and the forests and the desert and the winter tundra and most of all I love the water. A vast expanse of sky and sea w so many colours and textures. I love the 2000s and funny blob shapes and y2k’s obsession w secondary colours and shiny round things. Love pink. I am a grown adult who will never tire of pink. (Though I don’t really like when people overdo pink.) I love cursed image family photos taken with flash in a suburb. I love the grime and the sanitary aesthetic of suburbs and hospitals and brutalist office spaces. The fluorescent lights of the institution but with purple carpeting!

I love 70s mod and I love colorful 80s brutalism I like it when houses are shaped weirdly and they have carpets and polished curved wooden countertops and spacious nothingness where everything looks clean and cosy and bizarrely ugly and it all looks like an art gallery w too many plants.

I also really love maximalism and wood and detail and fur and velvet and embroidery and silk and windows and wood carvings.

I love 70s kitsch like John waters movies and Shrimps designer fake fur CDG17 where they just piled on knickknack after knickknack onto white dresses w food long trains. Toys and novelty items and lamps shaped like a woman’s leg in a fishnet stocking. (See also: most Tim burton movies, wes Anderson, Carrie fishers house)

An overwhelming mishmash of wool patterns with clean cubic 70s architecture and so many plants and windows and wallpaper and candles and cobwebs. Also really like witchy mourning jewelry and essentially every house in Harry potter. Love the unfortunately racist boho/hippie aesthetic. Any house designed by bill kirsch is a masterpiece. Woven baskets on the ceiling piles of hats and art supplies everywhere. Stuff!! Everywhere! Hidden passageways reading nooks fireplaces the Pink Palace from Coraline!

Everything!!!

I’m a cartoonist who’s a nerd for design so I like when concepts are taken to the extreme in a humourously charming and clear-minded way. Whatever aesthetic someone chooses, they should go all out and really dedicate themselves to the highest form of that aesthetic. It has to be perfect without being sanitary of fake. It has to be alive yet beautiful, frozen in one perfect moment.

10. Favourite time of day and why?

Dusk. I think it’s a nostalgia thing. I loved the hours before bed time as well the hours before dinner when it was getting dark and the sun was reflecting freaky colours along the horizon while I ran around the grass. It’s cozy but it’s spacious and adventurous. So many things can happen at dusk!

  11. You have the choice to live in any fictional universe - which one do you pick and why?

Harry Potter!!! You get the best of both worlds: magical, over-romanticised Victorian/medievalism, wish-fulfillment surrealism and wifi. It’s great. Likelihood of dying is so low, medicine is so advanced and even then ppls n°1 choice of lethal weapon (Avada Kedavra) is painless. Me and Luna could hang in her garden. I’d never have to pay for the subway again. I could live a nomadic life in a tent w infinite space. If you chose to live as a wizard amongst Muggles you’re basically god and you can cheat capitalism. Gravity is my bitch! And I’m not gna lie my dream house has always been a combination of The Burrow, the Lovegood house, and Shell Cottage.

My turn to pick your brain:

1 Favourite texture?

2 Favourite smell?

3 Favourite children’s book/children’s TV show? (I’m talking about the bizarre abstract ones for toddlers)

4 Best and worst prank you’ve ever pulled?

5 Weirdest beginning of a friendship?

6 When you’ve been in fandom for a while you start to notice you’ve a habit of staying in the same corners. What corner are you in? Are you part of the fluffy ship corner? The intense world building spec meta corner? The shitpost comic fanart corner? Etc

7 If you could invent a class that would be obligatory for all high schools across your country what would it be?

8 What’s the weirdest thing you’ve gotten at Halloween while trick or treating?

9 Weirdest family tradition of yours?

10 Describe your significant other (or your crush, or your dream partner or if you’re aromantic your fave person) through only TV references.

11 Favourite piece of dialogue in a movie?

I don’t know 11 ppl but nonetheless tagging: @that-guy-in-the-bowler-hat @skairheart @nochangenohope @eventheslightestrayofsunshine@autistic-jaredkleinman@phoenixkluke

…and YOU (if you were not mentioned above and so choose to accept this mission)

#tag meme #u #food m ?

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anzwrites · 5 years

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ive been tagged in so many tag games that i haven’t gotten around to doing them so i’m just gonna do them all in one post

5 Facts Tag Game

The aim of the game is simple; list at least 5 lesser known facts about your WIP and/or the OC of your choosing!

1. As of right now all of my wips are in the same universe. So there will probably be subtle nods to the bands of The Reckless in Chaos.

2. In the very first version of Chaos I decided to include a battle of the bands storyline for some reason?? but it’s been scraped since.

3. Originally Chaos was going to be a long series but I shortened it to one book and now two (the second being more focused on Kelsey’s younger brother and his friend group.) The series was going to follow Ryker and Kelsey into adulthood while Ryker pursued a career as a cop.

4. I chose San Francisco as the setting because I’ve always wanted to go to San Francisco/move there.

5. Chaos is basically a mix of all of my favorite parts of my favorite movies & tv shows. Examples are, We Need To Talk About Kevin, Skins, The Breakfast Club, etc.

WIP Questions Tag Game

1. Describe the plot in one sentence.

Shane writes letters to Kelsey to cope with the things he’s done.

2. Pick one sight, smell, sound, feel and taste to describe the aesthetic for your novel.

this was hard cause theres so many different aspects?? to this story

Sight - seeing people who were once your closest friends seemingly better off without you.

Smell - cigarette smoke??

Sound - crackling fire

Feel - hugging someone you love after not seeing them for a long time

Taste - pizza

3. Which 3+ songs would make up a playlist for the novel?

i have an entire playlist here but heres three of the songs from that playlist

popular - nada surf

reaper - have mercy

ghost - sky ferreira

4. What’s the time period and location in which the novel takes place?

it takes place in san francisco, a fictional suburb called “ridgeview” and some of the surrounding area, in 2013 and up to september 2018

5. Are there any former titles you’ve considered but discarded?

originally it was titled “oh kelsey” but after major changes in the plot i realized the name didn’t fit the feel of the story anymore so i changed it

6. What’s the first line of your novel?

im most likely going to change it later but for right now its, “In the mailbox there was a manila envelope with letters inside.”

7. What’s a line of dialogue you’re particularly proud of?

so far in this draft nothing super interesting has happened so i don’t have any lines in proud of yet

8. Which line from the novel most represents it as a whole?

uhhh maybe, “...she had to know what became of the boy she cared for so deeply and how he became the monster who did such heinous things.“

9. Who are you character faceclaims?

for the main three

Kelsey York - Kaya Scodelario

Ryker Kennedy - Devon Bostick

Shane Blanchard - Ezra Miller

the rest are on the character page if you’re curious

10. Sort your characters into Hogwarts houses.

i know very little about harry potter but from what i know Ryker gives me hufflepuff vibes, Magnolia is probably a griffindor, Odessa would be a ravenclaw and Hunter, Meredith & Shane might be slytherin. im too lazy to try and think of anyone else’s.

11. Which character’s name do you like the most?

Probably Magnolia

12. Describe each character’s daily outfit.

Kelsey: plain tee, cardigan, skinny jeans & converse.

Ryker: emo band tee, blue hoodie, skinny jeans, & red converse.

Shane: punk band tee, leather jacket, black ripped skinny jeans & boots.

13. Do any characters have distinctive birthmarks/scars?

During the novel Kelsey gets a scar on her cheek, Shane probably has various scars from abuse and fights, Felix’s nose is crooked from all the times he’s been punched in the face, Myranda has self harm scars, & Blair has cigarette burns.

14. Which character most fits a character trope?

I feel like Meredith fits the mean girl trope pretty well.

15. Which character is the best writer? Worst?

Josie is the best and Pierce is the worst.

16. Which character is the best liar? Worst?

Nigel is the best and Alan is the worst.

17. Which character swears the most? Least?

Felix swears the most and Josie swears the least.

18. Which character has the best handwriting? Worst?

Best is Melaina and worst is Jared.

19. Which character is most like you? Least like you?

I think maybe Kelsey is the most like me?? i dunno, Least like me is probably Shane.

20. Which character would you most like to be?

Tiffany, objectively I think she suffers the least trauma.

Oc Tag Game

i’ll do this one for shane

1. What was the first element of your OC that you remember considering (name, appearance, backstory, etc.)? it was his style. i always knew he was gonna dress a bit edgy, when i first created him he was a little bit more emo though.

2. Did you design them with any other characters/OCs from their universe in mind? no, he was very different from the characters i created before.

3. How did you choose their name? at first his name was jason, i think? i honestly don’t know why i named him that??? eventually i changed to to shane because it felt more like him. there was a period in time when his name was seth but i changed it back.

4. In developing their backstory, what elements of the world they live in played the most influential parts? because the story is set in san francisco which is known for their large punk scene, i decided he was going to spend a lot of his time in that scene so i created “nigel’s tavern” and the staff of said club. this really played a huge part in the rest of his development.

5.6.7) Is there any significance behind their hair colour/eye colour/height? not really. but originally he had red patches in his hair because edgy but i scrapped that.

8. What (if anything) do you relate to within their character/story? i don’t think there’s really anything about him that i can relate to,, that’s probably for the best

9. Are they based off of you, in some way? ^^

10. Did you know what the OC’s sexuality would be at the time of their creation? no,, and i still don’t think it do. all i can concretely say is he definitely likes girls and has probably kissed a few guys. so maybe he’s bicurious

11. What have you found to be most difficult about creating art for your OC (any form of art: Writing, drawing, edits, etc.)? his aesthetic comes very easily to me so edits and drawing him are easy-ish (i haven’t drawn something in like 2 years tho) so i guess writing him

12. How far past the canon events that take place in their world have you extended their story, if at all? no

13. If you had to narrow it down to 2 things that you MUST keep in mind while working with your OC, what would those things be?

how easily he’s feelings toward Kelsey (or anyone really) can switch and

14. What is something about your OC that can make you laugh?

how far he’ll go to subtly piss someone off

15. What is something about your OC that can make you cry?

literally everything tbh

16. Is there some element you regret adding to your OC or their story?

not that i can think off

17. What is the most recent thing you’ve discovered about your OC?

that he was raised catholic by his mother

18. What is your favourite fact about your OC?

15 Questions, 15 Mutuals

1. Are you named after anyone?

not really but i have the same middle name as my grandma

2. When was the last time you cried?

maybe a few days ago

3. Do you have/want kids?

4. Do you use sarcasm a lot?

yeee boii

5. What’s the first thing you notice about people?

their hair

6. What’s your eye color?

hazel

7. Scary movie or happy ending?

happy ending!! i lowkey hate scary movies

8. Any special talents?

i literally don’t think i have any talents

9. Where were you born?

florida

10. What are your hobbies?

i guess writing and making awful youtube videos

11. Do you have any pets?

yes! i have a dog named bella and she’s the love of my life

12. What sports do you/have you played?

im terrible at sports so none

13. How tall are you?

5′4 i think

14. Favorite subject in school?

umm none? lmao

15. Dream job?

i guess writer or youtuber cause im a basic bitchhh

#tag game #wip: the chaos you create

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terrible-tentacle-theatre · 7 years

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The Bestiary: Coconut Octopus

Disclaimer: This article, while founded in scientific fact, contains conscious exaggerations for the sake of comedy. Do not take it seriously. List of sources included at the end.

Hello again you beautiful fuckers! The dread claws of higher educations have passed over me for the time being, which means two things: Jewish celebrations involving matzo and new articles. (Mostly just new articles because Passover is not actually in the winter, but I couldn’t pass that pun opportunity over. Oops, I did it again.)

And how better to celebrate surviving my first midterms than writing about the objectively best sea animals: octopuses?

Yes, there is an objective list of sea animals from best to worst. Yes, it’s scientific. Yes, octopuses are at the top. Trust me, I’m a scientist.

Let’s be honest here for a moment: octopuses fucking rock. They come equipped with eight tentacular arms tipped with powerful suckers that help them adhere to any surface or prey item, they can change colors in ways that give chameleons a run for their money, they spew ink into your face when you get too tiresome, and they have fucking chitinous beaks in place of mouths. Not bad for something so closely related to garden snails. But coolest of all is their intelligence: if sea life was a superhero comic, the octopus would be the evil genius. They have great big honking brains packed into their non-existent skulls, capable of operative learning, problem-solving and even exhibiting personality; but even better than that is the fact that their arms each come pre-packaged with their own sub-brain - all invertebrates have ganglia distributed at each major body part but with octopuses these knots of nerve tissue inflate into much more complex structures, that among other things give each arm its own separate “personality” - one arm might be more aggressive, the other more curious, the third more cautious, etc.

Octopuses are an outlier - there are some molluscs that don’t even fucking have heads, and these guys come out of the blue and start being laughably intelligent. They probably got shoved into the locker by the snails all the time, like the fucking nerds they were.

Now let’s stop for a moment and consider what’s the finest and most clear-cut imaginable example of intelligence. No, it’s not art. No, it’s not Tumblr. No, it’s definitely not Superbowl.

Instead, it is tool use. The capability to utilize something that is useless or even holding you back until the perfect moment it is needed. Just like Aquaman.

I think you already know where I’m going with this. That “where” being, of course, that octopuses are genius enough to figure out tool use, because of fucking course they would. However, only one known species has achieved this first feat towards conquering human civilization so far, that being the magnificent coconut octopus.

Yo.

Amphioctopus marginatus, also known as the veined octopus, is an excessively pretty and decorative, but vicious creature, somewhat resembling a magical girl in that respect, except magical girls usually don’t have sucker-tipped tentacles or chitinous beaks, but I digress (then again, its webbed tentacles lined with colorful suckers do give off the impression of a frilly skirt). It is a tropical littoral octopus, meaning it lives in shallow water near the shoreline in equatorial waters where it’s hot and damp as fuck. It most often occurs in China and Indonesia, and leads a benthic lifestyle, meaning it’s too much of a lazy ass to swim, preferring to move around on the sea floor instead. Generally it’s a well-rounded, ordinary tropical Pacific octopus with a pleasing color scheme and ridiculously specific needs for survival... OR IS IT??? *dramatic chord*

As it turns out, it is most definitely not. In a sense, it’s the most special octopus ever. Just like Batman, during the day it’s an ordinary cephalopod of wealth and taste, but at night, it is the protector of... well, itself in this case, but just like Batman it achieves this goal using its pricey toys. In Batman’s case, it’s shit like the Batmobile, Batarangs or the utility belt, but the coconut octopus resorts to a much easier kind of tool: coconut shells.

To the Batcave!

When you think about it, coconut shells are some of the best tools for protection, provided you’re small and squishy and betentacled enough. They are hard, thick half-spheres that come in pairs and few things can ever break through them thanks to their high resistance to breaking and shattering force. Of course they can’t stand a chance against, say, a predatory fish thirty times your size with giant jagged teeth, but if one of those takes a fancy to you then you’re fucked anyway, whatever you do, so in the meantime coconut shells offer good defense against anything that you could reasonably defend yourself from.

Here’s how it goes: the octopus crawls around on the seafloor, idly just looking around for a suitable pair of half-spheres to inhabit. When it comes across such an object, it scampers over to it, dives in and fastens the base of its tentacles all over the two half-shells and starts just awkwardly carrying them around. According to the wonderful scientists researching them, it actually hinders their movement quite a bit, as they have to “stilt-walk” on their arms with the half-shells tucked underneath the tentacles, making them look like they are carrying the biggest pair of balls around.

However, when danger draws near, the octopus simply snaps the shells shut, transforming them from handy-dandy ballsack-holders to something not unlike a Morph Ball.

A coconut octopus will often utilize these Morph Balls when exploring some sort of no man’s land that doesn’t hold many possible shelters, letting them sphere up immediately if danger draws near. Try to open me up now, fucker.

“But Admin”, I hear you say, “How does an octopus, even one living in shallow water, acquire a steady source of coconut shells?”

The answer, of course, is humans. Lots and lots of humans who settle by the coconut octopus’ habitat, climb up trees, eat coconuts and throw the shells into the ocean. The octopus jumps on the opportunity like the shells are filled to the brim with cocaine.

Of course, it’s unlikely the octopus evolved such a complex behavior just in the little time humans were there, especially considering that the Metroid franchise didn’t exist yet, so it needed another source of inspiration. That source, say the scientists, might have been sea shells, which also occur in high density around the parts where this guy lives, and indeed they have been seen using sea shells for the same morph ball reasons, making them look like a slimier, less spine-possessing version of the Birth of Venus.

Try me, I’m the most fabulous motherfucker around these parts

To make this little scamp even better, even its way of locomotion is hilarious. You know that little meme octopus that NOPEs out of here whenever you feel it’s an adequate use for a reaction image? That’s, in fact, a coconut octopus. Observe:

That motion is as useful to the coconut octopus as laughable it looks from the outside. by this weird-ass walking movement, the octopus can mimic a floating coconut, approximating the object of its obsession even closer. This offers it the coconut’s protection even when it doesn’t have one, because really, who would want to bite into a hard floating hairy ball? (Aside from coconut crabs of course, but once again, if one of those wants to eat you you’re already fucked beyond belief and no tricks will help you.)

However, don’t confuse the coconut octopus’ arsenal of defensive tricks for peaceful nature or anything like that. This guy is vicious, and hunts for a living. Those coconut and sea shells don’t just acts as ballsacks and protective morph balls, they also allow the octopus to lie in wait.

Oh yes, in case you forgot, pretty much all octopuses are predators, and all of them are venomous. This guy isn’t an exception either, and to make it better it uses its coconut shells as aids in its hunt.

This is how it goes: the octopus chooses a promising hunting spot, sets up shop inside its coconut shell, and waits patiently, until something suicidally dumb enough comes along. Then it puffs up its mantle, using the water suction to quite literally launch itself out of the coconut and strike the suicidally dumb thing from above like a betentacled incarnation of rage.

That fucker crab didn’t even see it coming. That’s what you get for being a dumb crab and not a tactical genius like the coconut octopus, I guess.

The suicidally dumb thing is then engulfed by the octopus’ arms, and then injected with paralyzing venom and digestive enzymes in rapid succession, allowing the octopus to suck out its liquefied insides spider-style.

Here you suckers thought this guy was just adorable coconut tricks and Ministry of Silly Walks. But no, they are actually quite ruthless and calculating hunters - both clownish and deadly, which is already the norm over here at the Terrible Tentacle Theatre.

Sources

Encyclopedia of Life

Smithsonian Institution

Wikipedia

#bestiary #biology #octopus #cephalopod #armor #tricky little shit #MORPH BALL #hunter #tool use #Dont fuck with the Octopus

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iamsoneurotic · 6 years

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Hey Milo! You Five! And other stuff...

So we’re weeks out from baby #3 being born… I’ve hardly written a single update about this pregnancy because oddly enough it’s really, really hard to find time to write absurdly long posts when you’ve got two little boys and a pregnant wife.

Oh who am I kidding, I’m just really lazy. But having kids is such a good excuse to not do things that I can’t help but use it every chance I get. Now if only I had a decent excuse to get a minute alone from the boys I’d be in business! I kid… but let’s not pretend that it isn’t the worst thing in the world to wake up to a toddler screaming at you to play legos upstairs. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE playing with Legos and I love playing with my kids, but I love not moving in the morning more. We’ve got a rule in the house: Mommy and Daddy don’t play until after they’ve had their coffee in the morning. Needless to say I sip mine VERY slowly.

Rachael and I are not morning people. Milo and Noli inherited that trait from us, but unfortunately they also inherited my stubbornness - so they just refuse to sleep in. Yeah, I know all kids wake up early and are miserable, but Noli literally wakes up growling and Milo always wakes up yelling “HEY!” like he dreamt about some goblin flicking him in the nose and then woke up too soon to flick him back. That’s what I imagine happens anyway. If they’re so mad about being awake, why not just stop being awake?? It’s not that hard, I do it all the time!

But whatever. They come out of their rooms, they fight over a lego, I pathetically and ineffectively shout at them from my recliner downstairs and then I drink my coffee and secretly daydream about drowning to death in it. Mornings with the Marianelli’s are a good old time. Even the unborn one wakes up cranky, he just awakens when Rachael is going to bed and kicks her in the ribs like a savage. Crap, I just realized I never posted his gender - well if you haven’t figured it out yet, he’s a boy. If anything I’m consistent.

We had the sonogram a week after my last post and boy oh boy the boy wasn’t shy about being a boy. Have I said boy enough yet? I know a sonogram isn’t actually a camera with a lens, but I swear, the moment they turned that device on he practically slapped it against the screen. No subtlety whatsoever.

There’s this awkward moment during a gender reveal where both parents are secretly hoping for different results (by secretly I mean me, Rachael was quite vocal about her hopes) - it’s like when you’re playing a board game with people and it’s maybe 10 rounds in and that competitiveness is starting to rear its ugly head and the laughter is becoming more and more forced with every round - and then you win for like, the 5th time in a row and you’re not quite sure what emotion to express so you just sort of downplay your own victory as dumb luck, but now everybody feels insulted that you’re pitying them… Yeah, that’s what it’s like to find out you’re having a third boy.

But for real, it’s better this way and we all know it.

I can’t tell if the sound of my voice makes the little stinker agitated or happy. He usually starts moving a lot when I talk to him (yeah I know, they can be startled by sound and it’s not technically me specifically that he’s responding to - but let me have this!), I think my proudest moment was when I placed my hand on Rachael’s belly and said “HIGH FIVE!” and he totally kicked my hand. He also likes to kick me in the head when I try listening to his heartbeat… They say you’re supposed to be able to hear the heartbeat without a stethoscope but I’m three kids in and it’s NEVER happened! I do, however, hear a lot of digestive sounds that I wish I could un-hear.

This pregnancy gives me a lot of memories of when Milo was still in the womb and he would stop Rachael dead in her tracks by roundhouse kicking her in the side. This little guy might actually be worse. There were a couple of weeks in the Autumn where we were convinced he was actually kicking Rachael in the spine. It would send shockwaves up her back and every time it happened I thought she either saw a giant spider or suffered an aneurysm. I’m not saying I wished for the latter, but I really hate spiders… Don’t judge me.

We’ve been trying to prepare Noli for the baby’s arrival. He can get pretty jealous. My brother came home one day with puppies and Noli got really sad that we were giving the puppies so much attention. It broke my heart a little. He’s a really sensitive kid - it’s a good quality, but it can be difficult. I have to discipline him almost entirely differently from how I discipline Milo because of it. To be honest I still don’t really know what I’m doing when it comes to that with him. Some days I think I’ve cracked the code, but then the next day it’s an entirely different ball game. He’s been a little grumpy lately and we haven’t really figured out why outside of “Terrible 3’s” (terrible 2′s is a myth, 3′s suck).

I used to think I knew what a tantrum was… I was so wrong. On Christmas Eve Noli threw the most epic tantrum I have ever witnessed in the history parenting. It’s mostly a blur at this point, but it started when I tried making him put on a pair of pants after his bath and it ended with a full-on UFC-style showdown where I was literally grappling him on the floor so that he wouldn’t hurt himself. I ended up tapping out because nothing was working - Rachael finally managed to defuse the entire situation by simply pulling an ice-tray out of the freezer and showing it to him. Yup. Problem solved. All the shouting, bribing, begging, grappling and crying did absolutely nothing - a boring inanimate object from a mini-fridge tamed the beast. How Rachael thought to walk past a playroom full of toys and grab an unused ice-tray will forever be a mystery to me. Since being pregnant the girl can barely remember her own name, yet she knew exactly how to deal with a situation that neither of us had experienced - motherly instinct is truly the 8th wonder of the world.

All tantrums aside, Noli cracks me up. He’s making up his own superheroes now. His latest evil creation is “Play-Doh Butt”. His superpower? He shoots pink legos out of his butt. I’ve also learned a number of other characteristics that I wish I could forget. He’s apparently blue, wears no clothes, has no hair (anywhere) and is little. He’s straight out of a nightmare. There’s another superhero he’s working on that’s less fleshed out, and I truly hope it remains that way because I don’t need nor want any other details. His name is “Tater Tutt” and, in Noli’s own words, “he shoots poo-poo out of his hands at all the happy people”... I think that makes him a villain, but I’m not sure Noli sees the lack of virtue in flinging your poop at happy people. I’m sure there’s somebody out there who would derive joy from that experience, but it’s certainly not anybody I want hanging around my 3 year old.

I can’t bring myself to discourage his progressive line of superheroes, they’re more creative than anything I came up with at that age - my greatest childhood achievement was creating a superhero who controlled fire, and I named him “Flamer”. Just failure all around. One of these days I’ll get around to asking Noli to draw a picture of Play-Doh Butt for me just to see what monstrosity he puts to paper, but until then I’m totally satisfied just watching him draw Spider-Man… with chalk… on our walls. So glad we didn’t give him markers that day. For a 3 year old he’s a really good little artist - I’d say even for somebody older than him. His Spider-Man drawings are really cute and surprisingly stylized. Between the two of them, I think he’s the most handy with a drawing utensil, and it makes sense; Milo is very book smart, Noli is very creative. It makes a lot of sense to me, Milo is a spitting image of Rachael, so naturally he’s just gravitated towards books and math. Noli got my genes, hence, Play-Doh Butt and art.

He really is the sweetest little boy on the planet though. I slipped on the bottom step the other day like a bobo and fell down, Noli immediately ran over to me and kept trying to make sure I was okay… Milo, on the other hand, just yelled at me to get a toy for him that he got stuck under the television. I’ll be remembering that when it’s time to draft up wills. Anyway, the point is, the kid just has a kind, nurturing soul. He wants everyone to be happy...

“Daddy?”

“Yes?”

“Happy?”

“Yes.”

“Ohay!”

He still can’t say his K’s.

What else… Oh, yeah, Milo turned 5! My baby is growing up and I’m both happy and miserably depressed over it. I feel like I’ve said this for other birthday posts, but it’s how I feel every time. I don’t sing Happy Birthday to the boys, I sing “Cats in the Cradle” and my tears put their candles out. Nobody likes growing up in our house.

I think he had a good day. This was the first birthday that he actually seemed aware of leading up to it. He was so excited he woke up at 5:30 in the morning and for the first time ever WASN’T cranky! I wanted to stick my head in a stove, but at least he was happy to be up before the sun. We had a Mario-themed birthday for him - correction, a LUIGI themed birthday for him; He prefers Luigi to Mario. He’s been playing a lot of Mario Run on his iPad… Probably too much, but mommy and daddy are literally the worst parents in the world when we’re feeling defeated so we throw iPads at the boys for distraction while we recharge our broken will. He’s actually really good at that game, he beat it before I did - and I’m awesome. I’m terrified to introduce him to the original Mario games, he hates losing, and that’s basically all you do with the old ones. You lose until you throw a controller at the wall, then you play DOOM for an hour to vent. We’re not there yet with the boys.

One of the reasons I was so excited for him to turn 5 was STAR WARS. It’s a movie I’ve always looked forward to watching with my kids, but wanted to wait until they were old enough to actually get what they’re watching and hopefully not get too scared. We have a media room upstairs that is 100% off limits to the kids, but I told Milo for his 5th birthday we’d get milkshakes and watch a big boy movie in the media room… He was a little bored by it, but he was happy to just be in our home’s ‘Forbidden Kingdom’ with junk food and some one on one time with Dad. I really loved it. When you have more than one kid, it’ hard to just enjoy them for their own uniqueness. They morph together into this wild entity that lives to argue with itself and bring chaos and exhaustion to your once stable, quiet household.

Milo is a brilliant boy. Every day he makes it a point to remind me how much of a genius he is. Whether it’s his ability to perform division in his head or how he reads at a 1st grade level (even more so I think) or the fact that he can build a set of Lincoln Logs exactly as they are on the box when I can barely make any sense of the vague directions they come with. He’s a sponge for knowledge. He also had a piano recital on his birthday and he nailed it. It probably doesn’t sound like much to an adult musician, but for a 5-year-old to play piano and without looking at the sheet music, know when he’s made a mistake and correct it by ear is wildly impressive. Like I said - brilliant.

Milo - I know I’m a month late writing this, but I’m just so amazingly proud of what a big boy you are. I love your face, I love your voice, I love your personality and your sense of humor, I just love everything about you. I can never find the right words to express it, but I’m just so filled with joy watching you grow up. You were the very answer to a prayer I had prayed almost every night since I was little - to be a Dad, to have a family of my own. Now I get to pray every night and thank God for a family I know I’ll never truly be worthy of. So yeah, just in case you ever doubted what you mean to me.

Happy Birthday, baby boy. I love you.

Anyway, this is turning into one of those super long posts that Rachael yells at me for writing, so I guess I’ll wrap it up… My next post will inevitably be another 2-part ‘Birth of Baby’ story (and hopefully my last), so be on the look-out! Or don’t. I don’t even know who’s reading this besides my wife, and she doesn’t much care for the amount of detail I go into regarding the births so I imagine I’ll just be reading the next post to myself. Good lord it’s late.

Auf Weidersehen, goodnight (why yes, I did have to Google that), ~ M.

#fatherhood #dad #Daddy blog #children #parenting #humor #spiderman #daddyblog #daddy

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