#of the scene's emotional resonance / how i want the h/c to feel :') and sometimes the two are at odds

[suddencolds]

🌈 and 💝 for the fic asks?

Btw I saw you posted more OC fic fairly recently and I wanted to say I love your characters! I haven’t been able to read them yet but your fics are some of my favorites on snzblr 💕

THANK YOU!! That's so kind of you to say!! I'm really happy you like them 😭❤️ I've had a lot of fun writing Y/V recently, which I feel grateful for, because before that I put writing aside for a long time 🥹

🌈is there a fic that you worked *really fucking hard on* that no one would ever know? maybe a scene/theme you struggled with?

I am an excruciatingly slow writer, just in general, over almost every fic. The other day I was doing a writing sprint and I wrote 9 words over the entirety of the 10 minute sprint 😭.

That said, something that took me unusually long was Fool Me Twice, Part 5. I actually rewrote it from scratch many many times (and I don't think this is like, "I worked really hard on this and I'm proud of how it turned out!" - it's more of, "I worked really hard on this to even get it to be moderately passable", haha). (I have more to add as to why I found it so difficult, but will add it in the tags)

Something that I'm happier with is Not Worth the Trouble, which remains one of the 3 fics from this blog that I've vanilla-ified and crossposted to ao3 :'). I wrote the last third of the fic very slowly, but it just took one long afternoon (and no further major + painstaking revisions). I've written no shortage of Kaeya + Diluc on here, but this is probably one of my favorite fics I've written of them!

💝what is a fic that got a different response than you were expecting?

Not exactly a fic, but I was actually very surprised at the reception when I posted these unfinished fic snippets / WIPs awhile back (in August 2021). They're very short, so I wasn't expecting for them to leave much of an impression :') That said, I had a couple anons who came into my inbox with super, super kind feedback (which is still sitting in my inbox to this date - I'm terrible, I know, but on the super off chance that one of those anons is reading this, I have reread your kind feedback so many times 😭 Your comments still bring me happiness more than 2 years later! Thank you for encouraging me to finish those works!! I love you!)

[ Fic Writer Asks List ]

#ask #thank you for the ask!!! 😊 #one of my guilty pleasures in snzfic / h/c fic is #arguments/misunderstandings while one party is ill or unwell... #the combination of like the anger/frustration/etc. associated with the argument #and the misery + vulnerability associated w the illness symptoms is just 🥹❤️ #but i think i also struggle with writing arguments because #i want the argument scenes to be like... heated and intense to have the moment of catharsis and relief #when the ailing character's illness is finally acknowledged. but also mature adults don't usually yell at each other or get that heated ove #mundane arguments. so it's a struggle trying to balance the characterization i've established while having this image in my head #of the scene's emotional resonance / how i want the h/c to feel :') and sometimes the two are at odds #not sure if that makes sense but it was definitely #part of the struggle in writing FMT pt. 5; the first draft (and like maybe the 4 drafts afterwards) just felt so soulless

[outropeace]

elotito tagged me on this so i’m gonna do it for her <33333

1. describe how you first started writing and when you first posted

i began to write in general since i was around 14 like any other emo kid kdjdjsks and o began to write fics when a friend asked me for one as a birthday present. it was written in a hurry and it’s not my favorite but i really enjoyed doing it. i posted that exact same fic on their birthday

2. which of your characters do you typically resonate most closely with? do you base any characters off of yourself?

it depends the fic i guess. and not really, i think the closest i’ve been to do that is in the rockstar au (coming to the @bottomlouisficfest very soon), i put one or two of my old insecurities in h so he could connect better and wouldn’t be persieved as just an asshole-y dude cause i don’t like that and louis don’t deserve that uwu🌸

3. where do you often find inspiration?

music, movies, tiktoks (DONT JUDGE KDKDKS)

4. has quarantine helped or hindered your writing process?

before the quarantine i had around 3 wips, now i have 8

5. do you listen to music/noise while you write or do you prefer silence?

i listen lofi youtube playlists shjdkld

6. what is your biggest writing pet peeve in your writing or in general?

me repeating “Oh...” over and over again through tall my fics, it shouldn’t be legal

7. describe your ideal writing setup

rainy day, good coffee, comfy sweater, my cat besides me, arely sending texts about teeth/imessage games, snacks

8. favorite time of day to write?

nights (it’s usually when i have time)

9. favorite genre to write + one you’d like to try writing in the future?

i’d LOVE to write a thriller

10. do you struggle with writer’s block? how do you typically overcome it?

i just leave the fic for a bit, i don’t really like to push myself about this cause i’m just doing it for fun

11. what is the easiest part of your writing process and the most difficult?

the easiest is the dialogues, i could write pages and pages of just dialogues in hours and the hardest is the smut dhjdd

12. how do you come up with original characters? (if applicable)

it depends, is the antagonist? i ask myself how’d i feel if i were them, like a third party just trying (and usually failing) to get in between

13. what is your favorite and least favorite word?

i like “wet” i just... yeah.... and least favorite i don’t really know tbh

14. what is one thing about your writing that you’re really proud of and one thing you hope to continue working at?

i like that people conect with the characters because i always put a lot of effort in making them realistic (as much as i can), i make them flawled and sometimes even messy but with good hearts and intentions, all of them are (even the antagonists). and my grammar OH MY GOD MY GRAMMAR

15. what work of yours has your favorite ‘verse/world building? how did you come up with it?

hands down the ice prince fic. and funny thing is, i already had my prompt for the fic fest but i just couldn’t stop thinking about one particular prompt about a bratty prince and an alpha who hated omegas and the amount of POSSIBILITIES that had. two days later or so, the mods of the fest gave us the opportunity to pick another prompt if we wanted and the rest is HISTORY

16. what font and size do you write in? single spaced or double?

11 and single

17. what is a typo(s) you find yourself making consistently?

baby do we have TIME FOR THIS ONE?

18. (if applicable) do you separate fic writing from fandom?

yes, always 100000000%

19. what emotion is your favorite to write? which is the most difficult?

angst, sadness, anguish, sorrow, jealousy, i love to hurt hearts. and it’s not an emotion but after they get together it’s really difficult to me to actually keep going (oh god dkdkdkkdd)

20. what is one thing you hope readers always take away from your works?

that that’s okay to fuck up, that no matter the circumstances you have to respect your partner and TALK WITH THEM and that a person can be successful, independent and a badass while being soft and a c*mslut

21. what is the best and worst writing advice you’ve ever received?

i think “write whatever you like, you’re not being paid for it anyways” is the best and only advise i’ve actually listened to

22. which one of your works would you most want to see turned into a film/television show?

it’s complicated cause my two favorites are abos and idk how that would work dkskkss but the ice prince and the alpha/alpha fic

23. do you write scenes chronologically or out of order?

chronologically but i have a document apart where i write everything that comes to my mind at the moment, that one is A MESS

24. how do you handle criticism?

i think good, if it’s respectful

25. what is the advice you would give to someone who is looking to start writing?

trust yourself, have fun

26. what kind of feedback on your work always makes your day?

ANY type of positive feedback makes my day tbh

27. which fic ‘verse of your own would you most like to exist in? which fic’s characters would you most like to befriend?

none tbh dkdkks and louis, obviously

28. what do you always enjoy getting asks about/wish people would ask about more?

about my stories, i love when people just come to rant to me about certain things the characters did and ask me why they did it

29. what has writing added to your life? how has it changed you?

it relaxes me a lot. i just can write for hours and hours and it just feels nice and in some way exciting

30. why do you write?

refer to question 29 kdkdkxk

boost yourself + tags!

1a. share the last sentence you wrote

from the exes to lovers au:

The second hiccup of the night came in the form of his ex smiling to a boy sitting next to him on a couch. The boy had gorgeous, dark and wild hair, clear hazel eyes and a pretty pouty mouth. Their body language screamed attraction and that they both were ready to devour each other. Louis was familiar to the smile Harry was giving to him, bright and seductive, ready to give anything you asked for.

2a. describe the wip you’re most excited about

right now i’m very excited for the happiest season au, my “cliche story” au and for my exes to lovers au dksks i’m excited about a lot of my wips i’m so sorryjdjd

3a. share the piece of dialogue from one of your works you’re most proud of

from the alpha/alpha au:

“I’m not giving up on love,” He softly touched the hand that was still grabbing his thigh. “To me, love is like flowers. Each one needs a special treatment, if you give an orchid the same treatment you give to an iris, the orchid will die. Same thing with love. I’m not giving up on love, I’m just changing the treatment. We might not be an orchid, but we could make such a pretty iris.”

4a. share the best first and last lines from your work(s)

favorite first line from the sugar baby au:

Powerful people only end up with powerful people. The rest are just playthings in their lives. Louis Tomlinson was many things, but he wasn’t anybody’s plaything.

favorite last line from the ice prince fic:

“Who would have guessed…” Harry whispered after a while, smiling against Louis’ lips. “the dragon finally got to keep the princess.”

5a. link the last fic you read

HAYLEY’S MASTERPIECE

6a. link the last work you published

that’d be the ice prince fic

7a. link to your ao3 (if applicable)

hereee

8a. someone that inspires you

louis teheeee

9a. a comfort fic/work that you’ve been grateful for this year

god, again, there’s so so many of them, like the amount of authors i’m so grateful for, the list is infinite but these are a few that comes to my mind

all elote’s (@defencelesst) fics makes me really really happy and never fails to give me a cozy/wintery feeling, her louis IS THE MOST PRECIOUS THING ON EARTH AND HER HARRY IS JUST PERFECTION, i’m in love with her descriptions and how she just takes you THERE. hanis @loulicate-recs always makes me smile so fucking hard. ris @falsegoodnight fics NOW.... well.... ris fics they make me smile but also make me want to throw my phone to the other side of the room BEST OF BOTH WORLD IG. MAR’S FICS (loubellies on twitter, idk their @ here i’m sORRY) ARE LITERALLY ONE OF MY FAVORITE AUTHORS AT THE MOMENT, such a pretty louis IM SO IN LOVE WITH MAR’S LOUIS ITS UNFAIR

10a. other writers that you’d like to tag!

omg i’m probably so late to this and idk how many of you have actually done this so here goes nothing @allwaswell16, @runaway-train-works, @greenfeelings, @kingsofeverything, @thepolourryexpress, @larents

[miscellaneous-oxy]

steady. (Aug 2018)

English translation of the article in steady. (Aug 2018) (6 July 2018 on sale)

steady. August 2018

 ABOUT JUNHO  A to Z

 Acting: Which scene in your previous works made your heart flutter the most?

To me, there isn’t any scene that does it. I’m sometimes surprised at my own acting when I watch myself on TV, though, as it happens that I don’t remember why I did what I did in such a way.

 Bond: When did you feel the bonds among 2PM members?

The moment the last stage of 6nights concert in Korea finished, we spontaneously hugged each other and started crying. Everything that happened over the decade came back to us, and with our fans calling out our names, we couldn’t help but get emotional.

 Chansung: What kind of person is Chansung?

Though he’s the maknae, he has profound thoughts. But he thinks and worries too much, too. (laugh) I’d say he’s a lot mature for his age.

 Desire: What is your desire?

It’s more like a dream than a desire, but I’d like to live on like this – singing, acting, and being loved by you. I guess you can say I have a massive desire in a sense.

 Eat: What is your favourite food?

Now I’m into having Thai food delivered. Once I like something, I tend to keep on eating the same thing. (laugh) I’ve always had Chansung grill meat for me, for I felt even that was too much of a bother, but I’ve learned to cook at last to prepare for the role of a chef for the drama Wok of Love. I’m pretty good at making fried rice!

 Future: How would you be 10 years from now?

I really don’t want to think about it. Not yet.

 Graduate: What do you want to quit doing?

(the term “graduate” is used metaphorically)

I’d like to put an end to my tendency to get addicted to things. It goes for my eating Thai food all the time now, and the same goes for my choosing the same clothes to wear even though I have tons of other clothes. It’s even a mystery to me, too, why I’m like this. (laugh)

 Hottest: What do fans mean to you?

They are the best. I’ve been trying to be more active on social media so I can communicate with my fans.

 Impact: Was there anything that shocked you recently?

While I was preparing for my tour in Japan, Chansung dropped by with some chicken for me without notice.

 Junho: What kind of person are you?

(after giving it some thought . . . ) I suppose I’m not bad. I can’t say I’m a good person, but I’m not that bad either. (laugh)

 Jun. K: What kind of person is Jun. K?

He is a “kawaii” person in many ways. (laugh) He shows his emotions and affections openly, but he also demands us of the same show of affection.

 Love: What are your views on love?

Love is something with no answer. (Love is something from which you shouldn’t expect results.) It means you love this person unconditionally. When you fall in love, you experience a change in your character. You become someone “no one has ever seen before.” (laugh) I don’t know how I would be myself.

 Moment: Which moment left you a strong impression on you?

There are many moments, but I’d say the moment when we went on stage at Tokyo Dome, the moment I had a solo concert, and as an actor, the moment I was awarded a prize last year stand out.

 Nichkhun: What kind of person is Nichkhun?

He is kind, but not in the sense that he is just nice: He’s sometimes strict, too. As he is a true professional, I have lots to learn from him.

 Only One: Your image of the ideal woman?

I really can’t say. I guess the person I fall in love with will become my ideal woman. I’m not trying to be evasive here. (laugh)

 2PM: What is 2PM to you?

My family. Although it’s much more than that. (I cannot express how I feel about them in just this single word.)

 Question: What would you like to ask your fans?

Are you eating properly? Are you doing okay? Will you come to my concert? Will you stan 2PM forever?

 Rest: What eases your mind?

Spending time with my cats at home. Being with my cats somehow makes me feel and act like I’m taking care of a baby. (laugh) I didn’t talk at all at home before, but having cats made me a talker.

 Sleep: Do you wear pyjamas at night?

I’m not particular about sleeping attires. But I always try to sleep with my arms and legs sprawled out. I heard it’s good for your health. The problem is, I can’t move much because my three cats sleep on my legs.

 Taecyeon: What kind of person is Taecyeon?

He’s cool-headed and realistic. One more thing! He acts cute!

 Underbelly: What are your shortcomings?

Being too focused and addictive. When I focus on something, I get hooked on it so hard that I won’t be able to do anything else.

 View: The view you cannot forget?

The sea and the sun in Hawaii when I went to film my music video for “SO GOOD.” I remember it was really hectic, too.

 Wooyoung: What kind of person is Wooyoung?

He has his own worldview, but he doesn’t impose it on others. He doesn’t ask us to understand it either. You could say he’s a free spirit. And that’s who he is.

 XXXXX: Something new that you want to try?

I’d like to get the licences for sailing a yacht and flying an airplane.

 Young Boy: What kind of relationship do you have among the Young Boys?

They are friends of same age. I don’t know why but we resonate with each other very often. Even when the six of us go out for dinner, the Old Boys and the Young Boys automatically choose to sit together at the same table, respectively, if we need to sit at two tables.

 Zest: What spices up your life?

I’m always craving for new challenges, and I love challenging things. If focusing on one particular thing is me in the present, challenging new things would be my future. I always imagine a future: Imagining things is really inspiring. It motivates me, too.

#Junho #english translation #steady. #2018

[2queens1prince]

Fan Fic Ask Game

Between @teaismyqueen, @lilacmermaid25 and a couple of anon requests, they hit most all of the questions.  I just thought I’d answer them for anyone who cares to read. :)

A: How did you come up with the title to [insert fic]? Shock I absolutely suck at titles.  I can come up with all of these weird, elaborate scenarios in my head, but ask me to title a story and it’s like all creativity is gone. I chose Shock because I needed something completely non descript, and I knew the end of chapter one would be a shock. See? Totally lame.

B: Any of your stories inspired by personal experience? Some of them. I would say that even if the events are not from personal experience, a lot of the emotions are. I think that’s why a lot of my writing is angsty. I’m angsty all over the place, but there’s no outlet for it in my life.

C: What member do you identify with most? Elizabeth

D: Is there a song or a playlist to associate with [insert fic]? No.  I typically don’t listen to any music, although, I did at one point create a wedding playlist of songs for Henry and Elizabeth’s wedding reception for Evolution.

E: If you wrote a sequel to [insert fic], what would it be about?  I really don’t know.  Perhaps The First Time needed a sequel instead of the time jump at the end, but I’m not really sure.

F: Share a snippet from one of your favorite dialogue scenes you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.  Anything Phyllis said in Evolution.  For being a non-canon character, I loved her so much.

G: Do you write your story from start to finish, or do you write the scenes out of order? Start to finish, although sometimes I know there are things I want to include and I make notes at the end, but not whole scenes.

H: How would you describe your style?  I’m sure someone else could describe my style better than I could.  I’m an emotional writer, but I like the characters to show progression.

I: Do you have a guilty pleasure in fic (reading or writing)? Give me a good hurt/comfort fic and I’m all over it.

J: Write or describe an alternative ending to [insert fic].  The obvious answer is Evolution because when I started, Henry wasn’t going to be a fallen away Catholic, but as I wrote it, I sort of came to the conclusion that he couldn’t be anything like he is in the show if he were still a Traditional Catholic. Not good or bad-it just would become to OOC for me.

K: What’s the angstiest idea you’ve ever come up with? Due to accident or illness, one of the McCord children dies.

L: How many times do you usually revise your fic/chapter before posting?  This has changed over time.  Now most of my writing goes to my betas after the first draft.  They offer ideas and then it sits for a while.  With multi-chapters, by the time they are posted, I’ve been through them 8-10 times.  Often, after the third draft, I don’t change much other than some wording or punctuation.

M: Got any premises on the back burner that you’d care to share? I’m currently writing a fic in which Henry and Elizabeth remodel her parents’ home together and I think my next one has to do with a self-defense class and a very arrogant Elizabeth.

N: Is there a fic you wish someone else would write (or finish) for you?  Pool Party!  Gah!  I started to turn it into a multi-chapter and stalled.  Also I would like College and Coffee to go somewhere.

O: How do you begin a story–with the plot, or the characters?  The plot, always.

P: Are you what George R. R. Martin would call an “architect” or a “gardener”? (How much do you plan in advance, versus letting the story unfold as you go?)  I am a gardener.  Most of the time I start with an opening scene and I have no idea where the story will go.  An excellent example of this is the “Hiking” there is only one bed prompt.  How did that prompt end up the way it did?  Who even knows?

Q: How do you feel about collaborations?  I collaborate on ideas frequently with several writers.  I haven’t written with someone only because the opportunity hasn’t come up.

R: Are there any writers (fanfic or otherwise) you consider an influence?  I think smut is incredibly difficult to write, so there are a lot of writers, particularly the veterans in the group that I go back and read.

S: Any fandom tropes you can’t resist?  Give me a slow burn romance with a fair amount of angst and I’m in my element.

T: Any fandom tropes you can’t stand? I feel like I might offend people who have stories that may fall into these categories.  It has nothing to do with the writer, only the topic that I don’t care for..  Unrealistic smut and unbelievable pregnancy fics.  Additionally, I have a thing about Elizabeth’s name, so I’ve been known to stop reading a fic if I don’t like the way Elizabeth’s name is used. 

U: Share three of your favorite fic writers and why you like them so much. @pillar--of--salt‘s smut is hands down the best in my book. @laineyvb131 and I share a brain, so yeah, everything she writes resonates with me, and @fsulinz because she is the perfect example of someone who has outstanding ideas and the writing skills to pull them off, but was hesitant to put herself out there and after some peer pressure, she did it and she’s great! Oh, one more.  Nonadhesiveness needs a mention because her stories are woven together with an extreme amount of skill, and I’m jealous at hell!

V: If you could write the sequel (or prequel) to any fic out there not written by yourself, which would you choose? Strongest Convictions-I really think a well written prequel to what happened to Elizabeth and Henry when they were in prison would be riveting.

W: Do you like more general prompts, or more specific ones? I like @lilacmermaid25‘s prompts, whatever those are.

X: A character you enjoy making suffer.  Dmitri and Craig Sterling although I don’t think I’ve written about either, but if I did, they would suffer.

Y: A character you want to protect.  I think Elizabeth in a certain way.  Shit always seems to happen to her, but she’ll always come out on the other side if I’m doing the writing.

Z: Major character death–do you ever write/read it? Is there a character whose death you can’t tolerate?  I’ve read it and I tolerate it all.  There’s just a lot of tears.

[pacificwanderer]

Editing old work so that I can finish some shit and have come to realize that I identify with Rey a hell of a lot more than I realized. I mean, I always loved her character but (and others have gone over this at length) I do think that sometimes her character traits kind of get glossed over or are left unrecognized or, at worst, are misinterpreted because she often seems so plucky. 

I think with her, Fi//nn, and Ben, there’s this kind of deep loneliness and aching for belonging, for friendship, for love and compassion, even while they hold a piece of themselves back (Rey wanting to go back to Jakku to the only life she’s known, Fi//nn looking for a way to keep his friend/himself safe from the impending threat of the FO, Ben looking for belonging/a way to feel normal in all the wrong places) and it just kind of breaks my heart how well they’ve nailed what loneliness feels like.

And how it looks like in three very different characters. It’s an emotion that gets glossed over in favor of more vibrant traits (anger, lust, happiness, whatever), but so much of life, for so many people, is so lonely.

Loneliness is an often quiet sort of sadness. It’s “easier” to be lonely, in some ways, than it is to get hurt--again. Rejection, loss, death, it’s all so painful.

Better to be lonely than to experience that pain again. Making connections is hard. Keeping them is even harder. Letting people in can be terrifying for some because you’re purposefully opening yourself up to possible rejection (that throne room proposal scene. O U C H).

I really think TLJ hits on so many quiet, painful moments so beautifully and, for me, I think this is why the movie hit so hard. Obviously, this isn’t the only interpretation and people are welcome, as ever, to their own interpretations and opinions (and if this movie didn’t resonate in this way, of course, that is just fine--that’s what is fun about cinema, people can take and leave what they want), but for me, this movie really cut deep.

So I’ll be very interested to see what happens next for these three characters. I hope these quiet moments continue into EPIX, because I’ve really enjoyed them. I hope that the resolution shows that opening yourself up can be beneficial, even if the potential for pain is still there. And I’m sure we’ll see them grow even further and I hope that they all get the happy endings they deserve (I think they will).

#this is kind of depressing lol #sorry #long post #ramblings #loneliness #the st #in which I edit old work and rey's loneliness makes me sad lol

[idolizerp]

LOADING INFORMATION ON INDIGO’S LEAD VOCAL, LEAD DANCE KIM RAEYOON…

IDOL DETAILS

STAGENAME: Remy CURRENT AGE: 25 DEBUT AGE: 20 TRAINEE SINCE AGE: 17 COMPANY: MSG ETC: They have recently gotten involved more heavily in production and lyric writing

IDOL IMAGE

remy bursts onto the scene of winter 2014 with bad boy debonair, mischievous nonchalance, and a penchant for flirtation. play off the strengths and weaknesses of your members, had been their furtive recommendation. here’s the earnest one, the sensitive one, the diligent one, the ethereal one, and now you. you’re sharp edges, a cut and cruel face, thin mouth that only knows how to grin crooked, and tapered eyes whose surest weapon is their wink. hone your artillery, make it yours, and if you can, make them scream.

remy’s never been one for violent metaphors but he runs with this one because his passion outweighs everything else. for the first few years it gets the better of him and he feels some dissonance, has a hard time believing any of what he’s bringing to the stage is coming from anywhere real because of course it isn’t. but in time he learns that this too is part of the art of performance, and that there’s nothing disingenuous about what he’s doing so long as he can differentiate his two egos of what could never be and what actually is. when the music stops so does the charade and this is how he will retain his authenticity.

the public learn the ins and outs of remy, too; the few who care at all take whatever crumbs and scraps they can find, one scattered comeback at a time, to build a more nuanced portrait and uncover the person behind the persona. for the most part their findings are accurate and positive. remy is methodical, prefers to take things a little bit at a time. but is there a reason he takes forever to make a decision? it’s only dessert. it’s called being considerate. his head is in the cloud sometimes, but he’s always thoughtful. must read a lot too, he’s always quoting stuff i’ve never heard of. pretty sure that’s his way of showing off the fact he used to study in europe, never liked elites like him. the only bravado he shows is onstage, not sure what you’re talking about. he’s surprisingly demure behind the scenes. i’ve never seen him cry, not even once. you sure he’s not some kind of robot? i’d pay good money to see a robot with a laugh that cute. weird. i think you mean his laugh is weird.

his reputation—whichever unassembled pieces exist in phone cameras, group chats, morning catchup by the office water cooler—follows remy straight into re:group, where he thereupon establishes himself as the show’s sage, a calm meditative tide. the contrasting snarl and bite of his performance style still persists, but the sex appeal stops there. he’s not controversial, not cutthroat enough to propel himself to viral fame. but his character and up-until-this-point unseen predilection for music win him the respect of fellow competitors and the sincere affections of weekly viewers. it’s more than he could possibly ask for.

with indigo’s triumphant return to the industry, remy repays fans old and new by trying his hand at songwriting. building off of the momentum from re:group and recognizing the group’s need for growth, msg embraces a brand shift, letting him produce the track for their next comeback. the move effectively solidifies and tacks on a new identity for him as a producer for the group; he acquiesces to the role with ease, and to rave reception. indigo’s reaffirmation in society comes with the affirmative understanding for all of the members that donning their faces, old and new, they’re in it for the long haul.

IDOL HISTORY

a: at five, he is petulant. more than the average five-year-old should be, but who can blame the kid when he feels how jarringly out of place he is in this country and continent, but doesn’t have the vocabulary to express any of it. and so raeyoon prefers to spend his time indoors, in front of the television and away from prying eyes, watching documentaries and music broadcasts he never quite comprehends but thinks he likes the sound of. mother, ever observant from the kitchen, keeps a watchful eye.

b: prideful, not passionate. pride is what keeps him enrolled in piano lessons but keeps him from realizing his potential. his mother sits with him through every practice session, guiding him with an iron will and berating him with an immovable ear. she calls him a technician and so do the judges, but he plays a showstopper in basel and a sonata in bern anyways because people have programs to fill and don’t expect full emotional maturation from a ten year-old. that summer when he takes the train to summer camp abroad—but then, what isn’t abroad at this point—raeyoon distantly wonders where he’s headed.

c: hundreds of miles from home, raeyoon is suddenly compelled to take to the stack of cds that father snuck into his suitcase months ago without ever citing a reason. the cds themselves are bare. the cases in which they are contained are bare save for a rough tracklist penned in permanent marker. the music that he hears isn’t anything familiar. but the voice he hears most certainly is.

d: he passes his audition.

he had gone on a whim. while out shopping for beef bones with grandmother one morning someone had approached him with a business card and while stewing the beef bones back in her apartment he’d asked grandmother to accompany him. he doesn’t remember anything about it beyond a panel of faceless men and his mother’s voice reverberating like a dream in the caverns of his head.

it was never supposed to be this consequential and yet it is, yet here he is feeling the most something he’s felt in his five-thousand-eight-hundred-eight-eight-day life. the news hits him like a brick and his head drops onto the table. grandmother pries the phone away from his hands and dials in another number. with his head still down and eyes closed raeyoon hears her shuffle into the kitchen, open the pot, and plate up the last serving of oxtail soup. he hears the line click on the other end. and then he hears her voice again, so familiar and sweet and real.

e: he blends in here. he laughs thinking back to a decade ago when he’d stood out so sorely, and how that’s exactly what he needs now if he wants a good shot at this. for the next three years, he sharpens himself to the finest point possible.

f: it’s called face. face in the crowd, facing the music, saving face. it’s a word loaded with meanings and potentialities and it feels so wholly appropriate raeyoon almost cries but doesn’t, not yet. he runs through the showcase introduction, performance, final ments. thanks everyone for coming out to support their debut. when the spotlight dims down and the mass of bodies begins to file out of the venue, he spots his mother lingering in the audience, a face in the crowd. raeyoon swallows the lump in his throat. not yet.

g: during rehearsal at a hundred-person venue in gwangju city, a standing light crashes and raeyoon sustains a small injury to his right pinky. no big deal, he tells everyone, it’s not like he’s using it for much anymore anyways, and the appendage is wrapped in gauze and rehearsal continues like clockwork.

he doesn’t notice until a year later, when it’s much too late for buddy tape and a brace, that his pinky never quite recovered right. he opens up a dusty book of liszt arpeggios wondering if maybe now is the time to leverage that skillset, if maybe now he can demonstrate something beyond the technical prowess of his childhood, and fumbles like a clown on the keys. looking down, his pinky tells him the whole story. the first knuckle juts outward and askew with the rest of the finger, like a soul separating from its host.

he thinks back to the past year, and even the year before that, and draws a funny picture not unlike the analogy. it’s not just the finger. negligence is rampant. looking the other way and pretending not to notice everything that’s gone wrong, and everything that could possibly go wrong. what were the meds for, again? chronic pain, allergies, or just insomnia? he forgets. forgets most things, like his pinky finger, like the fact he hasn’t called home in weeks out of shame, and forgets that crying was even an option even though these days he’s got all the time in the world.

h: his saving grace descends in the form of a reality show that sweeps the country and his group by storm. it’s in between mandatory diary entries, the relentless gaze of the camera, stress and sleep deprivation, public defamation, and the thrill of a new stage—another day—that sets raeyoon alight again.

on the last night: a sea of faceless, wailing bodies under the stage, let’s debut, and his mother’s song ringing in his ears. he feels the bodies beside him leave one at a time to claim their spot on the podium, rank five, four, three. he’s tired, hungry, and smiling brighter. two. a rock tied by string. and one. his vision blurs, wet, and opaque. the lump in his throat swells, and he throws his head back to blink away the tears. not yet, not yet.

i: his first hand at production, a first win for the group, and a first concert after five years. it’s nothing short of a miracle, and their story is one that resonates somewhere deep. though revitalized, raeyoon doesn’t hunger for much anymore. but even five years in and with the tides swaying in their favor, he knows better to submit to complacency—scoffs at even the suggestion of it. with the attention on them—actually, legitimately on them now—the stakes are higher than ever, and he’s simply too grateful to do anything but deliver.

#id.bio #id.msg #id.indigo #id.park junhee

[lindyhunt]

The 8 Essential Management Skills You Need to Lead a Successful Team

Last week, on the Fourth of July, I was feeling rather patriotic, so I decided to binge watch the HBO classic Band of Brothers. The critically acclaimed mini-series takes place in Europe during World War II, recounting Major Richard Winters’ leadership of Easy Company from a grueling boot camp to the invasion of Normandy and on to the end of the war. The series is a touching tribute to these brave soldiers, and in my humble opinion, it deserves all seven of the Emmys it won.

But if there’s one thing I’ll remember about this show, it’s a scene that’s only three minutes long: Major Winters orders an ambush on Axis soldiers who are resting in an embankment across a field from them. But before his soldiers can charge, he tosses a smoke grenade and bolts across the field alone. He wanted the Axis to target him before they could target his men.

Major Winters was willing to sacrifice his own life to preserve his company's, and his courage and selflessness remind military leaders everywhere that you should serve others before you serve yourself. If you lead a team at work, this scene will also resonate with you -- your job is to help your people succeed and achieve their goals.

But being a great leader isn’t something you can easily pick up and just start doing. Like any other skill, you have to work on it. So before you start channeling your inner Major Winters, here are eight management skills you need to learn to lead a team toward success.

The 8 Essential Management Skills You Need to Lead a Successful Team

1. You make your people feel safe at work.

Major Winters was an easy leader to follow because he always trekked into danger first, fought for his men, and did everything he could to protect them. He absorbed most of the risk so his men had a better chance of survival. And they respected and revered him for it.

Great leaders are always willing to protect their people, even if it means sacrificing their own interests, comfort, and a good metric or two. They want their people to feel safe at work. They want them to always know that they won’t get chewed out or lose their job if they fail. Their people know they can grow from these failures. And this results in a higher level of trust and cooperation.

When a leader risks and sacrifices herself to protect and improve her people, they’re willing to move mountains for her. Why? Because they know she’s already doing the same for them.

2. You can change your mind.

Even the smartest people get things wrong. But what seperates a good leader from a great one is the ability to admit that they’re wrong and change course in light of new information. Unfortunately, a lot of leaders won’t change their minds, even if it’s the right choice, because they don’t want to seem weak. Others have too much pride to admit that they’ve made a mistake. They’d rather pull rank and remind their subordinates that they’re in charge.

But admitting you were wrong requires a lot more strength than sticking to something that hurts your team or company, just because you've invested a lot of time and effort into it. For instance, Jim Whitehurst, CEO of Red Hat, a company that provides open-source software products, decided to go to market without integrating a newly acquired product into one of their new technologies in 2008. He didn’t want to spend three months rewriting code and making it open source. But he soon discovered that he had made a huge mistake: Red Hat's associates and customers didn’t like using the product. And the only move the company could make was to rewrite the code. It would push them a year behind schedule.

The delay angered and frustrated his employees, and most of them thought Whitehurst wasn't competent enough to run the business. But instead of blaming the issue on external factors, Whitehurst blamed himself. He owned up to his mistake and told the company why he made his decision. They then understood the rationale behind his decision. Not long after, many of his employees told him how much they appreciated his honesty and that he changed his mind about their go-to-market strategy. And that’s what ultimately earned him back their trust and support.

3. You understand the importance of team bonding.

Sometimes, team outings can feel like a forced way to bond -- kind of like the annual Christmas get-together with your cousins growing up -- but after a slightly awkward beginning of the night, you’re having a great time. And by the end of the night, you don’t really want to go home.

Solving an escape room or participating in a scavenger hunt can contribute to this fun, but most of it stems from bonding with your team on a personal level and learning about each others’ personal stories.

Sharing stories and having positive social experiences is the best way for a leader to develop trust with their team. Both of these things trigger the release of oxytocin, the hormone that helps us empathize with people, and it prompts us to help, relate, and care about others in the same way we do for our families. In other words, it's the best way connect.

Having genuine conversations about what you and your team are passionate about, your lifestyle, and career motivations will break down barriers and build your team’s trust with each other and you, their leader. And this personal trust is what you need from your team to passionately support your overall mission and purpose.

4. You’re empathetic.

Every good leader should be able to be empathetic, right? Well, according to two Canadian neuroscientists, the higher you climb the corporate ladder, the harder it is to feel empathetic.

The part of your brain that triggers empathy is the mirror system. And whenever you see a person do something, it activates the thoughts and intentions that spark when you do the same exact thing. This helps you understand what motivates that person’s actions. But when you hold power over others, like in most leadership roles, the mirror system isn’t very stimulated, making it harder to place yourself inside other people’s shoes.

To stay on the same level as your team, consider trying a management technique called perspective-taking. If your colleague says something that frustrates you, take a step back and ask yourself why they took that position. How do they feel? Where is this perspective coming from? If you were in their role before, try to remember what it was like doing their job. Think back to your biggest fears and challenges. What made you feel threatened or insecure? Ultimately, perspective-taking will allow you to understand the root cause of your team’s problems and help solve for them.

5. You challenge your team.

During the 1988-89 NHL hockey season, Brett Hull led the St. Louis Blues with 41 goals scored. And after the season ended, he walked into his exit meeting with his head coach, Brian Sutter, expecting nothing but praise. But Coach Sutter didn’t give him any praise at all. In fact, he told Hull he needed to get better. Hull had the potential to be one of the greatest hockey players to ever live, but he could only be a Hall of Famer if he improved his work ethic. The next season, Hull arrived to St. Louis in the best shape of his life. And he almost doubled the number of goals he scored, with 72. The season after that he scored 86 goals. Hull was eventually inducted into the NHL Hall of Fame, and it’s all thanks to a coach who pushed him to train and perform at his best.

Like Brett Hull, everyone on your team can level up. Even your top performers. And to help them enhance their work ethic and skill set, push them to reach their potential and let them handle their own projects. They’ll be grateful for your guidance at the end of the day.

6. You don’t let your emotions influence your decision making.

Great leaders do what’s right, even if it causes a great deal of emotional pain. If they need to let someone go, even if they personally like them, they let them go. When they need to give constructive criticism to someone, even if they don’t want to hurt their feelings, they tell them what they need to improve on. The easy way out never pays off in the long term, and great leaders can blast through any anxiety or discomfort to do what’s best for their team.

7. You’re transparent.

Great leaders trust their people, especially with information. They know their team can sense problems in the organization. And since humans have a psychological bias that makes them more scared of ambiguity than risk, they make sure to provide as much information as possible about the issue and clearly communicate that they’re doing everything they can to resolve it.

Keeping things under wraps will only make their team feel anxious and unsafe -- if they know something’s wrong, and they know their leader hasn’t disclosed all the information, they’ll ruminate about the worst possible outcome. And this is likely to scare the leader’s team and make them lose trust in him.

8. You acknowledge and appreciate your top performers.

As a leader, you must know how to make your team feel valued. It’s one of the most important emotional needs to meet. If you don’t, your team will feel unhappy at work -- failing to recognize employees is one of the most common causes of employee dissatisfaction. To make them feel important to the team, happier, and incentivize them to keep improving, recognize and reward your employees for their accomplishments. You can does this in front of their peers, one on one, or even on Slack. This is also a way to inspire other members of your team to improve and earn recognition too.