#that we *don't* from creators of more traditional media

[grommyart]

We Don't Gatekeep Art Resources | A Comprehensive List

Here's a list of some of the tools/sites I currently use or have used previously for works/studies. I'll separate it into Software/Utility, Reference, and 'Other' which will be just general things that could help you map out things for your experience with art. **[Free highlighted in pink, paid highlighted in green. Blue is variable/both. Prices Listed in USD]**

Software/Utility:

2D

Krita Painting app (PC) (my main digital art software on PC for 5+ yrs)

Clip Studio Paint [PC] [CSP 2.0+ allows for 3d modelling within the painting app and a lot of other cool features] [apparently allows up to 6 months free trial]

Procreate (12.99) [iPad/iPad Pro] (the GOAT)

Artstudio Pro [iPad/iPad Pro] (An alternative to Procreate if you enjoy the more traditional art app layout) -- I find this app handy when Procreate is lacking a feature I need, or vice versa. (you can easily transfer files between the two, but keep in mind Procreate's layer limit)

2D "Collaborative Painting/Drawing apps"

Magma Studio

Drawpile

Discord Whiteboard

Gartic Phone (Pretty decent for 2d animation practice, but has a hard limit on frames)

3D

Blender [3D Modelling, Sculpting + Layout] (PC)

Sculptris [PC] (it's an old unsupported version of Zbrush, but can help to get ideas out, and functions better than browser sculpting apps

Nomad Sculpt [iPad/iPad Pro] ($20) Works pretty well if you prefer a mobile setup, but it is a bit intense on the battery life and takes some getting used to

References + Study

Magic Poser [ PC and Mobile ] Has both free and paid versions, I've made do with just the lite version before

Artpose ($9.99) [Iphone + Steam]

Head Model Studio [IPhone] A 3D head, with both a basic blockout version for angles, and a paid version with more detail

Cubebrush [simply search "[keyword] pose reference pack"], they usually have good results + they frequently have sales!

Line of Action [Good for Gesture practice + daily sketching], also has other resources built in.

Quickposes Similar to Line of action, more geared toward anatomy

Drawabox | Perspective Fundamentals Improvement modules (Suggested by @taffingspy )

Sketchfab, this skull in particular is useful, but there is other models that can help you study anatomy as well.

Pinterest can be good, you just have to be careful, usually you're better off just finding reference pack if you have the money, sometimes certain creators have freebies as well

Artstation Marketplace can be decent [make sure to turn on the Aye-Eye filter so it doesn't feed you trash], a colleague of mine recommended this head model for practicing facial blocking, there is also this free version without lighting.

Local Art Museums [Unironically good for studying old "master work" if you're into that, or even just getting some inspiration]

Brushes + Other Useful software:

I personally have used both of these brush packs before making my own

(I actually don't know how to share my daily brush set because I frequently switch between Krita, Procreate, and ASP, but once I figure that out I'll be sure to do that lol)

Marc Brunet's Starter brush pack [Technically free but supporting him for this if you like it is ideal, there's some good brushes]

Dave Greco Brush Pack [$3]

Gumroad in general is a good place to find brushes and art resources. *Note; for Krita specifically, brush packs are a bit weird, so it may require you to find different packs, or import them in a particular way

PureRef [PC] - Reference Compiler/Moodboarding

VizRef ($3.99) [iPad] - Moodboarding/Reference Compiler

Artist Youtubers/Creators that helped me improve/guide me along as a self-taught artist from when I first started digital art to where I am today:

Proko

Marco Bucci

Sinix Design

Sycra

Hardy Fowler

Lighting Mentor

Winged Canvas

Moderndayjames

Swatches

Chommang_drawing

Marc Brunet (YTartschool)

+ Observing a lot of speedpaint art by people whose work I enjoy on social media/youtube, trying to dissect their processes

If you've gotten this far, first of all, congrats, you can read a lot, and second of all, thank you for reading and I hope this helps! I'll continue to come back and update this if I find any new resources in the future, or if my processes change :)

Much Love,

-Remedy (aka "grommy_art")

#art #artwork #digital painting #painting #artists on tumblr #drawing #anime art #sketch #digital illustration #transfem #art tools #art resources #useful websites #small artist #illustration #digital art #artist on tumblr #procreate #my process #my art #krita #art tag #sharing is caring #learning #knowledge #useful stuff #links #reference

[mortalityplays]

You need more free art.

I quit my job yesterday. Well, actually I quit my job eight weeks ago, but they finally released me yesterday for good behaviour. Don't get me wrong, I love what I do - but I do it for the wrong reasons. Working for major charities, you learn very fast that 'I want to make the world a better place' is a phrase you use to ask people for money, not to give them things. I was an ass-backwards fit for that world.

You need more free art. I need more free art. Everyone has felt the shift in our media landscape over the last ten years, away from access and towards nickel-and-diming the human experience. That lack of access is making life and culture worse for all of us, across the board. Paywalled news sites leave us less informed, attacks on the Internet Archive leave us less capable of research. Algorithmic social feeds and streaming walled gardens trap us inside smaller and smaller demographic bubbles, where we are increasingly only likely to encounter ideas that have been curated for us by marketing departments. Hasty efforts to resist AI commodification have only led to more artists locking their work away and calling for even more onerous systems of copyright law. This is not good for us.

We all need more free art.

So what am I going to do about it?

This is a question I have been asking myself for years. It's easy to sit here feeilng frustrated and thinking 'boy I hope SOMEONE does SOMETHING'. It's harder to take action in a world where I still have rent to pay. But hard doesn't mean impossible. Sometimes hard just means time-consuming, frustrating and slow. And sometimes it's worth doing something time-consuming, frustrating and slow because...I want to make the world a better place.

I'm going to do this:

1. From April 1st, I am relaunching as a freelance writer and editor.

This is the one that will (hopefully) help to pay the bills. I am a very good and experienced editor. I've worked on hollywood movies, I'm a member of the Chartered Institute of Editors and Proofreaders, I have clients who have been coming to me exclusively for more than 10 years.

Alongside bigger contract jobs, I am going to refocus on offering my services to small-press creators at a reduced rate. That means you, graphic novelists. That means you, itch and amazon writers. I want to help you develop your work, the same way I help large organisations. You can learn more about what an editor even does and what kind of pricing you can expect here.

2. I'm also going to start giving shit away. Like, constantly.

Next week I'm going to launch a new free shop. If you're unfamiliar, a free shop, giveaway shop, swap shop, etc. is an anarchist tradition of setting up a storefront where anyone can take what they like for no cost. Offline, this often means second-hand clothes, tools, furniture, food etc. Online, I am going to be giving away digital art. Copyright-free, no strings attached. It will (eventually) feature everything from print-res posters to zines, poems, tattoo flash, t-shirt designs and anything else we come up with.

Yes, I said 'we' - while this is a curated collection, it will feature work from a variety of credited and anonymous artists and activists, all of whom have agreed to give their work away to the public domain. Some of it will be practical, some of it will be political, but a lot of it will be decorative or personal. This is, in part, a response to recent difficulty I had finding somewhere that would print a one-off joke poster for a friend that featured the word 'faggot'. Enough. No middlemen - no explaining ourselves. Just print our shit and enjoy it.

I'm very, very excited about this project. I'll have more to say about it closer to the launch, but you can expect it to go live on March 27th.

2.2 I forgot to mention the ACTUAL LAUNCH GIVEAWAY

To celebrate my launch, I am going to be giving away a ton of physical prints. When I went looking for my old stock to see if it was worth setting a new (paid) storefront up, I realised I had way more old work in storage than I thought. This will be announced in its own right on Monday, but this is why I've been hinting you should go follow my Patreon.

On April 1st, I will pick 8 random patrons (from across all tiers including non-paying followers!) and mail them a bundle of assorted prints and postcards. The prize pool includes A3 and A4 posters, packs of A6 postcards, and printed minicomics that I've previously sold for up to £12 each.

You don't have to be a paying subscriber to enter - this is strictly no-purchase necessary. It is purely and entirely a celebration of the concept of GIVING ART AWAY FOR FREE.

3. PORN, YOU PERVERTS

Because I still have to pay to stay alive, I am going to be subsidising all this free art with the introduction of Fuck You Fridays. Starting from March 29th, I will drop a new 18+ short story on the last Friday of every month, over on itch.io (yes I know my page is desolate right now, don't worry I'll get there).

The first edition, Go Fuck Yourself, is about, well - telling your boss where to stick it. Julia has had it with her millionaire man-child manager, and is just about ready to let him know what she really thinks. It's a short and steamy 5k words, with a gorgeous cover illustration by @taylor-titmouse, and you can pick it up for $3 starting from March 29th.

4. ANOTHER BIG SURPRISE

I'm keeping this one under wraps for now, but April 1st will also play host to one more (FREE) launch. If you've been following me for a long time, you might remember the other significance of this date (no not April Fool's day, though that is certainly thematically relevant to this entire effort). That's all I'll say right now. Watch this space.

tl;dr: I'm sick of paywalls and career ladders. I'm literally putting my money where my mouth is. More free art for everyone and I'm not kidding around!!!

#announcement #please reblog let's make this HAPPEN

[sokkastyles]

I have a question, I know we know that shipping does not equal morality. And I get that, and I really like that. However, on my other blog, that should have been my main blog (yes I am that dumb). I have talked about Aang's non-consensual and criticized how Kataang is written, however, if you ship Kataang I won't come for your throat because that's not my style. I know the few misogynists/antis on here and on Twitter, and I don't want to let a few bad apples be my impression of a fandom, that's not fair, So now I'm side-eyeing myself over my past remarks. Likewise, I know shipping is not equal to morality, but I also want to criticize Kataang because of how flawed it is and how wrong that kiss was (and other things). I have no idea what I'm saying because at this point I'm rambling. What do you think?

Well, there is a difference between criticizing a ship and criticizing canon. I don't honestly care what people ship. I use the antikataang tag because I don't want to argue with people who do ship it, but that doesn't mean I won't be critical of what is in the show. I think expecting people not to engage critically with media is absolute nonsense. But there is a difference between engaging critically with the actual media and criticizing people's fanon or headcanons, which is where you get away from critically engaging with canon and move into the area of criticizing other people's opinions, which is how arguments start.

Like, there isn't really any actual concrete argument you can make to criticize zutara, because zutara does not exist in canon. It's all fanon and headcanons and speculation. And criticizing other people's opinions just makes you look like a dick.

You also have to take into account the intention behind something. The thing about the way Katara's relationship with Aang is presented is that we're supposed to root for Aang to get Katara, and every obstacle towards that end is just there to create dramatic tension for the male point of audience identification. That's the real problem with the noncon kiss, and people who are critical of it are right to point it out.

In contrast, when I say shipping isn't morality, I'm talking about people who write, let's say, dubcon zutara fics. Fanfiction as a genre is largely female-centered fantasy. Yes, even those lurid fics you're thinking of. People write and read these fics for completely different reasons and have completely different expectations than when watching a series like ATLA. Trying to say that someone can't criticize the way the show presents Aang kissing Katara after she said she was confused as a mistake to be glossed over (that is forgotten as soon as it happens) because they also happen to like reading darkfic is nonsense. There's also a long history of women's interests being policed that informs my views here, vs the fact that consent has only fairly recently become a conversation in mainstream media. You have only to look at the way the show itself portrays Katara having interests (especially in boys) outside of Aang as dark and dangerous to see this happening in ATLA itself. Or the way the creators got away with saying that zutara shippers are doomed to end up in abusive relationships while painting Aang as a typical Nice Guy stereotype who expects Katara to magically become his girlfriend (and gets angry when she doesn't) and seeing nothing wrong with it.

The thing is that zutara, if we look at the way it's written in canon as a metaphor for a romantic relationship, follows the same tradition of how fanfiction has historically existed as an exploration of romantic and sexual dynamics. Those conversations about consent are actually happening and being explored in fanfiction, even the dark stuff, whereas relationships that are presented as "wholesome" often push us to NOT have those conversations. So when I say shipping isn't morality, what I actually mean is that noncanon shipping and darkfic actually has more of a moral leg to stand on than uncritically engaging with relationships on the grounds that Aang is the hero so his goodness and worthiness to get the girl should just be assumed. Zuko has to work for his right to be in a relationship with Katara because he didn't start out from a place of goodness, and that, on its own, is very female centered because instead of starting out from the perspective of the male hero deserving a relationship by virtue of being the hero, we see the idea that a man has to work to gain a woman's respect and affection.

So it's not so much that I hate KA, but I hate the idea that we should engage in it uncritically. And that would be true even if it really was the most wholesome relationship in the world. The same thing cannot be true of zutara because even the darkest of darkfic are about women centering themselves in the narrative and engaging with power dynamics in ways that are subverting patriarchal norms about relationships by definition.

#zutara #antikataang #the discourse

[genericpuff]

I don't know the term for creators who became popular outside the traditional steps to "make it" in their profession; then when people started taking their work seriously and giving them criticism, these creators saw it as an attack because they are not used to mentors and studies.

Smythe's professional training is vague at best, being a folklorist. Then there's the creator of the popular hell cartoon that became her own executive producer and director in her 20s (I'm not going to say her name since it tends to attract her rabid fans) and becomes reactive to any kind of criticism on Twitter. Then there's that TikToker Devon Rodriguez, who became popular for sketching people on subways, and when an art critic gave a mild review to his art gallery, Devon unleashed his fans on him.

Like am I seeing a pattern here for artists? And I guess, what do you think we can learn from it.

Ah, so this is a very interesting (and broad) topic that we've touched on in discussions in ULO and other webtoon-related communities. So buckle up, it's time for an ✨essay✨

I think the best way I can sum up my thoughts on this issue is: the vast majority of people who become paid content creators don't seek out a job as content creators, a job in content creation is just something that happens to them.

I say "content creation" because this is something that applies to a lot of other platforms and online mediums as well, such as the examples you included (TikTok, Youtube, Twitch, etc.). And don't get me wrong, it's not like every successful content creator out there didn't work their asses off to get to where they are, but for many... it still involves an element of luck. People don't go to school for it, people don't "apply" to become influencers, and much of it relies entirely on just making stuff until it gets seen and propelled into success.

I think a lot of these issues arise with the creators themselves and how they view their own work. The reality is that many of us artists have been treated as the "rejects" of society, we constantly feel like we're misunderstood and have some deep inner pain that we express through our art, and instead of going to therapy, we come up with OC's. It's a lot more fun and it's a lot cheaper LOL Webcomics naturally wind up being the perfect lightning rod for people who feel that way, where we can pour ourselves into the characters, the world, the narrative, in a way that perfectly mixes our talents for art and our need to express our innermost thoughts and feelings about ourselves and the world around us. So when our art gets criticized or rejected ... it can be hard for a lot of artists to not feel like it's a criticism of the self, a rejection of our identities, an attack on our feelings and experiences, because we've tied so much of ourselves to our work. And this can make that transition very difficult for people who are trying to go pro, because being professional demands separating yourself from your work, at least enough that you can view it objectively, recognize its flaws, seek out pathways to improvement, and not take every bump in the road personally.

A lot of successful creators are people who just never made that transition. It's led to an abundance of professional creators who know how to film themselves or react to content or, in the case of webcomic artists, write stories about their OC's, but don't know how to actually navigate the industry at a professional level. They don't know how to read and negotiate contracts, they don't know what deals are actually good for them and which ones are better left on the table, they don't know how to manage teams of people, they don't know how to react to the attention, praise, and criticism of their audience - they're just doing what they've always done, but now they're making money doing it.

None of this is to speak ill in any way of the creators who've found success and are still just doing what they've always done for money. None of this is meant to be a slight on the creators who are using webcomics and art as an expression of their deeper selves (I do it myself, it's very cathartic!) because ultimately that's what makes your work your work, the fact that you made it, with all your good parts and bad. Many of these creators are capable of running their platform without any issues because they've learned how to play the game, or because their platform is made up of people just like them so their audience is more like just a social circle.

But many of them still also can't operate on a professional level and those are the ones we often see getting called out and held accountable when they do shit like, I dunno, scamming their audiences for money or making alt accounts to manipulate user reviews or plagiarizing from other people's work or just being really REALLY shitty to their own audience.

Often times these are people who are just doing what they'd normally do as a hobby, became well known for it, and managed to turn it into a living. But they never actually learned how to turn their hobby into a job, and themselves into professionals.

And artists especially are prone to this because, let's face it, a lot of us are just weebs having fun drawing our blorbos, so of course if we get a chance to monetize that, we're gonna! We should! We should want to be paid for our work and time and efforts!

But we also have to remember that it's a different ballgame, especially if you're turning your audience into customers. "I'm just a baby creator doing this for fun" doesn't and shouldn't apply anymore once you start signing contracts, selling your art as products, taking people's money to fund your projects, etc. because now it's not just your art, it's what you're expecting people to pay for so you can eat and pay your bills and live.

As much as our art is often personal and should be cherished as such, you can't expect people to want to pay for it if you're not setting a bar and meeting it, or if you're not treating your audience with any amount of dignity or respect.

I'm not saying you're not entitled to having feelings or still wanting to treat your art as art, but the line between art and products is there for a reason, it's to set people's expectations and ensure that both sides are having those expectations met. Webtoon creators suffer from the same thing that a lot of Youtube creators and other types of content creators suffer from in this transition, and I feel like HBomberGuy summed it up best:

"In current discourse, Youtubers simultaneously present as the forefront of a new medium, creative voices that need to be taken seriously as part of the 'next generation of media' - and also uwu smol beans little babies who shouldn't be taken seriously when they rip someone off and make tens of thousands of dollars doing it."

It's not gatekeeping a medium, it's not telling people they aren't allowed to have feelings or to want to still have that personal connection to their work in spite of the professional level it's achieved, it's simply just expecting people to actually live up to the label of 'professional' that they're using to make money.

And this especially goes for someone like Rachel, who claims to be a 'folklorist' despite all the contrary evidence that says otherwise. This is the same person who copy pasted the first result on Google as her source on a simple word definition:

There's a second part to that HBomberGuy quote that also actually applies to Rachel really well in this discussion, concerning how she labels herself a "folklorist" and how that's affected and influenced the greater discussion surrounding Greek myth:

"But on the opposite end, Youtubers who act like serious documentarians gain a shroud of professionalism which then masks the deeply unprofessional things they do. We just saw that with James. I think [James] partially got away with what he's doing for so long because he acts so professional about it, so people assume, 'there's no way he could just be stealing shit!' so they don't check. And on top of that, a lot of James' videos contain obvious mistakes and made-up facts... but because they're often presented next to well-researched stuff he stole, no one questions it. I've seen James repeat a lie in his videos, and then other people claim it's true, and link his video as the proof. He has helped to solidify misinformation by seeming like he's doing his diligence."

There's always going to be discourse over what's legitimate and what isn't when it comes to Greek myth, there are loads of things we still don't know simply due to the knowledge being lost to time. But there's something to be said about a white New Zealand woman using her self-insert romance comic and platform to build a veneer of professionalism and legitimacy around herself, as if she's the authority on the subject, while simultaneously relying on first result Google searches and citing works that have no real foothold in the way of scholarly or "folklorist" discussion.

All that's to say, you're right, her professional training is vague at best. She's never completed a longform comic prior to LO, she's not doing her due diligence in actually engaging with the media she's trying to "retell" and exposing herself to the voices of those from the culture that's tied to it, and she's not holding herself to any sort of standards when it comes not only to being a professional, but a professional who's been held on a pedestal for all these years. She's still operating the same way she was 5 years ago - drawing and writing whatever pops into her head and sending it to her editor for uploading, with next to no intervention or guidance. Except now it doesn't have the benefit of being new and having "potential", it's getting noticed and called out more now than ever because it's been 5 years of this shit and it's been getting worse on account of her clearly being burnt out (or just giving up/not caring) and the readers can't be sold on "potential" anymore.

And that's all I have to say on that.

#ask me anything #ama #anon ama #anon ask me anything #lore olympus critical #anti lore olympus #lo critical

[aa-400]

malevolent and the queer-coded villain trope

*disclaimer please respect the #masked tag. while i'm putting these thoughts out into the ether they're not really meant for harlan to see as i don't want to be put on blast for criticising the show. this is not me attempting to malign this podcast or its creator or to go "it's bad and problematic actually so don't listen to it" because that's a frankly horrible and unhelpful way of engaging with media and the world at large. i'm certainly not going to stop enjoying malevolent wholeheartedly or supporting harlan in his creative endeavours. this is not an accusation, it's an observation.

i've been thinking about the queer-coded villain trope in a separate context recently, but something clicked for me with part 34. horror (and other genre fiction but let's focus on the relevant genre here) has a tradition of placing queer elements within the subtext. it's a means of Othering and used to separate the protagonist from whatever evil entity they're up against in the story, be it man or creature, and where the the tropes of the monstrous queer and the queer-coded villain are born from.

a brief second disclaimer. i'm a queer villain and queer horror enjoyer and here to reclaim every single queer-coded villain and monster ever created but acting like the trope doesn't have a problematic, negative history is a sucky way of engaging with and examining a piece of media so let's not do that.

aaanyway, to the actual meat of this post: i believe malevolent reiterates the monstrous queer / queer-coded villain tropes however unintentionally and they go unexamined in the text.

first, we have kayne. flamboyant, exaggerated kayne who calls arthur—and to an extent john—pet names. i don't really think i have to go into detail for people to know what i'm getting at.

then we have larson. yeah, larson. in particular, i'm referring to the scene where arthur wakes up in the larson estate and his clothes have been removed. larson approaches arthur while he's in bed, vulnerable, and while there's not anything untoward happening in the text, it's still very ... master of the house and the gothic heroine, for lack of a better comparison. actually, think of count dracula and jonathan harker in castle dracula — the dynamic is very reminiscent of that, and dracula is a famously queer coded monster in part for that whole thing.

and finally, there's the butcher. a predator—a serial killer—obsessed with chasing arthur down. and boy did part 34 lay it down thick. i mean, he hears peggy gordon in his head when he hunts arthur and sings it to him when he's come to get him. it's a song about a man's unrequited love and it's pretty obvious the butcher's meant to be the man while arthur is peggy, who slighted him when he escaped from the butcher back in the train. and then as if that wasn't obvious enough he has a line about falling in love with his victims. "it's dedication, devotion, a bond. (laugh) sounds a bit like falling in love, doesn't it? maybe i suppose you could say i've fallen in love with each and every one of them. with each and every animal." which is then followed by more arthur-specific obsessing.

harlan has explicitly stated that arthur isn't queer rep, so unintentionally what's happening in the text is that the heterosexual protagonist is pitted against these queer-coded malevolent entities in a way that's pretty text book.

none of these characters i used as examples are written to be explicitly queer, but the coding is certainly there. again, i'm not saying harlan is a secret queerphobe who is putting this subtext in malevolent intentionally—i can with confidence say that we can safely assume that isn't the case! but, like i said when i was prefacing this post, queer subtext in the monstrous and villainous have a recorded history within horror. it's really easy to reiterate tropes like that if you create within a genre without actively examining your work and its wider context, and i think that's what happening here.

so what was the point of this post? there isn't much of one, really, i just made an observation and wanted to share because i believe in and enjoy examining the things you love critically. and i do love malevolent, with its queer-coded villains and all. i'm not calling for anything to change in the story, or accusing harlan or anyone else of anything; i'm just having thoughts about the wider scope of horror media and where malevolent fits within it and i'm using a cda and queer theory oriented brain to do it.

#masked #malevolent #malevolent podcast #tl;dr mlvlnts villains have queer coded vibes this is a neutral statement #i havent read this post since i wrote it a couple of weeks ago idk how well though out it is #malevolent spoilers #ggjfigj oops sorry about that forgot to tag the spoilers

[saintlabrys]

Something I can't stand about this whole gender -fever or whataver is how it's cancelling/absorbing butch lesbian representation. I had been bullied my whole adolescence because of my appearance (tall and androgynous) and behaviour, I didn't have role models, mostly because many lesbian media were censored in the country in which I grew up and my family, because it belongs to a different culture, was a very conservative and traditional ones. Sometimes ago my mom told me she didn't even know homosexual people existed before moving from Albania. Growing up wasn't easy, I remember asking myself what was wrong with me and why I was a woman since everything would have been easier if I were born as a boy. That's why masc-butch representation is so dear to me and I'm angry about reinforcing gender stereotypes by saying that if you feel different from other girls you're probably not one. That's why I love Naoko Takeuchi, Creator of Sailor Moon, for stating that Haruka Tenoh (Sailor Uranus) is a girl

I love this mainly because western people want to portray her as non-binary/gender fluid or whatever just because she's very "masculine" (and also because of a manga panel, but I'll get there), I'm talking about her looking and hobbies. First of all... Androgynous women exists in real life, secondly there is no thing such as mainly hobbies but, yeah, I think I'll leave it for another post. Most people also ignore the fact that Haruka and Michiru were hugely based on Takarazuka Revue, since Takeuchi is a huge fan of it, In The Materials Collection, published in 1999, Takeuchi also revealed Haruka and Michiru were inspired by two actresses in particular but she didn't want to share their names.

What's Takarazuka review? Takarazuka Revue is a Japanese all-female musical theater that was founded in 1913. as an all-female troupe in order to attract a wider audience and fill a gap in the male-dominated theater scene. There are two kinds of actress in their plays: musumeyaku and otokoyaku. Musumeyaku are the ones who play feminine roles, while otokoyaku play the masculine ones. In order to become an otokoyaku you must have certain qualities, such as being tall. Haruka is 5'10" (180cm) and described as androgynous and act "manly". That's why Usagi and Minako when they met her they thought she was a man. Otoyaku, while training, also need to study how to "behave like a man", this comes from an article published in the late 90s:

As I said otoyaku, the majority of them at least, only play male roles, and as we said Takarazuka was born to fight a male-dominated scene. However, there's more, in the same article they spoke of otokoyaku's appeal on female audience:

Furthermore, this is what a former otokoyaku said about what being a otokoyaku really means:

Otokoyaku are the idealization of men played by women who knows what other women want!! Since Haruka character is mostly based on this idealization, this is what Takeuchi meant when in the manga she had michiru saying Haruka is "both a man and a woman", I hate seeing how this phrase is used as a gotcha by gendies when they don't even consider the social and cultural contest behind a certain media.

#radfem #radblr #radical feminism #gender critical #radfems please interact #radfem safe #radfems do interact #radical feminst #lesbian #sailor moon I guess as well #terfblr

[sir-yeehaw-paws]

i keep thinking about ocelot takarazuka i dont really see the influence like he just looks like a middle age guy with masc features manner and fashion so what do you think the artist actually meant? there's nothing feminine about ocelot like how does the "is that a man or woman" thing play in here cause i don't see it. He's not like raiden or raikov. He's just a guy 🧍‍♂️so how does the all female theatre thing apply

Hello Anon! Full, immediate disclosure, this answer is messy and disjointed. I probably don't even answer the question your asking end of the day, but I'll try my best.

I believe this is the post you're wondering about?

As I said in this earlier post I'm not a Japanese speaker, so I have to go on interpretation, and what has been offered by the translations available. I can't help but think there is going to be some sort of nuance missing as a result, but I'll do my best.

To start, I think you and I might have a slightly different view on masculine and feminine-to me the two concepts are pretty interchangeable, but I do understand where you're (probably, I don't know you personally after all) are coming from and that, no, Ocelot doesn't have many traditional 'feminine' characteristics.

You'll note that in the original post, Shinkawa refers to getting inspiration from the idea of 'women in their 40's (the age Ocelot almost is in MGSV)' and 'long, flashing eyelashes'. (My interpretation here is that by this, he means in the way long eyelashes that are considered sexy have an eye-catching flow to them. Sort of like how we can say 'fluttering lashes'. Intended to draw a person's gaze in, and command their presence).

Doing some cursory research tells me that the Takarazuka Revue (because Takarazuka is also a city in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan.) is an all-female musical troupe located within that same city. Started in 1913, by Ichizō Kobayashi.

(I also got distracted by this version that is a performance of Casino Royale, so there's that)

Anyway, ahem.

"Kobayashi believed that it was the ideal spot to open an attraction of some kind that would boost train ticket sales and draw more business to Takarazuka. Since Western song and dance shows were becoming more popular and Kobayashi considered the kabuki theater to be old and elitist."

Throughout the article, there is also this;

"Takarazuka has had a profound influence on the history of anime and manga, especially shōjo manga.[27][28] Osamu Tezuka, a highly influential manga creator, grew up in the town of Takarazuka. His mother knew many of the Takarazuka actresses, and as a child he knew them and watched many of their performances"

I can assume that the performances have a lot of influence on media, and it's not uncommon for MGS to take inspiration. There could be an entire article on the things MGS takes inspiration from, even outside the most obvious like Escape from New York, character model bases, etc.

Cycling back to the original point, (there is also a video that exact post comes from, but I don't have the link on hand, on YouTube *no translations). I think that it's entirely possible Shinkawa took 'loose' inspiration, or a little more. I can see why and how he might've based Ocelot's look on the idea. (Loose shirt, tight pants, scarf open neck). But there is also the element of which Takarazuka is a performance, more than anything.

It's acting. Playing. Something Ocelot does all the time. Half of his time on screen, he's putting on some kind of performance. While this is something he does the least in MGSV, that never fully changes 100%. (And after all, he's also hypnotized for most of the plot). So there's a counter argument to be had that this is one of his greatest performances pre-MGS4. But that's a different post.

Ocelot presents/is masculine. But, he has longer eyelashes, his clothes are a little more 'free' than the standard military garb when he's allowed to choose his own outfit. (Again this is specifically MGSV Ocelot, though there's something to be said about his chosen attire being such a sharp 3 piece later on).

At the end of the day, maybe a way you can look at it is to say that, Shinkawa looked to Takarazuka when designing MGSV Ocelot to give him a sort of 'flow' to his looks. He was attracted to the idea of taking elements from Takarazuka, because Ocelot is a performer, and he sees some possibility for feminine additions in his looks *or* might've thought it more 'fitting' than Kabuki.

But again, I don't know if we see fully masculine and feminine the same way, (and maybe Shinkawa personally associates long eyelashes with sexy women; or women made up to look like men but with longer lashes) I can't know for sure myself. I think you would need a native or very good Japanese speaker to interpret it fully.

If I was to offer you a personal opinion-I can see it. I can see where there's a draw that one might have with the look, and where Shinkawa might've gotten said inspiration. But I am not entirely certain how to put that into words either? My perspective isn't going to be 1-to-1 of yours either.

Maybe someone else can interpret all this better than me, I definitely feel as if I've not done this justice at all. Because at the end of the day, I don't see a hard divide in masculine and feminine in Ocelot, but I think that you, Anon, see him as 100% masculine. But again, I can't speak for you and I am not sure.

#asks #answered asks #revolver ocelot #mgs #sorry anon this is probably the clumsiest ive ever answered an ask #i think there's too much thats open to interpretation to give you a clear cut answer like you might want but im not sure #maybe I'll come back to this later if i can think of a better way to explain it anon but i didn't want to leave you just hanging either #i also kept getting distracted by theater pictures so uh sorry about that #character posts: revolver ocelot

[darkreflections-zine]

Dark Reflections is now accepting submissions!

Dark Reflections is an all-Trek zine focusing on the Mirror Universe and other dark universes. We welcome the dark, the macabre, the unsavoury and the morally dubious.

Please read the FAQ under the cut before submitting anything. Feel free to join our Discord server for quick answers to questions, hanging out with other submitters, beta reader requests, and work reminders.

Submissions close October 10th. Send submissions to [email protected]

FAQ

What counts as a mirror universe?

According to Fanlore, a mirror universe is any alternate universe which is a dark reflection (pun intended) of the original. Whether this is the mirror universe we see in the shows or in beta canon, or a completely new universe that is simply not as kind to our characters as the original is up to you. Keep in mind that this zine focuses on and embraces the more "evil" aspects of those universes.

What can I submit to the zine?

Writing (fic and poetry) and art (traditional or digital, including comics) can all be submitted. We don't accept manips, meta essays (essays written in-universe may be allowed), mood boards, or anything that can't be printed, such as vids and podfics. Fics must not exceed 25,000 words, though depending on quality and number of submissions we may choose more, shorter works over fewer, longer ones. There is no lower limit for writing. Art must be completed, which means no sketches. Traditional art should be scanned, 300p. Written files should be .docx or .pdf, and art files should be .png, .jpg or .tiff. Links to Google Docs are also accepted.

Is there anything I can't write about?

Despite this zine embracing and encouraging potentially controversial subject matters, there are a few things we won't accept. Generally speaking, though, unless you're writing nazi roleplay erotica (for example) we're not likely to reject your fic on subject matter alone.

What show/ship/characters does the zine focus on?

Ideally, all of them. We'd like for this to be an all-Trek zine. However, if we get an overwhelming majority of one series we may end up rejecting a single work from a different one, even if it normally would have gotten in, just to keep everything cohesive. Either way, we will not accept OC-centric works.

Can I submit a work that has been published somewhere else? e.g. AO3, another zine, ect.

No. We only accept new works.

Does my work need to be beta read before submission?

Preferably, yes. We will edit works which have been accepted and which require it. All works in the zine will match in editing style, though we'll try to keep the author's style intact.

If I submit multiple works, how many are likely to get in?

We would prefer to give as many creators an opportunity to participate as possible, but if there is room or your works are particularly fitting, we will include multiple.

Do I need experience to submit works?

No. We will gladly accept works from new creators.

Do I need to join the discord server to participate?

No. The server gives you easier access to the editor, granting quicker answers to any questions you may have, as well as general accountability and greater sense of community, but that is all.

How do you match fic and art?

Ideally, we will have some solid matches from the get-go. If necessary, we will ask submitters who have volunteered to pinch hit for fics with no art. Art with no matches will separate poems or end up on one of the covers.

Will there be merch?

Possibly.

After the zine is published, can I post my work to AO3/social media?

We reserve printing rights for six months after publication (the day printed zines will be shipped). After that, you may do with your work as you wish.

How much will the zine cost?

This depends on a number of factors. However, we will endeavour to keep the zine as cheap as possible. We cannot legally make money off of fanworks, nor do we wish to. A free pdf copy of the zine will be sent to everyone who has purchased a physical copy, and these digital copies will be available to purchase at a much discounted price.

I have another question that isn't listed here.

Shoot us an ask! All asks are tagged #qna to make finding them easier. Please check if we have answered your question there before sending a new one.

#star trek #star trek zine #fanzine #zine applications #mirror universe

[delyth-thomas-art]

Tired Webcomic Creator Noises

Gags … ah yes lets make art into mindless content spat out by Ai cos we've been literally killing creators with inhumane workloads to spit out as many episodes as possible for mindless consumption.

I make my comics with passion and love of the craft! I have a degree in Comics, I spent years...years learning, practising, experimenting, adapting. I recall the days where you may get a page a week, or a few at the start of the month back in the 2000s era of self hosted webcomics and smackjeeves. (Rant below)

I've had to learn how the whole scrolling format worked to adapt to where all the readers had gone to, having been taught the traditional print page formats. And now cos its suddenly a massive money maker for these few hosts and they've pushed creators to the brink with the sheer volume they want pumped out that of course they want to use AI.

But it will speed up colouring! I have multiple tools available by the software I use and made by the wonderful people who love creating that colouring isn't that much of a chore, Its my fav part honestly. And its also a job sector within comics, colourists are skilled artists and this is another way to trim the fat, to pocket more money and keep churning out the 5th millionth villainess story.

Yes I am in most views a tiny creator, I haven't even broken their 1000 sub goal to even try applying for ad rev in the near 5 ish years on webtoon. But what I make I love, I spend hours researching folklore, scripting, drafting the whole kabudle like many other creators. And other than the kind supporters on my Patreon and Ko-fi I don't make much from the hours, days, weeks I pour into what I make. But at least I know its made with my own hands. That its made with love as corny as that sounds.

Ai is creeping its tentacles into everything, now ethically trained ai tools to help smaller creators would be fine. Most creators already rely on 3d tools to speed up things like backgrounds for webcomics. But when we don't know what its trained on, and is marketed wholesale as something anyone can use to make "content" is where it gets insidious. I am all for anyone with the desire to create and tell a story to go out there and do so, whether a beginner or a master. Part of the joy of a long running webcomic is seeing the artist grow both artistically and literary. But with ai it will be all one homogenous style, a copy of what ever is the hot thing. We already have amazon stuffed to the teeth with ai generated books, videos, merch and more all to be sold in some get rich quick manner. (need I point at the Willy's Wonderland incident). Youtube videos being spat out by faceless accounts stealing and regurgitating content at the speed no human video making team can easily match without cutting out quality or fact checking.

It is tiring. Creatives as a whole are treated poorly for decades, and now with the rapid late stage capitalism, website /social media enshitification and the blind headlong rush into the next big money making thing (watches the nft crash). I can't deny Covid sped this up, as everyone was locked inside and turned to what we creators made for comfort. But that content eating boom, lead to more demand, faster output and tighter budgets. We are seeing journalists being cut, game designers in their thousands and recently Dreamworks cutting a bunch and pushing to make their Robot film come out sooner due to public demands.

Skilled creatives are being treated like disposable fast food restaurant employees. Used til they burn out, get injured and even die! And then are simply replaced.

I've never been a creator with huge ambitions to work at places like DC, Marvel or Top Cow. I simply wished to create and share stories with the world, to bring smiles, to create art that evokes emotions, inspires others to look around themselves and create too.

Art is for everyone. You just need to take that scary jump, there is a whole array of welcoming communities willing to teach and share. I wouldn't have improved so much without the kindness of the webcomic groups I've discovered and learnt from. Everyone is always learning, and there no shame in not knowing how to do a thing. Even I started with the cheesy how to draw books as a kid and made my own pokemon and digimon.

Don't let the world treat your art as content. It is "ART" as much as what's kept in the louvre is seen as art, so is that little stick man doodle on a postit.

So Try something new, try a new material, a new style.

And support the artists you enjoy, tip their Ko-Fi, pledge to their Patreon, buy a sticker or print. Share their posts and tell them what you love about what they make.

Don't let machines steal away the art in HEART.

#delyth thomas art #life #webtoon #webcomics #ai #ai art #fuck ai art #navar #art #ramble #rant #art rant

[butchfairyzine]

Answering some questions

What type of artists are you looking for? And are you after a specific style or a range of styles?

We are looking for artists who can create pieces with fully rendered fairies and a background within the specified schedule. These can be digital artworks that are flat colour artworks, paintings, a mixture, or another style entirely.

We will also accept mixed media and traditional artworks, but they will need to be scanned at a minimum of 300dpi.

~

When you sign up for an artist position, are there any requirements to be a part of the team?

E-mail communication is required (discord is optional).

You must have a PayPal account to receive payment.

You must be able to communicate comfortably in English.

You must be 18 or older at the time of signing the contract by the 16th of February.

~

For artists accepted into the zine what would be the timeline for completing and submitting artwork?

Our current schedule for the artists requires concept ideas to be submitted by Feb 16th, and the final version by May 16th! Progress check-ins will be on Feb 29th, March 21st, and April 11th.

(In the image there is also a table including this information as well as the final submissions date being May 16th)

~

When the zine is for sale, where would the profits go to (charity, zine admin, etc.)?

We are aiming to hold pre-orders in June/July of 2024, with a flat fee paid to all contributors and additional proceeds split between contributors and mods.

Our priority is to make sure each contributor is paid fairly for their work. If sales do well enough, 20% will be used for future books and projects, and 80% split between taxes and fees, production costs, contributors and shipping costs.

~

Is this physical or digital and will there be prints of the art available? Got any merch ideas planned to go along with the zine?

Both physical and digital! Our goal is to make a 210 x 148 mm (A5) perfect-bound soft cover book.

We also plan to add some paper merch, including prints of some of the art from the book. Additional merch ideas include stickers, sticker sheets and bookmarks.

~

Will this be focused just on lesbians, or can this include other sapphics? Also, does the focus have to be on women/femmes or can it be broader across non-binary folks?

The term “butch” can mean more than identifying as lesbian or masculine, it overlaps and intersects with so many other factions of queer identity and we want to celebrate that! We don’t want to exclude anyone and how the term “Butch” resonates with them.

There are so many talented artists in our community, and we want to show them off in our art zine! And we look forward to having artists explore the theme in their own interesting and different ways.

So yes, all gender identities are welcome here, and artists are welcome to explore those in their art for this zine.

~

Why just butch faeries? Will there be a femme faeries? Interested in both.

This zine focuses on butch depictions of fairies, as it’s something we don’t get to see very often and want to celebrate in particular at this time.

That being said, artists will be able to draw multiple fairies in their illustrations if they wish, including femme fairies. We will simply ask that the butch fairies be the main centerpoint of the artworks.

If accepted as a contributor, you may also ask a mod for further clarification when settling on an idea for your illustration.

~

Is this zine for “butch” creators only? Can people who don't identify as butch apply?

Anyone can apply for an artist position or writer position for our zine, you need not identify as butch or queer. That being said, we will be prioritizing queer creators, and specifically butch creators for positions on this project.

We will also have sensitivity consultants on this project, to oversee the work and ensure that butch people are being represented authentically and respectfully.

#long post #butch fairy zine #fey: A guide to fae of the butch variety #faq #answering questions with the frog

[feudalconnection]

Get Ready...!!

It's the start of the 3rd Term 2023 Inuyasha Fandom Awards!!

We hope everyone has had a fantastic summer! A huge shout-out to everyone who participated last term and made it such a huge success! We look forward to all of the amazing new fanfiction and fanart to be shared with this beautiful community!

A special thank you goes out to @elevenharbor for donating her time and talent to creating fantastic banners for everyone! (If you have not received your award banner for last term, please reach out to one of the mods asap!)

At the end of last term, the voting form also included the possibilities of the Roulette Categories for this term, and we have taken the top choices for both Fanart and Fanfiction:

The Fanfiction Roulette Category for this term will be Best Original Plot. This is defined as: A story that utilizes the Inuyasha characters in a story that is wholly separate and unique from the original series and sequel.

The Fanart Roulette Category for this term will be Best Traditional Art. This is defined as: A piece created using traditional media such as paints, pencils, pens, ink, markers, pastels, crayons, chalks, etc. Computer programs are used to create minor adjustments only or not at all.

As a reminder, we have extended the time between the Nomination and the Voting Period, as well as extended the Voting Period, in order to give readers and viewers the chance to appreciate all the works nominated. We hope the added timeframe creates a more enjoyable experience!

If it wasn't mentioned above, chances are it hasn't changed. Please be aware that the moderators always take suggestions regarding how the awards are run and category changes into consideration, and each new term may bring about new changes. You can read up on the most recent FAQs, Rules of Eligibility, and Categories for more information [these links are only available on desktop].

For ease of access on mobile, the FAQs, Rules of Eligibility, and Categories can be accessed through this link.

As nominators, please make sure that each term you take a peek at our list of creators who can’t be nominated to make sure you are staying current with who is eligible to be nominated.

Here you can find the mobile-friendly link for all current nominations for this term.

The 3rd Term 2023 nomination period will begin on September 1st and go until the end of the day September 15th. Please send your nominations in through the submit button! If you have any other questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to send in an ask or reach out to one of the mods! We are also frequently available on the FC Discord!

Mods: @classysassy9791, @ruddcatha, @yukinon-writes, @dchelyst

Please reblog to spread the word of the start of the new term!

#feudalconnection #inuyasha #fct32023 #get ready

[heimesweek]

God of War: Heimes Week 2023!!!!!!

HELLO CONTENT CREATORS AND ABSORBERS!!!! Do you like Hermes from GodOfWar 3 and also perhaps Heimdall from GodOfWar Ragnarok? Do you also like when they are TOGETHER????? Well GOOD NEWS!!!! I AM HERE to announce a wonderful festivity; HEIMES WEEK! A silly little week where epic content creators (such as yourselves) in the God of War fandom who enjoy seeing and/or enjoy making Heimes content (or have even always wanted to make content for it but needed a silly excuse) can opt in to be prompted for inspo seven days in a row. I'm really bad at intros can't you tell??? Anyways let's get into the DESSERT!!!

From April 23rd to April 29th, for 7 days in a row, each day will be dedicated to a different Heimes shipping prompt!!!

💟💟💟READ BELOW FOR MORE DETAILS💟💟💟

Heimes Week is hosted by yours truly @medievildead!!!! And first off, HUGE THANK YOU for helping me out with the banner, to the incredibly talented @romaine-arts (lineart) and @silvergoldraeven (colours)

Each day has TWO prompts to choose from. Options were left available so people who partake can have more creative liberties with the prompts. Each day you can choose one prompt or the other to take inspiration from, or even combine the two, or maybe even just do both separately, or you can do neither!

You aren't obligated to participate, nor are the people who do participate obligated to participate the entire week! You can do two days and just opt out if it gets overwhelming, or you can often Midway through the week and just do them at your own liberty, whatever you want to do. As long as you're having fun and happy!!!!!

💕THE DAILY PROMPTS;

❥❥❥

Day 1: First Kiss/Last Kiss

Starting out simple, prompt is first kiss. Doesn't have to be exactly a first kiss, can be a first confession, a first date, a first anything . First time they realize they have feelings for each other, even! Whatever floats your boat! Or, last kiss. Make it sweet! Make it angsty! Make it bittersweet! Do what ya like!

❥

Day 2: Sacred Animals/Mythological Creatures

Rams and Roosters and Hawks! Selkies and Satyrs and Dragons, even!!!! Whatever creatures come to mind in regards to incorporating sacred animals (because hey, these two share a couple!) or mythological creatures somehow. Hey, doesn't even have to be creatures from their respective mythologies!

❥

Day 3: Meet the Family/Culture Shock

Meeting the family isn't always easy especially when both of your families control entire pantheons! Something about them not getting along with each other's fathers, or even getting along with each other siblings? Or vice versa? Or you can even go with the culture shock root, them introducing one another to each other's cultures. Be it clothes or food or customs and traditions!

❥

Day 4: Personality Swap/Gender swap

Breaking ship week tradition if we don't include this one, either a personality swap of one or both, Heimdall being a pushy flirt and Hermes being a prude? Or a gender swap of one or both. We love women in this house. Get serious or get goofy with whatever you think of!

❥

Day 5: Crossover/Alternate Universe

Have you ever wanted to see these two in your favorite other media? Or perhaps you have an alternate universe where they are already existing in a certain other reality? Maybe you wanted to see them in the Elder Scrolls universe, or them in a Modern AU, or them with a Pokemon team. Show us what ya got! Go hog wild!

❥

Day 6: Under the stars/Above the sky

Under the stars, stargazing or snuggling at night or doing anything really, indoors or outdoors, together or apart, or above the sky standing upon something tall or taking flight or whatever however you wanna take this and go about it in a bittersweet or not way. Combine the two of you want even (you don't have to)! Get poetic or get silly! Wheee!!

❥

Day 7: Sparring/Choose your own!

Lastly but not leastly we have sparring! Doesn't have to be with each other if you don't want, they can be sparring or fighting something Side by side! Showing off their powers to each other, etc. Or, you can just choose your own! Come up with your own idea, or maybe there was a prompt from one of the previous days that you chose not to do over the other option and you want to return to it! Completely fine! Have as much fun and be as creative as your heart desires!

❥❥❥

HOW TO PARTICIPATE;

Literally just go for it! There's no entry form, or hoops you have to jump through. Genuinely just REBLOG AND WRITE IN THE TAGS or COMMENT ON THIS POST that you intend on partaking (even briefly!) on the day of April 23rd, post your day one creation that day and tag it with #HeimesWeek2023 !!!!!

Reason we ask people to also say directly here if they're partaking is because sometimes tumblr is a bit of a nightmare and doesn't show posts in tags right away all the time, and we don't want to miss anything that you guys create for it!!!!!

Still, everything we see posted in the tag or by blogs who partake will be reblogged here at @heimesweek, so we have a nice little Hub to Showcase ALL of the awesome things that people make.

OUR INBOX IS OPEN for any questions people might have regarding this!!! But BEFORE YOU ASK;

"I want to participate but my art isn't as good as others/I'm still new!"

Whether or not you think your art is good compared to others is irrelevant, any art or content created for this week is all the same in my eyes. It is members of this community having fun and pitching in to make content for a silly little ship that makes us all happy! And whether you're a digital artist or traditional artist, you're just starting out or have been drawing for a long time, we are just excited to see it all the same. We would love to see what you come up with and how you get inspired!

"I want to participate but I'm afraid I'll opt out halfway through/not meet up to standards!"

Literally cannot stress enough as I did before, you are not obligated to participate the entire week if you do opt in. Heck, you only have to participate one day if you want to. Or you can just take the prompts and be absolutely sporadic with them at your own leisure. This week is about having fun and making content that makes you happy! Making others happy is just an amazing bonus!

"I want to participate but I'm not an artist, I'm a writer/editor/headcanon blog!"

That's TOTALLY FINE AND COOL! I love reading, we love reading and checking out edits, especially the cool stuff that a lot of the writers in this fandom create. I know a lot of amazing writers who do reader and OC content in the tags and a lot of it is just as amazing as a lot of the fan art that I see. If you want to take each day and use them for a writing prompt or editing prompt instead of a drawing prompt, you are absolutely welcome to be my guest. I would love to see some of the stuff that you come up with based on the prompts. And there's never enough Heimes fanfiction anyway!!! They don't have to be long bits of writing either! You are not expected to meet any margin, it can be a ficlet or it can be 5,000 words if you truly want to pour your heart out. You don't have to reach a certain amount of letters each day. One day can be a long thick, the next day can be a short thick, you can do art one day and writing another day. You can do both. The world is your oyster!

"I won't be participating, but I know some of my mutuals/followers who might want to. May I still reblog this post?"

ABSOLUTELY!!!! SPREAD THE WORD IF YOU WANT TO!!!! PLEASE BY ALL MEANS!!! THE MORE THE MERRIER!!!! 💕💕💕💕 Share it! Reblog it! Please! We love to see it!!!! WOOOOO!!!!

"I was wondering if it was okay if I instead submit my contributions directly instead of posting them on my blog!"

Of course it's okay!!!!!! I know plenty of people who prefer to keep fan content separate from their blog, as well as people who prefer not to post their art on Tumblr but still come to the site to observe, and perhaps even want to participate! You are absolutely more than welcome to submit your contributions for the daily prompts here. The only demand is that if you submit any artwork or writing or any contributions to the promps in this way, is that you provide a link/mention to your tumblr or other social media so that due credit is given!***

Thats about all there is to be said as of now. Any important updates will be posted to this blog Other than that, WE HOPE TO SEE YOU FOR HEIMES WEEK!!!!!!!

***Please note that all accounts that link back to, are connected with, or are owned by users that post inappropriate or suggestive content featuring underage characters will be blocked, submissions of any kind sent by these users will be deleted, and any posts published to the heimesweek tags by said users will be completely ignored. This event is intended to be safe for work fanworks that can be created for and observed by users of all ages, so we do ask that any and all who post that kind of content please do not interact. AKA;

#gow #heimdall #heimdall gow #gow heimdall #god of war #god of war ragnarok #gowr #hermes #hermes gow #gow hermes #heimes #gow3 #god of war 3 #heimdall x reader #heimesweek2023

[spurgie-cousin]

Ok so context: this woman made a video about the popular account Ballerina Farm, which if you don't know is an instagram/blog that mainly depicts a "traditional" affluent mom who is big into like, rustic aesthetics and usually her videos are her cooking for her many kids or husband or something. And this creator made a video about the way we talk about "Ballerina Farm" like it's an individual woman and not a corporation run by this couple with a social media and marketing team who highly curate their instagram account. It's worth noting that the husband is the son of some guy who owns like, 5 airlines which is why they can have a $20k stove and a million kids and time to cook lunches from scratch every day.

Anyway she makes a point here about how in 2022, this account had around 1 million followers and in a little over a year, during a time with a lot of political turmoil in regards to American women's health care, the account has gained almost EIGHT million more followers.

She makes the connection between culture and politics and posits that the growing popularity of trad family stuff could be directly linked to our current political climate surrounding women's rights and autonomy. She wonders if some women might be looking for reassurance that it is possible to live happily in a situation where you have many kids, or get pregnant and are forced to leave your job to take care of said kid, etc etc which I definitely think is possible.

I think another way politics influences this trend though is that this extremely conservative legislation, which we haven't seen the likes of for decades until recently, is reintroducing the younger generations to this idea of a conservative family "values"; like say a young teenager of any gender hears about legislation that wants to take away womens right to vote, or to birth control, or whatever, and they've never considered why some people would think women shouldn't do these things. so they do some research and fall down a deep internet rabbit hole that leads them to idolizing "trad" values.

I think it's also the case that in a time where most people have little sense of real community, many are grasping at any sense of purpose and connection they can find, and that can similarly lead them to the same rabbit hole.

Idk but it's a very interesting conversation and I'm glad it's getting a lot of traction online.

#Ballerina Farm #trad #tiktok

[britneyshakespeare]

i feel bad for raquel lee bolleau and i feel like what she's saying about the lack of transparency behind quiet on set is a bigger issue that the consumers of this type of content don't want to talk about or criticize. social media has led to a huge boom in tragedy porn and trauma porn about the entertainment industry but especially the children's entertainment industry, especially especially from the eras when the largest demographic in that audience were consuming it themselves.

it's already been problematic in itself that there is an oversaturation of unresearched and repetitive videos on the exploitation of former child stars. it seems like the creators and audience don't often ask themselves "have we gotten enough of this? do we need another take on it? is another video full of dan schneider rumors and gossipy forum posts really adding to the public discourse?" i don't know quite at what point it becomes exploitative that this content continues to be made, and be evergreen in social media algorithms. the volume, the reach, and the general lack of quality control are the evil triad. because we are far past the point where i really believe everyone consuming this stuff cares about exploited children. there's far too many people gawking and not reevaluating the systems of power involved. or, to put it more concretely: how many times do we all need to watch those clips of ariana grande squeezing the potato and spilling water on her neck? at what point is this just personally disrespectful and retraumatizing for the victims that for the most part we, the consumers of internet content, are claiming to advocate for?

quiet on set is the first time traditional media got involved in this niche. there is still a lot of value in some of the discoveries made by the series. but it does not have completely clean hands in this either. it does not feel like everyone involved in making the executive decisions cared nearly enough about the vulnerability of former child stars they recruited to share their stories, or hell, whose stories were told without their involvement, such as amanda bynes and racquel in episode 5. these people did not even give statements.

the focus of this docuseries was far too broad and not coherent enough at the end of the day. and they did not give enough support to all of the people they roped in to tell their stories about childhood trauma. i have a hard time trying not to be completely cynical about its whole production, because i really want to believe that many of the people who worked on it do care. not every individual involved knew or had control over the injustices that happened in its own production. but the executives? fuck em. they greenlit this thing, and probably incentivized the creators to make these episodes as fast as possible, because they knew it would be a cash cow. something as sensitive as THIS series should not be so poorly produced just because it will be a guaranteed smash.

#i am not going to watch episode 5. not unless investigation discovery addresses raquel sufficiently #text post #quiet on set #in many ways i think i'm just elaborating on what raquel has said herself. go watch her personal tiktoks #i think mainly where i deviate from her is that we all should be way more critical of the system we're contributing to #i already had criticism for how they talked about drake bell without any balance #i understood that they needed his involvement of course. it'd be extremely unethical not to have him #and i think for the most part his episode is the best part of the series. except for the very end #it's clear they had some favoritism with the former childstars they used for this #i think bell had such a good experience himself is because they knew they needed him. bc of how much he adds to it. #much of the series is really poorly placed together. like 100s of 'dark side of nickelodeon' youtube videos have been #but at the VERY least these youtubers have an excuse of not being professionals or journalists #this shit? should be doing WAY better. #and it's not. that's depressing. can we stop demanding all of these victims should come forward if this is the best they get?

[hellaverse-events]

What is this?

Hazbin Hotel and Helluva Boss is about the structure of Hell through Vivienne Medrano's mind. With the completion of the first season of Hazbin Hotel, we are excited to host a themed week to focus on Hell a little bit more. Through the themed week, we are hoping for more content from you guys, whether it is art (of any media other than murder, we'll keep that to the shows only), fanfic or anything else that makes sense to you to create!

When is it?

HellaVerse Week will take place between October 27th, 2024 to November 2nd to honor the release of the Hazbin Hotel Pilot which is October 28th, 2019, and @random-nerd-posts is hosting other events between that time and can't do two things at once it seems.

HOWEVER! This should not stop you from creating fan works for the fandoms either! But if you post before the week, we might miss you, so be sure to tag us when you do post so we can share the joy of creation with you.

Are there prompts?

Yes! There are four to choose from each day and some alternate prompts as well. This post has the final prompts and explains the tagging system. Many thanks to the discord mods for helping ensure the list looked pretty and readable.

The theme of the prompts is rainbows, rings of hell and the seven deadly sins, which in itself is a load of days you can use as well.

What can I make?

You can make or write basically anything: haikus, limericks, 100 word drabbles, ficlets, long fics, traditional art, digital art, gifsets, cosplay, embroidery, etc.

Just keep the killings to the shows please, I don't need to be arrested for accessory to murder.

What about existing fanworks?

Feel free to link existing works you have completed in the past, but they need to be tagged accordingly so we can share the works on the blog and you get credit for the day. You can also recommend other's works (obviously crediting to the rightful creator) so that they can get credit for the day as well.

What if I'm not interpreting a prompt correctly?

If the prompt calls to you one way, but not another person's, that's fine. This is what we call the creative process and encourage it.

Is NSFW Allowed?

YES! For sure NSFW is allowed. Yes, we will reblog nsfw content. Do we feel uncomfortable with the possibilities of minors participating, yes, but we also trust that they know not to post nsfw content online. So don't do it.

We are allowing NSFW works because... HAVE YOU SEEN THE SHOWS?!?! Have you seen Asmodeus, or Hazbin Hotel episode 4? Yeah, those are nsfw, so can the content. BUT TAG ACCORDINGLY OR WE WILL NOT ACKNOWLEDGE IT!

Are there other events for HellaVerse?

Not that we know, but there is a @nimonabigbang happening. The writer applications close March 1st. Artist applications close April 1st and more information can be found on the blog, which is run by @random-nerd-posts and @zyrafowe-sny.

There's also a @nimona-week going on, which is run by Zyrafowe and you should give them a follow.

Feel free to participate in those if you liked the movie/comic or like shapeshifters!

Feel free to send an ask if you have additional questions. We will also be updating the FAQ as needed.

#hazbin hotel #helluva boss #hazbin hotel fandom #helluva boss fandom #hellaverse events #faqs #hellaverse week 2024

[hamliet]

weird how alice degraded bl and yet their hs has a ton of bl tropes there

I mean, yeah. It's white privilege and ignorance at its finest. I've talked about this at length before, actually.

It's kind of a disservice to Asian BL not only by appropriating its tropes, but also just sheer privileged bliss. People in communities that are not as progressive on LGBT rights are not only less likely to be able to come out, but also less likely to be able to even explore their sexualities and gender identities. It's easier to just conform and to not think of desire and what it means, especially when we think of sexuality as a spectrum.

It also ignores older queer media in the west that has influenced BL, which was influenced by yaoi, which itself emerged as a distinct market/genre in the 1970s. Nothing's as insular as it appears; for example, Queer as Folk (the 2000 US version) is reportedly huge in China today, and I can see that it's influenced Kinnporsche and danmei novels. QaF also was the first US media ever to show sex between two men on TV--in December 2000.

Yeah. We're not even 23 years out from that.

But of course, explicit sex scenes between two men or two women have existed long before that in yaoi, which itself draws from literary and artistic traditions across the world that have existed from ancient times, because gay people have existed from, y'know, ancient times.

I don't want to keep harping on AO, though. I hope they learn, and the posts were from over a year ago, so I'm hopeful they are in the process of doing so. Though I don't really keep up with them. The reason I also can't be too hard on AO was that even 7 or so years ago, I would have agreed with them about yaoi because I didn't know any better. And I was wrong, and I am still learning, and I hope I will continue to learn.

I'll again also reiterate that I do not care at all that Heartstopper has no sex in it; good for them because not all stories need it! Sweet, innocent stories have their place and can be just as powerful and necessary as those that are darker and more explicit. I just think declaring that a story's lack of queer sex is somehow revolutionary is ignorant at best and rewriting history at worst.

I'll leave off with this portion of an interview with the creators of the American QAF, who are themselves a married gay couple who have been together for like... 30? years. I'm bolding the parts I want to emphasize.

COWEN The first time we heard about Queer as Folk was in the Calendar section of the L.A. Times. The whole article was about [how] no one will ever have the g ts to do a show like this in the U.S. People thought [the US version] was going to be a much softer show than Russell’s [original British version], and we knew it had to be outrageous and more sexual. The sex on our show probably was the most political statement we made. Because we all grew up seeing gay people represented on TV — if they were ever represented — [as] eunuchs or clowns. We never saw gay people having a sex life or being complete people. We had a list of subjects that we were determined to write about because we grew up at a very inhospitable time in the U.S. Not just the Defense of Marriage Act and Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, but we didn’t have gay marriage here until 10 years after the show ended.

LIPMAN ... We wanted our Queer as Folk to be a celebration of being. We saw movies and TV shows where gay people would hang themselves; they’d walk into the ocean to drown. We didn’t want any of that. We used the sex on the show to be joyous, angry, vindictive, self-destructive …

COWEN … and celebratory. There were so many topics that we needed to address because it was such a politically oppressive, scary time....

DUNN That also was the only representation that I saw: It was suicide or it was Disney villains. That was queer representation for me, and so seeing this show that was just so irreverent, so joyful, so sexual, so free, and it still dealt with the realities of being queer.

Every story is in a sense a product of its time, and it's not bad that Oseman is writing their story to address concerns they have and issues they deal with. It's just not inherently any more revolutionary and definitely not more inherently moral than queer media with sex in it.

#ask hamliet #qaf #kinnporsche #danmei #sexuality