#this story is a few pages so i might need 5 parts for it too

[xiyade]

Nar-Dos “The missing person/ Անհետ կորածը” (1920)

my translation of this story in english part 1 

The young woman had just returned from a walk with her child and the nanny. She was changing her clothes to set the table before her husband and son would come home, when the maid came and told her there was a man waiting to see her.

“Who is it?” she asked intrigued.

“I don’t know.”

“And he wants so see me?”

“Yes.”

“Not my husband?”

“No, just you.”

“And?”

“I told him it’s dinner time and we don’t receive guests at this hour. He didn’t leave saying he had an urgent business.”

The young woman went up to the big windows facing the street, stood on her tiptoes and tried to look down through the glass, but she could only see the brim of a gray hat.

“Fine, bring him in, I’ll greet him,” she said to the maid.

The maid went out of the room.

The young woman once again buttoned up the brown silk blouse and approached the mirror. She powdered her slightly sweaty face and neck, fixed her hair and headed towards the living room.

As soon as she went in, she froze. At first she wanted to scream and run away controlled by a wild emotion, but then her surprise and interest were so big that she just stood still staring without blinking.

Across the main door, under the rays of sunshine coming from the big windows was the guest. He was a young man of around 30-35, tall, with a worn, sun-kissed face, in a soldier's gray long-coat, without shoulder straps, with a faded officer's hat stuck to his forehead like a navel. He had only one leg left. Under his long-coat only one leg was visible in a worn and dirty boot. He had a crutch under his arm to help him walk.  

As his right arm was holding the crutch, he used his left hand to take off his hat, nodded silently as a greeting and didn’t move from his spot as if scared the woman would react in any way: would scream, would run away, would call for help, since that much was visible from her face. He couldn’t expect anything else from the unusual and surprising reunion.

The young woman was frozen in her place overtaken with immeasurable surprise and interest. She couldn’t take her eyes away from those big deep black eyes. They were so familiar, so dear, so lovable in the recent past and only thanks to them she could recognize him.

“Aram,” she whispered half-terrified half-suspicious.

“Yes, it’s me, Flora,” he replied quietly.

He leaned forward and looked at her with all the love and longing he could master.

That voice… There was no hesitation; that was really him. The young woman’s surprise and interest suddenly turned into bone-chilling fear, the type only those who face an unescapable terror know. The reality of the situation hit her currently numb brain like lightning and shook her to her very core. For a moment her vision blackened, her heart started to pound and she felt dizzy. She would have fallen down if she hadn’t sat down on the chair next to her.

The visitor, hopping with his one foot and rattling his wooden stick on the floor, hurried up to her and called out in fright.

“Flora…”

The young woman, who had turned pale, closed her eyes, lowered her head on her knees and put her arms around her head as if protecting herself from an expected blow.  

But the guest ever so gently took one of those well-kept, white, smooth, adorned with gold rings hands in his left hand, brought it closer to his lips and said in a soothing, affectionate voice:

“Don’t be scared, Flora. It isn’t revenge that brought me to you, but longing, which has tortured me for so long in my distant solitude. I completely understand you and fully support your decision. The dead don’t come back, but if they could by some miracle, I presume they would evoke as much fear as the amount of tears spilled for them. Raise your head, let me look into your eyes. I came all the way here to see you, didn’t I? To see you and… you and my son.”

His voice was shaking and his eyes were full of tears.

#I'm back babyyyyy #so once again it's barely edited so if you see any glaring mistakes ignore them or tell me to fix it #tbh didn't know he lived long enough to be around ww1 #i always imagine nar-dos as a 19th century writer #which he is but you get my drift #this story is a few pages so i might need 5 parts for it too #read nar-dos kids #he respects women and hates violence what a man #nar-dos #nar-dos the missing person #armenian literature #armenian story #ww1

[avelera]

Avelera's Dreamling Fic Status Update:

Keeping Sanctuary (subscribe for updates here) - Giving Sanctuary Sequel follows Dream and Hob from the events of the altered meeting in 1689 up to the modern era. (aka, What if they hooked up after the 1689 meeting?) Current word count: ~7,000 words across several chapters. Realistic progress update: 1/10 complete total, Ch. 1 is about 1/5 complete.

(The rest are below the cut!)

Come live with me and be my love - Dream and Hob fall in love during the Regency Era when Dream loses a bet to Desire. Shenanigans ensue. (aka, What if they hooked up after the 1789 meeting?) Ch. 16 is at 2,500 words, probably about 1/3 done. Current plan is to wrap up Part 1 in the next few chapters then create a part 2 which finishes out their "1 year of marriage" on a month by month basis instead of following them day to day like Part 1 done. Probably won't be a separate fic though, just a change of format.

This Rough Magic - My take on "Hob rescues Dream from Burgess" with a twist that Hob ends up on Burgess's radar himself when he picked up some occult magic skills in the hopes of contacting Dream after 1889 and apologizing. Now he has to pretend to be friends with Burgess in order to get them both out of there, because Burgess thinks Hob can help force Dream to give him immortality. (aka, What if they hooked up after the 1889 meeting?) Ch. 9 is about 800 words in. Story is still very much in progress I just have a lot of WIPs, as you can see.

Joke's On You (I'm Into That) - The 1589 meeting goes very different when Hob proposes to Dream, who is so offended that he just can't let the matter go. A very angry, very horny competition kicks off between them. (Aka, what if they hooked up in 1589 when they were both at their absolute worst as people?) I have literally 40,000 words written for the rest of this fic. The problem is, there's big gaps in that first draft I have to fill in and scenes that need to be added. This might be my favorite WIP but it's also the hardest to write with all the smut scenes so it'll arrive whenever I can manage, I'm afraid.

Banana Daiquiris Ch. 2 - Comic-canon compliant (mostly) - Dream fakes his death to go on a vacation with Hob and Destruction. They end up in Tahiti. Destruction plays matchmaker. Hob doesn't know whether to thank Destruction or strangle him. Current word count 6,000 words. I've been playing around with adding on to this fic for ages. One of these days, I'll pull it all together.

And for fics that haven't been posted anywhere yet (you can subscribe on my Ao3 author page for alerts about them):

Hob Amesia Fic - Dream and Hob are dating officially now in the 21st century when Hob gets hit with what seems to be a memory loss curse, shaving off 100 years of his life each day until Dream finds a cure. This effectively grants Dream a walk down memory lane as he is reacquainted with the Hob of each era and, in the process, learns how much longer Hob cared for him than Dream ever realized. Current word count: 35,000 words. Currently writing 1489 (1889-1589 are done) and I might re-write the opening. It genuinely kills me not to have this one posted lol.

"Dream Accidentally Cursed Hob with a Normal Life" Fic - Dream learns that from 1689 on, Hob's life has been safe. Too safe. Improbably safe. Nothing bad or extraordinary or even terribly special has happened to him since Dream began to consider Hob his friend. He knows this because during his imprisonment, Hob's life became exciting again and suddenly went back to normal the day Dream was freed. Hob is not convinced that Dream is the reason for this, Dream disagrees. They talk about it. And fight about it. And some things that they've probably needed to talk about for a long time finally get said. (aka, sometimes the author just needs to write their weird headcanon into a 20,000 word fic that's almost entirely dialogue). Current word count: 16,000 words. This one also kills me that it's not done yet.

You Found Me Ch. 2 - (Comic-inspired) Hob's girlfriend Audrey survives the car crash. They got married. Then, in 2021, they got divorced. The Hob Dream meets at the New Inn when he returns is newly-divorced, bitter, and angry, and not in a good headspace to reunite with the friend who ghosted him over thirty years before. -5,000 words left to post. One of the first one-shots I wrote for this fandom then abandoned. Never could quite find an end for it that didn't become a huge long fic but I think I finally cracked it.

"Fairy God Marlowe" - 1589 fixit fic where Hob and Kit Marlowe strike up a conversation while Dream and Shaxberd are talking. Hob and Marlowe talk about plays, and faith, and salvation, and queer love, and what it means to live forever. Hob gets a second chance at a first impression. Current word count: ~5,000 words. Sadly, it's all dialogue in script format. I'd need to convert it into prose to publish which would be a slog. So it's a bit shelved until I find the energy to do so. No, I will not post it in script format, I'm allergic to the thought.

I've got a few other concepts kicking around, but these are the ones that actually have (*does a quick calculation*) over 100,000 words written that I haven't had the chance to post yet?? And it's driving me insane????

Anyway, I should probably pin this post for those curious lol. Feel free to ask me any follow-up questions, I love talking about WIPs even as they ruin my life!

#dreamling #maggie's writing progress #dreamling fic update #1689 fic #1589 fic #arranged marriage au dreamling

[asleepinawell]

since i tempted a decent handful of my followers into fallen london i decided as recompense to make a guide/hints/tips thing to a few early on things that might not be as easy to pick up on. the first couple may be a little more obvious but some of the later ones are more obscure. enjoy, delicious friends!

1) Use Plans!!!! That little bookmark icon on the top right of an action will save it to your plans page so you can easily reference if you can't complete it now. great for remembering what you were doing and how many items you need. extremely good for ambitions

2) Use Your Opportunity Deck. It's easy to get caught up in the making your name stuff, but there's a lot of good and important things in your opportunity deck you can miss out on. Bronze cards often help open little stories even if it's not immediately obvious. You get a ten free actions card once a week in there too

3) Look Through the Social Activities. There's a lot of stuff buried in social activities, some of it not in the most logical places. You can resign from your current profession under send a message to a contact. If a friend sent you a letter to let you boost a skill you have to use it under epistolary matters -> sort through incoming mail. And more.

4) Training Professions. Enquirer, Minor Poet, Pickpocket, Tough. You don't have to do anything with these, they just give you a weekly boost in the associated stat when time the healer rolls around. Once you hit 70 on a stat the profession will no longer boost it and you can resign and pick up a new one for free. After you are a person of some importance you can look into getting a fancier job with more perks.

5) Favourable Circumstances. You may have noticed you get something called favourable circumstances every week with time the healer. This is an item in your inventory under curiosity. Its primary use is to force draw a specific opportunity card. When you're just starting out the best use may be to arrange a meeting with your contacts, which lets you draw a connected card of your choice (like urchins, hell, etc). This lets you get a favor right away so it's good to use it every week.

6) DON'T GO TO POLYTHREME. Look, I know the option is right there in the docks but it is a very confusing area and not that useful at low levels. I got stuck there once early on and may be slightly traumatized. Definitely go there later, maybe when you have your own ship and get the map for it.

7) Mrs Chapmans Boarding House. This is in Spite. The options there all give you a few of a resource that's often a pain in the ass to grind other ways. The amount scales with your base watchful. It is just a nice little free way to get some resources. The items available change every week on a four week rotation. See the season in soup guide on the wiki for more info.

8) Mr Chimes Grand Clearing Out Activities. This was an event that happened in the past but left behind a few activities that are unparalleled ways to gain some resources. These are: Descend to the Underclay Quarter in Spite, The Spider Symposium (head into the cellars) in the Singing Mandrake, Seeking Documents in the Sunken Embassy in Moloch Street, Hunt Bees in the University, Brawl with Dockers in the Blind Helmsman (not sure if the was part of mr chimes but the mechanics are similar), and LB Industries in the Blind Helmsman. They all work by gathering a certain amount of some item through the storylets and then handing it in for a resource reward. You generally get one nice reward and the rest is paid out in a low level resource, making it a decent grind for echoes as well (i use moloch st for that).

9) Expedition Supplies for your base camp. Descend to the Underclay Quarter mentioned in the point above is a fast way to get strong backed labor to cash in for supplies during your watchful making your name (and after). Go there, work with unfinished men, get 50 convincing falsehoods (the second option gives you 25 a pop) and send an unfinished man to spite for labor x3. This makes watchful myk so so much easier.

10) Buy Gear. All resources have a use so don't go spending them all like crazy, but it really is worth spending some to buy gear, yes, even +2 gear because if you have +2 in every slot that is a nice boost at a low level. Holiday events are also a great way to get a ton of very good free gear.

11) CP. Change points, basically XP. You need as much CP as the next level to reach that level. So you need 3CP to get to level 3, 4CP for level 4, etc (this caps at 70). You get more CP for succeeding in things that you have a lower chance of success for. 60-90% chances are a nice range to aim for. Also! You get CP for failing which also scales with your percentage chance of success. So if you have a 0% chance of success you may get way more CP than succeeding on something you had a high chance of success for (example: a 90% success gives you 2CP, a 0% failure gives you 4CP... this is why the weasel of woe is good).

12) What are the Bizarre/Dreaded/Respectable stats on gear used for? So you may have noticed that you sometimes get points of Making Waves. Once you become a person of some importance you have the ability to cash in making waves to get a stat called Notability. Notability can be used for getting advanced professions, upgraded lodgings, and more. BDR gear lowers the amount of making waves you need per level of notability. They're also used in checks later on much the way your base stats are and they have uses at the bone market when you get there. Basically, grab gear with them if you can but don't worry too much about how it all works now. It will make more sense when you get there.

13) Cross-Conversion Carousel. This is a slightly more advanced thing that you don't need to know about yet but can be very very useful even at low levels. You know how you can click on most resources in your inventory and combine a lot of low level ones into a few high level ones? There's a bunch you can also cross convert, meaning convert to a different category of item of the same level. These are: brilliant souls, tales of terror, compromising documents, memories of light, zee ztories, strangling willow absinthe, whisper-satin scrap, journal of infamy, correspondence plaques, mysteries of the elder continent, incendiary gossip, and memories of distant shores. You need 50 of one to convert it and you get 51 of the item you convert it to.

What this means is if you have 50 of ANY of these, you can turn it into 50 of any other by converting it around the loop until you get the one you need. This often saves you from having to grind items that can be annoying to get (mrs chapman gives several of these too to help you get the initial amount). ALSO if you notice some of the conversions give making waves which can be a decent way to grind them. See the wiki page here for more info.

14) Last but definitely not least: the wiki is your best friend. It has guides for everything. It tells you what every single action does. It tells you where to find resources. It has terrifying math graphs. Use it. Love it.

And there is also the fifth city wiki which has lore on it. It contains MASSIVE spoilers, but the lore of fallen london is obscure and spread out across multiple games now so sometimes you just wanna know wtf everyone is talking about.

15) Don't Look In Wells!!!!!!! Just. Do not. (Hunters Keep well is an exception. It is a very nice well).

#fallen london #flmp #mp #i feel like i forgot something important.... #there's just so much

[steamberrystudio]

03/12/2023

Hey everyone! Time for the bi-weekly tumblr update for Steamberry stuffs!

Summary

Finished editing Chapter 5 (WSC)

Decided an additional chapter was needed to fix pacing/plot stuff.

Received some new BG art (WSC)

Worked on the GS lore book including adding profiles and short stories

Ramble

Okay so in my last update I was in the middle of editing chapter 5 and was nearly to the start of chapter six in editing Asher's route. I finished up chapter 5...

At that point when I was looking ahead, I started feeling like I wanted to add in a transition scene to move between Chapter 5 and Chapter 6.

As I started plotting out this scene, one of my ideas took on a life of its own and I realised that it might be better to interject a new, fleshed out story incident that would allow me to slow the pacing as well as flesh out the setting and universe a little more. This incident would also let me tie into some earlier events and connect them to something that occurs in chapter 6, also foreshadowing the chapter 6 incident.

 Ultimately, this became too much to call a "scene" and I decided to branch it off into a supplementary chapter (IE a chapter a bit shorter than the others and meant to be released along with another chapter.

That is what I've been working on since the last update.

This chapter has now served to set up multiple important things.

And is currently 17000 words long (it's going to end up closer to 25k by the end I think. There is a pretty significant story branch that happens at this point based on a specific player choice (That is or is not available based on other factors). If the choice is available and if the player makes that choice, it leads to an entirely different flow of events for a substantial portion of the chapter. That's what I'm currently working on writing.

I have it plotted out in a very detailed way and just have to write it.

Chapters with heavy branching are always a bit of a doozy to write and the WSC chapters are pretty long in general (the longest chapter is 62,000 words right now). So yeah.

Adding new content is still a part of editing I suppose. At least sometimes. I was so excited to cut 4000 words of content in chapter 5. 

Then I added 17000+ more. So.....

That sounds accurate for me. 😱

I've been having a lot of health struggles the last couple of weeks mostly related to chronic fatigue and pain. That, in addition to some really irritating "real life" stuff. But things are still moving forward.

Current word count is 440,000 words.

Regarding the GS lore book - I've been adding character profiles to a "people" section and have also been working on some of the short stories/drabbles. It's close to 300 pages at this point. 💪

Other Stuff:

As usual, I have received a completed BG and sketch, acquiring the game environments at a steady pace.

Upcoming Weeks:

This is getting into a busy time of year so I have a lot of real life distractions even apart from HEALTH. ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹 Progress always slows a little for me during this period since we have a lot going on.

But here is the plan.

Try to finish adding the profiles to the lore book. (Noooot sure I will. There are still a lot to go and the formatting for them is tricky. And I'm alternating between adding profiles and finishing writing a few side stories I've had ideas for for a while)

Try to finish chapter 5.5 for WSC

That's all for this week. There should be on more update here before the end of the year. See you then! 💪💪

#whenstarscollide #indie otome #amare game #gilded shadows #updates

[shai-manahan]

Hollowed Minds Progress Update 5/08/23

Hi! I know I failed at making a progress update last month, so first of all, apologies for that! Things have just been busy tbh and life has been too stressful that at some points I just couldn't write. It's why I've been a bit inactive here as well, and why I've been barely answering the asks I've been receiving.

I cannot report yet how many words I've written for the update so far because I haven't really taken a look at it myself, but I will do so at the end of the month if there's still no confirmed schedule by then. My eye health has just been very consistent at making my life harder as well until recently, and here's hoping I'll at least be able to function properly for a whole month🤞

Some things that will be in the next update:

For Chapter 2's Part 2:

Everything still goes as planned, except now both routes are expected to be fast-paced and action-oriented, though one is still more intense than the other.

This will be a massive one, not because of the word count but because of the variations that will play out. There won't be much issues in arranging the transitions to Chapter 3, so there's at least that, but your choices will matter a lot. So you might have to be careful with them.

One of the routes gets Alonzo actively involved, but please be assured that this doesn't mean you have to romance them. I actually encourage you all to check out both routes once they come because you'll gain more discoveries that way. 👀

Alonzo's route will be so memeworthy, I have to admit. Please try it.

There's an info dump in Chapter 2's Part 1 that I'm not really a fan of, so I'll be moving some of those to this part instead if needed.

For the overall IF:

Alex will now have a set skin tone if a lighter one is chosen for the Ripper. I will discuss this in detail soon, but I just wanted to emphasize that Alex and Ripper's mother are canonically PoC.

You will have options for your Ripper to wear contacts or glasses (or neither ofc).

You'll be able to bring a weapon with you in Chapter 2 depending on your choices so far.

You might remember a section of Chapter 1 where you can choose what your Ripper had been doing for the duration of the five months. I might reduce it to a few, just so I could have them properly recognized in the story.

There will be a couple of changes in the character descriptions in the game's stats page, with plans to make them shorter, too, for easier readability.

I will make sure you'll have saves at the end of this. So please don't be surprised if there'll be more page breaks in the future, as well as more choices (that are still as meaningful.)

In connection to above, I also plan to make the in-game descriptions snappier and easier to read while still maintaining the quality they should have. Your feedback will be very important for this, and this also applies to the beta testers (sorry I've been so silent. I swear I'll get back to you all soon lmao)

Not really too related here, but I also plan to be more consistent with my updates in the future. It's just that my irl schedule is still a huge mess, and it's very hard to be consistent when that happens.

Just a last piece of my mind. Some anons have been very aggressive with harassment the past few months, and I really have no interest for more drama right now. So if you have issues, if you think you can back your own words, send them through a DM or at least turn off anon so we could have a proper conversation.

It's honestly tiring. Being an Asian in this community can already be so tiring, so I am begging people to be mature and responsible with their words. After all, I've repeatedly said that you can always come to me with your concerns or whatever you have against me. As long as we can actually talk about it.

Anyway, that's all, and I hope the week will be good for everyone :) I have a few more things to post on Patreon tomorrow, so if you're a current patron, do look forward to that!

#hollowed minds series #interactive fiction #hollowed minds #wip #writing #hollowed minds book one #if wip #interactive novel #hollowed minds progress update #progress update #interactive game #if game #cyoa

[hikennosabo]

trigun multiple bullets random thoughts

if you thought you saw the last of me in the tag... think again!!!

let's fucking goooooo... it's been a little while, so i feel like i'm rusty LMAO...

showdown with the dodongo brothers at honeycomb village (parts 1 & 2):

wow that's a mouthful of a chapter title. anyway.

seeing manga vash with fully blonde hair is... a little strange, now.

OH, SAME WITH SEEING WOLFWOOD... y'know... alive... i fucking MISSED HIMMMMMMM (<- i literally just saw him, i've been rewatching 98 again)

this is so fun i love it so much

oh there are SO many good expressions but if i post them all i'm sure i'll hit the image limit

vash's pout is so cute and funny but i NEED to draw attention to meryl in the corner... i love her sm

vash is twiddling his thumbs... he's so cute...

well these sure are names

even in the black-and-white manga... even though her hair was brown on the color page... we STILL get a blonde milly jumpscare?!?! really?!?!?

AAHHHH... HIS SMILE.... TOO BRIGHT......!!!!!!

they're so silly :( i missed this... waaaah...

oh my goodness, i am in LOVE with this page.

i love wolfwood scolding vash too, lol. it's a conversation they've had many times before, but it feels... idk, lighter than usual?

i love this page soooo much... their expressions are cute. i'm getting "he's an idiot, but he's MY idiot" vibes from wolfwood, lol :') they're in love your honor

and the cliffhanger reveal... i don't have that much to say about the plot tbh... hmmmm, i'm not separating these chapters in this post anyway.

they :)

it wouldn't be a nightow action scene if it was easy to follow, but i'm glad i examined this page in detail instead of letting my eyes just pass over it because

i LOVE this panel... the one in the middle of the spread is great too but i LOVE the angle of this... vash reaching over wolfwood to shoot, while wolfwood shields him... ugh... thank GOD for vashwood

oh my god...... he's so cute.......

GIRLLLLSSSS I LOVE YOUUUUU

OH YEAH, VASHWOOD, BABEY!!!!!!!!!! vash holding on to the punisher... :D

is vash shooting the rockets so they change trajectory... that's so fucking insane. i love it

THE SILLIES

man this was a fun one. i loved seeing vashwood being a battle couple again and just having a relatively low-stakes/light-hearted romp was a really nice thing to read after the horrors. which i am now a few weeks removed from, but they still haunt me...

trigun: the lost plant:

as someone who had (has!! i still love it!) an enduring dr stone obsession in 2021-2022, i am IMMUNE to boichi's art!!! this is significantly hornier than dcst though, not that i'm surprised in the slightest, dcst does have its own horny designs/moments unfortunately... this is the difference between shonen and seinen i suppose--hold on, that's not what this post is about!! *deletes entire other paragraph talking about dr stone*

60 years post-canon... vash's lifespan has been significantly shortened, but i do wonder how much he has left in him. he lived 150 years without any visible black appearing in his hair, so even if he has just a few strands of blonde left, they might last him a long time... well i don't think any of these stories are canon anyway so it doesn't matter LOL

as far as the plot goes...

the explanation for how plants produce matter is interesting but why did it manifest as a child and why is it a black hole and why this specific plant and how did vash even--oh, WHATEVER!! i suppose there is a reason boichi was the artist for dr stone and not the writer.

very cool to see vash drawn in boichi's style though! it's pretty similar to the early dr stone manga, even though dcst came 5+ years later... and the art style of dcst changed over time, although--wait, no, that's NOT what this post is about!!!

the denizens of the sand planet:

okay, this one is by... *googles* wait, this is the guy who did lucifer and the biscuit hammer?? and planet with??? HUHHH... i've only watched planet with, but i've heard VERY good things about biscuit hammer (manga)... anyway

this is a cute story. the found family is cute.

okay sorry this doesn't matter but it is bugging me (ha) a bit. these post-canon stories don't like... actually show us how the world changed after the battle. because it's something i've been wondering about... like, they show a guy cleaning a plant bulb, but would there even be any plants left in bulbs at this point?

and like, this...

wouldn't the exploitation end. like i suppose plants would still get "worn out" eventually, but i would expect more of a symbiotic relationship at this point. so what's with this imagery?

I'M OVERTHINKING IT!!!!! OKAY!!!! JUST ENJOY THE CUTE FOUND FAMILY STORY!!!!

les enfants:

i. am. in. LOVE!!!! WITH THIS ART STYLE!!!!!!

THEY ARE SO FUCKING SHAPED!!!!!!

legato?!?!?! :D :D :D :D :D

ohhh i love this redraw!!!!!! oghhhhhh!!!!!! oooooooogh!!!!!

i love this art!!!!! i love this art!!!!!!

EVERYBODY SHUT THE FUCK UP HE'S SLEEPING!!!!!! ohhh i love this. i like the wording too. "decided to slumber"... he's fucking eepy. he's cozy.

ALSOOOOO

RAZLO (i'm assuming)!!! HE'S SO FUCKING. SHAPED. his GRIN!!! IS SO FUNNY. i'm in tears... i love him...

WAAAHHHH COUCH JUMPSCARE... I DONT NEED THIS WHEN I'M EXPERIENCING SUCH JOY GUSHING OVER THE ART...

the art outside the storybook is also lovely, it's very detailed and delicate...

i would like to believe merylmilly got married and grew old together... yeah...

DUDE, I'M GONNA CRY...... vashwood image... this is a really lovely story. definitely my favorite of all of them.

milly/meryl satellite tv:

so they chase him around for 24 hours straight once a week... poor vash LOL

hey hey hey hey hey this is supposed to be a silly goofy fun time why are you showing me this. i'm so sad. i'm glad the family is being fed at least.

i always assumed that "eriks" was a name vash chose for himself but this is way funnier

there is so much going on here

LIVIO LMAO......

yeah that was very silly

raijin: rising:

incredibly jarring tone shift from the previous story lol... i really enjoy the rai-dei focus though. he's cool but he didn't get a backstory in the manga so i appreciate this a lot. i wouldn't mind more stories like this focusing exclusively on side characters tbh.

it gets pretty brutal... i don't know what to say about this story besides that. it's an interesting look at what could've made rai-dei the way he is.

cutting is fighting:

we're ending this not with a bang but with a whimper... swapping meryl in for the haircut scene is... blegh. whatever. and they exaggerate her crush on vash too much. like yeah she's kind of tsundere in canon (moreso in the anime imo) but she's not a teenager yknow? the satellite tv story did that too but that one was supposed to be goofy and exaggerated so it was whatever.

the most interesting thing here is the lack of dialogue. that's a fun creative choice. and i like the gag with vash's hair being too nasty to comb LOL... and the haircut options. that's all...

overall i'd give this a... 6.5/10? 'les enfants' was definitely my favorite by far and nightow's story was a lot of fun too. the others ranged from "meh at best" to "sure, it was good" lol. i liked seeing the different art styles... i don't have much else to say.

#trigunbookclub #trigun talk #june speaks

[kindlyanni]

hi, i hope you're well today.

i watched your sketchbook tour video on yt (from like 2 days ago) and so, i wanted to try to ask for advice, if you want to give it ofcourse, no pressure to.

you see, i love sketces so much, there's just some special beuty about them. i really enjoy seeing artists' sketches, including yours, ofcourse. i love seeing them on tumblr & yt.

also, even though i'm 26, i'm a COMPLETE begginner at drawing. i'm struggeling with the basic boxes-in-correct-perspective things, drawing faceless heads and motionless torsos, and.. yea, that's it. i know practice is the only way to advance in drawing, but i can't bring myself to. i see artists like you filling your sketchbooks with characters you're passionate about and honestly that's all i've ever wanted to be able to do, but i literally don't have the ability to do so.

just to be clear, i'm not asking you how to motivate myself to draw. the thing is, even though people are telling me that maybe it's not meant to be and i should give up, some insane part of me refuses to let this dream go. my question to you, as someone who somehow got there, is: do you think it's doomed? do you think that me struggeling so much with the drawing itself AND the motivation, means i won't be able to do it? do you think if i'm not having fun with it now, than i'll never get to a point where it will?

it might sound dumb, but it's a thing i'm nervous about. and after seeing your sketchbook, filled with so much characters and stories that i could see are so dear to your heart and so fun for you to draw, i'd love to hear (read) youe 2 scents about it, if you're willing to share. again, no pressure to.

thanks in advance, though.

Hi there Anon!

I'mma be frank and honest here: "maybe it's not meant to be and you should give up" is the absolutely stupidest thing someone can say to you. What the hell?? Dear Anon, if you feel even the tiniest bit of "I want to draw" then you should draw. You don't have to be good at drawing to draw, that's what's great about it. Anyone can find something to draw with and something to draw on. And just draw. If the act of drawing scratches some itch for you, then that's all you need. It doesn't mean it has to be fun all the time, though. Sometimes I can't get part of the drawing right, or even the whole drawing! Sometimes I hate what I finished drawing. Sometimes I want to draw but nothing comes out. But the itch is still there, it doesn't go away completely. You say it's your dream, then you should follow it. Everyone starts somewhere, and it's never too late too start. It's never too late. When you're dead it's too late.

If you don't feel the itch for drawing anymore, then you know it's time to move on to other things. And that's okay too, and it's not giving up. And don't let anyone else tell you that you should give up, if it is your passion.

In case you have sketchbook anxiety, don't think a sketchbook has to be one big art piece with each page something instagram worthy. I know it's become a thing where artists share their sketchbooks on social media and it's so Aesthetic™ that it's giving anxiety and pressure for everyone to have a sketchbook that pretty, but it really doesn't have to. You don't have to show it to anyone. Or you don't have to even have a sketchbook. Draw on random paper and put them in a folder. I did that for ages. The ones I use now aren't really sketchbooks either, but sketch pads with spirals. And those work the best for me. I have a few books but I haven't finished any of them.

If stiff figures is your issue, I suggest figure/life drawing as practice. Drawing tutorials about boxes and circles and proportions can only get you so far. Gather images of people in different poses. Dancing is really good for this. Sports too. And the less clothes the better. Draw what you see. Do it in 1 minute, 2 minutes, 5... Focus less on getting details right and more on the flow, the movement of the body. Tracing the image is lower effort and not as beneficial, but it still helps get the idea of how things are shaped and connected etc. And remember you don't have to show these practice drawings to anyone.

I know thanks to social media there's this pressure to show everything you make. But you really don't have to, if it makes you nervous. When I started drawing, we didn't have tumblr, twitter, ig or facebook. I drew a shit ton! I bought so many drawing pads, and no one has seen most of what's in there. I drew for myself. I had a webcomic idea and I drew so much of the characters and what would happen with them in the comic. I've drawn So. Much. And just recently I'm at a point where I can show my entire sketchbook to the entire internet. I wouldn't have done that maybe like 6-8 years ago. And I still skip some pages I don't want to show, for one reason or another. And that's fine.

Gosh, this became a longer reply than I intended. I hope it helps! Find that thing that makes you want to draw. For me it was the story I wanted to make and the characters for it (I started the webcomic but never finished it lmao). For you it can be your OCs, or some other characters, it can be a pet or a band you really like, it can be Nicholas Cage, or flowers, or anything! Find the itch and scratch it real good.

Let me share a drawing of mine from 20 years ago (I was 16):

#black and red stabilo88's were my best friends #everyone starts somewhere and it's never too late to start #or continue where you left off #draw whatever you want however you want whenever you want #there's no wrong way to draw #I could start artist affirmation image blog with these lmao #good luck Anon! #ALSO everyone I know I have a bunch of messages in the inbox waiting and I'm so lazy to reply and I forget!! I'll get to them some day..... #Someone saying to give up drawing made me so furious I had to reply to this right away lmao

[pancake-breakfast]

I've been chomping at the bit to get through the last few chapters of this volume, and finally, it is time!

Stream-of-consciousness thoughts for TriMax Vol. 8, Chapter 5 + Wolfwood Spinoff below.

Chapter 5: Parting Ways

Noooooo, who's parting wayyyys?? Everyone's finally set up to reunite!

LOL, the Punisher looks like it's taken some... punishment... in its fall from the ship.

They're looking for them! That's right, keep looking, guys!

OMG THEM <3 <3 <3 Protect him, Vash! Gods, he's soooo worried.

TBH, I think Vash is right to be shocked. I'd probably be shocked if I didn't Know Things. Gods, I don't wanna Know Things.

Aaand there's the vials! Drink 'er up!

STAMPEDE SPOILERS: I do think Stampede made the right choice in introducing those sooner rather than later. It doesn't destroy the tension around Wolfwood, because he's still Wolfwood and... well... yeah. Hard to get life-saving meds when you're not on great terms with the people who gave you the meds (and tend to go through it like it's candy).

And now he's providing some insight on Eye of Michael for Vash. And us. Good good good.

AND FOR ONCE NIGHTOW ACTUALLY USED THE BLACK BACKGROUND FOR FLASHBACKS. Gods, I wish he did this more often.

Awww, baby Wolfwood!

Also young Chapel, I guess, but I don't care about him NEARLY as much.

I mean, that's one way to train someone, I guess....

Ugh, poor kid. No one should have to go through this. He looks terrified, and probably rightly so.

Ah, there's the bit about his age not being what it appears to be.

He looks... I don't want to say "mournful" over what he's lost. More like he's already mourned it and accepted it as gone forever, and now there's just kind of a gaping hole in his heart where it used to be.

But there were more kids that ended up like him, most notably Livio, who Chapel seems to have recruited specifically as a "fuck you" to Wolfwood.

LOL, this is so them.

Vash in a blanket. Vash in a blanket!!! SOMEONE MADE HIM COZY!!! A:LGJA:OSDJ:FAJS:LDJ He needs to be cozy more often. He even has cozy slippers!

That's RIGHT, Knives! Stop trying to merge your being with your sisters! They'll win in the long run, 'cause they're used to being a hive mind.

Awww, Wolfwood's got a blanket, too. <3 Blankets for everyone.

The migration makes sense. Even in a world where communication isn't instantaneous, news spreads.

Yeah, Knives going after the envoy ships might not be so great.

Eyyy, it's our friend the gunsmith!

"Tumbleweed." That's a very apt name for Vash, all things considered.

Vash is sooooo happy to see him.

This guy. He's like, "My death got ruined by some jerk giving me a reason to live."

Ever-hopeful, ever-determined Meryl. <3

Marlon probably doesn't know it, but he's providing Vash with more than just a weapon here. Given how poorly their last meeting went, Vash probably expects Meryl to hate and fear him, but by telling him this story, Marlon lets Vash know Meryl still has hope in him. Enough hope to want him to be protected.

OMG, he's gonna repair the Punisher. He calls repairing the Punisher child's play. Who is this man?!

Vash, still looking tired and wan, but also looking hopeful again.

(Also, I love his floofy hair throughout this whole chapter. You can really see where Stampede took their inspiration.)

Geez, is Knives even absorbing dead Plants? This is not good. For him, I mean. It might actually work out ok for other people.

Is... is Knives trying to kill himself? Or just part of himself? The part of himself that feels sympathy for Vash despite the destruction of all the Plants? Does he even realize how many of these Plants would probably still be alive if it weren't for him "rescuing" them??

Epic Wolfwood spread! Looks like Marlon got the Punisher back in tip-top shape. (Hats off to @trigun-manga-overhaul for all their work stitching together pages like this.)

Noooooo, don't leave, Wolfwood! Vash needs you around! Have you learned nothing?? *SIGH* This means they're not gonna be getting the band back together, doesn't it.

Wolfwood Spinoff: Freed Bird

I'm glad he's free... but... I don't want him off on his own.

Ahhhh! I'd heard he whittled things but wasn't sure if it was true!

For reference, the ガタ ガタ (gata gata) sound on the right-hand panels is the sound of Wolfwood's knife, and the キ キ イイイ (ki ki-iii) sounds on the left-hand panel are bird cries.

Yeah, flying does a number on one's metabolism. There's a reason birds are poop machines. As anyone who's ever owned a bird knows.

LOL, this driver's like, "I'm glad you're an artist, but I need to get paid in cash."

I wonder where Angelina is....

Wolfwood's already making friends, I see.

Is Wolfwood blushing as he watches her?

Ah, trading women as products is common enough that she doesn't even flinch at the suggestion.

This is a shitty situation, since chances are he gets the Plant in the marriage anyway. Either way, she loses.

I'm beginning to think Wolfwood's not the "freed bird" referred to in the title.

*cue MAPPA flying bird reflected in a close-up of an eyeball scene*

Oh, no. Wolfwood has a soft spot for orphans.

Ah, seems like she's made her choice. Not because it's the choice she particularly wants to make, but because it's the only choice she knows how to make.

Haaaahahahahahaha, she thinks he got to choose his own path. He carved his road to his own path in literal bodies and blood.

I dunno, man. Different strokes for different folks. Something something "give me the freedom of the starving wolves." We all make sacrifices, and we have different opinions on what we're willing to sacrifice. I'm sure Wolfwood would prefer a life of not wandering around, wondering where his next bed and meal will come from, but he should know he chafes under collars and leashes.

You can't believe she doesn't remember you? When did she last see you??

Hahahahaha, he's so determined. He looks angry, but apparently the baby enjoys mad-dogging him back.

Yeah, she's not exactly walking here. She's not gonna remember you from that, Wolfwood!

LOL, eat the bird.

Oh, so this orphanage also adopts their kids out to actual families? Who knew? I thought they were all just Eye of Michael fodder.

Aww, toddler version of Maylene doesn't want to leave big brother Nico.

Now I'm thinking he was blushing at her not because of any attraction, but more out of pride at how much she's grown.

Oh, great. Who's this clown??

Ugh, it's the loan shark. He looks skeevy.

Uhhhh, what happened to Wolfwood? Who's this chick?

Oh, it's Maylene. She looks ready for a fight. Why was she chillin' in a dark room like that?

This panel, tho.

Why'd they beat him up?

Oh, they think he convinced her to refuse the offer? Man, this loan shark guy is dumb. I got the distinct impression she's never liked him. But of course it couldn't be because of anything he's done. It MUST be someone else's fault she's rejecting him.

Duuuuude. This guy assumes Wolfwood somehow seduced her, and he's ready and willing to kill both Wolfwood and Maylene if he did. Seems like GREAT husband material.

LOL, Wolfwood doesn't even justify his dumb-ass question with a reasonable response. You can just tell Wolfwood's head is full of murder-thoughts here.

Ah, now she's blaming him for the situation, too. Vash really has rubbed off on Wolfwood.

It's hard to tell, but I think Wolfwood is protecting her from the gunfire by keeping them both behind the Punisher.

This guy. He's got himself a tank to take out someone he thinks might be getting laid more than he is?

Wolfwood. Buddy. How dare you tell her she should have just married this guy.

Look, she'd rather die than go into a gilded cage! That's how it is sometimes! A cage is still a cage! And her purported husband-to-be is absolute filth!

Oh, good. Wolfy's coming around. At the very least, he wants to defend Maylene, and he recognizes this guy is trash. Just take a few more steps in the right direction, friend.

I get he was trying to keep her from the kind of hard life he's lived, but he's just the bird envying the person on the ground. He doesn't get that there are difficulties on both sides and you kinda have to pick your poison... if you're lucky enough to even have the choice.

He is still proud of her, despite his harsh words and narrow vision.

She may or may not recognize him, but she is aware of the impact he had on her young life.

Author Bonus Chapter

I wanna... just soak in water for a bit....

LOL, always a good plan to run away for a bit of one gets stuck being at home.

What's 1/F?

Wolfwood sure does spend a lot of time covered in blood. WHO'S FAULT IS THAT, NIGHTOW?!?!

"Silly manga" my foot... Tell that to my therapist. (Just kidding; Trigun Book Club is my therapist for this stuff. Sorry, folks!)

Archive

Trigun Vol. 1: Covers + 1-3, 4, 5-6, 7-8, 9-10 || Vol. 2: Covers + Extras, 1, 2-4, 5-6, 7-8

TriMax Vol. 1: Covers + 1-2, 3-4, 5-6 || Vol. 2: Covers + 1, 2-4, 5, 6-7 || Vol. 3: Covers + 1-3, 4-5, 6-7 || Vol. 4: Covers + 1-2, 3-5, 6-7 || Vol. 5: Covers + 1-2, 3-4, 5-6 || Vol. 6: Covers + 1-2, 3-4, 5-6 || Vol. 7: Covers + 1-2, 3-4, 5-6 || Vol. 8: Covers + 1-2, 3-4

Extra Credit: Trigun Vol. 1: Nebraska vs. Vash's Motivations, Vash's Loneliness, Vash's Depression (pt 2 of post), Soupy Brains || Vol. 2: Coin Factoids || TriMax Vol. 1: Lina, Vash, and a Haircut || Meryl, Vash, and the Pursuit of Happiness || Vol. 5: Knives, Vash, and Hatred for Humanity || Vol. 6: Coping Series: Wolfwood, Meryl, Vash || Vol. 8: The Uncoordinated Counterattack

#side note: my family routinely gifts everyone blankets because blankets are awesome and now i have like 20 #i try to give them away when i can because no one needs that many blankets in this climate #but some are handmade and i can't bear to part with them even though they match NOTHING not even each other #trigunbookclub #trigun maximum #volume 8 #pancake thoughts

[zarvasace]

PROGRESS POST

(12/18/23)

If you're interested in what I've done recently, the state of my projects, and what I plan on doing in the new year, read on! :)

By Fandom

Linked Universe Projects

Shatterproof: I have more backstories cooking, and a half-finished fic or two, but that's about it. I plan on updating a story at least once before January

Council (1931 AU): backburner, haven't really had inspiration. Still on my radar though, and it spins through my head on occasion!

Marvelous Misadventures: been plucking away at this! I recently had an epiphany regarding the next part of the plot, so hopefully that gets me more excited to work on it

Considering expanding the coloring pages I made into a whole series, that could be cool

Misc stuff includes a couple half-abandoned oneshots, a few drawing ideas, and a major art project that probably won't happen because I'm trying not to burn myself out 😅

Four Swords Projects

Fairytale AU: recently gained fire for this again. Reread and organized all my existing material, edited the outline, and I desperately want to finish it soon. Hesitantly scheduling for before the new year. Draft currently maybe about 30% of the way, at 8k.

Isekai AU: I don't think I've mentioned this to anyone outside discord, but ta da I'm deep in this. I'm probably 90% done, about 30k. This will be a Christmas fic, I hope!!

Vampire lords AU: rambly vampire plot is going. Somewhat slowly. I've been trying to not overload myself with too much, so this has been demoted slightly. :) Bite fics happen spontaneously, though, and there might be another coming.

Rinthia AU: my original world, the one seen in Nothing New Under the Sun. This is kind of a passing thought, definitely in planning stages, but I would kind of like to expand this—see where the other characters are, give y'all some answers, because the answers are there

Non-fandom

I want to do more traditional art, graphite and watercolors mostly, and that usually means using photos or life instead of fandom stuff. Makes it a bit less exciting, but maybe I can find a way of doing that. I miss my lil oil paint studio area but I can work with what I have

I'm crafting a few Christmas presents instead of buying them because I do not have much money. That is something I need to spend like, this next week doing

Sanderson merch: I have a goal of getting a booth at Dragonsteel next December, and selling some small souvenir stuff. My plans involve making more pins (I ordered a couple already, and they're very nice), drawing some coloring pages, and maybe advertising here a little once I actually have some stuff I'm proud of up. This will ideally take a year to get together, though, so no rush.

By Month

November

I spent most of November working on The Worst Thing About Earth, kind of an impulse fic that spiraled out of control. I think I burned myself out a little on this, so I've been taking it slowly. Trying to, anyway.

December

So far, I've mostly worked on holiday gift exchanges and some backburner stuff. Like I said, I've been taking it kind of gently. I plan on finishing the FS isekai AU this month, and getting most of the way through the fairytale AU. Getting those off my plate will free me up to think about other things, I think. I also plan on maybe one more bite fic and one more LU disability AU thing before the new year.

January On

I'm not sure what the next month will bring! Ideally, I'll be wrapping up the fairytale AU and intermittently posting a few little things. I'm hoping to return to a couple of my older projects soon, mostly Marvelous Misadventures, because I've left that thing unfinished for LONG ENOUGH.

This next year, I want to try to devote more time to doing things for myself that aren't fandom things. I'd like to reread Stormlight Archive before #5 comes out in December, play more video games, and do more painting. I would like to establish a better habit of making and eating food. I want to play board games a little more often.

Still, the muse can be fickle, and as you probably know by now, I am very good at chasing my inspiration!!

#i speak from the coffin #progress post

[dean-winchester-is-a-warrior]

Playing in a Safe Space

This pic is from a FB fan page

Summary: Y/N is incredibly excited to be working on her favorite TV show, Supernatural! But what happens when one scene hits a bit too close to home?

Warnings/Explicit 18+: TW for brief mention of physical and emotional abuse, nothing graphic or overly detailed. Panic attack symptoms described.

Pairings: No romantic pairing. Jensen Ackles x teen!reader

Word Count: 2,286

A/N: I got the following request from a fellow SPN family member:

Hi! I was wondering if you could do a Jensen x teen!reader where they’re shooting a scene with Demon Dean and it scares the reader and she goes off and hides. Then Jensen fisher and comforts her. I also had another idea, maybe Jensen finds her having a panic attack and talks her through it?

I didn't tag you here, hon, in case you wanted to stay anonymous. 😊 But thank you so much for this request - I ended up writing it right away, cause it all just flowed. Hope it's what you were looking for! 💓

As always, of course this story is about a Jensen from a different part of the multiverse. This is a complete and utter work of fiction. 😊

The beautiful divider at the bottom was created by @firefly-graphics

Masterlist || Tag Lists

You were so unbelievably humiliated. It was like something out of a nightmare - and just this morning you’d felt like you were living in a dream.

Your joy and excitement had begun a few weeks ago when you’re agent called to tell you that you landed a guest starring role on your absolute favorite TV show, Supernatural.

You auditioned a couple months ago, with only a tiny hope that you’d land the part. The show was very popular these days and lots of girls had gone out for it. But after many call backs, and screen tests, you got the call that the role was yours.

You flew in to Vancouver four days ago to start shooting the first of your three episode arc. Arriving on set you had a million butterflies rocketing around inside your stomach, so nervous to meet everyone and to walk through the sets.

I’m in the BUNKER! You thought to yourself, trying desperately not to geek out.

But you knew you failed to hide all your fangirl leanings when you met the cast. You met Mark and Ruth first, and they couldn’t have been kinder and more welcoming. Ruth gave you some pointers for finding your way around the many stages you were filming on.

“I got lost every day for three months when I first started.” She said, her gentle accent decorated by her soft laugh. Mark was hilarious and very warm and kind, putting you at ease immediately.

Your first day of shooting was all with them, and you didn’t actually get to meet Jared and Jensen until the next day. You had almost no scenes with Jared, since Sam was off scouring the countryside for his brother, who was currently, unfortunately, a demon. 

But he still came by to say hello, and welcome you to set. He was so sweet, and so unbelievably tall; you thought you might get a permanent crick in your neck if you spent too long talking to him!

But the bulk of your scenes over the next few days were with Jensen. You were fairly nervous about meeting him, partly because you had a little crush on him, (who didn’t?) but mostly because he was one of your favorite actors. You thought he was incredibly talented, and you didn’t want to make a fool of yourself in front of him.

Jensen was playing Demon Dean in this first episode you were in, and you were playing a young witch named Talia, whom he steals away from Crowley and Rowena.

They want Talia for her powers and Deanmon wants her, simply to use as a bargaining chip with them. Mostly he finds her annoying and is always about 5 minutes away from killing her.

Though you felt a bit ill with nerves that first day of shooting, you quickly found, that you didn’t need to be nervous around Jensen. As it turned out he was everything people had said he was - kind, and funny, and such a generous actor to work with.

Most adults you worked with tended to treat you like a little kid, talking around you, not including you in conversations about the work you were doing, and they were very often condescending or patronizing.

Jensen was none of these things. He was professional and inclusive, bringing you into the discussions about how to work the scene, and being completely open to questions you had, or ideas you thought might work. He was an amazing scene partner, and a fantastic mentor. Filming over the last two days was absolutely wonderful and you enjoyed every minute of it.

And then came the scene this morning. Scene 149, Interior, Day.

You and Jensen had discussed the scene a couple of times and practiced it a few more, because it involved some physicality and Jensen wanted to make sure you were comfortable with it.

He had to push you backwards into a closet where Dean was locking Talia away while he figured out a way to power down her magic.

You’d gone over the pseudo-stunt a few times in the open practice area, with Jensen showing you that he’d actually be pushing you very gently, forcing you to help him sell the idea that Dean had shoved you very hard. There would be a mat, just out of frame for you to fall on, and by the end of a couple practices you felt confident that you could make it all look believable.

Then this morning, less than an hour ago, you’d begun the scene. And everything had fallen apart.

The very first time Jensen immersed himself in Demon Dean completely, his face cold, angry and brutal as he shoved you backwards, something had pinged in your brain and you could feel something heavy and chilly settle in your stomach.

As planned, Jensen pushed you lightly, but instead of falling backwards on to the mat like you were meant to, you just fell to the ground on your butt.

“Cut!” The director called out. Everyone chuckled lightly thinking that you’d just mishandled the stunt. Jensen checked that you weren’t hurt, and you could see the trace of worry in his face. You shook your head, embarrassed, but determined to do your job.

“I’m fine.” You said with a small smile.

You all started back at one, and “Action!” was called.

Again Jensen transformed into Demon Dean, and shoved you back. You tried harder to fall properly, but that terrible heaviness had begun to rise up into your chest, and it felt like your lungs were being crushed.

You heard, “Cut” yelled again, but it sounded far away. Everything was moving a bit as if you were in a fog.

As you stood up to go again, you could hear Jensen calling out to the director, “Hey Tom, maybe…could we take a couple minutes.”

But you shook your head, panicky and desperate. Flashes of memories were crossing your mind’s eye and you knew that if you didn’t get this shot right away, you were never going to be able to do it.

“No, no, I’m good to go again.”

“Y/N…” Jensen said softly, but you shook your head.

“No, let’s just go.”

“Back to one!” You heard someone call and you moved into the right position.

This time when Jensen came at you, you could see him holding back; you could see Jensen’s worry taking over Dean’s face. At which point all the panic set in.

Not only am I screwing up the scene, I’m distracting one of the best actors out there with my crap! You thought, and you began gasping for air you couldn’t catch.

Jensen never even got to try and push you again because you started hyperventilating. “Cut! We need a cut!” He called out worriedly as he stepped toward you.

Without thinking, you simply bolted, running off the stage and out to your trailer, ignoring the calls from cast and crew as you ran past.

When you reached your trailer, you flopped onto the brown couch and just sat there, humiliated and ashamed. You’d blown your chance at this amazing opportunity, and why?

Because for just a moment Deanmon’s brutality had reminded you of him.

It had been years since he’d been in your life…a not-very-long-term boyfriend of your mom’s that had treated you both horribly. Your mom had finally tossed him out the day she came home to find he’d shoved you down the basement stairs and locked you down there.

It was a far away memory that you thought you’d long since silenced.

But today, at the most inopportune moment it had reared its ugly head and now you were going to lose your job because of it. Maybe you’d even get a reputation for being a screw up on set.

Damn, don’t hire that kid, she’s a crack up, she lost it one day and just ran away from set!

You were shaking, and trying desperately to breathe when a soft knock came to your door. You didn’t answer, and the knock came again.

“Y/N, honey, are you in there?” Jensen’s deep voice carried easily through the trailer door. “I’m gonna count to five and come in okay? I just wanna make sure you’re alright.”

After counting to five, Jensen slowly opened your door, and you panicked more because you knew you were a complete mess. You’d buried your head in your knees, completely messing up the cute braids the hairstylist had given you that morning. You’d also ruined the makeup artist’s work since you knew your makeup was a smudgy mess.

But Jensen made no mention of any of that.

“Hey.” He said softly as he came into the trailer. He had a cup of something warm and he passed it to you. “Chamomile tea.” He said with a gentle smile as he sat next to you on the couch. “Ruthie swears it’s real magic.”

You took it in your shaking hands and tried to take a sip, grateful for the gesture. But you were shaking too much, so Jensen just took it back.

“That’ll be for later.” He said simply, as he set it on the counter beside you. Then he took you by the hand. “Come with me, I have an idea that might help.”

You let him lead you out of the trailer and across the lot, winding through trailers and tents, until you were suddenly in a wide, open, field, with the many buildings and sets behind you.

There were a few other people sitting out on blankets eating their lunches, or just lazing in the soft grass, far enough away from each other that there was space to breathe, but close enough that the space didn’t feel lonely. Soft laughter came back towards you both on a breeze and Jensen took a deep breath.

“Breathe, sweetheart, just in and out for a while.”

You nodded and tried to let your breathing slow, tried to focus on the green grass, warm yellow sunshine, and the steady feel of Jensen beside you.

“Come on, stretch your muscles with me.” He said, and then reached his arms up towards the sky, taking in a deep breath. You copied him. When your shaky limbs made you stumble slightly in the stretch, Jensen reached over and steadied you.

Over the next few minutes, Jensen encouraged you to touch your toes and then reach to the sky, over and over, and eventually you felt your oxygen levels returning to normal, the circulation in your limbs returning, making you feel more balanced, and in control, like you weren’t just going to fly away.

Finally Jensen lowered himself onto the soft grass with a groan. “That’s as close to yoga as I get.” He said with a sarcastic smile.

You smiled gently as you sat beside him. After a moment’s silence you shook your head. “I’m so sorry, I -”

Jensen cut you off. “No, kiddo, no apologies. I should have made us stop after that second take. I could see you weren’t okay.”

He paused briefly and then spoke softly. “Did I do something to scare you, or hurt you? Did I change anything from practice?”

You chuckled humorlessly. “Yeah, you acted really, really well.”

Jensen frowned in confusion and you shook your head.  “No, it wasn’t anything you did. You were just acting, the way you were supposed to. But something in your expression, the cold fury, or…I don’t know how to describe it exactly. But then combining that look with shoving me down, it just…”

You trailed off and looked down, picking at a blade of grass.  “It just reminded me of something that happened a long time ago.”

“Wanna talk about it, sweetheart?” Jensen asked quietly.

You shook your head and gave him another shy smile. “Hell no.”

He nodded and chuckled. “Fair enough.  But just know if you ever need to talk about anything, you have lots of people here that like you a whole lot and we’re always willing to listen.”

You bit your lip, tears threatening again. “Except, I’m pretty sure I just threw the job away. I acted so unprofessionally and I wasted so much time and money.”

Jensen scoffed. “Pfft! Are you kidding me? That’s about a tenth of the amount of time and money Jared and I waste just screwing with Misha.”

He smiled widely and pulled lightly on one of your braids. “Don’t worry about it, kiddo. We broke for lunch and when we come back, we’re gonna have one of our incredible stunt actresses do the fall, and then you and I will carry on with scene 156, when we’re out on the street, waiting for Crowley.”

You ducked your head, incredibly grateful to him. “Thank you.” You said softly. “I really, really appreciate it.”

He stood up and then pulled you to your feet. “No worries. Look, honey, we all have limitations. You just have to know it’s okay to stand up for yourself and tell us if there’s something that makes you uncomfortable or that’s stressing you out in a scene. We’re a problem solving unit, and sure we work together to make a great show, but we also make sure we’re taking care of each other too.”

You nodded. “I’ll remember that.”

“Good, then let’s get to the catering tent before Jared cleans them out.”

You laughed as he ran forward and you started jogging behind him. You truly loved it here, and never wanted to leave.

Maybe you’d get lucky and your character would be a hit and you’d end up with more than three episodes. But whether or not that ever happened, you’d bring home the lessons you learned in this safe space, and always carry them with you.

NEW TAGS:

1 - Jensen RPF + Any/All characters Jensen plays. @lyarr24 @siospins2 @impalaslytherin @maggiegirl17 @akshi8278 @candy-coated-misery0731 @nt-multi-fandom @deanswaywardgirl @slytherinlyn314 @globetrotter28 @jensensgirl @perpetualabsurdity @tristanrosspada-ackles @djs8891 3 - Any/All Fics (regardless of fandom/character.) @sunshineandwings86 @kazsrm67 @sexyvixen7

4 - Everything (includes fan vid/DOOL edits as well) @unabashed-lover-of-fictional-men @awkward-and-indecisive @maliburenee @supernatural4life2022 @spn730015 @b3autyfuldisast3r @kickingitwithkirk @waywardbaby @foxyjwls007 @deanwanddamons @deandreamernp @deanwithscissors @myloversgone @snowlovespie @leigh70 @all-alone-he-turns-to-stone @fangirlxwritesx67 @charred-angelwings @hopefuldreamers-world @mysherlock221b @jensensgotyoudean @stixnstripesworld @thoughts-and-funnies @magssteenkamp @norman1967 @princessmisery666 @eevvvaa @mishkatelwarriorgoddess @deepsketchsupernaturalcowboy @b-i-t-c-h-i-e @twirpbunwarrior @mysweetlittledesire @waynes-multiverse @mrsjenniferwinchester @bernasaurus @jensenslady79 @courtn92 @avanatural

#jensen ackles rpf #jensenxteen!reader #non-romantic pairing #tw: panic attack #tw: mentions of abuse

[triviareads]

ARC Review of The Boyfriend Subscription by Steven Salvatore

Rating: 4/5 Heat Level: 4/5 Publication Date: March 26th

Premise:

A queer Pretty Woman-inspired romance; Divorced and about to lose his beloved plant retail business, Teddy Hughes is faced with no choice but to leave New York City... until he meets Cole Vivien. Cole is the CEO of a gay dating app and needs a fake boyfriend to impress a potential investor and bring to his sister's wedding, and offers the position to Teddy.

My review:

I LOVED the the first meeting between Teddy and Cole; the chemistry was there right off the bat interspersed with these moment of comedy, like when they swap tops on the steps of the Met and Teddy finds himself wearing a harness as he enters a five star hotel (but deals with it in the best way, namely, not giving a fuck and cheerfully making other people uncomfortable).

Teddy (Teddy... Ted... inspired by Edward, perchance? Though he's the Vivian of the story as far as him being hired as a fake boyfriend for a week) is an energetic and endearing hero. Life's dealt him a few hard knocks and I appreciated his moments of vulnerability as much as I enjoyed how upbeat he was. Cole is super smooth and charming but is also pretty anxious and image-conscious, a product of his upbringing and his position as the CEO of a company trying to go public. Cole kind of functions as both the Edward and Vivian of this story, as both the CEO and sex worker, and he's the one with the infamous no-kissing rule.

I love the concept of Cole not only being a CEO and creator of a queer dating/hook-up/OnlyFans-esque app VERSTL (I see what Steven did there), but he's also an extremely popular performer on the platform. Cole publicly calls himself an entrepreneur and a sex worker, which I imagine does a lot in terms of destigmatizing the profession and industry (even if he's in a position of relative privilege). That being said, I'm not sure if I buy his family not knowing that he's a sex worker, especially if his company is about to go public and they're pretty prominent in the business world too. But whatever, it's romanceland; I'm in it for the vibes, not the realism.

So, this book clocks in at about 288 pages, and I started to wish that it was longer as I got to the second half of the book which is centered around Cole's sister's wedding. The plot started to feel pretty rushed: there was parental drama, a reporter outing Cole, Teddy's overprotective friends who Cole thinks might be conning him, a shitty employee, etc. There is sexual assault off-page, but we are barely given any time to contend with that before the main characters abruptly have to leave for the wedding. Ultimately, I think the story wraps up neatly, complete with an effective grovel on Cole's part, but it's the middle bits that could have done with more expansion.

The sex:

The sex was a pretty solid mix of sweet and sexy; there's lots of tender cuddling and heavy-petting and blowjobs. There is one sex scene with some fairly rough sex, which is something Teddy demands but later regrets because he was asking for the internet version of Cole— the fantasy instead of the irl version of him.

My one note was that there were some odd breaks/skips in the sex scenes. For example, there's a scene where Teddy is going down on Cole, but we don't actually see Cole orgasming. Instead, there's a skip and it seems like both Cole and Teddy have gotten each other off and now they're lingering in the afterglow. This happened a couple times.

Overall:

I enjoyed The Boyfriend Subscription; it had all the beats of a romcom starting with a stellar meet-cute and great chemistry between Cole and Teddy that carried throughout the book, even when the plot was a little over the place. This book is a part of a new Harlequin imprint called Afterglow Books, which consists of diverse, romcom-type romances, so I'm looking forward to reading more books in this imprint!

Thank you to Harlequin and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.

#netgalley #arc review #arc #Steven Salvatore #contemporary romance #harlequin #romance novels #afterglow books

[random-mailbox]

Random-Mailbox's Favorite Sailor Moon Fics - Week 19 - Slice of Life

This week’s post was requested by one of the nicest fic writers in Sailor Moon fandom - @lilliebellfanfics who has asked me to do one focusing on Slice of Life Stories, something I was very happy to do. 

As always, my apologies in advance for spoiling some of these for you (Fic Titles are linked to either FFN or AO3 entries).

Slice of Life - @ninjettetwitch

In this two-shot, we get glimpses of what Mamoru and Usagi’s absolutely normal routine looks like when being together - working on puzzles and having movie nights

The Climb - @moonlightusa

The first one-shot focuses on Usagi discovering Pinterest and roping Mamoru into helping her, even though he repeatedly tells her she is on her own (I can totally see my husband in Mamoru’s spot when I find “projects” for us to do together). The rest of the series are very good as well! So check them out too. 

These Games We Play - Chapter 2: Sock Drawers and Domestic Bliss - @allyunabridged

This adorable one-shot shows us the first day of Usagi and Mamoru living together, doing perfectly normal things. 

Coming Up Roses - @idesofnovember

This is a companion piece to It's You (I Fell Into) AU (that we will cover in a future post) where Usagi and Mamoru spend the day gardening together at a community plot Mamoru has been given, with Usagi initially in charge of weeding. The banter is well done and it has a few throwbacks to the original story. 

Where Arguments Are Had - @uglygreenjacket

Unazuki might just swear off dating after spending the day together with Mamoru and Usagi as her “buffer” for a blind date. 

Night Out - Ree Fireparrot

After the defeat of Chaos, Usagi and Mamoru bring back the Shitennou. However, the complete lack of trust within the team is really bothering Usagi. She convinces Mamoru that what is needed to get everyone on the same page is a fun night out of team-building activities. 

a star danced - @curseofroses

Usagi helps Chibi-Usa untangle and braid her hair, while telling her how much she reminds her of Mamoru. 

That’s it for this week. Next Monday we will cover Coffeeshop AU for @moon-daisuki, finally 😘

Here are the links to the previous Tumblr posts in these series to explore more amazing works based on different themes - make sure to check them out if you haven't had a chance! (Click on title name to go to the post) - I will keep updating the list every week as new posts come up:

Week 1 - Groundhog Day

Week 2 - Established Relationships

Week 3 - Sex Positivity

Week 4 - Unfinished Stories

Week 5 - Darker Stories

Week 6 - Potions 🧪

Week 7 - Reveals

Week 8 - 👻Halloween🎃

Week 9 - Wrong Perceptions

Week 10 - Non-Senshi AU

Week 11 - In-Progress Fics

Week 12 - Mutual Pining

Week 13 - Enemies to Lovers

Week 14 - Slow Burn

Week 15 - Christmas Part 1 - Ugly Christmas Sweaters and Santa!

Week 16 - Christmas Part 2

Week 17 - New Years

Week 18 - High School AU

#sailor moon #fic rec #fic list #usagi x mamoru #sliceoflife

[pumpkin-spike18]

✨Weekly Progress 2024 #13-15✨

I thought I missed 2 weeks, but turns out it was 3 🤐

Weekly Progress #13

Submitted DGM Page

Submitted 1/2 Fan Project checkin

Fleshed out about 1/3-1/2 P^3 outline

Read through + ID'd illustration points for Fan Project #2

Weekly Progress #14

Made SYVNH Script plan

Copied SYVNH + Side B to renpy

Talked with SFB musician

Drafted a pitch

Initial scripting pass for SYVNH main story

Sketched SFB Dove & Avia sprites (additional poses + outfits)

Linearted SFB Raven sprite

Weekly Progress #15

Initial scripting pass for SYVNH Side B

Finished 19 new additional SYVNH art assets

Coded in additional SYVNH art

Programmed in Side B link in main menu

Scripted in additional SYVNH art

I had a lovely two weeks of scripting 🙂🙂🙂

Yes, I lost my mind. Yes, it was mostly missing to begin with so no harm done.

Stuck in a Yandere Visual Novel...HELP!!

As I discussed before, I do my scripting in multiple passes. Though, this time I checked to make sure my staging is good before doing sound bites and audio. I'll admit that it's mostly so I can listen to streams as I go through the rather mindnumbing task. There were 10 files for the main story remaining so I tasked myself to script 2 files per day. Each file varied from as little as 150 lines (like 1 file) to 200 lines (most files) to 300+ lines (1 ending) and completing 2 files/day took about 6-8 hours.

Scripting mistakes result in both above and below. ...This is what I get for calling MC's sprite "mcs" and the male extra sprite "ms" One missing letter gives me a black shadow jumpscare.

The Side B scripting was a bit forgiving. It's only 28 pages compared to Scenes 5-6's 55 pages. So altogether Side B only took me 2 days for first pass scripting. That gave me time during the rest of the week to draw... new art assets... that I realized I needed during scripting. Some of them weren't required, but I felt would make a scene flow better.

And since I'm an artist?

Of course I did all 19 of them.

Wait, this wasn't updated- Just trust that I did 19 new image assets, including 3 new sprites 😂

Here are some previews. Is that a familiar character? Maybe~

So yeah, I've coded and scripted in all the new art, but I haven't tested everything yet. I plan to do that when I add in the soundbites.

A Sky of Falling Birds

...Still don't know what sort of visual I want for the game so I just started making sprites and lineart. I might make a demo with just the flat color at this rate tbh.

I got some positive reactions on their sprite sketches, so that makes me shy happy ;//v//;

Peter Pan Project = P^3

Still no title, but I've gotten used to calling it P^3 right now haha.

I didn't get very far with this project in the last 3 weeks, but about a third-half the story is outlined.

The story comes in 2 parts. The first part is 2/3rds outlined (1.7k+ words). The second half of the story is two bullet points lol. Granted, The second half may be a rapid descend to a conclusion. The planning document is already 2.3k+ words, which surprised a few folks...? I think my longest planning document was 11k+ words.

Hopefully next time I update, I'll have more info to share.

[Fan Projects]

Not too much/anything I can show yet as project rules have me not sharing until specific dates. It will be for Ace Attorney and D. Gray Man c:

#devlog #vnlink #vndev #visual novel #syvnh #sfb

[xxmissarichanxx]

✨XMACX Monthly✨ | April 2024

lol i hope u enjoyed the silly update yesterday~ here's the answers to the lil game:

2 TRUTHS • i did draw the line art with my left hand c'''': • may's cover model MAY in fact be a yummy mommy. it's up to youuuuu~

2 LIES • i'll never stop drawing hunks. who would i be without them sobs • i am dropping a BL comic this month, just not on April 20.

you may read this month's update on PTRN for free or below the cut~ you can also view the previous issue here.

I cannot believe we are four months into 2024. What have I to show for it :''''D Anyway, a few announcements:

I got accepted into Citrus Con's Artist Alley this year! I had the honor of sharing my wares during the online BL convention last year. I'm excited to do it again this year! I'm hoping to debut physical copies of some BL comics, and if not, digital copies will be fine too. My bootiful patrons will be the first to read them. Starting this month, I'll be dropping pages. Whatever I finish, it's going up.

You might have also noticed that the banner on the top of my Patreon page changed. It's to reflect the transition I'm making from one project to the next. :^)

Schedule

April 1 - The Fool's Cover

April 2 - XMACX Monthly Update

April 5 - May Cover Model Polls

April 12 - April Cover Model Process

April 19 - Kiki's Sakura Date Part 2

April 26 - Cover Story, Ippon!

April 28 - FBDC Update

April 30 - Sketch Dump

Cover Story Preview | Ippon!

I think I am ready to take on a slightly longer comic than the short ones I've worked on the past few months. SO, I'll be dusting off this old project that features Masa sparring Ken in a judo match.

April OC Birthdays

April 1st is Satoru's birthday because he's a silly goose. He was featured in my short comic last month, Kiki's Sakura Date Part 1. He'll also show up in Part 2.

VN Development Update | FBW

This month I'm picking up where I left off in developing Froot Basket White! I'll be starting with Sutoro's route, which means his will be the first to release!

I've also decided that for Froot Basket White, I'd like to have some pals onboard to help me create assets, so I'll be hiring peeps to draw the background art, food items, and other things I need assistance with. I'll still be the sprite, CG, and UI artist and writer.

I'd also like to properly have the script proofread before I hand it off to our cast members. And when it comes down to it, I'd like to have the episodes tested before release. I'm excited for this project and I hope I can wrap up the story well!

Other Stuff this Month

I'm sorry, but I am STILL catching up on commissions orz. And because I am an Ainosuke and SK8 simp, I'll be partaking in another Adam Zine. I simply enjoy being in the fandom and seeing and supporting peeps who create in the fandom. And I think Ainosuke is an amazing character and if given any opportunity to support him and other Adam lovers, I WILL BE THERE.

In other news, I'll be on a teeny tiny vacay around mid-April. I won't be taking my tablet or laptop with me, so I won't be able to work on stuff. I'll do my best to build a buffer for May because...

Next Month

I'll be gone the first half of May. I'm peacing out. I'll be spending some time with mi mama. I don't wanna even think about projects or work. In fact, I wanna catch up on a backlog of playing some friend's games and reading some friend's comics and novels.

And then I'll cram everything in the last half of the month (like I usually do) LOL.

WATCH BRAVE BANG BRAVERN AND CRY WITH ME SOBS

Mahalo nui, Ari

#xmacx monthly #comic artist #bl comic #original character art #oc art #art #xmacxoc #xmacxart

[bacidipesca]

my au headcanons

Essentially, this is the universe in my head whenever I write for Mareach. Some details may differ from story to story and I’ll probably forget quite a few, but largely this is how I imagine the world works/the backstory informing my characters’ decisions. Behind a cut because this got so, so long out of literally nowhere.

I want to just say first au takes some inspiration out of @elitadream ‘s ideas but hopefully with enough distinction to make it unique.

The specific details I’ve borrowed or plan to thus far from elitadream: Mario being Peach’s guard in an official capacity, the chain chomp incident*, and staying in the castle/Toad’s quarters/workshop. (I was also planning on using their art as partial inspiration for their first meeting for my own AU as well but if they don’t want me to, I will do my best to come up with an alternative.)

*kind of, I explain that later.

I have a timeline in my head of several (like 5+) different encounters with Bowser plus other enemies sprinkled in, a distinct cast of toad ocs I’ve been building, I have a backstory for why Mario has super strength (Luigi has his own distinct power also), I’m pulling inspiration from the new Mario movie for my backstories for Peach and Daisy, I’m planning on possibly involving time travel in the future. I’m hoping that the differences will make themselves clearer as I go on here. If there’s anything here that I haven’t correctly given credit on, or that needs to be removed because the person who inspired it isn’t comfortable, let me know.

If you see anything as a part of this au that you would like to use or borrow for your own fic or art or au, go for it! I would love to see the result, so feel free to tag me, but also feel free not to. While some of my ideas are unique I think a lot of them just ‘make sense’ for the sandbox we’re all playing in.

- Mario and Luigi were born in Brooklyn to a really insular Italian-American community (their grandparents were the ones who came over from Italy) where they spent most of their time in their own neighborhood speaking Italian with family members and friends, which is what gives them their slight but noticeable Italian accents when speaking English.

- If you got them around someone like Pauline or another Brooklyner, though, you might hear them start to pick up on some of those vocal tics because it’s also ingrained in them from growing up in that area.

- Also this is where my (possible, eventual) time travel nonsense comes in—Baby Mario and Baby Luigi go on an adventure that ends with them getting Firebrand and Thunderhand powers, but it’s because of Kamek and his interference after already having met the brothers as adults who fell into the Mushroom Kingdom. So, as of everything I’m currently writing, Mario and Luigi have no recollection of that adventure because it technically hasn’t happened for them yet.

- But because time is so very rarely linear, or even circular, the Firebrand and Thunderhand powers are kind of hardwired into them now. They just discover having them at the same time they would have gotten them (and eventually will get them, because time travel) as babies.

- Does that make sense? No? Okay good, we’re all on the same page then.

- This is why it’s eventually maybe a possibility and not a hard and fast thing. Just accept that Mario and Luigi were born in Brooklyn with mystical powers.

- Accept it.

- Anyway—

- Firebrand powers! This is why Mario has super strength. He also has extra endurability, can withstand and collect heat/fire in his body, or generate it at a cost of energy to himself. Mario’s fire can be controlled much, much more precisely than he lets on, allowing him to even write or draw with it (hence the brand part of it). Because his powers are linked to Luigi’s, Mario’s fire does not burn him. Mario is very warm to the touch and doesn’t get cold very easily, and can even get a little overheated if he layers up too much and doesn’t let off any additional heat.

- Thunderhand powers! Luigi has super speed and extra stamina, can withstand and collect electricity in his body same as Mario, and generate it the same way as well. He can also produce thunderclap-like screams, but usually under high stress rather than on command. Mario can’t be shocked by Luigi’s electricity. Luigi’s constant fidgeting and his jumpiness can be partially attributed to his need to let off excess energy, and he has a tendency to give people a little static shock when he touches them. He wears gloves to try to mitigate it but it doesn’t help much.

- Luigi can jump higher than Mario.

- They are fraternal twins, and where Mario is right-handed, Luigi is left-handed. Their powers are stronger coming from their dominant hands.

- Peach and Daisy are from the same place but not necessarily related. They were both displaced by a war that caused them to be, essentially, sent out as a last hope for survival into the unknown. They were discovered by the people in their kingdoms and raised by the people in authority.

- I haven’t decided yet if I want either of the princesses to have powers of their own. If I did, I would like to give a healing/soothing ability to Peach like I’ve seen some others ( @drones-of-innocence , @elitadream ) do.

- What brought Peach (and the others) to the Mushroom Kingdom is what is called a warp event. There are large, naturally occurring pipes in this universe that occasionally spit out things and people from other worlds. The Toads have studied them for centuries and eventually managed to reverse engineer all of their modern pipe technology from that knowledge. No one can say for sure what causes them but they can be predicted from the Mushroom Kingdom’s end, at least, as they’re usually heralded by thunderstorms gathering around the natural pipe in distinct formations.

- Peach was raised by Toadsworth (and a relative of Toadette called Toadanne, who eventually retired and was replaced by Toadette), at first just with the intent to look after her, but then with the intent to put her on the throne when she showed incredible intelligence and empathy from a young age. She has a constant drive to prove that her people made the right choice to make her their princess, and will do or sacrifice anything of herself to keep them safe and happy.

- Peach is capable of defending herself, but if she can avoid collateral damage she will always take the more peaceful option. Even if that means going quietly when she’d much rather be screaming.

- I’m borrowing heavily from the new movie with this, but I want Mario and Luigi to be small-time plumbers from Brooklyn who used to work for Spike’s wrecking crew. After Luigi hurt his knees in a work accident (don’t @ me over that one, it’s a popular headcanon), they split off to do their own thing, but in the end they stumbled into a pipe that took them to the Mushroom Kingdom

- It was the stormy season when they first came through so there wasn’t a team to greet them like there was when Peach arrived—instead they were discovered by Toad

- Now, the thing with Toad is I know that there’s like. So many ways to depict him, and there’s so many versions, and are they all the same guy or different guys or what

- But I loved the depiction of Toad in the movie as kind of a mix of Chef Toad and Captain Toad with a little dash of unhinged and undyingly supportive, so I’m adopting that into my personal headcanon and saying that the Toad that finds the brothers is also slightly unhinged but the best friend you’ll ever meet. He immediately pledges himself to helping the brothers out and helps them find their way through the mushroom forest to Toad Town.

- I think the Mushroom Kingdom kind of anticipates things like this to happen now and then, or at least they have systems in place to help people who have been displaced like this, so the boys are set up with a place to stay almost immediately and promised an audience with the princess so she can help with their dilemma—it’s not known to the average Mushroom Kingdom citizen that natural warp pipes are inactive outside of events and it’s impossible to predict when the next event will be or if the boys will have an opportunity to use it.

- They do end up having a really lovely permanent house in Toad Town with two bedrooms, one of which they share (FIGHT me it was so cute they still shared in the movie), and the other of which is a workspace/crash pad for Toad.

- Which means to me that Mario is invited to crash with Toad at the castle when he’s been given guest quarters there and he can’t sleep because his bed is too big.

- Mario doesn’t know what Toad actually does for work, or if he does work, except he has a space at the castle and he always seems to be tinkering with something when Mario comes to visit him there.

- (I don’t know what Toad does either.)

- Mario and Peach fall in love at first sight, but not at the same time.

- Peach is fascinated by seeing other humans (there are others in this world aside from Daisy, but they’re rare, usually nomadic/adventuring types, and Peach doesn’t get to leave the kingdom much) at first, but then quickly grows fond of the brothers once she gets to talk to them and even though she knows she shouldn’t, she takes a personal interest in helping them get established in the kingdom.

- Afterwards is not my own official canon, that’s more explicitly set in elitadream’s AU because of the Bowser portrayal (we’ll get to my Bowser don’t worry), tho to be fair I don’t know that it’s official to their canon either because the original art was also a what-if scenario

- I would love to call First Rescue canon to me but it borrows super heavily from the original fanart so we can just say Mario displayed his super strength in an effort to save the princess’s life. She had invited him up to the castle to check on him and his brother, to see what could be done about helping them find work or projects they might enjoy

- (In my head the Mushroom Kingdom is like kind of utopian and people dont always NEED to work and can be provided for by the community if they’re unable or they have Something Going On)

- But then he saved her and she was like ‘I need a way to make sure I see him as often as possible’ and asking him to be her guard was just the most natural thing

- Mario declines at first, mostly because he’s worried he won’t actually be qualified but also because he doesn’t want to be given special treatment over his brother, who he says is just as good as him

- (And he is!!!!!)

- Peach is more than happy to employ them both, especially when Mario explains that he and Luigi are plumbers in their own world. All of the castle’s defenses run on pipe technology, after all! Luigi heads hands-on teams that work around Toad Town to fix security issues, and Mario is made captain of the princess’s royal guard.

- Now here I want to pause and address the boys having the Firebrand and Thunderhand powers again, because it kind of affects their work, and also how power-ups work in this world.

- (Yes, I have plans for power-ups!! Get excited!!)

- The boys never revealed to anyone outside of one another that they had these powers. They discovered and developed them late enough that they managed to keep them hidden from their parents, though they surely always suspected something was different about their sons. The boys were savvy enough from growing up in Brooklyn to know not to tell about those gifts unless they had to, for their own good, because they were just too different from anything else on Earth.

- It was different when they got to the Mushroom Kingdom, though. They saw folks whizzing through pipes, turtles that talked, flowers that made people spit ice out of their hands. Though they were still wary, it was enough for Mario to let down his guard and save the princess.

- They still plan on holding some powers close to their chest, just for the sake of surprising potential threats

- I was planning on hopefully doing some training/research scenes with the toad guards, or at least doing some more in-depth headcanons at some point, because I believe power-ups work differently for the twins than they do for other people

- Power-ups are either naturally occurring, like mushrooms or flowers, or hand-made, like lucky bells. Different kingdoms in the land export different power-ups and they’re a big part of a kingdom’s trade.

- The Mushroom Kingdom specializes in mushrooms, obviously, and shares a border with one of the kingdoms of Sarasaland that spills fire flowers into their territory.

- On the opposite side of Sarasaland (which is saying a lot, it’s a big empire) is the Ice Kingdom, which exports ice flowers.

- Lucky bells and tanuki leaves and other power-ups that provide a suit/costume change are either handmade or altered by the kingdom that exports them to provide that costume. They are rarer than other power ups for this reason. It is a kingdom of furries, you get to decide who lives there and who rules it, have fun.

- It bothered me that super mushrooms in the movie only gave Mario like 2 feet of height and then the minis made him almost microscopic so when Mario has a super mushroom he gets to be Big. No, I haven’t decided how big that is yet.

- This is just something for me personally, don’t @ me.

- Oh shit right I promised I would talk about Bowser, let’s talk about Bowser

- I want to say on a scale from like Heinz Doofenshmirtz at 0% to Thanos at 100%, my Bowser is probably at like a 39%?

- Which is to say: he is capable, he is strong, he is dastardly, and he’s motivated by wanting to expand and legitimize his territory rather than feelings for Peach; by the same token, he’s not the brightest villain, he relies a lot on brute strength, he heavily underestimates his opponents, and he’s also being manipulated by people around him.

- His people follow him out of genuine loyalty, not fear. He’s very much a king of misfit toys, but they take their righteous anger a step too far in many cases and that’s where the problems with the Koopa Kingdom lie.

- If he killed someone by accident he would be really messed up about it.

- Tbh if he killed someone on purpose he’d still be a bit messed up about it

- At first he was targeting the Mushroom Kingdom for land and power, but after a few encounters with Mario his beef became very, very personal and now he’s pretty much out to ‘destroy’ Mario—everyone assumes that means he wants to torture him, kill him, rip him to pieces, but to be honest even Bowser doesn’t know what he would actually do if he got his hands on him

- Possibly maybe there will be a bigger bad to fight someday and that’s why I don’t want to commit to Bowser fully wanting to murder this plumber in particular

- (Look maybe someday they can race gokarts together okay?)

- This is why I say, again, that Afterwards is not canon to this au, I was using a Bowser who’s a little harsher than mine for it.

I thiiiiiink that’s all I really planned to say here? I’m hoping I didn’t forget anything, but I guess I can always make another post later. If anyone has any questions, my ask box is always open. I’d always love love love to talk about my ideas or the Mario characters 🩷

I’m writing a fic right now about Peach being sick and Mario coming to take care of her (shock and awe, something not inspired by someone else’s fanart??), let’s see if I finish it or give in to the urge to post this to tumblr first. ✌️

Oh shit I did manage to finish the fic!! That’s cool, you should read it if you liked this post. :O

(I’m afraid to put links on this rn in case tumblr nixes it from showing up in tags lol, I’ll add some later 🩷)

#mareach #mario #mario x peach #princess peach #super mario brothers #super mario brothers headcanon #luigi

[nerdnag]

How much do you plot out your stories before you write them?

More than I used to!

Up until maybe 2019 I almost never plotted out stories beforehand. Therefore I have a LOT of started docs saved with little random ideas: some of which never became more than a page, some of which went haywire after a while and never recovered. And there are some entire "books" or fics that were completely improvised as I wrote them. That used to be how I wrote when I wrote for my own enjoyment only.

I tried my hand on an overarching structure for an original work back in 2017/18, but that was probably my real first planning for any story I'd ever written.

And then I think it was @alienducky who really got me into plotting and got me stuck on it for real. We worked on a fic together, and it would have been practically impossible to do that without some kind of joint plan. I remember she started a table at the top of the doc where she listed all the scenes, and I was like yeah, that's a good idea, and it was. After that I started plotting out my own fics in a similar manner too, and now I never want to go back to how I did it before. The stories just turn out so much better when I know where I'm going from the beginning. But I plot in a way that still lets me be creative with the plot along the way.

So this is how I do it nowadays:

Scribble any little initial idea I have - sometimes in a single sentence, sometimes in a paragraph, sometimes in random loose sentences here and there that only make sense to me.

Place the bits I know I want into some kind of organised scene structure - if I don't already know which order things will happen in, I'll get a first sketch on that now. I usually structure this into actual chapter titles (placeholder titles that just give me an idea of what the scene is about) so that step 5 becomes a bit easier later.

Loosely figure out what kind of ending I want - just so I have something to aim for. Usually I have two large threads going and then a number of subthreads; the main threads (like a fantasy conflict or a romantic struggle) have to be clearly solved at the end imo, but some of the subthreads can be more loosely handled. At this point in the process though it's all just a rough sketch.

Slowly fit more pieces I want into the puzzle - any scenes that are necessary to bring me to the end somehow, or even scenes that bring me joy to think about, as long as they don't stray too far from the main threads. I also make sure to always add in early on which pov I think I want for every scene.

When I have a beginning, an end, and a number of scenes that seem to coherently bring me from one to the other, I start fleshing out parts. This usually means that I start writing bits and pieces here and there. Often I wrote the first handful of chapter first before I go on to the rest of the story, so I have a basic idea for myself of what the characters want and how they should be acting. But after the first few chapters, I usually jump from scene to scene depending on what mood I am in and what feels more joyful at any point in time. So I might write half a scene in chapter 7 one day to then write an entire chapter 22 the next day, only to then jot down a few paragraphs into chapter 16 after that. (This is my adhd working, I let it because it's worked out pretty well for me so far.)

Along the way I may come up with new ideas and adjust things, I flesh out scenes that were very barebone in the beginning, I solve and change things that turned out not to work, and when I reach the latter chapters that I wrote early on (for example ch 22, if I wrote that straight after ch 7), I'll usually have changed enough things that I need to rewrite large parts of that chapter. That is fine by me, it's all part of the process.

I should also add that if I've started posting it on for example Ao3 along the way, I sometimes - very rarely, but it happens - adjust my plans depending on what people comment. This is usually only if someone comments something that is so genius or otherwise so perfectly natural for the story that I just cannot let it go by without doing something with it, and only if it fits into the plot somehow. One example of this is when I noticed that several people were suspecting a particular character of having hidden motives. Up until that point I hadn't planned on doing much at all with that character, but when I realized that what I'd already written was leading very naturally to their conclusion, I decided to give that character more space from there on out and even played into the whole hidden agenda idea (but with a twist). That kind of thing can be really fun to do, but I don't do it if I don't think it will work for the plot I already have.

There have also been occasions where conversations with @alienducky have led me to change things in similar ways. One example of this is when I sent her a first overarching plot of my entire then upcoming fic series back in... 2020 I think? And she's great with noticing details, so she asked me how the characters would be able to send letters to each other if they didn't know where the other person was. I told her there was a magically enhanced wolf in there that would be used to bring letters back and forth. She was so into the idea of this wolf, and asked what would happen to it later in the story, that I simply had to make it part of the main cast, and in the end it even played a very important part in a reveal down the line. XD Throwaway details that grow larger like that are also very fun.

Omg I actually found our old convo from back then, I can't not add it in here.

TLDR; I plot out an overarching story with beginning, end and bits and pieces in-between, then adjust as I go.

#Ask a nerd #This answer got away from me #But I love talking about this! #Writing