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bless-my-demons · 6 months

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Redamancy: Chapter Twenty-Three

Series Summary: What happens when your soulmate is a vampire that struggles to maintain a diet of trying not to kill you? Common sense says run for the hills, nothing is worth your life - but my heart is whispering why not, what’s there to lose?

Warnings: Just fluff, y’all deserve it lol

Notes: I’ve had this chapter written for a long time already and this week I’ve just kept adding to it lol I also tore my thumbnail off at work so I’ve been typing on my phone with my index finger and it’s pissing me off, I apologize if I fuck up some spelling bc of it. Enjoy our boy being back and not holding anything in anymore🥰

Word Count: 3500

Series Masterlist

•March 18th, 2006 • Home •

Reader

I don’t know what’s worse. Watching Jasper leave, or standing in front of him months later completely unprepared to see his face ever again.

Jasper Hale is here, he’s real, he’s home.

I can’t breathe all over again. I just-

My body collides with his before I even realize I’m moving. Wrapping my arms around his neck feels like a puzzle piece clicking into place. He’s solid against me, slightly chilly but real. I can’t believe it, I inhale for the first time since opening the door and it really is him-the scent of pine and everything Jasper slides right into my lungs and clicks against my heart. My breathing is noticeably choppy and I can barely contain the sob lodged in my throat. One hand wrinkles his shirt in a fist at his shoulder while the other grips his beautiful blonde hair at the base of his head, my eyes squeeze shut to hold in the tears from the overwhelming feeling of having him this close again.

“You-you’re home.” I choke out, the lump in my throat almost impossible to slip words past.

His arms close around me delicately picking me up off my feet, like I’m made of porcelain. He hasn’t moved an inch otherwise, almost as if he’s thinking that I might be a dream too. I feel his chest expand and his arms cinch down a little tighter, bands of steel that aren’t releasing me anytime soon.

“I’m here darlin’, I’m home.” Jasper whispers into my neck.

“You can’t-don’t leave-“ I stutter, words failing me, hands starting to shake.

“Shhh sweetheart, I’m here.” He smooths a hand down the back of my head and cradles it against his shoulder.

Tears start to fall in a steady flow at the reassurance in his voice, words I’ve needed to hear for a long time now clanging through my soul. He’s here and I don’t know for how long, but he’s here.

Jasper steps forward into my house with me still enveloped in his arms, nudging the door to slam shut with the toe of his boot, he stops.

“Couch?” He asks, as if he’s unsure what to do next.

I nod into his neck, I could probably let go and walk myself, but I can’t release him just yet. He moves us over to the couch and as he sits, I pick my legs up to lay across his lap, a hand drifting down my thigh to guide me into a comfortable position. It’s like time picked up right where we left off, a shudder running through me at the familiarity of him.

“Darlin’, I need to see that gorgeous face of yours.” He says in that southern accent that’s like a spear to my heart. I want to shake my head, I’d prefer to stay in this bubble locked around him. Instead I do the reasonable thing, my arms relax the death grip I have on his neck as I lean back to look into his eyes.

“There you are, sweet girl.” He whispers with a grin, dark brown eyes tracking the tear stains running down my cheeks. His thumbs reach up to swipe away the wetness as he places a kiss to my forehead before taking a deep breath.

“Why on earth would you try to-to kill-” He struggles with the words in a way that clenches my heart.

“I wasn’t trying to kill myself. It was recreational diving.” I pick at the edge of my sweatshirt and I feel him shift.

“Alice couldn’t see you come out of the water, I was so scared, you… You can’t do that.” Jasper pushes some fallen strands of hair behind my ear, staring at where his cold finger meets my warm skin.

“Can’t do what?” I challenge, meeting his eyes as defiance flairs in me.

“Scare me. Put yourself in a situation where I might lose you.” His answer is warming and bold, but it delivers a blow to my chest.

“Like when I lost you six months ago?” Fuck, the lashing is out of my mouth before I could think, but I stand by it nonetheless.

He takes a deep breath, glancing around the living room before nodding.

“I’m sorry…” my voice is small as I whisper the apology, I truly didn’t mean to snap.

“Sweet girl…” he drifts off and closes his eyes, missing the pink on my cheeks from the nickname. “You have no idea, it was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. The most scared I’ve ever been - that night in September and today.”

“You have no idea, Jasper. It’s not so easy to live without you either. To wonder if you’re alive. If you’ve moved on without me.”

He opens his almost pitch-black eyes and gapes at me like a fish out of water. How could this man think so low of himself that he can’t see how much I care for him?

“Have you been feeding?” I ask him, worry lacing my tone as I take his cheeks in my hands.

“When I need to, it turns out that not a lot matters besides you. You also scaring me to death kind of does that to a man.” He responds with a pointed look and a smirk tugging on his lips, his hands tightening their hold on my waist.

I blush again, not used to him being so open with his thoughts and feelings. “Oh hush.” I flash a sad grin back, the dark circles under my eyes an obvious sign I know exactly how he feels.

“You look tired sweetheart, maybe-“ he begins.

“No.” I interrupt him, there’s no way I’m taking my eyes off him any time soon, not even for a nap.

Realization dawns on him as I stare a hole into his chest, the grip I have on his shirt unyielding like it’s the only thing tethering me to earth. “Y/n, let’s go upstairs and you can take a nap, I’ll stay with you the entire time. You need some sleep, doll.”

“You-you’ll stay with me? You won’t leave?” I ask as he picks me up bridal style in his arms and begins walking to my room.

“I won’t leave, not until you ask me to.” He reassures my fears, no doubt catching the distress pouring off me in droves at just the thought of letting him go even for a simple nap.

“You’ll be okay laying with me?” I ask, concerned about making his hunger uncomfortable.

“Sweetheart,” he starts while ascending the stairs, “I’ve gone too long without you, I can wait a little longer to take care of myself.”

I sink into his arms a little further, my eyelids beginning to feel the weight of all the sleep I haven’t been getting since he’s been gone.

“Sleep, I’ve got you.” He murmurs into my hair, placing a kiss as he turns the corner to my room.

He sets me down on one side of the bed, the sheets unmaid making it easy to pull up and cover me. He speeds to the opposite side of my bed, toeing his shoes off before sliding under the sheets with me. He keeps his distance, facing me on his side with an arm propping up his head so that he could study me.

I turn my body to mirror his, “You’re not staying all the way over there, are you?” I ask mildly offended.

He lets out a chuckle, “Guess not.” He opens his arms to let me wiggle in closer, I press my nose to his chest and pause. “What is it?” He asks, immediately sensing my hesitation.

“Can I?” I lift my leg a little as if in question, too scared to ask something so intimate out loud.

He slides a chilly hand down my leg to grasp the back of my knee to hike over his thigh, leaving goosebumps in his wake and not just because he’s cold from the lack of sustenance in his system.

I sigh as I settle in, body finally able to relax for the first time in a very long time. I feel myself drift off as he rubs my back and whispers, “Sweet dreams darlin’, I’ll be here when you wake.”

Blissful all-encompassing darkness finally drags me under peacefully for the first time in months.

Jasper

I’m in Y/n’s bed, actually holding her and breathing her in. It’s like a soothing balm spreading over the exposed live wires of my sanity that have been buzzing uncomfortably since the day I ran from her. Gazing down at her sleeping face, I can tell the last few months have taken their toll on her too. Her forehead has more crinkles from stress, the dark circles under her eyes standing out against her delicate skin. Her lips aren’t quite as full as I remember, no doubt related to the volume missing in her cheeks from lack of nourishment. She’s still gorgeous, devastatingly so, but I know her well enough to notice the small changes.

I take a deep breath to let her scent flow in me, to heal the piece I’ve been missing for months, her hand tightens it’s hold on my shirt. I had no idea my absence would have such a prominent effect. I figured she could live without me simply the way she had before me.

As I gaze around her room to take in the disorganization, I hear her breathing pick up. Glancing back down I spot her nose scrunching up and a scrunch in her brow, in addition her heartbeat begins a steady increase. A nightmare, I can sense the fear and loneliness in her emotions.

“Darlin’,” I murmur softly into the soft skin of her temple as I run a hand down her back, “Wake up darlin’, it’s just a dream.”

She snaps awake with a sharp inhale, “Jasper?” Y/n asks, “You’re still here?”

“I’m here, do you want to talk about your dream?” I ask while I hook some loose strands of hair that escaped her bun behind her ear.

“Doesn’t matter now, you’re here.” She replies, her hands roaming my chest like she’s trying to convince herself of her own words.

God I’m so stupid for leaving this girl.

“Let me… Let me go take a shower so I can feel like myself again. You…?” Her question drifts off like she’s afraid to ask me to stay, like it isn’t her right to make demands like that.

“I’ll be here when you get out sweetheart, take as long as you need.” I end my reassurance with a kiss to her forehead, I can’t get enough of touching her again.

“Okay.” She whispers as she peels herself from where her body is intertwined with mine. I’m not used to the intimacy, but I’m more than happy to oblige my girl.

My girl.

That would require me to make her my girl. Require me to talk about my feelings for her, to make up for my horrible actions, for leaving her alone when she needed me.

I watch her shuffle around her room gathering clean clothes to wear for the night as I scoot back on her bed to lean against the headboard, hands folding in my lap content to just observe. The organization of her room only known to her as she picks up and discards articles of clothing that don’t satisfy her.

I lean forward from my resting place against her headboard and reach a hand back to grab the collar of my hoodie to remove it. As I’m yanking it off, my cotton T rides up flashing her a view of my stomach and I know she catches it based on the change of her scent.

A smirk graces my lips as I extend my hoodie towards her, “Here, sweetheart.”

Stunned eyes blink back up to my face as nervous hands grasp my jacket, “Thank you.” Whispered quickly from her lips.

Once she has what she needs, she pauses in the doorway to the hall, turning back to look at me.

“Go, before I’m tempted to undress you myself.” I smirk at the blush that dusts her cheeks, having reached my goal of bringing color back to her beautiful face. Effectively flustered, she rushes down the hall to her bathroom.

Reader

Wiping the condensation from the mirror, I grimace at the reflection. When did I start to permanently look tired? I let out a huff and check the time on my phone, I slept less than an hour in his arms. Not bothering to blow dry my hair, I ditch my dirty clothes in the hamper and walk back to my room.

Jasper’s eyes immediately find mine, “What’s wrong doll?” He asks, definitely having heard me fuss over my reflection in the bathroom.

“I’m just… still tired.” I offer as I turn to hang up the towel I used for my hair on the back of my door.

“C’mere.” He slides back down the bed from his position at the headboard and opens the blankets for me

I climb back into bed and scoot close to him, my forehead inches from his as I gaze into his dark eyes. I half expected him to be a figment of my imagination when I returned from my shower. We don’t say anything to each other, but it’s like he can’t keep his hands to himself and it’s new, but also not at the same time. Don’t get me wrong I absolutely love it and I can’t stop touching him either, but it’s different now-I’ve gone so long without him.

“Jasper?” I whisper into the quiet of my room.

“Yes sweetheart?” He responds, halting the hand drawing circles on my arm.

“What are we doing?” I wonder out loud, unable to continue this limbo with him, my nerves shot to hell.

“Well,” he leans in, one hand moving to cup the back of my head, “I’d like to…” his nose bumps mine and I can’t breathe. He’s going to kiss me, Jasper Hale is going to-

Right when I feel his lips ghost mine, his phone rings, ruining the peaceful moment. With a groan and a clench of his jaw, he turns to grab his phone from my nightstand, Alice’s name flashing on the screen.

“This better be important.” He says by the way of a greeting to his adopted sister, as he’s staring at me with those pitch-black eyes. There’s hunger there and I’m not entirely sure it’s for blood this time, I shiver and he catches the movement immediately.

“Mary Alice-“ he manages to force her full name from a clenched jaw.

“Yes-yes I know, I’m sorry, but it’s Edward.” She proceeds to launch into an explanation as he sits up, concern taking over his features as I overhear Alice explain their situation in Volterre.

Wait-Volterre as in Europe? Are Alice and Bella in Europe? What’s wrong with Edward?

Jasper turns to give me a reassuring half-smile, sensing the turn in my emotions.

Shortly the call with Alice ends and he turns to me fully, “What’s going on?” I question before he can manage an explanation.

“I chose to come home the same time Alice came to check on Isabella, after you two decided to do some… recreational cliff diving at the reservation and Alice couldn’t see the outcome. I decided to come with her because I had to see you with my own eyes, the opportunity to see you again was something I couldn’t pass up anymore.” He began, looking down at his hands nervously. “Edward… He called Bella’s home phone requesting to speak to her father and Jacob answered. Informed him that Charlie was planning a funeral, but didn’t mention that it was for Harry Clearwater. So now… now he’s in Volterre asking for death from The Voltouri.”

“Who are the Voltouri?” I asked, worry creeping in for Edward. “Why would he ask them for such a thing?”

His eyes meet mine, soft even though his hunger shines clear. “Darlin’, he thinks Bella is dead. The Voltouri are the governing body to our vampire race. They’re judge, jury, and executioner rolled into one, full of very powerful beings.”

“Okay, but clearly she’s alive! And on her way to meet him, why would he want to die?” I press him harder, worried for my friends.

“He isn't answering his phone, his mind has been made up, which is why Alice is racing the clock to get to him. Isabella is his singer, honey-“ his hands reach for mine as I interrupt him.

“Singer? What in the world is that?” I demand, my patience thinning at the anxiety of the situation.

“A blood singer is a vampire’s greatest temptation,” he begins, now unable to meet my questioning gaze, looking at our intertwined fingers instead. “They’re blood sings, or in other words, is irresistible perfection for their vampire. In some cases they are the potential mate for the vampire. A singer isn’t like that for all vampires, usually just for the one. A life without them is extremely dull in comparison once you’ve found them.” He concludes.

“Sounds like you’re familiar with the feeling,” I mumble self-consciously. “Have you had a singer?”

The sharp exhale he forces out snaps my eyes to his. “Yes.” He answers truthfully.

“Oh…” My heart sinking, I try to pull my hands from his but he holds tight. “That’s-“

“You, darlin’.” He states matter of factly, one of his fingers lifting my chin, so that he could find my eyes. “You are that for me.”

“I-I’m your singer?” Disbelief and awe seep into my tone.

Jasper’s fingers drift down my neck following the path of my pulse, his dark gaze following their trail. “Yes Y/n, you’re mine.”

I shiver at the pure possession in his voice and the dangerous glint in his eyes. I wonder if he knows how that sounded, like there was no room for negotiation - like it’s more than my blood he wants.

“Honey, you keep those thoughts up and we’re in trouble.” He grinds out, a war raging behind his eyes.

“Jasper…” I trail off as I climb over the remaining space separating us and into his lap, like a magnet drawn to its counterpart.

“Does this mean we’re… Mates?” I ask, not really sure of what that implies.

“Yes,” Jasper takes a moment to seemingly gather his thoughts, “you need to tread very lightly, little one.” His voice a deep vibration in the quiet room, his hands flexing on the comforter of my bed.

“Oh my god, you haven’t eaten and I-“ I stutter out as I rise from my position in his lap. I’m his fucking singer and I’m pushing his limits while he’s hungry!

“Now that you know everything… I need to hunt. I think I’ve tested all the patience and luck I’m going to get today.” He states with his black eyes still locked on mine.

I leaned against my dresser a few feet in front of him and fold my arms over my chest, a little insecure under his intense gaze now that his proximity isn’t overriding my rational thoughts.

“Go, go hunt. But please, come back to me?” I ask him.

He rises from the edge of my bed, slowly closing the gap and resting a hand on my cheek softly. I lean into it, closing my eyes and turning to press a kiss to it before meeting his eyes again. His lips part as if he wasn’t expecting that kind of reaction, “I’m yours now - have always been, but now I know I don’t have the strength to do that again, to abandon you.” He reassures my fears quickly. “It’ll be a few days, to properly prepare myself, but I promise you’re my first stop when I’m back.”

“I’ll hold you to that, Hale.” Feeling better about him leaving now that I have his word. Jasper leans down to place a lingering kiss to my forehead, his cool lips feeling like heaven on my heated skin.

“Be safe while I’m gone, please.” He whispers into my hair, his thumb sweeping my cheek back and forth adoringly. I nod since my throat feels like I’ve swallowed cotton, sad that I’m forced to be without him for a few days after just getting him back.

He steps away from me toward my open window, where the cool spring air drifts in. Glancing back for one last look before making his exit, I catch his eyes scanning every inch of my body.

He’s out of the window in the next fraction of a second, not even a whisper of footsteps in his wake. I wrap myself a little tighter in his hoodie, his intoxicating scent soothing the ache that’s beginning to return, reminding me he’s here.

He’s home, Jasper Hale came home to me.

Taglist Part 1:

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#redamancy series #bless-my-demons #jasper hale x reader #jasper hale fanfiction #jasper hale x female!reader #twilight fanfiction #jasper whitlock hale #jasper hale #twilight #female reader insert

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sunsh1n3s · 3 months

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— he doesn’t talk much ( don hume x reader )

a.n. after long demand and long wait- here is my first don hume piece. one should be coming out soon also. not the real don hume, just thought to preface that. and take my writing lightly, it’s been a minute.

contains. swearing, gn!reader, if you squint could have some fem!reader themes only bc im feminine so it may slip in accidentally

a party celebrating the winning hometown rowing team was the biggest talk. y/n couldn’t imagine themselves actually paying attention to the sport. they were busy with their own things, but with convincing they ended up one of the thousands of people who watched in the crowd.

what also added to their interest was the stroke of the boat, don hume. y/n had him in a class of theirs, he was quiet, studious, and was like the others; just wanted in and out of the class. they missed small segments of notes to look at him. nobody noticed their interest, hardly noticed him until he beat the schools biggest rival.

“come on y/n, support your guy.” joyce teased, making y/n let out a laugh. joyce watched as her friend smiled, “he’s not my guy, joyce.” y/n stated and walked into the study commons with her. “well he’s caught your eye and,” joyce looked around her, looking back at them “do you really think he’s gonna find someone else? he doesn’t talk to many.” joyce said. y/n sighed and sat down with their things. joyce sat across from them and stared, pleading with her eyes. “fine, you’re right.” they agreed.

joyce walked with y/n to their destination, joyce was there to support joe and y/n was there for don. they claimed they were there for everyone, but joyce knew it wasn’t the case. after admitting their crush on him to joyce, they knew they’d regret it.

with their flags and spirit, the two cheered on the team. they watched as the flag with down and the boys started rowing like crazy. it was impressive, the way they all moved in sync and flowed beautifully. joyce got y/n to scream and cheer, don’s name slipped out their mouth a few times.

as they passed teams and were head to head with california; their biggest rival, y/n swore from then on their hand was numb from joyce. they smiled at the strong grip she had on their hand, but it did hurt.

everyone cheered yet had the urge to hold their breath, “cmon boys.” y/n spoke, leaning on joyce. they passed california and everyone around y/n screamed. joyce and y/n embraced one another in a hug, moving down to the guys that finished the race, their guys.

the boys noticed joyce and y/n, as joyce locked eyes with joe, y/n caught a shared glance with don. they smiled at him and he smiled but looked away; obviously flushed. the coxswain looked up at them, back at don, and back at them with a grin. y/n covered their face and turned on their heel to joyce.

y/n awkwardly stood near joyce and joe, talking with roger until the coxswain came up. “hey, y/n right?” he asked, y/n nodded. “i’m bobby, and i saw your glances to my buddy donny, he’s not a talker but the look he gave you said enough. why don’t we go talk to him?” he rambled, without an answer from them, he led them to don.

“hi don, congratulations.” y/n greeted, don looked from the water to them. bobby’s hands left the sides of their arms and he walked away. don smiled, getting the courage to talk. “i-uh thank you.” he said. y/n smiled and he swore his heart was theirs. “so there’s a big party after, am i gonna see you dancing there?” they asked, their grin turned into laughter while he nervously smiled.

“i don’t dance.” he shook his head. y/n crossed their arms, somewhat smug, “and you don’t talk so much, but here you are talking to me, so would you care to dance with me?” they used the adrenaline of watching the competition as courage to ask for a dance.

don’s eyes widened and he tried to stay calm, “yeah-! yeah sure i would.” he stuttered. they nodded, smiling, “alright, i won’t drag much out of you now. but congratulations again, don. i’ll see you tonight.” they bid their goodbye and he waved, looking for bobby while they looked for joyce.

“you actually spoke to someone other than your team- plus someone attractive” “shut up bobby.”

the dance was one to remember. it was crowded and people were tipsy. it was a lovely night filled with celebration and happiness. girls left and right talked with the guys, but few of the guys had main interest in certain ones.

y/n entered much later than joyce, which was noticed by don. he even mustered up the courage to ask bobby, who asked joyce; who would tell y/n later on once they sat in joyce’s room thinking over their night.

don kept an eye out for them; afraid he was stood up. but they arrived, and it was like his nerves skyrocketed. don resorted to the bench that was placed in the room. there they were, dressed all fancy, beautiful. he looked around in case they caught him staring, but he failed to hide it once he looked back at them and they had just met his eyes. a smile spread across their face, and beside them a smile was seen on bobby’s. they walked over and sat next to him, “wanna dance?” they asked, face close to his ear because the music was so damn loud.

don looked at them, their faces were close. y/n flashed him yet another smile, without a word he nodded and they got up. they held out their hand and he took it, following y/n to where the rest of his buddies were. don felt more comfortable around them, but they didn’t help in the moment as they whooped and shook his shoulders. it didn’t seem to bother y/n, as they smiled up at him. he couldn’t help but smile back.

their hand in his and they moved with one another, y/n was impressed with his rhythm. he was probably the only guy in the gang that knew how to dance and stay with the song.

in the middle of their dance, tipsy bobby came up to the pair with the rest of the guys. “y/n have you seen don’s talent?” he asked, their eyebrows furrowed and they raised one while looking at don. “talent? no i haven’t heard nor seen.” they answered cautiously. “really? give me a sec.” he excused himself and ran to the stage.

“don’t embarrass me.” he said to his teammates, his hand gripping y/n’s. they laughed at the sight, squeezing his hand in a reassuring way. soon bobby made a speech and the guys dragged don over to the piano. a smile rested on y/n’s face and they watched as they forcefully sat him down at the piano.

the boys returned to y/n, nudging them jokingly but paying attention to don. he played and y/n’s smile grew, that’s how he knew how to dance or follow a rhythm.

in awe, they listened to him play and watched him relax. they joined the crowd in singing and dancing, moving around with bobby and taking glances at don. it was short, but he got up with a nervous small grin. don’s eyes met y/n’s as they beamed and clapped; and he bowed, to be polite but just for them.

everyone calmed and it was like the man couldn’t get off the stage fast enough, thanking the people he passed and they nudged or slapped his shoulders. he politely brushed off the girls who flirted or whoever’s looks lingered too long. he just wanted to return to y/n.

once he did, it was like he was safe. “you get more amazing everyday, don hume. did you know that? and even more attractive.” they complimented. his face got red and he smiled, “thank you.” he accepted.

something gave don the courage to make a move he’d never expect to make. whether it was the slight alcohol, adrenaline rush of the attention, or the urge to make a move forever; he didn’t care, he was thankful regardless.

don gently held their face and brought them to a kiss. they melted into it and returned the action. cheering from don’s mates and people around them made them both go red. they pulled back with beaming smiles; what a night to remember.

— j note. i hope you enjoyed! i don’t have any dividers yet i just don’t feel the urge to find or use any so if it’s sloppy formatting just tell me to get some. but i hope this didn’t feel rushed or too much- it’s been a while since i’ve written something.

#don hume x reader #don hume x gn!reader #don hume #jack mulhern #boys in the boat x reader #x reader #the boys in the boat #boys in the boat #j’s imagines

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trickstarbrave · 9 months

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sketched up some voryn outfits.... idk why he was much harder to wrap my brain around. i feel like a lot of his outfits would be similar so thinking up new silhouettes was hard. adding on top of it general difficulties with morrowind outfit styles

outfit inspo explained

high fashion inspired. i thought it looked cool and alien. this one is based heavily i believe on a christian dior opera coat [link here]

i wanted to think of a more cold weather or skyrim inspired piece... maybe what he wears when working with ysmir wulfharth??? or maybe traveling in skyrim or solstheim. big fur trimmed cape is a must

i tried to go with a delicate floral theme with lots of layers. dunno how successful i was in the sketch it might make more sense in a big version

tits out dagoth ur inspired outfit. ft a long flowing skirt

smth more casual, maybe for travel in colder weather like up in the ashlands

im not sure. ngl. i just wanted very loose flowing robes. this one feels the least morrowind to me but i do like the long draping

perhaps a battlemage outfit? theres armor over heavy robes here and emblazoned with the deal of house dagoth.

longer robes that def seem ceremonial. maybe for important meetings or ceremonial events. once again tits out bc i think voryn deserves it (i mean have you SEEN what he was wearing in that volcano???)

#dagoth ur #voryn dagoth #morrowind #tesblr #the elder scrolls #fashion #my art

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chiangyorange · 3 months

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You ever think about how Isles added a. Checks notes. Goddess of flow. Because I think about that.

thank fuck isles canonically is not a real realm that exists

nah but fr tho i DO actually have quite a few thoughts on how isles fits in to the overall narrative of mianite being such a strange offshoot compared to s1 and s2 read more if u want, i will say that its gonna get rambly and also im going to drop a few of my design notes about the isles gods specifically if that interests you

i have been piecing together lore via friends and the mianite wiki (which is a fucking dumpster fire for anyone that's trying to look for a specifics in lore but i digress) so not everything people may care about will feature in here (like the whole light/dark thing. gandus, she shadows, w/e im just focusing on the overall story. sorry but there is only so much i can handle atm) i DO actually think that isles is really interesting despite my initial dislike for it towards the end (yes yes ik but i can admit that i was a little. too indulgent of myself at the time) ANYWAY i think isles was some sort of like... fucked up puzzle box reality???? of the s1 world because there are just SO many references to s1 like ianites heart being stolen and dianite slowly becoming more demon-like and all those theories way back when of isles really being s-1 like its a prequel of s1 world which i think its semi true?? basically my thoughts are; isles is an offshoot mimic world intended to emulate the life of the s1 gods in their youth for whatever reason, and in their timeloop is trying to create a trap? a new world? essentially perfect the mannerisms and legitimacy of a real realm like the realm of mianite and the realm of ruxomar. why tom n jordan got pulled into it interrupting the timeloop for a moment, who knows. (also in reflection? thats so fucked up and rude to karl like king is trapped in a timeloop for no goddamn reason) the 4th god is weird tho and i hated every minute of it stop trying to make trio into 4 challenge (impossible, apparently) i choose to believe that the 4th god thing only happened because of fucked up timeloop interruption consequence ONTO MY DESIGN NOTES

so. you probably noticed that their hands have visible joints like a doll or a marionette puppet. that is entirely intentional bc i legit think the isles gods are not real and instead constructs made with to have god-like powers. (shameless plug to the og post here if you wanna see every design ive made of the gods layed out all at once)

each design is supposed to be just a little uncanny like with all of them having pupils compared to the s1 and s2 gods who i draw them without. their smiles are a little too wide to match with their eyes. the green and red of ianite and dianite's eyes are a little too bright and noxious. overall i really wanted them to look as unsettling as possible if you imagine them limp and slumped over like a broken doll and theyre all dressed in something that is a little too perfect you know? like mianite looks like a friend you meet in the town square, ianite looks like a damsel princess, dianite is a handsome prince, like theyre all dressed a little too royal from a classic fairytale-- theyre too good to be true.

augh i think i have more to say but theres already so much in this one post that ill save it for another time

#i have cannot shut the fuck up disease #mianite #chiangy answers

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sunsafewriting · 1 year

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Hey :). I was hoping that maybe you would have some nuggets of wisdom regarding story pacing and plot. Everything you published on ao3 is so well paced and worded in such a way that the reader can vividly picture every scene. Sooo.. question: how do you plan out the plot of a story? And when you don't necessarily have a plot, how do you make sure that the scenes you want to write are well-connected/paced within the bigger narrative?

Anyways, I hope you have a great day. And answer or not, I will keep enjoying your work just the same.

hey mate! thanks for thinking of me but you have actually come to a terrible place for pacing advice bc that is definitely the part of writing that i struggle with most lol . but i shall tell you how I cope and hopefully some of that helps you (?)

basically I cannot plan to save my life. fic or original writing --- if I set out to outline, I come up with bad ideas and stress myself out of even starting. all the stories I plan are MUCH worse than the ones I don't. for some writers planning works great and if that's you that's awesome!!! but I am doomed to walk another path

what I do instead of planning a story is think about what I (me, personally, bc I write fic from a place of indulgence) WANT out of it. like, what's the stuff I wanna see? to me, the essential aspect of pacing is making that stuff feel important and worth it and earned. it has to have emotional weight or it won't be what I'm after .

that's also how I try to make scenes are connected; they're all focused around a general Vibe or Feeling I want to construct.

for example, in Do A Flip, what I wanted was all of them getting to become a family. and so I worked backwards from that --- what are the steps within steps within steps that lead them there? what little aspects can we put together to create that kind of image?

for pacing it's also handy sometimes to ask what the best bit about NOT being where you're aiming for yet is. like, what is worth lingering on and enjoying that isn't the end goal? what fun thing can you only have at THIS moment of the story, rather than later? it makes each part more fun to write .

I started with a much shorter version of the fic (14k) where I wrote a shoddy draft of the whole thing from Diego's pov, and then I went back and added a ton more pieces.

that's also something I use to help myself out (and because personally I love to write this way) --- I write in pieces.

this improves my pacing, because then I'm not having to constantly consider the whole structure. instead, I'm thinking about what the point of an individual fragment is --- what am I showing in this scene, and what does it mean? often it's just something small (like I want to show that Beatrice is comfortable with Ava holding her hand, or that Lilith tries to be friendly to Diego) but I function much better with a hundred bite sized pieces than a massive whole.

in these piece-style stories, I rely on the reader drawing connections between different parts and inferring rather than a smooth flow. it's just something I enjoy as a narrative form --- I like gaps and spaces where you figure bits out yourself.

I also rearrange a ton. scenes get cut and pasted to be in a new spot all the time bc I realise as I go that they could be tweaked and fit better somewhere else. when I'm writing, I also often just leave a break and write SCENE, and then jump on to the next one --- like I don't know how I'm going to fill it in yet, but I know I need something to separate out two more similar bits, or a different POV, or to slow down before X Event happens. half the time I have no idea where a chapter is going until the first version is almost done.

the other thing about pacing for me is that devastatingly I rely heavily on rewriting, editing, and cutting beloved scenes that don't super gel. chapters take SO long to come out bc I rewrite them 2-4 times. a lot of better (and less highly strung) writers don't need to do that much so please don't feel like it's necessary but it's definitely necessary for me bc without it my work would be a total shambles lmao. I also find the promise of rewriting means I'm less likely to freeze up or stare at a blank page because I will go back and improve/tidy up later.

I also think paying attention when you feel pretty meh about something is helpful for pacing. for example, I wrote a 6k version of chapter 3 of Favourable Conditions where a lot more happened, but I didn't like it. I got my girlfriend to read it and she said "the whole first part feels like you're racing to get to the second part, and then it all settles down". and she was totally right --- I had a scene I was excited to get to so I gunned it, but the overall feeling of the chapter suffered as a result. I split the chapter in half and then rewrote the whole first half as a chapter in its own right, and decided to focus on what fun stuff I could do there, rather than just skipping through to get to the rest. I ended up adding scenes that were the ones people in the comments liked most. I also ultimately decided to change the next few plot beats afterwards, based on how that went.

I would also say that generally speaking, not a lot happens in my stories. like, I go for smaller stakes and smaller actions that slowly add up --- mostly bc I'm writing very chilled out stuff. but if you're trying to build a character to the point of doing something drastic, it's a different ballgame to escalating them to some minor change. both are super doable, you've just got to keep in mind what you're aiming for. I like minor stakes because I enjoy trying to make small things like washing dishes or going to the park matter. it's also just the vibe of where I'm at right now --- previously I've written things that were a LOT more dramatic.

if you're really struggling, I would also suggest starting with writing something short. your blog is blank so I couldn't tell what kind of writing you might be interested in, but it's much easier to tweak and change and judge these things if you're working in a smaller area --- like a 2-4k oneshot --- than if you sit down to write 80k. I literally never sit down to write 80k of fic I just accidentally end up doing it lmao.

I hope some of that is vaguely useful? I don't have a lot of wisdom to dispense bc as you can see most of my process is crutches for getting around having no natural sense of pacing. if you have any more specific questions about pacing a particular scene or idea I might be able to help more?

but good luck! 💛

#thanks for the ask!#hopefully some of this helps #hit me up if you have any other questions and i will do my best :D but yeah i struggle a bit with the broader questions

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prettyboykatsuki · 8 months

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the thing i love about following you on here is you genuinely have gotten me to read further outside of my comfort zone bc i trust your intention and the payoff. so i always go into ur new stuff with eyes wide open arms outstretched kink-wise bc u tag so well and are so communicative. that being said i am currently just basking in the the undercurrent of warmth your writing always like consistently has. the bits of fondness/pride and mutual respect oliver has during the hookup and vice versa.

i like how non-stressful and reciprocal this little peek into a casual (dare i say functional? lmao /j) dynamic is bc sometimes its just a steady flow of comfort in getting out of your head and doin' what grown folks do. like what i think i love the most about this piece is how you punctuated the entire scene with easy physical reassurance (cupping a cheek, kissing a jaw, interlacing fingers) it's a lil sweet which isnt a word i would ever think to apply to mr aiku. i'm currently fighting demons where this man is concerned: ive been idly wondering what he'd be like coaxing someone into subspace so the gentle approach in this fic rlly had me on the ropes ngl. will need 2-3 business days to recover.

ty for the food. adding it to my mind-palace and mental whiteboard xoxo ur resident oliver gremlin

this is so nice im about to throw up. that's so huge to me! thats always the goal!! i know this feeling very well and how sometimes it can feel like a trustfall trying to broach subjects u dont really write and i always hope to write the nuance so reading this just made me so !!! tagging and letting people read at their comfort level is sooo very meaningful this made me so happy..... crying and throwing up

NONSTRESSFUL AND RECIPROCAL!! it is pretty functinal for these two i wont lie to u. i really wanted to empahsize that the both of them are happy in their situation! like no one is suffering and nothing about them is fucked up - they just have sex and hang out. but doing that in even small way means u trust someone and that matters u know!!!

mr. aiku can be sooo very sweet and i will not hear otherwise okay..........also i would love to write a subspace thing for him but truthfully that fic would get emotionall raw for the both of them in a diff way akjfdkjsd.

TY FOR READING AND BEING SO KIND TO ME MY BELOVED

#return to sender #hall of fame #it means a lot of me that people can use my work to safely explore themselves and their sexuality #like really #i love recieving comments like 'ive never been into this but MAYBE?' cause it means ive written something approachable for everyone #and thats rlly neat

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scribefindegil · 9 months

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22, 24, 29, and 58 for the writing asks?

22. Are there certain types of writing you won’t do? (style, pov, genre, tropes, etc)

I will never write a long-form tragedy. Can't do it. It would get inside my head and eat me alive.

Other than that . . . I have fewer hard rules and more preferences. I have my niche but I'm open to a lot of things if I find the right story for it. Like, I'm 99% a genfic writer and have very minimal interest in shipfic but one of these days I am gonna make Reigen Arataka smooch that ghost. There's a lot of horror content and tropes that I won't touch (though I can write more than I can read), but obviously Brassica Heresy is a horror fic. I don't care about smut but there is (theoretically) a fic I'm working on that has a sex scene because it's necessary for exploring the character's ace identity, something I do care about. So like . . . a lot of writing really comes down to the execution, and how the story element is being utilized in that particular piece of writing. I'm not necessarily going to throw any style or genre off the table entirely, even if it's not a tool I think I'm likely to use.

24. Worst writing advice anyone ever gave you?

Every version of "Think Critically About Your Writing" that spirals around to "You have to actively refute every possible bad-faith reading of your story in the text itself or you are a Bad Person who writes Problematic Things for Bad People" :/

29. What’s your revision or editing process like?

I do split-screen, with my Shitty First Draft on the left side of the screen and a shiny new blank document on the other, and then I completely rewrite the thing and edit as I go. Sometimes big chunks of the Shitty First Draft are actually very good and I retype them with only minor changes, but a lot of the time I end up adding and reworking huge parts of the fic. If I've been very cursed or ended up having to do first-draft-style writing for whole scenes or otherwise feel super unsatisfied with what I've written as Draft Two I sleep on it and if I still feel bad I copy the new version over the old draft and rewrite it again. But I can't rewrite more than twice; then I know I'll just start overthinking. And if I'm doing it more than once I need to pinpoint exactly what about the previous version wasn't working, as opposed to the first draft which I mostly treat like a helpful scaffolding. Once I have a draft I mostly like I read over it again for flow and diction and make any minor tweaks it needs. And then depending on how cursed I am I either post it or throw it at a friend while wailing bc I'm too tired to tell if it's any good or not. Usually it is Fine. I have not learned from this.

58. What part of the writing process do you enjoy the most? (Brainstorming, outlining, writing, editing, etc)

The best best best part of writing stories is when you've been wrestling with a thorny little plot or character problem for days and Suddenly the solution descends on you as if from the heavens and you feel absolutely intoxicated with power as you think about how this is going to make all the little bits and pieces you've been worrying about Work!

The second-best part is editing when you get to fine-tune the Foreshadowing and the Iconography :)

#memeses #thanks for the ask!

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theclosetedskeleton · 8 months

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please infodump about your damn skippy oc please i beg

YAHSHANXNABX YAYAYAYAY

okay here we go

I dont have an uhh actual name for the oc (yet), ill try to think about one soon. Anyways

He's (obv referring to my damn skippy oc) energetic and constantly moving around the place. Damn skippy oc try to sit still in one place (failed INSTANTLY).

+ "Naturally curious (Good example for this idea would be the song "rainwater") and lives in their daydreams" kinda person. (When robots attack) (ik theres the line 'how i wish this was just a dream' in when robots attack, but I imagine the scenario wasnt a "daydream" he has and moreso of an actual dream that feels real.)

[going back to the last part, I imagine the entire damn skippy album is just the oc going on these silly tangents abt their life + daydreams (maybe minus "ode to crayola", as I already have a diff oc for that song alone)]

Pronouns - He/they (Was originally gonna go with he/him but i like the concept of "he/they DS oc better)

Physical features !!!

DS has these swirls in their eyes, like the back of the album cover. Confession - Every now and then i think the pinkish color makes him look high but then i add the blue and im like "nuh uh" HWKAN 😭

They also have these star pupils, I added the idea when i first designed the oc back in jan-feb time period. Btw these features arent like contact lenses those are his actual eyes :3 I imagine my DS oc to be like... 80% human and the 20% is uhhh I dont know that answer

Along with this, theres like this ink or whatever that seeps from his eyes. Theyre not tears or anything, no matter what they do to remove the ink it just comes back eventually, but the ink only gets down to a certain point to where it just stops flowing.

small features !!! he wears a lot of stickers on their face, mainly because the stickers are really cool

LOTS of kandi bracelets/wrist bands/spiked bracelets. There probably was a time where he was a scene kid, and they still take inspiration from that 2000s/2010s scene time period.

[side note!!! this doesnt relate with my oc 100% but

on the topic of the kandi bracelets part, DS makes a lot of kandi bracelets for HTTJB (another oc based on a LD album) (The hip to the javabean oc isnt my oc, its @shrimpmcbites 's). Occasionally DS will just give HTTJB a new kandi bracelet for no apparent reason. ]

LOTS OF COLOR !!!!!!!! DS constantly wears so many things dealing with color and bright things, like as if those saturated bright colorful photos were a person.

DS IS TRANS!!!!!! trans ftm to be specific. fuck making all my characters different.... i WILL project on every one of them

(on a specific note, DS hasnt gotten any sort of medical transition like HRT or top/bottom surgery)

Projecting on my oc once more !!!! but fuck i dont care - DS is aroace and queerplatonic !!!! + DS is also in a qpr W/HTTJB because me and @shrimpmcbites said so muahaha (we are both projecting...)

(Geeks is love is abt them !!!!! the line "I don't think they'll ever get the groovy standards that we set for love" fits oh so perfectly with the fact the DS and HTTJB oc's are in a qpr)

Okay now for a bit of silly facts

Favorite drink - Tea !!! of any kind !!!! or maybe koolaid or the type of water drinks where you pour the syrup of a flavor in water and you get juice if yk what im talking abt

Favorite food - I imagine DS to really like smores. especially the ones with too much extra stuff and too many marshmellows and chocolate

Favorite type of music - anything DS can dance to. or just move around to. He doesn't really like sad songs.

Favorite color -Probably all of them but mainly the really saturated BRIGHT colors

Hobbies -

Dancing (not really good at it, + is not a professional, they just do it bc he NEEDS a way to channel all of the internal energy they have.),

Reading (only comic/graphic novels, anything else and he just loses attention)

KANDI - They has SO. MANY. KANDI. STUFF. AT HOME. probably even a few pieces of kandi clothing because of all of the extra time they have on his hands.

Video games - Esp those really retro ones, but he'll play almost any video game that goes in their hands

HOLY SHIT THIS POST IS SO LONG. idk what else to add but if anyone reads this till the end and has any input about the oc send me an ask about it because my DS oc (and @shrimpmcbites 's HTTJB oc) has been CLAWING at my brain and i need people to talk to me about them

#closet rambles again on tumblr #oc info #Damn skippy #Lemon demon #Lemon demon oc

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talkingismylifewrites · 6 months

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Hello I hope you are doing well. Forgive me if this ask is inappropriate. I am not a writer and I can't beging to comprehend the amount of effort that goes into creating piece of work. This is about #dyldyl. I understand you have written some of chapter 8. Would you consider publishing it even if "unfinished"? Again please do forgive this request if offensive and/or out of place. I absolutely love your writing and that story

Hi!! So not offensive not at all!! I know it’s been almost four years (oof) and I’ve been promising an update for a while but I’m still working away at it.

Dyldyl is a labor of love and while it doesn’t have to be perfect I wouldn’t be able to just post it unfinished. Part of the reason as to why the chapters are so long is bc there’s things that need to be added for each of them to work. The honeymoon HAS to end at a specific point for chapter nine to even start working.

Maybe it’s crazy or maybe I’m just weird like that but the honeymoon has a specific ending that I need to get to bc chapter nine has to begin at a certain point. Otherwise the story won’t flow and it wouldn’t make sense. I joke that each of the chapters are acts in a play, but it’s lowkey true. Chapters 1-3 (Roger’s POV and the aftermath of the accident) all fit together bc that’s their leg of the story. Chapters 4-7 (John’s POV) fit together as they are their own leg of the story. Chapters 8-10 are likewise their own section and their own act that will cover and wrap up the story.

For chapter 5, I think that was the one I cut simply because it was going to be waaaaay over the word count and also bc it just needed to come to an end. I think lo and I debated for daaaays about where to cut it, what needed to be in the first half and what in the second, how to keep it going, etc. I also got about 1/3 written (~10k) before realizing I was taking it in a direction that it couldn’t continue down so I had to completely start over. It ended up clocking in at 52k (give or take) which is lowkey mad.

All this is a long winded way of saying that I couldn’t just post where I’m at now because it would genuinely ruin the story. It’s not finished, but it is close. I think there are maybe 5-10k left, if I follow the story as it’s telling me. That would put us at about 45k for the chapter. 50k+ is considered a novel. In total, I estimate dyldyl when completed will be about 400,000 words (that’s if the final two chapters are both 45k. Most likely they’ll be shorter but I also said dyldyl was a four chapter max story) . For reference, Gone With The Wind, considered to be a beheamouth of a novel and so long that the film had to have an intermission, was 418,053 words. (At its current stand point, dyldyl is 267,931 words long, which make its longer than the order of the phoenix and crime and punishment.)

Basically, I know it’s been a long time coming. I know that I’ve been promising a new chapter since 2021. But at the same time…it’s a lot. It’s a lot of work and a lot of brain capacity and time and dedication. But I’m still working on it!! But it’s hard. And when you consider I’ve literally written more than a Harry Potter novel and STILL have more to go?? Well I hope it make sense as to why it’s taken me so long.

I hope this didn’t come off bitchy or snarky, that’s so not my intent! I hope instead this sheds a little more light on a) why I can’t/won’t post it unfinished and b) why it’s taken so long!

Thanks for reading 💛

#dyldyl #caro talks #anonymous asks

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plasma-packin-mama · 11 months

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💕 self-love time! talk about which ones of YOUR creations (edits, artworks, fanfics) you like the most then send to other creators to do the same 💕

AWWW hi Astra, thank you!!

Hmm I feel like a lot of times as of late, I'm already a bit unsatisfied with my works as soon as I've finished them. It's a good thing because it means I'm learning, but not the best feeling anyway. I think it's an important skill as an artist to learn to love your works even if you see flaws with them, because there's always some element to appreciate, and creation in itself is beautiful. Here's some things from this blog that I still like:

Of course I have to put my comic here. I'm not too happy with a lot of the art in it to be completely honest, but I know that I worked very hard on it, and it was a big step for me to put something so personal out for others to see for the first time. I'm generally very private about my identity, so I was very nervous to broadcast something that talked so directly about that subject, even if it was actually about Delilah's story. (I've never tried to hide the fact that I put a lot of myself into Delilah lol) I still go back and reread the feedback I got on that comic sometimes because it makes me so happy to see others connecting with and feeling "seen" by my work. I never expected so much kindness. I think the reception of this comic is stored forever in my brain like one of the Core Memories from Inside Out. Thank you so much to everyone who left me feedback of any kind on that work, because I'm sure it means more to me than you really expected.

This is from very early in my blog when I first met @/thebigolbee and I worked SO hard on it because I felt so lucky that such a great and popular artist like Bee was doing an art trade with me! 😭😭 About nine months later I think we draw each other's OCS about as much as we draw our own- so I guess it worked out lol! I spent a long time on the line art for this one and I think it turned out really nice :)

I'm very proud of the background in this drawing, and I think the characters came out cute as well even though they're just a doodle. I get lazy with backgrounds most of the time so it was a good exercise. It was fun to work on!!!

This was a drawing I did when I was really struggling with art, I tried to loosen up (the hardest thing ever for me lol) and just go with the flow and honestly, even though it's nothing too special I still just really enjoy something about it!!! It's fun I think! (I have to draw Delilah during that period of their life more...)

ACK. This Frankenstein drawing that I picked at for so long and eventually just didn't finish the background for. I really love the characters and the mood of the piece, even though i intended to add much more detail to the room they're in. I think sometimes it's ok to leave things "unfinished" instead of just agonizing over it and never letting it see the light of day.

Valentine's drawing. It really surprised me how this became one of my most popular posts because I didn't really expect anyone to notice it!!! I drew it 1000% for myself, because happy sparkly characters being happy together are my favorite to draw. But apparently everyone else also likes that! A good lesson. (Maybe it was just bc everyone loves Ms. Rae Jepsen's musical stylings as much as me...)

I'm really proud of all the art that I did for high fantasy au, but this one especially because I worked very hard with my markers and I feel like it came out well!! I'm really awful at utilizing color in an interesting way-- I get nervous about ruining stuff by adding the wrong color the wrong place, but I think I did really well this time!!

I think that's enough!! It was really nice to look back at all my old works - I was actually surprised by how many things I still like despite their age!!! I do feel very positive after writing this post, so thank you for sending this along to me Astra!! :] I encourage everyone to do this, really go through your works and think about what you've learned from each one and why it's still nice!!

#peepie art #<- if u want to browse ALL my posts hehe #ask #thedorkyastra

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thefactsofthematter · 5 months

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helloo, sorry to bother you, but do you mayhaps have any tips on writing long fics (or fics in general)?

I am just starting out and you have been my favourite fanfic author for so many years atp, and even if I'm not as active in the newsies fandom anymore whenever I think of my favourite fanfictions I think of yours 😭😭😭

sorry if this is already cheesy, but I'm adding onto it by saying that one time I showed my sibling your pfp and they loved it so much they have it as their Whatsapp avatar 😭😭😭

hope you have a great day!!

awe i appreciate this so much! my biggest piece of advice for long fics would be to never post a first chapter unless you know how the story ends — you don’t need it written ofc, and you don’t need every element of the plot planned out, but you have to know what you’re working towards!

i have some fics sitting unfinished on my ao3, and it’s generally bc i wrote up to a point and then didn’t know where to go; i started without an ending in mind and got lost. my finished, chaptered fics have a common theme in that from the beginning, i had at least a general idea of the end! i really do think you need a roadmap to put together a coherent story.

for the cake fic, i knew they’d have an argument right before the wedding, which would turn into them getting together for real. for too many colours, i knew we’d see jack and davey together at pride, with both of them finally comfortable in their skin. the olympics fic was my most structured — i knew jack would fuck up his semifinal, get together with davey after it, then davey would win bronze and jack would get his gold, and they’d get engaged at the next olympics.

i don’t plan my fics chapter-by-chapter (which is why they get so long lol), i just go with the flow of “what do i think this character would do next” for however many words i’ve decided the chapters for that story are (~4k is a safe bet) and let things shake out from there… always with the end goal and some key plot points i want to hit in mind, and sometimes twists and turns surprise me as they come up! no point in running without a finish line, but you can always take a detour on the way 😁

#i hope this helps!!!

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maridotnet · 2 years

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Hi!! I was just thinking about your Very Sad piece for day 23 and wondering about your drawing process, particularly because of the complexity of the water - do you sketch in pencil first? If you have the chance and feel comfortable, do you think you could share a couple of in progress shots of your beautiful art? <3

ARGHRHGH okay i had MOST of this answered and then my page suddenly crashed, so I'm very frustrated, but I'm DETERMINED to type it all up again! First of all thank you for the ask! :D I don't usually take very many in-process photos, although I might do that for today's so I can give you a better look. :) For this piece, I started off filming myself dragging around a body pillow as reference footage for the pose. Meet Chat Noir!

(My room's a mess because I still haven't finished unpacking, don't mind it lol) If the poses I want are very simple, or don't interact with each other, or I've drawn similar ones, I don't always need a reference. In most cases though, I'll either spend some time on Google Images or photograph myself to help. I went through my footage and found some frames that I liked, and sketched some of them out in a different sketchbook. It's bigger and I like using it for planning and reference practice. Here's that page!

Because I draw with traditional media, and I'm trying to do all of these pictures back to back in one sketchbook, I try to plan it out in a fair amount of detail before starting on the actual page. Once I get going, it can be tricky to shift things around, especially because I always sketch in colored pencil. (I think it looks nice, it's not as messy as graphite, and it also has a subtle bearing on the mood of the final piece. This one is a dark blue-green because I wanted it to look really waterlogged, but I've used pink, purple, or yellow for a lot of Marichats so far.) The pose here was something I put a lot of thought into because I wanted it to be close enough to show how protective and intense Marinette was, but also with enough distance that I could clearly show the strain on her body and his weight in her arms. The story is also important to all of this, especially in the sketching stage. I knew Chat would be floating partially, so that would affect his weight. I knew Marinette had been looking for him for a while, so her hair was plastered to her face - and she'd gone out in a hurry, so her raincoat was unbuttoned. Chat had been slumped in an alleyway for a while as the rain fell, so the blood was diluted and darkened. etc etc I picked the Place des Vosges for the background because a) it was simple b) trees and fences are pretty easy to wreak havoc on! (this is so long sorry) I sketched the people first, to make sure the pose fit into the frame, then added in some background markers, and a few directional lines to remind me of the water flow direction (I knew I wanted her fighting against the current to bring him home). I lined the people first too, leaving out the pupils and mouths til later, because those are the main indicators of emotion, and I wanted to make sure they would still work if the mood of the piece shifted. From there I lined the people in ink, added more detail to the background sketch to make sure it fit around them well and was still clearly readable, and then inked that. For the water...idk what to tell you, I was winging it which is funny because that's the part everyone's commented on the most sdflkjdf I did use some references (I googled like, "water moving past rocks") to see how water responds to obstacles, but water is really difficult to draw, so I just kinda...wung it and tried to create something genre-appropriate! I steered clear of realism bc I knew I wouldn't be able to pull it off very convincingly and would get bogged down in all the deatil it's possible to include. (@davey-in-a-minivan of the very big brain pointed out that the water looks like peacock feathers) After that, I think I lightly colored the people first, then the background, so I could keep a handle on how they affected each other. Again, the story is important here too, because it makes the clothes shiny, and darker if they're absorbent, and the water darker and with more debris because of the turbulence. I do have a picture I sent to a friend part way through:

After that, I just kept going until I was happy! I like dramatic shading, so I added in a bit more as I went, but because light on a foggy day is pretty diffused, I didn't do as much as usual with that. I added more detail to the trees and sky behind because it didn't fit well with the rest of the piece, and eventually I got here!

And voila!! I hope that offers some insight hahaha - thanks again for the ask :))) (I might take more progress pictures of today's project for the future)

#viv talks #ask #lad-bug-and-chad-noir #mari.net art #art process

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salemoleander · 1 year

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VERY interested in creator commentary for the 3rd life webweave (seriously one of the coolest things ive seen made in this fandom, its gorgeously edited AND very funny AND the quotes themselves are all knock-your-socks off material. That Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Line Holy Shit)

Okay so first off THANK YOU that's super kind! It's nerve-wracking posting graphic design that is reconstituted from other sources, bc I've seen it perceived as a 'lazy' or unskilled format, so this is really really encouraging to hear.

I am not a concise person, which is why this has taken so long! I realized as I was initially responding that I was trying to dive into three separate topics:

The actual process I follow, my tips + tricks on making web weaves

Analysis of my 3rd Life web weave

My philosophy towards web weaves and collage as an art form

Only one of those is the question you actually asked, so #2 is what I'll be talking about in this post! However, I am working on a video overview of the other topics, because I think they're worth exploring - I will obviously post that on this blog once it's done.

To avoid jumpscaring anyone with a wall of text, I've thrown my commentary under a readmore.

The one takeaway I'll mention before we dive in is if anyone has a character/narrative web weave request, please hit me up! I have so many I'm working on, having a next topic suggestion is super helpful to narrow things down.

General Creation Comments

I am At All Times collecting images, so it's only a matter of time until I make a webweave for a group/ concept/ person:

(My phone storage is Certainly being utilized. Also I will never be free of making these.)

It just so happened that my Third Life folder filled up fastest/ felt like it was in a good balance to work with, so that's what I started with!

I try to use a mix of text and images, and both serious and funny stuff. Even at its most serious the Life Series is also funny, and it's important to reflect that!

That said, if you compare the jokes I've picked in this piece vs the void falling web weave, you'll notice the jokes on this one trend sharper. The 'How to Detect Misery' and 'How to Tell if it's Over' memes (both from @thatsbelievable, who is a GREAT source of web weave content) are morbidly funny. Surviving horrific circumstances, preparing to suffer, unimaginable violence, eroticism and death, covered in blood - all of the jokes are violent.

As I go, I weed out posts that don't fit, or (mostly) prune text posts out. Too much text ruins the flow, and I LOVE words so I tend to have too much writing and not enough art.

3rd life had only a few things that didn't make the cut, bc I was fairly judicious as I added to that folder, but these were scrapped:

As I added the posts I knew I wanted and split them between panels, I naturally started seeing a 'flow' from early game biomes/bases and the more tender pairings, into violence + devotion, and then ending in.. something. I wasn't sure what I wanted the end to be yet.

I ran out of posts, and knew I needed Wayyy more images to offset the text, so I went looking through the Smithsonian's excellent collection of CC0-licensed art!

That's where I found the Perfect Image - that last picture of the red angel laid low. I knew immediately that it needed to be most of the final scene, with very little obscuring or distracting from it.

Okay, diving into specific panel analysis!

Panel One

It's the beginning, so everything is still fairly light - lots of brown and green tones.

The summary (imo) is that every faction in 3rd Life is in different stories!

Grian and Scar are playing cowboys, an old Western style narrative where they're beholden to each other, out to get the Bad Guys (even if objectively they're the ones being violent little instigators).

Flower Husbands are a greek fucking tragedy, Jimmy's sudden loss and Scott in mourning, trying to cause as much destruction as possible before the gods knock him down too.

Dogwarts are a middle English story of fealty and homosocial bonds and dying for honor.

And the Crastle is like. Shakespeare or Arthur Miller or Stoppard. They are in a theater, they are playing with all of the narratives. Too aware of the trajectory they're on, and entirely unable to stop it.

The images on the first page are the four primary pairings in 3rd Life - top left, in the background of the 'How to Detect Misery' meme, is the desert. The sudden punchline of that meme felt like a good starting point - a creeper-blast of a joke.

The pair to the right represent Scott and Jimmy. I liked the Impressionist and classic myth-inspired stylization. Also, the toga blended near-seamlessly into the desert hill so it looked almost like a wing, implying a tie to angels as well as foreshadowing Jimmy's death AND Scott's partnership with Grian/Scar.

Up in the top right-hand corner is a little Crastle, and the pair embracing on the right side of the page are Bdubs and Cleo. The red hair fit, but it was the old-fashioned clothing and sense of finality that I really liked.

On the left is Dogwarts - Ren and Martyn. I wanted an image that had a very different style, as they were opposed to desert duo + everyone else. I felt the sketchy ink stood out and elicited ideas of worn vellum paper. It felt like a sketch you'd discover sitting in a chest of a long-worn-down enchanting room.

There's a forest and a mostly-occluded castle in the background art on page one, also meant to represent Dogwarts. That forest bleeds into the next page, where the violence really begins.

Panel Two

We've started with a forest, but it's darker than the last one, and wilder.

Bursts of red stand out violently on the page.

'Fallen Angel' is a classic for emotionally fraught blorboposting! There are many, Many Mountain Goats songs that fit, but the way a-doctor-not-a-fangirl paired this line with this painting was striking to me. In particular, I like how 'getting revenge' was something that drove most of 3rd Life, even though Red Lives (come unhinged) were meant to be the driving force of violence. They weren't supposed to have bonds, they weren't supposed to have allies! But it's the bonds that drove the violence.

The 'I heart eroticism and death' cut-out plopped onto the collage was intended to feel like a kind of cheesy tourist stamp - 'I killed my friends in horrible death games and all I got was this lousy t-shirt' vibes.

The 'First off' comment feels like the illogical thought proces all of the doomed players (so, all of the players) were following - "if I just do well enough at murder, this will all be over."

The 'moments of grace' image is probably my most indulgent addition. I wanted a softer, quiet nod to the good parts, to the fun and the joy in between the violence. In particular, the dawn breaking on waves reminded me of the short span Grian and Scar spent tensely placing TNT under sand in the desert. I imagine silent cooperation and the sussuration of sand on sand, and quiet for just a few minutes.

'It's better to know how to let others unmask you and to endure the rule of the game' means: if you are too good, if you survive long enough, you will end up alone. This is about Bdubs and Cleo - kings of roleplay, of being a little overeager and dying for it and getting a mercifully quick ending. It is also about the cactus ring.

Panel Three

The centerpiece of this page is 'G-d's Idea', the beautiful abstract painting of a blood-soaked angel. It makes me insane every time I see it. Grim reaper in mourning kinda guy

I wanted to do something to tie more directly to the end, but didn't want to pull a disembodied-face-in-90s-grad-photo approach to add Scar. So I found a drawing that looked like the Monopoly Mountain build, and carefully added it onto one wing. I really really like this as an addition, it is probably my favorite combination in this post.

The Anne Carson quote is obvs in Minecraft font - I also split up the lines, so that the left and right side loosely create their own sentences/ideas. "There is a theory that watching other people is good for you" and "Unbearable stories may cleanse you of your darkness." I wish I had been more careful with the contrast on 'yourself all', but oh well, we can just call it being difficult to read an experiential facet of the poem.

"Do you want to go down to the pits of yourself all alone?" is a good fucking line, and manages to mirror both the commentary on us the viewers AND the experience of the creators AND the experience of the characters. We get to experience violence vicariously, the creators get to experience it with friends + in safety, and the characters (or character, I should say, just Grian left by the time you're reading this) are experiencing that low point totally alone.

Aside from the obvious fit, the Rosencrantz + Guildenstern lines stand in as a conversation between the viewers and the characters. The appraising description of kiling and dying beautifully makes way for a mournful interruption that no, fuck that, this isn't a game for us (with some obvious irony there).

Finally, I needed it to end funny; the whole thing is already more serious than it probably should've been. I like this joke because it's short, and it implies the aftermath in a comedic way. Picturing everyone spawning back into Hermitcraft, covered in blood, upset, but mostly with a profoundly awkward sense of 'well I fucked that one up. That got a bit more homoerotic than intended, and now every other shopping trip I have to make awkward eye contact with the person I mcMurdered."

Again, thank you so much for your ask and kind words! I'm looking forward to making a general guide video on web weaves one of these days :D

#salem tag #salem chatter #3lsmp #3lsmp meta #i am going to go pass out but i hope some of this is what you were hoping to hear about lol #salem answer

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marieaqua · 1 year

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Inspired by a poll, I need to slam some words down about my thoughts and reasoning behind the possibilities of either the Armorer or the surface mandos being the spy from the title.

Reasoning for the Armorer-

The shots focusing on her going back up to the fleet, why would the film makers go out of their way to show that? The scene where she makes contact with the fleet specifically feels so similar to the scene in TCW when they load Maul onto the ship right before order 66. I can’t fully explain it but those two scenes connect in my brain. This shot can possibly be explained by the imperial bombers being sent in at the end of the episode, but where the shots are places in the episode makes me stray away from that explanation.

The fact that she was the only person of the group to leave before they went to the forge. This one is less of a point for me until I remember she’s THE Armorer. If any other character (besides Bo bc she’s leading) volunteered to take the injured back to the fleet I would think nothing about it bc it’s a decision that makes sense, but bc of who she is and how special the forge would be to her it makes me suspicious.

Her helmet and Moff Gideon’s helmet both having the Maul horns. Until now she’s been the only person with the Maul horns that Death Watch had in TCW (which already made me iffy about her bc she can reforge her helmet but chooses not to). Gideon has no connection to Maul or Death Watch so he would have no reasoning behind adding the horns to his helmet, unless it was in conjunction with someone who does have those things. This point is probably the least strong argument for me bc it’s possible that they aren’t Maul horns just horns in general. I’m still adding it tho bc it stands out to me that costuming spent the time to put horns on his helmet and that whoever approves the costumes let that go ahead knowing what the Armorer also looks like.

Din’s seeming lack of knowledge in Mando history. This one isn’t as direct as the rest, but even in this episode we see his lack of knowledge surrounding Mandalorian history. For a group that’s whole thing is following the ways of the old Mandalore it’s weird that so many times we see other characters (mainly Bo) telling him Mando history, ex. about the Darksaber, about Sundari, about the Living Waters. He seems to have a lacking understanding of his own history which seems wildly misaligned with what The Watch claims to follow and cherish. This leads me to believe that the Armorer could be withholding the history of their people as a means of control. We’ve seen her give Din information (like what the Jedi are, which would be important Mando history) only after it is necessary for a specific mission, when the information is something that he should have known to start with. This could be due to the show wanting to explain details about the universe to the audience without lore dumping, but the way it has been shown the past three seasons it feels like the Armorer is controlling the flow of information to The Watch and what pieces of their history they know.

When the surface people asked her if they were Death Watch she didn’t directly answer. She said that Death Watch split into multiple factions, which answers nothing. She could have just as easily said their origins were in Death Watch but that they split from them long ago. Or said that they weren’t Death Watch at all. It isn’t news to anyone there that Death Watch was gone and split up, just say yes or no and give explanation if you want. Their name is Children of the Watch (and in other languages are called Heirs of Death Watch), that pretty heavily implies a Death Watch connection that isn’t exactly dead yet. I don’t think the Watch as a whole is suspicious due to this, but The Armorer is the leader and as I’ve already said seems to control what the people under her have knowledge of.

Reasoning for the surface people-

You mean to tell me they didn’t see the imperial army on Mandalore? They’ve been on the surface the whole time and they didn’t see anything??

They knew where the forge was but not that it was an imperial base. They obviously have the new surface mapped out and know where the old cities are, so how would they know what’s under the surface without going down there themselves. This point can be explained by them having found the forge before Gideon took it over and then never returning since they first found it, but the forge is important to Mandalorians and is a shelter from the surface. Why wouldn’t they use it?

The fact that multiple of them are now with the fleet. Back again to those scenes of the Armorer taking them up. Those scenes feel like a warning; is the warning about them?

They’re the ones who led Bo’s group to the forge and into the trap in the first place.

#not putting this in the fandom tags #but damn I needed to word vomit that

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