Is it silly to start looking at gallifreyan with a language I don't speak? Yes. But I saw you had made the altered Sherman's and I just had to.

Guess where this is going? Now I just need to acquire some TARDIS blue yarn.

Kippah? Excellent! I'm so glad you're making use of my Gallifriyt! I hope your new yarmulke is the talk of the synagogue.

TW: SA, ABUSE

Someone said some victim blamer shit in my reblogs and that's an automatic no, but I needed to share... Because what the hell, man?

I got this reblog and I'm trying to keep my composure. This is probably going to be a rambling mess. I was just trying to make a fun little post about HuskerDust, but here we go!

I crossed out the name, because I don't know how old this person is and I don't know what their experiences are.

This will kind of go back and forth between Angel's situation and general information/experience. I think from what I've seen it won't resonate with everyone, but it is definitely within the realm of possibility and makes sense given his circumstances.

I also use the terms victim and survivor interchangeably as a fair warning.

I know there's been a lot of talk around victim blaming and this is blatant.

I'm aware this is a fictional character. I have, however, worked at multiple non-profits that focus on helping survivors of abuse and SA as well as being a victim myself. So, I am pissed beyond belief.

No one lets themselves be abused. Even in situations where someone resigns themselves to abuse, it is for their survival and safety. It is under duress and it is not someone letting themselves be abused. This person says Angel is doing an awful job saving himself, but in all reality he is attempting to keep himself as safe as he can in the environment he's in.

Husk isn't doing everything right and a relationship with the foundation of it being we both suck and we're both stuck in shitty situations isn't going to be stable, but as I said in my original post, he's telling Angel he's not alone. He's not doing that perfectly, but he's saying even if we can't fix everything I'll be here. He says we're in this together, respects that Angel doesn't want to be saved, and he takes the pressure off. He makes himself a safe place for Angel to vent and makes it clear that he enjoys being around him no matter what.

Trying to force someone can push them towards their abuser and isolate them further or put you and the victim in a lot of danger if you're untrained. Which is what happens in the episode when Charlie comes to the studio. Someone tried to help when he didn't ask for it and it ended badly, which just reaffirms that he cannot accept or ask for help without repercussion.

If you have someone close to you who is in an abusive situation and they don't want to leave for whatever reason, applying too much pressure can be counterproductive. If it is safe to do so (mentally and physically), be there for them. Try and keep the line of communication open so they have a life line if or when they're ready.

Angel is under contract, there has been a pattern of abuse for at least a decade, his self worth is extremely low, there are threats of violence against him and people he cares about and Valentino seemingly provided everything before Charlie and is still providing for his drug habits. That's not even getting into the intricacies of the fact he was trafficked, which makes things more complicated.

Aside from the magic piece of paper, these are real reasons people stay in abusive relationships.

My point is, this is uninformed and victim blaming. The amount of times I've heard from survivors all the reasons they didn't ask for help even though it was awful is too many to count. So many people come out of these situations after years and years and blame themselves for not getting help. It is never the fault of the person being hurt, it is always the fault of the person hurting them.

Angel is trying to save himself and is making steps forward. He's going to the hotel, distancing himself from Valentino and he's also trying to 'break himself' or make himself less appealing to his abuser. While that last one isn't good, he's not doing nothing. He is trying to use the resources he knows to stop the abuse.

Autonomy is very important in situations like this. Of course someone in this situation should ask for help, but if someone isn't ready it's not our place to decide that for them.

This struck a nerve obviously!

No one is a bad victim. We do not judge victims choices to ask for help or not ask for help. We do not imply any survivor of abuse lets it happen somehow.

Keep anything close to victim blaming off my blog. All and all, don't put these words in that order! Ever!

As someone who doesn’t fall within the LGBT part of the acronym I’m still more uncomfortable with queer as the umbrella because it feels like the last progressively acceptable way to be exclusionary. Obvs plenty of folks still judge whether ppl are gay/trans enough. But doing that is at least explicitly not acceptable in the spaces I wanna be in. Whereas it’s accepted and sometimes encouraged to criticize or even exclude ppl for not being queer enough (in theory a political call, in practice a judgement on identity and presentation). I do still use queer to signal correctly, but it does not sit well for that reason. Wish there was a third option w/no political history, but I know we’d just do this to whatever new term we came up with too

I mean, I think "I know we’d just do this to whatever new term we came up with too" kind of hits the nail on the head here.

This isn't something that happens because of the word, it's something that happens because of the people. The word itself is not inherently exclusive; in fact, it's explicitly all-inclusive. It's for anyone who falls outside of the relevant societal expectations, by definition, and there is no list or any further defining or qualifying that needs to be done.

The issue with "LGBT", and any variation thereof, is that it's a list. It starts with the letters people consider most important to start with (hence, "GL" becoming "LG"). Even if it didn't, it requires that we name every single kind of person who's welcome, individually, which inevitably leaves people out- or tells them that they aren't welcome on the terms of their more "niche" identities, but rather only if they happen to have a more visible and accepted one alongside it. (See: "straight asexuals aren't LGBT")

People can still act exclusionary regardless of word choice, but if the words they're using do not themselves reinforce or encourage that way of thinking and behaving, it's kind of ridiculous to pin the blame for that on the words. People are going to do that with any word we use- at some point we have to decide whether the fight should be in finding a new word each time they do it, or in getting them to stop behaving that way in the first place.

Also... I'm sorry you've experienced this, and I think it needs to be addressed. But speaking personally, that experience isn't universal. When folks have gatekept who "counts", in my personal experience, they've overwhelmingly been using "LGBT" (or just "LGB"). If they use "queer" at all, it's interchangeable with that and other terms. Again, not to say that your experience doesn't matter- it does- but so do other people's.

You don't need to use "queer" for yourself if you don't want to. You also don't need to use "LGBT" or any variation. But we're not talking about personal identification, either; this is about which word is most practically useful and effective in achieving our goals of maximum inclusivity and clarity.

Onward into High Hall!

I seem to recall being told that we'd have another chance to change up our party before the final fight, but I'm almost tempted not to. It feels like a nice bookend to have Lae'zel with Hector here at the end, just as she was at the beginning, especially given how their friendship has evolved over time.

There are a bunch of terrified civilians running everywhere. I particularly feel for this unfortunate one:

Who ran straight into the fire surface, set himself on fire, burned all the way through his six hit points, and died in front of us for no reason. :( Lots of dead Absolutists, mind flayers, and other civilians around here too.

Report from the climb up!

An absolutely bangin' and very dramatic soundtrack.

Some city watch folk who were pretty freaked out by Orpheus's presence but who Hector convinced to join them and help rather than fleeing.

A long-rest-in-a-box restoration chamber like we saw on the Nautiloid and in Moonrise.

Several dead ends which we have to get around by jumping around on pieces of shattered rampart.

More winged horrors. They're not very difficult to fight thankfully and everyone keeps one-hit-KO-ing them. The team is clearly so pumped full of adrenaline that they're even more of a battering ram than usual.

Fighting as Orpheus (he's attached to the party for now) is making me realize the benefits of going full worm; as a mind flayer he can use actions and bonus actions interchangeably, which is very cash money of him. His abilities, which are per turn with no other restrictions like spell slots that I can discern, are also insane:

Starting to think maybe the Emperor had a point. :P

Reaching the upper level courtyard of the Hall we start running into a lot more enemies.

Per @zenjestrr's advice, our current strategy is repeatedly summoning the more cannon-fodder-y Friendship Buff mobs to help clear the field; the main goal right now is to keep our primary party and our big heavy hitters (Aylin, Buddy, Yurgir, etc) in good shape for the final fight.

Once again the game manages to replicate a key D&D table experience - the feeling of knowing there's a big boss somewhere up ahead and trying to figure out how to ration your resources so you're not tapped out by the time you get there.

At least to begin with, the courtyard isn't too scary. As usual, Hector and Karlach are juggernauting away at the front line and Lae'zel is slotting in perfectly alongside them just like Minsc did. Team Single Target Damage is on the case.

Jaheira is holding down the backline and not looking as squishy as she used to which is also great. I'm wary of using her too much because most of her AOE and powerful stuff is all high level spells that I don't want to burn. I'm spending some of her actions on summoning our mobs of friends, which pleases me from an RP perspective because of the four of our team she is the hardened experienced fighter and I like the idea of her kind of directing the battle.

I'm probably playing a little TOO conservatively with my abilities here, actually, but I'd rather be too careful than not. I didn't use the long-rest-in-a-box before so there's also the possibility (I think) of running all the way back there and tapping it before we reach the brain, but I'm not sure.

It does amuse me that we keep getting gold and trash loot drops here because there is zero point to it anymore I think.

At first the courtyard seems like a bunch of small isolated fights, but as I have Hector start running towards an ogre near the center of the field, the WHOLE PLACE lights up in a battle with [counts rapidly] TWENTY-EIGHT ENEMIES, including the ogre, several mind flayers, and a spectator. FUCK.

Maybe time to start using those big spells after all, Jaheira.

This isn't quite as scary as it looks because we really are powerful as shit at this point. Hector continues to be completely terrifying, Karlach is too, Lae'zel has three attacks on a turn (or six with action surge), Jaheira can set out a Haste pool for everyone to run through, Orpheus's illithid skills are upsettingly good, and we have a LOT of friends who are (I hate to admit) expendable. But that bar full of enemies too big to fit on the screen is stressful.

Oh this is going to be very scary on Tactician though I bet.

One of Zevlor's Hellriders casts Flame Strike on a big crowd of goblins which I would be much more on board with if HECTOR WAS NOT DIRECTLY IN THE MIDDLE OF THEM. Flashbacks to the last time Hector being in the middle of a fireball was considered an acceptable cost; it wasn't much fun then either. He does manage the save though so this time he takes no damage because he is badass, and the Flame Strike kills five enemies, so...worth, I guess.

This battlefield is also ENORMOUS and difficult to maneuver on, lots of high ground and curbs that mess up pathfinding.

So exciting to see Zevlor back in his element again, having found his paladin conviction once more.

One of the Hellriders did get dominated by a mind flayer, which led to this upsetting exchange:

Eventually victory! Gods, what a long fight. But we actually did quite well; everyone except Hector still has some of the temporary hitpoints we got from Ravengard, and we didn't lose any of our guest combatants. :D (And the one that got dominated is back safe. <3 )

Onward!

Kinda the same energy as l**mi*****

you censoring it is so funny😭 (it's lesbian mlvn) but yeah i was gonna say, i was afraid it was too mean but it definitely has the same energy to me, especially the way it's being done these past few weeks. genderbending stuff has never been my thing not really i can be like imagine if they were boys/girls for five minutes for fun (i got an ask like that about jackieshauna recently) but what prompted this recent lesbyler movement is the whole you don't care about rovickie so you hate lesbians accusations...accusations that annoy me just as much as the next person i said so in june. but if the answer you have to "you don't care about lesbian ships" is "yes i do look i made the gays lesbians instead" then i'm very sorry but you made the accusation look more legit to me😭 obviously i don't think people doing it are lesbophobes that would be nonsensical since most of them are queer women/lesbians themselves but it's just a very strange way to go about beating the allegations. making characters that aren't women (in this case lesbians) women (in this case lesbians) to prove that you care about women (in this case lesbians) doesn't really work, it's not very convincing.

i've said before that i would have loved for a relationship that i see as having the most care put into it, with the most build up and narrative significance in one of the biggest shows to be a lesbian relationship because well of course i would i'm a lesbian myself but you know...there's other shows out there...with great lesbian ships...and saying you wished this particular ship were lesbians irks me because it makes it sound like the experiences are interchangeable? when they're really not, it's queer boys in the 80s for a reason. of course the experiences are similar in a lot of ways, that's why literally most bylers are queer women, because it hits close to home for a lot of us too. but i'm tempted to say if you don't like that the experiences are still different, if you don't like that they chose to highlight the gay guy in the 80s experience or if you would love lesbyler sooo much more then maybe...find actual lesbian ships idk. i know no other ship/show will be the same but it really just rubs me the wrong way it feels disrespectful in so many different ways.

i think it's weird to imply that any lesbian ship is inherently better and more interesting (not talking about personal taste) and that a gay ship is lesser on account of being a gay ship, and when your answer to "if you think this gay ship with four seasons of build up is more interesting than this lesbian ship with three scenes you hate lesbians" is making the gay ship lesbians you're not exactly disagreeing with them to me. i know it's being creative and like an au or whatever but the way this recent resurgence came about reads as feeling guilty for liking a gay ship better to me and i just have to say you don't have to do all that...especially because making the one canon gay character a lesbian just is not impressive pro-lesbian activism😭 is canon sexuality erasure no longer a fandom crime what's the world coming to!

any attempt at making a ship "more progressive" than it is is bound to fail and feel fake to me and at least when it's lesbian mlvn it's going from a straight ship to a lesbian ship (as much as i dislike lesbian mlvn lol), when it's lesbian byler...like changing their gender so they can be lesbians and going see i like lesbians instead of being or getting invested in lesbian ships and actual lesbian characters is proving the haters right in a way to me sorry. you don't have to apologize for being interested in byler more it's really not that serious.

today i met tiny chris

poor wean's da got et by a 'bon. now he wants 'em all dead. wiv' crossy eyes like them as drawed in the picture shows. dinnae get et and ye might be his new da.

he actually made me think about two things - the npcs/people we've helped along the way, and the writing of accents.

it's no secret i gave biff this accent - it tells you he ain't a city slicker but rather a rural boy, it tells you his folks ain't got a lotta money (at least, one would think), and it associates him with a specific cultural/ethnic profile (gaelic, i know/studied a little more about irish than scots so i lean irish)

i think we should, as a society, be wary of continuing to associate class with specific ethnic communities, but i'm not learned enough to make a post dedicated to my specific thoughts on that (yet? tbd)

mostly, i think it's important to look at the way characters speak as a vehicle of writing. when you write a character's accent, is it useful for what you're trying to establish in the scene? is the noble supposed to fail to understand the vernacular of his server? is it useful if the character is always going to say "dinnae" instead of "do not"? when dealing with non-western characters with accents, how far is it okay to go until the dialogue goes from representation to racist charicature?

writers have the power of flexibility. writing is about persuasion more than anything else, and we should remember to persuade our audiences that these are people. they aren't real, so don't bother with "realistic" - but they represent real ideas, concepts and associations in our world. it's important to be careful what you do with these, intended or not! and if you make an oopsie? acknowledge, accept and continue on your journey to being your best.

my preferences for writing accents based on my experiences, observations and education lean thus:

pick and choose what words require emphasis. if the whole sentence requires it, then so be it! but make conscious choices. words weigh differently, and they carry double the weight when they're written out to represent an accent. just really think about whether or not this is the point you want to say to, t', ta, or tae. the whole sentence doesn't need to be written out phonetically b/c avoiding doing that helps us steer clear of reiterating caricatures.

include culturally specific verbiage. "what's the craic" or "how's it hangin'" depending on who your character is. in india, lots of people greet each other with religious phrases (in english, it'd sound like saying "god is good"/"good is god" call and response) - so a thavnairian character could say anything between "sisters be with you" to "mindhurva guide your path today" (and also yours, brother/sister). but also: wain, wean, child, sweetling,

be careful which non-english words your character uses. i don't call it chai tea latte, i call it chai latte. my wife doesn't call it green tea latte, but matcha latte. i actually don't drink chai latte, i drink chai. but i call it both chai and tea interchangeably; so, when i want someone to know how to prepare my tea, i might ask for chai instead of tea. because with chai, you get half or whole base milk instead of water. you get dried ginger or an array of spices depending on the auntie. with tea, you get dried up leaves and some hot water. big difference for me.

above all, make sure it's legible most of the time. you can do this by avoiding writing a character's accent out completely phonetically. this isn't to say "conform your character to what people think they should talk like". this is about being aware that writing implies an audience. if you want your writing to connect with people, the important parts should be clearly communicated in the text. especially if you're writing in english. if i wanted my characters to speak hindi, why would i bother writing the story in english at all? you want people to see your character a specific way. write them the way you hope they'll be seen--if you've done a good enough job, it will lead to so much joy and satisfaction. if you haven't--it's back to the drawing board! but you get the chance to learn even more.

(reposting from a fandom post i made)

So I see some complaints about the games after Apollo justice, like you gave the spotlight to a new character but then put Phoenix right back in his original spot. I can see how a lot of people who grew attached to Apollo were upset by this and those that were a fan of Phoenix being a mentor were too. I think I have an idea on how a new game could fix this: Lawyer selection!

When a new case starts, you can choose which lawyer will take the case, Athena, Apollo, or Phoenix, each will have unique dialogue, and interpretations of the scene (for jokes, not the outcome), and you can also pick who will help you on the case too! Your partners can be Maya, Trucy, or either of the two Lawyers you didn't pick at the beginning. The prosecutors for the cases are locked in and don't change based on who you play as, this gives us the chance to see how Apollo or Athena would fair against Edgeworth, or Phoenix have a rematch with Klavier.

The person you pick as a partner can also lend you a hand in court, like if you picked Phoenix, he will offer you the Magatama, Athena will use Widget, and Apollo will tell you what he perceives. They all lead to the same conclusions. Maya however is special. Maya will do her usual thing but if you are really struggling during the trial (you go through the testimony a few times or get at least 3 penalties), then there will be a prompt when you talk to Maya that she can summon Mia to aid you, Mia will basically act like a hint system, she'll help you once and if you think you'll be fine for the rest of the trial without her, she will leave and Maya will be back.

I feel like this would be a great idea and you can experience each match-up on different playthroughs, of course, this is just a suggestion but I think it would be a good game and give people a chance to tell their own versions.

As for the story, due to how the characters would be interchanging, it would have to revolve around all involved, specifically everyone that works for the Wright Anything Agency. So I was thinking "Well there were quite a few psychos that got caught and thrown in prison thanks to these people, what if they teamed up for revenge?"

I made a list of the more psychotic killers that would be in this alliance:

---

Main trilogy:

Frank Sahwit- He seems scummy enough to join,

Redd White- I'm on the fence about him but I think he'd join.

Damon Gant- he'd still be alive and he's loopy enough to do it I think

Matt Engarde- No doubt would want revenge

Furio Tigre- He's hot-headed so I think he'd want to get some revenge.

Dahlia Hawthorne- she would need to be summoned but it's possible she'd be involved if contacted.

AJ:

Kristoph- obviously.

Alita Tiala- she's similar to Frank and Furio, not hesitant at all to get dirty.

DD:

Florent L'Belle- He legit threatened to kill Apollo, he's demented enough in my eyes.

Aristotle Means: believes his idea of the law is superior, he'd def wanna get rid of those against him.

Phantom- I'm on the fence with him.

SOJ:

Pierce Nichody- he's fueled by hatred and jealousy, and calling Miles and Phoenix tumors def puts him on the list.

---

I didn't include the Khura'in suspects because they're incarcerated in Khura'in and not Japanifornia. But this seems like a group full of bitter people that wanna see the Wright Anything Agency burn.

Anyway, what do you guys think? this is just an idea I came up with today so there's room for fixes, and if you know of other culprits that can go on the list, let me know and tell me why. I'm happy to hear feedback!

I do think sometimes that hyperfixations have been so romanticised that any conversations about the bad side of them just do not happen anymore to the point that people think there's only net positives to having a hyperfixation. Or they use special interests and hyperfixation interchangeably.

Because to be truthful, my hyperfixations often become the bane of my existence. They're obsessions, borderline addictions for me. I constantly think about them 24/7 to the point that it can be the ONLY thing I think of. It's fine when I can constantly fuel the thoughts by consuming more and more information, finding new inspirations, new perspectives, and new reminders.

But when I hit a dead end? My brain still needs more. It needs new ways to think about the hyperfixation, but there physically is no new source that it can find, so the frustration kicks in. I get depressed, annoyed, and stressed. I start to feel unwell because my brain NEEDS to engage more, but there is nothing new. Sometimes, I end up with the exact. same. thought. on repeat for days or even weeks. The same bit of information, the same scenario, the same image over and over again, while my brain tries to find a new thing to think about that relates to my hyperfixation.

My hyperfixations are often also the only way I can communicate and experience the world. I see everything through the lens of my hyperfixations. But it's also isolating. Because I know I drive other people insane when every conversion ropes back around to the hyperfixation sooner or later. I'm better now at least at giving others space to talk about other things or their interests. But in the back of my head, I'm still constantly thinking about the same thing. And I know even the most supportive and patient people will tire sooner or later because I'M ALSO tired and exhausted by it. But it's the only way my brain knows how to communicate with the world, so it pushes it continuously.

I don't know any other existence. My hyperfixations do bring me highs, do give me good emotions, a lot of time it's the only thing getting me out of bed and driving me forward in life. But they also bring me lows, frustrations, and hurt. They can cause me to neglect my physical health. I don't sleep purely because I thought too much about the current fixation. I can lose friends and relationships. And sometimes I feel like I can't talk about those moments.

About the plural artists conversation:

For those who have worries about being at a normal job with a singlet boss, there's a great video about this in the archives of the Plural Positivity World Conference, "2022 Working while Plural Accommodations, Automations, and Disclosure in the workplace"

It's possible to get free/pay-what-you-can tickets for each year's PPWC conference and then afterwards they send an email with a link to give you access to recording from previous years. Highly recommend

But also, yeah. The thing is, I have a LOT of experience with enduring sustained ostracism/harassment/abuse, and grew up thinking that I might as well put my resilience in that area "to good use" in some way (eg I grew up witnessing women politicians getting hounded by the press, and it looked pretty similar to what I was already tolerating in school, so I thought, I could endure that treatment in a job and maybe get some improvements underway). But also, at the actual time that you're busy Enduring, it's really hard to tell just how much it's affecting you, and in retrospect, I did develop good survival skills for that type of scenario, but I also developed CPTSD. If I faced the risk of publicity and hatred again, could it be "finding meaning" in my experiences and reinforcing my strengths as part of healing? Or would it turn into reliving past bad experiences and exacerbating things, making it harder to heal? There's no way of predicting how it would affect me.

So it's a question that I don't have an answer to, either. We should push for a world where succeeding in view of the public eye does not carry an implicit threat, and that project of social change requires a certain amount of openness. Like you don't get a queer civil rights movement if barely anyone comes out.

But also, one thing that I've been contemplating recently is the idea that our choices of how to behave depend on the social context that we're in. And there's a big difference between social spaces where people are trying to live genuinely and with equality and compassion, and social spaces where there's an inherent power imbalance that never really goes away no matter how nicely/ethically the specific people are. And in this capitalist society, with no universal basic income or meaningful safety net, any situation where you're trying to get paid is a situation where you are underneath someone in a power hierarchy, whether you're dealing with a boss or a customer or both. The consequences of poverty create power imbalance. Starhawk writes about this more coherently than I am right now, but you know what I mean.

It's one thing to love having plurality as part of your online identity, where you've got some degree of control over who you engage with, and whether you engage with them at all, because the social context is building a nice community online. But yeah, loving that experience is one thing, but the second money and dependence come into it, you're dealing with a different social context so the decision to be openly plural has a different meaning.

When it comes to surviving under capitalism, you definitely just gotta do what you gotta do. "Branding" is a matter of surviving under capitalism, and so is "controversy-as-promotion" - like, they're both just hollow strategies and I feel like in a way it's completely interchangeable - if you're not free to be genuine, and you have to pick a strategy for survival, then they're all equally bad options in way, because your hand is forced. It's hard to feel good about a decision when that decision was made in awareness of the threat of hatred and/or poverty, for me at least, I feel like no matter what way I end up going, the power and implicit threats set up by society mean that it's a coerced choice and not one made freely.

I feel like I'm sort of rambling, but this is something I think about a lot. My current life plan (and we'll see how that goes, lol) is to write under a penname, because my writing is an area where I want to be genuine and break away from self-censorship; but also, my Plan A is to have other jobs as my main income, so I'm not dependent on writing. For me, that feels important, I think I'll do much better and more meaningful, truthful work as a writer if I can distance that work from the fears and threats and coercion that are impossible to remove from paid work under capitalism. I don't know if I'm explaining this well. I feel like, when it's an unbalanced power situation, you can retain greater dignity and greater freedom to make choices without coercion if you lean heavily on having privacy. So in situations where I need to think about "making money" it becomes necessary to think about professionalism, branding, etc and so there's more self-censorship, and less genuine freedom of choice.

I already sort of have a split between "fandom creative work that can't be monetised" and "other creative work that is safe to mention to colleagues without weird reactions" so it feels natural to me to have multiple avenues for presenting things. I'm planning to publish things under my legal name that I wouldn't mind being seen if I was googled by a boss or landlord. Then the penname(s) can allow for more freedom and authenticity and creativity, for the "meaningful" work that I want to do as a writer or artist, where it would be nice to get money but it's not intended to be commercial.

Of course, I don't know how this will work in reality, since it requires both having time and having time-management skills to be doing multiple avenues of work at once - a lot of people end up finding that the pressure for commercial creation leaves them with no time to make their important art. I hope I won't get too stuck in that type of rut. But I feel pretty good about the idea of being a writer/artist who also has a day job part-time, and then going full "professionalism and privacy and strategically negotiating power imbalances" in the day job, so I've got room to go "full authenticity" in the creative stuff, without those psychological effects of being totally shackled to public opinion of my personal art for food and housing. I'm speaking as someone who has not yet really got an actual career off the ground, but anyway these are my thoughts about how I'm going to go about it in the future, and I feel pretty okay about this as a plan.

That sounds like a solid plan to me! And this is just an excellent post all around!

If anyone is interested in the video, I think I found it here.

last friday i was at a creative writing club and we had to said the best book we read during the summer and i said orv and a couple people said "i know the webtoon" and i just have to laugh they really know anything(i really know nothing(only250 chapters in)but at least i know more than them)

keep trucking man 250 chapters is almost halfway there i believe in you... i shan't say much more lest my snobby orv webnovel superiority complex that isn't really fair for me to have since i haven't tried reading the comic at all acts up. it like hits some sort of nerve when people i talk to irl mention webtoon though tbh. like there's a bunch of westerners all over the platform now making their own stuff and there's nothing wrong with that in itself like i started reading american/western webcomics before i started reading manhwa i know it can be really good korea obviously doesn't own the medium of online comics but webtoon specifically started out as a korean platform and still is a super big one in korea yet it seems like a lot of people i talk to who know webtoon don't know the korean part of it at all which feels so weird. cause culturally manhwa in korea is comparable to manga in japan like in korean the term manhwa is usually used interchangeably for translated japanese manga and online korean manhwa and anything in between but in the west pretty much everyone is glaringly aware that manga is japanese for better or worse (that's how weebs and then also the near borderline racist anti-weebs are made) but a significant amount of people who use webtoon one of THE manhwa platforms don't know what manhwa is or that it's korean or anything. i don't even know how they manage to do that but anyways trump voice sad!. people who read the orv webtoon are real ones though because they're being exposed to the manhwa tropes like regressors and etc which is a key part of the experience. these people should also read the webnovel for a more authentic experience to become more real

Whump Challenge

I got tagged by @sasuga-whump to do this great challenge! Ill put it under a readmore bc it's quite long but i had a blast (◡‿◡)

I'll tag @deepwoundsandfadedscars @thatsgonnaleaveamark @set-phasers-to-whump @crash-bump-bring-the-whump @whumpapalooza @whump-side @justwhumpythings @radioactiveartz and anyone who sees this on desktop rather than mobile

1. Favorite whump trope(s)?

I do love anything to do with knives - stabbing, carving, knives to throats, etc. Impaling is up there too, and fractures of all kinds.

2. Least favorite whump trope(s)?

I'm not into dehumanisation in any way, or humiliation, they're squicks in fact. Anything with conditioning is also very much not for me.

3. Top 3 whump scenes and why?

Ohhhhhh good question. Recent faves are:

A scene in Resident Evil: Village where the protagonist is strung up from the ceiling by hooks stabbed through his hands. He then has to free himself by ripping the hooks out, making the wounds worse. Not much in way of consequences because of the game's slasher-horror conventions but very good still

Hard to describe without spoilers lol but in a book i just read, there is a character who's a clairvoyant and can remember things before they happen. When another character wants to hit them with a glass bottle, they experience the pain even though the hit never actually lands - the intention is enough to hurt them. It later gets used to torture them, too. It's very unique and very fun (◡‿◡)

There's a whole sequence in the webcomic Shiloh where a character loses a fight to a mantis-like monster, ends up severely injured and thrown off a cliff into a river. His colleagues find him half-dead and rush him to a hospital.

4. Top 3 characters to whump and why?

I whump my OCs 95% of the time so i don't have many fandom faves lol. I have been enjoying some horror protagonists though - Ethan Winters from Resident Evil and Murphy Pendleton from Silent Hill: Downpour both are very hurtable and get roughed up nicely in their stories.

5. Favorite fandom for whump (show, series, etc)?

Again im not much of a fandom whumper but it's usually whatever im into at the moment - recently Silent Hill

6. Do you prefer written or watchable whump?

Oooh that's hard, i think i lean every so slightly towards watchable. They both have their wonderful parts (◡‿◡)

7. Do you also like hurt/comfort?

Yes! I always prefer the hurt lol but im also very into some good comfort

8. What do you think the difference between hurt/comfort and whump is?

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ To me, whump means "the hurt part of hurt/comfort" but tbh the terms are pretty interchangeable to me. H/c is a more well-known term so i find that it tends to end up being used towards more fics, even ones that only feature it briefly.

9. How would you explain whump to someone who’s not familiar with it?

Depending on how familiar with fandom terms they are, i suppose. Either "the hurt in hurt/comfort", or "like angst, but often about the physical side", or "stories where the point is for the characters to get injured". Probably add something about exploration of vulnerability, in case they want a deeper explanation.

10. Is there any old whump you particularly enjoy? (say, pre 2000?)

Hmmmmm im sure there are some Star Wars books ive read that are from the 90s and have some good whump but i genuinely don't remember lol

11. Why do you think you like whump?

Now that's the big question, isn't it lol. There's definitely catharsis there - seeing characters allowed to express their suffering and then having it validated and soothed. It's an outlet for emotion, too, especially anger which i struggle with and can channel in a safe and controlled way onto Fictional Character Stabbings lol. I also just like the aesthetics of the kind of exaggerated violence that whump tends to feature, there's a darkly melodramatic thrill to it that im really drawn to.

12. When did you realize you liked whump?

Literally as early as i remember lol. I was under 6 wishing characters in cartoons would be put into peril, i was always into it

13. Favorite posts with whump (gifsets, picspams, etc)

I do love gifsete with my whole heart, im so constantly in awe of the amazing gifmakers we have in this community bc they let us experience the best of whump from all over the world. I also like prompt posts, @injuryprompts never fails to get my creative gears turning

14. Are you “out” to people in real life?

Absolutely Not lmao and for a bunch of reasons. Mostly because whump is something quite personal to me and wouldn't want it to be misunderstood but at the same time i don't think i could properly explain it. I also don't want people to think it's a sexual thing - which again is something commonly understood in the community but probably not so much outside of it.

15. How did you find the whump community?

I was on one of my periodic searching-for-hurt/comfort-fics sprees when i was reminded of the term by the tags - i've been aware of it as a fandom thing but always forgot about it. Then i had the idea of searching it on tumblr and then it all began lol. I was so stunned to see a whole section of the website so dedicated to it and i can't believe how long i've managed without it (◡‿◡)

16. Any unusual mediums you like for whump (plays, music, vlogs, etc)?

Hmmmmm i very much like video game whump - both actual scenes and just the natural way a character gets beat up throughout the gameplay. An unusal niche of it is, i would say, point-and-click puzzle games. It feels weird because they never have an actual protagonist lol but the plot always involves being trapped, or captive, or escaping, and that just always gets my whump imagination going lol. I like imagining a character for them, scared and injured, struggling to puzzle out their freedom.

17. Any meta about whump you’ve been dying to share?

It's mostly just an observation but im utterly fascinated by the fact that so many people are into whump from very early in life. There was a poll about it going around recently and the most picked answer was "6 and younger" and it just. blows my mind. What a strangely specific thing to be born with. I would love to study this in some way but i wouldn't even know where to start.

18. Whump fic(s) you’d love to see?

There are a bunch of writers here whose fics i would love to see continued but i'm nervous to tag them bc i don't wanna pressure them lol. In general im also always on a lookout for strong platonic friendships in stories and creative magical whump, especially with a horror twist.

19. Whump you’re looking forward to? (Maybe something teased or something you haven’t seen yet?)

I've been reading Witch Hat Atelier and recently there have been theories that some visual symbolism is foreshadowing my favourite character getting hurt in an upcoming fight. I don't want to get my hopes up too much cause it's all guesswork lol but i would very much like that (◡‿◡) Similar thing with Wilde Life, a webcomic, in which the protagonist is currently held at gunpoint - in that story, however, not much injury happens at all lol so again not holding my breath.

20. Top 3 favorite whump fics?

Hhhhhh just three???? i need some kind of bookmark system for real because i can't remember half of the stuff i read lol so these aren't my Top top 3, just things i really like

In The Woods Somewhere by @knivestothroats has to be on here because it's honestly the pinnacle of my writing goals - the flow and pacing are impeccable, it escalates the stakes so smoothly that i put it down, and it's just such a brilliant self-contained story with characters that stick with you and some scenes that i still think about, years since i've read it.

@whumpapalooza 's Space Interns also have a very warm place in my heart bc i just love the characters so much and it's not often that i want whump for Every Single Member Of The Cast but here we are

and most recently i've loved this BHTB fill by @crash-bump-bring-the-whump and its lovely prose and the ability to get me hooked on brand new characters in a single work

21. Tropes you think are overdone?

Conditioned/"broken" whumpees, to me it always seems like the same few tropes and phrases cycled around in new costumes. But i will admit that i also just dislike the trope all in all lol so im not being entirely objective here. Creepy whumpers also usually come off as cheesy, i think, because they always use the same set of kinda stereotypical and, well, overused lines. It seems like it's a go-to "default" whumper for prompts/short fics but imo it's actually very difficult to do well. Just my opinion tho

22. Tropes you think we could use more of?

Hmmmmmmmmm it would be cool to see some cool horror/magic themed whump, with strange creatures and eldritch threats. I'm also always in the market for more unique character dynamics, they can keep even the most basic of tropes fresh.

23. Favorite sites/archives for consuming whump? (question by @dammittmarie )

Honestly just tumblr lol. And ao3 sometimes if i want fanfics since it's very easy to find things there

24. Have your whump preferences changed recently? If so, why? (question by @fyeahvulnerablemen​)

I've been leaning more towards horror recently as i get more into the genre! But within it im still into the same kind of whumpees i believe lol even though they're getting less gunfights and more possessions

Results of the transid survey + our opinions on the matter

We got a total of 19 responses.

I won't be disclosing the specifics of the answers out of respect and privacy, however I will be showing the pie charts and reoccurring themes throughout the answers.

#1: do you identify as transx/transid?

We got an even number of people who were surely transid and surely not transid, as well as a few questioning individuals, which gives us a good and even amount of information from both sides of the argument.

#2: If you are transid, what is your exact identity, and how did you come to feel this way?

We got a wide variety of identities. From ablefluid to xenomalady to transheight to transage, there was a wide spread of diversity. Curiously, most of the responses we got mentioned something about trauma or not wanting to be this way, or having BIID. There was also a number of headmates in systems who identified as transid, as their headspace appearance and identity don't match the body's (which I can relate to).

#3: If you are not transid, what is your experience with and views on the community and the labels they create?

There were an even amount of non transid people who though that transid identities are fine and people who thought they're harmful in some way. The thought of 'gender is a construct, other things are not' and how things like transrace identities can be culturally insensitive was brought up multiple times. However, one thing I noticed (which relates to the next two questions) is that most of the anti-transid people who answered doubted that transid identities can help with things like BIID and trauma. There were also those who talked about having many symptoms of, but not meeting the diagnostic criteria for the disorder they identified as having.

#4: If you are transid, do you believe your experience has anything to do with trauma?

Here's the question that interested us the most. Even though there was a good amount of individuals who were unsure, the majority said that their experience has been influenced by or has something to do with trauma. In question #2, there were a staggering amount of people who talked about things like racial trauma making them uncomfortable in their race, them not wanting to be autistic because of how they're treated for it, and other things. It seems to us that (at least by these people) transids are widely used as a coping mechanism.

#5: If you are transid, do you believe your experience has to do with disorders such as BIID?

While there were a small amount of people who said no, there were an even number of those both sure and unsure. Again, it seems like transids are a good way for these people to find something that they're comfortable with and that helps them live their lives easier.

#6: Do you believe transids are good faith identities?

This one was by far the most debated. The majority said yes, although I think I could attribute that to only posting the survey in the general transid tags and not the anti ones (my bad). Although, with the information gathered, I can see why the majority said yes.

#7: Do you believe that the labels of Otherkin and Fictionkin can be used interchangeably/instead of labels like transbody, transspecies, and fictotransrace?

Most who explained their decision on this one in question #8 said that the labels were coined with different things in mind, and the fact that labels can only be used interchangeably by the people that choose to use them. Which is a good point. Although it is interesting to see people's opinions on it.

#8: Do you have any final thoughts or comments?

This question mainly had people talking more about their experiences being transid and their opinions on the community and labels in general. The general consensus was that they should be respected and accepted in appropriate places, however, things like transitioning and claiming to have experienced things that they haven't should not be allowed, which, in our opinions, is a good outlook.

Now, I think we have enough information to conclude our own opinions on the matter.

We are transid neutral.

The use of transids does not bother us, especially since it seems like most of the time, they're used as a coping mechanism for trauma, or because the individual does not meet the diagnostic criteria. As a disordered but endogenic system who has been fighting to get diagnosed, we can sympathize with the latter.

However, I see why people are wary of these labels. It can be a bit dicey to identify as having a debilitating disorder, disability, or stigmatized disorder that you were not born as. It can be seen as inherently racist to identify as a race you weren't born as, especially if that race has faced wide oppression, such as the native peoples of the Americas. Although it is good to see transid people acknowledging that and being respectful of it.

We do not think these labels are used in bad faith, but we will stay away from them just to be safe.

Just as a reminder: We cannot, in good faith, support the radqueer community. We are happy to support transid people who don't associate with the radqueer label, but the community's wide acceptance of proud paraphiles (no-c and pro-c) is disgusting. We have both trauma and exotrauma surrounding those people, and we cannot stand people who are proud to be attracted to something that is either harmful or cannot consent.

-Medic (💉)

I hope you don't mind me asking, but can you explain the difference between asks, requests, and commissions? I'm fairly new to Tumblr so I thought I should ask.

Sure thing, I don't mind at all!

So I sometimes like to use asks and requests interchangeably but there are some differences!

Asks ( at least to me) are anything you send in to someone's inbox. What you wrote for example, is an ask! It can really be anything, a question, a compliment feedback, an opinion, casual chit-chat or even a request!

I know it can be a bit confusing because most of these aren't really "asking" anything but Tumblr introduced this function of sending in anonymous messages as "sending asks" so that's generally what I call them.

So in short: I consider an ask anything you send into my inbox!

Requests is a term that is mostly used for writers but also artists on Tumblr. While a lot like to only write their own ideas and pieces, most content creators on here allow their followers to send in a request ( you could call it an idea) for what the owner of the account could write/draw

For example on my blog that would be something like

"May I request general yandere natsume headcanons?" or " Could you maybe write headcanons on what Deuce would be like around his crush?"

These are suggestions, "requests" that the content creator might decide to fulfill and write about. For example, most of the posts on my blogs are from these type of requests other people have made.

There are several reasons why an author might choose to allow requests. It's neat to get new ideas because your readers might think of things you hadn't thought of yourself and that might help you with writing when you don't really know what you want to write. Of course, it also makes people more interested in following your blog because you might one day write a request for them ^^

This is all completely for free and content creators choose to do this in their own free time so that's also why it's so important to reblog posts to make sure others on Tumblr can see their hard work!

Many people that take requests like these will have an indicator somewhere on their blog that tells you if their requests are open or closed. Most often this is in their bio or their pinned post.

If it says requests are open then you can feel free to drop in suggestions that you would like them to write about like the examples I listed earlier ( of course after reading their rules and making sure that what you're asking of them isn't breaking any rules)

It's very important though that you don't put any pressure on content creators with your requests. From experience I know that some requests sadly sit in my inbox for quite some time because I just feel more motivated to write other things first. Please don't send messages like " just hurry up, I've been waiting for two weeks now, when are you finally doing my request?" because that definitely hurts our motivation and honesty it just makes us *not* want to do your request djdje

Kinda went on a rant there but basically requests are suggestions for things a content creator could write that you as a follower of their blog can send in if it says their requests are open.

So "requests" are included in "asks", but not all "asks" are automatically "requests" ( asks are just anything in general you send in)

Commissions are not something everyone does and everyone has a few different rules on how they do those things. If you're not sure if a blog you're following is doing commissions then don't hesitate to send them a kind ask ^^

So basically, a commission is where you pay the writer/artist for making a piece for you. It's like a request but you're actually giving the creator some money for creating something specifically for you!

Users that take commissions usually have a post somewhere that describes what kind of things they're willing to do and for what price.

For example : 4€ for a matchup or 5 € for headcanons or something of the like

If you're interested in commissioning a creator you can message them and ask if they still have open slots and then you can try and discuss the details of your commission.

You pay them the money - > they make content for you that aligns to what you have discussed before

The benefit of this compared to a regular request that costs no money is that

1. You can financially support a content creator you enjoy the works of

2. Most people will prioritize doing commissions over normal requests because they're actually being paid to do them and so you will get to see your idea fulfilled sooner

So ihm yeah, that kind of went a bit lengthy but I hope I managed to explain it at least somewhat coherently! If you have any more questions please don't hesitate to send in another ask ^^

Insane anon back okay so basically- I grew up in a VERY Christian household (as I'm sure you can imagine from the pig incident yes we're calling it that now) my grandparents are extremely Christian and nearly all of my aunts and uncles are too, and the ones who aren't still do stuff like "don't say oh my god it's disrespectful" and go to church if asked and whatever. My town is generally like this too so everywhere I go I'm most likely going to see or hear something to do with religion. So I didn't really pay much mind to religion considering I'm really little and too busy collecting Pokemon cards ponder the possibilities of heaven or hell, much less moral philosophy and ethics which we're led to believe is what gets us our sentences in the first place. So my school taught us religion, but we had to have our parents say if we could attend or not. Take a wild fucking guess what my parents then condemned me to. So then I had to show up to a religion class like every day to learn about God and such. Now, because my school had only labelled the subject "religion" and not "Christianity" (which is the only religion they even taught us, dickheads) my small child brain registered that religion = Christianity and they're just two interchangeable words for each other. Which is, to say the least, not correct. But I didn't know that I was 8 and so I went on like this for admittedly longer than I should have qeygdjoaudgjldugas but anyway- I learnt all about Jesus and Mary and God and everything there was to know. Well when I say learnt I really mean "picked up as much information as I could" cuz let's face it teaching a religion class to a herd of 8 year olds who have had next to no prior experience to religion is pretty much just "yeah tbh I would murder my brother too I get it" "I wonder if Jesus played bass I feel like he would" "mr religion teacher what's a virgin and why is Mary one?" So yeah fun. But then eventually religion class ended for the term. Except. I was friends with a few other kids who were Muslim and Buddhist and Hindu and other religions that weren't Christian. And keep in mind I still don't know there's more than one religion I think it's just another word for Christianity. So while they're sharing their experiences with their gods and traditions and such, I'm registering it all as one big thing. And so my small child brain is like "oh I guess there must be just a bunch of different gods in religion huh cool I wonder when lunch will end." So all this time I'm walking around with the idea of like every god to ever exist (yes even the what 500 I think Egyptian gods they had) just existing at the same time and this made complete sense to me. And Diya my friend I am going to be completely honest with you I didn't realise religion didn't just mean only Christianity until I was like 11 it's embarassing but true 😭 I also thought Islam was a country. I'm so glad no one on this webbed site knows my irl identity I don't know how I'd cope with you people having a name to put to this 😭😭😭 but yeah point is don't be a dumb shit like me and teach your kids what religion actually means please I can't stand the thought of there being more of this nonsense. Also my religion teacher didn't believe in evolution and thought David Attenborough was manipulating us all. Idk how he got that job. But yeah. Bonus story: I asked my religion teacher "wouldn't Jesus have been black because of the place where he was born, why am I seeing a bunch of skinny white people" and he told me to ask Jesus myself and gave me a colouring sheet and walked away and I'm 8 I don't know how to commune with all-knowing immortal beings so I just wrote yes and no on my eraser and flipped it a bunch of times. So yeah if you guys were wondering Jesus is a black trans man and he loves abortion and autism and hates billionaires this is a fact because I said so okay peace ✌️

this is why we hate religion classes that only teach christianity, and that last bit about jesus, preach 🙏

Day 17 | That moment when you all join the game at the same time

This is me basically narrowing down my animation styles and seeing which one is most beneficial to use going forward.

All of the above are pretty useful for different reasons. Black is good for very fluent/exaggerated movement since it takes the least time to reproduce and therefore can be used to experiment with wacky movements and trying weird stuff. Blue is good for showing general anatomy and more pronounced poses, really good for showing intent of emotion, but lengthy to reproduce and might need one of the other styles as a base first anyways since it's hard to test movements out with it. Red seems to be my most favorite so far since it's quite clearly a mix of both. This is the one I've been using the most anyways for the longest time before this challenge so I do have bias for it.

Overall though, instead of only using one method going forward, I think I've learned to use each of them interchangeably whenever they're necessary. Good learning! :)

Unrelated asks — 6, 7, 29? (And for laughs 24 xP)

6. do you use a watch?

Nah. The last time I used an actual watch was when I decided walking across Australia in summer would be a fun trip, and then it was kind of crucial because I did it in summer in Australia and so I was timing food and water breaks down to the second. These days I just have my phone! Or, as I am usually near my computer, the windows clock. |D

7. What animal do you look forward to seeing when you visit an aquarium?

This has sadly reminded me that I haven't been to an aquarium in more than 35 years, because that's when Marineland closed down. I think the nearest aquarium to me now is either off the mainland at Kangaroo Island or... IDK does the zoo have a small one?

Either way, should I actually get to visit an aquarium any time soon, the answer is SHARKS. /grabby hands

29. preferred pasta noodle?

I think I've answered this one before also. I love pasta in most forms and it's easier to tell you what my least favourite noodle is honestly because the rest are interchangeable: penne! IDK why it's just boring 8|a (I think I have a preference for shells now I think about it, they're just cute and get clogged with cheese easily)

24. which do you find yourself using, american or british english?

GEE I WONDER LMAO. Though actually it's like... 90% british english because some americanisms do trundle into my vocab sometimes from sheer exposure online. I do keep a running internal dictionary on what is spelled how in both forms, but to my great amusement I keep finding out there are terms or phrases that only exist in british english (or australian english as it were) when my beta flings a sentence back at me and goes WHAT THE HELL DOES THIS EVEN MEAN??? It's a learning experience for both of us, kinda fun actually. (words I have had to throw out of my fic for being too non-american: 'treacle' and 'twigged'. Boo.)

Thank you! ♥

Unrelated ask meme here.