getting pretty tired seeing ppl talk about how tumblr is so much "better" just because you can show a little bit of booba now 😐

I'm sure @staff has kind of a lot on their plate right now but while I'm thinking of it, this would be nice to have:

Add a Fandom community label. Or a dedicated universal tag, or a box you can check during post creation, or just anything that has the ultimate effect of allowing users to filter fan content.

This could at-least-slightly ameliorate problems with the search.

I have come into acceptance of the fact that fixing the notoriously dysfunctional search, even on individual blogs, is just way, way, way out of scope for some reason. Tumblr must know that a functional search would radically increase engagement, so I assume that the persistence of this glaring problem means that there is simply no way to fix it. I tell myself that "search" really just means "give me a handful of related suggestions" and not "show me every instance of X". I am learning to live with this.

What compounds this issue is that there is no way to separate fan content from content directly related to your search terms.

EXAMPLE: I search for a popular movie, and the results are so overburdened with people's personal stories and drawings that it's impossible for me to find anything actually related to the film. I give up quickly and Tumblr loses engagement from both me and the people who post screencaps/gifs/music/production info/etc.

EXAMPLE: I'm searching for something--anything--but my commonplace search term happens to be related to a very specific fandom. Perhaps I have never even heard of this fandom. But after scrolling through yards and yards of fan fiction, I have to give up, and Tumblr loses engagement from me and also whoever is posting about the actual thing I wanted.

OTHER NEGATIVE EFFECTS:

1. I stopped tracking ALL tags because they were constantly serving me fan content. I haven't bothered with tags for years because of this.

2. I blocked tons of innocent users because I couldn't avoid seeing their fan content; in order to stop seeing it, I have to sacrifice our entire ability to interact. I'm not alone there, sometimes I even see a note about this in someone's header ("Sorry you're blocked, it's probably because Tumblr won't stop showing me your fan art").

All of these scenarios happen to me and other users all the time and we have been vocally complaining about this. And I know Tumblr has rebranded itself as the fandom app in recent years, but I would say that even a fandom person still wants to see i.e. actual movie & TV show stuff and not just other people's drawings and stories.

So basically Tumblr has two big, related problems: Search doesn't really work AND is clogged with fan content that drowns out everything else.

BUT what if we could just have ONE problem? What if the search had a toggle that includes or excludes fan content. Then even if the search only gives me limited results, I can improve those results by making sure they are ONLY related directly to the thing I want. This would make the Tumblr search instantly, hugely more useful and I would do way more with it, way more often.

Maybe it could even work both ways, like I can choose to ONLY see fan content for a given search term, fandom folks would probably have a use for that. But the main thing for me is that even if search functionality is unfixably limited, I could refine the limited results and get only the most relevant stuff by excluding one common piece of metadata. Problem not-solved, but significantly reduced!

Something that came up recently in discord with @/shuuenmei and @/klonoadreams and friends

And it has occurred to a lot of us older writers, especially now with the prominent use of the AO3 tagging system, is that younger writers seem to have trouble grasping the difference between the kinds of 'insert' fanfics.

So, as someone who has written all the variations there off, I've decided to try and write a reference sheet for what the differences between an OC-insert, a Self-insert, and a Reader-insert.

The OC-Insert

"I have created a character and will put them in a situation."

Everyone has an OC or a dozen, whether or not you've done anything with them. It's a right of passage of sorts for young artists and writers to create their cringe angsty OP character for their favorite show/game. We've ALL done it, it's how we learn how to make better characters for later projects, or practice new ideas.

In writing, the OC-insert fanfic will often have hallmarks of:

Wish fulfillment often in the form of a fix-it of some form, expansion of Canon, or the proposition of a Canon divergence idea (especially in the case of the OC being related to a Canon Character)

The OC having very little to no (known) traits shared with the author, and is often heavily described or even given a character reference sheet

The OC often is already a part of the world they're made for with taylor made powers or skills, or, in the case of a particular kind of wish fulfillment often seen in younger writers, an OP OC meant to allow the author to do what they want

However, the OC is often still limited in knowledge of events as with the rest of the characters, even if they might find out faster than in canon

Often written in the Third Person (he/she/it/they), occasionally in First Person, and almost never in Second Person

The OC-insert is the creation of a character to allow the author to present their idea. OCs are often ways to practice writing traits or scenes a writer isn't used to writing with a character they know 100% about in a world they mostly know.

Think D&D, you make a character and make them react to situations they are presented with. This is the OC-insert.

The Self-insert

"I am putting myself in a situation."

The Self-insert happens nearly as frequently as the OC-insert, if not more. It is the Author placing themself, or in the case of the SIOC, a very close apprximation of themself, into the show/game of their liking.

The hallmarks of a Self-insert fic include:

Also often wish fulfillment, but in the form of escapism and occasionally power fantasies. Often fix-its when in regards to canon story.

The Author proxy usually enters the world from our own via any sort of means. Reincarnation after death, magic, making deals with deities/demons, anything.

The proxy usually has most of the knowledge of the world they are entering, or on the rare occasion, very little to none. There is often no in between.

The proxy may or may not gain skills or power native to the world. In the case of SIOC, the proxy may already have some minor helpful skills. The proxy can become OP, but doesn't often start like that.

Self-inserts are often more realistic looks into the world they are inserted into, expanding on many issues and hidden scenes that might have occurred in canon

Most often written in First Person (I, Me, My), occasionally in other povs. I personally write Kal in Second Person as a stylistic choice.

The Self-insert is for the Author, to show how they personally would have reacted, or helped, or gone about something. It is a catharsis for some authors in some ways, a way to deal with emotions or situations that they can't IRL.

Think games with player inserts, particularly RPGs with branching paths, or old Pick your Adventure type stories where you pick an answer at the end of the part and then go to the corresponding page of that answer. These are how you, the author, are reacting and choosing.

Most fanfics that follow the story for games/shows like Twst are one of the above two; LiT, for instance, is an SIOC.

The Reader-Insert

"I am putting you, the reader, in a situation."

Reader-inserts are all over, but they most frequent in places where there is a high level of Fandom interaction, like here on Tumblr. Reader-inserts are generally very short, and often only about how canon characters react to presented situation. These are your "x reader" blogs and tags.

Reader-inserts often have hallmarks of:

Almost always prompt based wish fulfillment of the highest order. 98% of all reader-inserts are simply for readers to love on a character of their choosing without consequence

Most have no basis in canon, or only have canon as a setting and are very minorly reactionary to Canon events

There are very, very few reader insert fics that are well written to follow along with a Canon story, and even then, the "reader" character will gain definite traits and can break immersion and even eventually be considered an OC

The "reader" will almost never be described unless it's part of the prompt to help with immersion, and may occasionally be referred to by a nickname of some kind, but otherwise will have a blank space ("____") or (Y/N) to show where your own name may be placed, or any other traits in some case.

It is also often headcanon central, with a lot of authors' ideas as to how a Canon Character will react to a given prompt.

Almost always written in Second Person (You), very, very rarely anything else.

Reader-inserts are often.... poor quality, as stated, because they are wish fulfillment and do not often undergo any rigorous editing like a story based fic. But they can be used to practice how an author can write their idea of a particular character or a specific (often romantic) scenario.

Think otome games and imagine blogs here on tumblr. Most of the time, it's less you, the player reacting and them the characters reacting to your choices.

None of the above things are bad to write. Hell, I was a mod for an imagine blog for years, and it did indeed help with how I write. They all have ways to help a writer grow, but they are all very different forms of fics. You can't look at a self-insert and call it a reader-insert because it's not you, the reader being inserted, it's the Author. It's not an OCxCharacter story if it's the reader who's supposed to fill in the details.

So PLEASE, for the love of god, tag your fics correctly.

WIP WEDNESDAY

Not being tagged, just thought I could share some stuff I'm onto. :) Decided to tag others because I'd love to see an update from you as well (if you got sth, no pressure!).

So I'm tagging; @imaginarycyberpunk2023, @medtech-mara, @elvenbeard, @humberg, @ugh-my-back, @itzsassha, @kittenchrissy, @hydrasshole, @spicyraeman, @bnbc, @drunkchasind, @morganlefaye79, @gloryride FYI: some of you are currently hyperfixating bg3 I know; doesn't matter to me. You are welcome to share wips of this as well (even I'm not into it) bc you may have followers that may be interested to see that as well?

—

At first

So, last weekend I've been producing a little mass of Ryder in things VP I can now scatter over the next few weeks — at the cost of entirely neglecting my other boys once again. As always I feel bad about it, because they deserve attention as well (especially JJ bc he got the least atm, but @gloryride takes so pretty shippy pics of Enzo and him lately, I'm always melting when I get to see them! I'll give him and them love soon too I promise!). It is what it is — Ry happens to be my personal fav. I have to accept it and say it is okay.

— NPV

Some of you know I have him already as npv and I was about to get things ready for others who might be interested in taking pics of him or/and befriend him with their own ocs.

FYI: His npv is not only for me! So feel free to ask me about him. I do not bite (but he does) :)

However, just by using his npv version only a few times I knew I need more than the 15 outfits he already got due to story related things and general vp ideas with two or more ocs in my head. So only after like what? — barely three months he's going to receive an update with the rest of his outfits to be added. There's only one permission I'm waiting for. If I do not receive an answer in the next days, these two outfits will be added without that specific piece.

— VP

I. Nice pics

That I took a mass of him mainly happened bc I needed 2-3 pics for my info pdf as I grew tired of some older ones (without raytracing) and I was missing one for Formal, Summer and one for Merc anyways as well as the Special category, so I took pics in one of the outfits that are presented there.

I'll post them during the next few weeks. It's just pretty pics since their intention is more or less focused on the outfit in general.

I'm trying to get more interesting shots in between but I'm super critical with myself thinking my ideas aren't 'great', ' very conceptual' or 'interesting' enough (I do not feel forced to do it in the fandom, but I know I should do it ore often bc it is my job life too) – I do think the same about may daily business work and yet I receive comments from coworkers like 'You're so creative with this one' and 'glad I took your expertise', so I can't be that uncreative, heh?.

II. Sneak Peak

Y'all may have noticed that there's a new harness out for both female and male and ofc I was all bats about how it looks on Ry. So here I can show you his fine belly for now:

My Idea was to take pictures in green light (the Afterlife stairway). But once I started colorgrading afterwards in Adobe Lightroom, I almost deleted the entire green because the brown makes him look way more "realistic".

I'm torn between doing all pics this way or split it up into both. The green def. has a nice catch but I'm so sold to the colorgraded version. I want to bring him back together with Thyjs there anyways, so maybe I'll use the green for them instead and then pics in the Afterlife stairway make more sense (if I try think story wise) rather than jsut a nice photoset with lots of skin that could have been shot anywhere since you do not see wehere it is exactly. Next days will decide what I do with the green or not.

III. Reshots.

Ryder is turns 1 this year! September 17th is his creation day (his birthday is October 31st though). <3 So I took the opportunity to look at his first pics I did back in the day, where I had zero clue what to do with him. A few characteristics were set; like his black clothing only concept but in general I didn't know how he would react in pictures. Today I know!

Here's a another sneak peak. Taking him from emotionless oc to German Raver Dude™. <3

Fun fact: I forgot to add his blade cyberware back then on the first day and redid the pics already the next day (Sep. 18th) with the blades but left this pic on the left out bc I didn't like it that much. He looked at me like a psycho and made me think "Will I like you?"

Last year I tried to make my pics colorful, because Cyberpunk is a colorful game after all, but I forced myself to do bc usually my style is and always has been like the colors are in the right picture; desaturated, with a nice noise. I'm happy I went to retake his first pics and I'll continue with a few (e.g. The Atlantis, Konpeki red maybe too).

— FIC (snippet)

Here's one of my rp answers of a deep talk Ry and Arki are having during a rooftop party. It's only my reply so it's why Arki does not say anything here.

Ryder suddenly feels understood. He shifts into an upright position, placing one knee onto the other, his foot wobbling to the sound of the music playing in the background. Arki almost sounds like he’s battling the same, but on a different level. You feel like that too? Ry’s eyes get bigger and he gives off a rather surprised look as he listens further. He decides to sip his bottle again, takes a deep breath, then shifts into another position anew, looking at the reflection in the glass. “Yeah — ‘Bad. Enduring. Aggressing. Sinister. Termination.' — or in short: 'B.E.A.S.T.' That's how I started calling it that way.” Ry states, eyes back on him. “It forces me to do -bad-. It’s sort of an -enduring- beat in my head, I can beat Beast only for a time while listening to hard rave beats. — It makes me -aggressive- to no end. It -scares- me because out of not knowing what’s happening I am frightened to see what I’ve done again because— because it only ends with -termination- for my opponents while I’m just lucky to have survived each time.” Ryder adds with a cracking voice followed by a sigh.

Arki’s ‘You are not alone, Ryder’ gave Scharfenberg, to his own surprise, hope again. “Funny,” he lets out next, another tiny laugh leaving his lips. “Never thought someone could understand me, feel what I feel. And out of all it turns out to be you.” — He explained it to V and to Thy. They tried but will never understand it entirely because they do not –thank the netlords– have to deal with it as he has. “How it looks inside me, how it screams and yells in there. Tells me how I have to do it.”  I never wanted this, Ryder thinks for himself. Must kill! Beast barks at him immediately. Halt doch einfach mal die Fresse! Ryder yells back in German in his mind, his teeth bared a little behind lightly twitching lips as his expression slips for Arki to see. “But I—” he goes on, eyes continuing to fix onto Arki’s. Fetch me souls! “— how can I win? Be good? Get rid of it — the fire, the burning voice, the constant pounds and torment? That rage?” Ry throws in one question after another, gaze fixated on the other man as if he awaits an answer Arki surely may not have for him either after he told how he feels as well. Scharfenberg takes a bigger sip and enjoys the fizzing of the beer on his tongue again for a moment. “I can't escape it. Got to go the way it chases me. It’s an endless road.” His hand reaches up to rub his beard for a long moment as he leans back, hesitating if he should tell more or not. Let Arki eventually take part of his struggle he's been battling for almost eight years now. His gaze wanders off again to look literally everywhere, legs now both bob a certain rhythm even though the background music in the distance is currently off because Vijay seems to be searching for some other tunes. “For me it's a daily and constant ‘knock-knock’ that says: "Now where is that anger? That hunger to kill? You need it. Fetch me souls”—suddenly he swings back forth again, voice getting louder, teeth baring, white rings of his optics flaring up dangerously fixed back on Arki. ”Hey! — I'm here, don't you ignore me! Let me out! They harmed you. Kill them. Let me— Let me out! Must! Kill! All!" Ryder expresses himself citing Beast under repressed anger. He abruptly takes another big gulp, and falls back into the lounge, a heavy sigh leaving his lips as he’s busy for a moment pushing Beast back.

okay that was a lot actually. I could ad way more but I'll keep that for another wip post! xD

Thanks for reading and kudos to everyone who landed here!

FTWT CCCLXXI

since I desire to watch Teen Wolf, Stargate SG-1 AND The Umbrella Academy, I am watching none of them, and instead I'm watching five minutes of random never have I ever episodes despite being actively annoyed by the characters. unrelated, I drew on my hand in green pen and it says "I am creation both haunted and holy" and what a line THAT is. (it's half-alive, you all should be listening to them) okay so tag now. @winterandwords @did-i-do-this-write

push (death story)

“It’s not really the Under, though. Space is pretty liminal here. Gravity is just a concept. If we push through the perceptions and find concrete substance, we’re really next to time. So even though you fell, it wasn’t really down. It was sideways. Not that it matters. However we are is what we perceive. It’s all the same in the end.”

“So this is-” Lawrence screws up his face, trying to think about any of that information in a way that sticks. “This is the Sideways? The Adjacent? The Next-Door?”

Din chuckles, or swallows their own teeth. Lawrence can’t tell from the sound. “You’re starting to understand.”

pull (city story d0)

When they pull up, there’s a group of guys loitering beside the door, smoking. One of them glances over and nods at Rune. Jet turns in time to see her roll her eyes while taking off her helmet.

“I thought you said no punching people.”

“I meant it!” Rune grabs his arm and holds it. “This is a gym. I full intend for us to punch bags made for punching.”

Jet shakes his arm but she doesn’t let go. What is happening?

The same guy wanders over from the rest, stomping out his cigarette on the pavement. “Hey, Rune. Who’s this?”

“This is Jet,” Rune answers, very blandly, like she doesn’t want to be conversing with him.

Oh good, Jet can already feel his instincts creeping up his spine. Days of peace are overrated. If they do end up punching people, he’s fine with that. “Nice to meet you,” he says, equally blandly.

lift (she stole the night from you, 2020)

she comes in quietly dripping black lace like ink off a letter left out in the rain and it drags behind her - staining the carpet, the walls; she lifts a finger to trace your expression like she wants to feel it deeper than her skin and it settles like a dust cloud over her hair - staining the strands, her neck;

carry (the chamber of restitution, 2011)

By silent consent, they stayed close together while trekking through another long white hallway after the red room. After arriving at the mouth of a cave-like staircase, Rothis took the lead, not because he thought Quileya was afraid, but because he didn't want to show his own fear. A brave face was almost as essential to a mission like this as bringing along the proper equipment. Not that it was wise to ignore caution when poking around in Its territory, but courage was often the most important tool a wizard could carry.

The staircase, besides being black and dark and wide enough only for two people to pass each other, also seemed endless. Around and around the two wizards stepped, with Rothis holding a wizard's light in one hand to show the way. Although he could not see her, Rothis knew that Quileya was preparing her spells, reciting in her head eight of nine words to a killing spell, or a shield spell, among others. He tried to do the same. If not for Quileya's interpretation of the pattern messages from the red room, he wouldn't have felt so nervous. But the words kept rebounding in his mind. Enter the chamber of restitution; the debt will be paid; life will end.

mountain (dreams, whispers, fireflies, 2017)

you are a leaf fall in autumn you are a wind down the mountain you are a heartache and you are a pretty pain

you are a warm fireplace you are affectionate nicknames you are a ship and you are an airplane

river (jasper and juniper, 2022)

We don't eat the fruit from the trees with red roots. We don't drink from the jasper waterfall. We walk down the hill in boots that take long strides, eating up the grass as we go. Daisies grow under the junipers down in the valley. They turn red up in the hill, where they drink the river and blush all day. It doesn't hurt them, just changes their face.

tree (the other colors might have been, but I didn't see them, 2021)

I lay back on sweaters that need mending and poke holes in the ceiling and when it starts raining I think maybe I’ll just drown now. Maybe there are new worlds at the bottom of the sea. My house is underwater when the sun comes back outside and I’ve grown roots. There is a tree poking out of my windows, draped in honeysuckle and last night’s noodles.

I dig my way out of the driveway and build a monument to myself in the snow. Winter was ages ago. I’m still sleeping it off.

dirt (guild story d0)

Sharp teeth sank into his skin, the pain a welcome respite from the darkness. Marz opened his eyes with a shuddering breath, his body quaking from the effort of it. Two bright blue eyes stare up at him, unblinking. A mangy street cat let out a half-hearted growl as it released its bite into Marz’s arm. As it backed away, Marz lifted that same arm up above his head, wondering at the smooth skin of it.

Hadn’t he just been covered in dirt? In his own blood?

The second realization jolted him upwards. Marz sat panting in the alley where he’d fallen, the ground cold and icy beneath him, the air frigid around him. He moved his limbs around. They all followed his commands, as energetic as ever, and none of them were covered in either dirt or blood. Instead, on his wrist sat a bracelet.

teeth, take, turn, time. BONUS: traipse, turmoil. @talesofsorrowandofruin @ink-fireplace-coffee @pepperdee @bloodlessheirbyjacques @asher-orion-writes OR ANYBODY

Hello!! This is my first request and CONGRATULATION FOR THE 1K!!!! YOU VERY VERY DESERVE IT! I fallin love with your writing sooo much <3

And the request is:

Sumika

Minigames: Spades

Hands: Four Of A Kind

↳ red carpets and spotlights

♠️ CHARACTER: s. warakubami

♠️ MATCH: Spades (Friends to Lovers) + Four of a Kind (Actors!AU)

♠️ NOTE: I’m glad to have you requesting for this event and thank you so much for saying so !!!!! this was such a perfect match, i’m so excited to write it out, so let’s get going!

Sumika Warakubami, one of the most famous actresses in the world, known for being a threat with all of the acting jobs that she has done and how great of a singer she is. She was known for being in movies that made quite a lot in the box office. Her daily life was something completely different than everyone else’s, especially considering that she was in the Bami clan.

But there was also you. You were the ultimatum in what made or broke a movie or show. As one of the top actresses of the world, you also had the fortune to come out on top as an incredible director, being a part of the creation of movies that would make millions all around the world. Putting Sumika and you together in a film meant it would be one of the best movies of the year, even winning multiple awards.

You got shipped a lot online too due to you working together often. The people on Twitter have even resorted to calling you a "power couple" and are now waiting for you two to admit it.

"You'd think they'd realize we're nothing more than friends who are good at our jobs." You scrolled through your timeline, sitting on Sumika's couch in her trailer.

"Scoot, you're taking up all the space."

"Is that how you treat your previous director?!"

"You're my costar now, therefore..." She made a gesture for you to move and you only leaned your head up so she could sit and you could place your head on her lap. She was reading her script, memorizing her lines. You, on the other hand, had a great method called procrastinating. People thought you were so professional but truly, you waited until the last second to get stuff done.

The ship tag on Twitter was going wild after a leak came out of the new movie. You frowned at reading it, not having previously read the script. "Hold on. Sumika, are we kissing in this movie?!"

Sumika raised an eyebrow down at you. "Didn't you read the script? It's the turning point of our characters' relationship."

You couldn't deny you were nervous. This was your best friend, the person you secretly harbored feelings for and you'd have to kiss her in front of everyone? You didn't even know if you could do it. "Um...Sumika--"

"Hm?"

"I've never...kissed anyone on camera..." Your original confident manner changed into a flustered one as she smiled.

"On camera or in general?"

"I've had kisses before!"

"Have you really?" Sumika didn't wait for you to answer before forcing you to sit up. "Do you want to practice?"

You found yourself nodding yes before you could even process her words. It wasn't until you could see her eyes flutter shut and moving close to you, her lips pressed to yours, that you realized this was happening. Perhaps this was happening too fast, you only wanted to practice. But what was a little kiss between friends, right?

It felt more than that. Her hand was brushing your jaw and she hummed into your mouth as she delicately coaxed yours to open. Tilting her head, she allowed herself to kiss you more firmly, her other hand now on your waist. She herself knew that she couldn't have done this kiss in front of the crew because she also harbored a secret crush on you. The only reason she suggested the entire practice was because she found this really stupid idea online and decided to try it. Never did she think it would work.

When you finally came up for air, her face was brushed with pink. She cleared her throat and composed herself. "And that is how you kiss on camera."

You could feel your chest doing backflips in your chest. "You've done that before?"

"Well, yes, but I've never liked them. Trust me, I wanted to practice because I would have been a coward if I kissed you in front of everyone." She smiled. "I wouldn't want someone recording me kissing my love."

You squinted until your eyes blew open. "Hold on, you suggested that because it was mainly for you!"

"Guilty."

The premiere of the movie, all of Twitter would scream at the sight of both of you in matching outfits and even a picture of Sumika winking at you while kissing your hand. Supposedly someone even photoshopped a ring onto your fingers.

Even with the media, you couldn't be happier about your relationship with Sumika.

thoughts on tumblr’s next steps:

- a good algorithm is necessary for new users. the current new user experience is bad, especially for finding what makes tumblr really valuable (cutting edge posts, thoughtful content). current algorithms are.. it would really help to have these hand selected by people who actually know what’s funny. the algorithm has to be up to date with what’s happening Right Now

- don’t remove multiple of the same reblog in the following feed. it’s not only a beloved part of the current user experience (think mishapocalyse, holding r button to spam mutuals) but it lets users know when a post is very popular among the people you follow + mutuals. notes aren’t a good indicator of what people in your circle find funny/interesting

- when suggesting posts, the top reblog should be suggested as well. often the for you or trending pages will show the origin of a multi-part post, without showing why the post is so popular (a funny reblog or a punchline to the joke). this also demonstrates to new users how reblogs are used

- no tutorials, but a tumblr tips and tricks page might be hepful. the less you start new users off with the more likely they are to stay. nobody likes a long tutorial for things you can figure out by yourself

- engagement options on individual reblogs and replies is good. reactions to replies should definitely be implemented - it follows what people expect from bereal, instagram, discord, and allows for new and exciting interactions

- expand the trending page! swiping to a second page (6-10) or including constantly trending tags (artists on tumblr, meme, etc) would allow for more scrolling and more engagement for smaller creators!

- a huge problem creators talk about is likes vs reblogs. this stems from blog curation- liking the art enough to engage, but not enough to put it on your blog. introducing a solution to this would make current users very happy and increase engagement- sideblogs can be very useful for sharing posts that you don’t want cluttering up your main blog, but the way they currently exist is a hassle. listen to users on this one

- co creation could be really cool. giving users ways to collaborate on blogs/posts could lead to innovative content

- tumblr posts should be able to be embedded as links, but should not notify the original poster. if you want them to know you can tag them

- get a better brand persona. emporium is disliked by many influencial users. i understand it hits a niche, but it helps to be on better terms with the people who’s posts you’re selling

- stay away from live/anything that involves users putting their real faces and indentities out there. tumblr should remain anonymous to stay funny

- logged out experiences: offer up similar blogs to the one they landed on. if they end up making an account, encourage them to follow these blogs. please make the new account experience more seamless. get them to the dashboard as fast as possible, put an alogrithm or trending page in front of them, MAYBE offer an introductory post explaining what makes tumblr unique, but expect them to know the basics of social media. odds are this isn’t their first rodeo

tldr i care about this website and want it to succeed while retaining it’s identity and i think @staff do to

# VILLAINSPEECH : A PRIVATE AND SELECTIVE RED SON OF THE LEGO MONKIE KID SERIES. PREDOMINANTLY BASED ON THE SHOW ITSELF & INFLUENCED BY HEADCANONS, JOURNEY TO THE WEST, AND OTHER MATERIALS INVOLVING HÓNG HÁI-ER / SHÀNCÁI / SUDHANA. INTERPRETED AND WRITTEN BY SYD. ESTABLISHED APRIL 2023. INFORMATION BELOW.

NOW FOUND @stillgrows

a study in: never measuring up, carrying the weight of filial piety, bearing the loss of something innate, navigating the grey line between the selfishness of villainy and the recklessness of heroism, atoning for mistakes beyond ones control, & fire-forged friendship.

note : i'm on a bit of a semi-hiatus until mid-may due to packing, cleaning, and moving

RULES :

i. i'm syd or plant. 25↑. any pronouns. lesbian. i'm very new to the lmk scene, but i'm not new at all to roleplay... on tumblr or otherwise. this blog is new and therefore uses the beta editor. i tend to delete ooc posts a lot. i'm white, so feel free to correct me if i happen to misstep. i’m also a working adult with a lot of interests and blogs in other rpcs, so this blog is going to be low activity.

ii. this blog is mutuals only, adults only, and highly selective. i’m here to have a good time with friends, although i’m welcoming of new friends as well. multimuse, duplicate, and oc friendly, with my usual selectivity.

iii. i will not send in rules passwords or fill in interest checkers. i always read rules, and if there’s a muse on a multi i do not want to write with i’ll tell you if it ever comes up. roleplay should not be work and i refuse to treat it like it is.

iv. the usual content information: i don't condone harassment, but i also don't want people who identify as proshippers in my space. there are some things that should not be sexualized. that said, there will be very heavy themes and nsfw content at times. i will tag accordingly as topic //. i don't have any triggers that need to be tagged.

v. no godmodding or metagaming as a general rule, although i do often make exceptions with friends in regards to longer threads, ask responses, and drabbles. i play it fast and loose with some stuff but, like… use your brain, please. if we don’t know each other, definitely don’t do it. or just ask. i can be very laid back.

vi. this goes without saying, but i don't own the character or the source material(s). the song in this post is intruder by the glass pyramids. all visuals are from official sources, edited by myself with a psd of my own creation. all interpretations and headcanons are my own.

ABOUT :

name: red son age: 1,420 / appears to be in his early 20s species: demon, with celestial blood from his mother explaining his human-like appearance gender: all of them pronouns: any / usually defaults to he/him lately orientation: bisexual, if he has to label

notable features: a scar on his left cheek from when he was a child, very sharp teeth with pronounced upper and lower canines hair: vivid red, wild when not contained in a high ponytail, and often dancing with flames skin: medium brown with olive undertones; there is some burn scarring from having the samadhi fire removed, although most are very faint nowadays eyes: a dark, reddish-brown, with a faint, ember-like glow height: 5'8" / 172cm build: lean and toned, bordering on lanky

enneagram: 3w4 sx/sp body language: when not dramatically posturing, red son tends to appear rather languid: hands in his pockets, leaning against walls and railings, condescending cants of his chin. disposition: dramatic and short-tempered, red son comes across as exceptionally arrogant and condescending. he can be a difficult one to get along with, with his short fuse flaring up even when trying to be nice.

about: born the first and only child of the demon bull king and princess iron fan, red son seemed to be exceptionally powerful and promising — but the very samadhi fire that had so much promise was the very thing that endangered his own existence and that of the entire world. in order to save the child and the world itself, a ritual was performed to remove it from the child and seal it away forever.

some flames lingered, but the true samadhi fire was lost to him.

while the truth of its connection to him and his violent severance from it was kept a secret from red son — was it out of shame, mother? father? — it wasn't enough to keep him from seeking knowledge: on the subject of the fire, on other ways to prove himself as useful to his parents, on the celestial plane, on their adversaries.

there is more coming but i ran out of energy for now

VERSES :

main verse. this is the verse that encompasses any point throughout the canon timeline, from the pilot on.

pre-canon. this verse tag encompasses anything involving younger red son, including possible aus. while journey to the west will be, in theory, an inspiration, given that red son's plot has nearly completely divorced itself from the character of red boy, i will be playing in this space rather freely.

kingdom hearts. one would think that the world falling to darkness would be ideal for a demon, but that wasn't the case in red son's mind. this darkness was different, and red son found himself lost in the expanse of other worlds. he usually finds himself in the company of organization xiii members, given how their power draws him in — but he has yet to ally himself with any given side as he weighs his options. ( will add and clarify things as this verse is fleshed out. )

KINGDOM HEARTS AFFILIATES :

toast: empxrical key: bladestormed astro: solears / obsidianrite / spellwaever / antiaquas noir: burserks / lordxemnas / undahlia / terranorts

THAI.

I was just out and about, running my little errands on a Saturday morning, when you tagged me in this TNT set and emotionally wrecked me while in line at the bank. 😭 THANKS.

I honestly forgot that I sent you this song lololol, and as a result, I WAS NOT READY TO RECEIVE THIS. The best part was how the song was playing on my AirPods the moment I saw the notification. The universe knew what was coming.

Your idea to frame the set through Tommy, Nancy, and TK's losses????? YO. THAI. WOW. GENIUS. Obviously we all know grief is a common thread between them, but the way you laid it all out is 🥺🥺. I love how you wove it all together in a way that tells such a uniquely beautiful and bittersweet story. A STANDING OVATION ON THIS BRILLIANT CREATIVE CHOICE. 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

My favorite part of the song, which guts me every single time I hear it, is "I think life's a party, something you should celebrate...some people leave early, while others get to stay." What you did with those lyrics gave me goosebumps. The shaking effect that you did with the second to last gif and "some people leave early"--- I cannot stop looking at it (or playing that part of the song on repeat as I do).

Your talent is limitless and your creations always manage to simultaneously make an impact and leave an indelible imprint. The show only gives you so much content to utilize, and the way you curate your sets with the limited scenes/options you have is astounding. I always look forward to seeing the end result of one of your ideas, and it always blows me away because your attention to detail is EVERYTHING.

Anyway, I'm gonna get myself together and go about the rest of my day, SOMEHOW. Thank you for remembering for both of us (😂) that I sent you that song and for creating this absolutely stunning set with it. I’m gonna be thinking about it for daaaays. So grateful to you, and for you. 💖🥹 Forever tied with Kim as your number 1 fan. 😁😂

SONIAAAAA! Just casually making me cry in a Saturday night huh. Is this payback for the set because I feel like it is lol. You have NO IDEA how much this means to me! I absolutely love getting you two by surprise omg seriously it's now one of my favorite things in the world sdfghjdfkdf It actually happens because I'm often lacking motivation and inspiration to make them right away but this works I guess 💀 I still can't believe you were listening to this song oh man that's wonderful and I'm so happy I've worked up the courage to post it in that exact time.

I'm so so happy you like my scene choices because you know that's what I care the most about lol. "Some people leave early and others get to stay" is my favorite part too so I felt the need to add all I could to represent TNT I'm very glad you like it <3. Godddd I'm not kidding when I say this made me cry. I adore you sfm and it's incredible to make sets for you. The way you love and care for the show and everyone's work is the fucking best! I could drop a set every single day for you and Kim and never grow tired of it because, ofc, I love you two, and it's super worth it! Seeing you guys freak out for all this 911ls/Rafa content add some years to my life expectancy istg 🤣 So THANK YOU for taking the time to send this, for all those beautiful texts and these lovely words. And oh boy this is not even the last request 💀 so I can't wait to see your reaction to those as well sdfhjdsfklfd. You're wonderful my love ❤️ I'm dead I'm sure Kim is good with sharing it with you lololol

ostrich birkin 4

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race & culture in fandom

For the past decade, English language fanwriting culture post the days of LiveJournal and Strikethrough has been hugely shaped by a handful of megafandoms that exploded across AO3 and tumblr – I’m talking Supernatural, Teen Wolf, Dr Who, the MCU, Harry Potter, Star Wars, BBC Sherlock – which have all been overwhelmingly white. I don’t mean in terms of the fans themselves, although whiteness also figures prominently in said fandoms: I mean that the source materials themselves feature very few POC, and the ones who are there tended to be done dirty by the creators.

Periodically, this has led POC in fandom to point out, extremely reasonably, that even where non-white characters do get central roles in various media properties, they’re often overlooked by fandom at large, such that the popular focus stays primarily on the white characters. Sometimes this happened (it was argued) because the POC characters were secondary to begin with and as such attracted less fan devotion (although this has never stopped fandoms from picking a random white gremlin from the background cast and elevating them to the status of Fave); at other times, however, there has been a clear trend of sidelining POC leads in favour of white alternatives (as per Finn, Poe and Rose Tico being edged out in Star Wars shipping by Hux, Kylo and Rey). I mention this, not to demonize individuals whose preferred ships happen to involve white characters, but to point out the collective impact these trends can have on POC in fandom spaces: it’s not bad to ship what you ship, but that doesn’t mean there’s no utility in analysing what’s popular and why through a racial lens.

All this being so, it feels increasingly salient that fanwriting culture as exists right now developed under the influence and in the shadow of these white-dominated fandoms – specifically, the taboo against criticizing or critiquing fics for any reason. Certainly, there’s a hell of a lot of value to Don’t Like, Don’t Read as a general policy, especially when it comes to the darker, kinkier side of ficwriting, and whether the context is professional or recreational, offering someone direct, unsolicited feedback on their writing style is a dick move. But on the flipside, the anti-criticism culture in fanwriting has consistently worked against fans of colour who speak out about racist tropes, fan ignorance and hurtful portrayals of living cultures. Voicing anything negative about works created for free is seen as violating a core rule of ficwriting culture – but as that culture has been foundationally shaped by white fandoms, white characters and, overwhelmingly, white ideas about what’s allowed and what isn’t, we ought to consider that all critical contexts are not created equal.

Right now, the rise of C-drama (and K-drama, and J-drama) fandoms is seeing a surge of white creators – myself included – writing fics for fandoms in which no white people exist, and where the cultural context which informs the canon is different to western norms. Which isn’t to say that no popular fandoms focused on POC have existed before now – K-pop RPF and anime fandoms, for example, have been big for a while. But with the success of The Untamed, more western fans are investing in stories whose plots, references, characterization and settings are so fundamentally rooted in real Chinese history and living Chinese culture that it’s not really possible to write around it. And yet, inevitably, too many in fandom are trying to do just that, treating respect for Chinese culture or an attempt to understand it as optional extras – because surely, fandom shouldn’t feel like work. If you’re writing something for free, on your own time, for your own pleasure, why should anyone else get to demand that you research the subject matter first?

Because it matters, is the short answer. Because race and culture are not made-up things like lightsabers and werewolves that you can alter, mock or misunderstand without the risk of hurting or marginalizing actual real people – and because, quite frankly, we already know that fandom is capable of drawing lines in the sand where it chooses. When Brony culture first reared its head (hah), the online fandom for My Little Pony – which, like the other fandoms we’re discussing here, is overwhelmingly female – was initially welcoming. It felt like progress, that so many straight men could identify with such a feminine show; a potential sign that maybe, we were finally leaving the era of mainstream hypermasculine fandom bullshit behind, at least in this one arena. And then, in pretty much the blink of an eye, things got overwhelmingly bad. Artists drawing hardcorn porn didn’t tag their works as adult, leading to those images flooding the public search results for a children’s show. Women were edged out of their own spaces. Bronies got aggressive, posting harsh, ugly criticism of artists whose gijinka interpretations of the Mane Six as humans were deemed insufficiently fuckable.

The resulting fandom conflict was deeply unpleasant, but in the end, the verdict was laid down loud and clear: if you cannot comport yourself like a decent fucking person – if your base mode of engagement within a fandom is to coopt it from the original audience and declare it newly cool only because you’re into it now; if you do not, at the very least, attempt to understand and respect the original context so as to engage appropriately (in this case, by acknowledging that the media you’re consuming was foundational to many women who were there before you and is still consumed by minors, and tagging your goddamn porn) – then the rest of fandom will treat you like a social biohazard, and rightly so.

Here’s the thing, fellow white people: when it comes to C-drama fandoms and other non-white, non-western properties? We are the Bronies.

Not, I hasten to add, in terms of toxic fuckery – though if we don’t get our collective shit together, I’m not taking that darkest timeline off the table. What I mean is that, by virtue of the whiteminding which, both consciously and unconsciously, has shaped current fan culture, particularly in terms of ficwriting conventions, we’re collectively acting as though we’re the primary audience for narratives that weren’t actually made with us in mind, being hostile dicks to Chinese and Chinese diaspora fans when they take the time to point out what we’re getting wrong. We’re bristling because we’ve conceived of ficwriting as a place wherein No Criticism Occurs without questioning how this culture, while valuable in some respects, also serves to uphold, excuse and perpetuate microaggresions and other forms of racism, lashing out or falling back on passive aggression when POC, quite understandably, talk about how they’re sick and tired of our bullshit.

An analogy: one of the most helpful and important tags on AO3 is the one for homophobia, not just because it allows readers to brace for or opt out of reading content they might find distressing, but because it lets the reader know that the writer knows what homophobia is, and is employing it deliberately. When this concept is tagged, I – like many others – often feel more able to read about it than I do when it crops up in untagged works of commercial fiction, film or TV, because I don’t have to worry that the author thinks what they’re depicting is okay. I can say definitively, “yes, the author knows this is messed up, but has elected to tell a messed up story, a fact that will be obvious to anyone who reads this,” instead of worrying that someone will see a fucked up story blind and think “oh, I guess that’s fine.” The contextual framing matters, is the point – which is why it’s so jarring and unpleasant on those rare occasions when I do stumble on a fic whose author has legitimately mistaken homophobic microaggressions for cute banter. This is why, in a ficwriting culture that otherwise aggressively dislikes criticism, the request to tag for a certain thing – while still sometimes fraught – is generally permitted: it helps everyone to have a good time and to curate their fan experience appropriately.

But when white and/or western fans fail to educate ourselves about race, culture and the history of other countries and proceed to deploy that ignorance in our writing, we’re not tagging for racism as a thing we’ve explored deliberately; we’re just being ignorant at best and hateful at worst, which means fans of colour don’t know to avoid or brace for the content of those works until they get hit in the face with microaggresions and/or outright racism. Instead, the burden is placed on them to navigate a minefield not of their creation: which fans can be trusted to write respectfully? Who, if they make an error, will listen and apologise if the error is explained? Who, if lived experience, personal translations or cultural insights are shared, can be counted on to acknowledge those contributions rather than taking sole credit? Too often, fans of colour are being made to feel like guests in their own house, while white fans act like a tone-policing HOA.

Point being: fandom and ficwriting cultures as they currently exist badly need to confront the implicit acceptance of racism and cultural bias that underlies a lot of community rules about engagement and criticism, and that needs to start with white and western fans. We don’t want to be the new Bronies, guys. We need to do better.  

hello, so i am shifting accounts, woo! well, partially shifting. (if you want to reblog this post, go ahead) long post follows below cut, so a TLDR: i am leaving because i am starting to feel uncomfortable in the cule (reason for discomfort explained below cut). i will still keep this account for reblogging destiel and creative content, but everything else will be in the new account. im not saying the account's name but it isnt too hard to find. please tag @castinkywinky in your creative posts (edits, amvs, art, webweaves, gifs, etc.) or DM them to me. i really do not want to miss them. feel free to DM me other people's posts you find cool as well!! --

the primary reason why i am leaving is because the environment in cule tumblr right now is starting to get hostile. idk if i should, but im just gonna talk about what i am seeing on here that has made me uncomfortable, cause i dont want to be silent:

biphobia, acephobia, people talking over neurodivergent people, people invalidating other people's triggers and being unwilling to cooperate by tagging their posts with warnings, vaguing and ganging up on mutuals (i have seen none of my mutuals partake in these, but i am not online all the time so i cant be sure what happens when i'm offline), and just people being rude and mean. definitely didn't help that a lot of the victims were poc and/or neurodivergent people.

i’ve been lucky to not have directly been involved in any of the conflict that arose, but it is really tough and upsetting to see mutuals’ names get dragged under just for having different and valid opinions on a tv show that ended in 2020. all of this while blogs who purposely started the hate and discourse are getting support, praises, and tractions, and i'm just gonna say it, its because they are very popular among the cule and have a lot of followers. i am unsure if they are unable to grasp the influence they hold or are purposely using it to bully others but idk. also the anonymity of discord channels makes things harder.

i'm not saying i'm a perfect person and i have definitely made mistakes on this account, which i am regretful of. but i am learning and growing and a lot of these people i see seem fixed in their ways. i also do understand that it is human nature that in a power struggle people will most likely stand with the bully, often without even realising that that's what they are doing. really the only option i have in this scenario is to walk away because the rest of us are powerless (i know whatever i say here wont have an impact either, considering i blocked some of the blogs too). i know i can just block and unfollow people, but that hasnt been enough for me. and frankly after spending majority of the day on my new account, my mental health feels much better. (hoping it doesnt get worse after i post this)

anyways, i still want to support everyone's creations so if you make a new amv, art, webweave, etc. feel free to add me to your tag list or DM them to me, cause honestly my prime reason for not deactivating this account is to see creative work in the cule and the fandom. cause you guys are so fucking talented. i still do have a decent following size here, so hopefully reblogging the posts here instead of my new account will bring more traction to the posts.

speaking of my new account, it will not have any destiel content. destiel content shall remain in here alongside fandom creations. but on the new account i will be posting individual character content and content of other ships, including any and all rarepairs (well, within reason). also succession, watcher, muppets, and my other special interests.

i'm not going to link my new account here, just going to say that i'm using the same email for it as the one i use for my jail account, and that the url is also linked in the description of my jail. i have followed some of my mutuals on there already. you are free to ask me for the account name, but just know if you're primarily a destiel account, i may not be following back. we can remain mutuals on this account

i will also still be doing the daily cas posts so follow me @dailycasposts. the post usually come around 10-11am EST (unless i forgot or a mutual asks to post earlier) and i will still be active on discord, so DM me if you want my discord ID. or really, just DM me here if you want to talk, since i have to log on every night to cas post anyways.

that's all i have. so take care everyone, it was fun being active on this account while it lasted. all of you made it so fun and i definitely would not have survived 2021 without this account and the mutuals and friends i have made along the way. i hope to keep in touch with most of you and last reminder to add me (this account) to your tag lists and/or DM me your creative posts !! <33 Mx Stinkywinky

Day 5 of the interviews! let’s give it up for Ligia! :chinhands:

Ligia, author of Love the Guard, Be the King

Latino Heritage Month Featured Author

Mathias' heart has been bleeding since his father, the former King, decided to punish you for his mistakes. As the youngest child of a lesser bourgeois, you were raised in the castle, between the King’s cruelty, the Queen’s friendship, and  Mathias’s kindness (or supposed kindness?).

Now, more than twenty Carnivals since your arrival, the King is dead and the Queen’s sickness  worsens each day. As the azure taint spreads in the kingdom and the Opalean Wars come to an end, it’s Mathias’s time to sit on the throne.

Will the docile Prince become a kind King, a violent Monarch, or a ruthless Tyrant? Will you have any say in it? And how much will your relationship change?

Love the Guard, Be the King Demo | Author’s Kofi | Read more [here]

Tags: historical, romance

(INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT UNDER THE CUT)

Q1: So, tell us a little bit about the projects you’re working on!

With pleasure! Right now, I’m working on three main projects. My personal Visual Novel project, “Love the Guard, Be the King,” a second Visual Novel I’ve been secretly working on with a good friend for the past 10 months or so, and I also have an ongoing book series about hot, quirky supervillains—but I’ll focus only on the first two cause that’s what we’re here for, right? Hahaha.

LtGBtK is a really intimist experience, focused more on the MC’s and RO’s character arcs and how we can change depending on our experiences and how we feel about them. The entire plot happens in only four days, but it takes into account almost 30 years of history—basically Mathias’s (the only RO) entire life!

“Crystal Library” has mystery, romance, magic, 6 ROs, and a ton of memorable scenes already. I’m working on the graphics and the programming for this one, while Coco Nichole (@dreamybard), one of my favorite writers ever, is the brilliant mind behind the plot and all of CL’s characters! I can’t wait to share this one with you all. Romance is optional in both. :)

Q2: What excites you most about using interactive fiction? What are some of the biggest challenges?

What I LOVE and FEAR about all types of interactive fiction is how it invites players to, on a much deeper level, be part of the narrative. When reading books, we all work hard to translate beautiful sentences and scenes into images in your head. We interact with it, yes, but when playing IFs, we also explore the narrative in a different way; we have so much more agency over what happens! We sometimes have different paths to choose from, beautiful illustrations to unlock, or character traits that change depending on our choices… it’s amazing, and, IMO, it’s a very unique way to experience narratives.

But it’s also very complex, very demanding, and it can easily get out of hand if you give the players too many options/branches to follow, mainly when working with small teams or, in my case for LtGBtK, alone. *takes a deep breath* I just hope I’m doing a good job. .-.

Q3: What has been something in your project you’ve had to do a weird amount of research for?

Besides programming lol basically everything. For LtGBtK, I’m trying to create this weird fantasy with a modern-medieval society (?), so I’m constantly researching medieval customs, traditions, tools, and weirdly specific stuff like socks. Did people wear socks in the medieval era? What were their playing cards made of? When was ice cream invented? How did they shave? How did kids become knights? What were their perfumes made of? And soaps? What did they eat? How different was their wine? And what kind of materials or slang or fabrics can I use, and what can I change without completely breaking immersion?

 And then I shove all that into a pot and adapt it to a world where Mathias can literally put the world on fire with a wave of his hands. ♥

Q4: Which of your characters is most like you? How?

I think I’m a mix of them all, but mainly Mandra and Rafa (one of my main characters in my supervillain books). They have wildly different personalities and stories, but those two have clear views of the kind of person they want to be, they’re not afraid of their soft sides, and they are ready to work hard to become good at what they love. Rafa has a specially strong connection to her brother, like my siblings and I, and Mand is often locked in an eternal state of wanting to be alone and wanting to be surrounded by family/loved ones, so I guess we meet there too!

Q5: Does your heritage influence your characters as you create them? (How? Why or why not?)

Yes! There are the very basic ways, like habits, names, food, family dynamics, settings (mainly in my books, which are all very Brazilian), and Holidays. And then there’s a more personal way that I’m not entirely sure I can explain because I lived in Brazil for 28 years, and I’m not sure I can put that into words. The classics of our literature are different, Art, architecture, and music developed differently, my country was violently colonized and still faces the results of that violence (including but not limited to structural racism, classism, misogyny etc), I learned some Capoeira in my physical education class at school, we call non-Brazilians “gringos,” and so on. This is my normal, and this is what my characters would see as normal too, because I don’t know any different.

At the very core, all my characters are influenced by my country’s history, by our relationship with other countries, and by the values my parents taught me, passed down to them by my Indigeous-Spanish-Portuguese-German foremothers/fathers. :P

The main, more palpable way my heritage influences my characters, though, is through humor and theme. I think Brazilians have a very specific, sharp, and often very smart kind of humor that, IMO, stems from the type of history our country has, and the way we look at life, sometimes translating pain into humor. As for themes, I usually write about what makes me angry... and there’s a lot in Brazil’s history and modern society that causes me that. :)

But all I know for sure is that I want to show the world Brazilians are much more than samba and soccer.

 Q6: What is something you love to see in interactive fiction?

Other people! In the same way I add my history and worldview to my creations, I always approach stories thinking that there’s a whole, well, history behind them. And I love that! Also, I adore choices that feel impactful + good friendships and family relationships + soft romances with mutual respect. ♥

Q7: Any advice to give?

Hmm. Be proud and celebrate who you are and where you’re from. Learning and understanding the world inside us is a life-long process, so it’s always a victory to discover new pieces of ourselves. :) Also, if you can, talk to people that come from different cultures than yours to expand your worldview, don’t be afraid to be soft (the world needs more kindness), and please study personal finance. Seriously. XD

Just Breathe

Tom Holland x Female!Osterfield!Bisexual!Reader

Summary: Childbirth waits for no one, not even the Oscars.

Warnings: fluuuuuff, pregnant reader, mentions of childbirth, good press articles, BISEXUAL READER WOOOHOOO

Word Count: 1.5k words

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

A/N: heeeeey look @peterspideyy​ @parkersbliss​ that crazy idea i ranted to you about like six months ago finally got done! i can’t believe i did it... this feels too good to be true, is the world gonna end or something?

Masterlist 

"I don't think this is a good idea."

"Me neither."

"Please, just stay here."

You looked up to your brother and husband, frowning as you smoothed your hand over the soft black fabric of your gown.

"I am not missing the Oscars, Tom. I've still got two weeks until I'm due, it'll be fine."

You sat down on the bed and looked dejectedly at your shoes, then proceeded to throw puppy dog eyes your brother's way until Harrison had no choice but to kneel and help you put on your comfortable trainers. There's no way you're putting on your heels at 37 weeks of pregnancy.

"But what if Baby decides to come sooner? You could go into labour at any moment!"

You rolled your eyes and only raised your arms so they could help you out of bed.

"You guys are being over-dramatic. Nothing's gonna happen. We're just going to the Oscars, we'll have a good time, and hopefully, I'll leave with a little statue under my arm."

With that, you waddled out of your hotel room, ready to get into the limo.

---

"(Y/n)! It's so good to see you! You look radiant as always!"

You smiled at Kaitlyn, an interviewer you knew and trusted and rubbed your belly comfortingly. 

"Thank you, I feel like a whale, but Baby'll be here soon so it's worth it."

She smiled and asked you a bunch of questions about your movie and how you were feeling about being nominated for Best Actress.

"But anyway, how far along are you now?"

"I'm a little over 37 weeks, they should be coming soon. Tom and Haz were actually really apprehensive about me coming here since I'm so close to my due date."

She smiled and looked over at the two men, obviously on edge.

"Well, I wish you all the best and I sincerely hope you win."

You hugged her goodbye and posed for a few more pictures before being led inside by your husband.

---

"And now, for the moment you've all been waiting for..."

Everyone watched with bated breath as Brie Larson, last year's winner, got ready to announce who would take home the trophy.

"This year's winner, and taking home the Oscar for best actress in a leading role..."

Tom took your hand and you squeezed it tight, ready to applaud one of the other amazing actresses on their win.

"(Y/n) Holland, for her brilliant performance in Two Sides of the Same Coin!"

You felt like your heart was gonna beat out of your chest, run to that stage, kiss Brie, then promptly burst to flames out of sheer, unadulterated enthusiasm. Tom was hugging you and whispering how much you deserved it while your brother gently guided you to the podium. None of them would ever allow you to go up there on your own. Always one in front of you in case you trip forward and one behind you to catch you if you fall back.

Overprotective much?

As soon as you reached Brie, you hugged her tight (or as tight as you could with a human baby house separating you), taking the award while the two boys hugged her too.

"Holy Louis Tomlinson in a crop top."

The audience laughed, most of them already familiar with your strange One Direction inspired expressions.

"Wow, I didn't actually think I was gonna win this, everyone had such amazing performances. I-It's an honour, really. Two Sides of the Same Coin was a project very near and dear to my heart, so I'd like to thank the amazing Drew Barrymore, who wrote and directed the movie."

The room erupted in cheers and the woman smiled at you from her place on the front row.

"Bisexual representation is something we don't get very often, and when we do, it's always misjudged. So thank you for showing the world what bisexuality really is, and for giving me a chance to live out my dreams of kissing lots of people. This idiot tied me down too soon."

You pointed behind you at Tom, hearing his appalled squeak along with Harrison's guffaw of a laugh. 

In other news, the baby was starting to inconvenience you slightly. Baby had been going crazy since last night (not that you'd tell the boys) and the Braxton-Hicks were killing you, but it only got worse now.

"I'd also like to thank my amazing costars, Zendaya, Bella Thorne, and Owen Patrick Joyner, it was awesome to make out with you all..."

The crowd laughed while you felt something trickle down your legs.

Oh.

OH.

You'll never live this down, that's for sure.

"Uh, before I finish can one of you idiots call the car and get them to come to the exit please and thank you? Now as I was saying-"

"Wait, why?"

You turned to your brother and smiled innocently.

"Oh, my water just broke."

The crowd cheered.

Tom screamed.

Harrison fell to the floor, unconscious.

You sighed.

"New plan, can anyone try to wake my brother while my hus-" 

You looked at Tom, frantically doing small back and forths between you and his best friend, unsure of what to do. 

"-While someone else calls the car because both of them are apparently useless."

"We need to get you to the hospital!"

His terrified scream could be heard all through the room, even with no mic.

"What? No! I need to finish my acceptance speech, then go back to the hotel to shower and maybe take a little nap and then go to the hospital. My water just broke, Thomas, we have time, calm your tits."

You turned back fully to the mic, facing the hysteric faces of the crowd, very entertained by the exchange.

"Now as I was saying, I want to thank the amazing team that worked on this movie, you're all amazing and it was such a good experience. I'd also like to thank my family for always being there for me and supporting me and Haz in our acting careers. Thank you to my brother, even if he's unconscious right now, he'll just watch it on Youtube later, for literally forcing me to go to the audition. And lastly, I'd like to thank my wonderful husband, who hopefully hasn't passed out yet, for always supporting me and being my biggest rock through everything. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to deliver a baby, you know, just normal Saturday night stuff."

---

An Oscar in hand and another... down her legs?

(Y/n) Holland sure gave the Oscars something to be entertained by on this last Saturday. The wife of fellow actor Tom Holland looked radiant in her custom-made Valentino dress, looking ready for a night of fun.

(Y/n) was nominated for this year's Best Actress in a Leading Role award, alongside Meryl Streep, Margot Robbie, Cate Blanchett, and Tessa Thompson, but the Oscar went to her from her brilliant performance in Two Sides of the Same Coin. But it was during her acceptance speech that things got... slippery.

At 37 weeks of pregnancy, the Holland baby was ready to come at any minute, but apparently, theatrics run in the family. The actress was in the middle of her speech when she felt her water break, pausing in her talking to request a car be called.

You'd think her husband, Tom, and brother Harrison Osterfield, overprotective as they are, would be fully prepared! Unfortunately for them, and fortunately for our entertainment, they were not. Harrison went unconscious after hearing the news, dropping to the floor and earning himself a minor concussion, much to his sister's amusement

[image1-harrison-ice-pack.png]

@ynholland: "Don't worry, when you go into labour, I'll be with you every step of the way." Said Harrison Osterfield, then proceeded to pass out, get a minor concussion, and miss the whole delivery.😂 Good job, little bro👍

And just when you thought she couldn't get any better, she finishes her acceptance speech with: "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to deliver a baby, you know, just normal Saturday night stuff." We have no choice but to stan this iconic queen!

But for the news you've all been waiting for, Oscar Robert Holland (yes, the middle name is a homage to Robert Downey Jr. himself, we're not crying, you are!) was born just twelve hours later. Tom let know through a beautiful Instagram picture that he is in fact "perfectly healthy and loved by everyone already".

[image2-tom-and-oscar.png]

@tomholland2013: I present to you, my best creation to this date: Oscar Robert Holland. Thank you all for your prayers and kind messages, our boy is perfectly healthy and loved by everyone already❤️

But of course, Uncle Haz wouldn't stay behind.

[image3-haz-and-oscar.png]

@hazosterfield: Since I know you've all been worried sick and desperate to know how the baby is... I'm doing just fine, it's just a minor concussion :) Oh and my godson's great too.

And just to prove that the Osterfields are indeed the royal family of comedy, we leave with this wonderful picture posted to the happy mum's very own Instagram.

[image4-yn-and-oscars.png]

@ynholland: Guess I was so good they gave two Oscars instead of one ;)

-Written by Kaitlyn Storm

so anyway, Two Sides of the Same Coin is a movie idea i got a while ago and should maybe try to write one of these days but oh well or something. anyway, i’m not gonna rant about it here cause it’d be too long but i hope you enjoyed this and don’t forget to like/comment/reblog if you feel like it!

-Love, Miah

«────── « ⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ » ──────» 

Taglists: (if your name is striked through it means for some reason tumblr wouldn’t let me tag you) 

PERMA TAG 

@adriannajackson123​ @theamazingtomholland​ @inlovewithmobtom​ @andycanbeemotional​ @officiallyunofficialperson​ @lost-in-the-stars03​ @jeezkiddo​ @a-singleboat​ @wunder-13 @highlydisfunctional1​ @ellyseveronica​ @inthecornerchair​ @harishaanne​ @anjalika03​ @lozzypoz321​ @mendes-marvel​ @sovereignparker​ @bubbles-the-powerpuffgurl 

 MARVEL ACTORS 

@sarcasticallywitty15​ @agentnataliahofferson​ @onelovesr​ @agentnataliahofferson​ @parkerpetertingle​ @juliebean247​ @frustratingpaperclip​ @tacobacoyeet​ 

HOLLAND & CO. 

@sarcasticallywitty15​ @agentnataliahofferson​ @onelovesr​ @agentnataliahofferson​ @zeusmyster​ @parkerpetertingle​ @juliebean247​ @joyleenl​ @quaksonhehe​ @clara-licht​ @frustratingpaperclip​  @tutuabby28​ @tacobacoyeet​ 

LGBTQ+ 

@quaksonhehe​ 

Fri 19 March ‘21

Zach Sang’s 25 min of relaxing ASMR wait no I mean celebration of Zayn’s great talking voice wait NO I MEAN his ZAYN INTERVIEW (promised months ago then sadly postponed until NOW) is here!! Zach is such a good interviewer for these guys, you can tell he sincerely loves the music and he asks great respectful questions only, love it. And sure enough, this is a lovely interview and Zayn actually seems totally comfortable chatting and sharing his thoughts. They talk about lots of specifics about the songs on NIL; Zayn says NIL is his fave of his music and that he “tried to go a little deeper into my own personal things,” he said that he recorded the majority of the album at home in Pennsylvania and that yes, it is influenced by being there, that River Road especially is massively inspired by the locale and “I’ve got a very country vibe going on right now with the big beard and the nature, I’m enjoying it, it’s cool.” He says the cover painting is of “the blank expressions you might get when you’re speaking to somebody that’s not listening,” that “my teenage years were very different than I expected them to be and I learned a lot of things … to take things easy and at your own pace.” About Calamity that he often writes poems (zoems) and just takes lyrics out of them later, but friends voted he keep Calamity as is and go for it, that Sweat (the drums specifically) is an homage to Phil Collins, that he’s writing new stuff and will hopefully have something more out later this year, and Zach asks the pressing question we’ve all had: IS THAT A KAZOO ON CONNEXION? Disappointingly Zayn’s answer is only, I don’t really fuck with those fine details, that’s down to the producers. So no confirmation but also: it’s totally a kazoo. And finally this from Z: “I love music, it’s my solace. I love writing, I love being in the studio and being in that space, it’s something I love to do. I feel like as long as I’m alive it’s something I’ll do I’d like to be able to, I’d like people to remain interested for as long as I’m alive, I know that’s a long shot but it’s a long haul, we’re all trying to stay around for as long as we can.”

We got to see Liam today!! I’ve missed that sweet face! He recorded a little video while walking through a park (“on my way to the shops”) to show off his beautiful shaggy long hair and beard to say that he’s just surpassed 5 billion streams and a “humungous massive ginormous thank you to all you guys who are listening.”

Louis tweeted “a lot of these NFT projects are very interesting!” NFTs are unique digital things-- like normally anything online can be duplicated, unlike real objects, this way it can’t (it’s how crypto currency works), or rather: you CAN still copy stuff, just there’s a way to tell the original from the copy (of a copy). People are excited about this because it makes it possible to sell things that previously you couldn’t really charge money for (like unique digital art). The way it’s achieved is unfortunately via the massive and wasteful expenditure of resources though, it’s very bad for the environment; current bitcoin creation alone for example uses more resources than entire countries and the current NFT craze is racing to outdo that. Louis responded to a DM asking about that; “Louis are you aware the average NFT has a carbon footprint equivalent to more than a month’s electricity for a person living in the EU?” Louis says, “I’m aware and it’s something I’m looking to do differently if I do my own project,” then liked a tweet from a company addressing the issue: "Our carbon neutrality pledge is a step toward making NFT digital collectibles and the digital metaverse part of a green, environmentally friendly future.” IDK how realistic that is, but in any case Louis is aware of the issues and the fans’ concerns.

Anyway he also tweeted about football a bunch- because a former Doncaster player was picked for the England World Cup team!! Louis says the player “was at donny when I was training there. Top lad and top keeper,” and “he deserves every bit of success.” And in answer to queries, the official word from Louis’ merch site (responsive as ever, bless that twin) is that they do not plan to restock the album! No CDs! This is likely due to it having been put out by Syco, who no longer exist, but what does it mean in the long run? It’s a major release and I can’t imagine it simply going out of print forever, surely a reprint of some kind will be worked out?

What secrets was Niall hiding in his photodump yesterday? “What are you playing on the piano?” asks a follower, and Niall selected the tweet to, well not answer, but to draw attention to his failure to answer by simply replying with an eyes emoji, like a troll. Then he posted a picture of sunglasses on an electronic piano, but when asked again to spill what was up said only “a pair of sunglasses on a Wurlitzer.” But IS he trolling? “There’s nothing to know hahah it’s literally a pair of sunglasses on a piano!” he protests. He also tweeted “today is a good day!” which ALSO doesn’t tell us anything but you know what, Niall’s out there having a good time and good for him.

Lenny Kravitz tagged Harry in a throwback post of himself in a stunning look- “real men wear boas,” and the deuxmoi / Olivia’s PR team partnership rose to new levels of obviousness with the gossip blog using a supposed blind item about Olivia (you’d think she was royalty, the astonishing number of blind items they JUST HAPPEN to get) to announce a giveaway in partnership with a sponsor brand she is the face of. HARD eyeroll, imagine thinking that blog wasn’t get paaaaid, can’t relate.

Okay, so you said I could send an ask for headcanons about the childhoods of some specific merc(s)... I think I would really like to read your headcanons about Soldier’s and Engineer’s childhood :)

Thanks in advance and I hope your well.

Ooooh…I’ve been waiting for this! And thank you for being specific and not just saying “the rest of them.” Sometimes I get overwhelmed with nine specific mercs to write for. Your specifics are much appreciated.

****************

Soldier:

Soldier doesn’t talk very much about his childhood - whether it’s because something happened or he just doesn’t remember it, no one can tell. It’s nowhere in his file, either…he refused to do anything except tell fantastic tales of a fictional youth.

However, in a rare streak of almost lucidity, he spouted off the entirety of his younger years, much to the team’s surprise. Usually, if anyone asked directly, he changed the subject.

But now he described everything in vivid detail. And, with a bit of research from Miss Pauling, everything fell into place.

Apparently he had been born in a small military town in Georgia. His father was overseas, leaving he and his mother alone in their small yellow house.

In order to make ends meet, his mother worked at a nearby factory, mostly leaving Soldier to fend for himself and the house.

“Can you be a big, strong soldier like daddy for me?”

Soldier would always agree, finding his own food, his own entertainment, and his own friends. No matter what happened, he never bothered his mom. If anything, his job was to protect her.

That’s why, when his stomach started hurting and his arms and legs ached, he said nothing about it.

When he forgot the chores he was supposed to do and even the names of his friends, he didn’t bring it up.

When he felt tired all the time and some days could barely get out of bed, he just chalked it up to laziness like his mother did.

It turns out the factory they were next to was polluting the water next to the house with dangerous amounts of lead, which soon overcame Soldier’s immune system of steel.

He could barely remember anything anymore, and he became more and more distraught every day. Sometimes he would forget where he was and run outside, then get lost in the woods, only coming back once he remembered where he was supposed to be.

Soldier began to wear one of his father’s old helmets after his mom commented on his red eyes and the dark circles around them. He didn’t want to worry her. Besides, it helped bring back a few memories if he ever got lost again.

Finally, it got to the point where he didn’t even remember his mother, or his promise to her. He began to wander farther and farther away from home.

One day, he didn’t come back at all.

Out in the world with not a single memory to his name, Soldier wandered far and wide. He usually slept in barns and old, abandoned houses, cut off from most people.

Occasionally, he would find a family that wanted to “raise him as their own,” only to turn him away after finding him too difficult to care for.

He had frequent nightmares, ate little due to his unresolved stomach issues, and could barely walk ten feet without forgetting where he was going.

If he accidentally wandered into the same house twice, he would be chased out with either a broom or a gun - usually the latter.

He became “the demon child” in some counties, and “g*psy kid” in others, due to his long, unkempt hair, hidden eyes, and odd habits.

It even got to the point where Soldier couldn’t sleep on anyone’s property because he would be actively fought off like a wolf or a bear.

His only pleasure was an old movie theater that, as he recovered from his lead poisoning, remembered the location of and frequently snuck into.

The only thing that played were romance movies - which, like many children, Soldier hated - and war movies, which he watched over and over again with starving eyes.

Because of these movies, a single memory from his mother’s house came to him. A woman, tall and muscular from hard labor, giving him a shiny badge to hold, asking him to be a strong soldier like his father.

And thus began his life-long dream of becoming a military officer.

He trained according to what he knew from the films…which was mostly running, doing jumping jacks, and occasionally rolling around in the mud.

This only served to distance him further from his fellow human beings, but he didn’t care. Soldier had a mission, and he was going to do it well.

But the biggest change was his hair.

He had started cutting it off with sharpened rocks, but he was always saving up coins he found for a “proper army cut.”

Finally, he had quite the collection in a dirty mason jar, and marched into the barber shop in his town to ask for a haircut.

The manager was appalled, and at first refused, but Soldier stood his ground.

“Civilian, I’ll have you know that by denying a soldier with a haircut, you are denying America one of its best fighters! I can’t curdle the enemy’s blood looking like a hippie!”

After a short yelling match that, of course, Soldier won, the manager decided it would be in his best interest to comply.

He walked out of that shop with no hair on his head, but a huge grin on his face. Next stop, the ranks.

Soldier went from draft office to draft office, applying for and being denied entrance to the army for his obvious lack of mental stability.

This is when the personal retelling ended, since Soldier became very upset by the memory of his recruitment failures, but Miss Pauling concluded that he just bounced from state to state until Mann Co. found him, quote, “sitting in an alleyway, eating army draft paperwork while sobbing uncontrollably.”

Engineer:

Engineer also never really talks about his childhood, but both Medic and Spy (Spy knows everything about everyone on the team) know that’s for a good reason.

He grew up in a trailer community near an almost ghost town in Texas.

His father was an abusive car mechanic with a mean streak a mile wide and a shop full of failed inventions. His mother wasn’t any better - she was bitter and reclusive, only really coming out of her room to pick a fight with her husband.

However, what Engie lacked in family, he more than made up for in friends.

He had a rag-tag, Rugrats-esque team of pals from all walks of life: Rhapsody, the daughter of a struggling porn star; Tom, the son of two farmers wiped out by blight; Cici, an adopted girl that could barely walk into her trailer without a black eye and a string of slurs; Quinn, the nervous child of a single mother that serves as guidance to the other kids; And Fred, who didn’t seem to have any family, but had become a greaser big brother to all of them.

Together, they explored the desert near the trailer park, pooled their resources to feed and support each other, and used their individual strengths to get through each day.

Engineer, whom everyone affectionately called “Big Dell,” snuck parts from his dad’s workshop for his own creations.

By the time he was twelve, he could make a small, running engine for the soapbox cars his friends frequently raced.

No toy, piece of clothing, glasses, or tool was out of his line of expertise.

One day, though, upon finding that some of his parts were missing, Engineer’s dad gave him a terrible beating that broke a few of his fingers and left a huge gash near his eye.

Since then, he refused to fix, make, or even touch a tool.

He wouldn’t tell anyone what happened, but they could make a pretty good guess, since they knew where the scraps and parts had come from.

The whole group was furious with Engineer’s dad - their Big Dell was funny, smart, and was more loving than every family member they had combined. Even Quinn was red in the face.

They wanted to break into his dad’s workshop and destroy all of his inventions, just to teach him a lesson, but they knew Engineer would take the fall for it.

Instead, they rummaged through trash cans, searched their toy chests, and looked under their trailers to find things Engineer could use.

They waited until his birthday to unveil the massive pile of supplies they had stowed away.

Engineer immediately dropped to his knees and began to cry, and everyone else dogpiled him for a huge hug.

As the creme de la creme, they gave him a pair of welding goggles - the same welding goggles he wears to this day, having modified them so they still fit his growing body.

With his healed fingers and renewed spirit, he made each of them a gift: a toy car for Rhapsody, a skull ring for Fred, a full set of candle wax crayons for Cici, a chewable necklace for Quinn so they wouldn’t chew on their collar, and a mini-planter for Tom.

But Engineer was given the greatest gift - confidence in his own abilities and that he can be and was appreciated for more than his services.

This gave him the drive to build bigger and better things, which his friends happily assisted in creating.

Engie’s best memories are with that motley crew of scrawny, beaten-up kids.

But, as he became a teenager, the abuse grew worse by the day.

He was often kept in his dad’s garage to fix cars in sweltering heat and with nothing to show for his work except threats of what would happen if a customer complained.

His mother finally grew bitter enough to pick on him, wondering aloud and pointedly if she had made a mistake by having him, then immediately contradict herself by wailing in his arms about how she’s the most awful mother in the world, and how she would be gone soon, and then nobody would have to deal with her anymore.

Engie grew more and more distant from his friends as they either moved out, ran away, or, in Rhapsody’s case, died.

He thought of just shutting the garage door and turning on a car a couple times, but he would always return to his memories of the hidden cave of goodies his friends had collected or the many inventions they had helped him build.

It just wasn’t worth it.

On a night when his depression and self-doubt was especially bad, he decided to build a personal invention for the first time in years - a small, robotic chicken made out of bent gears and empty oil cans.

He worked on it for a few weeks, but made the mistake of leaving it on a work table once it was finished.

Engie came to work the next morning with his dad ready to chew him out. But, before any finger could be lifted against his son, he was interrupted by a sweet older couple that was having their tires replaced.

“Now, Ethan, ain’t that just the cutest thing you’ve ever seen in your life?”

“Hm?”

“That there chicken statue over there! It looks like it could very well get up and start peckin’ for worms, don’tcha think?”

Engie looked at the couple, then at his dad, then at his chicken. He slowly lifted it from the table and turned the key.

It started to slowly lean forward, then took a few steps on it’s long, spring-loaded legs. The neck went down, and the chicken’s rusty beak began to scrape at the pavement.

Now he had the husband’s attention.

“Didja build that yourself, son, or did your daddy help ya?”

Engineer looked at his dad for a split second before answering.

“My own sweat ‘n blood, sir. My daddy says I should stop wastin’ time on ugly thing-a-ma-jigs an’ put my hands to somethin’ worth doin’.”

The man smiled. “Well, this ‘ugly thing-a-ma-jig’ shows real skill. We could use somebody like you, once we train you up a bit.”

“Now hold on a damn - !” his father interjected, but was silenced with a cold stare.

“We’ll put ya through a state-of-the-art school, then put ya straight inta the work force. You can build whatever you like…and you’ll have a lot better materials than rusty tin. Whaddaya say, son?”

Engineer just nodded, and the man grabbed his hand and shook it.

“We’ll keep in touch.”

Engineer left that trailer park at age seventeen, leaving his fuming father and drunken mother behind.

He only stopped to visit Rhapsody’s grave before embarking on his new life.

There is still a stone plate with a message carved into it next to the headstone. If you brush off the leaves and dig out the moss, you can see Engie’s parting words:

“A friendship with you and the rest of the gang is the greatest thing I ever built. -Big Dell”