TO UKRAINIAN FRIENDS

Common Phrases Correctly

hoo boy, here comes some serious talk about fandom mentality.

I feel like there’s a huge failing on readers’ parts to communicate to fic authors how much they appreciate their works or how much it affects them, unless the fic is “fandom famous” for some reason. sometimes it gets translated into demands (which are awful literally do not demand updates from an author ever).

more often than not, it gets translated into silence, and coming from a writer, the silence is probably the worst. you never know if they like it, you never know what the reader actually thinks about it. or even if they read it at all. and it’s… heartwrenching, and nervewracking and you start constantly questioning yourself and wondering if you’re actually good enough or if you belong. and you start comparing yourself. to the people who are popular, to the people with huge followings, to the people who get questions and art and compliments up the wazoo. and you start wondering if you should have bothered writing at all. in some cases you start begging. and in some cases, you do worse.

and it’s terrible. a writer shouldn’t have to beg. a writer shouldn’t have to only get attention when they’re frustrated or upset. a writer shouldn’t have to doubt themselves every time they pick up a pen or open their laptop. a writer should never feel so unimportant that they consider deleting their work–and do. and then be subjected to questions of why they deleted it.

(which, by the way, is kind of a rude thing to do. it’s their content, and they can do with it whatever makes them comfortable. and more than that–why wait until it’s gone to just suddenly unleash your appreciation for it?)

if, at this point, you are thinking, “well, writers shouldn’t write for attention anyway! writers should be writing for themselves!” then you are missing a Very Huge Point about the intricacies of and emotions behind creating art. of course art comes from the self, but art is meant to be shared. with people. like you. art is created for people to talk back to, to engage with, to live alongside–and yes, that in turn bolsters the creator’s own securities and motivation. it’s also a sad testament to the fact that we as a people have come to condemn the notion that anyone, especially content creators, should want attention at all.

and that’s toxic, and an awful mentality to have. (it’s also atrocious marketing. but, that’s another discussion for another time.)

what I’m trying to say here is this: a lot of this could be prevented by one simple thing. if you read a fic you like, *speak up about it.* make some kind of sign. about whether you like somebody’s work, or whether it excites you. reblog it to share with other people, gush in the tags, leave a comment/review if it’s on ao3 or ffn. (authors read tags as much as artists do, trust me.) kudos and likes are fine too, but like with any other kind of art, they’re very invisible. be vocal, y'all. spread the love.

and above all, *tell the author directly.* send them an ask, write a comment, tag them in an appreciation post. I can’t stress that enough. you’d be making someone’s day, relieving some securities, visible or not, instead of being complacent in this system, this mass way of thinking, that only popular writers deserve attention, that it has to be earned through working yourself raw instead of asked for. it causes these cliques and hierarchies and ultimately people start or keep maintaining this idea that people who are at the top deserve to be at the top, and people who get ignored deserve to be ignored. (which I have, in fact, heard people say, and that’s… I don’t even have a word for that.)

I just. something has to give, you guys. we have to stop doing this. we have to stop letting this happen. we have to be kind to our writers before they disappear.

and yes, you can reblog this post. in fact, I’d highly encourage it.

Writing Tip 1

Try actually writing on paper before you type it. Your hands have a harder time of getting ahead and nothing is more fulfilling than using an entire notebook for your stories.

thank you

I'm not exactly sure what I'm being thanked for, but you are most certainly welcome! Keep writing lovelies.

@janeopries sorry, not sorry.

planning horrible headcanons with your friends but accidentally crossing the line like

OKAY HAVE YOU HEARD OF THE NATURAL HISTORY OF DRAGONS BY MARIE BRENNAN

NO! WHAT IS IT?! I MUST KNOW!!

P.S. sorry for public answer, forgot my settings were like that.

Your writing will always feel awkward to you, because you wrote it.

Your plot twists will always feel predictable, because you created them.

Your stories will always feel a bit boring to you, because you read them a million times.

They won't feel like that for your reader.

There is this website called Thrift Books and I just got $66.90 worth of books for $19.93 (five books). Shipping was free. You’re welcome.

@janeopries they all speak to me. I don't know what you're talking about.

Tropes that are totally overused and I love them to death

grumpy jerk and actual ray of sunshine are BFFs

mutual unrequited pining

character A falls fast and hard for character B

character A slowly falls in love with character B over the course of several years, realization hits them that they’ve been in love with B for a long time hits them like a truck

cool badass is actually a giant fucking nerd

The Power of Friendship ™

flat “what” reactions

sweet adorable characters with horrible tragic pasts

villains-turned-heroes becoming the Weird Uncle

characters that aren’t actually related having a parent-child relationship

characters that aren’t actually siblings having a sibling-like bond

“I can’t stand this person but I would die for them”

Shoutout to all the fanfic writers who pour their heart and soul into a fic and it doesn’t get enough notes.

Shoutout to all the writers who’ve stopped writing because their work wasn’t appreciated enough.

Shoutout to all the fanfic writers for whom writing is like a coping mechanism.

Shoutout to all the writers who have resorted to writing as a way of expressing themselves.

Shoutout to all the writers who project their trauma into writing.

Shoutout to all fanfic writers.

You are valid. You are important. People like what you do. And no, its neither awkward nor pathetic. Its ok, its wonderful.

And i love you honey, please remember that I’ll always support you .