The world's full of lonely people afraid to make the first move

i’ve been seeing way to much transandrophobia lately

so i want to try something

reblog if your blog is a safe space for transmascs

me: "so you think men are better at literally everything, even things that do not require any physical ability whatsoever?"

terf: "yes! those should still be segregated by sex! males should not be playing against women ever. it's an unfair advantage"

me: "so my brother has an unfair advantage over me when playing fucking monopoly?"

terf: "yes. males are statistically better and managing finances, while women are irresponsible and lenient with spending money."

faces! (pt 1/?)

Each time I sketched out a new batch of characters, I went, “ooh i should draw x also!” until this became a much larger project than originally intended lmao.

This was a little fan concept of mine that I have been working on for a while, I reimagined the characters of Heroes of Olympus if they had lived during the year 800 A.D. with the coronation of Charlemagne in the Dark Ages. Tensions with the East and West begin with the coronation of Charlemagne by the pope and declared the Emperor of the Romans despite Basilissa Irene of Athens in the Eastern Roman Empire, with the Italian peninsula as the battleground for their Cold War, the camps of the Latin and the Greeks prepare for a war that could decide the fate of the Dark Ages. It has been a favorite idea of mine to see a Game of Thrones-esque Cold War story from the Dark Ages after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, so I decided ‘Why don’t I do it instead but with my favorite series as the mold?’

A male human and a female human are roughly the same size and same coloration.

Meanwhile, male black widow spiders are brown and a tenth the size of females. Anglerfish females are a full foot long and have a bioluminescent protrusion on their heads; males are barely half an inch long with no bioluminescence or protrusions. Male elephant seals are ten times bigger than females and have massive snouts. Male orangutans have big jowls and neck sacs that look like goiters, while females look more like other apes. Peacocks have flashy coloration and a long tail that they can display. The females are brown and simple.

Lowland Gorilla males tend to be 2.38x on average the mass of Lowland Gorilla females. Humans? That ratio is something line 1.15.

Male gorilla canines tend to be about 2 inches long, easily twice the length of some of their other teeth. Male humans have canines the exact same length as human female canines and the exact same length as the rest of our teeth.

okay. writers of tumblr. i’ve compiled a list of things i desperately wish someone had sat me down and said before i started writing, not that i would’ve listened, because i was 14 and powered entirely by hubris, iced coffee, and my wattpad era.

anyway. here we go:

1. stop rewriting chapter one. i know you think it’ll fix everything. it won’t. it’s a hydra. you cut one head off, two Google Docs appear.

2. your first draft is not a treaty with god. it can be messy. it can be unhinged. it can have 47 placeholders named “idk something happens.” it’s fine.

3. perfectionism is just fear wearing a blazer. write badly on purpose. humiliate your draft. it builds character (yours).

4. word count culture is a scam. you are allowed to write 200 words and call it a day. you are allowed to write 5k and then disappear into the void for three business weeks.

5. google docs autosave WILL betray you. download backups. then back up your backups. then sacrifice a pen to the writing gods idk.

6. description is not pretty synonyms. it’s specificity. the torn movie ticket in their pocket. the buzzing light in the hallway. the chipped nail polish on their thumb. write the thing not the aesthetics around the thing.

7. dialogue isn’t two Shakespeare ghosts monologuing at each other. interruptions. trailing off. people lying. people avoiding the truth. people saying “whatever man.” let it get messy.

8. you don’t need a whole map before you start. sometimes you just need one character with one problem and the stupidest idea imaginable.

9. reading your old writing will make you cringe but also cry a little because wow you cared so much. keep that version of you alive.

10. don’t wait to ‘be good.’ you get good by writing the stuff you think is embarrassing.

11. also: nine out of ten times, your “bad” idea is actually the one that goes feral and grows teeth and becomes your WIP.

12. hydrate. no further explanation.

ok that’s it because if i keep going i’ll start confessing things about the time i wrote a whole novel in 2017 that will never see daylight again.

Part X

How to show pleasure

dilated pupils

mouth half opened

increased heart rate

increased breath rate

increased blood flow

heightened sensitivity

body parts turning warm and flushed

body parts becoming engorged or wet

tension in the entire body

trembling

involuntary contractions

hard to speak, but incapable to be quiet

How to show tenderness

sincere, warm, and open smile

slow and soft movements

leaning in towards what they feel tender about

listening carefully, head held towards them

gentle tone of voice

softening of facial expressions

relaxed eyebrows

soft and relaxed eyes

a hint of a tear appearing

relaxed mouth with a little smile

gently touching or stroking who or what they feel tender about

calm breathing, not too shallow, not too deep

How to show guilt

avoiding eye contact or looking down

tightness in the shoulders, neck, and jaw

being hunched over, slumped shoulders, making themself small

turning their body away from who they feel guilty towards

sweaty palms

trembling hands

heart racing

fidgeting with their entire body

crossing and uncrossing one’s legs

shifting from one foot to the other

pacing around

knot in the stomache, not being able to eat or eating too much to compensate

a feeling of heaviness in their body

How to show curiosity

open, dilated eyes

holding eye contact

raised eyebrows

tilting of the head

leaning towards what they find curious

mouth slightly open

uncrossed arms

actively listening

holding still, so they don't miss anything

More: How to write emotions Masterpost