just another boon from this glorious day

My first fic attack of FE Art Scuffle is for @dpsisquared, wherein we get to see Dimitri struggle with his own desires.

Read "Someone to Pour Myself Into" on AO3

Using a random fic of mine as example..

The left example: ✅✅✅

The right example: ❌❌❌

Idk how many times I’ve read a good fic summary and been so excited to read before clicking on it and being met with an ugly wall of text. When I see a huge text brick with zero full line breaks my eyes blur and I just siiiigh bc either I click out immediately or I grin and bear it…it’s insufferable!

AO3's posting form has two modes: Rich Text and HTML. the vast majority of people write in Rich Text editors, aka any normal word processing software (MS Word, Google Docs, Apple Pages, what have you). but when you first open it, the posting form opens in HTML view. if you paste formatted text into HTML view, it erases every piece of formatting, including paragraph spacing.

this is an easy fix. when you go to post your fic, make sure the posting form looks like this:

not like this:

People have a lot of unexpected free time right now with nothing to do. What better time to create a rec list of your favourite fics to share out with your followers?

Recommend your own fics, your friends’ fics, your favourites from different fandoms. Create lists for tropes, ships, themes, what have you. 

People looking for stories get more entertainment. People who wrote those stories get to know how loved their words are. You get to feel awesome for making so many people happy. Everyone wins!

Neon blue text on a black background, taking up the left hand side of the image. On the right are a series of lightbulbs hanging from neon blue strings and glowing white.

Yellow text with a black shadow. The font is reminiscent of comic books. The background colour is shades of red.

A clothesline with a heart, a sheet, and another heart pinned to it. The sheet is white with red text, matching the hearts. The background is sky blue.

Navy blue background with gold filigree in the centre, creating a negative space box in the middle. The text is the same gold as the filigree.

An almost-black background with raindrops on it (like a darkened window). The text is white with an art deco feel to it.

A dark grey damask background. Along the left third of the banner are gold/floral curlicues. The right two-thirds is occupied by text in the same gold. The text is cursive with many flourishes.

A watercolour background of horizontal brush strokes. The top is bright pink, the bottom is bright yellow, and in between is where the paints blended. Text is white, lowercase cursive over the bright pink section of the banner.

A rainbow of paint, exploding towards the camera. The central colour is red with yellow and green on the left, purple and pink on the right. The text is white and similar to a typewriter or old-fashioned label maker.

A chalkboard type textured background in blue-ish green. The text is white and similar to chalk hand writing or printing.

i'm sorry they're not enjoying the story, but i don't really know what to do since no one else seems remotely this angry about it and i've seen the same plot point in similar fics by other people. i haven't replied to any of these comments yet because i was hoping they'd get over it, but they keep sending similar ones. should i try to respond kindly or keep ignoring? i'd feel bad blocking them since they haven't really done anything wrong, but it's kind of ruining my experience of posting this fic.

i apologize for long this got >_< thank you for your time!

Hi anon! Sorry it's been a while since you sent this in. I hope it's not an issue anymore but if it is, I think you just need to block that user.

Blocking them won't stop them from reading your story, but it will block them from commenting on your work.

It's clear that they are having an outsized reaction to what you're writing and it's also clear that they don't have the ability and/or desire to stop reading a story that doesn't appeal to them.

It's not your job to manage the emotional state of someone you don't know. I know that sounds harsh, but in this case I think that's what's going on. They can't control their own emotions about your fic, and nothing you can do can control that reaction for them.

Does it suck that they won't be able to comment on anything else you write? Sure. But they've lost that privilege. At least for the time being. If you decide in 6 months or whatever that they've probably calmed down, you can go back to your preferences page and edit your block list.

Until then, do what you need to do to keep your peace. And to let this person know that they're not behaving well.

Rest below the cut. I have 19 of these.

First of all, no question is stupid if you want to know the answer. Second of all, asking when you're worried about looking stupid is a very brave thing to do. Third of all, you won't be alone in wondering this, and I'll thank you on behalf of the other folks who wanted to know the same thing but didn't know who or how to ask 💗

From my perspective, there is no time limit on joy. There are no chronological bounds on love or appreciation. If you feel it and want to share it, that option is always open to you. The odds are very much in favour of you making that author's day no matter what.

I've had this type of comment on the very same day I published a chapter. I've had this type of comment years after posting. I've had this type of comment multiple times on the same fic from the same person over the span of years as they come back to reread it again and again.

Every. Single. Time. I'm awed and honoured and overjoyed and amazed and grateful. I'm simultaneously built up and humbled. When I talk about that feeling of connection and community that can come when people reach out to each other sincerely, this is an example of the type of thing I mean.