sah dude

+ accommodating love interest dialogue :)) feel free to use <3

“how many times do i have to tell you you can trust me?”

“what can i get you? do you need water? a hug? space?”

“i’m sorry. i just don’t think i’m ready.” “don’t apologize. it’s okay.”

“i think i’m ready.”

“thank you for being patient.” “you never have to thank me for that.”

“are you frustrated with me?” “never.”

“i just don’t want to be hurt again.” “i understand.”

“can you give me a second? i need a moment.”

“don’t apologize.” “sorry.” “name.”

“it’s okay. take your time.”

“if you tell me you want me to leave i’m gone, okay? don’t ever feel like you can’t take a break from me.”

when the love interest first asks them out and they’re like i’m really sorry but no… but the love interest doesn’t mind

“would you like to go on a date?” “i could do a date.”

Also, the way people talk about pacing is very rudimentary and shallow. The criticism is either “pacing too slow” or “pacing too fast” and that’s it. No room for nuance and no explanation for what makes a certain pace too fast or slow.

Tor.com is one major place I hear about science fiction and fantasy books–they do deal announcements, cover reveals, lists of new releases, and reviews, as well as columns reviewing backlist work. I really like “The Book Queered Me,” for instance, which is people looking back on books that were important to their understand of identity. 

The Book Smugglers isn’t really that active anymore, but they reviewed science fiction and fantasy media, as well as publishing essays and short fiction and I read them religiously for a long time.

Book Riot I read occasionally and they publish bookish news and essays. I forgot I was subscribed to their LGBTQ+ book newsletter for a while and went through the emails I’d been sent earlier this week and that particular newsletter is nice because it highlights a couple books and does a round-up of recent news about queer books.

Austraddle’s book section, especially the Rainbow Reading column, does reviews, interviews, and news related to queer books, mostly queer women. It’s helpful for non-SFF stuff because I’m usually very up-to-date on news in the science fiction and fantasy world but they cover poetry, nonfiction, romance, etc.

We Need Diverse Books is a great resources, of course, and I really like the interviews they do with authors of recent releases.

LGBTQ Reads is an invaluable resource for queer literature–new release highlights, author interviews, lists of books by representation or age/genre if you’re looking for something specific.

Electric Literature is where I hear about more adult lit fic/nonfiction stuff, they also have a column called Novel Gazing in which people write about books that have impacted them and I find that really interesting. They also publish poetry and short fiction but I haven’t read much of that.

The Lesbrary does reviews of books about lesbian and bisexual women, as well as round-ups of new releases. Good resource for keeping up with sapphic books.

pls pls pls elaborate. winter i neeed to know mooore

urban fantasy au where dick is an avian who was stolen from his roost by traffickers who stuck him in a cage and were gonna take him to a fucked up zoo full of nonhuman creatures but he escaped after a few months there but was too weak to make the flight home (birdfolk live in cities in the clouds that travel with the seasons and at this time of year Bruce and the others were Very far away) and he crashlands, wounded and starving, on a young lightning mage's roof.

wally finds him, nurses him back to health, and hides him from his parents because there's word of a dangerous avian fugitive on the loose but wally sees the ribs showing through and the raw skin where cuffs once sat and he knows dick isn't the dangerous one

cue lots of shenanigans where they have to keep dick a secret from everyone and so dick is just Living On Wally's Roof except when it's raining and cold and he has to sneak inside to sleep I'm wally's bed with him where it's warm 👀

wally keeps his window unlatched and open just a crack so dick can come in whenever he needs to. one day they finally get caught and dick gets the hell outta dodge before they can catch him, makes it home, and brings his entire flock to come bust wally outta jail <3

AY-daz Du (rhymes with ‘you’) ZAR-la Uq is tricky – somewhere between ‘ook’ (like in ‘book’) and ‘ack’ (like in ‘acknowledge’) NAR (like ‘star’)-a

TROOD AT ZAY-dure (to rhyme with ‘lure’)INN-iss

1) I pronounce Ead as Eed when shortened, not Aid. I imagined AY-daz is the ancient Silenyi pronunciation of the name and EED-az as a modern alternative, so technically both are correct, but she’s more often called AY-daz by her sisters, since they still speak Silenyi in its oldest form.

As usual, my requests and asks are open! if you do request, no smut please :)

TW: PANIC ATTACK, ANXIETY, DEPRESSION. ALCOHOL MENTION. CHEATING MENTION.

DIALOGUE: 

GIVING COMFORT:

“Hey, tell me what’s wrong?”  

“I’m here for you.”

“It’s going to be okay.” 

“Are you all right?” 

“You’ll be okay, I promise.” 

“What’s going on?” 

“Come here, let me hold you.” 

“Please, don’t cry.” 

“I have you.” 

“Take a deep breath.” 

“Tell me what you’re feeling.” 

“I’ll take care of it, don’t worry.” 

“I won’t leave.” 

“Why don’t we go on a drive?” 

“Let it out.” 

“Everybody makes mistakes.” 

“You’re all right.” 

“Shh, shh, it’s okay.” 

“Can I hold you?” 

“Do you-- can I-- do you want to be held?” 

“Do you want solutions, or comfort?” 

“I have chocolate/flowers?” 

“Do you want to watch a movie with me?” 

“Tell me what I can do for you.” 

“...Who do I need to punch?”

 “Come on, breathe with me.”

“You don’t have to be perfect.”

“You’re perfect just the way you are.”

“How can I help you?”

“Can I touch you?”

“Where does it hurt?”

“You’re allowed to be weak, you know.”

“You have this.”

“You’re never a burden.”

“You aren’t weak.”

“We’ll get through this.”

“Relax, I got you.”

“Please, just open up. I don’t want to leave you alone.” 

“They’re not going to get to you, I promise.” 

“Follow my breaths.” 

NEEDING COMFORT:

“This is stupid--I’m stupid.”

“‘M so weak.”

“I’m sorry I’m not strong enough.”

“I’m a burden, aren’t I?”

“I-- please, help.”

“I can’t breathe, I don’t know what to do-- I can’t--“

“I feel lightheaded.”

“I’m sorry. We were supposed to have fun today.”

“I’m getting your shirt wet...”

“Are you sure this is okay?”

“I should be stronger.”

“I don’t want to get out of bed today.”

“Hold me, please.”

“Why won’t you let me apologize?”

“Thank you for this.”

“I feel safe with you.”

“...You bought me chocolate/flowers?”

“Did you really drive all this way just for me? It’s two in the morning.”

“Is that my comfort movie?”

“You came all this way? For me? 

“I’m not worth the time you spent coming over here.” 

“Please, leave. I’m--” 

“...Why are you here?” 

“My problems are mine, I don’t want to be a burden on you.”  

“You’re too nice to me.”

“I’m a mess…” 

“I’m broken, don’t you understand?” 

“It’s raining. You should be inside. I’m fine.” 

"I'm sorry."

"Why can't you understand? You're too good for me!"

"I can't do this. I can't-- I can't-- I can't--"

"Just shut up! I'm not as good as you say I am!"

"Why do you care so much?"

"Am I really worth it?"

"Thank you for being here."

"I thought I'd be alone today after what happened... thank you."

"You don't know how much I appreciate you."

"Do I really mean that much to you?"

"Stop banging on my door!"

"I love you."

SCENARIOS

Your lover isn't feeling well, and even though it's probably dangerous to drive this late at night, you have to make sure they're all right.

Head between their knees, your lover has their back against the wall, and you're by their side, and trying to help them through whatever is troubling them.

Your best friend's lover broke up with them, and despite having no idea, you supply them with snacks and horrendous movies. At least they smiled at the end of it all.

Trying to keep a smile on your face through the weight of the world to not worry your lover. They figure it out anyway.

Standing in front of a mirror, hands against the counter, with tears dripping down your cheeks, struggling to get everything under control. Everything’s going well until your lover cracks the door open and asks if everything’s okay. It isn’t.

Seeing your lover break down over work/school/family, and trying to comfort them to the best of your abilities, heart breaking with every sob out of their lips. 

Struggling to sleep in you and your lover’s shared bed because they’re working in the living room/kitchen/their office and the bed feels far too cold and empty. Seeking their comfort, you curl up on their lap/beside them/around them. 

Knowing from the moment they said good morning that something was wrong, and trying to schedule your day to spend the most time with them; arms around their neck, waist, shoulders, to provide comfort.

Your lover’s back against your chest, you curled around them. Every agitated breath and erratic heartbeat pulsing through your skin, but slowly, it starts to fall over time. 

Your back against your lover’s chest, their slow heartbeat stark against your stressed one. Gently, the rise and fall of their chest lull you back to safety. 

Sitting in the car, your head against the headrest and mind spinning, but your lover’s hand firm against your thigh keeps you grounded to reality. 

Your ex is trying to embarrass you in public, but your lover steps in as a shield, eyes ablaze in a fury.

Your head against your lover's chest, tears drenching their shirt, they don't care about the wet fabric and just rub your back.

Lungs squeezed to death, you try to breathe through the overwhelming suffocation on your shoulders. Patiently, your lover holds your hands and squeezes them in time with their breaths, eyes gentle.

Your lover made a small/big mistake and they can’t get it out of their head. To everyone else, it was just a small mishap, so you spend a few minutes/an hour/the rest of the night holding and comforting them.

Done with the feeling of being an burden, you try to push away from your lover's comfort, only for them to drag you back into a firm hold.

Something horrible happened, but your lover won't answer the phone/any texts. Standing outside of your door, you threaten to start throwing rocks at their windows/slamming on their door if they don't give any proof that they're all right.

You found your lover on a cold metal bench, hair and clothing drenched, tears pooling down their cheeks. Instead of asking what's wrong, you put your jacket over their shoulders and open up an umbrella.

Your lover's burning up and for some reason keeps bursting into tears at the smallest things. You're a little bewildered, but stay near them all the same.

After an all-nighter, your lover's brain is scrambled, and they keep shedding tears when they think nobody's looking. After coaxing them into your arms, you curl into one another on the couch.

Your lover wakes up to you gasping for air, eyes wide as you just saw horrors beyond your own comprehension. They sling an arm around your waist and pull you close, face tucked against your neck. 

Underneath the blankets, you refuse to get out of bed. Despite feeling horrible about yourself, your lover refuses to leave you be and makes you breakfast, all with a gentle smile.

Your best friend's spouse cheated on them right before valentines day, so as their best friend, you spend the rest of the night trash-talking over bad rom-coms.

Your lover right beside you, comforting you as you weren't able to get the job you wanted/into the university you applied to. Their encouragement makes one more attempt seem not so bad.

all words exist within a specific time frame and it's pointless to avoid the fact that you're writing with the language of your own time

which words are actually "newer" than other words is sometimes wildly unintuitive

hangry, as in the portmanteau of 'hungry' and 'angry' (1912)

dildo (1590)

yucky (1970)

grungy (1965)

freebie (1925)

shitty (1768)

boost (1815)

boss (1856)

TGIF, as in Thank God It's Friday (1941)

yay (1963)

Is your protagonist manipulative? Well that’s awful… until they manipulate the antagonist into making a decision that saves the lives of their friends. 

Is your protagonist a skeptic? Well that’s not good… until someone tries to lie to them. 

Is your protagonist overprotective? That sucks… until someone they love is in danger. 

Your protagonist is honest? That’s good… until their survival depends on them being able to lie convincingly.

Your protagonist is brave? That’s good… until they foolishly run headlong into danger without a thought for the consequences.

Your protagonist is forgiving and able to see good in everyone? That’s good… until they continually forgive someone who doesn’t deserve it, and get taken advantage of because they can’t fathom that some people just suck.

Your protagonist is funny? That’s good… until they piss off everyone around them because they don’t seem to be taking the situation seriously, and they keep avoiding dealing with their problems by hiding behind humor.

Barbara: Okay.

Dick: And I made it a little costume-

Barbara: Not tracking so far.

Dick: and then I put the duck in Red Robin’s spot for the league meeting?

Barbara, looking over at the 96 hour sleep deprived Tim Drake who is passed out on her sofa:

Bruce, tired and grumpy: Different how?

Hal: Well for one, he has a beak

that he makes himself a Duck Grayson.

They get a large bat plush for Bruce for his birthday one year and Bruce gets Diana to agree to put it in his spot for a meeting

It works a lot better than the live bat did

Concepts: On family movie nights in the Wayne Manor, where is everyone and what are they watching?

100% they are watching Tangled, it was Cassie's week to choose the movie.

Bruce: He's sitting in the middle of the couch, arms over the sides, probably half watching, half-reading a book on his lap.

Dick: He's sitting on the arm of the couch, one leg tucked up under his chin the other dangling. Dick is both watching the movie and watching over the rest of the family to make sure that they are enjoying it.

Jason: Surprisingly, on the end of the couch where Dick is, making sure he doesn't fall off the couch and giving his hand a pat during the sad parts of the movie to comfort him.

Tim: Sitting on the loveseat with Steph, asleep on her shoulder since this is the only time when he can actually relax and fall asleep.

Damian: On Bruce's right, tucked under his arm, desperately trying to not pass out but is close to it. Probably took him five minutes standing around to figure out which side he was going to sit on and another five to get comfortable.

Cassie: On Bruce's left, also tucked under his arm, probably with her head on his chest, watching the movie with wide eyes completely quiet but clearly happy.

Duke: On the other side of the couch, next to Cassie, giving her a little headpat before and after the movie.

Barbra: They made a spot for her wheelchair on Dick's other side and she's probably doing some coding for fun while they watch the movie.

Stephanie: On the loveseat with Tim, arm around her best friend and happy that hes finally getting sleep.