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Hi sweetheart. Shoot. I don’t have that one. I have this drive that has all of their fics except that one. 😑

Hi sugar. I’d love to do that for you. I have to say, this was a tough year for me and for whatever reason I didn’t find a lot that I loved, but all of these are really good reads.

distractions by fondleeds (E, 4K) one of my favorite authors. The writing just feels effortless. This one is super short but sexy, tender, and sweet.

Golden by Shaylea (E, 128K) I loved this author‘s last fic, and somehow, they managed to write another captivating story that’s so immersed in the country it takes place in. I was sucked in right from the start and really like how they write complex, flawed characters that you still root and cheer for. It’s a bit neat in its conclusion, but I think it’s very much worth a read.

The School of Extraordinary Lovers by Stylinsoncity (M, 191K) This author always knows how to write a deeply layered story that draws you into the world they create. This time it’s friends to enemies to lovers set in a world of magic, betrayal, and family honor. The ending is a bit simple for how complex the set up is, but I still loved reading it and couldn’t put it down for two days straight.

makes me wanna try her on by mercutionotromeo (E, 2K) if you haven’t dipped your toes into this author’s entire list of works. I love every single one. This one is very short, but wow does it pack a sexy punch.

Gold-skinned, eager baby by StarryDay13 / @daydreaming-sunflower (E, 17K) This was soft and tender and sexy and beautifully done. There were wonderful moments of gentleness and vulnerability as Harry awkwardly expresses his thoughts about his gender and his feelings for Louis, and as Louis reacts and holds space for who Harry is. I really just loved this one. And I cried. So that’s a bonus. 😆

where the tide takes you, I will follow by @pinkcords (E, 40K) First of all, I’m so happy this author is writing again! Second, everything about this was just lovely. The slow, dreamy tone of their writing fit the setting and the way Harry and Louis fell into each other so, so well. I love how descriptive their writing is without being flowery or pointless. The smut scenes were toe-curlingly sexy, and gave us beautiful insight into both of the boys. I just wanted to live inside this fic.

Beautiful War by Itsmotivatingcara (M, 103K) it’s always great to find a fic that goes well beyond the love story and delivers something meaty and original. Read the tags on this one because there’s plenty of gore and violence that might be triggering, but it’s well written, fast paced, and will keep you on edge while also delivering a satisfying love story.

seven hours behind by justanothershadeofblue (E, 5K) very few people write canon these days, so it was such a nice surprise to read this one and, especially because it’s an author new to our fandom, and find the characterizations so well done. Plus, I love a fic that can combine a loving established relationship and dirty phone sex. 😆

no one's gonna know by jishler / @snowjosh (E, 9K) This author always does such a wonderful job of writing an established relationship fic where there’s so much warmth and expression between the characters, while also showing how much lust and passion there is. This is chock full of edging, exhibitionism, and dom/sub dynamics and it’s such a good read. 

Nothing’s the same as it was (save you) by metal-eye. / @metal-eye (T, 4K) This author’s fics are rare, not just because they only grace us with their writing now and then, but also because the words they chose to tell each story feel so precise and so special… each one is like unwrapping a gift. This one is a touching exploration of gender and support and dysphoria and comfort and it’s really just beautiful.

Hike Up Your Skirt (And Show Your World To Me) by Brooklyn_Babylon (E, 18K) This one is mine, but I’m proud of it and I hope you like it. Make sure you read the tags on this one because it’s not your conventional fic and Louis is definitely super manipulative. But if you like the idea of secretary Harry in lingerie, CEO Louis, copious amounts of dirty talk, some power imbalance, and exhibitionism… this could be for you.

The Lost Art of Breeding and (Mis) Behavior by @indiaalphawhiskey (E, 14K) Breeding kink just isn’t written enough in this fandom and this one takes a beautifully unique approach. It’s got the flavor of Captive Prince, combined with the feeling of reading about soulmates that you get with Harry and Louis. Super sexy and beautifully written.

given a chance by @ialwaysknewyouwerepunk (E, 18K) This was such a lovely exploration of childhood friends confronting why they fell out with each other.

Only Gonna Touch It by @lovingstheantidote (E, 3K) on the surface, it’s fic that’s about watching each other wank. But this author brought so much love and connection to the characters’ relationship and made it even sexier.

Also y'all when someone posts fanart/fanfic/edits/etc:

Up until around 2016 or so, the like to reblog ratio was the total opposite of how it is now. And it applied on posts with fewer notes and posts with a large amount of notes:

You get my point. But over the last few years it has flipped completely:

And, of course, see OP’s screenshot.

It doesn’t take rocket science to figure out that the posts with more reblogs have an astoundingly higher amount of notes because of increased exposure. Reblogging allows more people to see the content, that’s more people to either continue reblogging or at least give a like. For artists in particular who would benefit from the exposure in terms of commissions and patreon and all of that, this is a huge deal. It can make all the difference. 

Tumblr as a blogging platform was created with the intent to post and share content. It’s not meant to be a consume-only form of social media like Instagram. For fandom blogs in particular, it always boggles me that people don’t share content that they like. Tumblr was appealing for fandom in the first place because of the ability to plaster your blog with amazing things that other people made - this used to be unheard of. For me, it’s like saving something precious so you can always come back to it again. It’s giving the people who follow me something awesome to look at too. Creating and sharing content is the heart of fandom.

People rely primarily on their dash for content. Most people avoid going into tags/searches because of wanky fandom drama. So reblogs are crucial for exposure! Likes are a nice gesture, but they do nothing to help share and promote content. That’s why content creators are frustrated or moving to other platforms, or why they stop making content altogether. Tumblr has its issues, but it’s still one of the best places for exposure due to its reblog function and overall post formatting. It’s discouraging seeing content creators on Tumblr as a concept die off. This site is nothing without them.

We can enjoy making things as much as possible but when we share it and no one cares enough to show it to others, it does make us wonder why we bothered in the first place. And this isn’t a new complaint from content creators. But it has worsened over time as the likes started dominating the reblogs. 

It’s not that we don’t appreciate likes at all, notes are notes. But reblogs equal more notes, which equals more exposure, which equals happy content creators, which equals more content for fandom to consume. It’s a wholly positive chain of events that circles back around. Your reblog could be a deciding factor on whether that content creator chooses to keep contributing or to give up entirely.

- as above states ‘cringe culture’ and ‘cancel culture’ DEFINITELY plays into this and makes people super conscious about what they can reblog fully (without some twat who shames them or for them to lose followers)

- the whole ‘like’ habit is very much adapted from various other social media (a lot of people on tumblr I’ve noticed are super young and are used to this function i.e. facebook, twitter, instagram, etc)

- there are certainly way more people who aren’t creators and only come on to tumblr to either browse like those other sites and give likes and (sadly) either can’t be bothered to or have no incentive to reblog a post (again I’ve noticed this is a recent thing due to people coming into tumblr later and not recognizing the reblog function’s importance (or they honestly just don’t care)

- the search/tag function was never perfect but now it’s even more BROKEN

- the recent policing/flagging of posts earlier this year (ALSO BROKEN) that is dissuading people even more from reblogging/posting things

- and BECAUSE of the recent policing people are dissuaded and so many people have moved to other platforms

- some people are super into keeping to the aesthetics on their blogs (I have a habit of doing this)

Also I’ve noticed most of the people who stay on here have either been a really long time user of tumblr/are content creators who have accumulated and built a solid following/content creators who, popular or otherwise, rely on this platform for exposure and get work/have a lot of mutuals still on here/are willing to adapt to the constant bizarre changes made throughout the years on this hellsite (and the most recent changes are the ones that causes even the most grizzled of tumblr users to move on to other sites or at least to not solely rely on it so imagine those of which who don’t feel like they should even bother because they have no stakes in doing so)/all of the above.

Some people question the importance of the reblog over the like, and have this odd mentality of ‘ohh don’t just do it for the notes, JUST do it for the love’ which is honestly just baffling and screams of ‘hey thanks for making something I’m really into YOU SHOULD DO MORE FOR FREE’ or someone offering you a job and saying ‘oh don’t do it for money do it for EXPOSURE’. To these people let me tell you something:

Reblogs are free. And if you want to talk about EXPOSURE, reblogging a post can do WONDERS. Take it from someone who has gone through the various experiences of going to sleep after hours of work, posts it mostly for fun and for the fandom to enjoy, and then waking up to see that someone in the industry who has influence and power has noticed you. Even better? They’ve decided to hire you for work or to ask if they could spread your work around to people they know!