Haven Dearest

Here are graphics I made for the Such Colorful Lives Legacy Challenge created by @starry-sky-sims!

Every single time I see Heartstopper being dragged into a discussion about shows getting renewed, it is against some fantasy/sci-fi show. Which doesn’t make any sense. Heartstopper is cheap. The overall runtime is short, they had a smaller crew, they didn’t have any real stunts, there were no pyrotechnics or other fx, VFX was pretty much skint. It makes zero sense to compare it to a First Kill or The Wilds or a Warrior Nun. The only things these shows have in common is being queer.

It is also just incredibly fucking frustrating to see Heartstopper get dragged into this conversation again and again, as if it is not filling an important niche of being a show about queer love that is accessible to children. Most queer shows on Netflix are rated TV-MA. Heartstopper is rated TV-14 (and lower in some countries where they have more nuanced rating). It just won Emmys at the Children and Family Emmys. When people say “Heartstopper is important rep” that is what they’re talking about. It’s for kids. Anyone can enjoy it, but it’s for kids, and that is why I get so defensive over it. It is doing something important. I wish I’d had a show like Heartstopper when I was 10, 12, 14, 16. If I have kids, I want them to have shows like Heartstopper.

As a queer woman, I know it’s popular and easy to fall into the pattern of hating on mlm media. But it just feels so misguided to drag down a queer show instead of directing the proper attention at Netflix. In fact, this infighting is a very, very common oppressive tactic that is used by people in power to pit us against each other. The problem is not with mlm media. The problem is with Netflix’s treatment of wlw media. Use mlm as a benchmark for comparison all day, but stop hating on the shows. It is tiring and fucking unproductive.

so much passion. so little time

to be proud of your own writing

to write something self-indulgent

to celebrate your achievements

to have a bad day of writing

to hype up your own writing

Not writing related, but I'm learning a new medium and would appreciate prompting so I don't keep doodling the same thing over and over again. If y'all want, please send me a simple landscape description, and I'll see about coming back with a little tiny, itty-bitty thumbnail sketch.