HalfDoneArt

i've been writing on tumblr for a little over 4 years now. at the start of that, i was a bit iffy about the whole "part 2" comment that i would receive on my star wars fic (beloved) but didn't say anything about it because i was new on tumblr and i didn't want to start any drama and yeah, at first, i thought it was amazing that people wanted more of what i wrote.

but.

+4 years of writing. +4 years of pouring so much of my love into what i made and getting mostly "part 2"s in my comment sections and very little interactions beyond that made me. so. angry.

it's like being stuck in a car with a screaming baby. sure, they're cute and they giggle with you until they start to cry and hit you when you're not doing enough to keep them entertained. it's exhausting.

(but that is not to say there weren't other people commenting genuinely sweet things. those are the ones worth writing part 2s for)

slowly, i started writing less and less because i didn't want to see that one comment anymore. and the less i wrote, the more i got the "update when😃" comment, which pissed me off (and saddened) even more because now i felt like i wasn't doing enough. it especially got on my nerves when i got such comments on short fics that i had no intention of expanding or turning into something longer.

so y'all seriously need to realize that there's a fundamental difference between content creators on tiktok vs writers and artists on any writing platform (especially the more popular ones like ao3, tumblr and wattpad). i personally believe that a lot of writers leave fandoms due to this thing of people constantly using "part 2"/"more" in comment sections because we feel less like we're doing what we love (which is writing fanfics) and more like we're churning out "content" (god i hate this word now for this exact reason) for y'all to "consume".

whether it's a short drabble, a 1k fic, a 5k fic or especially a fic that has well over ten thousand words, that writer took the time and energy out of their day to write that down because they wanted to and because they wanted someone to enjoy it. and if all you had to say is "part 2😃" (which i think is fucking rude because we're on tumblr and not tiktok) then i suggest delete that comment and either move on or say something a little less dehumanizing and a little more appreciative of the people who do so much to make fandoms as awesome as they are now.

it's the same with the "tag me!" bullshit. it has the same effect (on me, anyway). especially considering that i've stopped doing taglists a long time ago so i find it especially rude that someone would read my fic, see that there isn't a taglist and ask to be in one anyway, which pisses me the fuck off because they be the same people who don't hit the reblog button; they just want to be included in a process that takes a lot of hard work and it takes the fun out of writing the things that i love writing. and i follow this rule that if i read a fic which doesn't have a taglist, i'm not going to request (or in some people's cases, demand) to be in one. in fact, i don't request to be in taglists. ever. regardless of whether there's a taglist at all but you do you.

all of this was made worse by the introduction of chat gpt/c.ai (gross🤮) because now it meant that we're supposed to compete with an actual machine that churns out (stolen) writing faster than the human mind can come up with and further aggravated the unnecessary mistreatment us writers and artists receive from the masses.

"Affirmative." Soundwave said after collecting himself, rising to his pedes to access the bot sized door to your makeshift maternity ward. It took a few steps for him to unlock all the security features he'd personally installed, but as the final lock came undone with an audible thunk and the heavy metal doors whooshed apart, you had just enough time to catch three human sized bots waiting on the other side. "Cassettes granted access-"

"Where-?!"

Soundwave stepped in front of the eager trio just as they tried to charge inside, his visor leveling on Frenzy in a voiceless repeat of a warning he'd delivered many times already. Thankfully the bitlet in your arms merely gave a tiny twitch at the noise, but was otherwise silent as the cassettes sheepishly shrunk down before approaching with almost exaggerated tip toeing. Looking beyond the big bot, Frenzy spoke up again in a much more controlled whisper, craning her neck for a better view. "Where is he?"

"Right here." you invited gently, encouraging them to approach. Seeing the bundle in your arms gave Frenzy, Ravage and Laserbeak a moment of pause before all three hurried to your side, moving as quietly but swiftly as their respective legs and wings could take them. Having expected such excitement, you merely ensured the sparkling was easily visible before preparing for the inevitable flood of questions.

"No way, he really is a bot!" Frenzy said first, crawling over the berth for a closer look but keeping a comfortable distance. Soundwave kneeled behind you as the entire family gathered around, and even with hushed tones all the action had the little one perking up to look around with his broad visor. The purple cassette only grew more awed as he cooed in mild confusion. "The teeniest one I've ever seen, too!"

Laserbeak, though equally touched by the new arrival, brightened at the sight of his chubby face and rounded visor before turning to his sister with an expression of victory. "Ha, you owe me ten credits! I told you he'd have a visor!"

"Don't be so darn smug, you had half a chance of getting it right." Frenzy scoffed, crossing her arms and meeting the other bot's insufferable gaze. "Besides, I'm the one who predicted him in the first place."

"True, but we didn't wager on that." Laserbeak countered with a snicker, the sound of which caused the sparkling to stir with more energy. Yawning and rubbing his face, the bitlet made an adorable show of smushing his rounded cheeks before his digits found his way to his mouth and he began to suckle, emitting a quiet hum of contentment. The adorable sight softened him, and the avian lowered his voice as he continued.  "Cute lil feller, isn't he?"

"Yeah, can't pretend that's not adorable." Frenzy concurred as Ravage sat quietly at her side, observing the newborn with a few tentative sniffs as the others continued talking. "But how long until he gets an altmode?"

"Development rate, uncertain." Soundwave answered simply, reaching over you to adjust your blankets. The movement made the sparkling reflexively reach for his sire, stubby digits flexing before the uncertain mech offered his son one of his own, which the newborn grasped tightly.

"There's not a lot of info out there about how these things go, so we're just going to figure it out day by day." you explained further, chuckling softly as the sparkling nommed on Soundwave's digit. "For now, he's just a normal newborn."

"A cute one. Look at his widdle servos..." Frenzy said without thinking, so enamored with her new sibling she briefly forgot to be cool. Catching herself with a blush and a cough once she caught Laserbeak smirking, the femme averted her gaze and mumbled a quick addendum. "That uh... that grip will make him a good guitar player, that's all."