#swaps55

A minorly exploded Clay Beaudoin and a very innocent Kara Pendergrass.

No one told her squad ID photos were that day! It’s not her fault!

Sam Shepard, for the lovely @swaps55! I had so much fun figuring out how I wanted to do his biotics--thank you again for your support; you're such a sweet person to work with

Commission type: Waist; Colored Sketch; $55 USD Interested in a comm? Check my availability, style, and pricing HERE!

Been a bit, but wave 2 of our Mass Effect Destinations is finally complete! This continues to be the loveliest, most unbelievable commission from the always-wonderful @swaps55.

I really do hope I managed to write something you‘ll find enjoyable.

Characters: Male Shepard, Kaidan Alenko, Jeff ‘Joker‘ Moreau, Garrus Vakarian, Liara T‘Soni

Relationship: MShenko

Summary: Shepard’s and Kaidan's relationship over the years, through the eyes of some of their closest friends.

From here

Best book I've read this year

Okay so. I've read a couple of five star reads so far this year and I refuse to pick just one of them, so I'm gonna talk about a couple.

The Deep by Rivers Solomon - gosh but I loved this. It started as a song by The Clipping that was commissioned as part of a This American Life episode on Afrofuturism, then became a book by Solomon. The premise is that mermaids are a race of beings descended from the children of pregnant slaves thrown overboard on the journey across the ocean. The premise was so interesting and the story was so frickin good and the SONG is SO GOOD. I had Daveed Diggs read it to me.

How High We Go In the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu - a virus is uncovered in the Arctic Circle that breaks free from containment and soon infects the world. It's a rough read but it is so so good, the way the stories weave together and connect is a beautiful, heartbreaking puzzle.

Wanderers by Chuck Wendig - This book clocks in at 800 pages and I read the hardback and let me tell you, it should have felt like a CHORE just holding this book and it did not. I blew through it in 4 days because I could not put it down. It's an apocalyptic novel about a group of people, wanderers, who one day just start walking down the street, completely unable to be stopped or moved or redirected, and what comes after.

All are five stars and if they sound good to you you should definitely read them.

20. Where and how do you find new books to read

A wide variety of places, tbh. I like wandering my local library and pulling books that look interesting and have pretty covers. Some recs come from friends. I have a KU sub for my monster romances so for those it's mostly "people who read this also read" at the bottom of the page. I get a lot of orcs but I've gotten some other good stuff. Word of mouth recs from friends. Tiktoks, although I've been burned a lot by tiktok so it kinda depends on the person reccing it.

Also @swaps55 and I have a bookclub that we haven't done in a while where we buy each other books that we love and want the other person to read and I've read some dope ass shit that way.

Dealer's choice: What kind of romance tropes do you like/dislike

Favorites: friends to lovers, hurt/comfort, man being absolutely down bad/devoted to his lady, pining (especially if it is over a period of years)

Dislike: any sort of love triangle, miscommunication tropes

6. Hexie Mountains - Orville Peck

18. Ship to Wreck - Florence + The Machine

55. Who Are You, Really? - Mikky Ekko

73. Touched by Fire - Dorothy

🌻what makes you want to give up on writing? what makes you keep going?

🌿how does creating make you feel?

Dealer's choice if either have been asked!

🌻what makes you want to give up on writing? what makes you keep going?

This answer is one in the same. I have ideas in my head and stories to tell! When things are good, that makes everything worth while. When I can picture exactly what I want to say and manage to make it come alive on the page? No better feeling

Then the flip side of that is when I can't make it work. When I have a story but no matter how hard I try, I can't figure out how to put it on the page. That's when I want to through my computer through the window. And then I have to figure out risk/reward. Is it worth the time and effort? Then I'll keep going. But if it's not? I'll go ahead and let that story idea go

🌿how does creating make you feel?

That I don't have a choice in the matter. In college, I majored in theatre. I was an actress. There's an old saying, 'if you can picture yourself doing anything other than acting, do that.' It's because acting is a brutal profession mostly based on luck. And for me, it was true. I was a very good actress but I simply didn't have enough passion for the art to make huge sacrifices. My anxiety demands I know where my next paycheck is coming from, which is why I will never freelance or consult

Thank you for the ask :)

6. How easily could your OC be convinced to do something that goes against their moral compass?

Not easily. He tries to stay true to his principles and morals at all costs. Because if he doesn't have them, then what is he, really? Just a pawn? A thoughtless, mindless, soldier?

Regis Lucian Shepard, N7 Sentinel.  5923-AC-2826

A mantra he repeated when he found out that Cerberus was the one who brought him back, the organization whose actions he saw first hand. The only reason why he didn't blow out his amp or put a bullet in his head was because they could bring him back again, but this time, make him worse.

18. Is your OC more cold and detached or up close and personal?

Cold and detached at first, but even that varies. For example, when he first met Ashley, he was cold, only about the mission. Later after talking with her on the battlefield and hearing more about her from Anderson, he shifted to something more open. Even more so after hearing her thoughts and opinions and he thinks, "Yes, she's meant to be part of my crew."

He doesn't trust easy, so being cold and detached makes it easier for him to determine if something or someone is worth his time and attention. Which even then, he doesn't really open up unless he really bonds with them, which is such a small amount of people/crewmembers.

23. What emotion is the hardest for your OC to process? How about express?

Grief. It's hard for him to talk about why his death (and resurrection) felt like so much of a betrayal, like a violation. He doesn't do well with losing people he trusts, and his suicide mission is not without casualties. (Because risky suicide mission is such a great mod :D).