finally we are no one

hi!! thank you so much :>

there's a funny interdependency between immersion (living abroad) and language learning-- being immersed is the best thing for learning a language, but it's intensely isolating, and the only thing that makes this isolation resolve is getting better at speaking. my advice would be to find a structured academic program that'll help you with housing and provide some guidance and support, or just to travel first. don't discount the emotional/mental toll of being unable to express how you feel, be careful, and stay curious : -)

my po box is: waxwing (or io, whichever you want) PO Box 103 South Freeport Maine 04078

P.S. I've also had the same recurring nightmare. I never knew how to describe them before so thank you for putting it into words :,)

thank you so much for buying a copy!! i'm really glad it arrived safely :D about the dream- how funny to think that we share it, i wonder how similar all of our dream lives are, across the world!

hi! i've just listed more, thank you for your interest!

i put them up bit by bit because i'm scared of having to package and mail out 100 orders at once, haha.. i'm sure there's a better way to handle it, but i get overwhelmed and i don't like making people wait

thank you, anon! please don't apologize

i feel like i'm just coming out of a creative block myself - i'm severely dissatisfied with the things i make and feel like i'm unable to create any story that sticks or 'means anything', i'm terribly jealous of my younger self! so your message resonated with me. i feel like i'm a parrot surrounded by luminous creatives, so it's a little funny to read someone praise what i see as my weaknesses. we are our own worst critics: our own expectations for ourselves are higher than anyone else's, and that's stifling.

to answer your question concretely, i don't think i've ever sat down to think of characters- they just sort of worm their way into my mind while i'm doing something else, or reflecting on some way i feel. ultimately, they're very self-centered- when i make ocs, i think of fragmenting myself into many little pieces, and i don't think that self-centeredness is something to apologize for or negate in art, i think a lot of great art is solipsistic

i always use the verb "marinate" when i think about creating ocs or stories, for me letting things stew in my brain is key (rather than "trying to come up with something") - this is why i don't do gamejams, it's really hard for me to brainstorm and come up with something for a specific theme, it's gotta just burst through the soil eventually

oh, one more thing: the thing that's finally gotten me out of my creative slump and given me energy to work on long-term projects is being in a better place mentally, so don't beat yourself up if you aren't in the right place to spout out 1000 ocs, focus on getting better