I do think people should embrace blurring the line between strong platonic and romantic love. I think time spent with loved ones these days is time well spent.
you'll get the urge as an artist or a writer to say out loud the things you're worried about "the proportions are off" "kind of out of character" "i'm not good at summaries" "didn't get as much detail as i wanted" "i made a mistake and here's how" and that's the self-conscious part of your brain telling you "it's bad and if you don't tell them you know it's bad then they'll think you're stupid" but you've got to ignore that little voice and pretend you think it's good or else that little voice is going to ruin your life
hiii ✈️ & 🎧 pls!
hello! :)
✈️ favorite place you’ve traveled
i honestly haven’t travelled to a ton of places i don’t think? idk not that many compared to some people at least. but i really really enjoyed Hawaii! i feel sort of guilty about having gone there now that i know about the huge issues tourism is causing for native residents but i didn’t know at the time, and i wouldn’t have been able to stop my family anyways. ok im rambling a bit now lmao but i can’t think of another place i loved even close to that much, even with the weird guilt mixed in
🎧 last song you listened to
this oneee
This was a tough post to write.
I saw a post about disability rep, and I kept thinking about it, and wanted to share my own takes on the topic.
I thought about it for days, trying to figure out how to word it. Then after drafting it, I stuck it in a file for a couple of weeks, trying to decide if I could even post it. This is not a topic that can be boiled down to a simple yes/no kind of answer.
Let’s start with two examples.
1 - I have a short story I started writing (it wants to grow up to be longer, so it’s waiting for time) where my original concept was to write about an older woman who is short and has major chronic pain, and I wanted to dig into fantasy reasons why this pain exists, but at the same time, have her be able to kick ass despite being exhausted and dealing with excruciatingly painful issues.
2 - I once drafted a portal fantasy storyline wherein a young man was transported into a fantasy world, and when he was given a horse to ride, he approached it very warily. He was encouraged to mount, did so, and sat there and exclaimed in shock, “My brain isn’t exploding with snot!” because his allergies hadn’t come with him into the body he had in the fantasy world.
Both stories were designed to be fun, a bit light, maybe even cozy.
So.
In one case, the disabled character remains disabled and kicks ass anyway. And in the other case, the character is magically “healed” and no longer has debilitating allergies that had wrecked his way of life.
This is the difficult part to express: I think both storylines are valid.
Bear with me while I dig into this.
First and foremost: I completely agree that we need more representation in all forms of fiction, especially when it comes to disabled people being able to live their lives. Characters with missing limbs, or non-neurotypical brains, or anxiety & depression, or hearing issues, or sight problems, or chronic pain, or… or… you get the idea. We need all of it, and we need it to not need to be magically healed in order for a story to be considered happy and cozy. Disabled people can be happy, too.
I’m all in for this, and I wouldn’t write the stories I do if I weren’t.
However, there are also moments where I am so exhausted by my body and by everything I deal with inside of it where I do wish for that magical ability to forget that my pain exists. Or for the ability to actually process information in a straight line, or make decisions without writing a hundred lists and accomplishing nothing from them. Or to be able to lie down in a field of grass without regretting it for days while I drip snot and fight sinus-pain-induced migraines.
Sometimes I want to imagine that my life is different.
And that is one of the joys of writing. I can choose to write a story where people like me or the people I know are the heroes/heroines exactly as they are, different abilities and all. Or I can choose to write a story where the problems magically resolve.
Both can be cozy, sweet, and adorable. I can give the character with chronic pain the ability to kick ass, take names, and have a sweet reunion with her ex-girlfriend. I can show all the ways that my disabilities may define how I handle my life differently than someone else, but do not define what I can and cannot do.
But I can also daydream about a life where it’s different, the same way I can daydream about having wings, or being able to teleport. For me, imagining a day with no pain is the same as a day where I can walk through walls. It is absolutely a fantasy, and about as likely to happen.
Here’s the thing: It’s okay to be angry to see what looks like disability being erased. It’s okay to wonder why the author did that, why they magically healed someone instead of letting them be who they were. But at the same time, maybe ask why, and what point of view it’s coming from. Or look a little deeper into the story and how the resolution occurs, and the effect it does have on the character (I suspect that were I to suddenly have a day of no pain, I’d be intensely reckless, given what an idiot I am while IN pain, y’know? And WOW would I regret that later…).
And for authors, think about what you’re writing. WHY is this particular event (keeping disability, erasing it, whichever or both) happening, because the reader will take note of it. They may see things that weren’t intended, but are there as unintentional biases.
Make conscious decisions for why things happen.
Someday I want to get back to both of those examples from the start of this post; I still like both concepts. But I’ll be writing them for very different reasons, and both will be healing my soul in different ways. Different kinds of daydreams. And again, I think that’s valid, too.
not every sentence needs to be perfect. not every sentence needs to be perfect not every sentence needs to be perfect not every sentence needs to be perfect not every sentence needs to be perfect not every sentence needs to be perfect not every sentence needs to be perfect
You all need to hear this:
1. You probably dont suck at your craft as much as you think you do, I bet a lot of people are amazed at what you can make, and
2. If you actually are the Literal Worst In The Whole Wide World at your craft... who the fuck cares? What are they gonna do, call the police on you? Keep making your shitty little things, youre the boss of you, fuck the haters.
get to know your mutuals game! <3
tagged by @rae-lune and @madefortherain! ty both, loved getting to know you more
favorite color: yellow!! yellow is the best color
last song: this is the last one i remember but technically not the actual last one i am so very sorry
currently reading: The Hunger Games but i have not touched it in quite a few days oops. fic wise, hmm…Hey, Sharpshooter by @tortoisebore technically but also have not touched that in a hot second.
currently watching: nothing :( in need of a new show tbh but i’m wildly picky
currently craving: a hug tbh
coffee or tea: TEA and if you say coffee you’re wrong. WRONG.
np tagging @outromoonyy @jam-pots @katnissinanotheruniverse! would love to get to know y’all a bit <3
if you haven’t read ddtk you are missing out
hi :3 may i…. may i offer you… new wolfstar fic?? *hides*
that "OKAY SO" before someone u love starts infodumping........ most blessed feeling in the world