I've gotten more fond of svsss after @fatalism-and-villainy read it and liveblogged it to me, and I've been thinking so much about what it says about villains, and people's environments affecting what they do, and also/especially fandom and fandom interpretations of villains. obviously societal factors on behavior and how social pressures form villains is a theme through all mxtx novels, but it's really obvious in the contrast between alt universe versions of people!
shen yuan and shen jiu are the most obvious example of this. It's so clear why Shen Qingqiu was the role chosen for Shen Yuan! He's grumpy, demands perfection from himself and others, has a very sharp tongue, is very Intellectual, and has the type of mind to want to write bestiaries and focus on scholarship. He has an enormous wealth of knowledge about xianxia tropes in general and PIDW worldbuilding in particular. ALL of those are Shen Qingqiu traits! He just doesn't envy children who have good childhoods, and therefore doesn't Do Child Abuse.
Originally, he dismisses Shen Qingqiu Original Version as a one dimensional, irredeemable "scum villain." Shen Jiu's backstory doesn't show up in the original work, and Shen Yuan dismisses it as irrelevant.
And this is a mistake. Not only does Shen Jiu's backstory explain why he's the way he is, it continues to affect his life and by extension the life of any Shen Qingqius. Understanding his past and feelings are ESSENTIAL for Shen Qingqiu v2 to keep himself alive! He struggles with interacting with the remnants of the Qiu family, SQQ's past as a slave, and is distressed by the memories he's shown of child SQQ being raped and abused. He needs to know these things, and he needs to have sympathy for the original occupant of his body!
It's not that Shen Yuan seemed to have a good life -- he was a hikikomori, "waiting around to die" -- but the circumstances of his life took his base characteristics that he shares with SQQ and molded him into a totally different person.
It's also visible with LBH1 and LBH2. Original Luo Binghe is not a good person! He responds to his traumatic early life by conquering the world, forming a harem of hundreds of women he doesn't care about, and eventually dies unfulfilled, unloved, and unhappy. SVSSS Luo Binghe has problems for sure -- definitely traumatized! so many mood swings! -- but his positive experiences with Shen Qingqiu v2 were just enough to make him a good person. "People improve when they receive external love and support!"
The Book of Names lists each person murdered at Auschwitz
You may be feeling uninspired because you find it difficult to enter your characters' minds.
A great way to dive into a character's point of view is writing a paragraph from their perspective on a topic like death, the meaning of life, loss etc.
I usually do this before I start a project, but it can be a great way to get back into the swing of things in the middle of a book.
A lot of people write with music, curating playlists for their WIP.
I don't write with music, but it can be great to listen to a song or two before writing a specific scene or character's POV.
Curate a Playlist for your POV characters and listen to it when inspiration is running low.
This may just be a weird thing I do, but I love it.
When I really need a motivation boost, I create fake promotional material or swag designs for my WIP. Mock covers, bookmarks, posters, ads etc.
It reminds me what I'm working towards and that can help a lot.
Creating physical mood boards for your WIP or specific characters/locations and putting them up int your work space can do wonders for inspiration.
Every time you look at the moddboard, you're taken back to the moment when the idea first got into your head - a moment when you had oodles of inspiration.
You can also add to those mood boards whenever you need an extra shot of inspiration.
Every time I watch an Authortube vlog, I feel motivated to work on my own writing.
Pick an Authortuber who resonates with you and has the life you hope to build. Watch one or two of their vlogs and that should light a fire under you.
Set someone on fire. Twice.
Pause a chase sequence for a karaoke competition. Make the song choice key to the climax.
Give the villain a parrot whose mocking repetition undermines them at the most inconvenient moments.
Add a dragon.
Set your romantic confession scene on a fast-moving vehicle.
Make readers think a beloved character dies, only to reveal them alive and ready for action later. You get all of the angst and none of the hate mail!
Make the power go out at the worst time.
Snow your heroes in with the villain. Do they kill each other or break out monopoly?
Force your characters to act as other characters (disguises, body swapping, go wild with this one).
Add another dragon.
twitter qijiu aus pt. 1 → no one is dead and they live out their retirement on a farm😭
forbidden farming!qijiu lore: 1 2 3 4
Reporter: What’s your name?
Hong Kong Protestor: Lee Chun Hei! I won’t commit suicide!
Police:
Sorry I'm just. Reeling. 14 THOUSAND????
OG Shen Qingqiu waking up and remembering his torture at the hands of Luo Binghe. Yue Qingyuan is above him, all concerned because he’s been running a fever for days now. The thing is about remembering the torment he went through, is that he remembers that Yue Qingyuan died.
He remembers that demon bringing the remains of Yue Qingyuan to him. Even under all of that torture, Shen Jiu had never once broken. Not until he learned that Yue Qingyuan was dead. Gone. Because of him. “A-Jiu?” The words are softly uttered and then he suddenly has a lap full of Shen Jiu in his lap.
He’s trembling, Yue Qingyuan realizes, still with shock for a moment before he wraps his arms around him. He doesn’t know what to think, nor why he’s awoken, only to show such an intense reaction. Yue Qingyuan has never seen him so shaken before.
He’s about to speak, but today is a day for yet another shock. “Qi-ge.” Those words that he never thought to hear again are uttered, and he goes still in his shock. Something had happened to so thoroughly shake Shen Jiu that he’d uttered those words that brought a bittersweet pain to his chest.
Shen Jiu needs a bath, to be properly taken care of, but Yue Qingyuan pays that no mind for now. “I’m here. Xiao Jiu, I’m here.” Come what may, he won’t leave him like this. No matter what. He won’t abandon his Xiao jiu ever again.
(And if his robes are stained with tears in the aftermath, Yue Qingyuan doesn’t dare to speak of it once Shen Jiu has composed himself. Yet the image of Xiao Jiu crying will forever be ingrained in his mind. Ah, he thinks through the pain, This is what breaking feels like.)
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“all retail employees should get to kill one customer per holiday season” text post based on statistical error. jin guangyao, who works customer service in fantasy ancient china and discreetly kills 18,000 people per year, is an outlier and should not have been counted
[image is a 2-panel comic. an anonymous person angrily demands of a smiling jin guangyao, “this is outrageous! i demand to speak to your sect leader!” jin guangyao, still smiling dangerously, replies, “i am the sect leader.”]