Listen, if the writers of Wednesday can get their woefully mischaracterized fanfiction of the Addams Family greenlit by Netflix and win a bunch of awards, so can you.
People with a lot worse grasp of the source material have done it far worse than anything fandom could come up with, and for money, too. Somehow. Jesus Wept.
I'm happy to announce that I'll be hosting HP Pumpkin Spice Fic Fest 2025!
Claiming starts September 1st, 10AM BST
Entries are due October 29th, 10AM GMT
Entries are revealed October 31st, 10AM GMT
You will need an AO3 account to participate.
Do you think it's a good idea to try and get away from Google Docs when it comes to writing? I really can't afford any other fancy program to write my drafts in, and it honestly seems like the easiest - not to mention, most convenient - program to use to share my manuscript with beta readers. I could use advice on this matter because I keep seeing things across the net about it being a bad place to work on writing, but I have no idea what to turn to to make things easy for me and my future beta readers.
This is such a good question. Thank you.
So, a little backstory. Ever since Google removed their motto "do no evil" they have gone down the rather predictable path of all big players of the rot economy: putting profits over user experience.
A little while back, there was rumor that Google trains AI with the content of google docs, then they said they don't really, they only scan the content and do nothing with it, and then they started blocking access to documents with sexy images. Do we believe that Google has our own best interest at heart? That's something everyone has to decide for themselves.
Back then, I made a post with alternatives for Google Docs, you can find it here, also check the reblogs for more options:
💬 15 🔁 814 ❤️ 1155 · Alternatives to google docs · For various reasons, this is now a hot topic. I'm putting my favorites here, please add
Now, is it a good idea to switch from google docs? I think it is, but I'm also not consistent with it. As you mentioned, it seems to be the easiest to share writing with beta readers, and I also still often use it for fanfiction.
But there are alternatives, and they require very little adjustment in the process. Let me give you two free options.
Ellipsus is webbased, meaning you can write in it in the browser on any device. They have sharing, specifically for beta reading, and an export function for AO3.
Write, edit, and collaborate on any device. Ellipsus is a principled alternative to Google Docs—built for writers, by writers. Sign up for f
Reedsy (marketplace around everything self-publishing) has an editor. It is webbased, and they also have an option for sharing with beta readers. This software is aimed at book type-setting and exporting but it works just fine for copying to web.
Reedsy Studio is the best online writing app to help you go from blank page to published book. Organize chapters, set goals, format as you w
Personally, I'm currently switching everything to LibreOffice (also free!) files in some cloud connected folder. I used to do a lot of mobile writing on my phone with a bluetooth keyboard but currently, I'm taking my laptop everywhere so LibreOffice works great for me. If I have to use my phone or tablet for some lightweight mobile writing, on vacation for instance, I can still use something webbased.
So, I hope I gave you some interesting options. Do I think it's a good idea to make us less dependent on Google? Yes, I do. I don't trust them.
We have alternatives, and they cost us nothing more than a little adjustment.
Proton Docs is end-to-end encrypted so your work stays safe from data breaches, online surveillance, and can never be fed into privacy-invad
I'd also recommend Proton Docs, which is made by ProtonMail (a secure email client), who are in the process of developing an entire suite of Google alternatives that are privacy focused and just as user friendly.
Proton Docs is a part of their current Proton Drive, and while Proton Drive (and Doc-viewing/editing within it) in the mobile app isn't perfect yet, their mobile website is great and honestly it feels just like Google Docs to me. To address OP's concerns, it allows you as share links and control the access so others can view or comment or edit and such just like google docs!
And while Proton does have various paid accounts you can choose from, you can still get full access to Proton Drive (and Docs) with a free account! The only limitations I am aware of on the free account are a max storage space of 5GB on the Drive, and no version history available in Docs. Everything else is accessible to free accounts though!
Here's some basic info about Proton Docs if you'd like to know more!
And here are a couple a screenshots of the mobile browser Proton Docs editor if you're curious about the UI (please excuse my terrible circling skills)
This is an utterly ridiculous drawing I did after viewing a viral video of a little girl's princess birthday party where someone dressed up as a dragon and the princesses ended up beating the dragon up.
Here is the video 😂
I totally imagine Uncle Theo deciding to dress up for Lyra's 3rd birthday even after Draco insists it's not a good idea. He probably only figures out Draco is right when she starts to chase him and then beats him up with her plastic sword and shield.
Man if I heard that shit while descending upon a strange land with my brethren I'd straight up dig a hole to die in right the and there, fuck the emperor fuck the gods that's a warning straight from the bones of an older evil and whatever is coming is worse than death
Right now, you have to be a team player. You cannot complain about AI being used to fuck over your industry and then turn around and use it on somebody else’s industry.
No AI book covers. No making funny little videos using deepfakes to make an actor say stuff they never did. No AI translation of your book. No AI audiobooks. No AI generated moodboards or fancasts or any of that shit. No feeding someone else’s unfinished work into Chat GPT “because you just want to know how it ends*” (what the fuck is wrong with you?). No playing around with AI generated 3D assets you can’t ascertain the origin of. None of it. And stop using AI filters on your selfies or ESPECIALLY using AI on somebody else’s photo or artwork.
We are at a crossroad and at a time of historically shitty conditions for working artists across ALL creative fields, and we gotta stick together. And you know what? Not only is standing up for other artists against exploitation and theft the morally correct thing to do, it’s also the professionally smartest thing to do, too. Because the corporations will fuck you over too, and then they do it’s your peers that will hold you up. And we have a long memory.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking “your peers” are only the people in your own industry. Writers can’t succeed without artists, editors, translators, etc making their books a reality. Illustrators depend on writers and editors for work. Video creators co-exist with voice actors and animators and people who do 3D rendering etc. If you piss off everyone else but the ones who do the exact same job you do, congratulations! You’ve just sunk your career.
Always remember: the artists who succeed in this career path, the ones who get hired or are sought after for commissions or collaboration, they aren’t the super talented “fuck you I got mine” types. They’re the one who show up to do the work and are easy to get along with.
And they especially are not scabs.
*that’s not even how it ends that’s a statistically likely and creatively boring way for it to end. Why would you even want to read that.
You say procrastinator like it's a bad thing @beautyberrywrites - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
germansingergirl
pixelskylines
jbbartram-illu
vaporwave
theartofmadeline
janainaart
jacobvanloon
annaxmalina
areudirty
tangentwithtanner
dededos
