I don't normally comment on fics or talk about then or anything like that but oh my god. Your Etho-centric apocalypse AU actually destroyed me when I read it last night. I genuinely read the entire collection in one sitting I was so engrossed😭. It's absolutely amazing I loved it so much, big fan of never letting him catch a break.
AND THE BDUBS HALLUCINATIONS???? oh I was in PAIN.
Thank you 🫶
I am also a big fan of never letting etho catch a break <3 I miss so dearly putting that string bean through the wringer. Thank you for reading and taking the time to send a nice message ((: glad people are still reading it
would it be absurd and generally off putting if I put aasb Grian through another psychological and supernatural wringer or is that horse already beaten
My reflection on as above, so below on AO3 by @birrdies
Spoilers ahead, DONT LOOK AT THE TAGS
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
SpOILERS AHEaD
i toldyou.
GIT, GOT GOIN'
Okok, first off, really well written. like really well. if the names got swapped out, it could be sold as a book. I only noticed like, 3 spelling errors in the entire thing.
also, the way clues were laid out, like the way not-jimmy is described and his actions which lead to the Copycat. its details your brush off but remember when it gets recalled. they way i screamed "OH, OH THE THING, THE EYES THE MIRRORS!" was crazy.
i loved the buildup to the last kiss being almost nothing, at least the subplot. Besides the drunk kiss and a few other moments ill quote later, the buildup itself was very subtle and worked well with this fic and its plot. this fic wasnt focused on their relationship and that did it VERY well to keep it a minor plot point. long fics like this benefit from that. (save for midnight strangers cuz it was written with scarian as the focal point). this was what made that lsat kiss so satisfying, it felt like a good, small close to a subtle B plot. the way the copycat taunts Grian with "you like him, dont you?" was one such subtle but prominent points for the subplot that kept it on track. i love these two as a pair, romantic or otherwise, they just work SO WELL.
not-scar attacking grian literally agve me so much anxiety, one of the scariest things ive read in a while.
the whole thing where Grian's mom was trying to sacrifice him and not jimmy?!? are we going to gloss over that!!!? like hello that makes me so sad and anxious thinking about it.
SOME QUOTES I HIGHLIGHTED (since i trying to be better about bookmaking and highlighting things on my kindle)
Chapter 4: "what did he have to lose? what else was there for this town to take from him? His eyes went to Scar." awwwwwwwwww
Chapter 8: "Grian willingly kissed a man who believed in cursed rocks. That surely checked out. That was fine." lmao i laughed so hard
and lastly....
Grian flipped the files shut and leaned across the table to speak softly and still be heard. What he really wanted to ask, he was too afraid to say. So instead, he asked, "Why did the mayor want you to work here, with me of all people?"
Scar met him halfway, leaning low enough that his chin rested on his crossed arms. He tilted his head in thought. "I could ask you the same thing," he said. "We see things not for what they are, but for what we are. So... Tell me. Why would the mayor want me to work here? With you of all people?"
quick sketch i did during my history class.
FINAL THOUGHTS
all in all, this was a wonderfully written fic. amazing characterizations (scar being smarter than he lets on is my favorite moments), subtle foreshadowing and great plot, and all in all well constructed. i will deff be revisitng this in a few years or months.
read here for my "The horse thief" review and
here for my "in five seconds ill be kissing you" review.
this link takes you to a google doc where i have a bunch of completed fics linked if you wanna read those too (save for a few incomplete ones i accidently added)
nonsensical desert duo au simmering in the crockpot (my brain)
[spoilers for Project Hail Mary below the cut!]
Scar is a scientist who's become the laughing stock of the academic community after his life's work of research was proven false (perhaps even faked; thinking like the prince charming douche from Harry Potter and the chamber of secrets (sorry Scar))
Grian is Rocky; thinking to lean very heavily into the Watcher element, maybe lots of eyes, a bit incomprehensible to look at. They still need to find ways to communicate and Grian is very, very pesky
Grian risking his own life to save Scar after the ship nearly crashes; Scar talking to himself (and Grian's maybe dead body) for days as he talks himself off the edge
Scar remembering snippets of his past leading up to the mission; his realization that he is, in fact, a coward. perhaps with the amnesia he starts to misinterpret his memories as they randomly return to him, actually believing he is as brave and noble and great as the memories are leading him to believe. but now he knows: he didn't want to go at all. He begged not to go, even though he had nothing waiting for him here. No family, no friends. Not even a dog
humble that man. he should have to be nursed back to health my his romantic interested and accidentally throw up and pass out on them when they try to clean his wounds
You said unhinged tips to power through a creative block so unfortunately I do have that. Bring your drawing stuff into the bathroom, leave the toilet paper just out of reach, use the toilet. You'll earn the paper after you draw literally anything. This sadly works.
does anyone have any unhinged tips for powering through a creative block? and i don't mean just going for a walk or listening to music, i mean something bordering insanity
paul revere - noah kahan/ @sentientsky/ @servuscallidus/the kite runner - khaled hosseini/paul gilmartin/please refrain from talking during the movie - robert polito/user gabe k-s/portrait of fryderyk in shifting light - richard siken/paul revere - noah kahan
stormborns
theartofmadeline
ellievsbear
annaxmalina
baratheonpilled
pixelskylines
