hello, darlings. it’s nice to meet you. i’m echo, the author.
you’ve entered the echochamber, the place where the dark cacophony of my mind spills into the pens of bards. in reflections of our world live the whispers of magic, the ghosts of heroes, the scars of the blurred line of morality, and every piece of my broken soul.
on a less poetic note, i’m a writer in love with the idea of fantasy with an imagination that will not shut up. this blog has become a place for my writings, moodboards, music rants, and little guys in my head to live and be shared.
below is a link to the blog masterpost, rules of the blog, a tag directory, and a little more about myself.
-> blog masterpost
rules of the blog:
homophobia, racism, sexism, transphobia, terfs, and any other forms of intolerance and discrimination are not welcome here! you will be blocked!
blocking extends to trolls, bullies, and weirdos as well!
please be kind! these stories, as mentioned above are the safe place for my innermost thoughts and feelings, and i would like that safety to be extended to those who enjoy exploring my fictional worlds. while i appreciate criticism and feedback, please keep it constructive!
my ask box is always open! i love talking about the little guys in my head and their stories, so please send any questions you have my way!
finally, if you make any fan content of my story and characters, please tag me! i want to see it!
tag directory:
#announcement: any non-content-related informational post. usually it’s an apology for dropping off the face of the earth followed by a life update no one asked for.
#cacophony creations: the content created by you, the voices of the echochamber. anything that gets sent to me or i get tagged in and reblog will be found here.
#echo loves pinterest too much: a collection of moodboards and aesthetics i’ve created for various pieces because it is true. i love pinterest too much.
#echo writes: any of my writings are filed under here. they will also have a secondary tag for what genre of writing it is, so if you’re looking for a specific kind of my writing i suggest looking under those tags.
#echo’s cacophony: my behind-the-scenes rants and info dumps. fair warning: these are either unhinged as fuck or incredibly dark and there’s no in between.
#echo’s writing soundtrack: my music rants. story playlists, songs that inspired moments, and what songs i’m listening to while writing will be here.
#fanfic: self-explanatory, but any writing that is a fanfiction. if you’re looking for a specific one, each fic will be tagged with their title (ex. fanfic: example).
#lore: pertaining to my original stories, these are my rants about the worlds i’ve created. magic systems, history, geography, social constructs, and otherwise are here.
#meet the character: pertaining to my original stories, these are introductions to my ocs featuring fun facts, moodboards, and sometimes art i’ve had commissioned.
#nothing good happens after 2am: my unhinged crash outs i wrote in my notes app during a violent sob at the wee hours of the morning that for some reason my delusional brain decided to post.
#secret songs of the echochamber: my collection of bonus content. textposts, false scenarios, letters between characters, social media posts, articles… all in-universe bonuses and non-canon content i create.
#the echochamber sings: answers to the questions and comments left for me in my ask box.
#wip: self-explanatory, but any writing that is a part of my original stories. if you’re looking for a specific one, each story will be tagged with their title (ex. wip: example).
a little more about echo <3
i am currently 21 years old.
i’m a taurus sun, leo moon, and capricorn rising.
i identify as a lesbian who uses she/her pronouns.
while i moonlight as an author, i am also a full-time college student, a bartender, and a combat captain (fancy title for a teaching assistant that the college doesn’t pay because we’re in the stage combat department). most of my day is spent in class, making amazing drinks at work, cleaning weapons, rehearsing fights, working with students, or doing homework during my office hours.
i am also involved with a community theater near my hometown and spend some of my free time performing in shows or volunteering on staff for fight choreography.
no matter how long your stay or how loud your voice sings amongst the cacophony, thank you for stopping by to hear the stories i sing. my ravaged mind created these moments from the darkness of my life, and the only thing i could do was share because i will die if i do not create. knowing others are reading makes me feel whole.
i present to you the song i have listened to 127 times since the midnight release last wednesday. yeah, i’m mentally ill, so what?
-> listen to “DON’T YOU SEE ME TRYING?” on spotify
how did i find this song?
i stay following the releases of erin lecount lol. i’m so hyped for the release of this ep and also so horrified (it’ll be clear why below).
why do i like this song?
to start, erin lecount teased the bridge of this months ago, and i was so unwell. like, oh, just shoot me in the stomach, i guess that's fine! flashforward to last wednesday, i was once again shot because i completely forgot that snippet got teased. ouch was not a strong enough word, someone insert the video of me screaming in my combat adjudication last semester--
anyways erin seems to be just bashing me with beautiful lyrics about things that i am struggling with too. i'm not going to tell her to stop because these songs are so magical to me no matter how upsetting the callout is. listening to her music is like being in a modern fairytale. honestly i get new inspiration to write with every song that gets released.
also, as i've discussed previously, i experience songs in a very cinematic way. i will walk down the street blasting this song and see visions of me (and also my friends with much more dance talent than my measly ass) dancing in the city at night through empty streets. i see the partially exaggerated version of my story--the woman who chased a high one more time and feeling invincible--playing on repeat.
what story soundtracks have i used it in?
if i ever get the next chapter of and i don't know you (i used to like to pretend to) done--i'm working on it so hopefully i'll get this fic done by the end of the summer--it will be in that chapter. i already have plans, i just have to finish writing something. i also used it and the story i see when listening to fuel a piece of homework in one of my classes which i posted earlier this week in echo's cacophony. honestly, i'd love to make a short film out of it, but i fear it's so intrinsically tied to the song that i'd have to get the rights to the whole thing...so maybe that'll just stay a little dream i have.
pssssst! if you are interested in what i’ve written while listening to this song or want to know what else i’ve been listening to, check out the links below.
associated song: "DON'T YOU SEE ME TRYING?" by Erin LeCount
content warning: themes of addiction
A concrete jungle of eternal night, not another soul except for the one who's dancing through the streets as though the world belonged to her. It was the closest I could get to flying. The city was offering a hand, how could I refuse? I left my keys at home for a reason, didn't I? I think I forgot why.
About halfway home, I slipped on a slick patch of sidewalk, catching myself on my toes and looking down at the drop below, every sound ceasing to ring in my ears. I stood on the edge of a glacier, icy water waiting below. If I plummet to the bottom, would I crash through the surface? Would I drown, or would I find a watery rabbit hole to a world where nothing and everything made sense? Or what if from my pained shoulder blades, I grew wings, and with the grace of an angel I dove off the cliff without fear of hitting the bottom. I could've pointed up to the sky and reached heights Icarus had never dreamed of, and if I fell it would've been because I willed it. But I spun out of my cessation, my feet reminding myself that it's only cement around me to guide my path home.
The steps began echoing across the mile high buildings, the dark windows playing moments of my life on repeat. The bottle shattered against the wall, spilling over that shitty drawing of a horse twelve-year-old me was so proud of making. My lonely dance became a fight to survive, to keep my breathing free from the labor of tears. A bucket crashed into the counter. I was dancing so close I almost kissed her. I dropped my keys stumbling to my car. Water bottle at my face. Chappell Roan night at the club. How many shots is that? Broken bottle. Feet hurt. Lost count again. And then the next day. Thousands of times on my hands and knees with that dustpan, the scraping multiplying every time the illusory TV screens jumped to a different memory of it. Destroy, dance, drink, repeat.
I remembered why I left my keys when I was sitting on the floor of my shower, water burning me and mascara turning my tears black. There is humanity in this city. The proof was in the panicked texts perpetually alighting my phone screen. It just felt so good to know what it was like to be so uninhibitedly reckless again, but it wasn't just my heart that I was breaking this time. I promised I would stop. Instead, I said one more time.
pssssst! if you are interested in what else i’ve written, check out the links below.
associated song: "I Hope I Die Inside a Fire" by Emily How
it’s quite fascinating watching something be engulfed in flames, consumed in its entirety by the element of destruction, mangled until what it once was is barely recognizable. yet there’s something to be said for the remainders as it doesn’t all disappear. there are pieces of it left once the fire snuffed, ashes of what it used to be. it’s broken, burnt, and barely holding itself together, but some things you can’t erase entirely. maybe it’s survival, or maybe it’s holding onto long gone pieces past their time. maybe that’s all up to the beholder. one just hopes that in the sea of those who see a useless pile of ashes to toss, someone saves it with the belief it’s a beautiful thing that managed to hold on when nature wanted it to die.
pssssst! if you are interested in what else i’ve written, check out the links below.
occasionally a girl happens to stumble across a song that is perfect for blasting as you bike around town on a summer scavenger hunt, so i hope you enjoy like i have the past couple of weeks.
-> listen to “cul-de-sac” on spotify
how did i find this song?
i saw a video of this artist a couple weeks ago, and i thought the clip of the song was fun. naturally, i decided to check it out, and found i really enjoyed the full song!
why do i like this song?
the song gives very summer coming-of-age vibes to me, like something that would be featured in heartstopper. it's the kind of song i would blast in the convertible after getting out on the last day of school while all my friends pile in the backseat to go get ice cream.
as much as you all know i love a good sad song, songs with this vibe just give me hope when i need it. when i dig myself into a hole, there's a playlist that i blast in my ear on the way to visit my friends who insisted we hang out--and this song immediately went onto it.
and right now, it doesn't hurt to have a playlist that does nothing but give a girl a little bit of something to hold onto while she romanticizes about summer adventures with her friends.
what story soundtracks have i used it in?
the song is only a month old as of writing this, but i will be finding a place to put it. there are a couple places it could work. so, i hope to see it in a story soon.
pssssst! if you are interested in what i’ve written while listening to this song or want to know what else i’ve been listening to, check out the links below.
"Hi, everyone!" she started off with a smile. "So glad to be back here at Everflame for another jukebox night. If you're new here, welcome! I'm Sera Ashe, and this is my lovely guitarist and duet partner Fenris Altalune."
The Wolf waved between chords.
"Jukebox night is pretty simple here. Fen and I have a list of songs in a binder by the bar over there, and you can put in a request with the wonderful siren boy over there. He works here, so don't worry, he is getting paid for this."
A few chuckles spattered about the room at the joke.
"Now this all started with Fen and I jumping up here one day and giving an impromptu performance before people began shouting out suggestions, so we like to begin with the song of our own choosing. This one is certainly not underground by any means, but I wanted to put my own little spin on it... so I hope you enjoy."
The last chord Fenris Altalune played reverberated through the space for a minute before dying off into silence, every breath being held in anticipation for the song choice. The Wolf looked over to Sera in the void of noise, looking for a cue perhaps. Sera simply put her hand around the microphone, dragging out the wait just long enough to make it perfect as the last chord seemed to ring back to her after lingering in the minds of her audience.
"Sometimes I feel like throwing my hands up in the air."
A couple quiet gasps from the crowd as people recognized the Florence + The Machine cover's a capella entrance. The corner of Phoebe's own lips tugged at a smile because she listened to this album a lot when it came out.
"I know I can count on you."
-> read it on ao3
Sera's performances are ramping up with tech week approaching and the arrival of jukebox night at Everflame Pub, and while Phoebe enjoys the display of talent from her patient, Sera is drowning in her worsening heat sensitivity. With new yet familiar symptoms beginning to manifest, Sera must hide the fact that she's looking at old files for answers of what is happening to her.
content warning: this story contains mentions of child abuse and trafficking, politics, war, death, violence, government corruption and abuse, and other not-so-subtle similarities to the current events of the world.
funny story: my friend and i walked into the student center of our college, and i took off my headphones just to hear the guitar outro and started laughing. my friend looked at me, thoroughly confused because he doesn't listen to searows, and i just said, "some depressed queer kid has control of the playlist."
-> listen to “Dearly Missed” on spotify
how did i find this song?
a couple of my roommates introduced me to searows last year, so i started following him after being emotionally destroyed by martingale, naturally.
why do i like this song?
well, first i have to shoutout the music video because the visuals of it are very much the vibes of the story i was working on in the fall. i really enjoyed it, so do go check that out as well.
as we know, i'm a sucker for a guitar and good lyrics of which this song has both. the best way i can explain the vibes of this song is something that would be featured in a tv show about a smalltown teen's death that became a cold case. like this would be the song at the end of the flashback or something. i mean this all lovingly because driving to this in my small hometown is so perfect in the fall.
if you haven't noticed, i like songs that should be driven to at night in the fall in the middle of a cornfield. it's a fucking great vibe, what can i say?
what story soundtracks have i used it in?
we're returning to the answer of none yet, but i have actively been scouring my work for a place to put this song, so stay tuned.
pssssst! if you are interested in what i’ve written while listening to this song or want to know what else i’ve been listening to, check out the links below.
shoutout to my favorite song to drive down empty country roads listen to in the fall.
-> listen to “Nightcall” on spotify
how did i find this song?
years ago when i started getting into making playlists, i began with making a little fall playlist of songs that specifically weren’t musical theater songs to get me into more stuff. my good friend sent me a playlist she made for fall to get me inspired, and this song was among them.
why do i like this song?
ooh, it’s such an eerie cover. triplet arpeggios on the piano are always a great way to start, but the haunting melody and lyrics to go with it just make it so creepy. if you ever get the chance to listen to it on an autumn twilight, especially if you’re near cornfields that have just been harvested, it’s truly another world you’re driving in. this song just really feels like the beginning of a horrifying halloween movie where a teen drives through the haunted hometown as the credits roll.
what story soundtracks have i used it in?
nightcall has found a home early on in and i don’t know you (i used to like to pretend to). it makes a lot of sense for agathario when you listen to the words being sung. hopefully i can find another story that this song can lend its eerie vibe to.
pssssst! if you are interested in what i’ve written while listening to this song or want to know what else i’ve been listening to, check out the links below.
now introducing one of the artists who sounds like summer to me! but, of course, i must introduce her with her saddest song because what else are you coming to expect from me?
shoutout to one of my most wonderful friends and combat partners for this one because this is our artist. <3
-> listen to “Chameleon” on spotify
how did i find this song?
at one of maude latour’s concerts, maris opened for her, and lemme just say- me and the friend who last minute went with me became fans of mari’s together in the moment she started her set. we call maris “our artist” because of this little moment. we downloaded her whole discography, we were going to go to give me a tour together (extenuating circumstances prevented it but that’s another story), we even filmed a video of ourselves flipping swords to her new song.
long-winded way to say i heard her sing this at the maude latour concert and almost cried, haha.
why do i like this song?
as a musical theatre kid, i am such a sucker for a good piano ballad. and one with a nice space for belting? totally perfect for me to give a concert in my car with.
but also, as an artist, a daughter, and a romantic, this song really hits home. i don’t like what i create. i can’t get along with my family. girls look the other way even when they said they wanted to gaze into my eyes. it’s cathartic to scream because maris makes me feel like i am seen as a human who is all of these things and still doesn’t feel like enough.
and the moments she creates when she sings this song at her concerts are just gorgeous. joining everyone in affirmations and then turning it onto strangers next to them. and also at the give me a tour show i was at she took a trans pride flag from an audience member and held it the whole song (then proceeded to stick it on the mic stand the whole night). you’re never alone when maris delivers this song to you.
what story soundtracks have i used it in?
this song is heavily mentioned in a chapter of bloodlines which as of me posting this is not out yet but will be soon. because i feel so linked to this song that the probability a lot of my characters relate to it by accident is very high, so it might become relevant in other stories soon.
pssssst! if you are interested in what i’ve written while listening to this song or want to know what else i’ve been listening to, check out the links below.
welcome to my miscellaneous collection of writings!
this is the anthology of the pieces that don’t fit into any of the worlds i’ve created, the things that come to me at weird hours of the night or the words i have to write down before they consume me.
a bit of a disclaimer before you go diving into my works, there are some content warnings for some of the pieces because the imagery i use. if there’s any content warnings for a piece, it will be listed at the top of the post and tagged #content warning.
if anything is a written form of my sometimes fragmented mind, these are it. it’s difficult to contain a soul when it’s bared in the middle of the night and you’re pouring words onto the page because you can’t think of anything else to do to help… so i do hope you enjoy these.
why must you lurk in the back of my head like a shadow in an abandoned house that someone can’t quite make out?
i hear your footsteps running away in my mind though you’re breathing into the embrace of my arms.
good things never stay long in my life, i’ve learned that at least, but i wish i could enjoy you rather than seeing you among the ghosts that speak to me.
pssssst! if you are interested in what else i’ve written, check out the links below.
welcome to the world of bloodlines, we hope you enjoy your stay in ealatia.
whether you're looking for geography references, information on organizations, or just some worldbuilding rants from the author, we have everything you need to delve deeper into the mystical world of bloodlines.
feel free to peruse anything that catches your eye, or to ask me more questions about the things you don’t have an answer to here!
as always, much love, echo <3
history & geography:
-> ealatia, the eighth continent
pssssst! if you are interested in the story that this lore belongs to, or want to know what else i’ve been creating, check out the links below.
i'm so happy to be returning to music rant fridays with an artist who was such a big soundtrack of my high school life, so without further ado, here's maude latour <3
-> listen to “Too Slow” on spotify
how did i find this song?
way back when i was in high school, my friends and i would drive around the country roads screaming songs and having picnics on the side of the road for fun. small town things, i know. but my friends would blast "ride my bike" from maude latour's first ep, and to this day the bridge of that song reminds me of summer days spent with the windows rolled down while we ran through all of our gas going nowhere.
all of this backstory to say, i've been a fan of maude latour for a while, and i was very excited when she released this song.
why do i like this song?
going back to those small blips of golden times in high school, this sounds exactly how i feel about those times spent with my friends. like i could see a movie about those times in my life starting with this song or someone editing those brief glimpses of careless joy to this chorus. this song just holds a special place in my heart because of those core memories.
what story soundtracks have i used it in?
so far i have featured it in the second chapter of bloodlines and based on how much i care about this song, it will probably end up in another story!
pssssst! if you are interested in what i’ve written while listening to this song or want to know what else i’ve been listening to, check out the links below.
it’s been a while! i am so sorry for disappearing for months. i didn’t mean to take a hiatus, but it was definitely what was needed to get through this last semester.
however, the new year brings resolutions and a bit of reflection on myself… as well as my friends continuing to yell at me for being too hard on myself.
what does this mean? well, i have a few personal writing goals i have written out for myself in hopes of producing and posting more work this next semester (and hopefully for the foreseeable future). i should be returning to posting twice a week beginning with this friday’s return to music rant fridays. i’ve got a couple chapters ready to be released as well, and a new addition: some of my late night writings! they’ll just be some one-off bits and pieces i—as the name suggests—come up with in the middle of the night.
i am really excited to return back to this space with some more art to share with you all, and i look forward to what you think of my new stories!
welcome back to music rant fridays! i have unfortunately locked into the new fic idea my friend and i had instead of focusing on finishing the writings i’ve started posting. what’s new? who’s surprised? i’m not!
anyway, i’m really hoping to get out all the ideas floating in my head so i can casually switch between chapters of the agathario fic and this new one. and yes, this one will be a surprise until i start posting chapters. it’s more interesting that way. gotta keep y’all guessing.
-> listen to “Marble Arch” on spotify
how did i find this song?
so because i’m an old ass soul (i don’t have tiktok) i was introduced to erin lecount by one of my former roommates. i like to forget about that part for reasons because i really enjoyed silver spoons (the first song i heard), and once i finally worked up the courage this summer i listened to the full ep.
why do i like this song?
in case you people have forgotten (or you don’t know because this is the first post of mine you’ve seen) i only enjoy singing a normal amount and definitely am not a musical theatre major dedicating my life to the craft. jokes aside, this song—like a lot of the songs of this ep—sits in a nice place in my voice. it scratches my brain a lot when i sing it, and i really like it when songs do that in particular.
also, with the vibes of the metaphor and lyrics it’s a nice song that mixes a bit of fantasy with pop music. shocker, the fantasy writer likes fantastical lyrics. totally out of left field, right? anyways, i listen to a lot of shit, but if i had to choose one genre i say i listen to the most, it would be pop music. i love the genre a lot. good vibes all around. so to have a lyricist like erin lecount create a song with a fantasy edge wrapped in one of my favorite sounds? perfect. eating every crumb.
also… the line at the top of this post? in case you are stumbling across my blog for the first time, i am a writer, an actor, a woman studying fake violence for her career… tragedy is what i do. and as a girl with mental health issues who has used her art to cope, who has drawn on her very thoughts to create the characters she loves? yeah, i relate to it a bit too hard.
what story soundtracks have i used it in?
once again, i am answering with “none.” one day, i will give you guys a real answer. today is not that day.
i am absolutely putting it in my mysterious new fic. i already have a scene waiting for it. otherwise, there are places with potential in my other stories, but no definitive space yet.
i really just wanted to tell you fine folks about this song this time around. if you keep following my writing, however, you will definitely see it pop up!
pssssst! if you are interested in what i’ve written while listening to this song or want to know what else i’ve been listening to, check out the links below.
