in the spirit of Pride Month I've been thinking of different ways my ocs would think about their own gender/sexuality/hangups/internalized issues, and I'm kicking my legs and giggling to myself (deviously) about it.
It would be so, so easy for everyone to have the Exact Terminology for who and what they are, of course, but is that interesting? Is that fun? Does it explore what a character would realistically know about said terminology? Does it explore what a character would realistically know about themselves?
I might know what they are, yes. I may even refer to them as such on my own time. I probably will!
But they don't. They don't know. Like 99% of them would not be in a place to sit down and read about queer history and the variety of labels under the umbrella, they're just riding on gut feelings, societal pressures, and trying not to die in a world 50 years after a magical, earth-shattering apocalypse. They're busy worrying about Other Things right now. They'll think about it later. These feelings will always be there Later.
The variety with which they know themselves is also just, so funny to me. Like, the characters that I've settled on so far vary between:
"The idea of being with a man disgusts me (because then when we'd have to have kids I'd have to be the one to get pregnant and I really really hate that idea)(plus who would I even get with? Darren? Fuck Darren(not like that)) but I don't know any women I could be with, either, (the town's population keeps dwindling as more and more people my age keep jumping on ships to Get Out Of Here, and most folks staying behind are pairing up to try to have kids) so I guess I'll stay single despite it all (I don't mind, there's nothing I need that a friend can't give me)"
"The matters of the flesh concern me not. You can keep holding my hand, though, if you must (it's definitely for your needs more than mine) (please don't let go)"
"I'm content with where I'm at in life and with who I am (not happy, but I don't outright hate myself anymore so I'll take what I can get) and if I have to self-reflect on why I'm only content for a single second I'm going to throw myself into the sea."
"Yeah, I'm gay."
(specific oc info+more explanations below the cut bc I'm in a yappy mood but this is getting long lol)
The first one, Parker, is an ace lesbian (main character privileges means I gave her my own orientation lol). The pressures of being a (cis) woman in a dying town in the aftermath of the apocalypse means that there's more than a little pressure to procreate. She gets away with being single and child free because she's the only one willing (read: both physically capable and crazy enough) to consistently run into the weird, magically-irradiated island connected to her home to make sure the magic-radiation doesn't cause any more problems.
The second, Anselm, is agender + aroace + EXTREMELY touch-starved. Honestly it's pretty aware of its own gender (or, lack thereof), but in a roundabout way because they have a hard time seeing itself as a living, breathing being and not just a tool. Wrong equation, right answer type scenario. They're lucky that Parker is a huggy person because oh my god they Cannot ask for any kind of comfort on its own.
The third, Dr. Chase, is nonbinary. y'know that one tweet that's like "I'm probably nonbinary but I have a job so idrc about that rn"? Like that. He doesn't like thinking about himself in general, there's too much baggage and terrible things he's done in the past for him to contend with. In his eyes, he's been fine with being a man for 56 years, why should he stop and change things now?
The last, Lenny, is. Well. He's gay. Realistically he's the only one out of this bunch who would have had the time and headspace to look into his sexuality like that (he was an adult pre-apocalypse, but then the world broke and he fell through the cracks and got spat out some 40-odd years later and now he's in a Fish Hivemind so if you date him you're also going to be dating the Fish Hivemind)(I realize this sounds soso weird but trust me. there's weird shit about everyone else in this list I haven't gone into)(is it obvious most of these ocs originated in dreams yet?)
in the spirit of Pride Month I've been thinking of different ways my ocs would think about their own gender/sexuality/hangups/internalized issues, and I'm kicking my legs and giggling to myself (deviously) about it.
It would be so, so easy for everyone to have the Exact Terminology for who and what they are, of course, but is that interesting? Is that fun? Does it explore what a character would realistically know about said terminology? Does it explore what a character would realistically know about themselves?
I might know what they are, yes. I may even refer to them as such on my own time. I probably will!
But they don't. They don't know. Like 99% of them would not be in a place to sit down and read about queer history and the variety of labels under the umbrella, they're just riding on gut feelings, societal pressures, and trying not to die in a world 50 years after a magical, earth-shattering apocalypse. They're busy worrying about Other Things right now. They'll think about it later. These feelings will always be there Later.
I've decided I'm gonna write oc-related textposts here on this blog. I have Thoughts and I will not keep them in my head any longer. You've been warned.
8 for the ask game!!! It’s such a tough question but I’m interested to see who’s weirdest !
man this Is a tough question cause so many of my guys are Weird in their own ways lmaoo. However I have to admit that Anselm (a cursed suit of armor/vaguely undead knight who rose out of the mana-filled sea and is simultaneously completely new to the world and re-experiencing life in a time far-off from their own) is a uniquely weird fella by virtue of. well. the Everything
Send one of the following symbols and one of my OC’s names and I’ll doodle:
👀 OC in their typical underwear
💤 OC in their sleep attire
🔞 OC in something sexy
🏄 OC in what they would wear to the beach/pool
👔 OC in what they would wear to a formal event (such as a wedding)
☠ OC in what they would wear to a funeral
👖 OC in what they would wear to a casual event (such as a birthday party)
👑 OC dressed as royalty
🚪 OC in what they wear when lounging around at home
💕 OC in what they would wear on a first date
❌ OC in something they would absolutely never wear
🎃 OC in a costume they’d wear for Halloween
🎄 OC in an ugly Christmas sweater
🚓 OC in a prison uniform
🚲 OC in athletic gear
🐰 OC in a kigurumi of their favourite animal
❄ OC in what they’d wear on a very cold day
🔥 OC in what they’d wear on a very hot day
👕 OC in a T-shirt with something stupid printed on it (think Zazzle)
🎭 OC in another OC’s typical attire
📦 OC wearing something that isn’t clothes (such as a fig leaf, a barrel, etc.)
👻 OC in a really bad disguise
📷 OC in a stereotypical tourist getup
🙎 OC in something embarrassing
👗 OC in something from the 50’s
💀 OC in goth/emo/scene attire
💃 OC in some radical 90’s clothes
🌁 OC in a hoodie
🌋 OC in camping or adventuring gear
♠️ OC in their armor (or in some sort of fantasy armor if not applicable to their story)
🎨 OC in a cartoon character’s outfit
🏨 OC in a maid outfit
🏥 OC in a nurse uniform
🐑 OC in farmer wear
👍 OC in a crop top
meowdy, and here's a little art challenge for december my minnows and i have been cooking up! i know month long art challenges can be kind of intimidating to some people, so i figured making a week long one could encourage people to give longer challenges a try!
if you'd like to share your designs, please do so to '#brush week 2025'! ill be checking the tag and sharing some of the cool ones i see!
