In Avatar fics the seems to be a trend where Toph put her hand on peoples face's (usually Zuko's?) to see them and I can't help but imagine that if she wanted to see someone's face she would get them to lie in the dirt (or trip them into it) face first then put her hands on the ground to let earth sense see for her
This combines beautifully with the very real world fact that blind people DO NOT want to see more of the "blind people touching other people's faces" trope in media
So someone offers to let Toph touch their face
But being Toph, she is sick of merely explaining, again, that Blind People Don't Want To Paw Your Greasy Face
#( #prev: #You going to explain colors to me next? Because can show you brown #) #toph: *earthbends their face into some rock* #sokka: that's gray actually #toph: *earthbends sokka into the same rock*
In Avatar fics the seems to be a trend where Toph put her hand on peoples face's (usually Zuko's?) to see them and I can't help but imagine that if she wanted to see someone's face she would get them to lie in the dirt (or trip them into it) face first then put her hands on the ground to let earth sense see for her
This combines beautifully with the very real world fact that blind people DO NOT want to see more of the "blind people touching other people's faces" trope in media
So someone offers to let Toph touch their face
But being Toph, she is sick of merely explaining, again, that Blind People Don't Want To Paw Your Greasy Face
#( #prev: #You going to explain colors to me next? Because can show you brown #) #toph: *earthbends their face into some rock* #sokka: that's gray actually #toph: *earthbends sokka into the same rock*
The first rule of fandom is have fun. The second rule of fandom is find an enabler and become an enabler. Yes you should write that fic. What if it was even hornier? What if it was angstier? What if you wrote it just for me?
going insane about Three Stories to an audience of no one because the way House retells things is genuinely so interesting. everything is exaggerated. patients are merely caricatures of themselves. carmen electra is there.
i have SO MANY THINGS to say about this episode and i'm not even halfway through it oh my god. house's version of cameron is so...polite. soft spoken. overly caring. caricature cameron. this is not cameron. and the guys are barely there which...could mean nothing...but this is immediately after the episode with house and cameron's date...
going insane about Three Stories to an audience of no one because the way House retells things is genuinely so interesting. everything is exaggerated. patients are merely caricatures of themselves. carmen electra is there.
i just don’t get it. where are all the women. where are all the women in your fanfictions. are they all out of town? did they all go on vacation together? do they all have a dentist appointment at the same time?
In Avatar fics the seems to be a trend where Toph put her hand on peoples face's (usually Zuko's?) to see them and I can't help but imagine that if she wanted to see someone's face she would get them to lie in the dirt (or trip them into it) face first then put her hands on the ground to let earth sense see for her
I will say that the "Toph is the chaotic violent tank gremlin who wins every fight" bit the avatar fandom does is getting pretty old. Like it is fun. But I think a lot of people will genuinely not acknowledge any "weakness" from Toph? I sometimes feel like the fandom was trying really hard to not assign her the typical "weakness" and "vulnerability" that is usually attributed to disabled characters and the pendulum swung too far in the other direction. Like i barely see an good critical analysis of Toph. All the stupid "katara is the Gaang's mom" takes exist because of people ignoring Toph's emotional issues in the chase and the runaway. Toph just feels really ignored in the respect of the complex, tragic characted she is, in favour of the "hehe Toph could beat Ozai" jokes.
Yeah, Toph gets treated very reductively ime. In the show, most of her flaws are emotional – she can't ask for help, she's not good at talking feelings or showing affection (punching people doesn't count), she tries to be detached about everything, and later on, she's a terrible mother.
But in fanon, all of those emotional complexities are dropped for "haha eaarthbender go punch" :/
Exactly! Toph has such deep complexities as a character, but a lot of people just ignore that. It's annoying, because it cheapens not only her character, but also her relationships with others.
I wrote like exactly one meta on Toph. I'm pretty proud of it, but it's not only just about the only one I've written, but (with maybe like one exception) just about the only meta I've ever seen anyone write about her. The ATLA fandom isn't interested in things other than "Toph smash," and that's a shame. Maybe someday I'll have more ideas on what I can say about her. I hope I do, because it seems like very few other people are the least bit interested in saying anything substantive about her.
if I had to guess it would be to avoid having Zuko looking like a puppet... Which means Zuko has like Mai and Ty Lee as Fire Nation allies and Ty Lee leaves early on I think...
I like to imagine Azulon played favourites between Iroh and Ozai.
I was recently rewatching Zuko Alone, one of my favourite episodes in ATLA, and I was struck by the elderly Firelord Azulon, a seemingly joyless and cruel man, responding to Ozai's request to make him Fire Lord. When Ozai asks his father to revoke Iroh's birthright and make him, the second son, the Fire Lord, Azulon doesn't immediately call him a traitor. He doesn't use the word treason at all.
He says, "You suggest I betray Iroh? My firstborn? Directly after the demise of his only beloved son? I think Iroh has suffered enough. But you? Your punishment has scarcely begun."
The word "betray" is so interesting here, it's doing so much. It suggests a bond of loyalty between Azulon and Iroh. He goes on to describe Lu Ten as a "beloved son", which is such a warm and loving phrase for these merciless dictators who don't seem to have any kindness to spare for their own family. Azulon obviously favours Iroh and by extension Lu Ten, and we see this when he goes on to demand that Ozai kill Zuko.
Zuko is not, in Azulon's eyes, a "beloved" grandson. Likely because he is Ozai's firstborn, and Azulon doesn't actually seem to like Ozai. Iroh losing his son is "suffering enough", but Ozai losing his son is "a punishment that has scarcely begun".
It suggests to me that Iroh was always Azulon's favourite, and Ozai has resented this for years. It's not just that Iroh was the crown prince, the heir to the throne. It's because Iroh was born luckier than Ozai. Because their father loved him more.
And I think this is probably intensified by their sharp personality differences. Iroh is warm, funny, kind, thoughtful. Even when he was a conquering general attacking Ba Sing Se, he sent gifts for his nephew and niece. Perhaps they weren't the best gifts (Zuko loves his knife, but he sent Azula a doll), but my point is, can you picture Ozai sending Lu Ten a present? Even a bad one?
Later on, in the "Firebending Masters" episode, Zuko says that Iroh killed the last dragon "long before (Zuko) was born", meaning that Iroh was STILL a conquering warlord type when he met Ran and Shaw, and he still lied to keep them safe. Meaning that he was never as cruel as Ozai, and he always had a greater appreciation for the world, even at his worst.
And this man is Azulon's firstborn and favourite son. It must burn Ozai up, pun intended lol. He probably never could understand the bond between Azulon and Iroh, he was probably always on the outside, seething with jealousy and resentment and convinced that he'd make a better Fire Lord because he was more ruthless than Iroh.
And this trickles down to the way Ozai treats his own children. Zuko, for reasons that I've often found inexplicable, was always on Ozai's shit-list. Yeah perhaps it was because Zuko was just not as prodigious as Azula, but also I think it's because Zuko frankly reminded him too much of Iroh. And he's trying to compensate for those feelings of resentment by favouring the spare, Azula. Even if Zuko hadn't been banished, I really doubt Ozai would have let him succeed the throne. He'd have given it to Azula because she is the second child, and Ozai himself is a bitter and resentful second child who had to live in his brother's shadow all his life.
Maybe this is all just a big reach but I find it interesting to think about, haha. I often wonder what kind of bond Azulon and Iroh must have shared. Perhaps they laughed over tea together. It's fascinating to try and fill in the gaps.
Whenever I read yet again that Azula is a monster because, as an 11-year-old, she smiled when she saw Ozai publicly scarring Zuko, I think of, for example, the cute children of 14th-century Italy who amused themselves by attacking prisoners sentenced to execution and literally tearing them to pieces. Optionally, they could, for example, go to the deceased's wife with the severed head and show her this gift through the window. And what's characteristic is that such children's behavior was considered an act pleasing to God by the church. Some priests who observed such reprisals even wrote that they saw divine providence in it. Children are essentially immoral. Morality in children is shaped by society. And the morality of different societies in different periods of history is different. How many people looked on with disgust at that execution?
Literally only Iroh, and even he simply watched, but did nothing or said anything. But he is the eldest son of Azulon and a whole general and the Dragon of the West, but he just watches and that’s all.
And one more thing. Zuko in this scene was portrayed as a cowardly brat, capable of nothing but barking on old man, and then, when it came down to fight with strongest adult firebender, he chickened out. Compared to him, you really feel sorry for Aang, but not for Zuko. Because Aang's actions were proactive, not pathetic capitulation to circumstances. Going against authority and his predetermined destiny was a very manly act on his part. And compare that to Zuko, who, on his knees, begging for mercy with tears in his eyes. He could have resisted at least a little; it would have been more honorable for him.
It would probably also got him (Zuko) killed. There might also be a difference between picking a fight with a general and picking a fight with your father, the guy with the divine right to rule over you. Also Aang got like 3 seasons of prep time to pick that fight (sure he's like 1 year younger than Zuko was, but Aang also has the benefit of being the strongest bender.... and started the show as a master Airbender)
These are rules I generally adhere to in my own writing, they aren't gospel or meant to be the end all be all of writing. Also it should be noted that like all rules, these too are made to be broken when and where it serves the text. This is not about grammar or Correct Use of King's English™, this is just a list of personal style choices.
Anyway.
1. Indicate who's speaking as quickly as possible.
See difference between:
"Wait, does anyone have an extra eraser? I could swear I brought one, but I can't find it."
"You can use mine. Though if you steal it, I will kill you."
"Nice. I'm changing my brother's name to Gerry, is that okay?"
"You had two weeks to come up with your backstory."
And:
"Wait, does anyone have an extra eraser?" Melanie asks. "I could swear I brought one, but I can't find it."
"You can use mine," Jan says. "Though if you steal it, I will kill you."
"Nice," Melanie says. "I'm changing my brother's name to Gerry, is that okay?"
Annie says, "You had two weeks to come up with your backstory."
But this looks like talking heads in a blank void talking to each other, so, give the characters bodies and physicality, which brings us to rule 2.
2. no talking heads in void.
Though people do just sit around talking without doing anything else, it's not that interesting to read and also, gotta remember that readers can't see what you see in your head while writing. You gotta actually give them something to latch a mental image onto, so. Characters should move and emote.
"Wait, does anyone have an extra eraser?" Melanie asks, rummaging through her bag. "I could swear I brought one, but I can't find it."
"You can use mine," Jan says, nudging his own eraser over. It's in the shape of an old fashioned motorcycle. "Though if you steal it, I will kill you."
"Nice," Melanie says and snatches it up to do quick edits on her character sheet. "I'm changing my brother's name to Gerry, is that okay?"
Annie gives her a flat look. "You had two weeks to come up with your backstory."
Now you can sorta tell what they're talking about. Just don't go overboard - dialogue has a momentum and a rhythm, and too much description can overwhelm it.
3. Character Action and Character Dialogue go on the same paragraph.
See difference between this:
Melanie rummaged through her backpack.
"Wait, does anyone have an extra eraser? I could swear I brought one, but I can't find it."
"You can use mine."
Jackson nudged his own eraser over. It was the shape of a motorcycle.
"Though if you steal it, I will kill you."
"Nice."
Melanie snatches it up to do quick edits on her character sheet.
"I'm changing my brother's name to Gerry, is that okay?"
Annie gives her a flat look.
"You had two weeks to come up with your backstory."
And this:
Melanie rummaged through her backpack. "Wait, does anyone have an extra eraser? I could swear I brought one, but I can't find it."
"You can use mine." Jackson nudged his own eraser over. It was the shape of a motorcycle. "Though if you steal it, I will kill you."
"Nice." Melanie snatches it up to do quick edits on her character sheet. "I'm changing my brother's name to Gerry, is that okay?"
Annie gives her a flat look. "You had two weeks to come up with your backstory."
Not only does it make the text way more cohesive and snappy but, once again, it's much more clear who is saying what - but even then, I prefer to use dialogue indicators. Text like this to me looks like maybe there's a voiceover going on or something.
4. No mixing and matching characters. One character per paragraph.
This is one of my most broken rules, but in general it's character per paragraph.
So, none of this:
Melanie rummaged through her backpack while Annie set up the DM screen. "Wait, does anyone have an extra eraser? I could swear I brought one, but I can't find it."
"You can use mine." Jackson nudged his eraser over and Melanie snatched it up "Though if you steal it, I will kill you." Melanie begun making quick edits.
"Nice. I'm changing my brother's name to Gerry, is that okay?" Beside her, Annie gave her a flat look.
"You had two weeks to come up with your backstory."
Mixing and matching who's doing what like this makes it hard to see who's saying what, it makes the dialogue messy. However, this is fine.
While Annie set up the DM screen, Melanie rummaged through her backpack "Wait, does anyone have an extra eraser?" she asked. "I could swear I brought one, but I can't find it."
"You can use mine." Jackson nudged his eraser over and Melanie snatched it up. "Though if you steal it, I will kill you," he added.
"Nice. I'm changing my brother's name to Gerry, is that okay?" Melanie ask, grinning at the look Annie gave her.
"You had two weeks to come up with your backstory," Annie says flatly.
Note that in mixing and matching like this, it's all the more important to point out who is saying what. In general though, I tend to minimise this sort of stuff.
5 is kinda rule 1 rehashed, but, again, indicate who is speaking upfront. Especially when there's a larger piece of dialogue.
Sometimes, people aren't actually reading - sometimes for various reasons they're using text to speech, or maybe someone does a podfic or something. Even in visual reading, when there's a big block of dialogue without indicators it can be hard to follow.
So instead of:
"If Melanie can change her background, can I add a cool uncle to mine? I want a cool uncle - like, a gunslinger or something. Or a wizard - oo, a wizard uncle! He can be creepy and vague and give me problematic spells!" Jackson says eagerly.
I'd rather do:
Jackson puts his hand up. "If Melanie can change her background, can I add a cool uncle to mine?" he asks eagerly. "I want to give Kaiser a cool uncle - like, a gunslinger or something. Or a wizard - oh, a wizard uncle! He can be creepy and vague and give me problematic spells!"
Especially so when there's multiple characters talking and maybe one character hasn't been talking as much as the others - if they jump back into the discussion, it should be noted.
6. Limit your bits.
But as said before, every rule is made to be broken, and I break my own rules all the time. When I do it, though, it's generally for the bit, to make the text more interesting. Stuff like bits of dialogue without any indicators who is saying what to show that there's a faceless crowd speaking all at once, or two characters going back and forth, stuff like that.
"Jackson's dude has Main Character Energy," Melanie says solemnly.
"Kaiser is the anime protagonist," Jan agrees. "We're just NPCs in his world."
"The cheerleaders of his adventurers."
"Founding members of his harem."
They nod in perfect understanding and agreement.
For a couple of lines, exchanges like this can be fun - if the back and forth goes on for 12 lines, though, it will get tiresome.
There are other bits I do, and again, I break my own dialogue writing rules a lot for stylistic reasons to make the text more interesting or to give it better rhythm, or whatever. Sometimes, there's no dialogue at all, sometimes there's no indicators. There's no actual rules in writing, even grammar is all made up. These are more guidelines than anything.
But I hope the effort makes the dialogue more readable.
you've heard of death of the author, now get ready for death of the audience: where instead of basing your reaction on a thousand uninformed opinions online, you actually read the text and engage with it
It's such an amazing feeling when someone picks up on something in your writing that you 100% intended but didn't think people would notice. Like, YES!! My writing properly conveyed the thing it was supposed to!!! You are so awesome for noticing that!!! I am so awesome for writing that!!! I feel so good about my story now!!!!
i think i don't really vibe with most other fans of my favorite male characters is because they usually depict them too much of a man, and i am not interested in men, i am interested in The Character. and i am not saying that they should depict them as women, or nonbinary, or should depict them as feminine, no, not at all. but there's like, you know, you can depict a male character as The Character, and you can depict them as The Man. do you get me? like, i go to the fandom looking for art and fics, and it's just, regardless of his actual characterization, it's all just fantasizing about some kind of an abstract dominant patriarch, wearing my favorite character's face. it may be the most totally-wouldnt-have-normal-relationships (and sometimes even would-literally-abuse-you) kind of guy, and you join a dedicated space for his fans, and all they talk about is how they want to marry and start a tradcore 50s style nuclear family with him. it can be a guy who's arrogance and attempts of domination are explicitly shown to be a facade that hide the fact that he's actually kind of a massive pathetic wet loser, and you go to his fics, and they're all depicting him as a caricaturish daddy dom. at this point it's like, do you even like the character at all, or do you just like The Man, and project this man onto whatever character you find visually attractive? and these people kind of, really really poison actual discussion of the character, who is kind of a fucked up evil person (i only like *those* types, so im talking about them) because they see analysis of the actual character as an attack on their fantasized daddy dom husband, who is actually isn't The Character at all, and is simply a face of the day for The Man
