I promised myself I wouldn’t reply directly either but here we are.
How DARE you accuse someone of writing child pornography.
How DARE you accuse this person who takes every precaution to make sure that children are safe in the discord server, of not wanting to protect children.
We heard you. We listened to your complaints in the discord. We tried to talk to you about it.
But you want to know what?
We also heard you telling us that writing smut for the ttpp characters is wrong, full stop. You’re still clinging to that.
We also heard you telling us that we shouldn’t write outside of our own experiences. As if that’s not a form of dangerous gatekeeping. (And also, you cannot tell just from ‘how tastelessly someone writes’ whether they’re part of a community. That’s not your call to make. Stop assuming you know people’s experiences.)
We heard you say that you don’t care what other people think. That obviously still holds.
Is it lonely up there, on your high holy pedestal? Do you feel bigger now that you’re obviously so much better than us?
I could tell you something. I could tell you that I write smut for Rupert and Amir and I’m not even an ‘older adult,’ as you had put in the server. I’m just a little older than them, myself. I could tell you that I’m questioning my gender identity, and writing about every aspect of Rupert and Amir’s lives - even the sexual parts - is helping me figure it out.
I could tell you so much, but you know what? It’s none of your goddamn business. That is what this ultimately boils down to. It’s none of your goddamn motherfucking business who I am. You are not entitled to know what I write or why.
I don’t understand why you’ve decided that this is the hill you wish to die on. I don’t understand all of this fascination everyone has with purity and morals on tumblr.com all of a sudden. I don’t understand why fanfiction, of all things, suddenly needs to be moral and pure, when it is supposed to be one of the best and safest places for people to figure shit out.
It needs to be a safe place for everyone, and THAT is the point we’ve been trying to make. That’s the point we’ve ALL been trying to make. Becoming an adult doesn’t suddenly mean that you’re no longer entitled to safety on the internet.
But then? Toxic people come along and decide that we’re all filthy monsters for writing smut. Smut between two characters who are not only legally adults, but also treated like adults for the majority of the podcast.
Look, I could get into the nuances of why it’s alright - because really, it is alright - to write smut between Rupert and Amir. I could list all of the reasons because let’s face it, we all know they’re young. We’re not blind to the fact that they’re eighteen. And there’s another person I’ve spoken with this about who is also an adult. A moment of “hmm. They’d be in college about now, huh? Is it okay?”
Because these are fictional characters.
These are fictional characters in a fictional world in a fictional setting.
The creator of these fictional characters makes sex jokes about them too, and he’s in his 30s. You gonna come after him? Hell, he’s mentioned that he’s read some of the smut and he hasn’t complained once.
But you know what? It doesn’t matter what I say. You’re probably not going to read all of this. You didn’t listen when we tried to talk to you in the server. You’re not going to listen now. So I guess this isn’t even for you.
This is for me. This is for me, who you made scared for a few hot seconds because I got flashbacks to the days of fanfiction.net and worried that my stuff was going to get purged. This is for me, who you made feel legitimately guilty for writing a fictional thing between two consenting adults. Yes they are adults. No that’s not up for debate. Yes there’s a fucking difference between writing smut and fetishizing people. No I’m not filthy.
This is for Tam. This is for Tam who does a damn good job keeping the discord safe for children. That includes banning child pornography. That also includes saying fuck outside of the adults section. That also includes keeping smut in the adults section. Tam isn’t as close to Rupert and Amir in age as I am but they can still write whatever the fuck they want. No one gets a say in that. This isn’t 1984. (And for the record, not tasteless writing. Good writing.)
This is for everyone else in the server that I’m not going to name (because they’re not directly involved in this convo and I don’t have their consent). This is for the people that also began to feel doubt because of this. Who felt shame. Who felt fear. Who felt anger or rage or sadness or hopelessness.
I am reblogging this with this long-ass response, at 2:46 AM, on my very own ttpp blog because I am so goddamn tired of this kind of discourse.
Stop trying to control what other people write and you will be much happier. Learn to let things go and stop harassing people. (Yeah, you did start this one. Don’t fuck with me on this.)
You are not the judge. Or the jury. And although I’m sure you’d love it, you’re not the executioner.
Also,,, liking something in fiction? Not the same as condoning it in real life. Otherwise I think like 99% of all content creators would be in jail for one thing or another.
You can disagree with whether something is morally acceptable. I frankly don’t care. But don’t come after people who are just trying to have a good time on this shitty, shitty planet, in a way that isn’t hurting anyone (DID YOU KNOW THAT EXPLORING THINGS IN FICTION IS HEALTHIER THAN EXPLORING THINGS IN REAL LIFE).
But hey, a word of warning. Be careful up there on your high horse because it’s a long way down.
pixelskylines
andulkaphoto
jacobvanloon
kianamaiart
kaledo-art
theartofmadeline
vaporwave
gummygunk
