daily-sloop-john-b

in which I hyperfixated long enough to queue. Dedicated to the shanty "Sloop John B."

[kate-komics]

My friend said I should expand on the original illustration… so I did.

Original here!

Drew everyone/ the groups individually then placed and lit them. Their own illustrations below the cut 👇🏻

[queerbookbitch]

aziraphale and Benoit blanc are besties, and I cannot draw, but I NEED fanart of them together (maybe with their husbands in the background)

they would love eachother

they even dress the same!

also an atheist and a literal angel is a dynamic I need to see

[allthingswhumpyandangsty]

things some people, especially people who are new to ao3 or fandom/fanfic space as a whole, seem to not understand:

archive of our own is an archive. not a social media.

archive of our own was built with the stance that there would be no censorship, because other platforms already had censorship where some things that were taboo were reported/removed. ao3 was built with the purpose that all of these works, that were not allowed on other platforms, would be allowed on ao3.

the archive will house anything that’s considered fanworks. so no, you cannot report this fic because it portrays in explicit details taboo topics about xyz, you cannot report that fic because it romanticizes and glorifies xyz. ao3 will not remove any of those fics, because whether or not you like it, those fics do not go against ao3’s terms of service.

“but these things are not allowed on other platforms” that’s precisely why ao3 was created, to house and give a platform to these things that were censored/banned/removed from other platforms.

if you have a problem with this, you can use other platforms to post and read fanfics

but you should also know that ao3 by far has the best tagging system, meaning you won’t get anything like what ao3 provides on other platforms, meaning it may be a pain in the ass for you to find a fic with the prompts and pairing you’re looking for, meaning you may still get jump scared by things that are triggering to you half way through your reading of what you thought was an innocent fic. because other platforms don’t have tagging systems, where you can find and avoid any character/pairing/tag as you please, like ao3.

[innocentb3an-deactivated2025111]

i think it's quite harmful to share the mindset that basically anything goes on ao3. yes, tags and filtering are super helpful to avoid your dislikes, but because of how many "taboo topics" are written, it's more challenging to find what i want when i have to scroll past abuse, mental health glorification, etc. i think authors need to really take some time to self evaluate and really come to terms with what they're writiinf and if it's that important to be written.

[allthingswhumpyandangsty]

actually, authors can write whatever they want because they write for themselves. not. for. you.

we don't have to cater to your personal liking or comfort because we fucking write whatever the hell we want for ourselves. we are our main audience and priorities. and we already tag our warnings, it's your job to avoid them.

also if you actually filter out tags about topics you don't like, you won't have to scroll past most of the things you don't like, because every fic that's tagged as such just won't show up on your screen at all

[the-bar-sinister]

Ah yes, and here we have tumblr user "innocent bean" telling AO3 to abandon the mission they were created for, and fan authors to shut up and conform all of their fic to what "innocent bean" wants to read.

[faithfullystoicabyss]

Wish more fics weren't about 'taboo' topics though. Though the search filters are great-, it is hard to find cute, clean fics in AO3 unless you try real hard, and sometimes I find myself wondering if it's worth the effort.

[daily-sloop-john-b]

"Fluff". The tag you're looking for is "Fluff". The most popular additional tag on AO3.

Of the over 3,250,000 works, surely 1–2 will be to your taste? Though I truly sympathize with trying to avoid the roughly 9,713 Dead Dove works sprinkled amongst them.

What fandoms are you reading in that you're encountering all this dark fic?

(You can also exclude "Dead Dove: Do Not Eat" and set your rating to "Gen" or "Teen", for good measure.)

[the-seelie-court-official]

"that doesn't sound sincere- it sounds rehearsed" is one of the most devastating and fucked-up statements you can make to anyone in the neurodivergent/ADHD/Autistic/Schizophrenic/Disordered Personality sphere. yeah bitch it's rehearsed. because i wanted to get it right when i said it

[themasterfold]

me when the disorder that makes it difficult for me to communicate makes it difficult for me to communicate

[daily-sloop-john-b]

yes bitch it *is* rehearsed. I hope you appreciate the two hours I spent lovingly crafting words for you.

Yes it's two sentences—it's fucking poetry is what it is. Enjoy your fucking bespoke, intricately acted words. I even did you a little interpretive dance with the hand gestures. <3

[fellshish]

nooooo imagine being a psychologist and recommending the suicide and depression show to your patients 😭😭😭

[academicblorbo]

The main issue for me is the ensuing hopelessness it instills. Here is this character, who is a bit of an asshole and very unhealthily obsessed with his duties and unable/unwilling to ask for help or not take everything seriously and also he hates himself and thus pushes everyone other than the endlessly devoted away from him. Ending up lonely, feeling that nobody really likes him and everything always seem to work for others but not him, so there must be something wrong with him.

But see, he learns! He can change! He learns to listen and open up and even admit to making mistakes and trying to do things right and even attempts to have a normal discussion with his asshole parents. He has friends and family who actually love him, and his new raven was ready to go to Hell with him within a couple of hours of knowing him. There's hope for those who feel that there's something wrong with them, that everything seems to come easy to others, that the world wasn't meant for them.

Sike! It's all for naught. You are an idiot for thinking things could have a happy ending. Sucker

[daily-sloop-john-b]

I got the "consequences of your prior actions are inevitable because you have been cast as the main character of a Tragedy, sorry. But that doesn't mean that you shouldn't work to make amends. That doesn't mean you don't grow and change in spite of yourself" interpretation, personally.

But also, yeah. Possibly don't recommend to your clients the inevitable death spiral show willy-nilly.

Even if it does look very pretty.

[nn-ee-zz]

The fallen angel and the son of God

[nn-ee-zz]

In my mind, it made sense to draw Jesus comforting Lucifer, to slice a piece off his own cloak to stop the bleeding. Two divine beings made to roam the earth. It can’t be blasphemy to draw him kind…

[nn-ee-zz]

The last drawing was sooooo blasted on twitter, I got called every name that would get me suspended, got told I'll burn in hell, that people like me are why some should get burn at the stake, mild death threats. Strangely, got told that it was a very ''tumblr'' intrepretation so I'm genuinely curious how people on tumblr will react...

[waterdhaviancheeses]

Single Mages are dying to meet you!

[golswia]

"curiosity"

(quick art with both of them set in some kind of whimsy fantasy setting)

[barghest-land]

your stitches are good, but not the best - your hands are twitching to the beat of your heart. but they're going to be perfect soon, whether you want them to be or not.

[undeadoracle]

re: the debate over whether or not gale is self aggrandizing because he's insecure, or whether or not he's actually that good of a wizard . . . it's both babes. he's a genuinely talented wizard and he talks it about it all the time because he feels like it's the only thing he has to offer. it's what drew mystra to take an interest in him in the first place, it's what his whole adult life has revolved around, it's all anyone knows him for in waterdeep. if you manage to roll a 30 in balthazar's secret chamber to make the pixie lamp yourself he basically says "i guess you don't need me at all, why am i even here" and sounds like he's going to burst into tears. it's why he says "you love me for the man i am, not my magic" if you romance him; he's not used to being appreciated for anything other than his wizardry. if you pay attention to his dialogue, you'll notice every time he brags about himself it's about his magic/intellect, and if you criticize any other aspect of him, his response is just "you're right 😞" obsessively reminding people of the traits he assumes they'll find valuable because he's insecure about his worth does not mean he isn't genuinely skilled at those things. thanks for coming to my ted talk.

[allthingswhumpyandangsty]

Hi! Do you have any advice on how to stop caring about likes and kudos? Even though I primarily write out of love and I've been writing for just myself long before I'd posted anything publicly, now that I have I find it really difficult not to let likes and kudos influence me, whether it's feeling discouraged from writing when fics don't do well or finding myself focusing more on what people want to read than what I want to write

some tricks I personally use. I can't guarantee that it will work for everybody, but I hope at least some of them helps.

try posting before you go to bed at night. this way, you don't constantly check for kudos or comments throughout the day, until the next morning. and if you find it hard to sleep because your mind keeps thinking about whether or not people have been giving kudos to your works, try and trick your mind into thinking that "it's done. I posted it. it's out of my hands now, now it's time for me to get some rest".

this can also apply to when you're not trying to sleep. personally, I find it helping when I tell myself "I did it. it's out of my hands. it's not my responsibility anymore. if people love it, that's great. but if they don't, well, I did it for me anyway."

try looking at the numbers of hits, kudos and comments as actual people and not just "digital numbers" — five kudos may not be a lot to some people if you're looking at those kudos as "just a number", but the truth is that those five kudos are actually five human beings.

personally, I would feel pretty proud of myself if my work had five different people walking up to me in real life and saying to my face that "I did well" and that they "enjoyed my work".

because that's actually the case for your fic. it may look like "just a number" when you're looking at your screen, but the truth is that that's actually human beings who read and appreciate your work.

30 hits may not be a lot to some writers when they're only seeing "digital number" on their screen. but it's actually quite impressive when you imagine a room with 30 people in there, and all of them are reading your work.

or if your work doesn't get hits / kudos or likes, that still doesn't mean "it's bad" either. maybe the right people who will love it just haven't had the chance to find it yet, and that's okay, that's fine.

think of your work as a treasure, a hidden gem. just because only few people find it doesn't mean it's not valuable.

[daily-sloop-john-b]

Creator Abigail Thorn recommends deciding upon personal metrics for a project's success that are independent of audience response. For example, hers are:

Did I make the work out of curiosity, not ambition?

Is it something that no one else could have made?

Did I create it out of compassion for myself and others?

If those three criteria are met, she considers the project a success regardless of audience feedback. Of course, she might have notes about how she could've marketed it, or how she could improve on future projects. But she sets her own goals for success before the project and doesn't change the goalposts.

Also—join a fandom discord or another fandom spaces and/or get a beta reader. Having a few people to root you on while you're making the work and leave in-depth comments is 100× more fulfilling than seeing 10 kudos in an inbox.

Another thing that is helpful to me is knowing I'll be influenced by kudos, hits, comments, bookmarks, etc. That way, when I feel down about a fic, I can say 'oh. It's not the fic itself or me as a person, it's just the kudos and humans' ravenous desire for attention and praise.' then move on.

[waywardsou2]

Some idiot: "Why are you reading your own fic, that's shallow and stupid"

All fanfic writers and writers everywhere: "Who the fuck do you think I wrote it for?!"

[floweryanarchy]

Karlach…that’s not-

[wherelegendslive]

*reads fanfiction with the most incredible description, most incredible inner monologue, most incredible dialog, most incredible pacing, most incredible world building, and just most incredible writing*

*looks at my own shrimpy writing skills*

*looks back at incredible fanfiction*

*blinks*

*shakes it with unyielding force*

"HOW DO I DO THAT?!?!?!??!?!!?"

[daily-sloop-john-b]

1,000,000 terrible words, dear. 1,000,000 terrible, terrible words.

[quail-in-red]

stealth expert over here

[randomishnickname]

One of those fandom things that I love is when there’s new characters around and, with the unwavering confidence of an old farmer appraising cattle, fanfic authors take one good look at them, tilt their imaginary hat, and go “Aye. Praise kink, that one. Mighty case of praise kink if I ever saw one.” And everyone else just “aye.”

[inimitably-ineffable]

Not to mention the plot tropes.

“I don’t think the Highschool AU is going to come in too strong this year. Fandoms a touch jaded for that. But the hurt/comfort is growin’ thick as weeds and twice as fast. It’ll be a good harvest, fer sure.”

[mx-incognito]

@cynaram

[cynaram]

“I hear over at [neighbouring fandom] they’re putting the top field into fix-it fics.”

“Yes, ‘twould be.  They had a hard season last year, a right hard season.” 

[explorerrowan]

“You think I ought to plant a little Sailor Moon Wild West AU? Don’t know if anything would come of it. Might not make it to harvest.”

“Won’t know until you plant it, will you?”

[fieldbears]

“Ah, a heritage crop.”

[captainclickycat]

The shipping forecast.

[romanticalgirl]

The Fandom Almanac

[nyansense-the-nyanbinary]

“I think I’m going to sow some rarepairs this season. Don’t know what the market for ‘em will be, but I can eat ‘em if nobody else wants to.”

[minecraftfanatic]

“Not sure if it’ll help, but got some worldbuilding if ya need it. Good fertilizer.”