I've been dealing with unemployment depression, so things have kind of taken a halt here. Ironically, I was just about to finish reading one of the longest fics and getting all my contracts ready when I just couldn't function anymore. So sorry for the lack of updates. Time has flown by, and I had forgotten how long it has been. But I've been taking care of myself as best as I can, and I know eventually I will get these done — it might just take a little longer!
This week, I started drawing again and reestablishing a routine. Currently, I'm taking a class and working on editing my webcomic, but I hope I can add the books to that list soon. I've been very tired, so it's limiting how fast I can go, but hopefully that won't be the case soon! Trying to balance everything is my focus right now.
I thought I'd give another update since it's been a while (where has time gone?). I'm doing much better since last time. I made the decision not to continue publishing my story as a webcomic, and instead, publish it as a series of illustrations (or/and art book). But I'm still dealing with my depression and every time I've tried to get out, I fall right back because I overwhelm myself with tasks. So this time around, I've been taking it slower. I made a roadmap so I'm not so focused on all the things I need to do by a certain date, and I've just been following at my pace, and trying to focus on my love for art, my art, and myself. Having projects hovering over my head makes it difficult, because I'm not used to being "late." But I'm trying to remind myself that without mindfulness, they will not get done.
I've been dealing with unemployment depression, so things have kind of taken a halt here. Ironically, I was just about to finish reading one of the longest fics and getting all my contracts ready when I just couldn't function anymore. So sorry for the lack of updates. Time has flown by, and I had forgotten how long it has been. But I've been taking care of myself as best as I can, and I know eventually I will get these done — it might just take a little longer!
This week, I started drawing again and reestablishing a routine. Currently, I'm taking a class and working on editing my webcomic, but I hope I can add the books to that list soon. I've been very tired, so it's limiting how fast I can go, but hopefully that won't be the case soon! Trying to balance everything is my focus right now.
I've been dealing with unemployment depression, so things have kind of taken a halt here. Ironically, I was just about to finish reading one of the longest fics and getting all my contracts ready when I just couldn't function anymore. So sorry for the lack of updates. Time has flown by, and I had forgotten how long it has been. But I've been taking care of myself as best as I can, and I know eventually I will get these done — it might just take a little longer!
I'm looking for a few fic writers who would love to self-publish their long form fics or print them for their bookshelf (anthologies of work will work as well). I will illustrate your cover, do all the designs and the interior formatting in exchange for... nothing but your moral support. Tips will be accepted if you can afford it, but not expected. Hit me up! DM or email.
Fandoms:
• MDZS
• Star Wars
• The Last Airbender
• Jujutsu Kaisen
• Cyberpunk 2077
• D&D
I will consider other fandoms, too. These are just my interests off the top of my head.
There is no catch, I'm just trying to add a few things to my portfolio for publishing.
I will be selecting only 3 authors. If you're doing a collection of short form fics, please compile them neatly into an AO3 collection or a Doc with titles, summaries, and links so I can get through everyone's stories faster! If you're doing a long form fic, you can just DM me the link.
I'm going to read as much as possible of each to give everyone a fair opportunity to grab my interest, but I won't be accepting any new fics after Sunday night (Oct 1).
Thank you for your submissions! I will finish reading them over the next couple of days, and you'll likely hear from me by the end of the week if I chose yours.
I'm looking for a few fic writers who would love to self-publish their long form fics or print them for their bookshelf (anthologies of work will work as well). I will illustrate your cover, do all the designs and the interior formatting in exchange for... nothing but your moral support. Tips will be accepted if you can afford it, but not expected. Hit me up! DM or email.
Fandoms:
• MDZS
• Star Wars
• The Last Airbender
• Jujutsu Kaisen
• Cyberpunk 2077
• D&D
I will consider other fandoms, too. These are just my interests off the top of my head.
There is no catch, I'm just trying to add a few things to my portfolio for publishing.
I will be selecting only 3 authors. If you're doing a collection of short form fics, please compile them neatly into an AO3 collection or a Doc with titles, summaries, and links so I can get through everyone's stories faster! If you're doing a long form fic, you can just DM me the link.
I'm going to read as much as possible of each to give everyone a fair opportunity to grab my interest, but I won't be accepting any new fics after Sunday night (Oct 1).
I'm looking for a few fic writers who would love to self-publish their long form fics or print them for their bookshelf (anthologies of work will work as well). I will illustrate your cover, do all the designs and the interior formatting in exchange for... nothing but your moral support. Tips will be accepted if you can afford it, but not expected. Hit me up! DM or email.
Fandoms:
• MDZS
• Star Wars
• The Last Airbender
• Jujutsu Kaisen
• Cyberpunk 2077
• D&D
• Genshin Impact
• Honkai: Star Rail
I will consider other fandoms, too. These are just my interests off the top of my head.
There is no catch, I'm just trying to add a few things to my portfolio for publishing.
When Lan Xichen and Lan Qiren discover that Lan Wangji's mating bond to Wei Wuxian's lingering spirit is keeping him comatose, they turn to an alternate solution to break the bond and save Lan Wangji's life: marrying Wei Wuxian's ghost off to someone else with Jin Guangyao's help.
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Choose Not to Warn
Word Count: 10K
Relationships: Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian, Wei Wuxian & Wen Ning
Additional Tags: Non-Traditional Omegaverse Dynamics, Alpha Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn, Omega Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī, Canonical Character Death, Ghost Bride AU, Coma, Dubious Ethics, Lanling Jin scheming, Ghosts, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, No Smut, Chinese mythology & folklore, Weddings, Bittersweet Ending, Podfic Welcome
Wow! Mods Sydney and Oneiir got to meet Hayden Christensen at a con! He even signed their copy of Legacies Entwined. According to Mod Sydney, he called the project, "Really cool!" Thank you all again for the support you showed this project!
The Thread of Caona, a Fantasy BL webcomic with an ace MC, inspired by my Puerto Rican heritage, has finally launched! You can begin reading via @globalcomix.
Read now
If you become a SuperFan by donating at least $3, you’ll be able to read a week ahead.
There will be one page released per week (about 2 traditional pages, give or take) until I juggle all the things I need to do this month and build a larger buffer.
Due to the fact two other webcomics were released in the past few months under the same name as mine, I have decided to change the title from The Golden Thread to The Thread of Caona (or TTOC for short). While I was regularly checking Google for the past few years, it takes a bit for new content to show up on the site, so it wasn't until now that I discovered the other comics. It wasn't an easy decision to make because we are just one day shy of release and I have been using this title for over a year now. But the important thing is that the change will make it easier for people to find the webcomic without getting it confused with others and it will help avoid potential conflicts.
Having said that, I had to make a new page for the webcomic (GC is still a work in progress and changing the name will not change the URL). So please take a minute to update your accounts to follow the "new" series. I apologize for any inconvenience and I hope you stay along for the ride~
https://globalcomix.com/c/the-thread-of-caona
What is Caona? It is the Taino word for gold. Although the comic is not specifically about or of Tainos (it is more so a broad fantasy that takes inspiration from many facets of my culture, including the Taino, and my personal interests), I do use words here and there to bring attention to context/theme and language. Additionally, if I ever release a Spanish version, my goal is for it to be in Puerto Rican Spanish in all its colloquial beauty.
Some diaspora thoughts on MDZS fandom for the end of AAPI month
MXTX Diaspora May has come to a close for the third year, and I've been in MDZS fandom for a little over four. Since AAPI month (or May) just ended, I thought I'd share some reflections on my experience as a diaspora person in fandom and a little bit on the event itself.
Let it be known that this is meant to be a reflection on my individual experience. You're welcome to reblog, share, and comment. Please do not weaponize this or use it as ammunition for call-outs, ship wars, fandom drama/wank/discourse, etc.
Cut-tag for courtesy, as this is a long one.
MDZS fandom and racism
I joined MDZS fandom in the beginning of 2020 after binge-watching CQL/The Untamed on Netflix. I was thrilled for the chance to join a Chinese fandom and reconnect with my heritage, especially since I'd recently come back from a trip to Taiwan, where I visited my extended family for the first time in over a decade.
I went in and out of discord servers of various sizes, read and commented on fics voraciously, and as I gained confidence I posted a few fics, translations, and metas of my own. I also offered to answer questions and do sensitivity reading, always with a disclaimer that my responses were limited by my experience and knowledge.
Unfortunately, as I got more involved with fandom, I also encountered more cultural insensitivity and racism, as well as some targeted cruelty. Reading fic and going on social media gradually became a huge minefield, as people (often with a huge following) proclaimed misinformation with confidence and lashed out at those who tried to correct them, posted author's notes such as "I didn't mean to be racist but I also didn't feel like doing research, so if you have the gumption to correct me, then do so," or wrote racism into their fics for "humor" or "flavor." In both fic and meta, certain characters' behaviors were framed in subtly or explicitly racist ways without an ounce of cultural context or perspective.
Then there were more direct personal impacts - anon asks berating me for making different translation choices, being talked over or ignored when I brought up cultural connections (and corrections) in discord servers, getting used and discarded as a convenient resource for cultural knowledge or language without acknowledgement and having my feedback ignored anyway, not to mention subtweets questioning my background and "right" to participate or accusations of "not being Chinese enough" from other fans of Chinese heritage.
Suffice to say, several times I thought about deleting all my fanworks (fics, translations, meta) and simply disappearing. After all, I wasn't "Chinese enough," yet I also couldn't help but be drawn in, over and over again, as I tried to share elements of my upbringing and heritage and culture, hoping that just this once people would listen. (And that's not to discount the people who did! It just wasn't the majority.) Although I rarely expressed it in public, I didn't feel like I belonged in any part of MDZS fandom - an unfortunate echo of the constant refrain in my head as I grew up: "You're not Chinese enough, you're not Taiwanese enough, and you're not American enough. You are not enough."
On belonging
Thanks to the model minority myth, I'm "acceptable" as a passive, hardworking, non-threatening American up until I'm not. After all, Asians sometimes aren't even considered people of color in the United States. Regardless of whether I'm considered American or foreign, I get sexualized and fetishized as a submissive Asian woman, which comes with a whole other layer of issues.
I'm also not Chinese enough, not Taiwanese enough, and never will be - I didn't grow up in either China or Taiwan. But every time I try to embrace either of those parts of my heritage a little more, I get called whitewashed, a banana, a twinkie, a try-hard, a fake, especially by those who have a more direct line to Chinese culture by virtue of family dynamics, wealth, or background. I've wondered often if I have the right to be in a Chinese fandom, especially to share meta and translations, or write fic with references to Chinese language and culture.
The irony is, there's no way to "win," either in life or in fandom. The more Chinese culture I put into a fic based on my research or experiences - the less reception it receives. Maybe it's not relatable or accessible. Maybe it's uncomfortable. Maybe it doesn't fit into the neat little box that people have about how a Chinese character "should" act, how a Chinese story "should" be told, or what certain Chinese characters' behavior "should" be - particularly if they're using a different cultural/social/moral framework to read or interpret the canon.
At the same time, I often struggle with thinking my writing is too American. Maybe that makes it more palatable to general fandom - but maybe it's doing a disservice to my own heritage or to Chinese and Chinese diaspora people. Maybe I'm presenting misconceptions, or encouraging stereotypes, or overall acting as a bad cultural representative. I've felt this very acutely in smaller discords that I moderate or am a member of - what if people just take my word for things and it's wrong?
That's the thing about being part of a marginalized group - there's a pressure to get everything perfectly right when you speak or express yourself, because if you don't, then who does? When there's little representation, your voice is naturally amplified; you better make sure you're serving as a good example so as to not give people more ammunition against your particular group. I've struggled with this professionally and personally my whole life, and it's always led to paralysis or burnout.
In this sense, MXTX Diaspora May has been a breath of fresh air for me. I can celebrate the fact that I don't have to be "Chinese," "Taiwanese," "American" - I can simply be, the amalgamation of all my experiences without having to portion out what "fits" into each one. The other wonderful thing is that I don't have to be the sole representative of all Chinese diaspora. I can write the fics that reflect my lived experience and heritage; I can choose how much of myself I include in them, and I can rest assured that it will be celebrated without me needing to justify why I did so. Moreover, I can appreciate the breadth and depth of the Chinese diaspora experience, which can often be both similar and different to my own.
Chinese diaspora are not a monolith, no matter what past fandom drama would have you believe. Events like MXTX Diaspora May or collections like Danmei Diaspora Creatives highlight the diversity of diaspora voices and experiences. When it comes to anti-racism, taking the time to listen, empathize with, and elevate these voices and experiences are a key part of the fight. And if you find your perspective shifting a little, maybe even in a discomfiting way, take a moment to sit with that and see how your biases or preconceived notions might be contributing to a broader pattern of thinking.
Racism exists in fandom because racism exists in society, and fandom inevitably reflects the social and cultural mores of its participants. To dismantle the frameworks that perpetuate systemic and structural racism, we must use a variety of approaches, including practicing cultural humility. I hope that fandom will continue evolving into a more open-minded place by taking the time to understand, appreciate, and elevate different cultural perspectives, particularly those that differ from the dominant one. In the meantime, I'll continue to celebrate my complex cultural identity and encourage others to do the same.
Please take the time to check out the following collections of fanworks from Chinese diaspora creators in danmei fandoms, including MXTX fandoms.
