i'm ghost and i make things

writeblr | 26 yo | bi | mostly fantasy and paranormal fiction writer | novels, webcomics, animations | follow from @drabbitish Tag List Wip Masterpost

[pipermca]

I got another spam comment today on AO3, and I want to share it as a PSA. But before I do, I want you to understand that you SHOULD NOT DO what this comment is asking. Ok? Ok.

See that bit at the bottom? Don't do that. Insert ParamedicGuy.gif going "Don't."

Other malicious spam comments I've gotten seemed designed to make an author question their writing, or outright encourage them to delete their stories from AO3. This one is different, in that it tries to get you to destroy the work on your own computer.

If you ran that command, it basically locates your Documents folder, then deletes everything in it, including all subfolders. It also does it without any prompt, so you have no chance to second guess your actions.

This is just fucking trolling.

Coincidentally, we just did training on a cyberattack similar to this, called a ClickFix attack. You can read about how that works here.

As a general rule, if ANYONE or ANY WEBSITE tells you unsolicited* to do anything in Powershell, CMD RUN, command prompt, shell command, or something similar, DON'T.

*There are legit reasons for running commands in PowerShell or the command prompt, but in those cases you are likely seeking out a solution to a problem you are already experiencing. Don't just run random commands on your computer as recommended by some unlogged-in guest on a fan fiction site.

Always think and consider before taking action, and get a second opinion from a trusted source. When I got this comment I was pretty sure what the command would do, and it took me about three seconds of googling to confirm it.

Be safe out there!

[fowo]

as an IT guy I can confirm that this command WILL delete all your shit. DO NOT DO IT.

Here's a bit of a further breakdown for the ones curious about what the hell this command does.

What you're basically telling your PC if you ran this is "go into this folder (Documents) and then Recursively (for all sub-folders) Remove (delete) all files therein Forcefully (without any user input and also if a file was locked)."

The little "Exclude *.archiveofourown" they tack in there is just honestly absolutely diabolical if you don't know what you're looking at.

As an inexperienced user, you'll think "oh of course, exclude ao3, that's what I want!"

*.archiveofourown is a file ending, including any file title.

There are not archiveofourown files.

This is telling your PC to ignore files that don't exist.

Honestly, the gall of these trolls is astounding.

DO NOT DO THIS.

And as a further alarm bell, even if a well-meaning anon came to your comments to warn you:

why has ao3 not put out this warning officially?

this command is for Windows users. WHAT ABOUT ALL THE PEOPLE WHO USE MAC OR LINUX?

Hope my humble knowledge was informative to someone. Stay safe, everyone.

[ariesrin]

Alternatives to 'said'

When character is angry:

Snapped

Spat

Snarled

Hissed

Barked

...or sad:

Choked

Mumbled

Managed

Croaked

Murmured

...or if they're feeling nervous:

Stammered

Babbled

Rambled

Muttered

Squeaked

...and even when flirting:

Coaxed

Purred

Teased

Hummed

Crooned

[calto19]

This is the kind of thesaurus stuff I've needed.

[darkaviarymc]

Tragedy alignment chart. Feel free to use, but please reblog if you do.

[mikkeneko]

And of course the second part of the tragedy, which is: which quadrant did you think you were in vs. which one you were really in

[mynameisrocks]

[hockey-cabbage]

[bizarrebazaar13]

does anyone know where I can find good reference images of victorian-era wheelchairs? I want to draw the jovial contrarian but all the wheelchair art refs/tutorials I can find are for modern wheelchairs

[thedeafprophet]

okay so here's a few photo's i have on hand for ref

Here is an article on the history of the wheelchair, which has some info on the victorian era ones

Image from that one, circa late 1860s.

Another from the science museum, late victorian era:

This one in particular is noteworthy as : "unlike a typical bath chair, the wheels are fitted with an extra ring to allow the chair to be driven by the passenger. " so perhaps keep that in mind for drawing too

So i usually go off of the old picture + combine some facets of modern wheelchair for Fallen London, since i think The Neath could have some of it own technological advancments

Hope these are helpful!

[watsonmelon]

Here are a couple of pages from two Silber & Fleming catalogues from the 1880s (first, second), listing various types of wheelchairs for sale.

[bitchfitch]

writing advice for characters with a missing eye: dear God does losing an eyes function fuck up your neck. Ever since mine crapped out I've been slowly and unconsciously shifting towards holding my head at an angle to put the good eye closer to the center. and human necks. are not meant to accommodate that sorta thing.

[bitchfitch]

other things I'm bitching about but which could still be useful as writing advice for 1 eyed characters:

2. they're going to favor their sighted side, obviously, but it doesn't always manifest in the way you think. when I walk down a hall I walk much closer to the wall on my sighted side than on my blind side. which is the opposite of how it might seem logical to do that bc it means the world at large is on your bad side, but the reason is I can't fucking See the wall if it's right next to me in the blind side and I end up knocking into it.

3. door frames and poles are my enemy. If your character is smart this will not be a problem but for me it is. I am King of walking into shit I could absolutely see but couldn't tell how far away from me it was. on this note, their blind side hand is getting bashed into every jutting out thing in a 5 mile radius.

4. having 0 depth perception is less of a big deal than you'd think it is. Especially with driving. I've become a Much safer and more wary driver because I can't tell how far the other cars are from me. however I fucking suck at parking now. because I can't tell how far the lines are from me either.

5. you know how people who lose limbs get phantom pains? that happens with eyes too but like. phantom sights. for me it's like. a lot of bugs. like every so often my brain will just put something suddenly skittering beside me there. hate that.

6. it is completely possible to "get stuck" somewhere because your ability to tell how wide a space is is just Gone. shopping isles especially where bumping something or Someone is matter of embarrassment or potentially breaking something. it can be legitimately paralyzing and also irritate everyone around you because they can tell there is Plenty of space for you to get your cart through even if you can't.

7. if the eye is still in their skull it can still be the normal kind of painful. Glares off of shiny surfaces causing weird sharp pains you can't figure out the cause of are genuinely one of gods greatest tests of my patience.

[adorkastock]

You asked, and it's here! The mobility pack features 53 mostly full body images of a white, nonbinary model using a rolling walker and a wheelchair. It includes a few props like a book, drumstick, laptop, and bonus cat. A few shots have some high or low perspective. Get it on Ko-fi for $0+ (free, but you can tip if you want ;) )

Please give a big thanks to Antares (@asa_tronomical on IG) for their hard work in both modeling and doing the photography for this pack! 🥰

[shewhoworshipscarlin]

Keys, 1400-1750.

[cheeto-flavoured-pasta]

You will not use AI to get ideas for your story. You will lie on the floor and have wretched visions like god intended

[trix-the-artemis]

shout out to disabilities which only exist in fantasy.

Robots who carry around heavy battery packs because there inbuilt ones can no longer hold enough charge.

Shark girls who have pumps over one of there gills because they can't continuously swim fast enough to receive enough water through there gills.

bird girls with prosthetic wings.

creature wearing climbing gear because they were born without the ability to telepathically fly around.

Peridot

non-telepaths (in a world of only telepaths) constantly having to explain to angry people berating them because they assumed that the person is a telepath.

They both add a depth of realism to a universe and another perspective for abled bodied audiences to understand what its like to be disabled and are also fun.

[oidheadh-con-culainn]

as an aroace person with limited sexual experience, no interest in watching porn, and poor sex ed as a teen, there IS something simultaneously funny and vaguely tragic about being 28 adult years old and realising how extremely tiny your frame of reference is for genitalia and deciding you should expand this to better understand bodies (yours and others). and then you're just there like "okay so what the fuck do I even google right now, anyway"

[puc-puggy]

Large Labia Project

Labia Library

Breast Gallery-Nonsexualized Images of real, anonymously submitted breasts

Critique My Dick Pic [tumbex archive]-real submitted dick centric nudes

[oidheadh-con-culainn]

thank you (i think?)

[puc-puggy]

why wouldn't it be thank you? you expressed interest in sexual education materials related to genital body diversity, and i keep these resources on hand for exactly that purpose.

it's natural to be curious about bodies--yours and others. the presence or lack of sexual intent motivating that curiosity is irrelevant. they're just body parts

I also found one of my favorites I couldn't find this morning: The Great Wall of Vulva and their Labia Library

[oidheadh-con-culainn]

sorry, my gratitude was real, my uncertainty was @ me ("am i sure i actually want to spend my evening looking at genitals or was i using the difficulty of knowing what to google as an excuse not to learn things") lol

do you have any resources for trans bodies, especially transmasc bodies? i am interested in better understanding what changes i might expect as someone on testosterone, but though i found references to photo projects re: bottom growth in a few places, all the links were dead

[puc-puggy]

totally, the London Transgender Clinic and Dr. Keelee MacPhee have a variety of before and after photos related to various gender affirmation procedures.

i think that r/GrowYourTDick is the best repository of images of specifically trans masculine bottom growth. I can't comment on the culture of the forum, but there is absolutely a lot of images of transmasculine genitalia and extensive discussion of physical changes.

For (relatively*) trustworthy information, Hudson's FTM Resource Guide contains a lot of information about medical side effects and Things To Generally Be Aware Of, like increased risk for yeast infections and tips for managing locker rooms/swimming. *I can't verify that this information is up to date

I'm not directly connected to any trans masc transition support networks, but i know that discord is a thriving space for transition support and information sharing. i think it would be relatively easy to find positive community there. they often compile resources and information for members as well as provide topical discussion spaces. here's the disboard listings for public trans masc oriented servers

and this is just a really beautiful series of portraits of trans masculine people.

that about taps me out on resources!

[puc-puggy]

no, I lied, I'm not done. I spent way too long looking for this photography archive documenting trans nude portraits specifically. lost to the ether. found other stuff though:

Archive of Body Alchemy: Transsexual Portraits by Loren Cameron, which includes images of genitalia in its "Genital Reconstruction" section, page 46. Portraits of clothed trans masculine people other than the author begin on page 34 in the "New Man Series."

A Genitoplasty Diary by Lou Sullivan (1984-1987) (no images but fascinating)

the evergreen Trans Bodies, Trans Selves

not useful at all, but an extremely cool in-browser recreation of a 90s mac in order to run a 90s trans information CD-Rom.

[oidheadh-con-culainn]

thanks! sharing for the sake of anyone else interested too

yeah there's so many dead links out there it's tragic. sometimes you even get as far as the artist's website and they'll have a page for the project but then the project is gone and you just get a 404. i'm guessing the increasing hostility of internet providers and stuff towards nudity/nsfw content and also the general atmosphere for trans people has an impact on the safety and practicalities of continuing to host stuff like that :(

[cy-cyborg]

Writing ableism is fiction is difficult, not because it's hard to include, but because a lot of real-life ableism actually does sound almost cartoonishly silly because people often don't even realise what they're saying is bad, and so there's no hesitation behind it. At least when people have said openly transphobic things to me, they know they're being transphobic and are usually saying it specifically to get a reaction, but when people say openly ableist things to me, so many of them are actually genuinely shocked when I don't agree/get upset. I've legitimatly had people say straight-up eugenics-level shit and they're confused that i dont agree with them.

And that's so hard to depict because for some reason, no one ever notices irl, but they absolutely do in fiction and call it corny, lol.

[flowercrowncrip]

Today (July 19th) is Changing Places awareness day!

[Image description: a photo of the changing places toilet with the features listed below /end ID]

What is a changing places toilet?

A changing places toilet is a toilet which can be used by disabled people like me who can’t use a standard accessible toilet. This may be because someone needs extra equipment, and/or room for carers to help them. The main features of the changing places toilet are:

Lots of room! Changing places toilet must be at least 12 square metres. This means that there is plenty of room for a wheelchair user to turn around as well as room for up to 2 carers.

A peninsular toilet! This is a toilet which has enough room on each side were wheelchair to be positioned for transferring. As with standard accessible toilet there are grab rails on each side.

Accessible washbasin! The washbasin must have room underneath for a wheelchair user. An adjustable height washbasin is preferred.

A ceiling hoist! This allows people who cannot transfer independently to be able to safely get out of their wheelchair. A person brings their own sling which is hooked onto the hoist allowing them to be lifted.

An adult size changing table! This allows people need help with undressing to use the toilet, or help changing incontinence pads to have their needs met safely and with dignity. Without a changing table, many people have to resort to lying on the toilet floor to change their pads which is unsafe, undignified and unhygienic.

Why raise awareness?

The lack of changing places toilet means it’s hard for disabled people like me to leave the house. It’s limits our ability to socialise, access work/education, exercise, travel, and even attend hospital appointments. (In the UK there are only 93 hospitals with a registered changing places toilet).

I have to plan my entire life around the few changing places toilet that exist, which massively shrinks my world. It’s incredibly difficult for me to travel (less than 2% of train stations in the UK have a changing places toilet), go days out, visit the hospital, and otherwise experience the world outside my house. Hopefully one day every event like Pride or music festivals will have a mobile changing places toilet, and there will be public changing places toilet with 24/7 access in every town, as well as changing places toilets in public buildings like leisure centres, libraries, museums, cinemas, tourist attractions and shopping centres.

More info including what you can do to help the UK campaigns for more changing places toilets can be found at changing-places.org

[briarpatch-kids]

My friend Tay asked me to help him teach people about the kinds of mobility aids he uses. Tay has a autism and profound intellectual disability, along with a seizure disorder and a chromosomal disease, so he can't use the same kinds of mobility aid you normally see. Not many people know about this kind of aid, so we're going to teach you!

The first aid Tay uses is called a Gait Trainer. Gait trainers are a lot like walkers, except they follow you instead of you pushing them. They're also built in a way that helps teach you to walk better when when you're not using the gait trainer. Tay's gait trainer has a saddle and straps on it to make sure that he's safe and supported. He also chose a cool green color. Gait trainers are commonly used by children who take longer to learn how to walk and people with intellectual disabilities who can't use a traditional push style walker.

Tay says his favorite part of his gait trainer is playing at the park with his friend. His friend ALSO uses a gait trainer like Tay, which is really cool.

The next kind of aid Tay uses is called an adaptive stroller. Adaptive strollers are a lot like wheelchairs, but with smaller wheels because they're made to be pushed by someone else. These are great when you're like Tay and can't figure out how to push a manual wheelchair or steer a power chair safely.  Tay's adaptive stroller, a convaid rodeo, has the same feature my powerchair has, tilt, so that he can stay comfortable and safe when he has to sit in it for a long time. There's also buckles and straps that help Tay stay in the adaptive stroller, he gets help getting the buckles and straps done. Tay says that he can even be tilted back and go to sleep while everyone else is walking when he's in his adaptive stroller!

Finally, there's the Rifton Activity Chair! Activity chairs are most often used in places like school or developmental centers because they're great for getting people up close to the table and you're able to adjust the how tall or short you want the chair. A lot of high support strollers and wheelchairs aren't able to get as close to the table, but an activity chair is made just for that! It can go up and down and some of them can even tilt closer to the table. Tay says he uses it to make snacks and play in the water table and do crafts at the developmental center he goes to, he really likes his activity chair.

Thank you Tay for helping teach us! I learned a lot while writing this, and I hope it helps a lot of people learn about what these mobility aids are and why people use them!

[spinabifidaoccultist-deactivate]

[vishya-vilulf]

Pictures like this are so important! I wish I would have seen more of this when I was younger. I’d have been more receptive to my body’s need for mobility aids if I had seen it in a positive light like this.

[arson-jellyfish]

AI disturbance overlays for those who don't have Ibis paint premium. found them on tiktok

[quitetheweirdegg]

how do you use these?

[arson-jellyfish]

Put these on the top layer above everything, set layer to 'overlay' then adjust opacity. You can put it on whatever opacity you want but usually 30%+ is most effective.

The point is to obstruct the picture so AI can't read your image because AI counts every single pixel in your art

[out-of-jams]

REVERSE TROPE WRITING PROMPTS

Too many beds

Accidentally kidnapping a mafia boss

Really nice guy who hates only you

Academic rivals except it’s two teachers who compete to have the best class

Divorce of convenience

Too much communication

True hate’s kiss (only kissing your enemy can break a curse)

Dating your enemy’s sibling

Lovers to enemies

Hate at first sight

Love triangle where the two love interests get together instead

Fake amnesia

Soulmates who are fated to kill each other

Strangers to enemies

Instead of fake dating, everyone is convinced that you aren’t actually dating

Too hot to cuddle

Love interest CEO is a himbo/bimbo who runs their company into the ground

Nursing home au

[youngchronicpain]

Hi! I have an example of a book that terribly represents disability. My red flag is the misrepresentation of service dogs. Here are some things books frequently get wrong about service dogs:

Easy to access: Right now in the US it takes at least 20k to get a trained service dog and most reputable organizations have a wait time of like five years. I don’t know as much about owner training, but I know it is also expensive and it takes at least two years to get a dog to the point that you can really rely on it in public. 

Dogs work perfectly: A big part of getting a service dog from an organization is training the disabled person how to handle the dog and teaching the dog how to recognize specific things about the disabled person (scent of a seizure, signs of distress, etc.). Service dogs are a lot of work. In some ways, they can make life harder and handlers need to continue training the dog until it retires. 

Bad behavior is okay when it serves the plot: The worst thing that books get wrong is when they make service dogs aggressive. The dog growled to scare off a bad guy who was intimidating their handler? That makes sense in fiction, but in real life that is never acceptable, because in real life service dogs need to be able to interact with the public and even (especially?) aggressive people should not be threatened with dogs. Oh, the service dog bit someone and saved the day in a climactic fight scene? Cool, it can absolutely never work in public again. You no longer have a service dog once it bites in aggression. Books don’t seem to get that. When books spread the myth that service dogs can be aggressive in certain situations it can have real world impacts on disabled people, because people rightfully don’t want to let a dog that might be aggressive into their business. 

Anyway, the book I’m thinking of is “The Headmaster's List” by Melissa de la Cruz. It makes pretty much all of the mistakes I described. It’s also just a really terrible book that needed some serious editing. 

I’m glad your friend is interested in this issue and thank you for collecting all these perspectives!

This is fantastic! :) Thank you for the information.