h
$LAYYYTER
tumblr dot com
we're not kids anymore.
KIROKAZE
Kaledo Art
roma★
One Nice Bug Per Day
Peter Solarz
YOU ARE THE REASON
I'd rather be in outer space 🛸
No title available
Monterey Bay Aquarium
Love Begins
Origami Around
Alisa U Zemlji Chuda
Product Placement
he wasn't even looking at me and he found me
ellievsbear
d e v o n
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@pocketsizedowls
New blogs just dropped
This will exclusively be an Ao3 author's blog from now on! Most if not all posts will be related to writing or Ao3. For silly stuff, please follow:
@pocketsizedsparrows for multifandom incorrect quotes.
@pocketsizedflamingos for fandom content reblogs.
See you on Ao3!
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
My Conspiracy Theory about Natlan's Pale Characters
I started playing Genshin Impact around the 3.7 update, right after the Interdarshan Championship. While I wasn't around during the initial spark of outrage against Sumeru due to the characters' overall lack of melanin, I eventually learned a lot about Sumeru's cultural inspirations through the SWANA and South Asian creators in the fandom. I think it's beautiful how we learn about each other's cultures through Genshin, and I believe the designers at Hoyoverse do lots of research to facilitate these conversations. This is why I think it's a shame that Natlan, which features rich Indigenous cultures in the Americas, Africa, and Pacific Islands, features primarily pale characters AGAIN.
While it's possible that through the art, story, and fashion of Natlan we will once again learn about the diverse cultures of Indigenous Americas, West Africa, and the Pacific Islands, I don't think it's enough. Considering a lot of these cultures take pride in their skin color and bodies through tattoos, body paint, and other markings/piercings, Hoyoverse is doing a disservice to today's Latin American, African, and Pacific islander fan base by making the majority of Natlan characters pale. To insensitively cherry-pick what traits of each culture to represent and what to discard is the definition of cultural appropriation and racism, which is such a shame because of how many discussions about culture that Genshin has started since 2020. As a Chinese American player, I'm especially disappointed that the company who educated so many people about my culture is failing my brown and Black friends to such a spectacular degree.
Many people have come up with excuses such as it's just skin, it's just a game, Hoyoverse is a Chinese company so what do you expect, Latin America also has white people, etc. I won't bother debunking these myths because there are plenty of people doing this labor already, but what I do want to bring people's attention to is the fact that many Natlan characters were most likely designed with darker skin in mind. Through fanmade recolorings (here's an example), I noticed that Mualani and Kachina's tan lines and skin details look more pronounced with darker skin, while Xilonen looks more mature and Kinich looks more brooding. Having studied studio art during undergrad, I cannot unsee these intentional artistic decisions and cannot shake the possibility that the researchers and character designers of Hoyoverse were forced by higherups to whitewash everyone at the very last minute. If this is true, I hope Hoyoverse will find some way to reverse their decision or turn a new leaf in the future. Considering many other Chinese games like Reverse: 1999 and Dislyte already have diverse representation and melanated characters, Hoyoverse should find no problem following their lead.
As of right now (i.e. 4.8 update), Genshin players from all over the world are expressing their dissatisfaction with Hoyoverse through boycotts, review bombing, and posting on social media. The Chinese fanbase - Hoyoverse's primary audience - is especially vocal and organized about their efforts, which means if Hoyoverse doesn't notice now, they will notice soon. Despite how much we like using Genshin as an escape from real life, it's important to recognize how insidious the consequences of erasing melanated characters can be. Anti-Blackness and colorism harm people on the daily, which is why we must speak up when a company as big and influential as Hoyoverse is doing the harming.
Thanks for reading! Here are some related threads from X, formally known as Twitter:
Petition to "Stop Cultural Appropriation and Whitewashing in MiHoYo Games"
Valeria Rodriguez, i.e. Surcrose's English VA's thoughts on Natlan
Natlan Characters Look Better with a Dark Skintone
Kaveh rerunning in 4.8 is a ploy for WHAT!?!?!?
We Should All Email Hoyoverse
Official Account for HYV Boycott
Lmaoooooo, I’m still happy they finally put kaveh in a banner lol. Anyway reminder to ask on the surveys for change in the new characters, hopefully they’ll listen.
And also if you didn’t know, you can still play the game, get excited and stuff AND criticize, callout etc hoyoverse for the lack of diversity, just don’t stop talking about it you know. I feel like people, specially online, forget that you can criticize and enjoy something at the same time.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/3 Fandom: 原神 | Genshin Impact (Video Game) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Chongyun/Xingqiu (Genshin Impact), Hu Tao & Xingqiu (Genshin Impact), Xingqiu & Xingqiu’s Father (Genshin Impact) Characters: Xingqiu (Genshin Impact), Chongyun (Genshin Impact), Hu Tao (Genshin Impact), Xingqiu’s Parents (Genshin Impact), Ningguang (Genshin Impact), Xiangling (Genshin Impact), Yun Jin (Genshin Impact), Xinyan (Genshin Impact), Yanfei (Genshin Impact), Gaming (Genshin Impact), Albedo (Genshin Impact) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Visions (Genshin Impact), Alternate Universe - Writing & Publishing, High School, Journalism, Modern Liyue (Genshin Impact), Xingqiu-centric (Genshin Impact), Character Study, Coming of Age, Mutual Pining, Romantic Comedy, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, wealthy heir has an identity crisis, so he starts a newspaper column, the mortifying ordeal of being seventeen, Yae Publishing House (Genshin Impact), Xingqiu Being a Little Shit (Genshin Impact), Nostalgia, Traditions, written in memory of my literature major and marketing side-job, Good Friend Hu Tao (Genshin Impact), Grief/Mourning, just a little bit, as a treat Summary:
Now, as Xingqiu lays in bed and recalls the way his father, mother, and brother smile down at him around the dinner table, the weight of being an heir haunts him once more as he considers, for the millionth time: who is my future supposed to be for?
As a fourteen-year-old Xingqiu considers his next steps, an idea comes to mind. As always, it has to do with writing. —
Or, Xingqiu is a genius in all the ways that matter, but even he can’t think his way out of this pickle… unless?
this fic is SO underrated omg, reblogging to boost you
Thanks for the boost! Glad you liked the fic :)
List of WIPs... because if I put them here, I might find the motivation to finish them.
KiriBaku Relationship Study, last edited October 2022. This is supposed to be the third chapter of my MHA canon verse series, but I accidentally stopped engaging with MHA. Oops.
Wangxian Romcom Fic, last edited September 2023. I rewatched To All the Boys I Loved Before and wrote 12K words about Wangxian being silly high schoolers in Shanghai, but there's still so much more to go. Main ship is Wangxian, obviously, and side ship is NieLan.
Jiang Yanli Time Travel Fix-it, last edited May 2023. I hyper-fixated on Sami's Time is But a Paper Moon and proceeded to read everything in that giant series, including the JYL fix-it fic. I wanted to write my own version (even asked Sami for permission to tag them in the fic) but ended up stopping after 38K words. We're not even halfway through yet! I plan to finish this one at some point. Main ship is Jiang Yanli x Wen Qing, side ship is Wangxian.
YumiHisu Period Piece, last edited June 2023. If there's pairing I like to write about, it's these two. I watched Portrait of a Lady on Fire and thought Ymir would make a great Marianne, and Historia would make a great Heloise. Main ship is YumiHisu, mentions of Sasha/Niccolo.
Honorable mentions: Nobara Kugisaki Character Study (Mainship: NobaMaki), Lan Wangji Character Study (inspired by perennial's WINTERSTORY), AsaNoya Future Fic (a commission from years ago that I never finished), and more.
im in love w this meme
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss/Ymir of the 104th Characters: Ymir of the 104th (Shingeki no Kyojin), Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss, Rod Reiss, Erwin Smith, Hange Zoë, Levi Ackerman, Eren Yeager's Parents, Eren Yeager, Mikasa Ackerman, Armin Arlert Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Boarding School, Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, past character death - Frieda Reiss, POV Ymir of the 104th (Shingeki no Kyojin), Graduation, Lesbian Ymir of the 104th (Shingeki no Kyojin), Lesbian Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss, Established Relationship, Childhood Trauma, Ymir has an existential crisis because they're graduating, that's it that's the fic, Public Proposal & Engagement, Romantic Comedy, Relationship Study, athlete ymir, Cheerleader Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss, ex-cheerleader actually, Unreliable Narrator Series: Part 3 of Darling Summary:
“Coach Shadis told me that you turned down yet another university scholarship. Care to explain?”
“Same reason as all the others. I don’t want to go to college.”
“I don’t see why not,” he says, “being scouted for athletic scholarships is just as prestigious as earning a spot through your academics.”
“I’m not going anywhere Historia isn’t going.”
“And where is Historia going?”
“To her father’s house. She’s inheriting the company.” ---
Or, Ymir starts having flashbacks to her past as she and Historia prepare to graduate high school. As the professors at school push her to make a decision about her future, how does she convince them that all she wants is Historia?
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/3 Fandom: 原神 | Genshin Impact (Video Game) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Chongyun/Xingqiu (Genshin Impact), Hu Tao & Xingqiu (Genshin Impact), Xingqiu & Xingqiu's Father (Genshin Impact) Characters: Xingqiu (Genshin Impact), Chongyun (Genshin Impact), Hu Tao (Genshin Impact), Xingqiu's Parents (Genshin Impact), Ningguang (Genshin Impact), Xiangling (Genshin Impact), Yun Jin (Genshin Impact), Xinyan (Genshin Impact), Yanfei (Genshin Impact), Gaming (Genshin Impact), Albedo (Genshin Impact) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Visions (Genshin Impact), Alternate Universe - Writing & Publishing, High School, Journalism, Modern Liyue (Genshin Impact), Xingqiu-centric (Genshin Impact), Character Study, Coming of Age, Mutual Pining, Romantic Comedy, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, wealthy heir has an identity crisis, so he starts a newspaper column, the mortifying ordeal of being seventeen, Yae Publishing House (Genshin Impact), Xingqiu Being a Little Shit (Genshin Impact), Nostalgia, Traditions, written in memory of my literature major and marketing side-job, Good Friend Hu Tao (Genshin Impact), Grief/Mourning, just a little bit, as a treat Summary:
Now, as Xingqiu lays in bed and recalls the way his father, mother, and brother smile down at him around the dinner table, the weight of being an heir haunts him once more as he considers, for the millionth time: who is my future supposed to be for?
As a fourteen-year-old Xingqiu considers his next steps, an idea comes to mind. As always, it has to do with writing. ---
Or, Xingqiu is a genius in all the ways that matter, but even he can't think his way out of this pickle... unless?
Genshin modern AU where Navia is Taylor Swift and Chlorinde is a security guard at the Eras Tour trying her best not to stare
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: 原神 | Genshin Impact (Video Game) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Dunyarzad & Nilou (Genshin Impact), Nahida & Nilou (Genshin Impact) Characters: Nilou (Genshin Impact), Dunyarzad (Genshin Impact), Dehya (Genshin Impact), Candace (Genshin Impact), Faruzan (Genshin Impact), Collei (Genshin Impact), Layla (Genshin Impact), Nahida (Genshin Impact), Nilou's Parents (Genshin Impact) Additional Tags: Canon Universe, Sleepovers, Female Friendships, Character Study, Aromantic Asexual Character, Aromantic Asexual Nilou, it all happened in a dream, literally because Nahida has dream powers, Nilou-centric, Coming of Age, Girlhood, a love letter to aroaces everywhere, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping Summary:
Dearest Nilou, says the shimmering letter, you are cordially invited to the Homayani townhouse in a fortnight. I have exciting news - it appears that I will be engaged soon. I can’t wait to tell you and the girls about it. I haven’t met him yet, but he is my mother’s best friend’s son… The letter goes on for a few more sentences before ending with, Sending my love, Dunyarzad.
For a second, all Nilou does is pinch the folded edge of the letter, over and over again. Engaged, Dunyarzad? ---
Or, a typical invitation for a girls' night turns Nilou's carefree world upside down when she's forced to face all the ways she is different from her hopeless romantic friends. Luckily, a certain Dendro Archon would be happy to keep her company while Nilou considers all the different types of love she knows.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
An aroace Nilou character study on ao3? It's more likely than you think.
When I first listened to Off the Record by IVE, it inspired me to write a Genshin slumber party fic where lesbians fall in love, but the more I thought about this idea the more I wanted to write about the Sumeru girls. I wanted Dunyarzad to experience the typical memories of girlhood she never girl and wanted to finally analyze Nilou, who I headcanoned as aroace-spec ever since I first met her in the archon quest.
I hope you enjoy!
I want to read a fic but I want to read MY fic that I haven't finished yet
Me: I have the urge to write a fic, but I have no idea what to write about!!
My 37 WIPs: [intense staring]
AITA for realizing that my best friend is actually a ghost and not telling him because i'm worried that if he realizes he's dead he'll finally be able to accept it and fully pass on and i won't be able to hang out with him anymore?
AITA if i've been dead for a while but haven't told my best friend yet because he doesn't seem to have realized i'm a ghost and if he does i'm worried that he'll finally be able to accept it and let me go and i can't bear the thought of losing him?
AITA for killing that guy
Jellyfish Prince 💙
