Running On Empty

I wrote fic on AO3 (r_n_g_are_dead), but have quit sharing new stuff publicly. I am not on Discord, so **PLEASE** leave a comment on AO3 or DM me here to share your thoughts! Most of my fics are about Ted Lasso/Trent Crimm, but there's older stuff there from other fandoms. CLICK HERE to read my fic on AO3

[rngaredead]

All of r_n_g_are_dead's TED/TRENT fic (AO3 masterpost)

I am done with sharing new fic, but I put all my Tedependent stories for the Ted Lasso fandom into a masterpost.

This will be my pinned post. Everything is complete and appropriately rated.

~~~~~~~

I Really Enjoyed Getting to Spend This Time With You — 98K words, 25 Chapters, Rated M — An end-of-season 3 fix-it of sorts that picks up after Ted starts to read Trent's manuscript. What hasn’t even begun between them seems to already be at an end, but that's where the "fix-it" part comes in. And by "fix-it," I mean this is angsty af but there is so much love and hope between them... ❤️ (This fic was a gift to medecineformelancholy as a Thank You for all the beautiful artwork she's shared based on my stories.)

Stunning artwork for Chapter 1 of "I Really Enjoyed Getting to Spend This Time With You" from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE.

Stunning artwork for Chapter 2 of "I Really Enjoyed Getting to Spend This Time With You" from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE. Stunning artwork for Chapter 13 of "I Really Enjoyed Getting to Spend This Time With You" from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE.

Stunning artwork for Chapter 16 of "I Really Enjoyed Getting to Spend This Time With You" from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE.

Stunning artwork for Chapter 20 of "I Really Enjoyed Getting to Spend This Time With You" from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE.

Stunning artwork for Chapter 21 of "I Really Enjoyed Getting to Spend This Time With You" from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE.

Stunning artwork for Chapter 25 of "I Really Enjoyed Getting to Spend This Time With You" from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE.

~~~~~~~

Series: Fathers and Sons and Boyfriends (Oh My) Trilogy (3 fics)

Fathers and Sons and Boyfriends (Oh My) — 91K words, 16 Chapters, Rated M — a fake dating fic set right after season 2 through Christmas of that same year. Rom-com-y with a side of drama. (Trent's got an awful ex-husband, but a great dad — Will Crimm!)

Parents and Kids and Partners (Oh My) — 53K words, 17 Chapters, Rated T — Now officially a couple, Ted and Trent deal with family, friends, work, and more as the Richmond Greyhounds try not to get relegated from the Premier League again. It's a bit angsty, but ends happily ❤️ Not S3 compliant, but takes place during S3. And there is, of course, more Will Crimm.

Stunning artwork for Chapter 1 of "Parents and Kids and Partners (Oh My)" from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE.

Stunning artwork for Chapter 3 of "Parents and Kids and Partners (Oh My)" from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE.

Stunning artwork for Chapter 17 of "Parents and Kids and Partners (Oh My)" from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE.

Stunning artwork that represents the overall series from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE.

Husbands and Family and Forever (Oh My) — 70K words, 18 chapters, Rated M — Picks up the day after "Parents and Kids" ends. Ted and Trent are still very much together, and have been living under one roof for almost two months. In this final installment of the series, the Crimm family adds another member, Trent tries desperately to reconcile with his past, and there's loads of light and dark moments as Ted and Trent plan for their future.

~~~~~~~

Somebody Know Me Too Well — 74K words, 18 Chapters, Rated M — A Bantr fic where Ted and Trent match. Trent's on there looking for romance. Ted's on there just to talk because Ted's got a crush on Trent IRL. Takes place through season 2. Not a traditional or trope-y soulmate fic, but there is mention of soulmates and it turns out these two gents were meant to be together. (This is my most popular fic, bookmarks-, kudos-, and comments-wise.)

I'll Always Be There (As Frightened As You) — 5K words, Rated M — One-shot/missing scenes that takes place during Chapter 18 of “Somebody Know Me Too Well.” (Result of a Tumblr Poll for bonus content.)

~~~~~~~

Nothing's as Easy as Riding a Bike When You Don't Know How — 95K words, 19 Chapters, Rated M — A deep dive into Trent's backstory from age 10 through the present. His strained relationship with his dad. His longterm relationship from university. His amazing older sister. It's a story about love, loss, and love again. Ted pops up in Chapter 7 and is there for the duration. This one is a heavier drama than anything else I've written, but there are lighter moments. (This is my personal favorite of all the Ted/Trent fics I've written.)

~~~~~~~

Curious & Judgmental — 32K words, 15 Chapters, Rated T — Ted and Trent meet once as kids, but don't know it. They have their respective jobs in Richmond as adults. They also match on Bantr. There's a lot of coincidences, but apparently they were meant to be together.

~~~~~~~

Series: What Happens After (4 fics)

My Day With You was a Roller Coaster and I’m Getting Back in Line — 10K words, 8 Chapters, Rated T — Bingo, biscuits, and book genre references. The afternoon of “Carol of the Bells,” but Ted and Trent accidentally spend Christmas afternoon together instead of Ted and Rebecca (S2E4). Sad, but not alone. Hopeful, not hopeless.

Stunning artwork for Chapter 8 of "My Day With You was a Roller Coaster and I'm Getting Back in Line" from medecineformelancholy can be found HERE. If There Were to Be Something Between Us, That’d Be a Flight (Right?) — 6K words, Rated T — Transportation metaphors galore! Ted and Trent meet up on New Year’s Eve (the day after “The Signal”) to discuss whether they will or will not pursue the relationship they unexpectedly initiated on Christmas. Featuring: Panic attacks, Pride & Prejudice, and some witty Bantr.

I Might Not Be Okay (And My Apartment Is a Trainwreck. Just a Heads-Up.) — 6K words, Rated T — It’s the evening of Rebecca’s dad’s funeral and Ted is still not doing great from his earlier panic attack. Set a few months into Ted and Trent's relationship, things are both the worst and best they’ve been. (We’re in the dark forest of this rom-com. There’s cookie baking and slow dancing for you as a peace offering.)

Drive Me Off Into the Sky Like That Car at the End of Grease — 17K words, 10 Chapters, Rated T — Salty biscuits, the Believe sign, and a forced friend date! An alternate take on S2E12, “Inverting the Pyramid of Success,” in which Trent still writes the article about Ted's panic attack, but also must disclose the status of their relationship. ~~~~~~~~~~

Bonus Ted-centric fic:

Ted Lasso Didn’t Always Have a Mustache — 4K words, Rated M —

“I look just like him, Michelle. I can’t be lookin’ in the mirror and seein’ his face every morning because that face quit on me.”

Life, loss, love, loss, life — a take on how Ted Lasso came to have his mustache and why he still needs it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

An extra Thank You to those who have left kudos. And an extra big Thank You and gentle forehead kiss to you fine folks who have left such kind comments on my stories. Your comments were the only reason why I kept writing for as long as I did.

My Ask Box is always open for any questions/comments/concerns. (Anon is turned off, though. Some folks were being bullies.) xoxo r_n_g_are_dead

[rngaredead]

This is an important watch for folks in the U.S. about the fight for women to get the right to vote.

The in-fighting across generations and races is important to see. Politics isn't pretty, and basic rights don't come easy or free when it's a constant uphill battle against oppressors.

Please watch if you can — this is the original Broadway cast production, shot professionally for PBS' Great Performances. It's available in full for free on YouTube.

[lesbianjaxsondart]

if you put the new harry potter show on my dash in any way it's gonna be an automatic unfollow from me, guys. like. it's 2026. come the fuck on

[catastrophiccynic]

Yeah reading is fun but have you ever listened to a writer's passionate talks about their favorite character?

[awhitewomansinstagram]

schmigadoon is the best because there are two completely different versions of the show depending on your level of musical theater experience. Like, you can watch it and not really know theater and it’s still a fun little plot, or you can watch it and understand that schmigadoon is basically the musical theater version of once upon a time with a celebrity fancast

[sophia-becketts]

que rico es ser latino.

[lordwilde]

RIP Catherine O'Hara, OC | 4 March 1954 – 30 January 2026

[rngaredead]

For those in the path of Winter Storm Fern, please be smart, stay safe, and keep warm. 💙

[ironinkpen]

an imperfect ally is better than a perfect bystander

[ironinkpen]

the old boomer who "doesn't get the gays" but still votes blue every election is still a better ally to you than every well-spoken, woke millennial who says all the right shit but didn't vote because they "didn't like either option"

the lady who voted for trump but has changed her mind since and is calling her senator every day is a better ally to you than anyone very politely apologizing for how awful things are and not doing anything to actually help

[blondebrainpowered]

"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." -Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

[robertreich]

Congress is now considering the appropriations bill for the Department of Homeland Security, whose funding runs out at the end of January. Call your members of Congress and tell them to vote NO on any bill that increases ICE's funding. Please demand that the DHS appropriations bill prohibit ICE and Border Patrol agents from carrying guns and that it unambiguously declare that agents do not have absolute immunity under the law if they harm civilians. Also tell them that any bill must restrict ICE and Border Patrol’s ability to conduct dragnet arrest operations and target people based on their race, language or accent. And the bill must clarify that ICE agents are liable under civil and criminal law if they harm civilians. Do this as soon as you can. To reach your representative or senator, call the U.S. Congressional Switchboard at [phone]. Tell them the state and city where you live. They will connect you to any member’s office.

[laurens-german]

Have you seen a dog? You probably have.

ELF (2003) dir. Jon Favreau

[clairedaring]

The Pie-Maker could never touch her again. Chuck's survival now depended on a delicate dance, a ballet of avoidance. The Pie-Maker took precautions to ensure Chuck felt safe at home. Slippers were worn, adorned with bells. Digby kept his eyes open to the hazards of touch, a canine proximity alert who could not only play dead... but could do so from experience. Neither the Pie-Maker nor Chuck could move without the other one knowing and to the Pie-Maker, it felt like home.

PUSHING DAISIES Bzzzzzzzzz! | 2.01

[writercultureis]

Writer culture is having readers who say over and over that they'll wait patiently for your updates, or that they'll read every fic of yours for that pairing, but most of them don't... And writers know readers have every right to stop reading a fic, or stop reading their fics. But it still hurts all the same.

I would rather readers not make those kinds of promises. Even if they don't intend to break them. Because even though it's likely not personal, it sure feels like it to the writer anyway.

(It does to me. Maybe it's different in bigger fandoms or for more popular writers.)

It just seems like a lot of writers are really struggling right now with bots comments, and AI stealing their work, and people not understanding that writing is hard and that it sometimes takes a long time for updates.

When people abandon your work or you in general, you really start to ask yourself whether it's even worth posting fic at all anymore.

.

[posttexasstressdisorder]

[thememedaddy]

[theunfortunate-author]

my daily affirmation as an author