#icruasd

[the-barefoot-hatter]

I'm hella late going through my dash but for the ask game, any installment of your choice from icruasd + 5, 14, and 15! (14 especially wrt if you wanted to convey a specific type of headcanon/character analysis? 👀)

👀 oooo lots of questions yay~!

5: What part was hardest to write?

-Literally anything with Dipper as a major role. He's sorta the main character of Gravity Falls, so it should be easy, but it's nooooot.

-balancing Ford's whimsy with his grump. must always remember how his soul is full of "wheeeee~!" and he's weird, but he's been hurt and doesn't want to be hurt again. also holds serious grudges, to avoid complex feelings (pure anger is a simple feeling!)

-In general, trying to keep people in character while thinking of how different they would be 2-4 years in the future. The old farts aren't too different (Ford, Stan, Bill) or the young farts (Wendy, Soos, Melody) but the kids are Teens! Both more and less themselves at that age!

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14: Is there anything you wanted readers to learn from reading this fic?

I hope that it's always morally correct to blind a triangle! ;p

...maybe some animal biology?

14 feat 'you wanted to convey a specific type of headcanon/character analysis' in story'

PUT YOUR BUSSY IN IT.

BROOD ON THAT THOUGHT UNTIL IT CONSUMES YOU AND ECHOES ACROSS THE PAGE. Write the character like it's the rock solid truth! Imply things! Through actions or how other characters see it/them, or how the character reacts to things!

Possibly also ramble on about it in the author's notes? Can never talk too much in notes

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15: What did you learn from writing this fic?

SOMEHOW SMUT??? Not how to pace myself lol

if anything, it's how come up with the end of something not written, noodle around, try to write a beginning to the first thing, see it doesn't fit. write more ending to the first ending. write more begining for new thing because it's been stewing now. noddle around with more bits and then glue it to a different chuck altogether. weave a rich veiny membrane of connective tissue to ideas points. bounce around if it's not working and keep all your cut bits to recycle! lots of times i split a part off a potential fic and expand on it

this might work less good if you are actively plotting a longer story vs such short vibey fics lol

but the fics in the series getting attention helps me not freak and sit on a story until it's perfect and long and in order and, ultimately, not ever finished.... don;t have to write a 100K masterwork to have fun and have people like it my ideas!

game rules:

Reblog if you are a fanfiction author and would like your readers to put one of your fic titles in your ask + questions about it

[the-barefoot-hatter]

for the ask game, which installments of ICRUASD do you feel like were slept on, either by readers or by yourself? (Like if you were like "ooh I gotta come back and explore this more later")

Ooooo, a big meaty question! This a very self-indulgent AU, I'm mostly basing on feels so usually I'll get a reader comment and go, 'you canny bastards, as usual smarter than me!' and it will spark off a whole new thing to explore. That's for sure how two smut fics happened. Bill's aceness is something I was sorta chewing on in a not very clear way that got a lot clearer writing them smashing, and probably something that I'll keep percolating for awhile.

In general, the heavy themes I keep coming back to (and probably need more flesh) are:

Bill's feeling of being isolated and trapped. A handyman AU is just a different kind of imprisonment when you think about it. He's got very little to work with and zero chances left.

Bill's fear of punishment is kinda understated. Because a lot of the writing is Bill's POV, we get to see his stupid thought process but he's keeping his cards to his chest as possible in front of everyone else. There's a reason Bill was upset that Mabel was crying in the glitter poster one, and it wasn't because he was feeling empathic.

Bill's depression. He lost his sparkle :c He's a guy who lived by "I'll show them, I'LL SHOW THEM ALL" and not only did he NOT show them all, he lost everything. His big dream crashed and BURNED, he's lost direction in a major way. He's a little cockroach of GOTTALIVE but now... what's the point? He has no goal.

which leads to

Bill's fucked up relationship with... relationships in general. He can't say what he wants (Ford) or even what he doesn't want. He's afraid to let anyone in. He's afraid to disappoint. He can't let his mask slip. People being nice to him is so alien he bluescreens. A lifetime of carefully calculated deals and ultaviolence is what's kept him on top, in control (safe). Bill tries to put everything in deal terms or doing a favor when interacting with people. Transactional.

Even (especially) when he cares about them because

Bill's got a fucked up relationship with love and trust. He does not know unconditional love. He barely gets conditional love. People want Bill Cipher tm, not Bill, and people don't even want Bill Cipher tm once they see what a monster he really is. hurting and being hurt is part of loving, isn't it?

Ford's fucked up twisted, guilty feelings on Bill. He's very torn. It's messy, it hurts... he wants to believe... but he doesn't have another 30 years of vendetta left in him if it goes south

^ all of this working towards getting to that sunny day, by working on these issues. idk how good i can get at them, i think better than i write

and of course i gotta get bill and stan more time to bro. they are such a funny duo

[the-barefoot-hatter]

ICRUASD, question 11~

11: What do you like best about this fic? BESTIE, THAT'S SO MAAAANY FIC, pick a Title for more deets~

OVERALL, I like breaking Bill <3 And also breaking his and Ford's relationship down and rebuilding it. (Healthier? With more understanding at least XD)

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Reblog if you are a fanfiction author and would like your readers to put one of your fic titles in your ask + questions about it