#tgootawoe

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finally decided to do one of these

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The Goings-On of the Alien World of Earth is a novel about nobody special. The town of Alderbrook, where fairies and ghosts and cryptids reside, is not special. The monster hunter from the west is not special. And most of all, the girl who disappeared last Wednesday is entirely insignificant.

But here's a story about all of that anyway. Maybe it'll make someone out there feel important.

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Last Lines Tag!

Thanks to @quill-and-ink-writer for the tag!

Ainsel walked a ways down the hall to door 104. Next door, a man in an ecru polo shirt stepped into his room, number 210.

Doesn’t seem like much, but it’s the introduction of Goings-On’s first real villain. Tagging @whollyart, @candlelitwriting, and @fannistwrites if you want to do it, no pressure!

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OC Interview Tag

Thanks to @converginglives @sixstepsaway and @elonanwrites for the tag!

I did this for Eliot, so this time I’ll do a duo from Goings-On: Mousey and Shiny Ben!

How are you doing today?

Mousey: I’m tired. Got a dry mouth. But fine.

Ben: I guess I’m doing marginally better than her, then.

I have some questions for you, are you ready to answer them?

Mousey: Whatever it is, I didn’t do it.

Ben: Don’t mind her. Of course I’ll answer; I love company.

How do you feel about your last name?

Mousey: I dunno. Black is a pretty basic name.

Ben: It’s a reliable name. I don’t even have a surname.

Mousey: I thought your last name was Ben.

Ben: What, and my first name was Shiny?

Mousey: ...

Is there anything you’d like to thank your author for?

Mousey: Uh, me being as cool as I am. And for Ben.

Ben: I... thank you, Isabella. I don’t know what to say.

Mousey: I have that effect, Shiny.

Ben: My name isn’t—

You can only eat three foods for the rest of your life, what are they?

Mousey: Vodka, brownies, and baked potatoes.

Ben: That was quick. I’d say strawberries, burritos, and pad thai.

Mousey: Those are esoteric.

Ben: You don’t know what that word means.

Mousey: Nope.

Have you ever done or said snything to surprise your author?

Mousey: Ha! Yeah, this one time I downed half a bottle of whiskey and was still sober, and he was totally floored.

Ben: I don’t know if you used that word right either. But, no. I think that my author knows me well enough to expect nothing and be surprised by nothing.

You have limitless funds, what kind of party are you going to throw?

Mousey: It’ll be in a cathouse—

Ben: Whoa, whoa, whoa! She means a house full of cats.

Mousey: That’s what I said. And there’ll be every type of alcohol you could imagine.

Ben: I don’t need to throw a party. Visiting Alderbrook is party enough.

Tell us something that you’ve done that not even your author knows about... yet.

Mousey: I made out with Bella Auclair, mostly nude, while high on, like, eight different drugs.

Ben: ...what the fuck. Alright, um, I guess there was this one time that I visited New Orleans and got engaged to a Civil War soldier.

Mousey: Like a ghost soldier?

Ben: No, I did this in the middle of the Civil War.

Do you have a favorite hero?

Mousey: Probably Lex Luthor.

Ben: Luthor is not a— whatever. I liked comic-book Wolverine. Not cinema Wolverine.

What do you plan to do after this?

Mousey: Take a catnap. Heh.

Ben: I’m going to get as far away from Mousey, and her cats, and her puns, as possible.

Mousey: Rude.

Ben: Yeah, well.

This was fun! Tagging @ruinedambitions @whollyart @zewrites and @writing-at-dusk if you want to do it!

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Secret Ingredients Tag

Thanks for the tag from @essagandana !

Rules: Pick a WIP, and make a bullet-point list of what you consider to be its ‘secret ingredients’ (not actual secrets!) These could be any details and/or plot elements, big or small, that you love most about your story. You can list five or fifty, but for however many secret ingredients you share, you must then tag that number of people

I’ll be doing this for Goings-On, of course.

- A whole cast of queer characters

- A healthy dose of fairy tales

- Two cups of gothic americana

Make sure to remove all sense of continuity from the mixture and stir vigorously. Serves eight.

So, if you’re up for it, I’m tagging @jaimistoryteller @merigreenleaf and @elucubrare

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Unexpected Things I Learned About My Characters

Tagged by @converginglives, and this looked really cool. Probably going to involve more Midas Touch characters, because I worked on it a lot while I was gone!

Luciano (Midas Touch)

He adopted Estrella after fostering her for a few months

Despite going by “Midas” while villaining, he’s not very well-versed in Greek mythology and prefers Egyptian mythology

The only kind of alcohol he’ll touch is champagne; this is because he’s a lightweight but has a reputation to uphold

Lise (Midas Touch)

Lives on her own because she convinced her parents to emancipate her

She got the money for her apartment (and dog) from robbing Texas’ bandit-king

On that topic, she lived in the Texan Hinterlands for nearly a year of her life and survived

She knows sign language because her mother, father, maternal aunt, and maternal grandfather were all deaf

There is a high chance she will be deaf by age 25

Ainsel (Goings-On)

He actually came across the Egress, Shiny Ben’s outlet mall, a few times, but never stopped there

He has been to every US state besides Hawaii, Rhode Island, Texas, and North Dakota

He has strong feelings about pineapple on pizza, insisting that only canned pineapple is good on pizza

He is an “early bird” unlike nearly the rest of the Goings-On cast

He’s trying to work up the nerve to ask Dalton out

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OC Pridefest Questions

These were put together by the wonderful @raevenlywrites! I’m in a very Ainsel mood tonight, so I’ll be answering the OC questions from his perspective.

Say hi! Let us get to know you, you big beautiful person, you!

Well, heya. I’m Ainsel—Peterson—and yeah, my name is Welsh, even though I’m Filipino. Um, I’m demisexual, which I think is what I’m here for.

How do you feel about the world your author has created for you?

It is on Earth, so not much difference there. Alderbrook is fucking unique. I prefer SoCal.

Are you out? To whom, why or why not, etc?

Only to the kids from Alderbrook, ‘cause they’re out, too. Or at least... they’re supportive. Which is why I’m not otherwise out.

Do you feel settled in your ID?

I mean, yeah. Still not sure whether I like bi or pan better—in terms of romance—but making me demi was a pretty early-on decision for my author.

Did your author always know you were demi, or did you have to tell him?

Nope! He had no clue. He figured it out in the middle of a scene—me and Bella Black in my trailer. She’s asking me for advice on her feelings for Ben, ‘cause he’s ace too, you know. I guess my advice was good, ‘cause that’s when my author found out.

Is being demi hard in your world?

It’s Earth, so... depends. But I think my author eased up a little bit—well, a lot—on homophobia and stuff.

Tell us about your unique experiences with your ID.

I mean, I guess I get laid less than most people. Which, sometimes, is a deal-breaker in relationships. I’m—it’s hard, because I’m really, like, masculine, you know? And I don’t necessarily want lots of touching and stuff, but I know I need it. Maybe I’m just stubborn.

What’s the best part about being demi in your world?

Honestly? The amount of probably undeserved respect I get from Old Lady Marjorie.

Do you like getting fan mail?

Do I—Do I even have fans? Like, if I do? Then hell to the yeah.

Grab that mic!

Shit, um. Okay. Mousey, you rock, and I’m sorry that I used to call you Ratty all the time! Charlie, you’re the absolute chillest, keep it up. Dalton, take a chill pill. They grow on trees here. Oh, and city of Fresno? Tell me what those gotdamn pants are doing, and I’ll lift the suit!

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Find the Words Tag Game!

I won’t lie, this one took me a while, but it was a delight, so thank you @forlornraven for the tag!

I needed to find gold or golden, fog, and breath.

With a dizzying flash of light and a feeling of sickness in Charles’ stomach, the bird disappeared. In its place, a young man sat on the ground, clad in extravagant robes in various reds, oranges, and browns. His hair was fiery red, wild and unkempt, with golden leaves woven into the long strands. His eyes, though, were the most unsettling part of his appearance: they were not eyes at all, but near-translucent orbs of imperfect amber. Charles tried not to look at what was behind the man’s eyes, even though he most definitely could.

Charles looked up to see a pale face—avoid the eyes, avoid the eyes—framed by straight, black hair that hung down to the man-shaped thing’s chin. What appeared to be black lipstick was applied to the thing’s lips, or perhaps its lips were simply pitch-black. Winged eyeliner, immaculately applied, framed two pale orbs, drained of color. Dark, thick fog tumbled from its eyes and mouth, faintly reminiscent of blood in color and viscosity.

He flipped on the hall light again. He blinked; the figure disappeared with the rest of the shadow it had lurked in. Charles took a deep breath. He wasn’t worried, he told himself, it had just been a long day. He hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before, and everyone knew that exhaustion did funny things to the mind.

I’m tagging @ratracechronicler @reeseweston and @teacup-universes

Your words are forest, ring, and antique!