#wip: foad

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It took a year to get here and I may have vanished from this site multiple times BUT FOD DRAFT 1 IS OFFICIALLY COMPLETE AHHH

121k words

I plan on taking a short break (about a week or so) before going back in to reread and edit. No idea how long that’ll take, but after that I should be open to betas!

Taglist: @flowerprose @serafyyn @wordwizards @isabellebissonrouthier

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WIP Re-Intro: Follies of Devotion

Genre: new adult. lit fic. romance. drama. elements of thriller/suspense.

Status: hiatus before editing

POV: 1st person present

CW: death. controlling abusive partner. violence. some smoking and alcohol. some language. occasional sex scenes (not erotic but still present.)

Themes: love vs possession. the importance of self-respect. recognizing past wounds and the bumpy road to healing. identity, emotions, and nostalgia. power in femininity. desire is violent.

Blurb: Upon the unexpected return of her one and only ex Arthur, college junior Emily Perkins is forced to face the past she worked so hard to repress in the years since their breakup. Their lingering chemistry sparks questions about her life, her identity, and what experience she truly wants out of the world. On the verge of discovering her answers, the longstanding issues of jealousy brewing with her current boyfriend Matthieu come to a head, undoing everything. What appears as a simple choice between two men comes with a price tag none may be willing to pay.

Vibes: dark academia but make it southern. old hollywood films. electro swing. a deck of cards, the joker facing up. student government. running barefoot through the woods. small towns. gossip. the local creek. a university born from the wreckage of a cathedral. statues looming round every corner. secret meetings. a masquerade. love letters in brown ink, nearly forgotten. the ache of nostalgia. mirrors. hunger pains. rotting in your bed. whispering to a goddess that might not be there.

Playlist: X

Character Intros: 1 2 3

Taglist (ask to be added or removed): @flowerprose @serafyyn @wordwizards @isabellebissonrouthier

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Seven Snippets, Seven People

Tagged by @isabellebissonrouthier !! Thank you bestie <33

All of these are from my current wip FOD, narrated in Emily’s pov.

Tagging for funsies: @owilder @wildswrites @sparrow-orion-writes @macabremoons @wordwizards @pen-of-roses @alinacapellabooks and anyone else who sees this!!

•••

“And what about this?”

My tongue slips onto the open air. In the center of it rests a short gold barbell piercing with a top fashioned to resemble a rose. Without pause, his attention is stolen from my scars. Alarm fades into contemplative interest. He cups my head in his hands, posing me this way and that to savor all angles possible.

“You like?” I tease once he lets go. “It came free with the trauma.”

•••

Before I can think to stand, Cal chains herself to my wrist. The weight of her grip speaks miles for the heat of her gaze. But if I know anything about my sister, it’s that she never holds her anger for very long. It doesn’t quite fit in her hands.

Her voice is lower than a whisper. “You look…”

“Like hell,” Ilya finishes.

“Thank you.” I take out a cigarette from my back pocket. “Anyone got a light?”

•••

Some feet away and still in his chair, Pierre’s head is cradled between his arms. His notebook is open underneath, and his laptop has gone black.

“You’ve been mighty quiet over there, jester.”

He only sighs.

•••

I don’t have to do this. I don’t have to.

I bite my tongue at the sobs surging up my throat. This mask weighs heavy on my face. Tears and feathers make a mess of my vision. I glare through it all, jaded queen on her fucking throne, and face the man sitting next to Pierre.

He wears no costume. No mask. Only a gothic suit with a red carnation pinned to his lapel. His features are a blur as he turns to the other woman attached to his hip. She pokes his chest. He lends her his ear. She wants far more, stealing a kiss from his cheek. My heart falls silent.

She averts her gaze. He catches her chin. Eye contact. Eye contact.

Eyes.

•••

Ilya’s eyes haven’t left me all night. Every breath, every act is tied to his red eyes peering at me through the guise of his cards. I shut my eyes and he’s there across the table, domineering silhouette streaked by a neon sign to his back while the ongoing storm rattles the windowpanes.

Whiskey cries where I left it and hour ago: scantily held and straight from the bottle. I toss what remains over my shoulder with a sigh.

•••

Suppress something long enough and it becomes a religion.

“The act or the suppressant?” Arthur asks in my mind.

I can’t answer.

•••

“Finally got tired of wearing that mask haven’t you?”

My head snaps to the direction of the entrance. Upon seeing who it is, my face falls flat.

“I was wondering when it would slip,” he finishes when there’s only a foot separating us.

I spare him a glance. “What mask?”

He huffs in his side-mouthed grin. Shoving his hands into his coat pockets, he joins me in leaning against the wall.

“You know, little miss angel face. All bloody lips and kerosene doused in cherry and vanilla perfume. That whole getup. I was wonderin’ when you’d get tired.”

[lady-grace-pens]

Writeblr Credits Tag

If your current WIP was a show, then what songs would be played during the into and outro/credit sequences?

Tagged by @isabellebissonrouthier <333

Tagging (no pressure :p) @ladywithalamp @flowerprose @deciphered-narrator

Excited to do this since I recently added A Bunch of new songs to the playlist!! Even tho I already have… So Many… to choose from…

•••

Follies Intro: Night Changes One Direction (Literally almost cried imagining Emily listening to this ngl)

Outro: It’s Been A Long, Long Time Kitty Kallen

[lady-grace-pens]

A fun personality quiz to see what character of mine you relate to the most! 20 questions, 6 potential results. More about the story over on

Made a quiz about my story!! First uquiz ever 😬 If you take it lemme know who you got!

Taglist: @isabellebissonrouthier @wordwizards @serafyyn @flowerprose

[lady-grace-pens]

Heads Up Seven Up

Tagged by @isabellebissonrouthier <3

Finally getting off my lazy butt to do some tag games ;) Here! Have a Saucy Moment between Arthur and Emily. I’m obsessed with the scene this is from

Tagging: @indigowriting @sparrow-orion-writes @spuddlespud and whoever else sees this!

•••

Yearning tramples my womb with the bitter-hearted mercy of the ocean. I gag on my tears.

“Please,” I beg. “Don’t.”

Arthur melts in the slit between my knees. My legs part to make room for him. The heat of his breath climbs up my thighs, dousing the area between.

Throbbing aches mingle with the vision of his lips peppering my inner thighs with the most lovesick bruises I’ll ever taste.

[lady-grace-pens]

OC Name Tag

Rules: Give the meaning of your characters’ names, then explain why you chose that name in particular

Tagging: @isabellebissonrouthier @flowerprose and open tag!!

Thanks to @alinacapellabooks for the tag!! This was fun! Honestly most of my character names are purely based off vibes honestly, I rarely have a reason why I choose one name in particular :p

—

Emily - rival, hard-worker, eager

I was drawn to the name at random, but in retrospect it suits her awfully well. Homegirl can and will work herself into a hospital bed if she isn’t careful.

Calanthia - beautiful flower

Chosen by vibes, again, painfully accurate! Cal wants to be a florist and she lives in pastels… wow. I swear this wasn’t intended

Pierre - rock

Vibes! Again! He IS a rock though, if it weren’t for him Emily would literally cave in on herself. The man is her entire emotional regulation system.

Arthur - bear, strong

Chosen as a nod to another character who inspired him! I find this ironic considering how cowardly the man is

Ilya - great, glorious

All I knew was I wanted something Slavic sounding for his ancestry

Matthieu - gift of God

Matthieu Miller is a curse. I can’t stop laughing. No I can’t explain why. There’s a masquerade ball in canon and he literally dresses up as the devil…

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which title is your fav?

Emily Irene and the Follies of Love

The Follies of Love and Emily Irene

Follies of Devotion

Of Love and Lovers

Of Water and Romance

Voting ended onAug 21, 2023

Thinking of maybe changing the title of my wip to something more catchy. Here are some highlights from the brainstorm! Which one do you like best? Bonus points if you say why

Very Basic Plot: College girl must face her repressed emotional baggage upon the sudden return of her ex