im still losing it over the "how did high schoolers write 600 word essays before chatgpt" post. 600 words. that is nothing. that is so few words what do you mean you can't write 600 words. 600 words. this post right here is 45 words.
the fuck you mean the pope just died right after the tumblr sexyman contest 2025 edition
how does this keep happening
close to you.
Do you think Ford knew how old he was when he came back? Because I don't think so.
He's been all around the multiverse, in places that definitely didn't follow the laws of physics of his home dimension. Time works differently depending on the place he lands on, and he never gets used to any of them because he knows he'll have to leave sooner or later.
So time passes. He can feel himself age, of course, but he doesn't know how long it's been since he fell through the portal. When he looks at himself in the mirror, he can see wrinkles paired with new scars, and his hair is getting grayer, but that could simply be a sign of stress. And sure, his body hurts when he wakes up, but he's constantly on the move and sleeping anywhere he can, obviously he's not going to be in the best shape! All things considered, he's a pretty fit man for any age, and whatever years he's been alive for is not his priority right now.
When he comes back home, after his first encounter with Stan, he finally gets a moment to think about his new and old family. His brother looks older, obviously, and certainly different from what he imagined (not that he thought about him often, of course not). His hair is whiter than his own, and he has even more wrinkles than him! Just how badly was he taking care of himself in the... how many years... wait, did he say 30?!
I don't think Ford was necessarily thinking of a higher or lower number. I don't think he expected anything more or less: the way he sees it, it could've been anywhere from 10 to 1000 years. Time was meaningless between dimensions. I think that the sole reminder that time still passed was what got to him.
That shock came full force after Weirdmageddon, when he realized that Stan was his same age, despite the differences in their physiques. It was the fact that they were both around 60 years old, and they had been apart for 40 years. Two whole thirds of their lives. They were supposed to grow old together, maybe not in the same house (or boat), but close to each other. That, paired with how old and worn down Stan looks, Ford can't help but feel like he's now years younger than him, and he hates thinking about it because with the way Stan had been living for the last 40 years, just how much longer- no, stop, don't think about it.
Ford's paranoia turns into hypochondria, but towards his brother. This translates as Ford desperately trying to cut Stan's bad habits (such as alcohol and smoking), making sure he eats well (Ford can't cook for shit) and semi-forcing him to do some exercise. Stan is not on board with these measures, and he lets his brother know just that because he's being bossy and annoying and he would like to enjoy his amnesia in peace please. Ford is as stubborn as a mule, but eventually he gives up and just begs Stan to please consider some of his suggestions because he wants him to be better. Stan still refuses, but every once in a while Ford catches him doing some exercise by himself or ordering a non alcoholic drink, and it makes him happy.
When they return to Gravity Falls, the twins look the most identical they've looked since they were like 10: Stan's eyes have a shine that Soos had never seen before, and his new and improved posture makes him look taller, like the weight of the world had been lifted off of him. Ford, on the other hand, has a fuller face and body, his expression is now softer and somewhat kinder, and he walks much more carelessly, like he's strolling instead of marching.
Ford doesn't care how old he is anymore, because now he's growing old next to his brother.
Ok, I have two questions for you
1.- What is your process for writing? Like, how do you plan out a story in the long term?
2.- How the fuck did you improve so much in so little time?? Ive been a fan of yours for some time and istg, CRaawloTT and ABCs and 123s are years light apart in quality!! And they were posted just with a months difference, like what??? Did you sign a deal with the devil?? Tell me your secret, ive been writing since 2022 and i havent improved a lotšš
Warning: This is going to be a ramble š
First of all, I want to say thank you for the ask and for reading my fics!! I really appreciate it :)
Now, for your questions:
1. I am someone who needs everything to be picture perfect before I even begin to think about writing the fic. So, Iāll come up with the vague concept first. Most of my WIPs donāt get past this point lol. But if they do, then I explore the idea a bit more. Make the concept more than just a sentence or two. Think about other things that could link and come into play. Think about how this concept COULD potentially be fleshed out into a story. Just get a word document, or a Google Doc, and just dump. Dump every single idea in your head, donāt overthink it. If you still like it after that, and you still have inspiration and passion for it, then start a rough outline. Now, an āoutlineā is subjective. Like I said, Iām an extreme perfectionist. Therefore, Iām not happy to start writing before I have every single moment of the entire story planned out. I have a Google Doc for āYours, Veronicaā which has a summary of everything that happens in every single chapter. Itās nearly 200 pages long. You do not need to go this crazy! ššš This is just my personal preference. So I write an outline for the story. I go back and read it. I change it. I add more. I read it again. I research things to make sure there are no historical inaccuracies. I add more. I keep on redrafting it and adding to it and changing it until I am 100% satisfied. For āYours, Veronicaā this took me a few years. Again, you donāt need to be this particular about it, itās entirely up to you. You donāt even need an outline! Write how you want to write. This is my personal planning system, and itās what works for me. I like having a strict and thorough outline to refer back to when writing the chapters.
Okay, for your second question, Iām going to waffle a bit, so bear with me! And I do want to preface by making it very clear that I am not a professional writer. Like⦠at all. I donāt really know what Iām talking about! So take it all with a pinch of salt :)
I do want to say thank you. I canāt believe youāve been around for so long! Thatās incredibly sweet, and I appreciate you so so so much.
In terms of progress, I have a lot of thoughts about this.
I think a big reason why there is such a difference between CRaawloTT and ABCs is because CRaawloTT was so unfathomably bad. It was immature, there was no effort, no planning, no spellcheck, it was written rapidly and badly, and it was (objectively) stupid. I was young when I wrote it, and I had never properly written a story before. So my point is that CRaawloTT was such utter trash that literally anything would be better than it, which is why ABCs seems a lot better. I still donāt love ABCs and I still donāt think itās very good in hindsight but oh my god itās SO much better than CRaawloTT. The thing is, itās pretty easy to be better than CRaawloTT.
Another thing that I do want to point out is that I was very young when I wrote my very first fic. Even though ABCs wasnāt that long after, when you are young your maturity rapidly grows and each year youāre like a new person. If that makes sense? So, I would say that I was really young when I wrote CRaawloTT (and it shows) and I was less young when I wrote ABCs (and it shows). I think even the end of CRawloTT has a pretty big difference to the start. But really, it is effort that is the main point. During those few months between the stories, I worked a lot on the new story and therefore was improving, and also was automatically making a better story. I was just doing at least the bare minimum, which I hadnāt done before.
I mean, even now I go back and I look at The Prom Bet (which is a ton better than ABCs) and I cringe because itās so frustrating and immature and thereās a lot of contrivances. You have improved and you will improve. Iāve been doing this for nearly 6 years now and I know you may not feel like youāve made progress but you have. We are all our own biggest critics. But if you want to keep on improving until you notice it, then all you can do with writing is just keep doing it and you will get better. Itās experience, thatās all it is.
Iād say a big tip is trying new challenges and getting out of your comfort zone and testing yourself. With ABCs, the difference was I started implementing things like minimum chapter word count goals and that made a huge difference. From CRaawloTT chapters that were rushed and less than 1000 words to ABCs which had chapters that were a minimum of 3000 to 5000. Another thing was doing an outline, like I mentioned before. CRaawloTT had no outline and I had no idea where it was going. I would randomly open a word document and decide āUh okay, chapter 7? I guess⦠this can happen?ā. The impact that makes on the quality of your story is huge because youāve got a story there. Itās not guessing games, and spur of the moment incoherent babble. Of course thereās spellchecker too. Listen, ABCs still has a lot of spelling errors because I was still a bit lazy š but itās better. And thatās the progress that youāre talking about. Such basic tools that I just didnāt implement at first. So donāt beat yourself up! What Iām trying to say is that you probably started at a much higher level, with much more effort, passion and consideration. So, of course your progress isnāt going to seem as dramatic!
So really, it wasnāt like I went from āgoodā to āamazingā, you know? I went from āreally really abysmalā to ānot as badā, which seems like a huge jump but itās not. Itās just a big difference in quality, because the first one has such a lack of quality that anything feels like a big jump. I think you need to give yourself more credit.
Finally, and perhaps the most important point of all, is that I didnāt love doing CRaawloTT, and that shows in the writing. You can put hours of effort in, you can have all the talent in the world, you can use every technique in the book. If you donāt like what youāre writing, itās going to be so clearly. I loved writing, I loved being part of the Heathers fandom, but I didnāt like CRaawloTT itself. I had no passion for it. I had passion for ABCs. I enjoyed writing it. I enjoyed the story (at the time). I was excited for it. Thatās such a huge difference. Just like how I feel even more excitement for Yours, Veronica.
so TL;DR:
The reasons for the improvement from my first fic to second fic are that my first fic was just so awful, I implemented very basic writing and planning methods, and also I was very young when doing my first fic.
Iām sure you have improved, even if you donāt see it. Just continuously writing and gaining practice and experience is the best you can do
Implement challenges and goals if you havenāt already. Set a higher minimum word count for your chapters in order to improve pacing, for example. Write an outline, if thatās what helps you, so you donāt go off-track. Try a new style of writing that youāve seen before that you like.
I am so terribly sorry for this completely unnecessary babble. I got a bit passionate there! I really really loved this ask and I really loved talking about this stuff, so thank you ā¤ļø good luck with your writing, Iām sure youāre doing great and youāll continue to do even better. Have faith!
better luck next year, ford
WHY DIDN'T THEY USE THIS, THIS IS WAY WAY GAYER
If you're cold, hes cold. Let him in you're skin.
For chansaw
Ill add links later rn i cant sory lol
Basically any Poshbiscuit fic
I see you
the most recent one by FearlessCoconut
and some shameless self promo(it isnt that good) Where love goes to die!!
I just watched Heathers the musical, and there so many interesting relationship dynamics all around!!
Can anyone pls give me fic recs for:
H. McNamara x Veronica
H. Chandler x Veronica
H. Chandler x H. McNamara
McNamara is my favorite character so any fic about her is good too! šš