dirigibleplums

[dirigibleplums]

Well, hello, my lovelies. Haven't you wandered into the right living room? (No, seriously, I have a lot of chocolate available for everyone. You like chocolate, don't you? Of course you do.)

I'm Plums, by the way. I go by both dirigibleplums and elixirsoflife depending on where you find me (to make life difficult for everyone), but Plums works best!

You might know me for Dormitory 2.6A, a story I wrote a couple of years ago about a group of sixth year Hufflepuff girls. Told from the POV of Nova Hale, the fic explores common issues for teen girls from the perspective of someone who is not personally experiencing them, but still suffers the effects. It has its flaws and there are things I'd definitely do differently, but it's my baby ❤️

I prefer to write stories about the Marauders, Tom Riddle or Next Gen (particularly Albus Potter), though I've written a bunch of one shots featuring a variety of other characters.

As for OF... let's not get into my incapability to sustain an OF story haha

Anyway that's it for now! Feel free to ask me any questions (whether they're about writing or anything else ♡)

Edited October 14, 2018 by Theia
edited as per request

[dirigibleplums]

Lmao it's been a long time since I started this thread. So long that I forgot it existed! Things have certainly changed since then.

 

- I've deleted Kaleidoscopic permanently. Two chapters in and I just wasn't feeling it anymore. Which is a shame because I've been looking forward to it since the start of KMLASTD but c'est la vie as they say.

 

- Similarly, KMLASTD is on hold. Indefinitely. Somewhere along the way, I just lost my enthusiasm for it. It dragged my mood down and I was so concerned with trying to justify all of my decisions that I just stopped enjoying it. Which was obviously so not the point - writing fanfic is an obligation only I can force onto myself. It's not a job, I don't get paid for it. So why continue something I didn't enjoy?

 

The fact that no one was reviewing to let me know that they were still reading was similarly depressing.

 

- I didn't abandon Dormitory 2.6A. On the contrary, I finished it! At the time, I was sure I couldn't write anything else that wasn't to do with those girls and was even planning on exploring so much about that world. In the end though, I don't think I'm going to reveal that much else about it. Sometimes, you just gotta know when to let things go.

 

- I tried my hand at OF and actually succeeded for a bit! White Picket Fence is still incomplete and I haven't touched it since I reached my 15K goal at nano but I do intend to (eventually) return. Tbh I was just happy I could write with characters who weren't rooted in a world already established by someone else.

 

- In the meanwhile, I've returned to fanfic. I've slowly been writing a new Next Gen fic, mostly just testing the waters of the idea. I don't want to give too much away in case I don't follow through with writing it but it's going well so far, I'd say.

 

The main character is a girl called Carmen Brookstanton or Brooke as she likes to be called. She used to attend Hogwarts but left after an incident in her first year that will be revealed if I do end up going for it. And now she's back after four years, not-so-ready to deal with the constant staring, the dry academic atmosphere and everything surrounding the mess that is Albus Potter.

 

Vague, ik.

[dirigibleplums]

So I'm on CH12 of my fic - still unnamed, by the way and the most self-indulgent thing ever idec anymore - and I'm going strong. Haven't been able to write as much recently now that the Christmas holidays are over and mocks are literally around the corner, but I've managed to snag a mental health night (aka writing time). Plus, I've drank three glasses of Dr Pepper so I can't sleep even if I tried

 

The chapter's coming to its end, methinks, and I'm liking where it's going. There's still some ways to go in the fic - I have five pages of notes and I'm still on the 2nd page in terms of plot - but I think it'll be done by the end of the year. Either way, I'll probably start uploading it soon when I reach one of the Milestones in the fic. Part of me is nervous about this because, as I said, this is so SELF-INDULGENT, I'll probably be the only person enjoying it, so part of me wants to just keep it to myself. But at the same time, I don't want my effort to go to waste, man.

 

I want you all to see Hufflepuff!Rose (for some reason, I write Hufflepuffs well??) and my v. conflicted MC, Brooke, and grey!Albus (not that grey tbh, more of a boy who just made all the wrong choices when he was younger) and Jasper! I LOVE JASPER. He's Brooke's half-brother and they have a v. good relationship. I love writing their interactions omg.

 

[after a v. long break in which i wrote some more]

 

Okay, so I'm not done with CH12 today (these chapters are whoppers, man), but I need to go to sleep so

 

Imma just leave you (leave me? since i'm probs the only person who reads this) with some snippets of what I'm writing.

 

FOR EXAMPLE, here is what the players of the Gryffindor and Slytherin Quidditch teams get up to in the first match of the year:

 

Unfortunately for Adhara Prewett, Freddie Weasley and the rest of the Gryffindors, Madame Spinnet chooses not to penalise Slytherin for the foul since she didn’t actually see it occur – but she does call foul when one of the Slytherin Chasers, Cassiopeia Warrington, genuinely summons the Quaffle to her.

 

And when Lysander Scamander grabs James Potter’s bat to hit Rigel Thorne after he breaks Lorcan’s arm with a Bludger.

 

And when Keeper Venetia Williams of house Slytherin promptly elbows Lysander in the face to stop him from scoring.

 

And when Scorpius Malfoy literally jumps onto Lily Potter’s broomstick to steal the Quaffle away from her and then tries to jump back onto his own, misses and slams into the ground.

 

And here is some interaction between Rose and Brooke.

 

(You know, they weren't even supposed to be that close. Brooke was supposed to be better friends with Isadora, but Rose just wormed her way into Brooke's company all the time and who am I to deny her?)

 

I nudge her. “Check you out, earning us five house points.”

 

“Oh, be quiet.” She rolls her eyes.

 

“Perfect Miss Weasley has struck again,” I say, biting back a smile. “You’ll probably single-handedly win the House Cup for us, you know.”

 

“It was five points. Five.”

 

“The sweetheart of Hufflepuff,” I continue, as if she didn’t speak at all. “Rainbows follow you wherever you go, flowers bloom on the ground with every step, the birds don’t stop singing and a harp plays in the background whenever you speak as your hair gently billows back in the wind – “

 

“Oh, for the love of Merlin, why are you so damn dramatic?” she sighs.

 

I was gonna add in a snippet about Jasper and Brooke but a) DOCUMENT = too big and it would take me too long to find a good 'un and b) Jazzy-poo has the mouth of a sailor and swears so much that I can't currently find an appropriate sneak peak lol

 

xo

[dirigibleplums]

Hello m'dears!

 

I'm about to head off to bed in a second but I finally got past CH13 of the Fic of Indulgence (SO INDULGENT, GUYS, IT'S GREAT WRITING LIKE THIS AGAIN) and I'm just so happy. I've been in a rut in regards to writing this for ages so like... it's great. This feeling, I mean. The writing? Well, we'll see.

 

And now for some teasers!:

 

“We are breaking a dozen school rules!”

 

“Live a little!”

 

“Live a little? Live a - Living a little is approaching a hippogriff! Or even a Blast Ended Skrewt! It is not sneaking into Hogsmeade to go to the Hog’s Head and get drunk!”

 

“Circe, Isadora, you need to get your priorities sorted,” I say, sending her an odd look as we scurry through the secret passageway Rosie happily revealed to us earlier today. “How are a few drinks anything compared to a bloody Blast Ended Skrewt? Aren’t those things indestructible?”

 

“EXACTLY,” she squawks.

 

And... DAMN IT. The second quote I was going to add unfortunately contains a whole lotta Jasper in it aka Cuss Central. Let's just say, Rose wants everyone to hear her tale of woe and no one wants to.

[dirigibleplums]

okay so the unnamed indulgent as hell fic (aka 'spare tiem') has been put on the back burner for the moment bc i am so uninspired by it atm

 

but i recently started my entry for the amnesia experiment challenge (by recent, i mean literally two days ago, i have been shirking my responsibilities, i am an awful person) and imma leave some snippets. it's basically an au one shot where hermione has travelled back in time to the past bc the war went to hell and she lost everything so she wants to get rid of riddle but she doesn't remember that it's why she went back. she doesn't remember anything at all. it's a fic i've been meaning to write for a while now, actually, and this just gave me the excuse to write it

 

self-indulgence everywhere!

 

it's starts off like:

 

She doesn’t remember a thing.

 

Doesn’t remember what she ate for breakfast, doesn’t remember what she wore yesterday or the day before that, doesn’t remember what she came here to do, how she came here to do it, what here even is – she doesn’t even remember her name. All she has are vague impressions: the sense that here is home and that the man before her – a long auburn beard, a crooked nose, spectacles shaped like a moon that is halfway on its journey to being whole again – is powerful, benign but not really, and that she has been sent on an important mission of some sort, though what it is, she can’t quite recall.

 

Dangerous? Possibly.

 

Necessary? Certainly.

 

Illegal? … Perhaps.

 

and it all basically gets confusing as hell for her:

 

In early November, Jean Doe realises she is not of this time.

 

She sees Professor Dumbledore in Transfiguration and thinks he is too enigmatic for the lesson; she sees a toad hop through the grass and remembers a train she has never boarded; she sees the platinum part of Abraxas Malfoy’s hair and, bizarrely, recalls a ferret bouncing on the ground. Walburga Black reminds her of screaming curtains and frenzied snarls, Adella Prewett of garden gnomes and treacle tart, Nearly Headless Nick of a table groaning under the weight of rotten fish. She strides past a corridor in the castle and remembers that ENEMIES OF THE HEIR should beware, eats a chocolate frog and recalls that Nicolas Flamel is the only known maker of the Philosopher’s Stone, sees the Prophet plead for Dumbledore to take action against Grindelwald and wonders whether they were once in love.

 

Every single day, she remembers something new, something incongruous to this world.

 

and it's actually getting pretty dark so

 

here's to finishing it off by this weekend

[dirigibleplums]

update 15.05.17:

 

the amnesia experiment challenge entry aka gods without grace has been written and uploaded onto ffnet and hpft. not going to lie but i am really proud of it. like. it's one of my fave fics that i've written so far.

 

also, i have reached ch20 of spare tiem. still do not have a name for it but i do have chapter titles! so there's that. i actually love my chapter titles bc it just ties it all together more. i don't really want to give anything away about it but i'm not sure whether my fic will work out in the direction i want it to. i can't fully explain it without going into details but i feel like one of the major milestones coming up is going to seem too rushed and that brooke's actions afterwards won't seem... right? that makes no sense. ugh.

 

anyways, here is a snippet from spare tiem:

 

it's actually really hard to find one that doesn't contain a swear word omg

 

Far too tired to bring myself to care about what the teachers will think, I slide a pair of large black sunglasses onto my nose despite the fact that it’s autumn and I’m in Scotland. No doubt, it will confirm the suspicions the teachers will already have upon seeing tens of groaning, bleary students file into the Great Hall for a late breakfast… but like I said, I don’t care. The hangover cure Rose blearily slammed onto my bedside table can only do so much. The alcohol may be out of my system but my eyes are still haggard and tired like I’ve taken a fist to the face.

 

So I tie my hair up in a messy bun, throw on the hoodie Tyler gave me and stick on a pair of sunglasses before I amble out of the dormitory to where Rose and Isadora are waiting.

 

“You have got to be kidding me,” the latter says, jaw slackening.

 

My mouth twists into an irritated scowl. “What?”

 

“You’re wearing shades.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“In autumn.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“In Scotland.”

 

“Right again.”

 

Isadora continues to stare at me for a long, bewildered second before she snorts. “Alright, well, I guess this party is not going to stay a secret then.”

 

 

also, i have made some headway on my entry for the 'not your house' challenge. the house i least identify with is slytherin and the character study i'm doing is on pansy parkinson and i am pleasantly surprised by how it's turning out so far:

 

There’s a shiny new badge pinned to the soft black cotton of your robes. Silver, shaped in an I, its edges sharp and polished to a shine. Its sister is an emerald shield embellished with a cursive P coloured like a sickle and both of them scream with power, promising swift punishment and retribution to anyone who once threatened to squash down the brilliance that is Pansy Parkinson. You are drunk off it, sauntering through the hallways of Hogwarts, ready to flash a sardonic smile at the scurrying masses. You see their resentment and know it is fear. See their retreat and know you have won.

 

You are a princess and this castle is your domain. You have wrestled it back off the likes of Potter and his Mudblood Granger – you reign supreme, head held high, shoulders thrown back with the sort of confidence you can only have when you are secure in your throne at the top, your crown light on your brow. Though the students aren’t praising you, aren’t pressing forward with eager hands and eager hearts at your service, you know that there is a fine line between fear and fealty, that one day you will earn both.

 

Your name is Parkinson.

 

It resonates through halls you’ve known for six years already, a whisper that is tossed from person to person, student to student, until it becomes a roar. Your name is Parkinson and you are in the upper echelons of this school. Few like to meet your eyes, even fewer still will call your name. You are royalty, dripping silver and green, fingers laden with twisting metal and family rings and twirling a short stick that hums with power so people know to stay out of your way.

 

For once, your crown is not fashioned from pansies; it’s fashioned from bone.

[sunshinedaisieswindmills]

Hey Plums! I thought I'd stop by and return the favor

[*]How do you write Hufflepuffs so well? I've read a bit of Dormitory 2.6A, and I LOVE IT. As a Hufflepuff especially, I love the way you write such varied Hufflepuffs, because they're often made out to be pretty boring and/or stupid. How do you portray us so well?

[*]What made you decide to write 2.6A from the perspective of Hufflepuff specifically?

[*]I loved the little poem in evolution of pansies, it's literally been stuck in my head on and off since I first read it. Was there specific inspiration for that, or did it just come to you?

[*]CONGRATS ON YOUR SELF INDULGENT FIC! I've found that writing just for the heck of it makes writing so much more fun! What makes this particular story so self indulgent for you? If that's not too personal for you to answer, anyway.

[*]Do you have plans to publish your self-indulgent fic? If not, what are your plans for future publishing? Can we expect more fic from you?

[*]Returning the favor again, wed, bed, behead with the marauders, who dies?

 

Cheers!

[Vilja]

Hi Plums Now that we are working together in the maze, I thougt I'd come over here to get to know you better

 

(0. What kind of chocolates do you offer?)

 

1. How do you manage long chaptered stories? Do you have the whole plot outlined when you start, or you make things up as you progress?

 

2. From where do you get your inspiration? Is there any writer in particular who had an influence on you (apart from Rowling of course )

 

3. Which is your favourite archive to post?

 

4. Do you find that there is a difference between writing about characters from different houses? (I see you have a Hufflepuff fic being a Ravenclaw )

 

5. Is it chocholate that helps you in case of a writers-block? (I might try that ) Seriously, how do you cope with this block issue and become so productive?

[nott theodore]

Plums!  Hello, hello <3

 

1. Dormitory 2.6A is just amazing and it's been so successful.  What's your reaction to how popular it's been?

2. Speaking of Dormitory 2.6A... if you had to choose one of the six girls to keep forever and the rest had to fend for themselves in the Forbidden Forest, who would you keep and why?

3.  Is there anything that you would do differently if you were writing Dormitory 2.6A again?  Any big lessons you've learnt from it?

4. How much planning do you tend to do before starting to write?  (I might be asking this because Camp is about to start and I'm slightly panicking just fyi )

5. What is it that you like so much about Tom Riddle?

6. Are there any characters you love reading about but would never write?

7. Have you ever considered writing for any other fandoms? (GoT, for instance?)

[dirigibleplums]

Finally getting around the answer these! Also, haiii guys, good to see you ?

 

sunshinedaisieswindmills

 

1) First of all, thank youuuu ? You embarrass me. Second of all, I think it's just to do with the fact that I am half-Hufflepuff (literally - I was a hatstall) so I just have to tap into that side. Also! I don't understand how Hufflepuffs aren't varied?? My girl Helga literally said she isn't going to pick her students based off their qualities so Hufflepuff should contain people from all walks of life who are united by the fact that hey, they're not going to value one thing over the other and this is a community.

 

I say as a 'Claw ?

 

2) The girls are based off qualities my friends have so I literally listed what house I think we'd be in and half of the group was in Hufflepuff while the others were scattered across the other three. I considered it, realised that maybe I needed to break away from writing in Ravenclaw and try out Hufflepuff and voila. Here we are. I don't regret it one bit.

 

3) When I saw your challenge, I just knew I had to write about Pansy Parkinson but I didn't know what. I sat there for ages just staring at my laptop and I'm not even lying when I say I was half in a trance by the time I typed out the first part ? After that, I just rolled with it

 

4) SELF-INDULGENCE EVERYWHERE but welp, I have reached a huge block. It's self-indulgent bc I've included clichés I said I wouldn't return to and included them so much, it's almost parody-worthy lolll. Again, no regretz

 

5) I'm really on the fence about self-indulgent fic and publishing. Bc it's just such a mess but I've also put the effort into it so should I upload it?? Idk. Future plans include When Dahlias Bloom, a spin-off of Dormitory 2.6A and my modern muggle Marauder au (tentatively named Hogwarts High). I am also working on OF for the first time in a year ?

 

 

Vilja

 

I offer every type of chocolate in the world. I'm in love with it all.

 

1) I do outline to some extent with my fics but never extensively. I usually write down all the key scenes and plot points that have been bouncing around in my head for the past few weeks so that I have the basic skeleton of the plot and go from there. Sometimes, I'll reach a part of the plot and note down the key parts of the next bunch of chapters but again, it's v vague e.g in ch19 of my indulgent fic it says:

 

- snow - mention that people are nicer to her - letter from skylar (reads in class + mentions project) - events committee meeting (mentions alumni event)

 

I know what's happening but it's still flexible.

 

2) I have no idea where I get my inspiration from haha. I have a really overactive imagination so things just come to me in dreams or stray thoughts and boom, I'm writing something

 

3) This is complicated bc I love the community at HPFT but the archive is still in its early days. At HPFF, the reviews left are usually long and thoughtful or just cute so I love that. And then at FFNET is where I get the bulk of my favourites and reads. So I really don't know ?

 

4) I think it's the interactions of the house. In one fic of mine, Ravenclaws were friendly but generally assumed if you wanted help, you'd ask while Hufflepuffs offered it up straight away. (Not to say that us Claws aren't friendly - I love you all ♡). Slytherins I find hardest to write because I feel like there's always a subtext to their interactions in the house while Gryffindors are the complete opposite. Idk, it's hard to put in words haha

 

5) I have no idea how to deal with writers' block ????

[dirigibleplums]

I had to go shower and the answer was getting long-winded so part two ahead!

 

nott theodore

 

(Also, hey, Sian! )

 

1. Ahh you're making me blush ?? Honestly, I'm still in shock that it did get this far. It started off as a project on the side and then somewhere along the way Ineke gave it a chance and then everything just spiralled. It makes me insanely proud bc of how personal it is to me but I'm also in this semi-permanent state of shock that it is where it is ?

 

2. Um, what kind of evil question is that? ? Gah, if I think about it logically, probably Nala. Dahlia's aggressive enough to flat-out refuse to not come out of it alive, Alice probably has all the Knowledge about herbs and what will and won't kill them from Neville and I think Cass' Slytherin heritage will be useful if they want to survive. Nova's there to keep them sane and Reagan's there to keep Nova sane ?

 

3. I think, like with many projects, there are. Everything has room for improvements, after all! I can't think of huge specifics at the moment but I think it'd mostly be about pacing, maybe?

 

4. I've answered this above in more detail but I usually list every scene/plot point that I've been thinking about and just go from there. Buuuut I haven't done that with Hogwarts High lol (maybe that's why I struggled with it???)

 

5. I have no idea what it is I love about Tom Riddle. He's just really bloody fascinating, don't you think? He's so twisted and manipulative and compelling. The way he views the world is so sinister but so interesting to read about. And in the romances I've read that include him, it's always interesting to see how he interprets 'love'/a relationship as.

 

Don't get me wrong, he'd terrify me in real life, but his development into the Dark Lord is just really intriguing. I like seeing how the fact that he's a teenager comes into play too.

 

6. Harry, I think? I've considered writing him before for this really complicated fic of epic proportions but I don't think I'd ever do him justice. I do love my Harold, though <3

 

7. I've written a character study on Arya Stark for Branwen's challenge but not really tbh. I don't think I'm invested in other fandoms to the extent that I would write fanfiction for them. I read/watch them and enjoy it but that's the end of the road for me personally.

 

Thanks for the questions!

 

Oh, wait, also:

 

sunshinedaisieswindmills

 

Wed, bed and behead with James, Sirius and Remus? ?? Don't make me do this!

 

Wed: Remy boy

Bed: Sirius?

Behead: James. ONLY BECAUSE I CAN'T TAKE HIM AWAY FROM LILY

[The Impossible Girl]

Hello, hello!! Here with another gift from You-Know-Who 

Quote

 

Hello, my love! You-Know-Who here with a few questions for you! 

 

So you've mentioned that a pairing you enjoy is Tomione. What is it that attracts you to the pairing? 

 

Do you prefer Tomione stories where she saves him from himself, or ones where she uses his affection for her to eliminate him?

 

Out of the Marauders, which one would you marry? 

Which one would you casually date?

Which one would you think of as a brother?

And which one would you pull pranks with? 

 

Is there a character that you would really love to write, but don't feel as if you could get them right? 

 

If you could bring back one Marauder from the dead, who would it be, and why? 

 

Which Next-Gen character would you most like to go to dinner with? 

 

If you had to choose one (any era) character to bring into the real world and become friends with, who would it be, and why? 

 

Coffee or tea? 

 

Enjoy, dear! 

 

 

[dirigibleplums]

You Know Who, you spoil me too much ?? (Also, these are some really good questions! Props to you bc I am awful at thinking of some)

On 20/08/2017 at 11:41 PM, clevernotbrilliant said:

So you've mentioned that a pairing you enjoy is Tomione. What is it that attracts you to the pairing? 

Oh, God, lemme see if I can put it into words ? First off, it's the potential, I guess. Tom is, of course, ridiculously smart and able to meet Hermione with that on all fronts which would be v interesting for the two characters because I don't think they've ever been challenged on that level before.

Second of all, it's how messy it is. Look, I love reading my random funny modern au one shots about them, but ohmygosh is there angst when it comes to these two. They essentially stand for everything the other person opposes and in such an unapologetic manner that there's all this lovely tension and it's interesting to see how one affects the other. Not just Hermione softening Tom's cruelty, but the way he makes her more... pragmatic. It's interesting to see how Hermione's darker side can be tapped into.

I still love Romione though lol

On 20/08/2017 at 11:41 PM, clevernotbrilliant said:

Do you prefer Tomione stories where she saves him from himself, or ones where she uses his affection for her to eliminate him?

Depends on my mood tbh. I am more inclined to read fics where she intends to destroy him, but things get muddled along the way, but I am v hesitant about fics that redeem him completely

On 20/08/2017 at 11:41 PM, clevernotbrilliant said:

Out of the Marauders, which one would you marry? 

Which one would you casually date?

Which one would you think of as a brother?

And which one would you pull pranks with? 

I would marry my boy Remy because he would probably be the sweetest husband ever and our fridge will always be stocked with chocolate and we will live happily ever after. I'd probably casually date James because I feel like he'd be a riot and it'd be fun while it lasted. Peter would be like a little brother and Sirius would construct incredibly elaborate pranks that I'd doubt, nitpick and ultimately go along with ?

On 20/08/2017 at 11:41 PM, clevernotbrilliant said:

Is there a character that you would really love to write, but don't feel as if you could get them right? 

Um... HARRY?? Yeah, I think it's him. I absolutely love him and love reading Gen fics with him as the POV character, but I cannot write them for the life of me and wish I could

On 20/08/2017 at 11:41 PM, clevernotbrilliant said:

If you could bring back one Marauder from the dead, who would it be, and why? 

*screams* Don't do this to me. Don't you dare.

... Remus?  bc he has a kid and finally has a shot at happiness and Harry needs one link to his parents, okay?

On 20/08/2017 at 11:41 PM, clevernotbrilliant said:

Which Next-Gen character would you most like to go to dinner with? 

My boi, Al Potter <3

On 20/08/2017 at 11:41 PM, clevernotbrilliant said:

If you had to choose one (any era) character to bring into the real world and become friends with, who would it be, and why? 

I feel like it'd be Lily Evans because she seems like she'd be sassy and a laugh to be with, but also really compassionate and the type of friend who drives over at 4am with pancakes and waffles bc you're drowning in a sea of retrospective despair. Just the perfect package tbh

On 20/08/2017 at 11:41 PM, clevernotbrilliant said:

Coffee or tea? 

Green tea

Thank you for the questions, my love! ♡♡

[dirigibleplums]

four months later and ur girl is in a writing slump of epic proportions. i start something only to get stuck and then uninspired which is ??

i'm hesitant to commit to anything atm but!! i have been dabbling in this one shot (maybe two shot??? idk but it's gonna be looong) to do with james potter. it's a soulmate au bc i have been on That Hype recently, but it's mostly about him growing up tbh and IDK WHERE I'M GOING WITH IT, I'M JUST TRYING TO FIND A FLOW TO GO ALONG WITH

[dirigibleplums]

so i decided to start posting a chat fic instead

[Rainbow-tui]

Dahlia Darzi and James?

[dirigibleplums]

8 hours ago, Rainbow-tui said:

Dahlia Darzi and James?

what about them, love? (the chat!fic isn't about them if that's what you mean. it's a modern muggle!au of the marauders found +here  )

[dirigibleplums]

it's been a while, past/future me (past? or am i addressing the me who will read this in the future? what am i even talking about?) and i have since posted ice baby, my one shot about jily being soulmates. finally!! i have been attempting this trope for a good couple of years now and have failed every - single - time -.- i have no shame in admitting that i take pride in ice baby. ice hockey player james potter ftw

i've written about 16k of the wolfstar ice baby spin-off, but it's significantly angstier than the parent fic so i've had to take a break from it. i'm in the last bit of it now and it requires some stretching of the imagination ngl. i hope to return to it sometime after exams

but! in the meantime, i have uploaded a new one shot. it's wolfstar again (what is with me and the marauders omg) and i have no idea what possessed me to write it. modern muggle au except it's not completely muggle bc sirius is a vampire and the entire thing is just a MESS i love it ?

for example:

Quote

Not for the first time during their conversation, Remus asks himself just who he brutally massacred in a past life to have earned himself the company of this parasite (both figuratively and, well, literally). Did he once roam the earth as Vlad the Impaler perhaps? Indulge in bloodlust before his breakfast each morning? What terrible thing did he do that the higher powers saw fit to torture him so? No matter how shortly he speaks, Vampire Creep just isn’t going away.

With a heavy sigh, he elaborates, “It’s an essay on the effect of the Prohibition Era on organised crime.”

“The prohibition era!” Sirius exclaims. “I remember that! Good times.”

Remus looks at him blankly. “Of course, you do. How old are you anyway? Three hundred years? Five?”

“One. Well, nearly. I was actually turned during the Prohibition Era. Fun fact: my uncle shot me and I was bitten as I was bleeding out in the middle of the road. It was very dramatic if I say so myself. Would make a great movie.”

Literally one of the only parts there's not a swear word lmao

Edited April 30, 2018 by dirigibleplums

[dirigibleplums]

it is 4th june, my exams have officially been over for a few days and summer has begun so i can properly focus on my writing! ? i actually have loads of ideas, but i already know that my muse won't sustain most of them so we'll see how it goes ?

as of right now, i have officially finished ice baby spinoff, i think?? i'm slowly rereading over it atm, but i'm kind of scared to put it up due to how heavy it is ? honestly sirius doesn't deserve any of this. i need to come up with a name for it if i do decide to share it with the world as well

other than that, i'm still going strong with the chat!fic - i think this is probably because i put absolutely no pressure whatsoever on myself to write it. it's written in random bouts of inspiration and is just a pretty fun fic to write so i love it.

on the flip side, i've cranked up the dreariness with my latest OF idea?? the working title so far is lonely hearts club and it's about four girls in a rubbish british town who are essentially growing up and finding themselves. i'm kind of excited to explore characters who aren't necessarily the most pleasant of people ngl✌ hopefully if all goes well, i'll start uploading it to the archives once i have a couple of more chapters out of the way?? idk

 

[sunshine_locks]

okay, so i read through the entirety of you writing journal (can you tell i'm super bored?) and well, wow.

1. how did you have the motivation to write 20 chapters of a novel???????? i'm also pretty astonished about how you never got the urge to post it. like for me, i always have this voice in my mind telling to me to post my fics regardless of quality (you know, for that sweet sweet validation. it's a monster.) i could be one word in to a fic that's barely started and my mind will be chanting, "POST IT POST IT POST IT". constantly. i have no impulse control. tbh it's how most of my fics came by. 

2. i question your definition of grey!albus potter. you've written some pretty heavy stuff. i remember reading 'end of an era' and being like "well. okay." a pretty disappointing reaction, but it was of the kind where i just didn't know what to say. i've read it a few times since, and am still in like complete awe of it, in all of it's rawness. i still get urges to read it these days. ANYWAYS. i'm interested in grey!albus potter. tell me more. 

3. that name for your OF is cool! i can't quite describe what kinda vibe it gives, but it sounds humorous witty and serious all at once. i'm interested in reading it, and will keep an eye for it in the archives if you ever feel like posting it!! 

4. i still haven't ice baby and i'm disappointed in myself. i love vanilla ice, and that title is already a reel in for me. why haven't i read it yet. it sounds so good!! congrats on getting second place for it!!! you deserve it? (i dunno how much that means to you when i still haven't read it. so.)

[dirigibleplums]

lol how did i not realise that someone else had commented in this  (thanks for the questions btw! also, i hope you enjoyed reading my ramblings? honestly idek what i go on about half the time myself)

On 05/06/2018 at 4:59 AM, sunshine_locks said:

1. how did you have the motivation to write 20 chapters of a novel???????? i'm also pretty astonished about how you never got the urge to post it. like for me, i always have this voice in my mind telling to me to post my fics regardless of quality (you know, for that sweet sweet validation. it's a monster.) i could be one word in to a fic that's barely started and my mind will be chanting, "POST IT POST IT POST IT". constantly. i have no impulse control. tbh it's how most of my fics came by. 

honestly when i am motivated, i can write a lot. like those 20 chapters definitely went over 100k so if i'm inspired, i can vomit out words like there's no tomorrow (wow what wonderful imagery) but the trouble is that my muse is v fickle. so i abandoned spare tiem just like i have abandoned many, many things. even now i am currently abandoning a few ideas. i am honestly out of control

but seriously this is why i am always v hesitant to upload WIPs?? like i was really hesitant to put up WDB since i feared this would happen, but then i got too excited so i did it anyways and now every time i look at ch5, i just hate everything and have to cross off the tab before my inadequacy gets Too Real for me

On 05/06/2018 at 4:59 AM, sunshine_locks said:

2. i question your definition of grey!albus potter. you've written some pretty heavy stuff. i remember reading 'end of an era' and being like "well. okay." a pretty disappointing reaction, but it was of the kind where i just didn't know what to say. i've read it a few times since, and am still in like complete awe of it, in all of it's rawness. i still get urges to read it these days. ANYWAYS. i'm interested in grey!albus potter. tell me more. 

lmao i had to scroll up to see what i meant by grey!albus potter myself lmao  actually in the grand scope of things, he's not that grey, he's more of a stupid kid who made stupid, quite mean decisions that had more an impact that he perhaps intended due to who he is. from what i remember, he was sorted into slytherin, didn't take too kindly to it bc of the reactions of some people and his own prejudices against the house, and then essentially acted out because of all that? but the way he did it was by hurting (not physically but emotionally/mentally) the POV character in order to gain some twisted acceptance - ironically, he played into the house stereotype by doing so - and it all escalated until she got really hurt. the incident threw it all back into perspective for him and then he freaks out because he didn't want to be the sort of slytherin who hurts people to make themselves feel good... even though that's essentially what he did. so it was all that framed in a very high school-y concept tbh

but lol yeah i have written some pretty dark stuff before

also no, don't worry, that's a perfectly fine reaction! end of an era hit hard and i don't blame anyone for not knowing what to say. but also thank you, i'm glad to bring out that reaction in you  

On 05/06/2018 at 4:59 AM, sunshine_locks said:

3. that name for your OF is cool! i can't quite describe what kinda vibe it gives, but it sounds humorous witty and serious all at once. i'm interested in reading it, and will keep an eye for it in the archives if you ever feel like posting it!! 

i would honestly like to take full credit for it, but i was listening to a song by marina and the diamonds the other day and lonely hearts club is off one of her albums. my story doesn't fit the premise of the song entirely, but i really liked the feel of the name and went with it. if i do ever post it (which will hopefully happen!), i'll let you know <3

On 05/06/2018 at 4:59 AM, sunshine_locks said:

4. i still haven't ice baby and i'm disappointed in myself. i love vanilla ice, and that title is already a reel in for me. why haven't i read it yet. it sounds so good!! congrats on getting second place for it!!! you deserve it? (i dunno how much that means to you when i still haven't read it. so.)

i honestly have a problem of coming up with story names just as i have to upload it, but i seriously think i surpassed myself with ice baby. regardless of its origins, i actually love it and have no shame in admitting it. it's fine that you haven't read it, though i have to say you are missing out on a very cocky, very boyish james potter and unimpressed lily evans on ICE so  

[sunshine_locks]

thank u for answering my questions!! (the quick reply is due to the fact that i'm always on the forums lol)

36 minutes ago, dirigibleplums said:

but seriously this is why i am always v hesitant to upload WIPs?? like i was really hesitant to put up WDB since i feared this would happen, but then i got too excited so i did it anyways and now every time i look at ch5, i just hate everything and have to cross off the tab before my inadequacy gets Too Real for me

i think that it's possible to overthink ur work, but from the viewpoint of one of ur readers, i honestly don't know what ur talking about, b/c tbh i'm always going to be interested in Dahlia's and James' story, and how the girls are doing, and what the heck happens w/ Novus in the end. i'm not sure if you get, like, the magnitude of which ur writing has affected me, to the point that i literally think about it when i'm writing for my own stories. basically, i'm much too invested in ur stories for it to be healthy and also i'd fangirl over your writing anyday

i also get what u mean by inadequacy. while i very much do write for myself, it's actually very hard for me to get a move on with my WIPs and stuff b/c i need the commentary and reviews from people because it helps me improve my writing. otherwise i get stuck in this loop, like i never know if my writing is good or bad until people tell me. i also kind of post my stories assuming the fact that most people will be courteous if they want to tell me writing is bad??

36 minutes ago, dirigibleplums said:

lmao i had to scroll up to see what i meant by grey!albus potter myself lmao  actually in the grand scope of things, he's not that grey, he's more of a stupid kid who made stupid, quite mean decisions that had more an impact that he perhaps intended due to who he is. from what i remember, he was sorted into slytherin, didn't take too kindly to it bc of the reactions of some people and his own prejudices against the house, and then essentially acted out because of all that? but the way he did it was by hurting (not physically but emotionally/mentally) the POV character in order to gain some twisted acceptance - ironically, he played into the house stereotype by doing so - and it all escalated until she got really hurt. the incident threw it all back into perspective for him and then he freaks out because he didn't want to be the sort of slytherin who hurts people to make themselves feel good... even though that's essentially what he did. so it was all that framed in a very high school-y concept tbh

i like this idea!! though most accept the fact that albus potter is Irrevocably A Slytherin, I don't think i've read many fics where he reacts badly to being sorted in slytherin. it's always his cousins or his siblings that hassle him for being slytherin or something. i've seen the bully -> friends -> lovers kind of story before, but i think ur spin on it would be nice to read!!

36 minutes ago, dirigibleplums said:

i honestly have a problem of coming up with story names just as i have to upload it, but i seriously think i surpassed myself with ice baby. regardless of its origins, i actually love it and have no shame in admitting it. it's fine that you haven't read it, though i have to say you are missing out on a very cocky, very boyish james potter and unimpressed lily evans on ICE so  

OKAY BUT i've read Ice Baby and Shackle Me and i'm in love with all of it. i don't read marauder fic often, but since it was you, i figured i'd give it a try. and oh man, i don't regret it at all!!! although you played into the stereotypes in the fandom we often see, there was like a depth to all of your characters that I absolutely loved omg. though i do have to ask, what did happen with lily and petunia??? it was very vague in the story. and Shackle Me was also perfect, and it think all loose ends were tied together so nicely, and Sirius' and Remus' loves story was vv sweet and organic. (but i want to know, do sirius and regulus ever reconcile? or do they become estranged?)

Edited June 13, 2018 by sunshine_locks

[dirigibleplums]

2 hours ago, sunshine_locks said:

i think that it's possible to overthink ur work, but from the viewpoint of one of ur readers, i honestly don't know what ur talking about, b/c tbh i'm always going to be interested in Dahlia's and James' story, and how the girls are doing, and what the heck happens w/ Novus in the end. i'm not sure if you get, like, the magnitude of which ur writing has affected me, to the point that i literally think about it when i'm writing for my own stories. basically, i'm much too invested in ur stories for it to be healthy and also i'd fangirl over your writing anyday

okay but this is honestly one of the sweetest things anyone has ever said to me i feel EMOSH brb crying my eyes out 

also! i definitely overthink my writing a lot. i think it's bc i never let anyone read it irl?? and so uploading it makes me kind of nervous bc i want it to be perfect ofc and with the attention that d2.6a/wdb has gotten, i feel that even more so. like i have Ideas about where the story is meant to go and Scenes i can picture in my mind, but i don't know whether i can get to those points in a way that'll feel satisfying enough to myself to share if you understand? i mean, i suppose i could just write those random scenes and change wdb into a weird one shot collection... type... thing...

would that even be viable lol

2 hours ago, sunshine_locks said:

OKAY BUT i've read Ice Baby and Shackle Me and i'm in love with all of it. i don't read marauder fic often, but since it was you, i figured i'd give it a try. and oh man, i don't regret it at all!!!

once again, you're just too nice to me  

seriously though, thank you! i'm glad you liked it since i had a lot of fun exploring that universe

2 hours ago, sunshine_locks said:

though i do have to ask, what did happen with lily and petunia??? it was very vague in the story.

haha, i was pretty vague with the lily+petunia situation, wasn't i?  essentially what happened was that lily really took to ice/figure skating in a way that petunia didn't and so grew exceptionally good at it over the years until she began to train properly and was scouted to crank up that training so she could do it professionally. people genuinely thought that, with the proper effort and practice, she could eventually enter the olympics. naturally, their parents were over the moon and so doted a lot on lily because of it which... didn't sit so well with petunia. she felt pretty left out and unordinary like she was some sort of disappointment and took it out on lily by souring their relationship, but didn't really give a proper explanation as to why

(eventually lily breaks down pretty badly from the pressure and stress. it's a culmination of everyone's high expectations of her, how hard her training is on her body and her fractured relationship with tuney that leads her to it and she opts to not pursue a professional career in it afterwards. and then people treat her all weirdly because of all that lost potential.)

2 hours ago, sunshine_locks said:

(but i want to know, do sirius and regulus ever reconcile? or do they become estranged?)

i think if sirius and regulus ever reconcile it's very far in the future. there's this sort of silent acknowledgement between them by the end of the fic: that regulus could've done better while sirius was living in grimmauld place, but he did ultimately love sirius. he criticised him, rarely agreed with what sirius did and sympathised with how their mother was treated by their father a lot, but he did care for him in his own way. it's why he stayed quiet about remus for so long, even to sirius, and he only really brings it up in a fit of anger. (which doesn't excuse what he says, of course, but explains why he did what he did.) when he realises that remus is his brother's soulmate, any criticisms he has about their relationship falls away in the face of that and he feels guilty as hell about what sirius suffers through because of his revelation

it's why he keeps his mother back when she's in a frenzy, it's why he avoids sirius in school, it's why he sneaks the potters in when walburga leaves the house so that they can collect sirius' stuff. everything he does is very much behind-the-scenes. it's his way of staying a 'black' while also helping out his brother

meanwhile, sirius 100% takes his father's words seriously so he doesn't reach out himself. even though he grows as a person by the end of it, he's still aware that his father doesn't hold much love for him so he doesn't risk it. therefore, if the two were ever to reconcile, it would likely be after orion is dead and no one is there to say otherwise

there's a cheerful thought

[dirigibleplums]

as of 3rd september, i have written:

- some chapters of the chat!fic which is still going strong. i am still not putting any pressure on myself for it since it's all just a bit of fun. like seriously sometimes i write a chapter and throw it up that very sitting. it's great tbh

- a youtuber au that was v indulgent (like... all of my fics tbh) and featured: a present peter, dorky fanboy james, indie artist lily evans, sirius being v... sirius, and remus being 90% done with everyone as per usual. it's a cute little thing if i do say so myself

- a scorbus!!! i've never written them before and it's been a while since i've had a stab at next gen. when i uploaded it, it was for the prefects challenge so i didn't want to linger too much on how i wasn't wholly satisfied with it, but upon some distance, i realised it's not that bad. al is useless, yes, but i'm alright with it

- i also wrote a one shot to explore regulus' feelings about the whole situation in shackle me. it's a one shot i'm not all too confident in, even now, but i'm learning to not overthink and doubt myself all the time. i wanted to write and upload it so i did. it is what it is

- i also wrote a dramione v recently (like... the other day). it features the hanahaki trope and it's v angsty. i'm quite proud of it since i was kind of experimental with how i wrote it

i realise now that i've written more than i expected this summer and have officially gotten more comfortable in writing a male POV nowadays which is unexpected but cool.

i do have a couple of ideas that i've been toying with every now and again, but i doubt i'll write it. one is a next gen fic and the other is a remake of when dahlias bloom. it's unlikely to happen bc i've sort of left that chapter of my life behind, but i do have things that i would do differently in d2.6a and a lot of it rests with dahlia. WDB would be the best way to sort it, but it'd be a different style to the prequel and i'm not sure whether i'm even inspired enough to do it. one thing i'm focusing on nowadays is not forcing my muse into writing, just letting it happen naturally

Edited September 3, 2018 by dirigibleplums

[teh tarik]

Hi Plums!

I don't think we speak very often even though I've seen you around for ages, on Twitter and on the forums, so thought I'd swing by your WJ for the 2018-2019 HC Opener, and also because I recently read your amazing fic, A Boy of Hans. So, hello! Questions for you!

1. So....Hanahaki disease trope. TELL ME ABOUT THIS TROPE. I'd pretty much never heard of it until I read your fic. What about it appeals to you?

2. I'm so curious about the way you structured your fic! I love non-linear narratives, and was overjoyed once I started reading. Was it hard to write?

3. Also, how did you come up with the names of each section in your fic?

4. What was your absolute favourite thing about writing this fic?

5. Would you consider writing anything from a different fandom? What other fandoms are you into?

 

Also, if I haven't said it before, you are a fabulous and brilliant writer! And I look forward to reading more of your work!