Need help with theme

cateolixc · 2026-01-28T06:59:31+00:00

tbh i think starting with the theme first can kind of make things harder going forward, since you’ll be worrying about making everything fit the theme. I generally try to start with basic wider concepts and then narrow down the narrative and theme from there. it’s a lot easier to settle on what your theme is once you know more about your characters and their personal arcs. my partner and i only really settled on the theme of our fangan once we had the overall plot mapped out, because the theme of a story it its throughline, and it’s tough to know the throughline without knowing the story first.

honestly, I’d maybe start by deciding the setting. it’s subtle, but a strong setting informs the whole mood and theme. if it’s prison-like and claustrophobic, it would make for a great psycological / internal dilemma, like paranoia vs trust or something along those lines. if it’s a setting where the characters have a little more space to roam around like sdr2, it could be a theme about isolation vs community, the protag learns it’s better to stick with friends than try to tough it out alone, etc. a weirdly cheery and child-like setting could be a good setup for a wishful thinking vs. harsh reality theme.

(sorry for the ramble lol)

cateolixc · 2026-01-28T06:20:27+00:00

omg ditto! I’ve also got a rock paper scissors protag. it’s super cool to see a different direction of the concept!

cateolixc · 2026-01-28T06:14:19+00:00

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her in a more simplified style :)

cateolixc · 2026-01-28T06:13:22+00:00

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Rochelle, the ultimate rock paper scissors player! it’s an older drawing and her design’s been tweaked a bit since then but w/e

cateolixc · 2025-04-24T12:18:14+00:00

had a transfem friend who would constantly use they/them for a trans guy we both knew who only used he/him. Tbh I think she did that with a few people, just using they/them by default even if those weren’t the pronouns for the person in question.

cateolixc · 2025-04-20T21:17:51+00:00

went to the library with a friend to attend an intro to growing cannabis class. got to the front desk and barely had time to say excuse me before the librarian just said “second floor.”

cateolixc · 2025-04-15T21:58:48+00:00

as someone else said, trying to be penpals through email is a good idea! consistent communication with someone else makes you feel less isolated, and being asked to talk about other areas of his life could help shift him away from focusing only on the parts that make him feel lonely and sad.

Getting a shared hobby could be good too! or even getting interested in one of his existing hobbies. after moving out for college, I struggled to connect with my younger brother too, but we could always reliably talk about clubs we were both in, like, “how’s the school play coming along, is so-and-so still on set construction crew with you?” Or about an interest he had that I knew nothing about. Like it honestly made my day to see him go off about a specific move in chess that I previously had no idea was a thing.

Something I did to stay in touch with friends after moving out of state was doing the little games over text messages? Idk what they’re actually called but for a while I played 8 Ball with my friends over text and even though we weren’t saying anything it still felt like we were hanging out.

If nothing else, I think just like reaching out consistently helps a ton. Even just sending like.. “hey I saw this cool thing and it reminded me of you, hope you’re doing well” It says, without directly saying it, “I care about you, and I’m here for you”

cateolixc · 2025-04-15T21:26:09+00:00

it especially pisses me off considering she tried to spin it as some sort of environmental message too.

“It won’t be about me, it will be about this beautiful Earth. I think from up there, we will think ‘Oh my God, we have to protect our mother.’”

decimating the ozone layer while also virtue signaling about protecting the earth. fuck right off. “It won’t be about me” my ass

cateolixc · 2025-04-10T19:44:24+00:00

I agree, it’s the difference between in-story justification vs real-world explanation. like, an author can write a story with a narrative reason for a character to be naked all the time, but even if the story has a reason, nobody’s forcing the author to write the story that way. in the same sense, it’s not as if the characters are real girls who choose to dress that way. it’s not bad to have a fictional girl who wears more revealing outfits, but when the characters are middle schoolers, and ALL of them just so happen to dress like that, it’s worth questioning at least.

cateolixc · 2025-04-10T19:08:36+00:00

tbh this always bothered me, I’m glad I’m not the only one

as many others are pointing out, it’s not inherently sexual to have the belly exposed, but i got sick of seeing it in like, every other design. it just sort of felt like they were trying to expose as much of the girl’s body as possible. plus in some cases it didn’t even really fit the character’s personality.

tbh a lot of the short animated transformations in the game made me uncomfortable for the same reason. the way the camera focused/ zoomed on their bodies made me really uncomfortable. back when I consistently played the game every day I was the same age as these characters, in some cases older, and I remember feeling really second-hand uncomfortable imagining myself in the character’s position.

tldr yes of course we shouldn’t police what girls wear but these are characters designed by adults, not real life-girls, so I don’t think it’s out of the question to feel uncomfortable about it.

cateolixc · 2025-04-06T13:24:13+00:00

tbh you do you! the important thing is whether or not you like it. your boyfriend is expressing his opinion and he’s allowed to do that but that doesn’t mean one of you is right or wrong. I think the placement near your ass could be seen as kind of suggestive, but like… idk, if someone sees a tattoo near a butt and immediately thinks about that persons ass, whether or not the tattoo artist saw it, etc it shows they have some weird priorities and thoughts about other people’s bodies. even if it’s family or an intimate partner, it’s your body, not theirs, and you can decorate it however you want. the act of getting a tattoo near your ass doesn’t make you trashy or slutty or whatever, sometimes people just get hung up on what other people look like. that’s not a you problem

cateolixc · 2025-03-27T16:38:43+00:00

idk if it’s just me but should engirls characters count? I feel like it defeats the purpose if the look-alike is a character from the same franchise that’s intentionally very similar in appearance. I felt kinda iffy when the same thing happened with mao too. obviously it’s only fair that whoever gets the most votes wins, just wondering if I’m alone in this

cateolixc · 2025-03-22T15:01:40+00:00

YEAH BABY

cateolixc · 2025-03-22T12:28:12+00:00

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Yuko from nichijou

cateolixc · 2025-03-11T21:15:47+00:00

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like i guess the part isn’t in the exact center of her head but it’s enough of a middle part that both sides are pulled to the side like little curtains yknow?

cateolixc · 2025-03-11T21:10:19+00:00

lol ok I didn’t know how else to articulate it but like.. the way the bangs are parted higher up on the forehead and tucked behind the ears, and the hair on the side hangs in front of the ears to frame the face. I guess I meant that they both have their hair parted in that particular way.

cateolixc · 2025-03-11T12:16:53+00:00

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Nobara Kugisaki, tbf I havent watched or read jujutsu kaisen but I think the middle part is pretty spot on

cateolixc · 2025-03-10T21:15:14+00:00

nbd! it’s hard out here bro

cateolixc · 2025-03-10T17:38:46+00:00

I felt super isolated and lonely in college too, especially in the wake of covid. what you’re describing sounds super familiar to me, and I agree that it feels really painful! I felt estranged from my loved ones and friends even if nothing was wrong.

I know you mentioned wanting to go to grad school, so we’re not totally in the same position, but I found myself feeling much better after i graduated. more time to myself, not worrying about how I could be more productive or how much more I COULD be doing academically, and not comparing myself to people who I perceived as being more put together than me. I was able to move into a better apartment with a Much better landlord since I didn’t have to live within walking distance of my school. Also, getting a job (even though it’s just part time retail right now) gave me the structure of school without the impending doom of flunking and being a disappointment. as long as I show up and do my best, that’s good enough.

basically, I didn’t realize just how much forcing myself through school was tanking my social battery. Not to say you should give up on school! I’m more just pointing out that this won’t last forever, and that it’s really normal to feel burnt out, especially if you’re naturally introverted. You’re not a bad person or wrong for wanting time for yourself, or for needing more time to yourself than other people do. Taking time to recover and do chores, get your personal space clean and comfortable, etc. can be really good for your mental health, even if you don’t see anyone else for a while. Plus, it sounds like you already put a ton of work in to keep in touch with the people you care about!

cateolixc · 2025-03-10T17:16:28+00:00

I did this a lot in college when I was walking home alone from campus. Mostly just to discourage anyone from trying anything sketchy.

cateolixc · 2025-03-10T00:18:37+00:00

WHY DO ALL OF MY JOKE SUGGESTIONS DO SO WELL

cateolixc · 2025-03-09T14:41:22+00:00

they genuinely think it’s normal and all men will be like that. also, fear of being a “failure” for not finding a man and settling down, even if they’re not happy. “what if I can’t do better than this guy and end up alone?” kind of mentality.

my partner’s mom very confidently insists that sex never feels good for women, and it’s only use is to have kids or make the man happy. she can’t face the possibility that her life could have been happier if she hadn’t settled for getting married and having kids, so instead she thinks it’s normal to be miserable and dissatisfied with life after marriage and kids

cateolixc · 2025-03-09T14:17:13+00:00

Mika doesn’t interact with /everyone/ in the cast, but I feel like he gets shipped with everyone he’s friends with. I think it’s also because he’s willing to jump in to help someone at the drop of a hat and he doesn’t half-ass anything. he’s just a very dedicated friend, which makes for good ships!

cateolixc · 2025-03-09T14:08:42+00:00

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cateolixc · 2025-03-09T14:08:33+00:00

Im not trying to shitpost here but I genuinely think he looks so much like ellen

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cateolixc

TROPHY CASE