geekhyena:

im-significant:

First off, if you didnt know, there is a YW skype group. This is a PSA concerning it and changes that are currently being made. 

Due to recent concerns that the current YW skype group chat has turned into a support group and is no longer serving as the forum for religious and/or philosophical discussion it was originally intended to be, we are splitting the chat into subgroups. 

1. The current chat is now renamed and repurposed as “YW support group,” pending the finding of a fitting quote. Anyone who wishes to leave now that this is its main purpose is welcome to, no one will judge you. Also, if you are not currently in this group and want to be, contact me here or on skype to be added.
2. a new “even saints have to start somewhere” (religion/philosophy) chat will be opened, same contact info applies
3. a third chat for YW and associated fandom talk will also be going up based on demand. Again, same contact info.

I and others hope that this will make the YW skype chat experience more accessible and pleasant to all. In case it wasn’t clear, you may be in any combination of these chats, or all three, or none. this reformatting is for the sake of those who would prefer to avoid one or more of the above topics while still participating in group chat. I apologize to anyone for whom this change is unsettling or alarming, I know things like this can be. However, this has been building for a while and those in the discussion agreed that this is a needed change to keep the chats as welcoming as possible.

Please let me know if you have suggestions of quote-based titles for the first or third chats, or if you have questions or concerns. This is meant to be a helpful change, I need to know if it is a problem for anyone.

Signal boostifying!

tittily:

crewdlydrawn:

art-is-blind:

thefisherqueen:

osointricate:

Tips for living alone

Buy a bat (I have my old color guard rifle) or similar. Keep it in your room/near your bed.

Get a lock for your bedroom door.

If you’re moving into a new place, change the locks. Who knows who had a key to your place before you.

Keep your phone/a phone in your room.

Get a weather alert system set up. App, weather call, little weather radio that tells you about major weather events.

Adopt a pet

Wave at your neighbors. Take note of the ones that make you uneasy. Watch out for kids always.

Be nice to your mail person. No matter what.

If you choose to drink/etc alone, unplug your wifi router. You’ll thank me.

Have extra seating. People sit when they visit. Your one comfy chair is great for you. Not so great for you + grandma + ur five cousins, your aunt, and a couple others.

Learn the self-Heimlich

When you take a shower, bring your phone to the bathroom in case you fall your phone is no longer halfway across the house, it’s just on your counter

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Idk what else

If you live in an one-room apartment, put a screen around your bed. It’ll feel less like you visit people, esp. strangers, into your bedroom. Also you’ll feel much safer sleeping in the enclosure.

Cook enough for a few meals each time you cook, and freeze the extra food. That way you’ll prevent things from expiring and it’s great when you don’t feel like cooking or have no time or energy for it.

Give a key to someone near you trust, or hid it somewhere few people will look, like up in a tree. Shutting yourself out isn’t nice, esp. not at night.

Put something translucent like curtains or stickers for windows where people can walk past or look in. You’ll feel less watched that way.

Put some contant money somewhere in your room. Good to have in case your bag gets lost or stolen. 

Feeling lonely? Remember, online contacts are not less valuable.

I would say maybe set reminders for everything too. Taking meds/vitamins, working out, going to sleep, waking up.

Buy a small fan for white noise at night if you’re the kind (like me) that gets anxious at all the little ambient noises that ANY building can supply in the dark.

Don’t watch scary movies in the dark by yourself, with no visitors.

NETFLIX, if you can afford it. It’s also useful because you can watch movies / shows with your online buddies at the same time, miles and states and (sometimes even) countries apart.

get an app like safetrek. never walk into allies or empty streets if there is a more populated/well-lit route to your destination. keep emergency contacts in your wallet and a red cross card with your blood type on it in case anything happens. carry a list of medications you’re allergic to, if any. 

walking around with a headset or headphones discourages people from yelling at you on the street, and it’s easier to escape from hasslers. however, it’s pretty advisable to not have anything actually playing so you can be aware of your surroundings. if anything, have it at low volume.

if you get grabbed on the street (this used to happen to me a lot), immediately scream, and the person will usually get startled, giving you time to get away. 

if you feel like you’re in a really bad place, call someone, or even pretend like you’re calling someone. say where you are. act like you’re planning on meeting up with them. be loud about it. make it seem like someone will notice if you go missing, even for a little bit.

also u should look up manufacturer’s coupons like damn i feel like a successful suburban mom every time i walk into cvs and save 2 dollars on my toothbrushes

its-an-0-8-4:

maximerobespierre:

artblastside:

bipolarmenace:

felineprince:

bipolarmenace:

graht-oak:

if your social justice isn’t accessible to LDC (learning/developmental/cognitive disability) folks then honestly what the fuck are you doing

one thing that you can do to start making your blog more accessible: stop making your blog font size 8px caps pixel shit, change your blogs font size to 12px at the least.

stop using moving gifs as backgrounds, don’t allow music to autoplay on your blog are two important things too.

one more thing too: when you’re typing out a long sj related post it’s a good idea to add a condensed (essentially a tl;dr) at the bottom for people (like me) who have trouble processing large walls of text

and add frequent paragraph breaks! using bullet points for some bits where possible can help too

if you’re using bullet points, consider using numbering instead. that way if people lose track of their line, they can more easily find where they were 

Add image descriptions.

rosey-buddy:

paranerdia:

While you are worrying about whether beta readers will steal your ideas, there is a more genuine threat on the horizon.

When offered a publishing contract, please do all your research before you sign. There are a number of fakes and scammers out there, as well as good-intentioned amateurs that don’t know how to get your work to a wide audience. I won’t tell the heartbreaking stories here – there are too many.

Being published badly is worse than being never published.

It can destroy your career and your dreams.

The quick check is to google the publishing house name + scam or warning.

But, to be sure, check with these places first. They aren’t infallible (nothing is) but they can help you protect yourself. They are written and maintained by expereinced writers, editors, publishers and legal folks.

Absolute Write: Bewares and Background Checks

Preditors and editors

Writer Beware

and the WRITER BEWARE blog

Keep yourself and your work safe.

This is really important, so if you are a writer or have writer friends, or you are a writing blog, please reblog it.

Just to let you know, PublishAmerica changed their name to America Star Books.