“There are studies that show that fiction in particular builds empathy—that when you read about characters who don’t look or live like you, you begin to understand them a little bit better. You understand what makes you similar and how vast the differences are, and it helps you to be a little bit more compassionate toward people who are different from you. Right now it seems like—not just in America, but around the world—we need a little more empathy.”

—Gene Luen Yang, in the March/April issue of Poets & Writers Magazine (2017)

When people ask why representation is important…

Instructions by Neil Gaiman

Zaragoza - Spain (by Juanedc.com) 

It was a foolish idea to think they could take on such a beast. They’d stopped dead in their tracks nearly as soon as they’d exited the cavern, the dragon flying over them with a roar that sank deep in his bones and gave him the overwhelming urge to run in the opposite direction. But no, they had descended into the pit, quietly, until Tristan had seen the gong. It was like a magpie to silver, his course across the pit altered with the gong as its end point. For all of Thedas, Zevran could not understand what possessed him to proceed to ring the gong, the sound ominous against the silence of the mountain. When Tristan returned to the rest of the group and saw their undoubtedly dumbfounded expressions, he explained.

“Perhaps killing their ‘Andraste’ will be a strong enough message to them.” Zevran still didn’t understand, but didn’t have time to argue as rushing air nearly knocked him over, the dragon’s shriek enough to make his blood run cold. There was only time now to prepare for what was to come next.

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as much as i love the trope of a character falling fast and hard for someone, i also love the subtle descent where they don’t really think about it; where that person is just kind of there until one day they realize that person is so ingrained in their lives and they cannot do without them. where there is no conscious effort on either ends to become romantically involved but somehow the thought of them being with someone else is disconcerting. where “i enjoy being with you” unwittingly turns into “i want to be with you”

Nav K. (via wordsnquotes)

Isobel Thrilling  (via thelovejournals)

Tahereh Mafi, Shatter Me

i was tagged by @greywardan do to the chart for my warden, alice cousland (template courtesty of @trashwarden)

note: the chart reads from the outside in over time. so alice was friends with alistair first and then fell in love with him. she apparently respects people over being friends with them, make more friends alice come on

also thanks to tabi for making this look prettier than the one i originally made, u da best. anyone who wants to do this do it! it’s super fun to think about relationships so i highly recommend this! i also super love wardens and would be very happy to see more of these on my dash

no one tagged me in this, but i couldn’t leave delia out so here she is (template courtesy of @trashwarden)

note: the chart reads from the outside in so delia respected fenris before she fell madly in love with him. they’re honestly disgusting, i can’t believe them. she also has a complicated relationship with her brother, she loves him always but towards the end of da2 she gains a lot respect for who he has become. gamlen comes around after a while, she can respect him. 

consider yourself tagged if you want to do this, it’s super fun to think about. also thanks to @greywardan for being a gem and making my squiggles look a lot better :)

i got bored so i made some of my pal’s @inconceivablekatie‘s da ocs… if yall have some ocs u want manipped then hmu

i was tagged by @greywardan to do this cool thing, template by @trashwarden 

i was tired of trying to do straight lines so i went with squiggles. this is eliana trevelyan and her fraaaaands. enjoyyyyy (consider yourself tagged if  you wanna do it) ((also thanks to @greywardan for the hella good manip of my child, you are a gem, as always))

from the main blog (:

Freckles

They were camped on the edges of the Frostback Mountains, descending from the accursed town of Haven. They had been trying their best to put the miserable village far behind them, but it had been raining for days. The ground melted beneath their feet, turning into mud that clung to everything, leaving behind the worst stains he had ever seen. Zevran was beginning to understand why the people of Ferelden had a fondness for the color brown. He was stretched out in his tent, staring up at the drooping wet leather above his head and wondering when it might start to drip. Ferelden could be so miserable sometimes he didn’t know how the natives could stand it. Now more than ever he missed his Antiva City, where it was the opposite of all that he had experienced thus far in Ferelden. If he had the option, he could almost say that he would leave without a second thought. But that would be a lie as he had found a very convincing reason to stay in the cold, muddy country; perhaps the most convincing reason for him to do anything at all.

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