The Uptake: The 704, 3|0|0|OX

The Uptake. The 704. Book I, Chapter 4. Go to first. Go to previous.

TW: stages of loss of a close loved one, technically also robotic gore



Deep bags under his eyes, Torber threw his arms up at the information peddler, fed up with the tween boy.

“You gotta know somethin’. Somebody’s gotta.”

“I can’t promise a thing, but y’know if I’m not the first one y’asked, every peddler down here’s got an ear to the ground for ya.” The young, shaven peddler got an equally tired look in his eye, playing sympathy. “For how dogged y’are about it, y’can’t possibly be the only one lookin’ for him.”( Read more... )

Regarding the repost...

Pardon the dust and the intermittent catch-up. (Ketchup? Catsup?) This is a vent post I guess...

The Uptake has a five-year history on Tumblr, but each book existed on separate blogs where I compartmentalized inspo-posts and all that jazz together in one place. Posts that felt on-flavor for The 704, for example, would all go on Galen's blog, and posts that felt on-flavor for Wounds would all go on 'Choly's, etc. After a number of factors got to a breaking point, I decided to restart and repost all Uptake original content all in one place, on its own blog.

After Tumblr this summer decided to roll out bizarre text-post limitations to its app, I started seriously hunting for someplace else to host The Uptake. I struck out over and over trying to find a place that both permitted the narrative themes I employ while also not stealing my toenails and mesentery just for considering posting content there. (Coughing at you, Wordpress.) I just sort of decided whatever, Tumblr is being a colic baby, I'll get used to it, I got used to the site updates that killed RP threading, sure.

I had literally not a week prior to the Tumblrgeddon announcement gotten it up to date enough to be in "creating content instead of reposting it" mode. Table of contents. First/next/previous links. Tumblr's mobile app has a restriction of 99 paragraph breaks per post, and I'd sliced up long chapters accordingly and linked all those. I'd swallowed the reality that Tumblr currently hides posts from searches if any given post contains a link of any kind, owning that 1. I had a small but dedicated following and 2. fiction on Tumblr has changed so dramatically in the past year that there really was no other option.

But... I had it exactly how I wanted it. I was owning it. I was loving it. For the first time all year, I was really feeling like I had a professional looking, thoroughly indexed, and easily navigable place where people could partake in my content. In its own way, it was a liberating celebration of self. I was letting myself have this project, and I was letting myself love myself for it.

You can imagine just the nadir my soul's been dragging the past two days. You can also imagine that the timing of happening upon a mutual's reblog that mentioned this place feels like some exquisite serendipity.

I enjoy HTML coding, and I adore that this site is so customizable through it and stylesheets. There've been numerous times I felt like I was sacrificing text formatting, just to post my content online in recent years. But at the same time, the successive blows to the backside of my skull from the relocation have left me bruised and more arthritic than usual.

Tl;dr. I am grateful for your patience and interest in my project. I am blessed to have a place such as this to relocate my longest-running project to date. Thank you for letting me vent.

...I am very tired.

Was He Orpheus, Then?

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )