happy birthday, dars! ★

you're an evil witch & we have voted to burn you at the stake

BUT FIRST,

★ Describe his writing ability in a few words. How does it make you feel? For Example: warm, familiar, golden. It's like sunshine. Flex your prose! Make him feel like Griffin has puked on him.

Cam - His writing makes me feel like I'm being deepthroated by god herself, like I've just passed that third and final kidney stone, like a hundred tiny elves are stroking my rounded ears in envy and awe, like I've read something so profound that the only apt response is sksksksk
Alex - dars' writing is like if you woke up and drank an elixir that transformed you into ageless european nobility with the ability to speak twelve languages, paint a portrait, and ride horseback blindfolded. its astonishing, beautiful, and otherworldly
Tom - pretty, delicate, and raw. It's like a flower with water drops on the ends of the petals, just gently waiting to fall.
Stare - poetic, lovely, stunning
WT - "familiar" is honestly a perfect suggestion bc Dars' writing is always just really comfortable to read? like coming back to a beloved book except it's also always fresh
Kay - Grounded. In the moment. Like I'm actually there with his characters.
Geebs - Much good
Zoe - I think the best thing about Dars' writing is how like... vast it is. It's so balanced. You've got the gritty emotion, the streak of memories driving a character to their decision, the physicality in battle or how they're moving through the space, the beautiful imagery that builds up the setting and then there's that quick-fire response or gorgeous dialogue that wraps it all up together and gives the character a true, tangible voice and feel. MAGIC!!!!!!!! ART!!!!!!!!!
Kaitlin - listen. i'm not going to make him feel like griffin puked on him. i don't want to be prose heavy, so i'm just going to say that darren's writing makes me inspired to write. is that cheesy? maybe. but there's literally nothing like reading something and your head immediately going "damn, this makes me want to write." it's not always flowery. sometimes darren writes hardened hearts, or smols, or smols pretending to be hardened hearts, and they're all different and wonderful and they just. he makes me want to write. to be a better writer.
Shrimp - When dusk turns to twilight
Aya - I'd love to write a five paragraph essay about how great dars is bc, in his words, he deserves this, but I'm out of time and all these fields are mandatory

★ Which of his tributes did you most enjoy? Not Mackenzie! We love him, but he already won a contest. What made you love this character?

Cam - Lennon mufuckin greer and her beautiful painful happiness and her beautiful painful despair
Alex - fuck your rules, mackenzie is the best
Tom - Reeeeeeseeeeeee was so good! I just loved him.
Stare - Raven Barker, I loved the balance of sass and prose in her posts :heart-eyes:
WT - I've both laughed out loud ("Or, and he hated her if it was true, maybe the boy from 3 was the only one she could recall offhand who she believed Andy could potentially beat in a fight.") and :hell_heart:'d ("There was no relief in waking when his life had become a nightmare.") at these Andy posts, 11/10
Kay - Special shout to to Troutymouth! I miss Dustyn </3 But really I've _always_ regretted not getting to write with Magenta longer. She was vivacious, irreverent. It would have been so much fun to explore that dark arena with her.
Geebs - Raven!
Zoe - Reese, and you know why. Best most heartbreaking beautiful thing I've ever written was Ramira it makes me wanna screech from the rooftops Tris-style.
Kaitlin - this might be cheating, but honestly i really loved lennon. her entire arc was absolutely wonderful and magic and i loved all of her interactions with audrey. she was a fierce fierce lady with so much love in her heart, and i loved her for that.
Shrimp - I've been really loving Andy!! He needs a hug tbh
Aya - It is hard to pick just one so instead have a tbt to drace vandel accidentally blowing up a feast, honestly iconic, and troutmouth was a+ and took repeatedly getting dunked on by temperamental careers like a champ u love to see it (I sure did!!!)

★ Quote a line or two from his posts that moved you. Something that made you think, 'Hey, he's pretty darn good!'

Cam - I've never thought that :angelface: (or I'm just on mobile and am lazy either way)
Alex - "Family of proud lions, manes of gold and teeth of ivory; it's called a pride for a reason. And all of them are full of it, fountains of water so crystal clear they could convince you they were diamonds themselves."
Tom - "When he was little, when questions of death had first begun to plague him, his father had brought him to the balcony and pointed up at the north sky and said "We join the stars, son." Truth be told, he was likely high on something, acid and power one and the same as far as he was concerned." (Maxen Royce)
Stare - "You can see her spirit coming loose. It's like a garment, flapping in the wind and held on by strings. It makes your mouth water. One more hit. One more time and she is yours to consume, yours to become, yours to love and yours to remember. Yours." I know this was a mutt post but "spirit coming loose" just /got/ me I love it so much
WT - I know I literally just quoted part of this but "The girl died; another life he was at least partially responsible for ending. He hated how little it bothered him, recalled a time when he lost sleep because every time he closed his eyes, the faces of the dead haunted him. There was no relief in waking when his life had become a nightmare." fuck! fuck!!
Kay - So he did what Kellan always does: he fucked up.
Geebs - I’m on mobile 😭😭
Zoe - im on mobile but i will find something soon and dm it to u ok (she lied)
Kaitlin - listen the entire 'unbreak my heart' thread with jacinta undoes me every time. it's so damn good
Shrimp - The words were so biting, he was almost surprised when there was no bloodshed. Every syllable was over saturated with contempt and resentment, laced with venom and aimed for the jugular. His eyes stung with tears, but they were not of sadness. They felt like anger, or maybe relief. Anger that Malcolm had the audacity to call him his son, relief that he'd corrected him. He shoved himself away, turning for the door.

"Adrien."

"What?" he said, wheeling around to glare at the older man.

"The names."
Aya - Sittin at my desk panic-typing and unable to look things up but one time Mackenzie was casually lounging around his house in a fur coat???

★ When he can win again, who should it be? Which of his characters should aim for the crown next?

Cam - Never aim for the crown sis aim for thoughtful and provoking development
Alex - larissa le roux
Tom - Trigger Millford
Stare - Roxanne Decker - badass name, badass FC, badass writer
WT - he has so many characters I'm dying trying to narrow this down and started to make an adult quell joke but actually? can't, my heart, bye
Kay - Minerva Hale :smirk:
Geebs - Ridley Mortuus
Zoe - LEOOOOOONIDAS
Kaitlin - leonidas krigel :eyes:
Shrimp - Kieran Emberstatt #AdultQuell #ImKiddingKay
Aya - Standard answer: Mackenzie in the victor quell, Kieran in the adult quell, Leo Krigel, Turin Ursa, or miss wood 😎

★ Shower him in praise! In love! Wish him a happy birthday!

Cam - Happypypypuypyptptpu birjfjfjsjsjsjdyyayyyayy you big dumb gay thanks for reaching out to me recently and for those stupid big brother games we used to play and for accepting me despite the fuckwit I used to be
Alex - happiest of birthdays to you, darling. i hope today is as magical as you are.
Tom - Happy Birthday, Dars! Hope today is a great day! You're always a calming energy to be around and I appreciate you always being a chill down to earth person!
Stare - Dars, friend, I adore you so so much <3 your writing is breathtaking and you are such a completely lovely human being, I feel so privileged to be able to call you my friend. I hope your day is completely spectacular, you deserve nothing less!
WT - happy birthday Dars!! you're always a delight to hear from, thank you for both shredding my heart in posts and making me laugh in Slack on a regular basis. I hope it's a good day and a good year for you! <3
Kay - Happy birthday, darsily!!!! <3 You are a kind, thoughtful, loyal, honest, just person and I am happy to call you friend and colleague. You impressed the absolute hell out of me this past year, your first on staff and as a Gamemaker. I cannot wait to see what you do in 2020!
Geebs - Happy birthday!! 🎊🎂
Zoe - I LOVE YOU SO MUCH YOU ARE ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS AND I ADMIRE AND LOOK UP TO YOU SO SO SO MUCH. you inspire me to be better and do better. i adore u!!!!
Kaitlin - darren doesn't need to be gassed anymore than i've already gassed him in this birthday post. he knows that i think he's magic.
Shrimp - Happy happy birthday, from all of us to you, we wish it was our birthday, so we could party too hEY 👏

Happy birthday Dars!! Have a fantastic day, thanks for your awesome collaboration and your kickass writing
Aya - Hi happy actual birthday today!!!! Hope the weather is nice for u today and not cold rain or ice storms! You're a delightful human and I've really enjoyed plotting with u and writing with u and murdering children in the woods with u, hope your day is excellent, u deserve this!!!

★ To finish, we deserve a gift from him. Share the fun on his special day! We all know he makes the best plots, so tell him what you want to see next! He'll probably make it happen.

Cam - A d11f to work for zori's d11 school that my d11f Cat is gonna go work for so that she can have a Big Gay Romance bc who doesnt want secret lesbian teachers
Alex - ahs coven plot
Tom - I have no idea.... Maybe the next clue plot ;)
Stare - Another Dars!plot. Alllllllll the Dars!plots.
WT - "He'll probably make it happen" cool so if I say "all the remaining Clue kids figure everything out and go home safe"--
Kay - Outlander. Kaitlin, back me up!!!
Geebs - N/A
Zoe - tell me who the clue killer is uwu
Kaitlin - is it cheating if i say please, god, never stop making the clue plots?
Shrimp - Color plot?
Aya - just that thread with getting lost in the forest (it's called hiking) or getting lost in the forest at night (camping) xoxo