What are the best and worst things about being fictosexual and/or fictoromantic (or just a self-shipper in general) for you?

I figured this would be an engaging topic to discuss. Fictolove/self-shipping comes with a variety of pros and cons, each person having their own.

Pros (Best things):

- It gives me inspiration for my content. While I make OC-related content as well, sometimes I just feel a lot more inspired to focus on self-ship content. I don't really draw very much, as I struggle with anatomy (especially since my current F/O's design is a bit more complex then other characters I have previously self-shipped with), but I love making other forms of self-ship content, such as edits, moodboards, fill-in templates, fanfiction, etc.

- I love collecting art of myself and my fictional other through trades, commissions, and in rare cases--gifts. Again, since Zurg's design is more complex compared to other F/Os I have had in the past, it might be a bit harder for the foreseeable future to trade/commission for him and I, but I hope I can still find some capable artists while I'm with Zurg.

- It can be very comforting. If I am nervous about something, my F/O is there. If I am sad, my F/O will comfort me. Even if they are not there physically, I can feel them spiritually. The irony is NOT lost on me, but villain/evil F/Os (for example, my current one: Zurg) tend to be the most comforting ones for me. I guess I love the thought of giving them something that matters more than their villainous goals and to be the one thing they are soft and caring towards.

Cons (Worst things):

- Even though I have shifted away from being strictly non-sharing, I am still a bit uncomfortable with doubles by default. I consider myself a mirror-sharer + soft-sharer (meaning I am okay with doubles who share, but with boundaries). However, I still cannot help but be a bit anxious when it comes to doubles, as you may not know their sharing status or how they treat their doubles. This goes for OC x Canon shippers too. I tend to stat wary of both self-shippers and OC x Canon ships/shippers alike of my F/Os. I don't know if the latter would necessarily fall under "double" category, but it does certainly give off the same vibe. After all, OC x Canon ships are often the result of having a crush on a character.

- Fictophobia. I made a post discussing this, but fictophobia is often rooted in other forms of prejudice. The most noticeable form is aphobia. Fictophobia is also deeply rooted in amatonormativity, the assumption that we need to be in a (real-life) relationship to be happy and fulfilled. If you've been faced with fictophobia/anti-self-shippers (or have just seen people complain about us online), you have probably heard people spew the whole "JUST GET A REAL PARTNER" nonsense. We are often stereotyped to want a real relationship, but instead settle for a fictional character. There are self-shippers like this, yes, but it is unfair to assume this about every self-shipper. A considerable portion of us, myself included, are AroAce. It is honestly hurtful that so many people are so forceful about trying to pressure us out of our ficto relationships, and into real-life ones. As I am AroAce towards real-life people, the thought of being in a real-life relationship is honestly very unfulfilling and even uncomfortable for me. I feel much more happy and comfortable in my fictional ones instead.