#/ even if you haven't read the book / interacted i want opinions!!

[missallanea]

Learning I'd been mispronouncing her name for literally like two years was mortifying but now I wanna run a little experiment :

[fangirlforlife97]

ACOTAR's Rant That's Been Long Overdue!!!! BEWARE AND MY BAD, ITS A LONG ONE.

I won't lie it's been a long while since I've read the books and I still haven't read ACOSF yet (or if I even will?!) But over the years I've changed my opinion on alot of things concerning the books and fan pairings, etc. And lately I've had the urge to re look over ACOTAR content on tumblr and I finally decided to make this post. One I've been meaning to for awhile!

I want to start out by saying that I absolutely loved "A Court of Thorns and Roses" and Feylin, I finished that book in one night. I couldn't wait to read more of their story and learn more of this world SJM had created. Went into the series before it exploded on Tik - Tok or wherever so I went in without spoilers. Like I said I was looking forward to reading more but I also simultaneously had a sneaking suspicion that SJM was gonna try to give Feyre a new love interest and it did not sit well with me at all!! I kept saying or thinking things like "she better not give Feyre a new love interest" "she better not mess up Feylin", and that's exactly what she did!!

She "villainzed" or tried to anyways, Tamlin. I'm not gonna lie I got really irritated, and even though it wasn't Tam's fault how things played out I was kind of upset with him. I never hated him though and even though I hated the idea of a new love interest - with time I grew to greatly enjoy them. I read all of the books and considered them to be some of my favorite books, I even shipped Elriel hardcore while also shipping Elucien and also lowkey Nessian (before ACOSF). With time I fell into the delusion of Elriel, Nessian, Feysand and The Inner Circle, of the series in general. By the end of ACOWAR though even though I liked Feysand - I was getting kind of tired of reading about them and was looking forward to and wanting a different pairing to take center stage.

Subconsciously at times I think I did realize how toxic and awful Feysand and parts of the Inner Circle was etc, but it didn't register til later on. It's like I glossed over it cause I was sooo "entralled" with the series and character's. I was delulu about alot of things, about my liking for Feysand, my hardcore fangirling over Elriel, etc.

I was the biggest shipper of Elriel, I wanted them together so bad and the idea of them not getting together - I thought it would depress me out. Insane ik. Like before I became a hardcore Elriel shipper I shipped Elucien and was liking and hoping for their endgame until we started getting more Elriel content. Then my love for Elriel overshadowed that of Elucien. I was obsessing about anything relating to Elriel and couldn't wait for any possible clues or interactions in ACOSF pertaining to an Elriel endgame. There was even gonna be a pov from Azriel (he was my favorite batboy) and I was really excited. Then ACOSF came out and so did the spoilers. I hadn't gotten my hands on a book yet but the curiosity was too strong, so I went on tumblr to see what had been posted, etc.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . To say I was shocked was an understatement. It was the fastest death of a love pertaining to a fan pairing and character. I'm a fangirl, fangirling is what I do. I get overenthusiastic about tv shows and movies and bonds between characters. I was so disgusted by Azriel's pov, it was very unexpected. Like yes I imagine there would be some lustful thoughts or whatever but this is the first time we are getting his pov and you give us that! I had a certain idea of how I thought of Elain and Azriel and I loved it and the symbolism etc but what I read or found out totally ruined the idea I had of them. How I thought of them. Even the idea of liking them. Now I sincerely hope they don't end up together and she hopefully gets with Lucien and gets out of the Night court and away from the Inner Circle and Feysand. I've grown to ship and love Elucien the way I did Elriel before Az's pov.

I even really like and love the idea of Tamlin and Elain or Elain x Lucien x Elain. I feel like even though ACOTAR was supposedly a Beauty and The Beast retelling, Elain seems more like Belle to me, in look wise and gentleness anyways. And she would be so good with Tamlin and his healing even though I'm also a hardcore Elucien girly. I'd be so happy with either Elucien, Tamlain or Elucien x Tamlain x Tamlucien (whatever their ship name is!?)

In terms of Nessian. I always liked Nessian, I wasn't super hardcore about them like I was Elriel, Elucien, Feylin but I still really liked them or saw their potential too. But then I started hearing about things pertaining to Nessian and Nesta's character in ACOSF and I even heard things such as them ruining Nesta's character and bowing to Rhys, etc. Like maybe they ruined her character for the sake of Feysand or something?! And even though I already dislike what I'm hearing about Nessian, I still plan to read ACOSF even though it's gonna be a struggle re reading the series with how much I've grown to dislike Feysand, Rhysand, The Inner Circle, Elriel, etc. I almost don't want to re read the series with how annoyed I've grown about them, may take me some time but I will at some point in time. I'm in no rush though but I would be looking forward to re read ACOTAR.

Cassian is a shitty mate from what I've been hearing and that makes me start to dislike him too. Even though I have yet to completely make up my mind about Nessian til after I read ACOSF, Cassian is on thin ice. Not gonna lie though I kind of wish and hope Nessian aren't endgame because of what I've heard, even though I have yet to read ACOSF. I feel like Nesta deserves better and it might be an unpopular opinion but I think Nesta and Tamlin would be an absolutely freaking perfect endgame or pairing!!!!!!!??

Nesta and Tamlin both were given the same completely unfair, ridiculous, disgusting hate or treatment by the author and fandom. They both need healing, and could be the people who heal each other?! Even though Elain gives Belle vibes from her looks and gentleness, she doesn't have the most important Belle factor that Nesta does. NESTA LOVES BOOKS!! Could Nesta be the actual Belle to Tamlin's or ACOTAR Beauty and the Beast Retelling??!!!! Idk but I think Nesta and Tam would be way better than Cassian and Nesta.

I feel like the author has made her batboys too hornified and has sexualized her romantic pairings to the point she's ruining them!! Smut is fine in a book but when it's overdone and it's all a relationship is, it's not a pairing worth rooting for and it's kind of disgusting. I'd rather have a slow burn, cliche, romantic couple or pairing with few smutty scenes than a pairing that's too over sexualized and has multiple, constant, sex scenes. Other possible unpopular opinions:

- Tamlin is 100% more likable and better than Rhysand. Tamlin isn't without his flaws but the double standardization between Tamlin and Rhysand is incredibly unfair and unwarranted. Tamlin gets way too much hate for a character in a series filled with many other/worse flawed characters.

- Tamlin doesn't need a redemption arc, he needs a healing arc. He deserves a happy ending and love too!! I hope his court is replenished and flourishes.

- SJM character assassinated Feyre and others for the sake of Feysand, Rhysand and The Inner Circle.

- The ACOTAR series is filled with inconsistencies, double standards, etc.

- ACOTAR was the best book!!

- The Inner Circle, Batboys, Rhysand, and Feysand is highly overrated.

- Feyre deserves better.

- SJM should backpeddle on the smut and focus on building up of relationships and focusing on the romance. Stop using smut as an excuse for plot!

- Elain, Lucien, and Nesta need to get out of the Night Court and away from the Inner Circle and Feysand. (Feyre should too but that definitely won't happen!) They need their own story plots with story progression that doesn't involve the Night Court, Feysand, and The Inner Circle.

- Nesta and Tamlin should be endgame or an option at the very least. THE POTENTIAL!!!!! 😭❤️✊

- Rhysand is the villain of the series. It would be the greatest twist but also wouldn't be a twist because there's heavy evidence of him being a villian and manipulating those around him.

- Theory that Rhysand has been mind controlling Feyre the whole time!!

- There should be more focus on the other lands and courts.

- An Elucien novel should have nothing to do with the Night Court or Inner Circle or Feysand. I'm so tried of other ships and character's revolving heavily around Feysand, the Inner Circle, and the Night Court. Not everything is about them!!

[humanpurposes]

There isn't any point to this, I'm just ranting.

Lately, posting fanfiction feels like screaming into the void.

This isn't to say I'm not grateful for those who do interact with my posts. Since I've started posting fanfiction I've gone through phases of having a lot of motivation, having little motivation. Phases of comparing how many notes I get compared to someone else, then reminding myself why I started writing fics in the first place, because I can do exactly what I want with something I write. And I so appreciate all the comments, likes, kudos and reblogs I get on my fics.

There can be a whole load of different reasons why engagement in fandom lately has been not great. Season 2 being a mess, toxicity and petty drama within the fandom, dwindling attention spans, general disinterest in HotD and ASOIAF. I get it. I haven't felt particularity inspired by the latest season, I'm not very 'Tumblr sociable' and tend to stick to a few mutuals, I also haven't been interested in reading as much fanfiction for a few months.

And if someone doesn't want to interact with me or my content, for whatever reason, that's their business and it's completely valid. I don't write to hit a certain number of notes or followers. I write because I enjoy it. I started posting because I thought there might be a few people out there on the internet who might like what I was doing. In a way I have found that, and I know I wouldn't have stuck with writing this long if I hadn't started posting. But I won't lie and say it isn't disheartening when you get nothing or very little back after putting a lot of time and thought into a chapter.

And on top of that, some comments are just... the worst. What goes through someone's head that they feel the need to read a fic they don't like, comment all the reasons why they didn't like it, AND insult a writer who has posted this FOR FREE. We're all doing this as a hobby. The fact that fanfiction is public is not an open invitation to criticise, all you're doing is discouraging people from sharing their works or writing altogether, which damages our community. Fanfiction is not content simply there for you to consume. It's a pure form of creativity (in my opinion), because it doesn't come from necessity or obligation. If you don't like what you're reading, stop reading it. Find something else, or go write a hateful review of an actual book on Goodreads because at least that author got paid.

Or even just people being so stubborn about their dislike of certain characters. I can't tell you how sick I am of people taking the existence of Alys Rivers so personally in fics. Or wishing death upon characters that are clearly central to the plot or main relationship in a fic (why are you reading an Aemond fic if you hate Aemond)??? This fandom can only operate in extremes, apparently. There's no room for nuance or emotional complexity and it's frustrating when someone projects that on a fic.

I don't really have a point to this. Read what you want. Read the tags first. Reblog posts to keep them alive. Ask writers about their fics and OCs. Be nice to people.

[acourtofthought]

Your post about Az not being a love interest for elain got me because I had an interaction at work that I still laugh at… I have a Velaris sweatshirt I wear on casual office days. A coworker noticed and we talked about SJMs work.

She asked about my ranking of all SJM couples and I asked- do you mean couples or ships? There’s a difference. And she said couples confirmed in the books.

1. Bryce and Hunt

2. Aelin and Rowan

3. Ruhn and Lidia

4. Etc etc etc

She was shocked that I didn’t have acotar in my top 3. I said there’s other couples and worlds I enjoyed more but Az’s story might pull me back in. She goes- yeah where do you rank Az and Elaine? I said they’re not a couple… she looked at me as if I had 3 heads. She asked if we read the same books. I asked her the same question back lol.

I said if anything they’re a ship. Nothing on page tells me they’re a couple. After my breakdown the woman confessed to only reading the Acotar series and no other works by SJM but the accounts she follows online tell her that it’s Az and Elaine moving forward and the evidence is there. She said it’s been a while since she even read ACOTAR, but with how excited people are online about E/lriel she thought it was a sure thing.

I asked her thoughts on Az and Gwyn and she confessed to just skimming SF because she didn’t like Nesta so from what she sees from the accounts she follows, Gwyn is a little girl taken under Nesta’s wing. 😂

I asked her opinion on Lucien and Elaine and she said from the accounts she follows… he’s abusive and controlling. I asked what was her opinion while reading, NOT seeing peoples opinion online, and she said she didn’t remember but people online make a good cases.

I left the conversation going… well we’ll see when Az’s book comes out. Nothings confirmed until SJM writes it.

There's a shocking number of people who haven't bothered to really read the books and who instead allow themselves to be led by what they see online.

I.e., there's so many people that think it's confirmed that Elain called Az's scars beautiful because of how often that is being spread around online, that this is one of their big clues to an e/riel endgame and romance.

If one had actually read the book though, Feyre says she didn't know whether Elain was looking at his scars OR siphons. And since Az never reflects on Elain looking at his hands in his POV and instead thinks his hands will taint Elain versus Sarah having Elain sigh over the diamonds and pearls Nesta wore, the logical conclusion is that Elain did like his siphons since they're bright and sparkly (no shade to my girl either, who doesn't love jewel like things?). But they scream this scene as being so romantic, confirming it as canon when it's actually not?

That's the same thing with it being said that E/riel wants a future with one another, with them being a canon couple. Two characters wanting to kiss doesn't mean they want a relationship yet some have fully convinced themselves Elain wants to marry Az. That Az wants to be with Elain forever.

Where does it say that in canon? Az might question why he didn't get a bond like his brothers but even that is not proof of wanting to be with her since he also says he's never thought of a real future with Elain, that his plans have only gone as far as his sexual fantasies. The only canon thing we have for E/riel is they were both willing to make-out. On page Elain did not consent to more than that, she did not speak of feelings for Az at all. For some who claim to love Elain, they sure don't seem to care what her actual feelings for Az are, having convinced themselves that hooking up equals love and marriage and babies forever despite Elain never verbalizing exactly what she wants outside of a kiss.

The text supported that Nesta went much further than a kiss with many fae but that doesn't mean she wanted to date them. Yet people claim they KNOW Elain wants to have a relationship with Az just because of Solstice. They literally do not care that Elain has never said she wants anything more from Az than fun, they have assumed and decided for her while no canon exists to prove their opinion. This is Sarah we're talking about here, who started the CC series with Bryce having sex with some guy who she clearly was not interested in having a relationship with, with Feyre who hooked up with Isaac but did not desire more, with Cassian sleeping with the girl he knew his brother wanted. Sarah who loves mates above all else and she's consistently proven throughout the series that Elain and Lucien are mates (not Elain and Az), that Elain will always feel a tug to Lucien no matter what. Everyone that has come before an endgame pairing accepting their bond in Sarah's writing is always just lust, death of a non mate to clear the way for them to find their mate or romance for the wrong reasons but they truly think Az and Elain are the ones breaking that mold? Az who had to be yelled at by Amren for not believing in Elain? Az who didn't care when Elain was her most depressed? Az who didn't even give Elain credit for stabbing the king with his oh so special dagger?

So I agree with everything you said. To me, Elain and Az are not a confirmed canon couple and are not in a relationship, otherwise Nesta and about a dozen or so (or more) fae men were also canon couples. Elizabeth and Wickham would be a confirmed canon couple in P & P. Mor and Cassian would have been a confirmed canon couple. Hooking up doesn't equal a relationship and attraction is not confirmation that two characters have chosen to share their lives together.

That's not to say E/riel isn't a valid ship in the fandom, they are and people can still hope they get together, but they are not a canon couple as neither Elain or Az have expressed the desire to date the other, as they've both avoided each other for an entire year. You can't be a canon couple if you don't spend time together and you can't be a canon couple when 5 months have gone by since an almost kiss and the author never had them look in the others direction again.

And yeah, anyone who believes LUCIEN to be abusive and controlling CLEARLY has not read a single Sarah J Maas book in their life.

As it stands Elain and Lucien, Elain and Az, and Gwyn and Az are not canon couples. The arguments in the fandom should not be proving they are because none are actually in a relationship or dating.

The only valid arguments are who we think Sarah will eventually write as endgame canon couples and of course, I can't imagine anyone being better for Elain than the mate who has never rejected her, who took the author by surprise for her, who Sarah made as being happiest in nature along with her, and who has a similar mentality on cruelty which means Elain will never have to sacrifice what is important to her in order to be with him.

[makeyoumine69]

JESUS CHRIST! HOW CAN YOU WRITE PATRICK BATEMAN IN SUCH A HORRIBLE WAY? WHY DO YOU ALWAYS WRITE HIM SO MEAN? YOU LITERALLY ROMANTICIZE RAPE? AND THAT DADDY KINK?!! YOU REALLY NEED HELP! GO TOUCH SOME GRASS INSTEAD OF WRITING YOUR SHITTY NOVELS!

Hello!

Well, lemme tell you some things.

First of all, different people can love different things, if you haven't learned that yet, I'm really sorry for you. Hence, I can write whatever I want, whatever I like, this is my right to decide what to write. Also, I usually put all the kinks in the description of my stories, so people can know the content and don't interact if they don't find any of the kinks appealing to them.

Considering that you don't like my stuff, but you keep reading it, that means you're doing it on purpose. Don't you think this kind of hate-watching is kind of obsessive? Maybe before you tell another person to get help, you should think about yourself first?

Have you seen the movie? I won't even ask about the book because considering the things you've said about Patrick and why I write him mean, it makes me think that you have a very blurry vision of Patrick's character. Compared to the things he did in the book, Daddy Kink is like a drop in the bucket, just saying. And I never "romanticized rape"—in your opinion, all people who write non-con stuff romanticize rape, or what?

Anyway, thank you for taking the time to send me this ask, I hope you didn't get tired!💞

[salisburyliam]

My WORST to BEST ranking for Desert Rose's LIs

NOTE: I've ONLY played Jack and Cindy's routes until getting their respective achievements in season 2, ep. 7 - and Adil's in ep. 10. I haven't played season 3 with either of them, maybe my list would be very different if I did, but I'm not a big fan of this book to begin with & I REFUSE to read it one more time lmao

7. Saeed - If he didn't look like he was 15 maybe, mayyybe, he would be higher on the list. But honestly, I'm not quite sure why he's an LI. He's cute I guess, but the "little brother vibe" kind of cute. Also, he has too few scenes for him to suddenly propose to Yasmin. As you can tell, not a fan. 3/10

6. Jaffar - The story of the bodyguard and his protégé would have been very interesting... had it been better executed. The fact that Jaffar literally calls her his "little sister" 🤢 and that there is no romantic interaction of any kind until s3 doesn't actually help. He's more of a background character. Really hot, though. 4/10

5. Cindy - I'd have preferred Caroline as LI, I find her waaay more interesting & with a more distinct personality. Nothing against Cindy, I just get the feeling that the author never really knew what to do with her?? Their romance feels pretty meh imo 6/10

4. Adil - I KNOW this is going to be an unpopular opinion... but I find Adil very boring. 🤷 When I first started this book I chose him as my initial LI not only because he is unquestionably one of the hottest LIs, but because it was obvious he was the rebel. It seemed like a promising dynamic. But then he literally disappears in the second season and when he comes back a thousand years later Zain has already hooked you (that's what happened to me at least lmao). He is the most beautiful man tho, and has the biggest 🍆 in the whole RC - change my mind. 7/10

3. Jack - I looove the flashbacks of when they were kids (the "woah" scene is so endearing) their friendship and how sweet & passionate he is with Yasmin. The dynamic between the two of them feels tender and warm throughout, and as a bonus I will say that they together have the most ADORABLE son ever. 7.5/10

i mean..... look at this little angel!!!!

2. Mustafa - I've talked about this before. If the dynamic + connection between Yasmin and him in s1 had been the same throughout the book, he would have been inarguably in the first place. But from season 2 onwards he literally is sidelined and when he returns he seems like a completely different character. Yet he remains an 8/10 for his sense of humor, love of watermelons and goats.

1. Zain - You can tell it's the author's favorite route because of how well written and thought out it is. There's undeniable chemistry between the two characters, Zain's constant dilemma, Yasmin becoming more and more interested in him but not wanting to admit it out loud, THE TENSION... I didn't even look twice at him in the first season (to this day his sprite still looks like a Disney villain to me, lol) but the second season is undeniably his and I love that he's an official sugar daddy. 9/10

[writingquestionsanswered]

I've got all the writing structure/craft books, watched tons of advice videos and have been checking out novels to learn by example. But just because I can write doesn't mean I can write a book. This is hard. At what point should any writer consider taking writing courses or hiring a book coach?

When to Consider a Course or Book Coach

Reading books, reading craft books, and watching advice videos isn't enough to teach you how to write a book. You also have to practice...

Imagine if you'd never sewn anything before, had never pieced together and hand sewn or machine sewn anything in your life. You could spend years reading books about sewing and garment construction and could watch hours upon hours of sewing videos on the internet, but that doesn't mean the first time you sit down to actually sew a garment, you're going to end up with a garment worthy of a ritzy department store...

Writing books IS hard, even if you've written a lot of them. I've written a dozen books (though they're not all published), and I still don't find writing a book to be a piece of cake. Part of that is just because different books present different challenges--and where you are in life can also play a big role--but the point is, no amount of learning or practice is going to make it easy.

There's an unfortunate myth among aspiring authors that being an author looks like this: spending some time learning to write, writing your book, and voila! You have a book to publish! The truth is very few authors publish the first book they ever wrote, and if they did, they probably have mountains of short stories and/or fan-fiction or other writing behind them. Most writers write two or three books before their skills are honed enough to write a publishable book. Which doesn't mean you can't write a publishable book on your first try, it just doesn't happen a lot.

So... writing courses... there's not a lot you're going to learn in a writing course that you haven't probably learned from reading, reading a lot of craft books, and watching a lot of advice videos. Certainly, anything you would learn in a writing course you can learn online for free. The main benefit of a writing course is the interaction with others, but even that is really dependent upon the teacher and your classmates. You really have to go into it with a thick skin, knowing that the opinions of your teacher and classmates are not the end all be all.

Writing coaches can be great but they're expensive, and you get more out of the experience if you go into it with a complete or near complete WIP that you want to query or publish, but can't quite get where you want it to be.

So, having said all of that, before pursuing either a writing course or coach, I would recommend trying to finish one or two WIPs to at least first draft stage, but preferably second draft stage, and see how you feel. They don't have to be good. In fact, if you haven't completed a WIP before, they're not going to be your best work (because that comes much later), but remember that part of the writing process is taking the "rough draft" and improving it, and revision is where you really start learning things.

Ultimately, though, follow your gut and follow the path that feels right to you. ♥

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

I’ve been writing seriously for over 30 years and love to share what I’ve learned. Have a writing question? My inbox is always open!

♦ Questions that violate my ask policies will be deleted! ♦ Please see my master list of top posts before asking ♦ Learn more about WQA here

[captainmera]

Hello! I've just gotten caught up with both your TOH fics and IBWR and let me just say, your writing is fantastic! I have a million things I want to ask you, but if you haven't already answered this one, it's what I'm most curious about; How do you do your research on things like puritan culture? Like what sort of questions do you search for to get the information you need about historical costumes and culture? Thanks a million and I can't wait for the next updates to all three!! (metaphorically speaking ofc take all the time you need)

Hello! Thank you for reading! :D/ I welcome questions like these!

Oh! Let me break this up:

COSTUMES:

Find passionate people who hyperfocus on the era you want to dive into. There are a ton of reenactors and seam-enthusiasts on instagram & youtube who do historical sewing, and all of them usually have one era/decade that they spend most time in. They are extremely enthusiastic about both showing their progress of making the costumes, what makes them accurate to history, as well as displaying the garments by happily twirling around in them.

So costumes? Find the nerds. They'll tell you all about how men's shoes went from silk ribbons to buckles.

These people are the best researchers. Not all of them have degrees or have a history background. But they read, live and breathe these things more than any degree could give them. Some of them even learn languages just to read a book about wigs, buttons, and gloves.

Following the nerds will get you to the points much faster than reading the books yourself. They'll pluck out the important details and, very enthusiastically, teach you about the important bits. It'll also stick much better if someone is excited to teach you something.

CULTURE:

Same thing here, really. Find the nerds. But instead of just looking at fashion, look at things like: Food, music, lower social classes, local entertainment, pub songs, drinks, jokes and humour, pets, baby names, folklore, superstitions, agriculture, architecture, interior decor, furniture, sleeping routines, etc.

Ask seemingly mundane but important questions, such as: Where do they shit? What did a dentist do? What's a quack? And are there famous quacks? How did they deal with crime? What was punishments? Did kids go to school? When was it acceptable to get married? What was socially taboo?

Things like that.

I like to start with asking myself: What is relevant for me to know, in regards to my story?

Because you are telling a story, not an essay on the era you're having as your backdrop. You don't have to include every single accurate thing. It's okay to be off on some details in favour of telling your story (in my opinion). You're not a historian.

With that being said, if something like crime and punishment is important to your story, you should look that up. If you feel that the way people dressed, and the social morals and taboos, might be something that adds both world-building, and would let a reader fall into the era more.. You should look into that too!

Culture adds flavour to the setting. It allows both you and the reader to see the invisible stakes. For example: The puritans were very gendered. So it impacts how men and women interact with one another. It can invite both humour, conflict and pearl-clutching. Because if you understand that it would be, say, unacceptable for a man to press his lips upon the skin of a woman's hand, and you can both tell and show this to the reader; when such a thing occurs, the reader will LE-GASP.

Youtube is also a good space to go to.

Write down names of important figures of the time. Musicians, politicians, criminals, philosophers, inventors, women, plays, etcetera.

Something that influenced the culture was also what people were currently discussing and discovering. What was invented at the time? What were the philosophies and poetry written? Who were the prominent speakers of the time?

Like how we, today, are talking about how "social media is bad and ruining the children!" What did people talk about back then? People have always yelled "But what about the children?!" What were the social fears and terrors? These things influences the culture.

MY OWN NOTES:

I would say that no source is a bad source, one thing will lead to another. Don't just look for videos/documents/books about the puritans! Look at the era as a whole, even the time just before the one you are looking in at.

Context is everything. What happened in 1635 is a result of the previous culture's just 10-50years before. Don't dismiss the little things.

You never know when; a curator explaining why a led-cup was an important to medicinal practices at the time; might be of use to you! (note: Drinking over-night wine from a lethal cup in small doses made you shit a river and vomit. This was believed to be all the bad in your body leaving you, and even out the levels of various liquids in the body. Like pee, sweat, blood, and mucus. That's why blood-letting was a practice, too, to even your levels.)

TAKE NOTES.

Like, listen to a documentary and have a piece of paper nearby that you can scribble down something important you heard.

Documentaries can be a bit of a drag to sit through just to find ONE piece of good information. But hey, as long as you get something useful right?

That's the short summary of it. Hope that helps!

[synchodai]

A bit of a serious question and maybe a controversial opinion. I've liked jacegan ever since I read the books. I've always thought there's a lovely strong, mutual connection between them, regardless of whether you see romantic or sexual overtones. 

And of course I was waiting for hotd to show that. And unfortunately got crumbs. But let's get to the main point. What I didn't realize when there were only books and not much has changed since the series came out. It's Jace and Baela. These two as a couple never interested me in the book or the show. And given the current agendas, fans of the Jace/Baela pairing are especially "aggressive". Because if you're a jacegan fan, you're automatically a racist and misigonist. But.... I didn't like her when she was a white canon Targaryen. I have no hatred or anything like that. The character just didn't hook me, nor did their connection to Jace. On the show, I'm sorry, Baela barely has a chance to develop as a character in season 1. Season 2 has some cool moments with her, but she's still more of an appendix to Rhaenyra and Jace. And yes, I'm sorry that such a character is neglected, as well as many other interesting characters, but given the format of the show and the number of episodes, they have to sacrifice something (the jacegan line is almost completely cut). And back to the serialized Baela and Jace. Their pairing is more of a favorable union for me. There's no spark, no love, no passion. They literally haven't seen each other in years since Rhaenys took her away. Then they met and were unexpectedly announced to be engaged. And there was a shaky situation all around. There was no room for any romance. Then the diplomatic mission, Luke dies and the whole of season 2 Jace is busy with anything but Baela. She's the one who's more of a comforter. And the rare "cute" moments are improvised by the actors who are trying to create/show some kind of relationship in place of the writers, because they are engaged. But it doesn't help, imho, for me personally. I just see two early matured people who are in a stressful situation. They support each other as best they can. I'm sure their marriage would be strong, secure because they are more like friends/family than lovers. And that is my main complaint. I'm sorry, but even in Jace and Cregan's 3 minute scene, there is more chemistry through looks than in the entire time Jace and Baela interacted. Of course that's still a matter of taste. But then again, why would anyone allow themselves to criticize another person for their tastes and hobbies? Why is it that if I'm not interested in Jace and Baela's pairing, I'm immediately misogynistic and racist, and don't support the characters' geth, but cling to white men in homosexual relationships. Like...what do you want? I don't want to be a hypocrite. I just don't care for Baela's character and her relationship with Jace in either the books or the show. That's it. 

Jace and Kregan's relationship is much more interesting, colorful, tragic and carries more meaning and love. I won't describe it in detail, because there are some great methinks on the blog. And that's it.

Wow...uh... I sincerely hope you feel better getting that off your chest, anon. Thankfully, I've never interacted with people who react negatively to my jacegan posts or fics. I'm sorry you've had that experience and thank you for taking the time and effort to share it with me. If you encounter people like that, you should really block them and not allow them access into your mental space.

If your question was what I feel about jacaela, then I don't really feel strongly about it either way? I was also neutral to jacegan until I started writing about it, to be fair. I mainly got into it because I wanted to explore the idea of Sara Snow being Jace and/or Cregan and relate that to masks, identity, and performance of masculinity/femininity/gender.

I'm willing to bet if I start a jacaela project, I'd see the merits of that ship, too. I probably won't write about show!Baela though, because she doesn't have much of a personality and seems to be more loyal to Rhaenyra than Jace? She only ever speaks for Rhaenyra's interests and never Jace's. Honestly, her one scene with Rhaenyra made me think she's more enamored with the mom than the son. When Jace was having valid issues about his legitimacy, Baela was quick to dismiss him as "pouting" even though both their lives and positions rely on the strength of his claim to the throne. It was honestly baffling. If I was gonna write for show!Baela, I'd ship her with Rhaenyra before Jace — makes a lot more sense with the text.

In the book, Baela was eager to get married to Jace and had some really compelling tension with him. Him delaying their wedding after going north? Really juicy stuff. Baela is only noted as getting more promiscuous after Jace's death (and after she was left alone in Dragonstone) — so another writer (who isn't me) could explore the conflicting emotions of feeling free of the shackles of arranged marriage while also grieving a future that Baela very likely once dreamed of. There's also the incest angle, the fact that Rhaenyra and Daemon's marriage could have only happened if the parent they both loved died, how Baela doesn't want to act like a lady/princess but Jace desperately wants to be seen as a lord/prince — lots of places a competent writer can take it for sure. It can be a great friends-to-lovers, shared trauma/mutual healing, marriage-of-convenience-turned-real kind of thing. Baela as a tsundere, Jace as an angsty anime protag.

I don't think one ship is more meaningful or loving than the other — it really depends on what you're looking for and who's writing. For now, I'm full throttle manning my current ship and I've already made so many posts about why. I'd like to think I do a good job exploring the potential of jacegan, and I am fully aware it is a ship made of crumbs, but that's the fun of it. Embrace that it's a hidden gem that you unearthed! Embrace the tinfoil.

[dustdeepsea]

things I would like to know about fellow writers

thanks for the tag @tellmeallaboutit

Last book I read: I've read so few published books lately but the last thing I read cover to cover and enjoyed thoroughly was Academic Exercises by K.J. Parker (a collection of fantasy short stories).

Greatest literary inspiration: Terry Pratchett, Ursula K. Le Guin, Tanith Lee, Kazuo Ishiguro, David Mitchell, Ted Chiang

Things in my current fandom I want to read but I don't want to write: Rugan/Gale/Tav set in Heart: The City Beneath AU (stares at @littleplasticrat with big eyes)

Things in my current fandoms I want to write but I think nobody would be interested in them but me: 

Tav as a Chosen of Jergal who cannot meaningfully die until their quest is completed (as a bonus: Came Back Wrong).

Oathbreaker Knight/Paladin!Tav. Possibly an oathbroken Paladin of Eilistraee (Oath of the Ancients). How do you fuck an eldritch concept? I guess we're going to find out. (Psst, Bloodborne fandom knows how.)

I just really enjoy exploring the fallout of the awfulness of Tav's quest even in my smut whoops.

You can recognise my writing by: Extremely Sweaty Feelings, where I place my commas incorrectly (but I am trying to follow Proper Grammar Rules more now that I beta for others!)

My most controversial take (current fandom): Handwaving problems with Magic often removes stakes in story and combat. I'm more interested in less glamourous, low-magic story settings. Approaching it from a "high tech/low life" angle is also cool. I guess that's why the NPCs and factions like the Zhentarim appeal to me.

This probably isn't controversial, but I hate how people need to self-censor and deliberately untag themselves if they want to voice an opinion on their own blog about any of the Origin companions, especially Astarion. That's why I don't even interact with that part of BG3 fandom and I'm not interested in writing for it.

Top three favourite tropes: Enemies to Lovers, "One Flesh, One End", Theory of Narrative Causality (Once Upon a Time)

What’s your current writing mood (10 – super motivated and churning out words like crazy, 0 – in a complete rut): Two

Share a random frustration: I want to write a longfic that hits a 5 act structure. I am deeply terrified of abandoning it halfway. I know that most of the fear is simply because haven't written one successfully before, but I have no idea how it can be done. No one is forcing me to write this; I have 2k worth of notes and outline staring at me right now.

no-pressure tagging @omgkalyppso @say-lene @orlesianapologist

[my-pjo-stuff]

Opinions on lukercy? *asks deviously*

I mean...idc? Like, Lukercy ain't really my cup of tea- but it's not like I hate it or something. I don't rly do PJO ships besides Thaluke- and even there I'm just as good with them being platonic. So Lukercy, like any PJO ship, is just sort of ...there, at least for me. But I genuinely love the shippers! Like even if I personally don't ship it the guys that do are some of the chillest, most respectful non-toxic fans in this fandom. Which...okay tbf the bar is in literal hell- but I do genuinely mean it! To share a little anecdote here- So when I first read the PJO books I had this series up on my main where I posted my thoughts and reactions to the chapters. This obviously attracted some older fans who talked with me and commented, all really nice and innocent stuff. Thing was, I was always very pro-Luke ever since TLT. I genuinely loved the guy- to the point where he unironically was the main draw to the books for me. In comparison, I didn't really care for Percy and CHB people, as I found them rather bland compared to the TA demigods all things considered.

Which- out of context that is nothing bad! Absolutely not- it turned into one though when someone at some point asked my thoughts on Percy/Percabeth. I replied to them with the things I said above, that I find them rather bland compared to Luke and that I don't rly care too much for them. And MAN when I tell you that reaction was WIIILLDDD. They went on like an 8 messages rant in the notify section of that post about how I "just don't get it" and "Am so unfair" and just "judge characters on the amount of trauma they have" 💀 Genuinly that is a forever PJO fandom core memory now. They even demanded me to talk about and dig into Percy like I did with Luke because they "knew that I could do it since I did it with Luke". That shit was crazy- they sounded like my teacher wanting me to write more in a poem analysis or sum T-T Fr the only reason I didn't block them then and there was bc previously they were pretty active with my posts and nice to me- had that user been a stranger they would have been blocked SO fast. After that they just interacted less and less with my stuff and I haven't spotted them in my notes since lmao. So yeah, that's my fun story of how a Percabeth Shipper/Percy fan basically demanded that I go and analyze their favs just bc I could do it, and they wanted me to. And, well- say what you want but that certainly never happened with any Lukercy shippers XD Some of my oldest PJO mutuals and friends are Lukercy shippers actually, genuinely great ppl! I think all the hate you guys get is just genuinely weird af like??? It's a fictional ship between two fictional characters, calm down man. Yes I can see how some ppl might be uncomfortable with it and would prefer to just block the tag and users who like it entirely- but it ain't that deep. Go outside. Hug your family. Get some hobbies. IDK just stop treating a fictional yaoi ship like the plague itself. At this point it just straight up borders on weird how worked up some ppl get XD I do read some fics and like some art, mostly bc, again, a good amount of nice mutuals of mine ship it and I'm just supporting their work. TL:DR : Not my cup of tea, but I love the guys who ship it and never had one single bad experience with them. As opposed to everyone else. Also ppl should stop hating on it so much and just move on if they don't like it.

[moodymisty]

I follow you for darksiders, but seeing your wh40k posts, the worms are slowly starting to take over. 😅

I also read one book (sign of faith) that I kind of liked (I like character suffering to end in some merit, but it seems in this universe it's not how I usually imagine/like)...

From your writings I'm starting to take in interest the custodes, Guilliman, Vulkan and Corvus.

Could you recommend some standalone books? I wrote down some from your recent asks to check out, but if you can suggest more I'd be happy!

It's Monday morning where I am, so whishing you a nice week, may your work hours pass quickly!

I apologize in advance for this

I'm going to use amazon links just so you know what I'm referring to for sure, but they're available as ebooks on Black Library as well if you're a charlatan that doesn't like physical books. These are my own personal opinions, please don't burn me alive.

Now, not all of the primarch books are good. But they are good standalone books if you enjoy getting into a particular primarch/legion and how they think. I can vouch for the Konrad Curze one (it's the best one imo), and the Alpharius one. I also see a lot a lot of people that say the Angron one and Lion'el one is good but i haven't personally read them.

There isn't too many Vulkan/Salamander books sadly, I can only think of Tomb of Fire but that's a series. For Corvus, there's the Corvus anthology. You don't have to read HH to follow, it's largely just about Corvus and raven guard specific adventures.

Unfortunately compared to Girlyman, there really isn't much for Vulkan and Corvus. They're largely ignored by BL along with the White Scars.

I know it's not technically a standalone book but Night Lords omnibus is a fucking mandatory read. It's 3 books and you can get the all in one book on amazon for like 20 bucks. Even if you don't like Night Lords/Chaos, the writing alone makes it such a good read.

The Infinite and the Divine is another mandatory read. It's a good break from Space marine content too, since there's so much of it.

I haven't personally read this one so i can't vouch for it, but if you like human/astartes interaction Legacy of Dorn is supposed to be decent.

If you like Guilliman, I highly recommend the Dark Imperium trilogy. Again not a single book, but it's a good series that really shows just how different Guilliman is from his legion now, and how he's having to jump right into fighting a war he had hoped would be long ended by now.

Helsreach is very good. Death korps of Krieg is also supposed to be good, but I can't vouch for it personally.

I'm sure there's so many other books I'm missing. I can't vouch for them all because I've only read a few dozen or so, but these are some of my personal favorites.

Now an added note here: The Horus Heresy books are a nightmare. BUT, you can read them as standalone if you want, because they're less of an coherent storyline and more of a webbed mess of content like Star Wars. If you have a rough idea of the main 'idea' of the Heresy, you can read them solo. In fact many people do just pick and choose the HH books they want to read based on what legion they're interested in. I recommend Betrayer (angron content <3), The first Heretic (Lorgar and his piss kink lol), Fulgrim, Deliverance lost, and Unremembered Empire.

[panlight]

What do you think the relationship/interactions between the Cullen 'parents' and 'teens' is like? I haven't read Twilight in a long while but recently got back into the fics and I hate when they actually treat them as actual parental figures even in private despite them all basically being similar ages. Maybe SM did something similar in the books but fics where Esme says "Let's wait until your father gets home" and "You're grounded" makes me not want to even read any further.

With the caveat that obviously people can read and write whatever fanfic they enjoy . . .

. . . yeah, I'm with you. I find the "Cullen kids are literally teens and C/Es are literally parents" stuff weird, personally. I cannot fathom them being grounded or Esme or Carlisle getting on their case about homework other than in a joking way. Edward is frozen at 17 years old . . . but he's also been on earth for 100+ years. That's just . . .that's just not a normal teenager, right? There's other stuff going on there that would affect the dynamics. I mean, while Esme is older than him both physically (26 vs 17) and chronologically (1895 vs 1901), he has actually been a vampire three years longer than she has.

I think there is a lot of love there and there are parental ~vibes to be sure, but inasmuch as they are 'parents,' they are parents to adults. I mean, Rosalie and Emmett are married. Jasper and Alice are married. Imagine not being able to go out with your spouse because 100-year-old you were grounded by your parents who look like they are in their 20s. Makes no sense. They provide guidance and support but not, IMO, supervision and discipline. The kids aren't really high school students, it's for the cover story (nonsensical as that may be). Or, as SM explained on the Twilight Lexicon:

When it comes to Bella, it’s all entirely Edward’s decision.  It’s his life, and his love, and his choice.  The others don’t have a say in how he chooses to handle it anymore than your brothers and sisters can tell you who to fall in love with and how to go about it.  Carlisle plays the role of the father in the Cullen family, and Edward respects his opinions greatly, but Carlisle does not give Edward permission to do things.  Edward is an adult with a century of wisdom under his belt.  No one gives him permission to do anything.

Esme is 'the mom friend' and would be mothering the people in her social group regardless if she actually saw herself as their 'mother.' I think she leans into the 'literal parent' role more than Carlisle for that reason just in terms of . . . day to day running of the household. She doesn't care if they do their homework or are out late because like, actual vampires, but DOES care about things like being respectful of other people's things and keeping the house clean. If you still live with your parents as an adult, or move back in with them, you could expect a similar dynamic, right? That's the vibe I have. And you might call your parents if your car breaks down or there's a plugged sink in your house and you don't know what to do. Or sometimes you just had a bad day and you want to talk to your parents (assuming you have a good relationship with them, of course). And I think that's the role Esme and Carlisle play here, not "Emmett! Stop playing video games and do your homework!! Edward!! I can't believe you were out past curfew last night!!! Wait until your father gets home!!!"

[aldbooks]

TW:SA Gwynriel

This topic gets brought up every few months and while I don't expect it to stop anytime soon, even after the next book is released, I want to talk about it for a minute, specifically in relation to the most recent post that's circulating.

If you haven't seen it, the poster claims to be a 'licensed professional' and is giving their 'professional' opinion on SA trauma recovery in regards to ACOTAR ships. This person makes it very clear they are an e/riel, and as evidenced by their own comments on the post, found Gwyn to be 'sus' even after reading ACOSF multiple times....

For a moment, let's set aside a few points:

The fact that labeling an SA survivor (real or not) as evil or manipulative is very harmful to readers that are actual SA survivors

The fact that this never seems to get brought up in regards to Rhys, Lucien, or Nesta who were all canonically SA'd - only Gwyn

The fact that a 'professional' opinion given by a clearly biased party isn't very reliable

I find it galling that a supposed professional who claims to work 'extensively' with trauma survivors, couldn't comprehend why Gwyn would feel responsible for her sister's death, as if survivor's guilt is not a majorly common response to that sort of event

Let's focus on the main point, which is that this person seems to be insinuating that trauma responses and recovery are universal, even after specifically stating they don't think this is the case...

---

No one asked, or is owed it, but I'm going to talk about my own experience a little here, for context. You don't need the details, other than I'm a walking statistic. SA'd twice before the age of 25. The experiences were not particularly violent. One involved heavy doses of alcohol. Once was by a stranger, the other by someone I knew.

Now, I know the common belief is that people who experience sexual trauma usually develop an aversion to touch, specifically sexual touch, and by specific genders. This may be true for a lot of people, I certainly know women (and men) who this is true for. Some people, however, like me, are the opposite. I dissociated heavily from my experiences and had no aversion to touch or sex (one reason I related to Nesta so much).

I'm not saying this is a healthy coping mechanism- it absolutely is not. I was so desperate to prove I wasn't a victim, I actively harmed myself by putting myself in dangerous situations in seeking out intimacy because I (mistakenly) thought I was in control. It wasn't until I finally began seeing a therapist that I realized how harmful this was.

Even still, I never developed an aversion to touch or sex, I just became more mindful of my choices. Like many SA survivors, I turned to BDSM. When done properly (I'm looking at you 50 shades... 🙄) with people who actually know what they're doing, it can be very therapeutic for survivors of SA because it puts the control in your hands.

Again, I will spare you the details because you don't need them. That's not the point of sharing this. It's to point out- once again- that not everyone handles trauma the same.

The truth of the matter is, we don't actually know how Gwyn feels about any of this. Other than the little bit she tells Nesta and Emerie during the Blood Rite- which mostly amounted to 'my choice was taken from me in a violent way and I'm angry about it- she never speaks about her thoughts or feelings regarding that night, or men/sex in general, and we have not seen her POV.

The only men we know she's interacted with since that night are the bat boys. Other than her initial encounter with the Illyrians during the Blood Rite, she mostly keeps her distance from them and actually remains mostly level headed throughout the whole ordeal, even trying to sacrifice herself (knowing what will likely happen to her) to allow Nesta and Emerie to get away after she's shot at the bridge.

She's never really uncomfortable around Cassian or Azriel, maybe a little wary at first, but she warms to both in no time and is in fact a big reason why other priestesses eventual join. By the end she is quite comfortable with them both. Even with Rhys she just blushes (I know I've seen people try to use this as a 'gotcha' like she can't be into Az when she's attracted to his brother *groan* Rhys is hot, we know this, and personally, I think it's more celebrity shock like 'holy shit that's the High Lord of the Night Court' than a crush lol) And she wasn't all that bothered by having the men watch them while they did the Blood Rite qualifier, even after being warned. She literally shrugs it off.

She shows no discomfort when Emerie and Nesta discuss sex and even participates in the conversation which doesn't exactly scream to me that she'd uninterested in sex.

They like to point out that Gwyn went back to the library at the end of the book. This was her home for the last two years after her's had been desecrated (remember it wasn't just about what happened to her. Her sister and many of the people she knew in the temple were killed in front of her. There are several bad memories associated with it now, beyond her SA), and it's where she's been healing. It's perfectly reasonable she'd be wary about leaving, it's all she knows and she has no other home currently. Not to mention that she's said herself she doesn't want to stay in the library her whole life and she's already left it once. Granted, immediately after she left, she was thrown into yet another traumatic event so again, it's perfectly reasonable she'd be wary. It's unreasonable to think she'll never leave or that it will take a very long time before she's ready, she's already close to it, just needs a little more time to process what literally just happened to her.

Gwyn has also shown an interest in sex so it's not unreasonable to think she might try again in the near future. This is the sort of narrative we should be encouraging, that SA survivors are capable, and deserve to be able to move on and have normal, healthy lives. Not every SA survivor may want that but the vast majority do.

To say, as a professional, that an trauma survivor should be on any sort of timeline in terms of their recovery is irresponsible. It puts undue pressure on the survivor. They may take longer and feel something it wrong with them, or they may not feel they need as long and again, feel something is wrong with them.

It is irresponsible, as a professional to insinuate that trauma survivors should display specific traits or symptoms (such as anxiety or touch aversion) when everyone responds to trauma differently. Some develop severe disorders like anxiety and some function mostly normal aside from maybe the occasional episode. They may dissociate completely like I did.

Trying to put all survivors into the same box is a disservice to them all. Period. And we should not be using these sorts of opinions as basis for proving or disproving ships... let's be serious please and remember we're talking to real people about fictional people...

[lia-land]

From Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout

3/5

Spoilers for the first book in the Blood and Ash series*

I cannot start this review with anything other than how bad the audiobook is. This is an incredibly slow book for about 250/300 pages, as lots of fantasy series tend to be, so I wanted to get the world building over with on the audiobook. I could not continue listening to the narrator after the first few chapters. Hawke’s voice and accent combination is the worst thing I have ever heard and I can’t believe there was no one else who could have narrated this. Give me a microphone at this point... It’s like she was purposely trying to make it sound bad. I don’t know her name but I refuse to believe that she is not Jennifer L. Armentrout’s biggest hater.

Hawke is a relatively sexy character and maybe a little bit like ACOTAR’s Rhys, but this narrator completely ruined him for me. I can’t even read the books without hearing that stupid voice she gave him. I won’t even digress about every time she says ‘Oh my Gods…’ but I do like that this story eventually acknowledges the Gods that it’s referring to.

The world building was dragged out and I was very bored until around 50% in. I didn’t love that the book immediately jumped into spice; it gave me the impression that this series was just going to be porn with a weak plot, but I was somewhat wrong. Not entirely wrong, but the plot was stronger than I expected.

Then there’s the bad writing. The story is okay after chapter 15, but the bad writing outweighs it. I was constantly aware that I was reading, especially during the dialogue. It didn’t flow naturally and felt really forced. As many others have said, this book would have benefited from a good editor. Get Grammarly on this at the very least. The dialogue reminded me more of a TV show script where they quickly refer to/recap a previous episode since viewers might have forgotten. In this book, the dialogue sometimes referred to things that happened only a few pages or even sentences ago. I wanted to know what would happen, but I didn’t want to actually read it because the writing was really dull. The publisher is Simon & Schuster, by the way. Not sure how this met any standards of such a big publisher. Update: I've since seen a few people say that JLA doesn't have an editor at all? That should have told me all I needed to know before even starting this series.

Poppy was boring. She felt less like a character and more like a device for us to see the story unfold. Of course, every character has that purpose to some extent, but the only interesting thing about her is that she is the Maiden, and we still don’t even fully know what that means. I’m far more interested in the other characters. 

I thought Hawke was probably the Dark One after he made out with Poppy, otherwise he would just be really bad at his job as a guard. I was even more convinced after the Duke was stabbed with a cane right after. It seemed too obvious. Poppy is a very dumb character and I think the purpose was for readers to maybe relate to her? No clue. I could probably justify this partially by house secluded she is from other people, but the cane in the Duke’s chest right after her and Hawke made out was too obvious. Not sure how she didn’t pick that up in any part of her endless inner monologue. There's a big thing now about author's treating readers as if they're dumb and it was very clear in this book. I've also mentioned before that I don't base my reviews off of who authors are as people and I haven't, but if you feel like doing a deep dive into JLA's interactions with her readers, she does indeed think we are all dumb.

This isn’t a bad book, but it’s not good either, in my opinion. There really wasn’t that much plot. It’s just a bunch of repetitive inner dialogue with maybe 100 pages of things actually happening. I was so ready for this to be my next obsession, but it just wasn't for me.

Update: Tried reading the second book but it was just too boring. DNF at 12%.

[doctor-octiddius]

This ended up being a long ramble about Siddig's characters whoops

Every time i think about Sid I want to fall to my knees sobbing. I feel like that gif of the wailing emoji that is disintegrating, like just knowing that this man exists gets me so aourhgrhghghhh :'(( I cannot believe that Julian Bashir and Ra's al Ghul are played by the same man; as in, I was incredibly into Gotham back in 2017, a little just before he joined the show and now years later he is stuck in my brain again. I remember every damn frame of him. How is that this same guy. (I wrote "gay" at first, help me 😭 I mean hey, with Sid saying that he played all his straight characters as a bit gay, anything's possible) Also i haven't really interacted with this whole Sid hyperfixation in a lil bit and it's making me so sad, god forbid i have other interests.

Actually, I lied, I keep relistening to the audio dramas he's been in. I'm now hijacking my own post to yell about some of his audio drama characters because they are my favourites ever of all time.

ROSTO FROM THE EIGHT DOCTOR ADVENTURES (Sisters of the Flame/Vengeance of Morbius)

My babygirl being a 10 foot tall centipede cop ??? It's more likely than you think !!! He is literally just that. That's all he is. He makes funky bug sounds when he talks, he's a bit silly, he's so cute, he disconnected himself completely from his home to focus on his job... I love him so bad, I want to hug him, but I think that's a form of affection he just wouldn't understand, but I am willing to try anything. I am ignoring his ending, I was able to save him actually and now he's all good again and we are best friends <3

THE SULTAN/THE SHANAKI FROM DOCTOR WHO: THE MONTHLY ADVENTURES (1001 Nights)

WE GET SID AS THE DOCTOR FOR A BIT TECHNICALLY ??? But also The Shanaki... OOUGGHGHH THE SHANAKI...... This guy has lived through several lifetimes and boy do I need to know all of them. What lives has he led exactly? Like, he could have been anyone, any celebrity, any public figure. What did he do to all of the people whose psyches he stole? Has he actually learned anything through them; have they only ever been human lives? How did the breakdown at the end with him mixing up lives and experiences influence him further on? Please I need to know everything about him immediately.

DR. REESE FROM ALIEN: RIVER OF PAIN

Motherfucker named Bartholomew Reese. He's a bitch. I love him. That is all. Thank you. (I read the book too, and every little description of him I ate up, though the book seemed kinda boring, lacking any suspense etc. I loved the little bit of regret he had before his end, which wasn't shown in the audio at all, even if it was very short and simple.)

THE PERSIAN FROM THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA

Don't even get me started on this one. The Persian in general is like my favourite character of all time, but him played by Sid? I am so biased in so many ways. My PotO hyperfixation has led me to so many places, and all I've learnt is that the ALW musical, which I used to worship as a kid, is mid (story wise, I still love the music), and everyone keeps fucking getting rid of the most important character of the story. This audio drama is so good, it's quite faithful to the book, it's the best adaptation in my opinion, I am in love with this daroga.

I feel like I have to mention Ted from The Flat Edge of the Earth, but I have to relisten to it to better form an opinion on all that (I say that since I've listened to all the other audio dramas at least like four times (PotO near 30 times, but we won't talk about that). That's the same reason I haven't mentioned Captain Nemo from one of the DW audios either since I've only heard that once.) He seems very goofy, though, and having just an hour of Sid and Nana in my ears was fun.

But yeah, that is all. If you read through this entire ramble then hi hey :3 I am so normal about his roles