#Contemporary-A-Thon

[jackhkeynes]

Markish

Markish is an English language of the German family of languages which evolved on the island of Albion. It is closely related to other English languages like Kentish and Wessern, and is the primary language of the polity of Markland.

Contemporary Markish descends form the Early Markish spoken in Markland, which itself descends from Anglian varieties of Old English.

This article principally describes the acrolect of Markish spoken in and around the capital city of Tommarth.

Examples

A jalicked knave bought a new quistre. /ə ˈdʒa.lɪ.kəd knɛːv bɔft ə nəu ˈkwɪ.stə/ A guy in a tuxedo bought a new phone. Aquifex is the temendest corporal. /ˈa.kwɪˌfɛks ɪz ðe ˈtiː.mən.dəs ˈkoː.pʊ.ɾəl/ Hydrogen is the most abundant element. Do thy breches of and put thysel abed! /duː ðəi ˈbɾiː.tʃəz ɔf ən pʊt ðəiˈsɛl əˈbɛd/ Take off your clothes and get on the bed! By way o'dreend al therin ough, he asked "As swich?" /bəi wəi əˈdɾiː.ən‿dal ðəˈɾɪn uːf | hiː ˈa.skəd | az swɪtʃ/ While doing everything wrong, he asked "Like that?" Psolick tersures may breken wines brewing of. /ˈsɔ.lɪk ˈtɛː.zjəz məi ˈbɾiːkə wəinz ˈbɾəwɪŋg ɔf/ Sulphites can stop wine fermentation.

Phonology

Consonants

The consonant phonemes found in Markish are:

/m n/ /p t tʃ k/ /b d dʒ g/ /f θ s ʃ h/ /v ð z/ /w l ɾ j/

and they are subject to the following orthographic conventions:

b d f h k l m n p t v w z represent their IPA symbols.

j r y represent /dʒ ɾ j/ respectively.

c usually represents /s/ before i e y and /k/ elsewhere.

awice /əˈwəis/ "indeed" < OE ġewiss "certain" coholl /kʊˈhɔl/ "sulfide" < Ar كُحْل "kohl"

g usually represents /g/ but may represent /dʒ/ before i e y.

eagre /ˈeː.gə/ "acid" < L ācer nargill /ˈnaː.dʒɪl/ "coconut" < Ar نَرْجِيل "coconut palm" girl /geːl/ "young person"

q appears almost always in the diagraph qu to represent /kw/.

quoit /kwəit/ "tyre, torus"

s represents /z/ between vowels and word-finally (unless doubled), and /s/ otherwise.

Brasil /bɾəˈzɪl/ "Newfoundland" < Ir Breasail betimes /bɪˈtəimz/ "earlier" surblavick /soːˈblɛː.vɪk/ "ultraviolet" < L blavus "blue"

x represents /gz/ between vowels, and /ks/ otherwise.

oxy /ˈɔg.ziː/ "stubborn" œculux /ˈɛ.kjəˌlʊks/ "EM radiation" < Gr οἶκος "house", L lux "light"

There are several digraphs of letters with -h: ch gh ph sh th wh.

ph sh wh represent /f ʃ f/.

ch usually represents /tʃ/, but sometimes also /k/.

chalk /tʃalk/ "chalk" yacht /jakt/ "cult" < Du jaght "hunting party"

gh usually represents either /ʃ/ (following i) or /f/ (following u).

wight /wɪʃt/ "person" < OE wiht "thing, creature" ough /uːf/ "bad" < OE wōh "wrong, crooked" NB I'ght /ˈəift/ "I must", contracted from I ought

th usually represents either of /θ ð/, and sometimes /t/.

thrift /θɾɪft/ "energy" < ON þrift "prosperity" yeathre /ˈjeːðə/ "together" < OE geador

There are several situations in which written consonants may be silent.

In certain endings: participle -end /ən/, infinitive -en /ə/, superlative -est /əs/.

discurrend /dɪˈskʊ.ɾən/ "different" < L discurrēns "roaming" chammen /ˈtʃa.mə/ "to chew" (poss. onomatopoetic) tharvest /ˈθaː.vəs/ "least sociable" < OE þeorf "unleavened"

Coda r lengthens the preceding vowel and word-final -re is pronounced /ə/.

interpel /ɪnˈtɛː.pəl/ "interact with" < L interpellō "I disturb" sundre /ˈsʊn.də/ "many" < OE sundor "separately"

Post-tonic -st- immediately before a closed syllable is pronounced /s/.

hirstend /ˈheː.sən/ "extra" < OE hyrstan "to ornament" pistol /ˈpɪ.səl/ "message" < L epistola

Likewise, post-tonic -v- is lost in some common words.

morovre /mʊˈɾoː(ə)/ "as well" evre /ɛː(ə)/ "always"

Vowels

The vowels of (this variety of) Markish are:

/a ɛ ɪ ɔ ʊ ə/ /aː ɛː eː iː ɔː oː ʉː/ /əi əu/

and they are subject to the following orthographic conventions:

In stressed syllables, "short" a e i~y o u represent /a ɛ ɪ ɔ ʊ/.

sam /sam/ "set, collection" < OE samnian "gather" whelp /fɛlp/ "baby animal" quick /kwɪk/ "awake" thon /ðɔn/ "one, someone", contracted from the one bulk /bʊlk/ "cargo"

In unstressed syllables, a e i~y o u instead represent /ə ə~ɪ ɪ ʊ ʊ/—except word-finally, where /ɪ ʊ/ become /iː ə/.

defectend /dɪˈfɛk.tən/ "positively charged" behemoth /bɪˈhiː.mʊθ/ "hippopotamus" costumery /kʊˈstjəu.mə.ɾiː/ "fashion plate"

"Long" a e i~y o u represent /ɛː iː əi uː jəu/.

besake /bɪˈzɛːk/ "because" mete /miːt/ "standard, gauge" < OE metan "measure" ty /təi/ "to join" poke /puːk/ "container" < OFr poque "bag" huge /hjəudʒ/ "huge"

There are plenty of digraphs representing vowels.

Coda -r: ar er ir or ur represent /aː ɛː eː oː oː/.

davarn /dəˈvaːn/ "grand hotel, resort" < W tafarn "inn"

-a: ea oa represent /eː oː/.

roaden /ˈɾoː.də/ "to travel"

-e: ee ie ue represent /iː əi jəu/.

conspue /kʊnˈspjəu/ "to deride" < L cōnspuō "I spit upon"

-i/y: ai ei oi and ay ey oy represent /əi əi~iː əi/.

fain /fəin/ "willing(ly)"

-o: oo represents /uː/.

soon /suːn/ "as soon as"

-u/w: au eu ou and aw ew ow represent /əu əu əu~uː/.

blew /bləu/ "blue" coshow /ˈkɔ.ʃuː/ "rubber" < Quechua kawchu

[merryfortune]

Inspiration Struck on a Serviette 

Written for the Rarest of Rare Pairs Fic-a-Thon

Prompt: Any: Any/Any - Sketching a picture of their lover

Title: Inspiration Struck on a Serviette 

Ship: Brassius/Katy

Fandom: Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

Word Count: 2,002

Rating: G

Warning: None

Tags: Established Relationship, Fluff

   Conventional wisdom would have it that the baking of cakes was a science not an art.

   Every ingredient had to be especially prepared, measured, and mixed or else the results could turn out disastrous. No one liked pancakes which were gluggy or burnt like bricks, no one liked croissants that were soggy or lacked shape, and so on and so forth.

   Brassius would agree but he saw it as more than the interactions of chemicals and heat. He saw it as an artform and one trip to Katy’s bakery and he could not be argued with. Her cake making was absolutely an artform.

   The precision in her hands necessary to craft such intricate fondant or adorable whipped cream displays, Brassius envied her. And the fact that it tasted delicious, too. Well, he might finally put some weight on after a lifetime of being too skinny, quite frankly.

   One trip and that’s all it took. Then he was crawling all over her socials like bugs under a log.

   Though, them both being united by their other profession of Pokemon training, too, helped. It was good to be friends with one another’s colleagues and their hometowns weren’t that far from each other considering that Mesagoza was in the smack bang middle of the distance. 

   Katy, of course, was flattered by the attention. Her humble little patisserie? Getting the tick of approval from a Vitruvian Man like Brassius? Who wouldn’t have their mind at least a little bit blown from hearing nothing but good things come out of his mouth about her and her baking.

   So, Brassius made it a point to make the trip to Cortonda at least once a month, whenever Katy had something new or interesting on the menu. Her good food was dessert for the soul, honestly, and made for excellent inspiration whenever Brassius was in a slump. 

   And in turn to be polite, Katy put in the effort to go to Brassius’s shows and exhibitions. She turned into a vehement supporter of his sculptures and paintings, even when she didn’t really get it. She preferred her portraits to have two eyes, one nose, and one mouth. Brassius disagreed but still, she respected his craft.

   All this banter and catch-ups and other meetings, even outside of League ones, was enough to turn anyone’s eye to wonder because Brassius and Katy just had such an… aura about them. A lovey-dovey one. It was sickeningly saccharine, to the point that Hassel of all people, a diehard romantic, had to tell them to get their act together because he couldn’t take anymore of their schoolkid crushes they clearly had one another.

   An announcement which was completely news to both Brassius and Katy, of course. Sputtering and denial and rambling about how they couldn’t possibly be more than friends. Grass Types were weak to Bug Types and Bug Types were weak to Rock Type moves and one good High Horsepower from Ursaring very well might overcome Suudowoodo’s Sturdy assuming that it's not Terrastralised…

   Yet despite all that bumbling and fumbling, the fluster and the bluster, their fingers interlocked and their faces went red. Their feelings were very much true to one another but to the chagrin of everyone around them, they did not get better. If anything, they got worse now that they were an item off the market.

   All those goo-goo gaga eyes only intensified now that they wore the crown of being each other’s beau. Not even Katy’s customers could escape the way she swooned for her boyfriend and nor could any of Brassius’s artsy-fartsy contemporaries. It was quite shameful but they wouldn’t have it any other way…

  After all, were it not for Katy and the Pokemon League, Brassius would be quite the hermit. Life was quite dull when he didn’t leave the atelier for months of end, either because of his insane work ethic or the dead opposite of depression. Sometimes both. 

   Katy genuinely brought joy to Brassius.

   And for her, Brassius provided perspective.

   Brassius was a very different person to her, after all. From how he carried himself to his thoughts and feelings, and that was part of what made him so attractive to her. He was so full of surprises, the way he saw the world was so different and Katy felt that there was something to learn from that - and much to love about it, too.

   Just as he took inspiration from her and her pastries, Katy aspired to do the same. Though her cake decorating skills were easily top of the class and could put a Gigantamax Alcremie to shame, Katy had much to learn in other artforms. Despite her expertise with a piping bag, a pencil had the capability to prove quite the challenge for her.

   One she was willing to rise to the occasion to like dough. 

   And one she was interested in testing on this visit of Brassius, too.

   Like per usual, for his once a month visit, to have some nice tea and a good treat alongside it, with his sketchbook in tow, Brassius had set up shop in the corner of Soapberry. But this time, Katy would ensure it that he wasn’t the only one who was drawing.

   “At closing,” Katy told him excitedly, holding onto the table and with a big grin, “I’m going to have a surprise for you.”

   “Oh-ho?” Brassius made an interested noise, his eyes keened.

   “Ayup, just you wait and see.” Katy said.

  “Well, I will look forward to it.” Brassius replied.

   Katy let her boyfriend be and he soon had his nose in his sketchbook. Katy, meanwhile, had a skip in her step and her heartbeat, too. She was going to be the very best! Or have a great time trying. Either would work for her.

   So, over the course of the day, when Katy had a spare moment in between monitoring the ovens, serving customers, and other duties that she had as the manager of Soapberry, she was drawing. Just something small, nothing special and it showed in her materials, she was using a pen and some a square of fresh serviette tissue as she thought anything else - like printer paper - might be too big and imposing. She just wanted to make something small and cute. 

   She had the greatest reference and inspiration in store. Just like how Brassius did still life studies of her baked goods or character design based off the customers who came and went, Katy’s eyes were trained in - almost obsessively - with her subject. He, very kindly, gave her a sweet smile whenever their eyes met. 

   The day went by in the blink of an eye. It was as busy as usual - which is to say not too busy since Cortonda was a small town, even with a hustling bustling tourism season - but there had just been so much enjoyment to have had in her little side project. Hence why Katy felt that closing had come far too soon, sooner than she expected but she had much to show for it.

   Empty shelves, a diner which was turned upside down so the cleaners could mop the floors, and of course a completed drawing. It was only the stragglers now - and Brassius too. The shop sign had turned over and the till had been counted. That was that and now, as a result, it was time for the big surprise that Katy had promised Brassius earlier at opening.

   So, Katy came bounding over to Brassius’s bussed table. It was spick and span, tidied up so he could take his leave once Katy had officially locked up, he had his pencil case all zipped up and satchel by his side. He greeted Katy with a demure smile whilst she almost burst with excitement. She was ear to ear with a grin, clutching tightly her very special surprise.

   “Guess what?” Katy said.

   “What?” Brassius echoed, teasing.

   Katy pouted, “You’re meant to guess! No matter, look, look, I drew something and I’m soooooo proud of it.” she said.

   She extended her arms and flipped around her piece of thick serviette paper. She forced it into Brassius’ face, all but an inch from the tip of his nose and he squinted into it. Her arms began to tremble and she squealed, equal parts nervous and ready to be pampered.

   “Well?” Katy asked, bouncing on her heels. “What do you think?” She shimmied and batted her eyes, expectant of praise.

   Brassius lifted his hand and gently took it from Katy’s hands. He positioned it in front of him so he could see all of it and not just some blurry mess of it, either. Katy stepped back, embarrassed that she had been overzealous but Brassius’s quiet, thoughtful expression assured her that he did not mind. If anything, he found it cute.

   Brassius looked over what she had gifted him. He picked up the crinkled, white serviette and admired the penwork now scrawled over it. The big, bubbly shapes with uneven buggy proportions and he slowly put two and two together. It was a person, with eyes and a nose and face, with spiky cactus-like hair and holding what he at first thought was an enormous lollipop then he noticed, it too, was spiked.

   He realised.

   His expression changed and for a moment, Katy held her breath.

   “It’s wonderful.” Brassius praised it adoringly with a sparkle in his eyes. “Truly avant garde, even!”

   Katy giggled, “Ohh, now you're just being nice.” She playfully denied the compliment.

   “No, not at all, I truly mean what I say.” Brassius assured her.

   “Then thank you.” Katy finally accepted the compliment.

   Brassius continued to gaze ever so lovingly at the little serviette doodle. He could imagine Katy all too easily, scrawling it in between serving customers or instructing her workers with the next batch of baking. It was quickly made but not hastily made. Her linework was precise, even if her shape language was still bulbous and amateur. 

   Still, her drawing exuded so much joy and wonder. It was adorable. Her selection of subjects was also impeccable and doubled down on the happy emotions that it embodied. It was, after all, a portrait of him with either cubist or childish proportions depending on which way he squinted. It was a truly solid beginning to a lot of hard work were Katy to continue honing her ability to draw. 

   Brassius utterly marvelled at it and again at Katy. He looked up, eyes soft.

   “Would you like to see mine now?” he asked her.

   “Yes, I would love to.” Katy squealed with a big smile on her face.

   “There you go.” Brassius replied and he turned his clipboard around to face her.

   Katy’s eyes immediately lit up as she blushed ever so faintly. 

   “Is that me?” she asked.

   “Who else would it be?” Brassius teased her.

   He had depicted her as straightforwardly and realistically as he could. He captured all her beauty, all her grace that he saw in her as she worked and he drew in the corner. 

   The linework was delicate. Oftentimes not even there at all to hint to the roundness of her nose or cheek. There was a passionate twinkle in her eyes, the most built-up part of the drawing to best convey the window into her sweet soul.

   “I-It’s gorgeous, Brassius.” Katy exclaimed.

   “It pales in comparison to you.” Brassius assured her.

   “Oh, you!” Katy’s face went redder.

   “I mean it.” Brassius said.

   He put down his drawing onto the table, next to Katy’s serviette. Then, in turn, he took Katy’s hand and brought it to his lips. He kissed over her knuckles, brushing lightly against her hand. Katy swallowed and allowed herself to be ravished by her far too romantic for his own good partner.

   Quite frankly, embarrassing anyone else in the store with this honeymoon routine. They had been together twenty months but they were acting like it had been twenty minutes and ergo giving the impression, they might still be like this in twenty years’ time.

[piejumper]

I 100%-ed the demo for The Big Catch and that was fucking amazing. But I still need to get one last thing but the devs were bastards and put it at the top of a very high area with no checkpoints where its EXTREMELY easy to fall down and have to repeat the entire (rather lenghty) level again. But it's completely optional and the game treats the current state it's in as 100% anyway. Gonna go back to it later cause it's still fun

So basically I need to inject this game into my bloodstream like heroin and i dont know how im supposed to wait for the full release. The controls are tight and the design immaculate to where you get to see and do everything the devs have been able to make with the mechanics they've created as its own uniqe form of maneuvering their unique world to set it apart from their contemporaries.

However there's a pretty aggressive learing curve right off the bat in the tutorial, and because it's not very good at demonstrating or describing the mechanics you'll be using throughout the game with some even being left out, it's difficult to get a grasp on then before being kicked off into the full demo. however I ended up enjoying it a lot because of that because of how the exploration and development of my skills with the controls made it feel rewarding as i was getting better while playing and discovering things i didnt know like with my time with the game Tunic.

and the approach to level design in the demo keenly emphasized all the unique obstacles that are going to be in the full game with a hands off approach where the devs present you with seemingly impossible or confusing to beat challenges, with the implication that with your current skills and abilities it's possible to get where you need to go. With the setting being a intriguing wasteland, everything you learn about it coming from the single mentor figure and npc included in the demo that makes me want to know more.

Definitely buying it day one, also be sure to play with a controller I do not want to think about the hand cramps I'd have gotten trying to do all that with a keyboard. Additionally it'd be really good if there's a map in the full game and a more fleshed out collectable tracking system because since it's styling itself as a collect-a-thon it's really difficult figuring out where you've missed a coin or a fish if you can't tell if the orb in the middle of your compass is slightly Grey instead of teal because there's coins in the level you're near or it's just the lighting and bloom making you color blind because the only indicator is when it starts changing color (in fact, you couldn't even do that till they patched it in, still grateful they did it)

Oooough I need more, it's a good thing this demo is massive, I'll be able to replay it a bunch in the meantime, it hasn't even been a week since it dropped but I need more people (influences) talking about it cause I want to see and hear other people's thoughts on this and see it get the attention it deserves.

[allinmycorner]

I think Halloween is probably the most popular theme week after Disney Night for DWTS. And this year's Halloween night did not disappoint. Monsters of all kinds descended on the ballroom floor for individual dances and then returned for the dance-a-thon. The nine couples took to the floor to dance both the hustle and then the Charleston for some extra points. It's always fun to watch and this time was no different.

Of course Sasha was in his glory and we got the traditional package about him scaring everyone. Most of the dancers knew it was him and they would yell his name. But he then sat down on a couch and got scared by Alyson. So someone finally got Sasha.

There was also a guest judge for this show. Former contestant Niecy Nash joined Carrie Ann, Derek and Bruno to help judge our stars' Halloween routines. It was pretty fun to have her back.

So who was the star of this monster's ball and who got chased off by the villagers? Let's take a look!

Mauricio and Emma: This was a bit surprising. Mauricio has been an apparent crowd favorite and his scores have also been on the rise. I was starting to suspect he could be the dark horse but I guess the audience had other plans. While his matador-inspired Argentine tango wasn't as smooth as other stars who have performed this dance, it was still fun to watch. He and Emma had good chemistry and it really helped elevate this routine. I'm going to miss him in the upcoming weeks but I think he should be proud for making it this far.

Xochitl and Val: Xochitl and Val topped the leaderboard again with a powerful contemporary dance. Val's superhero resurrected Xochitl with his powers and throughout the dance she grew more and more powerful, realizing she was alive again. They performed some amazing tricks, including one where it looked like Xochitl was flying. At some point, it seems she got hurt as Val was carrying her around for the rest of the show but she didn't seem interested in talking about it. And it didn't stop her from winning the dance-a-thon either. Hopefully she recovers and comes back next week to wow us again.

Ariana and Pasha: I'm not sure what exactly Ariana was supposed to be other than some mythological creature but honestly, it doesn't matter. Her Argentine tango was flawless. I know Carrie Ann said that Charity's contemporary last week would be the most memorable dance this season but I honestly believe it will be this Argentine tango. It was like watching two pros and I was mesmerized. Ariana handled every move perfectly. I encourage everyone to watch it if you haven't yet. And she also made it to second place in the dance-a-thon, which is just as impressive.

Jason and Daniella: Jason and Daniella also danced a contemporary routine where they were zombies fighting with each other. It was probably the most serious Jason has been throughout the competition and he rose to the challenge. His dance was appropriately spooky and he executed the moves without breaking character. He continues to prove why he is the best male star this season. And he even made it to the Charleston portion of the dance-a-thon to finish in fourth place. Not bad at all.

Charity and Artem: I'd say the dance-a-thon hurt Charity and Artem but it didn't really. All it did was solidify their finish in 4th place for this week. What hurt them was that Niecy gave their skeleton jive an 8. While still a high score, it still likely stung as both Xochitl and Ariana had 10s in their scores and Jason had earned all 9s. Their jive was fun and Charity still handled it well but I think it's subject hurt her forward momentum after last week's emotional breakthrough. Maybe she can regain it again next week.

Lele and Brandon: Lele was a black widow spider luring Brandon into her web as they danced the paso doble. I don't know why her scores aren't higher. She's fun to watch and is just as good as Charity or Jason. Something is holding her back and I hope she figures it out because I certainly can't. I just know I don't want her to be the next surprise elimination.

Barry and Peta: Barry is so fun to watch. Is he the best dancer out there? No, not really. But he's giving it his all and he's really charismatic, which is why I think people are still voting for him. Watching him be the Big Bad Wolf to Peta's Red Riding Hood was more entertaining than their Viennese waltz but he still managed to pull off most of the choreography. So that's certainly impressive. I still don't think he'll win but I'll enjoy watching him while he's still around.

Alyson and Sasha: Unsurprisingly, Alyson was assigned to be a vampire. I wonder why? Anyway, I think the teeth threw off her face a bit because she looked more awkward. And she was a bit awkward moving from the cape action on the top of the stairs to the main part of the paso doble on the dance floor. But once she and Sasha started dancing together, it looked very good. They were perfectly in sync and show that they are a great team. Alyson just needs to refine her movements more and she might be able to challenge Lele and get out of the bottom three.

Harry and Rylee: Harry is feeling disheartened due to online comments about him. Oh, Harry, never read the comments. That includes mine, though I try to be more positive than negative. Ultimately, the only comments you need to listen to are the judges'. They will help you improve. Because Harry has promise but he's just been a little too inconsistent this season. However, he did recover with his and Rylee's alien-inspired Argentine tango. It wasn't as smooth as it could've been but it had good content he was able to pull off after a little help from Lindsay. And while it must hurt to be in the bottom three two weeks in a row, it seems the audience likes him enough to keep him around. So he should take some comfort with that.

So that was Halloween night! We have about a month until a new winner is crowned and gets to hoist the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy and I'm happy it could be anyone's game. It could be Xochitl or Ariana. Jason could sneak past them to win it all in the end. Bachelor Nation could push Charity across the finish line or the audience could send Barry there instead. And Lele could be the surprise winner. Maybe Alyson or Harry will make it as well, though I doubt it at this time.

But only time will tell.

Next time, Paula Abdul will join the panel as a guest judge while the remaining stars pay tribute to some of the best music videos of all time. And we'll have the team dances! See you then!

[elviramac22-blog]

DWTS Monster Night

*****SPOILERS AHEAD***** Monster night on DWTS was a little underwhelming. They have Niecy Nash Bets as a guest judge this week. So, the highest score the celebrities can get is a 40. They have individual routines the celebrities had a monster-thon so they had to memorize two dance styles. Jason Mraz and Daniella started off the night with a contemporary dance. They were dressed as zombies. They…

[bellascarousel]

Happy Thursday! Thank you for following us (@ask-a-thon) from the previous blog, or finding us in general! Now, on to your questions!

How long have you been working on each WIP? How do you plan your WIPs (timeline, outline, seat of your pants, divine intervention, etc...)? Have you ever regretted inserting a character or plot point but ended up loving it, or vice versa?

Oh dear Gods... I've been working on Sangue Collina for like 12 years. It seriously took me a decade to get the plot hammered out. I'm ridiculous.

Then again, Sangue Collina has NOTHING on Aberoth. Which is technically not a current WIP, but it's my "hairball novel". Every few years, my brain pulls it out and wants to do something with it. And I DO have various snippets and scenes on my computer. I've been coughing that bad boy up for at LEAST 20 years, now.

All of my various Historical Romance projects are in the few months to 2 years range. And my Contemporary Romances are just a bit older than that.

As for my fanfiction, I started writing TDWLM about 2.5 years ago, and that was my first Kathony fic. We won't talk about my Haylijah fics, because those don't really count as WIPs anymore, being semi-abandoned.

I'm kind of a "plantser". I have a general idea of where things are going, and certain scenes planned out, but I'm not great at outlining. I am actually trying to get better at that, in the hopes that having an outline will give my ADHD brain less opportunity to get distracted and go off the rails.

I once had a character say 5 words and change half my backstory (including her own name) and derail large chunks of my plot. I tried to walk back from that, but no. And now I love it. Those 5 words and their implication ended up creating a massive amount of my world, created an entire concept and class of people, and honestly explained exactly how she got involved in this mess to begin with. Including adding a ton of nuance to her relationship with the character she was talking to at the time. The line is gone, but everything it brought with it is still there.

[asreadbydana]

Contemporary-A-Thon TBR

Hello readers, it’s time for another read-a-thon! 

This time around I will be participating in the Contemporary-A-Thon from February 11 through February 17. There are 7 reading challenges and I will be attempting to meet them by reading these 4 books:

Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward

The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan

Four Weeks, Five People by Jennifer Yu

Glory O'Brien's History of the Future by A.S. King

[fromjesstoyou]

Contemporary-A-Thon Round 3 - Day 2 / Vlog #3 | #ContemporaryAThon | From Jess to You Services

[lacependragon]

ContemporaryAThon TBR

ContemporaryAThon TBR - What I Plan to Read During ContemporaryAThon

Hello bookworms! Today, I want to talk about my ContemporaryAThon TBR pile. The ContemporaryAThon is a readathon hosted on Instagram and Youtube by chelseadollingreads and some friends of hers (video shown below). It runs from February 11th (that’s tomorrow!) to February 17th, 2019. This round, there are seven challenges, and I want to try and hit at least a few of them.

The Challenges

Read…

[booksandrandomfandoms]

Book photo challenge day 30

September wrap up

On the left is what I read for Contemporary-A-Thon

The middle was Randomathon which included what my partner for the pick it for me challenge picked because they fit the prompts luckily 😂

And the right side is everything else... I still have a good chunk of uprooted to go but since I’ve read most of it this month I’m going to include it here, hopefully I can finish it soon because I have a big tbr planned for October😅

[philamuseum]

Today is International Women’s Day, a day to reflect on and commemorate the past and present struggles for gender equality. Looking for an active way to celebrate? Join us on March 17 for the third annual Art+Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-Thon and help update entries on subjects related to art and feminism. 

"Untitled, We are your circumstantial evidence," 1983, by Barbara Kruger © Barbara Kruger Courtesy Mary Boone Gallery 

[taylor-reads-books]

“Weird is the new cool.” -Kasie West, Lucky in Love •———————————————————————————• It’s warm and sunny today and it’s got me dreaming of late spring and summer weather 🥰 I can’t wait to lay on my padio with a fluffy contemporary in the sunshine. Why not now? Because I live in Oklahoma where spring = wind and a lot of it! So I’ll sit in my nook inside and read sci-fi/fantasy books for Owlcrate-a-thon instead! •———————————————————————————• #bookstack #kasiewest #yacontemporary #bookspines #booksbooksbooks #booksofinstagram #bookshelves #bookshelf #bookshelvesofinstagram #bookcart #beautifulbooks #yalit #yabooks #yabookstagram #bookish #booksandcamera #booknerdigans #bookworm https://www.instagram.com/p/CMdBDtfgryn/?igshid=aiwyqlt6nlqs

[labrador-entity]

(ID: Facebook event page screenshot. Hosted by Brassywomxn, Anneke Scott and "Art+Feminism")

Wikipedia editathon: Brass Players (Female, Trans, NonBinary) [link]

27 Sept 00:00 (GMT) - 4 Oct 23:30 (GMT)

Join us for a virtual Wikipedia edit-a-thon week of action from Sunday, September 27, to Saturday, October 3, to add information to existing articles, write new articles, and add notable people to existing lists focusing on female, non-binary, and/or trans brass players.

GOALS

This edit-a-thon aims to:

* Update the representation of female, trans, and non-binary brass players on Wikipedia

* Provide an opportunity for both contributors and future Wikipedia users to learn about instrument and player history and contemporaries

* Empower womxn brass players to speak about their work and community

Related PSA: Wikipedia is a resource; it relies on citations from published/reputable media - creating content is important!

ZOOM SESSIONS 9/27 + 10/4 (both optional)

We'll be holding TWO optional sessions online via Zoom (link will be sent to contributors) around this week of action. Neither of these are mandatory - you can still contribute and nominate regardless of attendance.

1) Sunday, September 27, at 8p GMT / 3p ET

This kick-off session will be an opportunity for contributors who wish to do so meet virtually, provide an outlet for connection between Editors, Writers, Researchers (etc.), and present short virtual trainings on a few Wikipedia topics if you need it: the 5 pillars of Wikipedia, Notability Guidelines, and some basics of editing: userpage, sandboxes, citations, articles.

2) Sunday, October 4, at 8p GMT / 3p ET

This closing session following our week of action will be for us to review the work completed, get to know our fellow contributors, and celebrate our achievements!

These are both OPTIONAL sessions. Join us if you can but no obligation!

BECOME A CONTRIBUTOR

Become a contributor to write, edit, coordinate, fact-check, proofread - there are many roles that can add to the whole of the effort. Fill out this form to be a contributor and receive the Zoom link via email for our two virtual sessions to open and close our week of action: https://forms.gle/Rm7CZa6GeFgM9d6L6

NOMINATE SOMEONE

Nominate someone to be included in this Wikipedia week of action: https://forms.gle/8cgDakwBugu3swnM7

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO!

https://bit.ly/31u7XV7

My brother shared this with me so I figured I'd signal boost it here. I don't personally know anything about brass playing but I might see if I can contribute in the ways listed on the form :

(ID: form participation checkbox list including "Wikipedia editor", "researcher", "writer", "fact checking", "copy editing", "translation", "project managing", and "other" options)

It's generally I think a great idea to get involved in this sort of thing. Might even be good as a CV thing.

[coffeebooksorme]

Kicking round 6 of Contemporary-a-Thon off with this stunning book! Princess Diaries-esque book with a black WOC in STEM? Sign me the hell up!

[asreadbydana]

Contemporary-A-Thon starts today! These are the books I’m hoping to finish over the course of the week. Can I do it? Who knows! I’m gonna have fun trying though!