#I’m reading manga at my local library and so so happy

[ciquery]

Libraries change lives. Feels like we don’t talk about this enough

[carriagelamp]

This June I decided to explore some of the different queer picture books that my local library has available to lend! I read so many of them I decided they deserve to take up two slots; I'll provide the actual list of them below the cut for anyone who's interested. Oh and my Very Big Please For Real Go Read This Rec is The Empress of Salt and Fortune which is the first book of a novella series that is seriously consuming me body and soul.

assorted queer picture books

I wanted to see what sort of queer/Pride related pictures books my local library had so I checked a bunch out. I was really pleased by both the number and variety! I didn't come across any I actively disliked, though I would say they broadly fit into one of three categories:

Books that happened to show queer families that dealt with other topics: < Mama and Mommy and Me in the Middle, We’re Happy You’re Here, My Mommies Built a Tree House > These were my favourites. They explored diverse families but came at it from a very normalising angle that made enjoyable read alouds. The message was clear but not attempting to pontificate to a child who likely doesn't have political context for it to make sense.

Books that touched a little more directly on queer identities: < Phoenix Gets Greater, Uncle Bobby’s Wedding, Who You Will Be > All enjoyable! The former is based on the true story of a two-spirit child, which I really enjoyed, it had lovely art and a good look at how indigenous identities and queer identities can overlap. The second is about a girl coming to terms with her favourite uncle getting married and really could fit into the first category as well since it's more about her coming to terms with sharing her uncle rather than the same-sex marriage itself -- very cute either way. The last one explores gender expression with a baby through the types of clothes and toys the child engages with.

Books specifically about Pride: < Twas the Night Before Pride, It’s Pride Baby, Grandad’s Pride, This Day in June, Pride Puppy > These were�� fine (with the exception of Pride Puppy which is adorable and made me laugh and is one of my favourites that I read from all these). They do give some more details about what a Pride Event might actually look like, and some attempt to give some historical context but they tend to be a little... clunky. These are the sort of book that strike me as very “feel good-y” for an adult, or which work well specifically as a teaching aid for slightly older students that have some pre-existing context, but are less appealing as just a plain read aloud for the target demographic. I’m happy they exist, if you want to specifically teach about Pride then they're nice options! And they are all bright, pretty, and diverse! But I was not very interested in these as I was in some of the above books.

(*Canadian books)

Apothecary Diaries v1

I’m so glad I read this! I’d read the manga and thought it seemed okay but was intrigued enough to give the novel a try when it was released and wow! There’s just so much more depth and personality to the actual novel!

The story follows Maomao, who was kidnapped and sold as a servant to the imperial “Rear Palace” where the consorts live. Despite being raised as a profoundly capable and very scientifically-minded apothecary, Maomao is determined to keep her head down and do what she has to do until her period of indentured servitude is over. However when certain consorts and their children begin to sicken and die, Maomao, who has a mad scientist level fascination for poisons, finds herself compelled to give warning. This ends up thrusting her into the public eye and getting her involved in a variety of bizarre mysteries that plague the Rear Palace. 

All in all it was a fun, quirky historical mystery series. Maomao is blunt, single-minded, and bordering on caustic which makes her a complete delight to read, especially when she’s forced to work with the incredibly charming and manipulative eunuch official who’s taken an interest in her.

Bambi

I’ve never actually read Bambi before and spring felt like the right time to finally give it a try. Man, I thought the way they murdered Bambi’s mom in the Disney movie was pretty brutal but it doesn’t hold a candle to the book. The descriptions of the deaths and violence and terror in the novel are staggering and seriously just fucked. Very well written, and portrays nature in all its beauty and horror. You should read it and just appreciate how different it is from the Disney film...

The Empress of Salt and Fortune

My number one rec from this month! The Singing Hills Cycle is an absolutely AMAZING series. I was iffy about it at first, since the first book really thrusts you into the world without much guidance and it sets up a bit of an usual framing device, but once I got my feet under me I ended up falling in love with it. The series follows the cleric Chih who is from the Singing Hills monastery, which believes in taking meticulous record of historical events and stories. When the palace of the exiled Empress becomes magically unsealed for the first time since she ascended the throne, Chih hurries there to take any record she can before the place is looted. There she finds an old woman known as Bunny who remembers when the Empress had lived there and begins to tell the story of the years that passed in that place of exile. The story goes back and forth between the current day with Chih, her companion Almost Brilliant, and Rabbit, and the stories that explain the political intrigue of the past.

When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain

The second book in the Singing Hills Cycle and the one that really nailed home the fact that I was going to be addicted to this series. Once again the story tells of the cleric Chih who is travelling to collect stories and memories for the monastery. While visiting the mammoth corps of the north, she and a young mammoth rider find themselves trapped in the mountains by a pack of tigresses. Trying to find a way to buy them time until they might be rescued, Chih begins to discuss a famous tale about a scholar and a tigress who fell in love -- which the tigresses think is being told completely wrong. This book goes between the current predicament, Chih’s version of the story, and the tigresses’ version of the story, the two of which often conflict wildly in their perspectives. These books are seriously so clever and enticing, some of the best framing devices I’ve seen used in years.

Mr and Mrs Bunny — Detectives Extraordinaire!

Grabbed this one on a whim thinking it looks rather charming but ended up being disappointed in it. It has a fun concept, but the author is trying so hard to be quirky that it just breaks any possible flow and immersion the story might have. The story isn’t engaging enough for an adult, and a lot of the attempted humour feels like it wouldn’t land well with children, so it ends up being a bit of a clunky muddle. I didn’t bother finishing it.

Pale Colors in a Tall Field: Poems

I have tragically little to say about this… oops. I don’t usually read poetry, and I made the mistake of doing this as an audiobook just because it jumped out at me while I was browsing Libby. It ended up being quite pretty and I enjoyed listened to it quite a lot, but I wasn’t able to sit and digest it enough to get much more than that out of it;;; I would recommend it if you want some nice queer poetry that will make you think.

Queer Little Nightmares

A fun little “horror” anthology. Like most anthologies there were highs and lows, but there was really only one story that I skipped entirely because I disliked it. They range from serious and rather tragic tales, to warm romantic ones, to viscerally disgusting, to just plain hilarious. Not the best anthology I’ve ever read, but definitely worth a read if you want some fun monster stories and romances.

Sarah, Plain and Tall

Another childhood classic I had never read before so I decided to change that. And it was fine. I’m glad I’ve finally read it. I’m sure I would have enjoyed it if I had read it around grade one or two, and it was well written, but by god not a lot is happening here. A very domestic little story about a woman who moves to the prairies to become a wife and mother, and how she connects with the children.

My Man Jeeves // Carry On, Jeeves

Fortunately I received the recommendation to read The Inimitable Jeeves first, which saved me! My Man Jeeves was… fine, but it is very clearly a collection of “proto” stories, some of them not even featuring Jeeves and Wooster. While I didn’t dislike any of them, this collection of Jeeves stories didn’t grab me in the same way some of the others have. Carry On, Jeeves also baffled me a bit because there was quite a bit of crossover between the two! It feels like a very strange way to collect these story into anthologies... Still, I ultimately enjoyed both, and I skipped over the stories I had already heard in the previous collection and carried on from there.

For anyone not familiar with the Jeeves stories, they tell about the misadventures of Bertie Wooster, and young man of independent wealth who spends most of his time loafing around London and mucking about with his various friends and acquaintances. He is a complete idiot, but cheerfully acknowledges this about himself and is honestly impossible not to like, he’s just too friendly and too determined to help his friends! Fortunately he has his man Jeeves to do the thinking and to solve the various problems he comes across, in the most elaborate and impeccably mannered ways possible.

[cinnbar-bun]

Ur so girlypop ✨ 👀 what are your fave animes/mangas besides one piece and jojo yk

Omg yay 🥹🥹 I’m girlypop!!!

So I mostly read/watched a lot of shoujo/josei manga and anime.

My first anime was Ojamajo Doremi (we had it in 4Kidz as Magical DoReMi), and my local library didn’t have much manga at that time, but it had MY BELOVED CHOCOMIMI AND HAPPY HAPPY CLOVER… my loves…

I didn’t really consider myself an anime fan at that time since I was just a little girl vibing, but as I got older I got more into the CLAMP works like Cardcaptor Sakura and Magic Knight Rayearth, Sailor Moon, Pretty Cure, Vampire Knight (I love you Zero), Kamisama Kiss, OHSHC, Yumeiro Patisserie, Black Butler (I even have a Yana’s artworks), and Ai Yazawa’s works.

ALSO I DONT SEE MANY TALK ABOUT THESE BUT LIKE THERE WERE THESE TWO MANGAS THAT LIVED IN MY HEAD ALL THE TIME AND I THOUGHT I HALLUCINATED THEM UNTIL I FOUND OUT THEY WERE REAL 😭😭 Godchild and Angel Sanctuary boom- both by Kaori Yuki what a shock.

I don’t watch much shounen/seinen so I never watched DBZ/Naruto and stuff like many others. I did read and watch a lot of Sengoku Basara and Soul Eater, though.

If you want my actually favorite anime ever it’s Jojo, though. I don’t think anything can top its art, concept, characters, or story to me. Even if I’m focusing on other things I will pretty much always consider it peak fiction to me.

[ciaossu-imagines]

hey, it's nix! thanks for this wonderful event! for day 20, can you do number 30 from prompt 11? ⋆｡ʚ🍓ɞ˚

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also, while i’m at it, i just wanna chat for a bit. i did mention to you before about being shy when it comes to public performances, but yesterday, i was assigned to work at a psychiatric institution for our related learning experience as a student nurse, and a patient & i bonded over our love for “don’t look back in anger” by oasis. she had asked me to play it on the piano in the main hall, and we ended up singing together. surprisingly, everyone, even other patients, joined in listening. i’m not sure how i feel about my clinical instructor and classmates discovering my musical ability 😂 (because i initially wanted keep a low profile and stay out of the spotlight), but playing for that patient helped me get more comfortable performing. now, every time i listen to that song, i think of her. it’s a small step, but i’m hoping to improve even more. i just know that sho-chan would be proud! haha

Hey Nix! It’s so nice to hear from you (especially since I needed to reach out to you anyway about an ask you sent in, just to clarify I don’t keep anyone’s match-up send in after it’s done, so I would really appreciate you resending that in, please and thank you!!) But onto the ask! I’m so, so glad that you and the others seemed to enjoy the event this time! The response I got for asks was amazing and it makes me really happy! Also, I loved hearing about your experience at the learning experience! You are right, Sho-chan would be so very, very proud of you! Heck, I (and I am sure the other readers) are very proud of you too! That’s an amazing thing you did, both overcoming a slight fear of public performances and making that patient’s day, as I am sure you did. Just as you think about her now listening to the song, I’m sure she’s always going to remember you when she hears the song now. As someone else who doesn’t really like to draw attention to themselves, I personally find what you did very inspiring 😊 Anyway, I’ll move onto answering the question you asked and again, thank you for sending in a question and for sharing such a lovely experience with me and the other readers!

What is your favourite thing to do?

As with everything else, I really do struggle to pick favourites. It’s hard to say ‘this one thing is better than anything else’ for me, because there’s so many things that bring me joy. Some of the things that really make me happy doing them are:

Of course, writing ranks pretty high up on this list. It’s therapeutic and fun to get out of my life for a bit and fall into characters and other worlds and on top of that, because of the nature of this particular blog, there’s a really pleasant social aspect to it that helps me feel like I’ve found my people, even if just online.

The library is my safe place and I visit it at least once a week. I love just browsing the stacks, taking the time to pick my ten books for the month, as well as talking and catching up with the librarian’s and their lives, plus any cool events the library is hosting in the upcoming weeks. On top of that, my library is really cool in that they do up mystery bags they sell where you get several used books in a particular genre, and I treat myself to one of those and some discounted coffee from a local coffee company when I go! I also love reading manga and books I already own. Again, falling into another world for a little bit – it’s the most wonderful escape.

 I love crafting. I do diamond art and I sew, embroider, and cross-stitch. I recently got news that a friend is pregnant, so I’m working on a cross-stitched baby blanket top that I’ll quilt up for the couple and I enjoy zoning out and doing it.

I’m a house (architecture and interior design) nerd, I admit it. I love looking at the online listings and I have a couple of dorky friends who get together with me and we go to open houses within an hour or two of us. It’s fun to scope out houses and we have fun discussing how we’d change, fix up, and decorate the places after we act like nosey Nellies.

I also love getting outside. I’m a pretty big hiker and throwing on some music or a podcast and even just getting out for a couple hours on the nature trails is lovely.

[bakedspoonie]

Why is manga so much easier for me to read? Is it helping with the dyslexia or the adhd? Perhaps both? Whatever it is I’m really happy to find a form of reading I can do again. It’s become impossible for me to read without a meltdown or medical flare and I have audio processing issues so audiobooks are out which is a shame I had some favourite narrators before it got this severe. Im lucky my local library has a lot of selections I’m interested in and they usually get loans from other libraries within a few days. I used to read a few books a month when I was a teen (I was being treated for the adhd at the time). Any suggestions on manga? I’m enjoying delicious in dungeon and junki ito’s Soichi story collections right now.

[fantasticalchaos]

Excuse me for prying, but what exactly are your fandoms? 'cause for me, some of my fandoms include Sonic the Hedgehog, Twisted Wonderland, Genshin Impact and to an extent, Skylanders (most particularly because of the dragons, namely Spyro, Cynder, Sunburn, Echo, Camo, Whirlwind, Flashwing, Drobot, Blackout and Spotlight).

Hello there!! It’s alright!! I would more than happy to talk about the fandoms I’m in! Hope you don’t mind the big clutter here underneath as I ramble on for a bit! Each are sorted into each category:

Major

Wandering Ones

Vtubers (they need their own category)

I tried to the best of my knowledge on ones I believe I participate (or lurk) the most in, so I hope this helps!! 😊

Major Ones

In which my fandom knowledge, and experience in them are pretty large and have spent a lot of time in (whether that be lurking or not)!

Skylanders = Especially with the Swap Force & the Dragons!!! One of the major fandoms I’ve been in since late elementary school, so it’s technically a childhood classic! I actually have Swap Force (only the starter pack ;w;) and Imaginators (along with the Boom Bloom pack & Crash Bandicoot pack) in my home that I play with my little sibling!! I also played Giants at a neighbour-friends house too!! Also one of the two fandoms I did for the inktober (most of it)!!

Twisted Wonderland = A mobile game I found since late 2020!!! Back when only the first 5 chapters were out in the JP server and part of the watching/reading translations! Preordered the EN game as soon as it’s announced too!! Right now I miss my dailies cause work and player burnout ;w; (I also need to catch up the story from the second part of Boom 6; Generally prefer the fan translations more since I’m more used due to being a watching a lot back before EN server was announced)

Dr. Stone = Major fan of the anime and picked up some of the manga and the later chapters at the local library I live nearby! I still need to catch up first and second half with Season 3!! In my words, a fun and (mostly accurate) educational sci-fi anime!! Reminds me of some of the edutainment kids shows I watched as a kid!!

Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle = One of the few animes I was interested from the clips I saw during quarantine! During late July of this year, I had even motivation and time to watch the whole anime!!! A really comfy and lighthearted comedy I recommend! Also read a few manga I spotted at the library and discovered that she has other outfit jobs/classes in between chapters (Plus Princess’s design and outfits is S-tier!!!)

Monster High = Another childhood classic of mine (as I watched a lot of the episodes and movies on YouTube)! While I’m mainly a fan of Gen 1 since it was apart of my childhood, I’m open and happy seeing the other generations on my feed! :D

Ever After High = Another childhood classic!! Been around since the beginning I believe!! Really loved the aesthetic, clothes, characters and story in this one! I’m apart of the Rebels!

Crossovers / Crossover Friendships - LISTEN I MAY NOT BE KNOWLEDGEABLE IN ALL FANDOMS BUT I LOVE SEEING CROSSOVERS AND I WILL ABSORB ALL KNOWLEDGE OF THE CHARACTERS AND LORE OF THE ONES I DONT KNOW TO MAKE IT GOOD 👌👌 (For instance, the Secret Trio)

Vtubers (Please check the last section)

Wandering Ones

I wander into a lot of fandoms! So, basically these are some fandoms that I have some knowledge and experience in to be sufficient(?) in (take it with a grain with salt). Others are ones I do know (childhood classics, actual ones I finished, etc.)

Sky: Children of The Light (Sky Cotl) - Been around since Season of Sanctuary, though I stopped playing since Aurora (and some seasons before that) due to burnout

Penn Zero Part Time Hero

Rise of the Guardians

The Disastrous Life of Saiki K - Almost finished season 1 back in like the quarantine days… I’m procrastinating hard

Randy Cunningham 9th Grade Ninja (RC9GN)

Obey Me!

Wild Kratts

Wordgirl

Vtubers

Virtual YouTubers that use an avatar and do a variety of livestreaming content! Such as gaming, karaoke, zatsudans (chatting streams), art content, etc.

Note: If you are a new viewer and looking into them, please take your time to read the rules in their description box! If there isn’t any, either ask one of regular viewers from prechat (a chatroom made before the livestream starts where some fans can chill and chat as they wait until it starts) or probably on social media, or maybe some people you know that watch them (which is rare)!

Quick Legend:

✨ = Ones I watch the most, and are my oshi (fave)

🫡 = Means that they graduated. In vtuber terms, it means the person behind this avatar is no longer gonna be streaming or using that avatar anymore. It doesn’t mean that they are dead - they’re not using that avatar anymore and they can resume streaming (as long as it’s not their former avatar) As well as chatting with their friends and former co-workers offline.

Any other emojis are their oshi/fan marks! Usually to tell which vtuber you’re a fan of!

Also I tried hard to think who I watched the most too! I mostly support all of them group even tho I can’t watch everyone at the same time

✨Holostars EN - One of the main Vtubers I watch the most!!! (And probably the one that shows all the members since I watch at least a bit from anyone)

✨Regis Altare 🎇 - the one who reintroduced me back into Holostars back in Oct 2022 as well as introducing the EN branch! (From the HoloNiji Terraria collab with Alban Knox)

✨Axel Syrios ⛓️

Magni Dezmond 🧤 (🫡)

✨Vesper Noir 📗 (🫡)

Gavis Bettel 🎩

✨Machina X Flayon 🪫

✨ Banzoin Hakka 🔅

✨ Josuiji Shinri 🏹

✨Jurard T Rexford 🦖

✨Goldbullet 🦅

Octavio ♾️

✨Crimzon Ruze 💢

Holostars JP - How I was instantly pulled into the vtuber rabbit hole (and learn that timezones were a thing the hard way ;w;)

✨Kageyama Shien 🟣 - This one is the one that dragged me in through a clipper (a person who clips - and depending on the clipper, translates - a part in a livestream)! Funnily enough it was a Twst one, since I was looking for people reacting to it!

Aragami Oga 🐃

Yukoku Roberu 🍷

Nijisanji EN - The one who brought me back into the Vtuber Rabbit hole back in Sept 2022, right before my birthday

Luca Kaneshiro 🦁💰 - the one who brought me back

✨Shu Yamino 👟☯️

Ike Eveland 🖋️

✨Fulgur Ovid ⚡️🐑

✨Uki Violeta 🔮🌌

Alban Knox 🎭🕒

Kyo Kaneko 🤟

Doppio Dropscythe 🐣🎡

Nina Kosaka 🎰 (🫡)

Mysta Rias 🦊🕵️(🫡)

Yugo Asuma 🎧 (🫡)

Other

✨Rin Penrose 👑🦈 - Idol EN

Juna Unagi ⚠️ - Idol EN

Kai Saikota ☁️ - Idol EN

✨Ayla Yew 💞🫵 - Nexstage Project

Zhuni Excel 📊🔫 - Nexstage Project

✨Unnamed 💙🤍 - Independent Musician

[marzipanandminutiae]

you know, everyone talks about “being a teen in the 2000s!” in terms of being either the Wannabe Buffy Extra period (teen c. 2000-2005) or the most mainstream, popular styles of the broader 2000-2010 span

but personally I would like to raise a glass to the YA Literature Golden Agers. my fellow 2006-2011 teenagers who made “dramatic nerd” our entire personalities and were...actually weirdly catered to by adults about that? at least, adults who wanted our money and/or were just happy that The Youths Were Finally Reading

teens reading this, if your local library has a YA section, thank us. (especially if there’s also manga. adults weren’t entirely sure what manga was at the time, but they knew it was Hot With The Youths, so they were determined to get onboard. anything to ride the wave of kids suddenly wanting to spend time in libraries again)

if you ever followed an author’s LiveJournal, you know what I’m talking about. if you ever took style cues from a book with any sort of Dark Angsty Faeries In A City theme. if you had any sort of DFTBA or Pizza John merch in your high school or college days. if you ever had to spend a whole evening explaining your Halloween costume, starting with “so there’s this book about [angels/demons/werewolves/vampires/faeries]...” if you ever read a classic novel just because your favorite Deep, Emotional Teen Protagonist quoted it that one time.

it’s all well and good to be nostalgic for Hollister cologne and Fergie, but spare a thought for those of us with cheap Ren Faire patchouli oil and the three Within Temptation songs we heard in every fanvid ever

[chibisunnie]

Blanc is out in English!! :D

Blanc officially came out in English on Tuesday!! :D My copy arrived today and Jocelyne Allen’s translation is absolutely fantastic as always! Reading this all in one sitting really is an emotional rollercoaster and I cried both sad and happy tears. T_T If you haven’t already, please support the official release by either buying the official copy (sold at all the usual places that sell books, many of which are having Cyber Week sales right now) or requesting it from your local library! ^_^  Also forgot to post this the other day, but Rightstuf’s “this week’s new releases” email on Tuesday had Blanc as the art for the big picture!! 🥺❤  I remember back when I first got into this fandom the thought of it in official English and in print seemed like an impossible dream. And yet here we are, not only has up to the Blanc arc been published in English, Rightstuf’s new releases email FEATURED Blanc. 🥺❤ And on Tuesday it was #1 LGBTQ manga, 3 in yaoi, & 10 in romance manga on Amazon.  🥺❤

I’m so happy to see it doing this well sales-wise as that’s a great sign that they may end up licensing Home and the new spin-off about Sajou’s dad! But it also makes me happy that more and more people know about it and the fandom is growing bigger! 🥰

[daydreamerdrew]

1, 4, 11, 13 for the asks!!

1. What are 2-5 already published fiction books you think you want to read in 2023?

My list of comics that I want to read in January is over ambitious and unrealistic but here are 5 things from it:

I want to start reading the Dr. Fate solo stories from the Golden Age starting with More Fun Comics (1935) #55

I’m not a fan of the Walking Dead franchise but I am a fan of Tillie Walden’s work so I’m going to read Clementine: Book One which she wrote and drew, but first I think I’m gonna read Alone in Space: A Collection even though I’ve already read everything in it except for the section reprinting her early comics from when she was young just cause it’s been awhile and I know they’ll be nice to revisit

I’ve been enjoying the ���Connie” newspaper strip reprints in Famous Funnies (1934) which were written and drawn by Frank Godwin and I’m going to continue reading those, but Frank Godwin actually also drew some Wonder Woman stories in Sensation Comics (1942) 16-19 and #21 and Comic Cavalcade (1942) #2 which I think will be cool, but I don’t want to start reading early Wonder Woman comics with some random stories so before those I’m gonna read The Wonder Woman Chronicles vol. 1 which reprints her earliest appearances and which I’ve had for years but have never read before

I also need to get back on my Human Target character read through and next up on that is Human Target: Final Cut (2002)

and the stuff you were posting from Scribbly (1948) looked soo good but due to my love of going in order that means I’ve added the Scribbly stories in Popular Comics (1936) #6-9 and The Funnies (1936) #2-29 to my reading list

4. Do you plan to read any genres you haven't read much before?

Well, reading the “Connie” reprints in Famous Funnies (1934) is my first time reading newspaper comic strips and I’m thinking that this year I’d like to read more of those both by reading other stuff that got reprinted in Famous Funnies (1934) like “Jane Arden” and “Flapper Fanny” and also by checking out collections from my local library system like of Calvin and Hobbes, The Adventures of Tintin, the new Nancy stuff by Olivia James, and Brenda Starr, Reporter.

I’ve also never really read manga before but I’m thinking of starting the Sailor Moon anime and if I like it then I’ll probably also check out the manga. And once I’ve played or watched playthroughs of enough Legend of Zelda games then I want to start reading the manga adaptations of those.

11. How do you plan to keep track of your reading? E.g., goodreads, bullet journal, tumblr, etc.

I’m really happy with my current system of weekly round-ups on here, though I’d like to get better about finishing and posting those on Mondays.

And I already have a Comic Vine page to list my completed series and one-shots, but I don’t log that much of what I read on there cause a lot of it’s just certain stories in anthology books. I am thinking of making another list to mark the public domain Golden Age characters whose appearances I read all of.

Also I’m intending on doing a ‘best comics of the year’ list next December like you’ve been doing.

13. Do you plan to attend any author events?

I hadn’t really thought about attending any comic book conventions in 2023. I was never super into them and I haven’t gone to one since Covid started. I have attended Geek Girl Con several times before and Emerald City Comic Con once. I’m not really planning on going to either of those this year but I guess there’s a possibility.

[queernuck]

The Cleveland Browns made the playoffs. The Islanders made the Eastern Conference Finals.

And that’s enough for me.

So long, so long I have been living like this, pretending that I want to keep on living, that life feels worthwhile, that I don’t want to kill myself. Suicide is for cowards but ive been chickening out for a whole decade, to the point where getting on the subway was itself something that involved convincing myself not to jump in front of it. I remember once while working in the city, I watched and waited as two trains came in and left, trying to get the energy to jump in front of them. I had decided, if I couldn’t do it by the time a second train came and went, I would go to work and save it for another day. I came very close, my legs tense like a linebacker on 4th & Goal, but I didn’t do it. Maybe it would be better if I had, I would have saved not only myself but a lot of other people a lot of pain and suffering. I’ve been dealing with feeling suicidal for a decade, an entire ten years, and made it through. And for what? I lost a retail job at minimum wage, I’ve seen the Giants go from two-time Super Bowl kingslayers to a team that relied on the Eagles for a playoff berth, I got to see Evangelion only for the final Rebuild film to be infinitely delayed, I have a useless non-degree that allows me to eloquently describe how the Democrats and Republicans alike are driving this stolen land to Fascism while sycophants tell me Vote Blue No Matter Who. I’m so tired, I’m not even the person people think me to be, since if I were, I wouldn’t be in this mess.

My paychecks, as hard-earned as they were, never seemed to be mine in any real sense, and it made me so frustrated that something in me broke at the beginning of this year. I made some mistakes, some very stupid ones, and got myself fired. I took money from and distorted the inventory of my store to get what amounted to pocket money, less than two paychecks. I was tempted because I feel so powerless, so much like nothing I could ever say or do matters, and so I decided to lash out against a place that mattered to me, against people I cared about deeply. Chain stores, corporations, all of those things are not really high on my list of things to care about. Barnes & Noble pushed out local booksellers years ago, an irony not lost on me whenever our own competition with Amazon was made apparent. We were reaping what we had sown. But what always interested on top of this irony was how symbolic these things could be to people, how much we figured into so may memories for so many. The Manga Aisle at Barnes & Noble is a staple of 2006 scene culture, a way that kids without the pocket money to afford the newest volume of Bleach it Naruto could keep up before scams became widely available. How the store was a place where people studying for standardized tests could use the test prep guides to try and get ready for the eugenic ritual of the standardized test. And just how much a chain bookstore became a substitute, socially, for the now-absent local bookstore. We bear the guilt for that, but at the same time we were still selling books, giving people a place to get coffee and sit and read and talk, in ways that libraries may not be able to. We certainly can never replace a library, given just what a library does for people. But we did do a lot of good all the same. Before it closed, some of my fondest memories came when I was the exact sort of annoying teenage customer I grew to hate, hanging out at the Columbus Circle Borders. Working at Barnes & Noble was tiring, dehumanizing, difficult, made me feel like I would never measure up to the authors we sold, the people books were written about, that I was a failure. And I am, as my death shows. But it also made me a part of something I was proud of. And that Above & Beyond pin I earned is in my jacket still, a reminder of something.

That something was shown in so many of the coworkers I had, who were incredible in so many ways. I feel awful for what I did, I genuinely do, because of how it may have hurt people who thought so kindly of me, people who deserve so much good. I wish I had the ability to address each of them individually but this decision was hastily made, and i have a feeling it will show in the things I miss in this note. Audra, your help in finding me a way to use the company policies to my advantage as a worker was something that gave me faith even after having seen the despicable firings and cuts the company went through. Linda, I can’t quite square the circle here given my actions, but I want to say your disappointment broke my heart and that while I will not be the one who shows it, your reassurance that everyone makes mistakes was welcome.

To my (former) fellow booksellers at Store 2216, all of my love and my sincerest apologies. You all have so much good in you, your willingness to listen to my ADHD-fueled rants and to discuss so many things with an incredible frankness was always impressive, in addition to part of what I loved about all of you. I want you all to be happy, and the kinship I felt with you was a vital part of what kept me going. It was tough, as you all know. But at times, it almost felt worth it.

The same is true of my CTY friends: it was a weird, magical place that frankly, a lot of us idealized for far too long and which sk many of us eventually outgrew without being able to let go of. And that was tough, that was something we had a great deal of difficulty understanding, that what helped us once was not always going to be helping us, was not always what we needed. But in eventually finding that, we found solace, we realized how life as a whole functions and just what it is that we can take from places like it.

To my other family, my Cleo family, I know I haven’t been terribly active lately, but I can never, ever thank you enough for the belonging you gave me. I have never felt anywhere as welcoming as Cleo. As warm as Cleo (even as we struggled to pay for the oil bill) was. As kind and understanding. As tolerant. As questioning and inquisitive into what that tolerance meant to us. I am thankful, eternally, for what you all did for me. The incredible experiences I had as a Cleo make me proud of what the organization can represent, and one of my dying wishes is that the organization continues to reach out to marginalized communities on Trinity’s campus. There is much work to be done in making sure abusers cannot hide in our family, but I trust you all to do that work. Tucker Carlson is a Trinity grad and we must embody the opposite of what he stands for, no matter how difficult it may be. I could go on about how this means opposing liberals and Liberalism/Neo—Liberalism due to the truth of tolerance resulting in a Popper-esque Paradox of Tolerance that implies Popper is a worthwhile philosopher, but that’s another issue.

To my friends on that Blue Hellsite, tumblr, you made a continual presence worth it, even with all of the bullshit this place brings. It’s the reason I read so much Foucault, Derrida, Deleuze & Guattari, read Žižek against himself, and so on and so on, and the value of that to me can never be overstated. I learned so much from the ways in which I learned to analyze the world, and that in turn became a huge inspiration for why I should try to do what I could to make the world closer to a place of revolution, one where we could perhaps eke out a living for one another. I loved how much I could be an unrepentant nerd and still love hockey on there, and while the

NHL fans on tumblr are incredibly annoying,

I can deal with that compared to the racism of most hockey fans.

Mom, Dad? I just couldn’t live with you any longer. I’m so sorry.

Grandma, I love you.

And the things I leave behind? Donate what can be donated. Hats, please auction, or at least offer to other HatHeads at a reasonable price. I had some nice ones. As for assorted albums, clothing, and other things, sell them and donate to a Harm Reduction organization, or organizations that advocate for PWUD in a radical fashion. WE DESERVE AUTONOMY!

I am a victim of the War on Drugs. Sobriety was always hellish to me, and I could never take it. I want people to be able to live how they want, to see sobriety and being on drugs as equally valuable states, to see the two as no different from one another.

Abolish all gun laws

End the War on Terror

Decriminalize and legalize all drugs, sobriety is what killed me.

I love all of you.

LET’S GO ISLANDERS!

[icharchivist]

i found them at my local library and i just couldn’t NOT take them, i’m so happy

It’s a cat manga that started as artwork on twitter/pixiv about 3 years ago and ended up getting a manga release due to popularity, but i never expected it to get a French translation so i’m just so happy

the Japanese name for this manga is Ojisama To Neko, ie “the old man and his cat”, but the french called it “the cat who made the man happy - and also the other way around” and i’m already just crying over this

i used to read it back then (the first chapter made me cry so hard, i used to reblog the translations to some chapters before), so i’m just so happy to be able to have copies of it

i finished volume 1 and i was a crying mess the whole way through. It makes me so happy i’m so glad to have it.......

[delphina2k]

The internet is celebrating Webcomic Day today, so I’m gonna join in and tell you a bit about my world-hopping adventure fantasy series Sombulus!

Sombulus is a character-driven fantasy webcomic in the spirit of Discworld and style of a shounen manga. It follows three strangers stumbling through the bizarre Myriad Worlds for answers after a botched magic spell binds them together.

Astyr is a flippant magic scavenger looking to steal the essence of anything and everything he can.  When he stumbles into a strange library, he meets a curious inventor who can talk to machines and a grumpy paladin who tries to stop him.

As they travel together, ridiculous trouble is constantly brewing, from the mysteries of an immortal king, to a pigeon-plagued world of flying toasters, and sometimes literally combat coffee from the local Wingbucks.

All this is set amid growing tensions between the magical Demshul and the god-blessed Kanites: a long-lost diplomat gathers unexpected allies and enemies as she tries to forge a fragile peace, two deities clash for the fate of the worlds, and a strange laboratory where forbidden magic experiments happen seems to have schemes of its own.

Sombulus is a story filled with humor, heart, big magic and big feelings. You can read it all free at sombulus.com or check out sombulus.com/store for print or digital copies!

I know I am super excited for the upcoming scenes, so if you want to catch up, now is a great chance!

Happy reading!  ✨

[joy1579]

self indulgent

I've been sad. so i wrote a thing to make me less sad. maybe it'll make someone else less sad too or at the very least they can laugh at my “cringe” but either way it did make me less sad so goal accomplished.

Mc and jumin organize a bookshelf jumin asks what neko girls are and MC short circuits his brain for a couple of seconds. no smut just fluff

Moving hadn’t taken long. You had opted to donate your furniture to the local homeless shelter since Jumin’s penthouse was furnished with the highest quality furniture you could dream of. Honestly most of your things paled in comparison to the lavish goods Jumin considered tawdry. Still there were a quite a few boxes you had decided to save, filled mostly with sentimental keepsakes and the few odds and ends that catered to your specific tastes. You were practically finished by noon save the three or four boxes that sat in the main room next to the larger than life bookshelves. Certainly there was plenty of room on them. You never where a fan of negative space on bookshelves but if you were being completely honest that had more to do with how many books you needed to fit in such a finite space. Jumins bookshelves had plenty of room with just enough negative space to look perfectly balanced and while you knew Jumin had told you to do whatever you wished this felt intimate. Bookshelves where holy spaces after all, housing books that change hearts and minds alike that shape the soul and … okay so maybe you just really liked books and that made them seem important to you either way this was definitely something you wanted to do with Jumin. When you heard the door rattle with Jumin homecoming you bolt towards it excited to greet him after work.

“Jumin! Welcome home!” you cried bouncing in place as he made his way inside. You smiled as you saw the creases in his brown flatten and the stress slip from shoulders when he saw you. You waited all of 5 seconds for him to close the door giving you both some privacy from the bodyguards stationed outside before you pounced, leaping upon the business man wrapping your arms around his neck. You delighted in the deep honey of his laughter as he caught your waist in kind and kissed the top of your head gently.

“darling. I’m so glad to be home. How was your day? did you get settled?” Jumin asked as you pulled yourself back slightly giving him room to loosen his tie and set aside his coat.

“everything is in its place except um Jumin there is one thing I need if you don’t mind”

“name it and its yours”

“I wanted to share your bookshelves and I was hoping that maybe you could organize the books with me?” you admitted shyly. It had seemed like such a good idea in the beginning he could show you his favorite books, walk you through his favorite plots and tell you his favorite quotes and you could do the same with him. Yet now as you presented the idea to him you worried. What if he was to tired he had worked all day after all, what if he thought you too needy, or your books to childish. what if he didn’t want your books displayed in the living room because they weren’t very pretty, all of his books where gorgeous leather bound tomes or mint condition hardcovers, yours where second hand at best many where decommissioned library books or garage sale rescues, broken in battered and bruised by years of use. It would make sense to have them put away in a back room where they couldn’t tarnish the pristine collection Jumin had on display. Perhaps you where spiraling, working yourself into a nervous frenzy in the span of a few seconds.

“nothing would make me happier love. We can call the chef to start dinner and begin emptying the shelves for rearranging while he works.” You couldn’t help the smile that spread across your face or the giggle that escaped your lips. The surprise on Jumins face was evident if only for a second before it gave way to a warm sort of fondness. “had I known simple redecorating would make you this happy I would have stayed home and done it all with you” he said affectionately running his fingers through your hair.

“it’s not that I just,” you paused face flushing a bit “books are a big deal, ya know? My dad used to tell me that every book you read becomes a part of you and that you can learn more about someone by the books they love than by the words they say so I wanted to share that with you” jumins eyes where so soft and gentle in that moment you felt your breath hitch “I want to know everything about you and, and I want you to know everything about me” suddenly his lips where on yours fervent and full of passion the hand that had been in your hair now on your chin guiding you too him. The kiss was short and when you parted from him he stayed close, just a hairs breath from your face.

Jumin voice was little more than a whisper as he asked “how is it that every day I manage to fall more in love with you?” you couldn’t help but lean forward and kiss him again an all too familiar giddiness bubbling its way through your soul. You loved this man more than life itself and you knew that would never change.

 “so your ‘Encyclopedia of Fairies’ should go next to the Catherynne M Valente series so we can reference it while reading agreed?” you giggled thrilled that his collection of mythological reference books slotted together with your fae fiction so perfectly. Puzzle pieces connecting to create a masterpiece.

“yes I think that’s perfect. I can’t wait to read her interpretation of such ancient mythos. I also have ‘The World Guide to Gnomes, Fairies, Elves and Other Little People’ if you’d like to add it to that shelf” he said grinning like a child at show and tell.

“oh my goodness yes! That’s perfect and your book on Romanian vampires should be near my ‘Dracula’ and ‘vittorio’ that way that shelf over there can be dedicated to the occult, hauntings, and psychic reference books”

“that sound wonderful and takes care of all the written word but we still haven’t found a place for your comics” Jumin informed glancing toward the woefully large stack of manga you had brought.

“not comic Jumin manga and yeah I think we’re out of space though. I um I didn’t think I had that many books. Sorry” you admitted not meeting his eyes. He tilted your head up to look at him.

“there’s no need to apologize it simply means that tomorrow we can go shopping for another shelf and the next day we can organize those. I’m quite curious about ‘la petite cossette’ you said these where Japanese but that is most certainly a French title.”

“oh I actually think you’d like that one a lot it’s about a man who falls in love with a woman in a cursed portrait its actually pretty tragic in the end.”

“How interesting” he mused retrieving it from the pile of books and skimming through it “the art is truly enchanting and you said that manga has its own subculture?”

“yeah from neko girls to shonen action tropes it has its own vocabulary, history and groups of people its really fun”

“neko girls?” Jumin repeated and your eyes widened at his confusion. This was definitely something he of all people should know about! You jumped up and sprinted to the closet you had filled earlier that day with the few cosplay supplies you had. At the time it had taken nearly half your pay check but if Jumin liked them right now the purchase then would be completely justified. You put on your surprise as quickly as possible before rushing back out to greet Jumin who had just made it to the edge of the living room to come find where you had gone. He froze for a second processing what you were now wearing. White cat ears that moved and twitched fairly believably and just as he was able to cope with that your made paws with your hands and tried your best “nya”. For a moment you feared you may have broken him. He didn’t move his face blank, eyes fixed on you. You tried again hoping to spur some sort of reaction from him “nya?” you said turning to the side slightly to show off the other half of your surprise a white tail complete with pink bow and bell at the base where it attached to your skirt. You tilted your head to look up at him through your lashes trying every trick in your arsenal to look as cute as possible but nothing. He was completely frozen. “Jumin? Hello?” now you were getting worried “darling are you okay?” you asked placing the back of your hand on his forehead to feel for a temperature. The second your hand touched him however his face flushed.

“neko girl.” He muttered “that’s neko as in cat” you could see him trying to calm himself. Fiddling with his shirt sleeves and attempting to stay in control. You smiled standing on your tip toes to kiss his cheek and whisper in his ear.

“am I a good little kitten at least?”  you couldn’t contain your giggle as you heard him choke slightly before scooping you up bridal style.

“certainly not, in fact I think you’ve been a very bad little kitten.” He said his voice deeper than normal as he carried you back towards the bedroom.

[ziamhaze]

Jess, I need thank you for your faves! Found a few recommendations I will go through - so happy because I didn't have any left. Have a great day! Also, always looking forward for your writing, no pressure though! :) (I'll go read now, bye!)

Glad to be of help and I hope your day’s great as well!

If anyone’s looking for ziam reclists, feel free to check them out at this link (:

As for my writing...

I’ve literally just finished massive applications for a PhD program which I’ll be starting in the fall, so I haven’t had time to churn out anything original in ages.  A moment of silence for my 2 year creative streak.

Thank you.

I’ve been accepted on a practice-based PhD program which means in order to prove my idea, I’m going to be producing a piece of work, not necessarily a long 100k word thesis like you normally would for a regular PhD.  That said, my project will be an LGBTQ+ alternate history romance novel.  I’m super stoked about it tbh.  The concept actually came to me about 2 years ago as an 80k ziam fic, so to any aspiring authors currently writing fic - YOUR IDEAS ARE NOT CONFINED TO AO3.  Now, don’t get me wrong.  This isn’t easy.  You have to practice practice practice like fuck.  You have to open your eyes to different styles of writing.  What works and what doesn’t. 

A friend once told me: writing is reading.  And she IS NOT.  WRONG.  I constantly cycle what I’m reading and listening to.  Yes, I highly recommend audiobooks for nonfiction reads.  It feels like you’re just listening to a long ass podcast.  Put it on while you’re cleaning, while you’re walking the dog, while you’re shopping, while you’re on public transport.  Broaden your subject horizons this way!  Pro Tip: use your library to check them out instead of paying for audible!  I have library accounts in both the US and the UK and each give you the ability to loan audiobooks via ‘Libby’, so go ahead and check your local library bc it’s an international thing.  As for physical books, my rotary looks like this: travel literature (90% of the time centred around the Middle East/South East Asia), classic, LGBTQ+ fiction, travel literature, classic, regular fiction.  Repeat.  The things I’ve learnt about description through travel lit, you’d never believe.  And when I throw in the rogue manga???  Dialogue ideas for days!!!  Everyone’s rotation is going to look different.  Point is, it’s putting one together that will show you various ways to write.  My larger point, however, is this - ideas that start out as fic don’t need to be written as fic; some have the ability to hold up in the big bad literary world as something else.  Take the time to practice development and it’s crazy where you can go.

Sorry, that was a rant I couldn’t shake off.  I’m going to go back to editing the book that I finished last year and hopefully get in on shelves soon.  If any small ficlet ideas come to me in the meantime, trust me, I can’t shake those off either.

[merry-kuroo]

My Top 10 Manga 2020

Because of the...you know...I had a lot of free time on my hands so I read a shit ton of manga. Here is what I read this year. Fruits Basket and Tsubasa are the only ones I completed though.

Shout out to my local library for always keeping the manga section stocked with everything. I’ve found obscure titles and the newest ones. They are awesome.

Sorry for any typos.

1.) Fruits Basket

Fruits Basket made me feel so many emotions and I kinda reevaluate my life after finishing the last volume. Please go read the manga if you haven’t (or watch the rebooted anime). I laughed and cried while reading this. It’s such a fantastic story. I’m so thankful that it helped me get through 2020.

2.) D. Gray Man

I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw the new D. Gray man volumes at the library. I grabbed both of them and finished them within a week.

D. Gray man is one of my favorite series and it was good to pick up from where Hallow left off. Now, I’m all caught up and anxiously awaiting the next chapter.

3.) Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles

Once again, shout out to my library for having all the Tsubasa volumes and the Omnibus versions as well. This manga also helped me get through 2020 as well.

Dimension hopping, time travel shennagins, a found family, romance, awesome action sequences...Tsubasa had it all. I dropped the anime because I thought the art style was ugly. CLAMP really goes above and beyond with their art, so I was happy to read Tsubasa instead.

I do recommend this manga, but be prepared to be a bit confused after the Tokyo arc. I had to re-read things several times to make sure I understood them.

4.) Diamond no Ace Act II

So, DnA Act II anime ended in March :( I am suspecting it will be another 2-3 years before we get a new season.

I CAN’T WAIT THAT LONG!

So, I started reading the manga xD It’s starting to get really intense. I really hope Seidou makes it to Koshien!!

5.) Jujutsu Kaisen

Read Jujutsu Kaisen (or watch it) and you’ll know why it’s on my list :)

6.) Horimiya

Horimiya is just really adorable...not what I was expecting. I thought Horimiya would be angsty, but its really funny xD I highly recommend it.

7.) Spy x Family

Spy x Family is brilliant! I love “found family” stories, and this manga instantly had me hooked. Please go read this amazing story. I can’t wait for the anime to come out :)

8.) Vinland Saga

Vinland Saga was my favorite anime in 2019. I’ve been hearing rumors about a season 2...but until we have confirmation I’ll stick with the manga. I really like the farm arc so far, and I can’t wait to see the new people Thorfinn meets and the new adventures he embarks on.

9.) My Hero Academia

I started the MHA manga with the Shirakumo revelation and Endeavor Agency arc, which I really loved (I can’t wait to see it animated). Then BAM I’m right in the middle of the War Arc. Miruko is struggling, Shigaraki just woke up...things are bad. So, these past few months reading MHA have been really intense, but I’ve enjoyed it a lot.

Keep up the good work, Horikoshi.

10.) MHA Vigilantes

I haven’t gotten as far into Vigilantes as I would like. I read the chapters concerning the Rooftop Gang and I really enjoyed it :) I’m hoping to read more next year.

I find the concept of Vigilantes interesting, and I’d like to see them more in the main manga as well.

[writingwithcolor]

Completely non-serious question, but is there anything we can do for you guys in these trying times? Moral support, funny asks? I guys do a lot, and I want to do something for y'all in return

You’re too kind! I will accept 

all updates about how everyone’s writing is going 

Book recommendations (diverse)

and/or your best tiger king memes!! 

Colette

Your Book Recommendations 

The Second Mango (Mangoverse Series) by Shira Glassman

A Blade so Black by L.L. McKinney 

Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan 

Sorcerer to the Crown (Sorcerer Royal Series) by Zen Cho

The City of Brass(The Daevabad Trilogy) by S.A. Chakraborty

Daughters Of Nri by Reni K. Amayo

Stars and the Blackness Between Them by Junauda Petrus 

 A Bride's Story, Vol. 1 by Kaoru Mori (Manga)

Links go to goodreads. Don’t forget your local bookstores when shopping! Also, some libraries are open for pick-up or have ebook databases.

Commentary re: the books

adhdkirabraginsky

i was about to rec the mangoverse until i remembered that shira is, in fact, a mod on this very blog.

Colette: she is, and she’s awesome!

anicalewis

You might have already read it, but A BLADE SO BLACK is great! Smart and funny #ownvoices YA retelling of Alice in Wonderland with a Black heroine and a strong Buffy vibe.

theories-fans-andwombats

Book recommendation: Girls of Paper and Fire. I finished book one, soon to start book 2. It’s a phenomenal book with a POC main cast (the majority of the characters are coded to be Eastern Asian, with some Southern Asian influence as well) as well as LGBT characters and great fantasy elements. I will say, it deals with some darker subjects like sexual assault and classism, but it’s done well!

@basada-en-la-esperanza

Have you read Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho? It’s a book for those of us who wanted to read Jonathan Strange but couldn’t spend 500 pages caring about exclusively Cis White Men. And the companion/sequel, The True Queen, has a scene with the inner thoughts of a Muslim girl, while her well-meaning white Englishwoman host tries to serve her guest pork, that made me feel so seen! (I’m not Muslim, but I’m Jewish.) They’re both wonderful books, I highly recommend them! (Also The Golem and the Jinni is my favorite Jewish book I’ve read in forever.)

@hacash

for book recs, i CANNOT recommend the Daevabad trilogy (City of Brass, Kingdom of Copper, and a third book hopefully imminent) enough. It’s a fabulous fantasy series set in an alternative 18th century Middle East - as a white reader who’s read probably every iteration of the European mythology stories, it was so fun to find a really well-written, in-depth world centred around Middle Eastern and Islamic folklore!

@akcipitrokuloI would recommend Daughters Of Nri by Reni K. Amayo… but I read it after it was recommended here, so just a thank you for introducing me to awesome book which I also bought for my SIL.

@profoundlygaywriterI started Stars and the Blackness Between Them earlier in the school year but never finished it because I was so swamped. What I did get through was pretty good, so maybe give that one a look

@wisteriaprincess 

It is not a book, but a manga I would like to recommend, the name is Otoyomegatari (A Bride’s story) and is about the stories of different women from Central Asia. I know it is not a book, but it is the first time I saw positive representation of Muslim people (I’m not Muslim, though, so I can’t really say, but I read a post from a Muslim person and he was very happy and saw it through positive eyes).