#If I finish a book it's usually a three I don't force myself to finish books I hate

[mangotortoise]

Finished four books this month! (Technically three books and a novella):

The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw: fucking amazing. Their style lends perfectly to the weird, slightly ambiguous, apocalyptic world of the setting and I enjoyed the unconventional romance (unconventional because how tf else am I supposed to describe the relationship between a mermaid and a sorta immortal plague doctor?) I might need to read it again, but the print version. 4/5

A House at the Bottom of the Lake by Josh Malerman: Super eerie, especially at the beginning. Kind of had this wonderous, childlike, dreamy quality to the story that still has me not sure which bits were real or not. Not a super spooky horrorific read, but enjoyable. 4/5

Beartown by Fredrik Backman: Lost my fucking mind this was so good. Was knitting through part of the audiobook and had to stop knitting and lie on the couch for the last twenty minutes. Got chills with the last line. 5/5

An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon: A DEBUT NOVEL? THIS GOOD?? Yeah no the style here was excellent and I usually hate Sci-Fi and loved this (the Worldbuilding was subtle which is more my jam.) Absolutely horrific given the subject matter (sort of a sci-fi twist on a spaceship with an antebellum style caste system. Heed the trigger warnings on this one.) Anyway Aster is an amazing protagonist. 5/5

[andy-15-07]

Since I met you { Chapter 1}

masterlist ! pairing: Sam Claflin x oc!reader

SUMMARY : When a student meets a famous actor, what can happen? They fall in love, they don't care what the world says about them, they swear their love and that they will be next to each other regardless of the situation.

The story follows the beginning and formation of the love story of Sam and Andrea.

GENRE: fluff, love at first sight

When you ask yourself if you are making the right choice in life, you always ask yourself the question "Am I making the right choice?" , but for me it was not a good choice but an excellent one, I study what I like, photography.

Here I am studying at the University of Arts London, for a good career in this field, I am glad that I have taken this important step in my life.

My name is Andrea Lawson, I'm 20 years old and I'm in my first year at university, as expected, I live in the dormitory, I have a roommate Louisa.

Me and Lou are the complete opposite, she is always invited to campus parties, anyone who knows her, she is popular and I am the one who stays in the dorm room and studies, my personality is that I don't go to parties and I am not known by the people on campus.

But today is not one of those lucky days, Louisa and her boyfriend are in our room and I decided to leave them alone, after all they need privacy. As for love, it doesn't exist for me, I don't have a boyfriend, no one would look at me.

"Andrea, why do you have to leave? We can have a movie night with the three of us, you know we don't mind." Louisa tells me who was in the arms of her lover, Alex.

"I don't want to disturb you, you also need time together, maybe you have other plans and I don't want to be in your way." I tell them calm down while putting on my boots.

"Well let's say you're right. But where are you going?" Alex asked me.

"I'm going to that cafe I told you about."

"And you're going with someone?" Louisa asks me curiously

"Who should I go with? I'm going alone, I still have a few things to finish on a project." I tell

"You always do this, when you go out somewhere, you do all the work related to college, go out a little more, go to a party, have a drink and maybe get together with someone. You're living life!" She tells me and gets up from Alex's arms.

"Lou, you know that this is your lifestyle, not mine. Even if I meet someone, I meet them in my own way and you know this very well. Stop forcing me with such things. Please!" I tell her and look at her.

"I know, sorry! But I want to see you happy, not only with your head in books. You know I only want the best for you, right?"

"I know Lou and I thank you for this. Thank you!" I tell him and give him a hug.

"I'm glad we met, we make a good team" he says and hugs me.

Lou and I didn't know each other but since I started university, we are like two sisters, different but at the end of the day we tell each other everything and give each other advice.

"Now I know that I will speak on behalf of myself and Louisa, but be careful what you do," Alex tells me.

"I will, don't worry, I know what I'm doing. Have fun!" I tell them and leave the room.

I leave the room and meet the typical London weather, it's raining but it doesn't bother me, the rain calms me down.

The road to the cafe is not too long but it is 3 streets from the hostel, usually by the time I get to the cafe I listen to music with headphones, but today I didn't take them with me, but this doesn't bother me because instead of listening to music, I listen how it rained

Around me, the people in the dorms go to the club or others go to have a drink, it's normal that it's Friday. But what do I do? I'm going to finish a project.

As I was thinking, I didn't realize that I had arrived in front of the place where I can call it my favorite place in the vicinity.

Not many people come to this place, only a few, the owner was an old lady who always tells me that this was her dream.

I order a coffee and sit in my favorite place, by the window, to watch the rain. I look around the room and notice that there are few people today, something usual.

I take out my laptop and the files I need and spread them on the small table.

I think it's been an hour since I've been here and I decided to take a break, when I look up from my laptop I realize that someone is looking at me.

A boy, I think he has the same age as me or is 2 years older than me, I look at him and smile, lowering my eyes to the file. Suddenly I hear someone clearing his throat, when I look up I see the boy looking at me.

"Hi! Can I stay?" He was asking me, easy to guess that he is from here, he had an English accent.

"Yes, you can sit down, I don't mind" I say and smile.

To my surprise, I smile for the first time when I'm not forced, this boy has that something that makes me smile, he's cute, even very handsome.

"What are you studying?" He asked me and looked at a file that was fixed in front of him.

"I study photography, and what you see there are pictures taken by me for some exams, some are taken just out of passion." I explain to him but my smile doesn't disappear.

"The pictures are very beautiful, even excellent. You are very talented."

"Thank you very much!" I thank him.

"I'm Sam, Sam Claflin." He says and extends his hand towards me.

"Hi Sam, I'm Andrea, Andrea Lawson, nice to meet you!"

"The pleasure is only mine Andrea," he tells me and I blush, I have never blushed from a small talk.

"Are you studying somewhere? I haven't seen you in this place before." I ask him and look at him carefully.

"I'm not studying, actually I studied but I finished last year. But I like coming to this place, it's quiet and has that something that tells you to come again, and the owner is wonderful, she reminds me of my relatives. Not you I saw you here, I remembered a beautiful girl." he tells me and I start to blush even more.

"I haven't seen you either until today, maybe today is our lucky day. I don't want to seem too curious, you can not answer me if it bothers you. What did you study?" I ask him and look at him as if he were the last person on earth.

"Don't mind, I studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art." he says and approaches me, with a smile that could not be erased from his lips.

We look into each other's eyes and I feel like my heart would jump out of my chest, I look at his green eyes, like a forest in spring. I feel his hand when he takes mine and at that moment let's get even closer to me. This has never happened to me, but it was a pleasant feeling.

"What do you say if you want to go for a walk together in the park, don't worry if it's raining, I have an umbrella. Do you want to go Andrea?" he tells me very slowly, telling me almost in a whisper  and squeezes my hand a little in his.

"Yes, I would be delighted to go for a walk Sam." I tell him the same way he asks me, like a whisper.

I see that his smile seems to increase upon hearing my words, as if he knew that the answer would be 'Yes'. I remember the discussion I had with Louisa and her boyfriend, I think I was right not to listen to her and to do things my way and this I did.

"Let me help you pack your things." Sam tells me and I nod my head.

He helps me pack my things, then he gives me his hand to stand up, I see him go behind the chair where I left my coat and take it and motion for me to put my hair aside and help me with the coat , he also gets dressed and looks for something, but I can't figure out what.

I see him take his scarf from next to my bag and put it around my neck, a gesture that left me speechless.

"It's cold outside, so I don't want to hear you say something against the scarf, okay?" he tells me with a smile.

"Ok Sam, I trust you." I tell .

We say goodbye to the landlady and head for the exit, Sam smiles and opens the door for me, going out I realize that he was right, it's cold outside, he opens the umbrella and extends his hand towards me.

Out of instinct I put my hand around his hand and I approached him, I feel him looking at me. I look up and look straight into his eyes and smile.

"Sam?"

"Yes Andrea? Is there something wrong?" he tells me, his tone of voice is worried.

"No! Everything is perfect, it's more than perfect. I wanted to ask you something." I tell him and in my mind I think if it is a good idea or not.

"You can ask me what you want my dear." he tells me, and when I heard how he told me those words, I was even happier.

"What do you do? You mean as a job?"

"My dear Andrea, I'm an actor. But keep calm, it's not too well known yet, not many people know me yet, I've been part of a few films and series, I'm not that famous yet. That's why we walk around without we are disturbed." Sam tells me and I am a little shocked.

"I didn't think you were an actor, yes you are very handsome and attractive, I'm not saying you're not. But I didn't expect it."

"You think I'm beautiful and attractive, Andrea, you're already making me fall in love with you," he tells me and we stop.

He turns to me and looks into my eyes then he looks at my lips and at that moment he leans down and captures my lips in a passionate kiss, I didn't expect this but I kiss him back. It's like a scene from a movie or even from the books I've read.

Sam breaks the kiss and looks at me and puts his arm around me and hugs me, I put my head on his chest and we stay like that for a few minutes. The first to break the silence is Sam.

"Andrea do you believe in love at first sight?"

"Since I saw you, I knew there was something special with you, I had to find out, but after this moment that we shared, I know what it is." I tell him and look at him.

"What is special about me?" he asks me and I look at him attentively.

"You're not like the other boys, but you're not a boy, you're a man, a gentleman, a romantic. I know we've only known each other for a few hours but I really like being with you, I told you that you have that something how do you make a person sit next to you regardless of whether you are an actor or not." I tell

"And you have that something that makes a person talk and sit next to you. Ever since you entered that cafe, I have seen a person passionate about an art that many people do not understand, when I came to your table I realized I was right, you're that type of person who focuses on something. I like that in a girl." Sam told me and I realized that he was telling the truth as he looked into my eyes and caressed my cheek with his thumb.

"You know something Sam? I'm lucky to have met you."

"I like you Andrea! Maybe we have the opportunity to get to know each other better, what do you say?"

"I like you too, Sam, and I agree that we should get to know each other better." I tell him and kiss him on the cheek, but Sam makes a face that knows what he's asking for.

I look once more and put my arms around his neck and press my lips to his in a passionate kiss in which Sam does not hesitate to respond to this kiss. It's as if our lips are two puzzle pieces that have finally found their match.

We break the kiss and look at each other. Maybe in the end I found someone with the same passions as mine.

"Where are you staying? It's already getting dark, it's cold and I don't want you to go home alone and catch a cold. I want to go with you to make sure you get there safely and to hold you in my arms."

"A real gentleman and I want to stay in your arms and I live in the dorm, it's 5 streets from here."

"Staying in the dorm? That's cool, I hope you have a roommate or more," says Sam and takes my hand.

"I only have one colleague and the reason why I left the dorm is that she came with her boyfriend to our place and I thought I'd leave them alone," I explain to Sam and put my head on his arm.

"I understand! You always have to leave when her boyfriend comes or do you leave of your own free will?" she asks me

"I'm leaving, they also need privacy and if I didn't leave today I wouldn't know you anymore, right?"  I ask him looking at him.

"Yes, you are very right, my dear, and unfortunately I have arrived."  he says a little upset because our walk is over.

"Oh, I don't like it." I tell him and pull him to a side where he was covered to leave the umbrella down for a few minutes.

"We'll see each other, I promise, give me your phone so I can pass on my number, then I'll give you my phone so you can do the same, ok?"  He tells me and takes his phone from the pocket of his brown coat that he is wearing.

First I give her my phone and she gives her number and she gives it back to me, when I look at the new contact, the first thing I see is the name 'Sam♡', I am surprised but I love this.  I look up from the phone and see him smiling at me and holding his phone for me to take.  I take it and give him my number, I gave him the name just as he gave me 'Andrea♡' on the phone and I give him the phone back.

"I'll give you a message, I promise," he says and puts his arms around my waist.

"Ok and I promise I'll send you a message" I promise and put my arms around his neck.

We look at each other and I see Sam lean down and kiss me passionately.  We break the kiss and I head towards the entrance but I suddenly stop.

"Sam, wait, I have to give you the scarf back!" I tell him and take it down.

"No Andrea, I want you to keep it, it suits you better, it suits your style. See you tomorrow, yes?"  He asks me and I nod and watch him leave.

I like him, he is the kind of man I like.  I enter the dormitory and head towards my room and my thoughts remain with Sam.  The person who stole my heart

[ladysomething]

Hello there lovely human 💛

I’m kind of going around my favorite writers and ask them for advice and insights about their process (so I can collect it all like a hoarder). I hope you mind sharing some wisdom with us 🥺

So what I just don't understand is how you can post as you write while maintaining this level of awesomeness in your writing. Without writing yourself into a corner and keeping consistency. And it is awesome, the first time I read "You and me, we got a big reputation" I stayed up till 4 in the morning to finish it and it left me full of emotion and hollow at the same time (the same way as when you finish a great TV show or a good book or an awesome video game leaves you feeling, like something beautiful just ended and you can never experience it again. The kind of hollow that leaves you wondering what to do with your life now, that your world has changed, where your chest is empty and full at same time).

Anyway, how do you approach your ideas? Do you have the whole fic plotted out before sitting down for the first chapter? Do you write in order? Does it always go the way you plotted it in the beginning? How long did it take you to plot out "Where you go I go"? Or "You and me, we got a big reputation"?

Anything you want to share about your process would be appreciated 💛

I'm trying to put into words my first actually long fic ever and I know it will be better if I post it after it is all finished, but it is also easier to keep up the momentum if you have readers on your side.

hi!!!

firstly, thank you for the love on big reputations. I'm coming up on a year since I posted the first one shot in the don't blame me series, and I'm feeling some type of way about that.

secondly ... man oh man. I'm gonna go question by question here, but I'm gonna put it below the cut because I know I'm gonna ramble.

well the first thing is that I'm not posting as a write, not really. I'm three chapters ahead, which for me is what I need to make sure I don't write myself into a corner. I'm far enough ahead that I can keep control of the narrative. some people like be further ahead, others don't need to be ahead at all, but that's about the appropriate distance for me, I've found.

it depends on the fic! wygig is pretty much entirely plotted out, yeah. big reputations was not. I had a general idea about where it started, how it was ending, and what I wanted to happen in the middle, but specific scenes weren't planned - not like wygig. GMTF I had specific scenes in my head that I wanted to write, but more I had specific emotions I was trying to capture, and I built the plot around that. in my original manuscript, I had the three acts planned out, the main plot points per act, and then felt it out as I went (which ended up meaning I had a serious pacing problem that is still unresolved, hence why it's still sitting in my drafts lmao). so yeah, it depends on the story.

I write in order these days, but I didn't used to. I've just found that, for me, writing in order means that it forces me to keep writing, because I HAVE to go through all the boring scenes to get to the fun scenes. I use it as motivation, but that doesn't work for everyone! it certainly means that sometimes, by the time I get to the fun scene, I've forgotten what I had planned for it, so I have to build it all up again lmao.

no it doesn't always go the way I plotted! characters often do things I hadn't planned for them to do - sometimes good, sometimes bad. I've been going very rogue recently with wygig, as @saiyanwitcher can attest to. she's had to reel me back in quite a lot recently haha.

oh god, it took @saiyanwitcher and I probably .. I'd say we worked on plotting wygig for a solid month before I started writing - BUT the major caveat here is that I was writing the brocedes fic while we were plotting it out. so I refused to start writing wygig until I finished that, which meant we spent more time on plotting than I usually would. and then we revisit plot points as I get closer to writing them - see what can be kept, what needs to be deleted, what needs to be changed to fit the rogue elements I've inevitably introduced lmao

as I said, I didn't really plot big reputations out like I did with wygig, so that didn't really take any time at all! haha

as advice for putting together your first long fic ... what I'll say is this. I've been writing for almost 15 years at this point. I didn't even realise that I was coming up with a way to write that works best for me until I'd already done it.

I realised I needed people to give feedback as I go. I need to have written a lot in advance, before I start posting anything, so that I know I can finish it under my own steam and that my interest will continue. I need to listen to my mind when I get bored, and take a few days break from writing - but I can't go more than a week without touching a fic, otherwise I won't go back.

they're all things you'll learn along the way!

I also think you should try not to compare yourself to others. if you try to match what other people are doing, you'll never finish, because you'll end up disappointed in one way or another. it's easier said than done, for sure, but if it's your first, give yourself some slack and take everything as a learning experience!

and remember, above all else, to write for yourself. if your always writing for yourself, writing what YOU want to see, the motivation is easier to find.

[pippuns]

Youve made me curious, what's Tai Sui about? What's the appeal 👀👀

LET ME TELL YOU ALL ABOUT THE APPEAL ANON!!

tai sui is an absolutely fantastically written steampunk xianxia novel that acts as a deconstruction of the xianxia genre!! if you like detailed world building, questions about the cost of immortality, what makes a god, and identity, themes about environmentalism, class, autonomy, the power of names, and just incredible levels of emotional damage (broken up by the funniest and most annoying (/affectionate) protagonist around), tai sui is for you!!

which is to say. this novel was engineered to make me specifically absolutely lose it LOL

i kept on trying to make this post both coherent and not long and i have given up. here is a bunch of words of me yelling about how much i love tai sui below the page break.

TAI SUI IS SO!!! MY BRAIN!!! ITS BEING REWRITTEN!!!

there is literally no one in the main cast i dont like. they're all so funny in their own ways and so likeable!! I genuinely have such a difficult time picking my favorite character in tai sui because they're all so interesting and well-written, and i love seeing them interact with each other

part of this absolutely has to do the protagonist, xi ping, who is just the funniest man around. he's also the most annoying and i want to see him crushed like a bug (/affectionate). he's really good at bouncing off of other characters, and i love seeing him drag other folks into Problems and Situations and just being a general force of chaos and mayhem in the world

it's also really good that he's so funny and lighthearted because tai sui has some really tragic moments!! it gets fucking sad!! i've cried multiple times and i don't usually cry at media!! i only just finished book three!!

tai sui is also really good at writing women!! i love tai sui women so much. i don't really have much more to say about this but like. gender and wlw win <3

another thing tai sui does that i like a lot is zoom out to focus on the ways the events of the novel are affecting ur average day folks. when i say ''tai sui is about class and environmental issues'' i mean they don't just like, say it in the narration and then not elaborate on it. we explicitly see how people are being affected by the way the world is governed and the hardships they are forced to live through. it's not really left to your imagination.

but something i also really really like is that while priest does show the hardship that characterizes the lives of the people, they also show the ways in which people struggle to live on regardless.

tai sui is about tragedy in a lot of ways, but it's not a tragedy they take lying down, and it's not like people don't find their own moments of happiness in spite of the hard lives they live. which is really important to me!! its something i genuinely appreciate from the narration so much!! yes, life is hard. yes, things are difficult. and yes, people find a way to continue on regardless!!!!

PUNCHES A WALL. IM SO EMOTIONAL ABOUT TAI SUI.

ALSO THE NARRATION IS SO GORGEOUS??? LIKE HELLO??? IM LITERALLY OBSESSED WITH THE PROSE. EATS IT WHOLE LIKE IM A BURMESE PYTHON. or uh. like im going out to a gyro place with my friends and i get so focused on eating the food that i don't notice that i'm eating the sandwich paper wrap until a fair amount of it is chowed down haha :')

i also mentioned this a little on my side twitter but the way tai sui is formatted is also really fun to me. like. it feels like a tv show with the way the scenes change and the cliff hangers the chapters end on sometimes. which is why it really doesn't feel like its 900k words. you just keep going and then BOOM ur done with a book. the real reason im doodling my way through this novel is to force myself to go slow. bc otherwise i would have finished it in a week (there is something wrong with me).

anyways please read tai sui

[oswaldthatendswald]

For the fanfic writer emoji ask! (I'm sorry, I've been annoying the heck outta you 😭)

🥺

😈

⛔

💌

🦅

👀

🤩

💔

🥰

Never apologize!!!! I love answering asks! It's so fun. I will skip the first question, because somebody else asked it too and I answered it on that post.

😈 Has there been a point in a story where you did something just to be playfully mean to your readers?

Instead of answering, allow me to present a text I sent to my partner about a bit in chapter 2 of Cry Havoc:

(It's not gonna be in six chapters. I've reworked my outline since then and it'll probably be further). I do this a lot, actually. Add in little tiny details that are meant to be really mean but probably only on reread. Also I do love ending things on cliffhangers. I just love people's reactions.

I'll put the rest of the answers under the cut!

⛔ Do you have a fic you started, but scrapped?

Yes. Many. I start things all the time and then decide not to finish them, for whatever reason. Sometimes I lose interest, sometimes it's too personal, sometimes I get overwhelmed by the scope of a project. I had plans for a reincarnation AU with a younger, deaf Cora and I read about three separate books on deafness to research. Then I got so anxious about writing it well that I had to set it aside. I also plotted out a time travel Doflamingo fic that I just lost interest in (although I've actually used a lot of elements from that one. Maybe someday I'll post the first chapter of it that I wrote).

To clarify, I don't actually feel bad about this. All practice is good, and sometimes a story just isn't meant to be. Forcing myself to work on projects I'm just not feeling is the swiftest path to burnout.

💌 How do you feel about comments and feedback?

I love them <3 I keep screenshots of some of my favourites. I'm not particularly interested in criticism, even the constructive sort, but I've received virtually none of that on my fics.

🦅 Do you outline fics or fly by the seat of your pants?

I definitely outline, but I'm not married to the outline. The broad strokes of a story are pretty much settled by the time I start writing, but the details are in flux almost until a chapter is posted. I start with a very general overview of the story, and then I usually narrow down the details as I go. By the time I'm writing a chapter, I usually have the scenes for the next two or three planned out so that I can make sure the flow will work. It's a system that works pretty well with the serial nature of fanfic writing.

👀 Tell me about an up and coming wip please!

Hmmmm.... It often takes months for me to write a oneshot, so don't expect this any time soon, but I am working on a short fic about Dragon and Rocinante's past together (and how that influences Dragon's relationship with Sabo in the present).

I also have a short fic about Sanji, Zoro, and arachnophobia that is actually fully finished and edited, but I'm not sure if I want to post it yet. It's pretty personal, but also a little bit silly.

🤩 Who is your favorite character to write?

You'd think it would be Cora, because he is my favourite and I love him, but actually it's Doflamingo! I love writing from his POV. His view of the world is just unbelievably fun to explore. He's so remarkably off-kilter that there's a lot I can do with his perspective.

💔 Is there a fic of yours that broke your heart?

Not sure if it counts, but while I was writing the bit about the first times Cora and Law saw someone die (from chapter 5 of No Other Life), I got so emotional I fully started crying. This was, crucially, half an hour before guests were going to start arriving for a family party.

🥰 How do you feel about reader interaction? Are you open to receiving questions about your fics?

I love talking about my fics so much!!! I love questions and I love hearing from readers.

Thank you for the questions!!!

[between-thepages]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

I was tagged by @gabetheunknown, thank you <3

how many works do you have on ao3?

Currently 88, I am determined to make it to 100 before the end of the year.

2. what's your total ao3 word count?

29,604

3. what fandoms do you write for?

The Witcher Books/Games, Silmarillion, Lord of the Rings and sometimes Endeavour/Inspector Morse when the fancy strikes.

4. what are your top 5 fics by kudos?

In the Morning (Glorestor)

Dance to the Firelight (Rorveth)

Eating Love (Rorveth)

Mirror Image (Rorveth)

Body and Soul (Yenralt)

5. do you respond to comments? why or why not?

I respond to them, I love comments, but I'm slow. Also, there are only so many variations of "Thank you" one can type in a day before it starts feeling ridiculous. I promise I'll get to your comments before Christmas!

6. what is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

my Iorveth/Cedric drabble from last spring. I had to cope with the Ending of Lady of the Lake.

7. what is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Probably Beautiful like Starlight, but even that isn't really all that happy... I am writing a followup to it at the moment though.

8. do you get hate on any fics?

So far, only from a certain someone for shipping the wrong characters, but i usually have my comments restricted to logged-in users, so leaving Anon hate isn't really possible.

9. do you write smut? if so, what kind?

I will write everything once and then decide if I'll do it again xD Expect it to be at least somewhat kinky.

Also, it has to fit into a drabble or two, I can't really write long-form smut.

10.do you write crossovers? what's the craziest one you've written?

I haven't yet, I will write a Witcher/Silm crossover one day, just so I can get some of the ladies to meet

11. have you ever had a fic stolen?

I don't know, but I doubt my drabbles are interesting enough to steal.

12.have you ever had a fic translated?

Not officially, but I am trying to translate some of my fics myself. No idea when I'll be done there, though.

13. have you ever co-written a fic before?

No

14.what's your all time favorite ship?

As a multi-shipper, all time favourites are hard, because all i need are three compelling arguments and I start shipping another pairing xD

I guess Fingon/Maedhros is one of the pairings where I am least likely to read a fic if they are partnered with someone else.

15.what's a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I'll burn with a light of my own, because I started it for a flashfic challenge right before my silm hyperfixation hit full force, so Witcher is a bit on the back burner at the moment. It also needs some serious plot outline to develop further, so the continuation really depends on my interest the next few months.

16.what are your writing strengths?

I have been told I am good at writing short stories, which is great because I love writing drabbles.

17.what are your writing weaknesses?

long plots, probably. I always struggle with reaching wordcounts and making my stories interesting.

18.thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

Depends on the language and usage. I love things like terms of endearment in another language (I made up a nickname for Isengrim to use for Iorevth, after all), but I do sometimes get annoyed with the random elvish words in Tolkien fics.

The best use of other languages is if it is used to confuse the POV character, but then it has to be somewhat consistent.

19.first fandom you wrote for?

Sunrise Avenue xD But I never published any of it. The first fanfic I published was for Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.

20. favorite fic you've written?

She came in through the window because it got me into a new kind of rarepair hell <3

Tagging @she-who-drank-vodka-with-cats, @aretuzagradschooldropout and @gleamingsilence, I'm late to this so I really hope I haven't accidentally tagged someone who already did this <3

[molloytheboy]

tagged by @dead-ghost-walking to answer these fun fic writing questions!

How many works do you have on AO3? 42

What’s your total AO3 word count? 138,556

What fandoms do you write for? currently just the Vampire Chronicles but when I first got back into fic writing in 2020 it was Dragon Age

What are your top 5 fics by kudos? Does it feel like a dream, Mr. Molloy? | Next to Never | The Fight | Come As You Are | If This Be Nothing

5. Do you respond to comments? Usually yes! I love receiving them so I try to encourage it as much as I can by interacting <3

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Probably gotta be the fic where I killed Louis (which I do still plan on finishing btw)

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Holy Ground :)) this one is sickeningly sweet tbh i was in serious need of some fluff when I wrote it

8. Do you get hate on fics? only very rarely. basically never happens now that I only allow comments from people with accounts

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? yes. all kinds. all of the kinds. VC Kink Week 2023

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? not currently but crossover crackfic was how i started my fic writing career back in high school. craziest was a roleplay with my bestie that involved characters from Naruto, Samurai Champloo, DNAngel, Fruits Basket, Gravitation, and Fullmetal Alchemist

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? not to my knowledge. nice thing about writing for such a small fandom someone would probably notice and notify me pretty quick

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? no

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? yes

14. What’s your all time favorite ship? idk if i can pick one definitively but its a VC ship for sure. its kind of all of them tbh all the main canon ones. i cycle thru obsessing over each of them depending on the fic im working on. if i was forced to choose at gunpoint i would go with Nickistat

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? hate the phrasing of this how dare u make me face my demons. I will finish all of my wips i will break the cycle and then i will be free and never again be plagued by thoughts about the Characters in Situations. i know this sounds like a cop out answer but i genuinely with all my heart believe that i will eventually get to all 17 of my wips this is simply the extent of my hubris

16. What are your writing strengths? dialogue i think. and smut idk can smut be a strength. tbh i haven't received a lot of constructive feedback on my writing outside of fan spaces so i dont feel qualified to answer this

17. What are your writing weaknesses? over-explaining/over-describing characters actions and motives and emotions in a scene. i feel like this is smth that doesnt come across in my final drafts as much anymore bc ive been actively working on it but this is the thing i consistently struggle with during the process. also i tend to be kind of lazy with research which isnt the best quality to have when you write mostly in historical settings. but with fanfic i feel justifed in only spending one hour instead of three reading up on life in 18th century Paris since i do have a life to get back to at some point. if i was writing for publication i would try harder

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I do it, poorly. almost exclusively French in this fandom, and a little Italian. I do my best to check multiple translation sources (from real speakers if possible) and find example sentences to base my grammar on. but again, this is a hobby so I don't hold myself to the same standard I would if I was doing it professionally

19. First fandom you wrote for? pretty sure my first fanfic was that crossover i mentioned earlier so. all of those

20. Favorite fic you’ve written? oh boy. hold on gimme a sec. ok i think its Against All Odds rn. i was at the top of my game when it comes to Loustat banter (had recently reread the first 3 books) and its very tight and compact and cinematic im still really pleased with it 2 years (??!?!?!?) later

tagging @nightcolorz @butchybats and anyone else who wants to! u can say I tagged u <3

[piedoesnotequalpi]

🍄❄️🌿 if you want!! - @pigeonwit

(Writer ask game!)

🍄 (how did you get into writing fanfiction?)

This has...three answers, depending on how far back you want to go.

Answer 1: The first fanfiction I wrote was a cursed but hilarious Shakespeare mega-crossover that I've contemplated posting here based on a writing prompt on a sophomore year English final. I then proceeded to not write any more fanfiction (except for my Broadchurch-inspired poetry in creative writing), until...

Answer 2: At the beginning of the pandemic, I was rewatching Parks and Rec and was curious how, at one point, Ben knew about Leslie's favorite spot in City Hall. I wrote a short one-shot with my thoughts, made an AO3 account to post it, and thought I'd never use the account to post anything else, until...

Answer 3: A few months after I first watched Newsies, I thought I could fit the Newsies characters into a Much Ado About Nothing retelling pretty well--Javid as Ben and Bea, Spot and Race as Claudio and Hero, Katherine as Don Pedro, etc. My irl friend encouraged me to write it and helped with some plot stuff (Jack dressing up as Rapunzel was her idea if I remember correctly). I thought I wouldn't write anything else after that, but then I had ideas for one-shots and was kind of in a bad place mentally, so I kept going, and now here I am >140k words into the Bachelorette AU! What a time!

❄ (What's your dream theme/plot for a fic, and who would write it best?)

I thought about this in the shower, and I think I'd like to see a whodunit/murder mystery fic, which seems like the sort of thing @jack-kellys would be good at. I know I certainly would not be up to writing a proper murder mystery though (despite taking an entire English class on detective fiction in high school).

(Last answer under the cut because this got long, oops)

🌿 (give some advice on writer's block and low creativity)

I know I maintain the illusion of avoiding writer's block by having a semi-regular posting schedule for the Bachelorette AU, but I am very much not immune to writer's block. Here are some things I do, with the caveat that this is just my experience and my methods do not work for everyone.

If the block is coming from feeling like I'm not sure what I'm doing in the next few scenes, I'll take a bit to figure out and write down what the next few scenes will be. These won't be super detailed, but I'll sometimes specify the POV character and usually say "xyz happens." For example, right now I have notes in my bachelorette document about who's going in the hot seat when, as well as the scenes I want to have take place after the men tell all filming wraps.

If I'm just overwhelmed, I'll take a little longer and write a list of things, in order, that need to happen in a chapter (this is what I did for each chapter for the bachelorette au). In the Much Ado adaptation, I wrote down each scene number from the play and decided which POV(s) each scene would have and in what order, which served as a reminder of what each scene focused on.

If it's just that the words won't come, I look back over what I've read, go read a book, or I just sort of force myself to plod along (with the exception of these past couple weeks, where I've been really tired from work and haven't had much time to sit down and designate Writing Time). Brute-forcing isn't for everyone, but when I'm doing that, I try not to delete what I've written and I try not to think about whether it's good, since if I don't like the scene I can go back and edit or rewrite it later. I also do sprints sometimes.

After yet another abandoned novel attempt in 2022, I never skip ahead to the scene I really want to write. I'll write down single lines or bits of dialogue, but that's it. If I skip ahead, it makes it way harder to finish the fic.

[ardentlytess]

✨the tag game✨

tagged by: @talays-portkey thank you so much!!<3

THREE SHIPS 🚢 i have so many, but the top three that live in my brain rent free most often would have to be: puentalay from vice versa, wangxian from mdzs/the untamed, & sangwoo/jaeyoung from semantic error (with akktheo from enchanté as a close close close fourth)!

FIRST SHIP 🚢 i'm honestly pretty sure the first ship i was every properly invested in was percabeth from percy jackson & the olympians, followed by peeta & katniss from the hunger games, closely followed by suki from avatar: the last airbender & myself. what can i say. past me had taste.

LAST SONG 🎧 it was one step closer by intersection (AKA, fruits basket's second ending theme)! i tend to listen to a lot of anime openings/endings while studying in particular so i'm cycling through one of my usual playlists right now!

LAST MOVIE 🍿 i actually very rarely watch movies so i had to think a bit for this one, but i'm relatively certain that it was your name engraved herein. very heartbreaking. very beautiful. very very very real. the ending broke me as a human being, especially paired with the quote the director gave about the reality of missing the "train of happiness."

CURRENTLY READING 📖 i am currently reading girls of paper & fire by natasha ngan! to be honest, it's been a pretty difficult read for me emotionally given the subject matter, but it's a sapphic fantasy novel set in an asian-inspired, caste-based fantasy world that follows a young girl who's abducted & forced to become a concubine to the king, only to find herself falling for a fellow courtesan while juggling her own goals of survival, justice, & revenge. i'm just about to finish this one, though, so after i do, i'm probably going to pick up either hell followed with us by andrew joseph white (a queer sci-fi/dystopian novel that follows a trans mc who's slowly mutating into a deadly monster— also has autistic rep) or godslayers by zoe hana mikuta (the second book in a sapphic sci-fi/dystopian series about mechas carrying out the will of a tyrannical capital city & gearbreakers who are the only ones willing to bring them down)!

CURRENTLY WATCHING 👀 i've been in a weird kind of slump lately, so of everything currently airing i'm only really keeping up with my school president, moonlight chicken, & bokura no micro na shuumatsu— & even with these, i'm very rarely watching them on the days they actually come out, even though i'm enjoying all of them so far! i am, however, also doing an impromptu, completely unofficial vice versa rewatch that was definitely not supposed to be a full rewatch & was just supposed to be a quick little flip through to get some quotes for a set i'm working on but turned into a full rewatch because i simply couldn't resist. 10/10. highly recommend. puentalay will never not transcend a slump for me.

CURRENTLY CONSUMING 👄 this one's maybe slightly strange but strawberries dipped in ice water!! ice water just makes strawberries (& every fruit, honestly) taste so much better. also trying (& failing) to focus on a pchem lecture. considering i'm writing this up instead, i'd say it's not going too swimmingly. 

CURRENTLY CRAVING 🫦 hmmmmm honestly i've been craving milk tea for weeks now & tteokbokki even longer! will hopefully be treating myself with one or the other once this round of midterms is over & done with!

ONWARD TAGS 🏷️ i'm tagging: @i-got-the-feels @pannakorn @puentalay @oswlld @icouldhyperfixatehim @stormyoceans @chinzhilla @chinzillas @gooseras @hidden-joy @laowen @intolove & anyone else who'd like to do it! i'm not entirely sure who has/hasn't been tagged yet &/or who's interested so definitely don't feel obligated! just sending lots of good vibes & love to you all<3

[leojurand]

top 10 8 books of the year

i ended up reading 63 books this year, but since about 17 of them were rereads, this is top 8 out of 46.

i usually don't do top 10s or anything similar because choosing is hard, but i wanted to "force" myself to do it this year, and here are the results!

8. the secret lives of country gentlemen, kj charles

kj charles is my absolute favourite romance author, and i think her formula was perfected with the doomsday duology, even though they're not necessarily my fave books by her. out of the two, i chose secret lives because it was so perfect to me! absolutely adored both mcs, individually and together. i always enjoy the kjc novels that have higher stakes, and i was super invested in this story, and the characters, and everything that happened to them. very beautiful romance scenes. can't wait to read whatever she comes up with next!!

7. the mask of apollo, mary renault

it's still crazy to be that i've only read two mary renault books this year, because i am completely in love with every aspect of her writing. the prose is so gorgeous, and this book was so atmospheric and immersive. i love the slow pace in her novels, and there's always moments of introspection that tug at my heartstrings. and that ending!!

6. gaudy night, dorothy l. sayers

pretty sure the fact that i spent like half an hour talking to a classmate about how amazing the sayers's writing is makes her my author of the year. and it couldn't be any other way! of the lord peter wimsey novels, i think gaudy night is her magnum opus. it was a very personal novel for her, and it shows in the care she put into it. i love harriet vane so much, and i adore peter, and i'm so happy that the peak of their romance and their feelings for each other was reached in such a wonderful book.

i only wanted to choose one book per series, but my other two faves are unnatural death and murder must advertise (i have yet to read busman's honeymoon)

5. the ruins, scott smith

and the award for biggest surprise of the year goes to this book! its adaptation is a very nostalgic movie for me, and last month me and my girlfriend decided to watch it together. i decided that was the perfect time to finally pick up the book, since i'd heard so much about it being so much better, as is usually the case. and god, it is much, much better. fantastic writing, and the characters feel so much more human and real than their movie counterparts. great atmosphere, and the gore? oof. one of those novels that makes me stop in the middle of whatever i'm doing and i think "man, the ruins was so good"

4. the winter prince, elizabeth wein

now, this book truly never left my brain since i read it. i picked it up on a whim and it hit me like a truck, which i didn't expect at all from such a short story. it has one of my favourite styles of prose: simple but so, so pretty. it was so easy for me to connect with the characters, especially medraut, and with the messed up dynamics that are shown here. such a wonderful book, i can't explain

so, do i have any excuse for not having read its sequel yet? no! and i'm planning to do that next month

3. the heaven tree, edith pargeter

this is a trilogy but i think of it as one story, so this includes all three books. the heaven tree gave me everything i wanted it to give me: breathtaking prose, drama, fucked up dynamics, beautiful dynamics, characters that are complex and messed up and that i don't agree with so many times, but i could always understand (well, almost always. the romance in the first book is nonsensical and stupid, but i love these books enough to forgive it). such a beautiful story, with a villain who was as easy to hate and to admire simply by how layered he was.

2. the sparrow, mary doria russell

this is the only book on this list that i've already reread, that's how serious this is. also the most "staring at a wall for an hour after finishing it unable to move" book of the year. made me feel so many emotions i can't even begin to explain. the amount of love and pain in this book can't be measured. emilio sandoz character of all time.

1. fire from heaven, mary renault

second mary renault on the list, and one i've read! also one of my earliest books of the year, because i read this in january. and it has stayed with all these months; my love for it didn't falter for even a second. you know when you consumed a piece of media and think "this was made for me"? well, that's how i felt reading fire from heaven. everything about it was perfect to me, from the prose to the pacing to the dynamic between alexander and hephaistion. you can really tell alexander's story was very important to mary renault (she was pretty much obsessed with the guy, and how very relatable), and now it's important to me too.

so, again, how come i haven't read the sequels yet? well, i tried to the persian boy soon after finishing this one, but 50 pages in and i couldn't get into it, which is sad so i decided to leave it for another time. i think i love fire from heaven too much to fully embrace the change in perspective in the second book. maybe i'm petty because the persian boy is considered the best of the trilogy, and maybe renault's best along with the charioteer. and i just don't think i'll feel the same way! it's hard to believe that it will make me feel the way fire from heaven did. and that's why it has to be number 1 on this list, i'm so incredibly attached to it, 11 months after reading it.

and there it is! it's hard to rank books when they're completely different from each other, but i tried. i would say overall it was a pretty good year... hard to compete with last year because well. i did read 15 dorothy dunnett novels almost back to back then. but still! i'm pretty happy

[scorbleeo]

Book Review: Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell

by Susanna Clarke

Source: Amazon

At the dawn of the nineteenth century, two very different magicians emerge to change England's history. In the year 1806, with the Napoleonic Wars raging on land and sea, most people believe magic to be long dead in England--until the reclusive Mr Norrell reveals his powers, and becomes a celebrity overnight.

Soon, another practicing magician comes forth: the young, handsome, and daring Jonathan Strange. He becomes Norrell's student, and they join forces in the war against France. But Strange is increasingly drawn to the wildest, most perilous forms of magic, straining his partnership with Norrell, and putting at risk everything else he holds dear.

ISBN: 9781408891469 (2017) | Source: Goodreads

This Reading Journey Took An Interesting Turn

There are a lot of factors Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell has that are usually book turnoffs for me. Many will assume the thickness being one of them but when it comes to fantasy novels, it's not one. So, what turnoffs was I referring to then? Well, I really dislike historical fiction, especially if we're talking about it taking place in the 19th century. I love myself a medieval time but the victorian ages to the 19th century is not my favourite period. The 19th century writing style is also something I don't really like, narration is fine but formal speech, I hate it. And last but not least, slow pacing bores me easily and most of the time, it plays into why I refuse to give a book a higher rating.

With that being said, this would have never been a novel I would pick up if not for the fact that it was recommended to me by an author, and the TV show. I did not expect to pull through this book till the end. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell was written into three main parts and unfortunately, part one was a horrible experience. I was either ready to DNF this book, or give it a 2 or 3 star rating. Honestly, I believed even if I finished it, it was going to be a book I hated. So, why was part one such a horrible experience for me?

Well, remember the three turnoffs I mentioned earlier on? Part one was all that, plus no plot and just all about Mr Norrell which yes, I do get it. Part one was about Mr Norrell so what was I expecting? But goodness gracious, Mr Norrell was not a pleasant main character to read about. I was barely hanging in there being frustrated by that man. Fortunately, I told myself time and time again, I need to at least get a few chapters of part two in before I decide if I should DNF the book. I did, and things took the most interesting turn.

In my opinion, as much as I hated it, I appreciated that Clarke made all those chapters focusing on Mr Norrell before Jonathan Strange came into the picture. He really was unbearable but then the reading experience made it feel as if I was getting to know Mr Norrell myself, from start to end. Because of that horrid first part, I understood the relationship between our two English magicians and why Mr Norrell was the way he was. Ironically, going into part two and then three were the reasons I finished this book forgoing my distaste for Mr Norrell.

Moving on, I think some people would have disliked Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell for its snail pace. I did not enjoy it at first but then I ended up loving the pacing of this book. It was kind of cathartic that the entirety of the book was at a constant slow pace. Even at the plot's climax, it felt melancholy. If you know, you know.

Also, the prophecy. How do I even begin articulating my feelings for the prophecy? Initially, I did not care about it but then I soon realised this was not the kind of book where one character will tie everything together and reiterate for the readers. Therefore, half way through the book, I decided to write it down and decipher it as I went along. It was almost like solving a mystery crime as I slowly discovered what each line of the prophecy meant. And by the end of it all, it was absolutely liberating.

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is a reading experience I have never actually encountered despite having read so many books. The journey was magical and I am aware this is not a book for everyone but if you think you can tackle it, I say go ahead.

Rating: ★★★★★

[dittoremus]

get to know better tag

how come i'm always late for these things :') anyway, thank you so much @popyandshit for the tag!! 💖

three ships: oh boy we're off to a difficult start. i've gone through many fandoms and i'm a compulsive shipper so i can't bring myself to choose. i'll just say my favorite marauders ships since it's been my latest long lasting obsession?? i guess?? AND EVEN THAT'S A STRUGGLE FOR ME. i'll just go with dorlene, wolfstar and recently i've been really into jily again.

WAIT NEVERMIND I'VE CHANGED MY MIND AND I'M MENTIONING OTHER SHIPS: KANEJ (SOC), CAITVI (ARCANE), PYNCH (TRC), CATRADORA (SHERA) AND MANY OTHERS

first ship: i think the first one i properly and actively shipped was percabeth??

last song: IT'S KILLING ME THAT IT WON'T BE AVAILABLE ON SPOTIFY UNTIL FRIDAY

last movie: everything everywhere all at once (watched it this weekend with my mother)

currently watching: i finished watching heartstopper s2 a couple days ago. currently i'm rewatching the walking dead (i may be working on something and i'm hoping i can use it as inspiration) and my friend is forcing me to start alchemy of souls so i guess we can add that to the list.

currently reading: i'M STILL READING DAISY JONES AND THE SIX (I DON'T KNOW WHY IT'S TAKING ME SO LONG WHEN USUALLY I'M A FAST READER AND I AM LIKING THE BOOK). as for fics i've mostly been reading one shots (if you have any long fanfic recs please send them my way)

last thing i wrote: a very VERY basic draft of the first chapters of the zombie au i'm working on

currently writing: the above-mentioned zombie au (and a project for uni lol)

i have no clue who to tag so feel free to do it if you want ✨

[thisisjaybaker]

book and theatre tracker 2023

tldr: i will use this post to track my reading and theatre visits this year. the goal: 2 books/month, 1 theatre visit/month, read more for some background on why & how i'm doing this :)

so, i don't believe in new year's resolutions. to make years countable they have to end at some point and when one year ends, another has to begin so new year's eve and new year's day are just some days that had meaning stacked onto them, in my opinion

that's why it seems arbitrary to me to have resolutions for the new year, because if i want to change things in my life it's best not to change them after having a week of holidays where i am generally taken out of my usual every day life.

i had one pseudo-new year's resolution which was to sort out all of the documents and papers flying around the shelf where my printer is located, most of them precariously stacked upon said printer, waiting for me to stub my toe on the shelf and upsetting their barely there balance and sending them tumbling to the ground. i wanted it done before uni started up again and i didn't want to do it before hosting a new year's eve party, so it became a sort of resolution, but mostly just a goal for the next week of my life

but since the year started i have formulated two goals for this year: - get into reading books again - got to the theatre regularly

the first is important to me, because last year i read only as many novels as i read books on discourse analysis for a paper i had to write and that's a comparably low number and i had to read three of them for various classes. i used to be the person that read as many books in a month and while i can be fair to myself and acknowledge that i am busy and reading is part of both my job and my studies, so i am sometimes too tired of reading to also read for fun, i read A LOT of fanfiction last year, sometimes works that had 100k+ words and instead, i could have read more books. i love fanfiction and i will not stop consuming it but books used to give me a certain kind of happiness that i now crave to find again. so, i want to get into reading books again. for that purpose i set myself the goal to read 2 books a month this year, which is about the size of my 'to be read'-pile. i will, however, not force myself to finish books i don't enjoy. this is a practice of finding joy in books again, so no forcing myself, even if it means foregoing books in my tbr for other stuff. this also might be a good time to give my library card some new life.

there are some rules for the book-part of this endeavor:

they have to be physical books (i'm not against e-books per se but i don't have any good means to read them and this might help reduce screen time which is always good in my case)

re-reads are fine

books i read for uni classes will be added to the list but will only count towards my goal if i genuinely enjoyed them

i used to study theatre and i live in a place where there's a big theatre scene, so it's really only my own fault that i haven't been to the theatre a lot. i want to make this part of my usual schedule again, so i set myself the goal to go to a theatre performance at least once every month of this year.

i will use my tumblr to track my reading and theatre goals. i will probably reblog this post a lot and just add on when i finish a book or went to see a performance or the month ends and then reblog this again at the end of the year :)

[ink-flavored]

(for the ask game!) 5, 22, 24, 41, 47

Oh boy, thank you!

05. THE HIEROPHANT: TRADITION (Do you have any writing traditions you follow or plan to implement?) 

Traditions? I'm not sure. I tend to make a separate document for world-building, notes, and outlines. I've recently (within the past year or so) discovered the joys of writing out of order (as opposed to writing from the beginning and never deviating from chronological order). Uhhhhh... is coming up with new WIPs every other month a tradition?

22. ACE OF CUPS: SELF-CARE (How do you practice self-care as an author?)

Honestly, giving myself permission not to write. There's always that part of me that wants to write no matter what and gets angry if I'm too tired, too uninspired, don't feel like it, etc., but it's really important to shut that shit down if you can. Resting is not a mark of a bad creative, nor a bad person. Listening to your body is important. If you just can't write, don't force it. Read a book, talk to friends, hell just scroll and look at posts. You can't pour from an empty cup, so go fill it back up.

24. THREE OF CUPS: CELEBRATION (How do you celebrate your wins, or plan to?)

Oh, baking for sure. I love to bake presents for myself, so every time I've finished a really long story I baked myself a cake or something. It's fun! Decorating is one of my favorite parts, so I get to match the decorations to the story. It's a really nice send-off for a long project, as well as being delicious.

41. SIX OF SWORDS: TRANSITION (Would you ever write out of the genre you usually write in?)

Absolutely! I really like exploring new genres. That's not to say I'm good at writing all of them, but I have no problem wanting to branch out.

47. KNIGHT OF SWORDS: AMBITION (What is your loftiest, wildest goal?)

It probably doesn't sound very lofty (or maybe it does, in this economy), but one day I want writing to be how I support myself first and foremost. Right now, I can't not have a "real job" alongside my writing because I need to keep the lights on. I'd really like to not have to do that anymore. Writing is something that has always made me happy, and I can't imagine myself doing anything else. One day I hope it would be practical for me to make a living doing it.

[send me a tarot card ask]

[fantasyborn]

things i would like to do in 2023

my goals and resolutions for new years are never strict. i will never force myself to do something if circumstances arise where i can't. the goal is to try and see how many i can do with the time and energy i have. not overexerting myself and burning out trying for the impossible.

this may be a long one so feel free to slide on by!

we'll start with writing things!

quarterly drabble bingo - i've put my many drabble ideas into 4 3x3 bingo cards. the plan is to blackout each bingo over three months.

12 months of wlw fics - this was something i wanted to do last year and it didn't work out. but i want to write at least one wlw fic a month that is longer than my usual drabbley things.

get back to my long wips - i haven't touched rabbit hearted or wild soul or a series of unforseen events in a HOT MINUTE. i would love to get back to and continue them

we love a fest but also? i'd love to write more for me this year just in general!

on that note, dust off a piece of original fiction

crochet things!

finish 12 projects - any size, just finish

use 2,023g of yarn (a goal set by some friends on insta)

design and publish a pattern

reading things!

5 books! read them!

other things!

work on my general health - mentally and physically, i don't take great care of myself and i need to turn that around

try to keep my room clean - it's my living space. it needs upkeep. just like i do

be more active and communicative on social media and in everyday life - post more, build friendship here/insta/discord but also hang out with the people in my daily life more

[libertyreads]

Book Review #13 of 2024--

Such a Lovely Family by Aggie Blum Thompson. Rating: 4 stars.

Read from February 22nd to 24th.

Before I get into the review, a quick thank you to NetGalley and the publishers over at Tor for allowing me access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review. Such a Lovely Family follows the Calhouns on the night of their annual Cherry Blossom Party. The D.C. elite love to show up to the family's gorgeous house and view the cherry blossoms in full bloom. But what no one expected was for the night to end in murder. Now a police investigation is underway and this picture perfect family's dark secrets start to come out. When their money can no longer get rid of the Calhouns' problems and they find themselves backed into a corner, what will they do to make sure they come out on top? Such a Lovely Family comes out on March 12th and is available for preorder now.

I was surprised when I finished this book and found myself wanting to give it a 4 star rating. I usually don't give Adult Mystery novels that high of a rating. Usually there's a problem with pacing or something in the ending that ruins it for me. But, surprisingly, not this time. I love some rich people drama because it's so absolutely absurd. It was giving the Grayson family from Revenge which I ate up. We follow the Calhoun family on the day of the party as little secrets start to come out and all of the drama gets laid out. Why did the flowers never arrive? Why is Ellie Grace so focused on getting the perfect photos? Why won't Nate open up about his ex-wife? What is going on with Trey's sobriety? And why is Thom's grin just a little too forced? I loved this small community setting of the uber rich with all of its little daily dramas happening in the midst of the murder investigation. I also found the characters to be well rounded. My favorite character was Nate's fiancée who is meeting the family for the first time and sucked into its vortex. I enjoyed the outsider's perspective. And I just have to say that the last couple of pages of the book were practically perfect for me. Specifically the final sentence. It leaves a sense of foreboding that punctuates the story so well. It also leans into the conversation that could be had about communities like this, neighborhoods like this.

The main problem I had with this one was how obvious some of these little secrets are while you're reading the book. Some of them were completely out of left field for me and were pretty good. But some of them I called pretty early on. The overarching mystery of who committed the murder and why and how was a pretty good surprise. I will also say that the ending is a little sloppy. It was sloppy in a way that can make sense, but made me feel like the author had to pull a few things together at the end to make it all work.

Overall, I had a surprisingly good time with this one. It had a lot of the things I was really looking for in an Adult Mystery. I was originally planning on taking five days to read this one so the fact that I read it in three really speaks to its readability.