#and i understand it's a ya fiction book but i still find it very important

[maingh0st]

Yes!!! I was also wondering if there’s different lands located in different countries or continents??? Do they speak any languages other than English???

(anon is referencing this post)

the Folk have their own language, a fact that gets dropped and then criminally underused in tfota!!!

but yeah i'm so curious about this. i think i'm leaning toward the idea that the faery courts are only somewhat tied to geographical locations—like they require physical touchstones to enter them, but are not truly physically "there." for example, the court of termites is underground, and we see kaye entering from a specific physical location, but it's still "separate" and would therefore never be touched by, for example, human drilling or digging.

also, elfhame being the High Court (TM) leads me to believe that even if there are fae courts elsewhere, they don't operate as totally independent powers. i think the faery world is probably more connected even if it's geographically spread out—again because i'm not convinced that geographical "distance" is much of a barrier

to me, this kiiindd of solves the issue of them being in north america, because it means their courts could've been around a long time, but people have only been entering them from north america for a little while. so maybe immigrants isn't quite the right term, but essentially the folk are still newer to north american soil.

honestly the reason i started thinking about all this is because i refuse to accept that the folk have been on turtle island for very long (like pre-european colonization). i just don't appreciate the undertones that carries of erasing indigenous peoples and our ways of understanding the world

[liketwoswansinbalance]

What is your favorite thing about SGE series and why?

I have multiple favorite things, so you can expect me to elaborate for a while.

One of my favorite things from the series is Soman’s novel concept of "psyche travel," and for christening it with an actual name.

I’ve only seen this concept in a few other, more science-fiction or speculative type of stories, like the Divergent series, The Giver quartet, "The Veldt," a fascinating short story by Ray Bradbury (which TOTSMOV41 is very much inspired by) and the Artemis Fowl series, which involves time manipulation that wasn't strictly time travel (which is far more commonly seen in fiction). And I love Soman's more fantastical spin on psyche travel! To me, the concept was previously called "mental landscapes" or simply "simulations" of reality. "Psyche travel" as a term is just far broader and more versatile, and I feel like you could do more with it, experimentally.

In fact, I would've loved it if Soman could've left more room in his tight plots to explore human consciousness and "the cauldron of the unconscious" more in TCY, so I will be doing exactly that with the themes in my longfic TOTSMOV41. If anyone wants to know more about TOTSMOV41, I'll redirect you to this table of contents/introductory post.

My fic's entire premise reflects how much I loved that one scene in ACOT. It was absolutely brilliant, especially with the edited views of what reality once was, how subjective memory could be. Plus, in that moment, ACOT managed to combine a few of my major interests: psychology and how generally error-prone the human mind and memory are, surreal imagery in literature, and delving further into SGE’s soft, irrational/nebulous, thematically-relevant magic system. (The way I see it, problems are more often unintentionally created than intentionally solved with magic, and we understand little of it, what goes on magically, really, and can't logically extrapolate what the characters could possibly do said magic. So, the magic is framed as unstable and flexible, even while it does reflect the state of the world and the important relationships in the tales. Thus, that's how I might classify the SGE system. You're welcome to disagree on which type of magic system it is though!)

The following points are probably more obvious:

First, Soman’s prose and images overall are enthralling, and his use of VERBS, especially, rivals few authors that write for a younger demographic, at least in my opinion. It’s often just so well done. It's the little things, like using "scalded" or "pinked" instead of "blushed" that I love. Soman's use of language is so inventive at times, and I love trying to imitate it. Verbs can make or break a piece of writing in my mind.

Also, I love the extravagance and length and readability of this particular book one sentence that I think is underrated for the sheer exasperation embedded in it:

“After chastising her for slipping in the Ever ranks, explaining every assignment thrice, and berating her to cover her mouth when she coughed, Pollux finally left in a circus of hops and falls.”

It’s fabulously sweeping and exhaustive.

In addition, the third person omniscient pov is less common nowadays, I think. So much of middle grade and YA is in first person these days, so it may be a trend, for its immediacy. Though, I tend to prefer third person, even if my preference also generally depends on how well the work was executed.

I love SGE for its basis in fairy tales since I loved reading the classic Grimms' fairy tales before I discovered SGE—they were probably my favorites for a while (and still sort of are, alongside SGE). And they inhabited my storytelling before I ever discovered more subversive things existed. Thus, it's the overall darkness and the dramatics I find compelling about Soman's work.

The cleverness in the writing, when it’s well-executed, is phenomenal. And this applies to two aspects: first, Rafal, obviously, and second, the plot structure itself.

When I say Rafal, I mean specifically during the moments in which he shows off his conniving craftiness, his prowess at outfoxing others. And I love any instances of scenes in which he tricks or outwits people and systems.

Someday, I’ll have to remember to discuss the Fala-shoe-fairy-kiss scene from Fall, one of my favorites ever, in a future post. Those particular thoughts must be somewhere in my scads of drafts... I’ll have to look for them. For now, I will give you any thoughts I have now:

I'm referring to the scene in which Fala lures a fairy with a golden kiss and traps it in his shoe without a single word of verbal explanation, and he expects everyone to intuitively follow his genius thought process, the solution to their dilemma. Then, everyone, except Aladdin, manages to catch on, when they watch his demonstration.

Here's an (exaggerated?) approximation of how I'd imagine his internal monologue could've gone:

Watch and learn, youths. I’m better than you. In innumerable ways, and this is one. But fear not! I will lead you to success. No one else is capable of doing it. Yes, I will take on this burden myself. Give me all the credit. But don’t even bask in my cleverness, even if it deserves your attention. My actions speak for themselves. Just get the task done. Now. We don’t have all day to dilly-dally like inane cowards.

I will redirect you to this post, if you would like to read more about how I happen to interpret Rafal's "trickery," or rather, absence of trickery, perhaps.

And for my second spiel on the series' cleverness, elaborating on its predictable unpredictability, on a structural level, even if I only saw it in hindsight:

I love any kind of legerdemain or sleights of hand, or twisting of plots, except the devastating Fall one, I suppose. And there is something very characteristic of SGE I've observed: there are often, very, exceedingly late third act turning-points. These points are likely hallmarks of the series, to the extent that I've come to expect them by now, especially after Rise, and sometimes, I'm probably actively on the lookout for them when I read other books. Besides, Soman likes to lull readers into a false sense of security, that much we can probably confirm.

Furthermore, these turning-points seem to take two forms and you can literally only expect one of two things to happen.

It's either: 1) the characters reach a point of what should be a settled peaceable resolution, that is then rapidly negated, or 2) the characters reach a darkest-night-of-the-soul moment, the prospect of temptation in the story, often for an individual, and wishes are granted (often in subversive, unfulfilling ways to almost everyone's dismay).

Examples:

1) In Rise and TLEA: you think you are safe, that you're out of the dark Woods (which often represent the darkness of the soul or the human psyche as a symbol) but you're not. There is no built-in "warmth" to the narration, as Soman puts it in one of his interviews. This all is literally the narrative's "liar's tell" or "slip" in the third act, a revisiting of conflict, the reopening of the tale. You know there is more disaster to come. The ride is not over yet, however much you may think or desire it to be so.

In AWWP, characters say and believe the wrong things, are misled, and narrowly miss a possible "happy" ending because Sophie felt alienated enough to choose Rafal, who chose her.

In TLEA, we think everything is resolved, but all of a sudden, we get one more little impact, a jolt, that not all is well or completely restored, the moment Aric kills Lady Lesso.

In Rise, when Rafal is revived and reclaims the Schools from Vulcan, setting everything back into their original, proper forms, back to order, we think we've averted all crises, and have reverted back to the status quo. But, that resolution, again, is only momentary. Supposedly, Rhian's Evil, his rot, was awakened, and the moment Rafal considers leaving again and does, to seek out a new replacement student, is when the plot begins to race downhill again. When Rafal leaves, he leaves a gap for Rhian's poor judgement to bleed through, and Rhian hires Hook, effectively setting off the second wave of awful plot events in Fall. Rhian sort of resurrected old conflicts, and breathed new life into them.

2) Before the Great War in TLEA and the climax, we get tonal signposting that nearly "all is lost," that we're approaching, marching towards our imminent demise. There's an ever-present fog of "Abandon all hope, ye who enter" because if there's anything Rafal's good at, it's cultivating an air of stifling oppression. Hence, we have the narrow aversion of the darkest moment:

Agatha (unlike prequel Rafal with Evil Rhian) doesn't use the wrong emotional appeal. She gets through to Sophie, she and Tedros aren't executed, and Sophie destroys the ring, killing Rafal. Despite everything that said otherwise, that said Good would lose.

Lastly, a few other bits I appreciate are the roles the Seers play in the series, the meta aspects of the Storian (or Lionsmane) and the tales in general, and the names of a lot of the proper nouns such as the kingdoms—I don't know why I love some of them. The alliteration is oftentimes fun, and the names feel right and plausible.

[kikiskjaldmaer]

The Year Of The Witching ~ by Alexis Henderson

Here is another long overdue review: The Year Of The Witching.

As always, this review is spoiler-free, so I’ll only provide basic details.

Plot: Emmanuelle Moore is a sixteen-year-old living in the fictional Bethel, home to a puritanical society where women’s rights are disregarded and the only law is the sacred and absolute word of the Prophet. Life for Emmanuelle has never been easy, as she is the result of her mother’s love for an outsider, and consequently, the reason her whole family is forced to live in the shadow of their collective shame. Bethel’s memory of her mother’s mistake lingers, despite the passing of years, much like the Darkwoods, whispered to be haunted by four witches, call to Emmanuelle each day. Emmanuelle Moore understands the importance of not succumbing to the desire to go into the forest. In the eyes of society, her very existence is blasphemous, and she must repent for both herself and her family for the rest of her life. Nevertheless, the Deadwoods will continue their beckoning, and the truth will eventually be revealed, forcing Emmanuelle to confront unexpected revelations and make crucial choices that will change everything.

My opinion: 

When I think about this book, three words always come to mind: hauntingly beautiful prose. The writer’s voice had a lyrical and atmospheric quality, like a whispered story in the dark. I noticed numerous reviews, even the positive ones, and felt as though this story could have gone further and deeper. I agree that a lot more could have been done with it, but this is still only the first book in the “Bethel” series, and I know there is at least one more planned to be released. That would leave space for more world-building, more lore, more of everything. So I, for one, will choose to be patient, and see what Handerson will deliver in the future. Some other reviews also pointed out the simplicity of the society, and while I understand their perspective, I found it sufficient for Emmanuelle’s story. Other reviews lamented about bad character development, and with those I wholeheartedly disagree. I loved all the characters (of course the Prophet can go die in a hole somewhere, but he was a very good villain). Emmanuelle, Ezra (the love interest), and any other secondary character were masterfully brought to life. Emmanuelle and Ezra’s relationship is an enjoyable slow-burn romance, very tender and sincere. I found myself rooting for them and caring about them. The horror element and atmosphere were certainly there and were very well done. I thought the atmosphere was loosely similar to the TV show “Midnight Mass.” 

In conclusion, I loved this YA witchy story, and I highly recommend it! 

For me, it was a full 5☆☆☆☆☆ read l!

FIND MY CONTENT:

[feminexisting]

The 13th Reality: The Journal of Curious Letters by James Dashner

I’ve presumably owned this book for several years now, but I don’t remember getting it. There is no price sticker on the book, so I don’t know where it came from or how much it was purchased for. Maybe it was one of the advanced copies I got in junior high? I chose to read this book because I thought it could be interesting and I liked the colors on the cover. 

The premise is that one day 13 year old Atticus “Tick” Higginbottom gets a mysterious letter in the mail, promising danger and adventure in the coming weeks and months, and that this can be circumvented by burning the letter, but at the cost of never finding out why the letter was written, or by who. Tick has to uncover the secrets of the letters to find out what’s in store for him so that he can eventually save his life and, potentially, the lives of everybody in the multiverse, along the way meeting new friends and making new enemies, all on the countdown to the coming adventure. 

If there’s nothing else I can say about this book, I can at least say that it helped remind me that I prefer science fiction over fantasy - well, I suppose this book might technically fall into the realm of science fiction due to its multiversal happenings, but it’s written so whimsically that that much is easy to forget. Listen... this book was. Fine. I guess. But it had nothing great going for it. Nothing really stood out about it. Sure, it had interesting parts, but, like, the writing style wasn’t great, the characters weren’t particularly endearing, and the journey wasn’t particularly enjoyable. It was just... a very middling book. 

While reading fantasy, it’s important to have a healthy suspension of disbelief. This is how you come to accept things like, for instance, being able to want something so badly you can alter a timeline just by thought, or by believing that preteens would be better for situations like this instead of adults. That said, some of the things in this book just couldn’t be overlooked. Mainly the fact that no children/preteens/teens have ever spoken Like That. I have to wonder if the author has ever been 13 or has ever met 13 year olds. I also have to wonder, based on Tick’s dialogue with his sisters (especially his older sister), if the author was an only child, because siblings Don’t Talk Like That. 

In every book, I allow myself a sort of wishlist, you know, the things that I want to happen. In this book, I hoped that Tick would grow up to be gay. Now, there were a few things working against me - namely, the fact that this book was written in 2008, and the fact that it was written for children. I know that the likelihood of Tick growing up to be gay is highly unlikely. That said, since we never saw a glimpse into the future (at least, not in this book), it could happen! And I want it to happen, because from the way Tick was written, it’s apparent that he really idolizes the men in his life while simultaneously not caring much, if at all, for girls. Even Sofia, the girl who is the most likely one for him to be interested in, was very firmly just a friend to him. Compare this to Tick’s interactions with, say, Sato, and I have to say, I see more romantic chemistry there than with her. 

I thought it was interesting how Tick opted to tell his dad everything about the letters. In most YA novels I’ve read, the protagonist doesn’t confide in their parents, and only occasionally in their friends, so the fact that he felt comfortable enough to tell his dad about what was going on was a really cool direction. That said, I kind of feared and kind of hoped that his dad would try to burn the letters when he learned about everything that was happening. I understand that he trusted his son, and maybe he thought Tick was the only person capable of stopping things, but... I don’t know, how can you see your child get viciously attacked by a swarm of metal gnats and then still send him on his way, y’know? 

I guessed that the Mr. Chu from Chu Industries was an alternate version of Mr. Chu from school before it was revealed. Not much to say about it, just that I was proud of myself for figuring it out, haha. One thing to note, though - at one point, while Tick was thinking about the Chu Industries Mr. Chu, he briefly considered whether it were time travel, but dismissed it because he didn’t think Mr. Chu would travel back in time just to antagonize his students. I have to disagree. If he were one and the same person using time travel, then in the future wouldn’t he have known about Tick’s involvement working against him? Wouldn’t it have been far easier to travel to the past and make Tick trust him, just so he would have a chance at getting him to join him or, at the least, throw him off his game long enough to beat him?

I didn’t like how everyone was being so unfair to Sato. Why shouldn’t he be suspicious of everybody and everything? Tick, Sofia, and Paul all had the luck to find each other online, but Sato didn’t find them, so he has no reason to trust them. Plus, he was whisked away from his home in the middle of the night to a strange and dangerous new place. Isn’t that scary? Isn’t it understandable why he would react like a cornered dog? And, of course, that isn’t even to mention his past and his trauma surrounding Master George and his family’s deaths (I didn’t mention this part because the kids weren’t aware of it, either, so I won’t blame them for it). 

There was one point, after everybody met up in the middle of the Bermuda Triangle, where Master George reveals that he was the one who set loose the Gnat Rat on Tick and played other tricks on the kids. The kids are, understandably, very upset and uncomfortable at this prospect, and voice their discomfort, only for George to belittle them for it. He explained that he only did it to weed out the people that couldn’t handle it, but, I don’t know, the fact that he screamed at them over it and tried to make them think it was completely understandable and reasonable to attack children like that... I don’t like that. Maybe George is the lesser of two evils, but I still don’t trust him at all. This is a moot point, I’m sure, because I doubt in the future he reveals himself to be evil or whatever, but it was a part that sat uncomfortably with me and made me wish I could grab the kids and run away from him, because who knows what he might say or do if they did something he didn’t like?

At one point, Sofia, the rich and presumably white Italian girl, calls Paul, the black boy who doesn’t have money enough to buy a flight to Alaska (beyond that, we don’t know his financial situation), a “talentless bum in every reality.” I really, really didn’t like that. She also was very unforgiving towards Sato, the Japanese boy. I don’t know, I don’t think we had to have her being so mean to the only two people of color in the book. 

I didn’t like that Sato chose to stay with Master George in the end. It felt kind of manipulative, George saying that he doubted Sato’s foster family would even notice he was gone. Sato accepted the invitation too readily, almost like he trusted George at that point, rather than wanting to stay close to keep an eye on things. I wish we knew more about Sato... and I wish he could get a therapist. At least he trusts Tick so much now, though. I thought it was sweet how comfortable he was around him after Tick saved his life. 

At the end of the book, I wish all four kids had shown a possibility that they could control the mysterious new power, rather than just Tick. I know he’s the protagonist, but I hope it’s something that everyone can eventually harness. 

One final thing I didn’t like about the book was the fact that Tick never dropped the nickname Tick and instead went by his real name, Atticus, and that he never stopped wearing his scarf, which covered his birthmark that he was embarrassed about. Earlier in the book, he had lost his scarf, but while sitting with Sofia, he realized he didn’t mind it, because she wasn’t treating him any differently, and he had explicitly thought to himself that maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to leave the scarf off, only to crush his own spirit and tell himself that he needed to keep it. And, of course, the nickname is terrible; it was given to him by his school bully and instead of retaliating against it or hating it, he just accepted it and wants everybody to call him by it? Isn’t that sad? Isn’t it sad that his self esteem is so low that he can’t lose his scarf crutch and he goes by the name of a disease-ridden, blood sucking insect? Shouldn’t he, as the protagonist, be allowed freedom from these after a time? 

The book was... fine. That’s all it was. Not fine enough to be a true middle fine, but fine all the same. 2/5. 

My bookmark for this book was a lime green ribbed ribbon with knots at both ends.

[writingquestionsanswered]

Hi there! I'm really struggling to know what tense to write my story in. I've looked up the difference between past and present, and generally understand when you should use either one, but then any contemporary book I read is always present tense.

Could you shed some light on this? Is past tense not really a thing anymore?

Choosing Between Past and Present Tense

If you mean you see it a lot in contemporary fiction (not my favorite genre, so I only read it occasionally), I have to tell you, I was all prepared to say present tense is more popular in contemporary YA than in regular contemporary fiction. But I had a look at 5 random titles from the past five years, and I was surprised to find that 4 out of 5 of them are indeed written in present tense. This is absolutely boggles my mind because book snobs and writing snobs love to rail against present tense, yet all five books I chose were best sellers and award winners. And that's not to say you're a book snob or a writing snob if you don't like present tense--some people just don't prefer it and that's fine--but I mean I've seen a lot of snobs suggest that present tense is inferior to past tense, which I never thought it was, but its rising popularity is proof that it isn't.

What I was going to say is still true--present tense is very popular in contemporary YA, and really in all genres of YA including fantasy, sci-fi, and romance.

As for whether present tense is as popular in all genre fiction these days, that I'm not as sure about. I still see a lot of past tense in speculative fiction, historical fiction, mystery/crime/thriller, and action/adventure, but it's possible its' on the rise in those genres, too.

Either way, I think the thing to remember is it doesn't really matter what's popular or what you're seeing more or less of--you should write your story in the tense that works best for it, and to a lesser but still important degree, in the tense that works best for you. Present tense is great for stories where immediacy is important... where you want the reader to be in the moment, and where hindsight isn't important to the story. Past tense is going to work better in stories where you want the narrator to have the benefit of hindsight and knowing what's going to happen as they tell the story.

I talk a bit more about it in my post Choosing Past Tense vs Present Tense and Sticking to It.

I hope that helps!

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[cookiepotofchaos]

It has been said a hundred times by people who have expressed it better, but I am so very fed-up of how anything LGBTQA+ is automatically deemed to be sexualised by too many people still, with the upshot being it needs to be kept far, far away from children.

When I watched the first 3 seasons of Camp Cretaceous, I thought "Huh, you could interpret Sammy as having a crush on Yas, wonder if they'll go anywhere with that".

Then when the Malory Towers series announced: "For a contemporary audience, the show is both aspirational and inspirational, telling the story of universal experiences include shifting cliques, FOMO, bullying, crushes, peer pressure, and self-doubt." I wondered whether they might actually broach the topic that, at an all girls school, crushes on other girls would definitely happen.

If The Famous Five was ever brought back like Malory Towers has been, would they go all-in and explore George's gender identity as a trans boy (something easily interpretable in the canon text)?

Well, I'm still waiting on answers for the first two, but so far no... And the third is a theoretical. Nevertheless, there's still plenty of people who respond to even questions or suggestions like that with "No, that's totally inappropriate in a children's show" (and plenty of people who express it far less politely). A brief look at commentary in some places for children's shows where one of the characters has two dads or two mums and you'll soon find people protesting about how it's "not suitable" for such a young audience.

Sentiments like, "No, they shouldn't explore sexuality or gender identity; that's disgusting, this is for CHILDREN!" are not that difficult to find on some social media platforms.

It all comes from this baseline assumption that being anything other than cis or het is automatically and intrinsically linked to sex and sexualisation.

For a while, the Murder Most Unladylike novel where Daisy comes out to Hazel had a higher age recommendation on Amazon than all the other books, despite the prose being the same as the books around it so being no more difficult to read! It has since been changed and I so wished I had the foresight to screen grab it at the time.

I knew I was a lesbian when I was 10/11. How? Well, it wasn't anything to do with wanting or not wanting sex, that was for sure. And no almighty voice came to me in the night and went "I crown you, lesbian! Arise!" I knew because when I looked at some girls, I liked them and thought they were pretty, and something about that felt different to how other girls around me seemed to feel. Other people will have had different experiences.

I kind of muddled by looking for and head-cannoning (before I knew the word) LGBTQA+ rep that wasn't there in children's fiction and TV, then again in teen fiction and TV. I would have felt a lot more accepted and would have appreciated it so damn much if there had been characters I could relate to without having to come up with my own headcanons to fill that role.

Sometimes I tell myself that the group perpetuating these kinds of attitudes is getting smaller, and I still do believe that is true for the most part. But when I'm living in Britain with all the hateful bigoted garbage that is spewed from those in power and in the media, and I see how homophobic and transphobic hate crimes rose again in 2021, it's difficult to be positive.

LGBTQA+ rep in children's shows and books is important so that kids today have the representation that kids before, like me, didn't get, and some people will never understand or care why that is important.

[absolutepokemontrash]

The Demon Bros Play DND!

Who’s ready for some Stupid Headcanons?

So, the Satanic Panic of the 1980s claimed that the tabletop RPG known as Dungeons and Dragons had the power to turn your children into satanists and devil worshippers. So of course, the brothers have totally played DND after hearing about all the human world nonsense.

Lucifer the Back-up Back-up DM

He’s too busy to play this game dammit, stop inviting him! What do you mean both Satan and Simeon can’t DM the one-shot? Ugh... fine.

Despite all his UUUUUUUUGGGGHHH, Lucifer is a damn good storyteller, prepare to be immersed as hell.

Also, sorry guys, he’s a rule whore. If something’s against the rules, YOU AREN’T DOING IT.

He’s also a complete sadist who will randomly get everyone to roll perception checks for NO REASON.

Lucifer has definitely stood up and slammed his hands on the table while giving a description for extra effect, Mammon screamed and nearly fell out of his seat which REALLY ruined the mood.

“Everyone, we’re rescheduling, I’m too busy.”

He’s been a player a few times, and he’s NOT good at it. All his characters end up being really generic and boring. He’s better at being the world and everything in it, not the dummy wandering around it.

Human/fighter lookin’ motherfucker

In conclusion, he’s a good DM, but he’s probably too busy to play.

Over-Powered Self Insert (Mammon)

This game is for nerds! He’s not playin’, Levi!

Fine, his character is great and amazin’ and is also him. MC! What do these numbers mean-

Mammon’s the type of player to make his character a self insert and not take it too seriously, then get really REALLY attached as the campaign progresses.

He’s the type not to make a backstory for his character either, so go wild DM MCs!

He also both purposefully and accidentally metagames a whole bunch. Like dude, YOU know this, YOUR CHARACTER DOES NOT.

Shit he forgot his dice, can he borrow some?

“Okay MC, that’s five points of piercing damage.” “I RUN OVER AND HEAL THEM! I’LL SAVE YA MC!”

Mammon goes out of his way to save MC’s character long before it would make sense in-character to do so.

“Well, as your first man it’s my duty to save your character! You’ll probably be a blubberin’ mess if I didn’t...”

He’s not the best role player, but he’s also not the worst at it either. He tends to break character when things get too serious and he doesn’t know what to do.

Notes who? He came in here with one sheet of printer paper and it’s for doodling only.

He and Asmodeus start the tavern brawls. No question about that.

Theft is very common, he’s stealing from everyone, including but not limited to: the party, the royal guards, the dead enemies, the giant fuck-you dragon that Satan dropped in there to deter Mammon from stealing...

“I’m gonna steal that crown from the dragon.” “Roll stealth.” “Nat 20 BITCHES.” “Fuck you.”

If his character dies, may the Demon King have mercy on his greedy little soul because he’s going to mope about it for a damn long time.

Over-Powered Self Insert Again (Leviathan)

His character totally isn’t a self insert, shut up! He just looks and acts like an idealized version of himself!

He’s the one with twenty pages of character info and backstory AND the amazing commissioned art.

Levi has about 40 sets of expensive blue dice that he claims gives him the best rolls but an average session with him usually leads to roughly 10 crit fails.

While his luck with dice isn’t that good, he’s the player who will get as much out of their turn as possible, AKA break out the calculators and notes we’re doing some math.

His turn goes on for at least ten minutes because of all the shit he’s doing. When you finally think it’s over he goes “I still have my movement!”

Takes notes like a madman, every bit of lore and character info is being written down, meaning it’s a headache for everyone involved if there’s a continuity error because Levi WILL point it out.

“So you all head to the east, the great Valley of-” “Hang on, valley? In the second session you said there was a mountainous area to the east.” “Levi, shut up.”

Levi is the self appointed “guys come on let’s get back on track!” player, and whoever’s DMing is grateful to have him.

Levi is kind of the opposite of Mammon in terms of character seriousness, at first he’s taking everything super seriously and then as the campaign goes on he slowly loosens up and has some fun.

Out of curiosity one day he searches up a magical girl DND class and he’s ALL OVER IT. PLEASE LET HIM BE A MAGICAL GIRL NEXT CAMPAIGN-

Damn good at roleplaying, he’s carrying the entire in-character discussion until everyone else gets into it.

The Done With Your Bullshit DM (Satan)

So, this is the game that’s supposedly summoning him all the time despite the fact that he hadn’t been up to the human world since the 50s... what the fuck is everyone on up there?

It was the 80s, probably a lot of drugs.

When Satan DMs, you can only break the rules if it enhances the story... or if it fucks with Lucifer’s really boring character.

He will fudge dice rolls every once and a while, he also gets very attached to the characters everyone has made so he doesn’t want to perma-kill any of them unless they roll a DND quadruple natural 1 sin or something.

As attached as he gets, he isn’t above completely raging, killing everyone’s characters, and ending the session if everyone’s being annoying.

Don’t worry, your characters will be safe and sound next session once everything calms down... just don’t mention how Satan burned your character sheet right in front of you. It’s your fault if you didn’t make a second copy of your character sheet!

He’s pretty decent when it comes to improv when a player stumbles into something he didn’t plan out, but that’s not going to stop him from getting a little annoyed.

Though, if you somehow manage to get to the big bad too soon... yeah sorry, he’s got a way more dramatic fight scene planned, your player’s getting conveniently blasted out of there.

As a player, Satan is pretty decent at the game overall, but he tends to be a little aggressive if there’s an overarching mystery to be solved.

He needs to understand what’s going on! He doesn’t care if it upends the plot or it’s too early to find out! He needs to know!

His character is actually distinct and different from himself, Satan thinks it’s more interesting that way. All the books he’s read have made him a pretty awesome role player!

Satan’s notebook both as a DM and a player is filled to the brim, no detail is too insignificant to be put on the page.

Satan doesn’t fear dungeon puzzles... dungeon puzzles fear Satan.

“Are you all stupid?! This puzzle is so easy a four year old could solve it!”

I ROLL TO SEDUCE- (Asmodeus)

At first he didn’t want to play, he doesn’t play these kinds of games, sweetie. He’s too pretty.

When he’s finally convinced he puts a decent amount of effort into his character, but leaves the backstory pretty open.

Asmo would probably be the bard... right? No. He’s the warlock with the magic sugar daddy patron, and the warlock patron is spoken to as such.

“Hey baby... how’ve you been? Have I been good~?” “...”

Huh! Who woulda thought that all the bedroom roleplaying would transfer so well to DND!

Simeon is the only DM that doesn’t immediately shut this down, so Asmo will be extra inclined to play if Mr. Nice Shoulders is DMing.

When he gets really into it he buys a bunch of sparkly and very pretty dice, they bring him good luck in every roll!

Asmo has a fictional harem, no question about it. It gets to the point where Satan, Lucifer, and Simeon stop describing NPCs as attractive.

He’s rolling to seduce either way, he’s turned many an antagonist into a lover. To be fair, Asmo’s horniness has gotten everyone out of a lot of jail cells... so they can’t complain.

His notes consist of really random comments about the plot and the other players. It’s also COATED with doodles.

‘Wow, this character is such an asshole, I hope Belphie kills them.’ ‘Shit.’ ‘MC looks so cute when they play their character!!!!!!!! :D’

Poor bab forgets the rules a lot... it’s just too much to remember, okay?! How was he supposed to know that he ran out of spell slots an hour ago?!

Please help him, MC...

*Dice Cronch* (Beel)

Homeboy has been given edible dice, no question. He has also eaten the non-edible dice...

Beel goes to Satan for help with making his character, and he ends up really loving the character! :D

Problem is, he’s not that good at roleplaying... D:

“Can my character eat that person?” “Beel, no- you know what? Let me check what you’d need to roll to do that.”

I’ll save you MC part 2 electric boogaloo, but when it comes to Beel, the entire party is getting protected, no matter how little it makes sense in-character.

While Beel does take notes, a lot of them don’t end up being very important for later events. For example, he’ll jot down stuff about the layout in one room, but it turns out he didn’t take notes for the room that was actually going to be used for a boss fight.

He’s always nice to the NPCs, shame Belphie doesn’t show them the same courtesy.

Murder Hobo (Belphie)

Chaotic evil.

“Belphie, your character’s alignment is neutral good, remember?” “Fuck that, this guy’s annoying me.”

If Belphie doesn’t like an NPC, it’s up to the rest of the party to stop him from derailing the campaign and killing them.

He has space themed dice because cow-man likes space and thought they were pretty.

Notes? NOTES? You think Belphegor, the Avatar of SLOTH, takes notes? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA-

He’s drooling all over the notebook... ew. Someone wake him up and tell him it’s his turn.

He puts about 35% effort forth to make a halfway decent character, and approximately 4% effort to actually roleplay.

Belphie sleeps through important plot details so he’s almost always really confused. He’ll turn to MC and ask them to explain what he missed before not learning his lesson and going back to sleep.

Wake him up for the dungeon puzzles though, he and Satan love those.

“Okay, we can’t see what’s in the room because none of the conscious party members have dark vision?” “Nope, what do you do?” “...I shove Mammon inside and shut the door.” “WHAT?!”

Bonus! The Best DM (Simeon)

Our favourite angel has homebrewed this entire campaign and boy fricken howdy are these players going to enjoy it.

Simeon fudges the dice rolls to avoid anything too irreversibly bad happening, buuuuuuut he’s still a total asshole who does the random perception rolls to keep everyone on their toes.

Everyone gets a character arc god dammit, even if they don’t have a backstory, one will be provided!

He’s got a map, he’s got miniatures, he’s got dice and backup dice for the backup dice, he’s got DM notes for days!

Simeon could be a voice actor with the amount of character voices he can do, no one ever gets confused with who’s talking.

Did someone just uncover a massive bit of plot that was meant to be found out later? Good job! No harm done! Simeon’s DM improv is second to none, and the plot will adjust accordingly!

[literaticat]

What do you think are the top five YA and MG books to study for craft (fiction not non-fiction)?

Being that I am not a writer, I don't STUDY books... I just read them!

So I asked some of my brilliant clients who also TEACH writing to ask THEM this question and I got the following responses:

Jo Knowles says: "Usually when I suggest books to a student, it's after they tell me about the kind of book they hope to write, and I've seen their writing and have had time to think about "what's missing" from it, at least for me. Usually that's emotion. Or connection. Often their characters just don't feel "real" yet. So I end up usually recommending books that moved me deeply, or inspired me in some way, hoping it does the same for them. I give a huge range and try to make it as diverse as I can.

I AM THE MESSENGER is always on that list. Mainly because it can be looked at for so many of those perfect things, AND because it's almost a collection of short stories, as the MC tries to address each family/person he's meant to help in some way. They are all so moving and real to me. I also love recommending TENDER MORSELS because it deals with trauma in such a profound way, and can show students how powerful this sort of "fantasy" (I really hesitate to call it that), can be. But it really depends on the genre they are writing in. If realistic, that's one thing, if sci fi, another. So I don't know that I would have a top five. But for students writing memoir or biofiction, I usually recommend THE WATSONS GO TO BIRMINGHAM and BROWN GIRL DREAMING and FUN HOME and STITCHES. If something with fantasy, I would definitely include THE GRAVEYARD BOOK and TITHE. And if historical, anything by MT Anderson and also Christopher Paul Curtis. There are just so many more! But I really wouldn't just give a random list because one size doesn't fit all and I'd want to get to know the person, what their likes and dislikes are, and what they are aiming for themselves before I'd make a recommendation."

Martha Brockenbrough says: "Yes! What Jo says. I don’t rank books by best of, because that’s a lot of energy over something uselessly subjective. Instead, I think about the aspects of craft that matter most when it comes to determining excellence:

character

plot

setting

structure

point of view

voice

theme

To be excellent, a book really ought to be doing all of these things at a masterful level. But there’s probably one or two of those areas that will shine.

So, I love the characters and voice of Jaclyn Moriarty’s Ashbury/Brookfield series. She does multiple POV and even crosses genres with these books.

Holly Black is absolutely KILLER for plot, and the Curseworkers series are superb. The intersection of plot/POV is extraordinary in Elizabeth Wein’s Code Name Verity.

For structure, LONG WAY DOWN is a book about an elevator ride and it is an elevator ride. He of course is one of the finest writers ever, as well. But I do love a structure that underscore the theme.

In every category, Rita Williams Garcia’s A SITTING IN ST JAMES is an absolute work of art.

But I do think Jo’s insight—find a book that does what you want your book to do—is key when you’re trying to write a certain kind of book. Any excellent book can show you remarkable craft, and one key to recognizing it is to note a spot in the book that makes you feel a particular emotion. When you feel something, then you analyze every word and preceding scene to understand what techniques evoked that important emotion.

That’s why we read. To feel something. How do authors do this? Well, that is a very long story..."

Linda Urban says: "Agree with Martha and Jo.  My recommendations for mentor texts are usually specific to my students' needs or challenges -- what book makes you feel like you know the character in the same way that you want readers to feel they know YOUR character?  What book moves time the way you want your book to move time?  What plot twist surprised you in the way you want your plot to suprise readers?

That said, I have go-to books where I think the craft is stellar and also easy to discern.  I use the first chapter of Jason Reynold's GHOST a lot for students who want to figure out how to establish character and stakes in from the get-go.  I love SEE YOU AT HARRY'S for emotional whollop and unexpected plot twists (that are still within the realm of realism).  I like Anne Ursu's THE REAL BOY for omniscient narrator . . . etc. etc. etc.

The point is, read a lot -- read books that feel like they do what you most want to do, like they'd be great neighbors on a bookshelf (even if they are for different age readers or different genres or forms) and learn from them."

[creatingnikki]

10 things I know to be true: Mid-year edition

1. I am not the same person I was when 2021 began. I feel more grounded to reality now and out of the ocean of emotions that was drowning me and my ability to see people and things clearly. 

2. I am proud of myself. Despite having everything go wrong I managed to meet my most basic and conventional goals by other means. I’m still figuring many of them out and it is surely a lonely path but oh well. I’m less anxious about it now. 

3. I have a room of my own. Is that why I feel more like a writer this year than every before? Either way, I am writing a lot more fiction lately - irrespective of how utterly torturous that is - as well as creative non fiction and actually sharing it with the world! Outside of tumblr! How crazy is that? I don’t know about crazy but it definitely can be uncomfortable. But it’s about time I expand my comfort zone, right?

4. Therapy is helping me. Despite a horrible and traumatic first therapy session I gave another therapist a try and have been seeing them since March. Is therapy everything I imagined it to be? No. It’s not the way so many people make it out to be. It’s not like each session your therapist will leave you with a bunch of Insta-worthy quotes or revelations. But it’s giving me a safe space where I don’t have to think about how what I say will make the other person feel like with friends or family. More on this topic later x

5. I love contemporary literary fiction books. And can absolutely not do YA books anymore. I’m glad to understand how my reading preferences have changed over the last few years and in turn having better reading picks and less books that I DNF. 

6. It’s okay if I never become that person who goes to bed at 11 pm and wakes up at 6 am. It’s fine as long as I sleep between 1 and 2 am. It’s fine as long as I wake up in the am. The dreams? I’ve been having a lot of whacky dreams since the year began and I moved into my new house. I guess my brain just has a lot of processing to do. I read that during your NREM sleep phase your brain sorts out neural connections by weeding out the unnecessary ones. In the REM sleep, when we dream, the brain strengthens the required connections. Maybe it’s just trying to do it’s thing, you know? 

7. I want to read more books by authors who are not American or British. Why does that feel like such a scandalous thing to say? I don’t know. But yeah, I have started being more mindful about this and am just going to further prioritize that. 

8. Physical exercise is hard. You know maybe some people never find that one that just clicks and is fun for them. Maybe that’s okay. As long as I do it because I know it’s very important for my body and brain, it’s fine if I don’t turn into one of those people who genuinely feel happy after a workout and call themselves a ‘fitness freak’. 

9. People steal stories easier than you’d think. Even the most unsuspecting ones. So yeah just keep that in mind when sharing your ideas with your friends, etc. 

10. Pivoting is a skill I need to hone. Sure, I thought life would be a certain way. Studied a specific degree in college. Wanted to live in a certain city. Be loved by a specific kind of person. But life as they say has its own plans and pivoting is how we stay afloat. Just like companies do. So, yeah, that’s something I want to build. That skill, attitude, and insight. 

[wowsoboring]

Deconstructing Baseless Harry Potter Arguments#2 (i) : Harmione Edition

Obviously I once again do not mean to target all Harmione shippers. I know quite a few who're very good human beings and tolerant and accepting above all. However these aren't. In this case, you might sense quite a bit of levelheadedness in the beginning, however you must not be fooled as it goes south and takes a nasty turn very quickly. Don't get your hopes up, this is some of the worst shit I've ever seen, especially the way in which it progresses through its course. Naturally, for this post I have picked my own style of writing which will match that of those redditors. Reddit is the perfect breeding ground for all these weird cults, honestly. I shall be resorting to a formal language and style of conversation, very much like a debater would to sound as pretentious as these do. These posts are found on the instagram handle toxicharmonyshippers who gather such toxic musings and sayings for Harmione shippers while respecting the ones that are nice.

1)

Oh yes, let's use words like 'vehemently' to sound smart, why not? Of course, this little tidbit of the highly stupendous post seems more or less civil at the start. They also have the common decency to say "some Romione shippers" rather than generalizing all of us. Very nice of you, how very saint like. Let's wait till they drop the act and show us their true colors. Harkening back to the argument, I have but one question for you, "where do you find these people?". Where's the proof? Who are these radical Romione shippers who worship Ron and dislike Hermione? I haven't seen any such shippers and I am surrounded by Romione shippers on tumblr, instagram and fan fiction sites as well and haven't met the people you speak of. Some point out her flaws, yes, but no one hates her or dislikes her that much. I have seen two or three Romione shippers across hundreds and thousands who're skeptical of Hermione's perfection. Skeptical. Not hating, disliking, or anything. Of course, unlike this person, I have evidence: find these pi charts for your referral (clickable): https://imgur.com/a/QfPnQbB

you can, through these, see the amount of Hermione bashing across Harry Potter fanfiction and you can see that even in Romione fanfiction there's more Ron bashing. Hermione-bashing is a non-issue. That's what it is. Regarding the "nagging" statement, where's the lie in that? "Annoying" is somewhat subjective, I personally don't find her annoying at all. Who are these people and how often do you find them? "Mary Sue" is only reserved for Movie!Hermione. I have only seen book fans call her that. No one has ever called Book!Hermione Mary Sue. The movie does paint her as a flawless, all-rounder who's also drop-dead gorgeous. Only things she's bad at are flying and divination, all of which she denounces as useless, even though flying is like biking for wizards, divination, sure, not that important. with a teacher like Trelawney, even I would denounce it as hokum.

2)

Remember what I said about waiting for them to show us their true colors, well here they are. Bask in the glory of their senseless arguments. Why, I am from reddit, heck I have 25 thousand karma points on there, I just left because it was too stupid for me but I can argue like them very well. And in this case I would like to say that these people are under the impression that Ron is just there in the story for the sake of existence. And he doesn't work hard. That argument is of course, wrong. Because Ron (in no particular order):

1) fights a troll when he's 11

2) is willing to sacrifice himself when he's 11

3) stands up for his friends

4) makes sure Harry feels like he belongs in the family

5) worries about Harry and rescues him from literal jail

6) stands up against Draco rather than by-standing and enabling his behavior

7) tries his level best to make sure Norbert the dragon is in safe hands and carries it out, albeit not in perfection

8) is with Harry every step of the way in his confronting the basilisk

9) sends Harry and Hermione long letters and calls them often to check up on them

10) stands up on a bitten leg to defend his best friend

11) always apologizes for any of his mistakes and is forgiving when others wrong him

12) works his way to join the Quidditch team unlike Draco who most certainly bought his way in

13) destroys at least 2 horcruxes

14) finds out how to defeat a horcrux

15) has an excellent enough memory and observation to notice Harry speaking parseltongue and also using it to his benefit which proves he's resourceful

now since I have 8 more such pictures to rebut and I do have a life, I will stop. These aren't even a twelfth of the remarkable things Ron has done though, so rest assured.

oh wait what did you say about him just existing and not working for anything? If I recall correctly, he did just as well as Harry did in school and didn't score well only in subjects he didn't care about. Which is true for most people except for Hermione who has an eidetic memory which not everyone has, understandably. Rote memorization is not the best way to get by in life, by the way.

what are the "so many reasons" behind why Harry is the best fit for Hermione? Kindly share so I can rebut those too, I'm rather free nowadays, my finals have been cancelled. You say there are so many reasons but don't even give one, yet you want me to take you seriously. I'm afraid that's impossible.

Romione shipper here, i don't dislike Hermione. I haven't met or seen many people in the book!romione fandom who dislike Hermione (except for Movie!Hermione). The question of someone you like ending up with someone you dislike doesn't particularly make sense. In Friends, Chandler ends up with Monica: now I'm not the biggest Monica fan (I don't hate her but I don't like her very much either) but they are my favorite couple because they make sense. It's about compatibility and character traits, not liking or disliking because that's just a set-up for a ghastly invitation for people to pair up hideousness. "Oh yeah, I like Harry and I also like Hagrid, they should be together. I mean it would be very very disgusting but that's my logic, now, you can't fight it. "- that's how you sound. Please read what you write. Your logic is just...abysmal. That's all I can say without breaking my resolve and berating you with colorful profanities.

3)

This is without the doubt, the easiest one to rebut. It's a delight to see such terrible arguments at my disposal. Come on, dear Harmione shippers, write something that makes me question my choices, not things that make me scoff in disbelief.

In this case, you're essentially providing us with theories. Unproved theories and speculation of what you believe because you'd say anything you like. Where's the proof of your theory, though? Where is that crazy radical Romione shipper who does this? Kindly show me these people. Oh yes, you wanna say we objectify Hermione and disrespect her and view her as a prize. This aches me, that you believe this. No one has ever insinuated this, ever, in the history of anything. What is this winner-loser theory? How do you round off Harry Potter to "an alpha-male ends up with lead-lady" trope and still say you're a fan of the series? Harry Potter doesn't fit in with that format. Ron, Hermione and Harry are co-heroes. Similar to how there's no main character in Friends or the Heroes of Olympus series or the Avengers. We're not living in the 80s anymore. Hermione will be a hero, invariably whether she ends up with Harry, Ron or no one. She ends up with Ron and that's it. Talking about her like this doesn't make you sound any better either. Now you're calling me a misogynist because I don't support the ship of two people who describe themselves as siblings. That's very mature of you. Well here's the thing- I'm not a misogynist. It's as simple as that. I believe that women are capable of anything and everything. I believe Hermione is an amazing person and she is a hero and a different person. I believe the series would be impossible without her. I believe she is no one's prize. There's no requirement of a prize. I just think, similar to canon and the truth and her romantic interest, she will have a great relationship with Ron. There's nothing complex or deep about it, really. No personal weird-thing, no psychological complex, no internalized misogyny. There's nothing deeper than what I said. I am not sexist. I am a feminist. I am all for women empowerment. I love women with the fabric of my being. I love Hermione. I think she's amazing. You only become sexist when you ship people with unstable power dynamics, a bully-victim relation or something of the sort. Neither Romione, nor Harmione are sexist. Heck if you paired Neville with Hermione you wouldn't be sexist. And I hate talking about this so much, I can't even tell you. This talk does make it sound like I treat Hermione like an object and I assure you I respect her and I normally won't talk like this unless someone just outright calls me sexist for something that's not sexist. And this is that situation.

4)

in the case of Romione, no one is too good for anyone. Both are amazing people who're heroes and have done amazing work. That's all I have to say. There's no league, they are romantically interested in each other. I have no intention on sounding lame, but, in love there is no league. As long as you're not putting in any effort and are extremely lazy and leech off of your partner, there is no such concept and no, Hermione is not "too good" for him. Unless of course you're talking about movie Hermione, who is too good for anyone.

5) (halftime!)

oh yes they try to pull this off and wonder why we hate them. Classic. This person likes to sound british, so let's switch up our language, yeah? At least then I won't be out of my element. Let me correct ya, Ron at his best is an amazing, loyal, friendly, brave, strategic hero. There you have it. Ron and 'git' can't be used in the same sentence. Now if you talk about Ron's achievements, I re-iterate you to point two. If it's too much work, here:

1) fights a troll when he's 11

2) is willing to sacrifice himself when he's 11

3) stands up for his friends

4) makes sure Harry feels like he belongs in the family

5) worries about Harry and rescues him from literal jail

6) stands up against Draco rather than by-standing and enabling his behavior

7) tries his level best to make sure Norbert the dragon is in safe hands and carries it out, albeit not in perfection

8) is with Harry every step of the way in his confronting the basilisk

9) sends Harry and Hermione long letters and calls them often to check up on them

10) stands up on a bitten leg to defend his best friend

11) always apologizes for any of his mistakes and is forgiving when others wrong him

12) works his way to join the Quidditch team unlike Draco who most certainly bought his way in

13) destroys at least 2 horcruxes

14) finds out how to defeat a horcrux

15) has an excellent enough memory and observation to notice Harry speaking parseltongue and also using it to his benefit which proves he's resourceful

hey, see, I like Ron and I took the time to copy-paste this instead of asking you to scroll up. And I'm a lot of bad things but I am not lazy. I stick to my deadlines like Hermione. I start my homework in library class and continue it during phys ed the day its given. And I am not exaggerating. Bloody hell, I wish I was. I'm the ceo of deadlines, mate, don't tempt me! So you can see that Ron is much more than just a "nice bloke". And being a "nice bloke" isn't a bad thing either. He's all the things I said: intuitive, strategic, helpful, loyal and on top of that he's also a nice person. Yes, I do see a bit of myself in Ron. I do. I see the insecure side. I waste my time hating myself and criticizing myself and undermining myself, telling me I'm no good. But Ron overcomes that. He inspires me to appreciate myself. Is that a bad thing? Are you going to shame me for having a low self-esteem? Do you want to worsen my low self-esteem and make me feel more like shit?

Now the person who replied to your comment saying, "he isn't a nice bloke most of time.", he is. He is not being nice twice in a span of 7 years. How often do you act rudely or with jealousy? Wasn't Harry yelling at everyone in caps lock in OOTP. Now I don't condemn him for that because he's a fucking hormonal teenager like me and that would make me a hypocrite, but by your logic why don't you condemn him? Or why not condemn Hermione for saying "I only date good Quidditch players" and shoving canaries at Ron's face because someone else kissed him, while she kept using Krum and Cormac to make him jealous. She wasn't being a nice girl, then, was she? Now, once again, i don't dislike her or hold that against her because guess what, mate, I'm a hormonal teenage girl who gets jealous most of the time and would probably react in a similar fashion in the spur of the moment (Not defending her actions here, just putting myself in her shoes.) In short, Ron is a nice bloke MOST OF THE TIME.

6)

It would be misogynistic to think that. The thing is, NO ONE DOES my dear friend! My dear daft friend. I have never heard anyone say that! why are you so hell-bent on portraying us as misogynists when no one ever says that? Stop assuming. Just stop. You are crossing a limit here, aren't you? Yes you are. You cannot say these sort of things. We never said that or believed that, no one ever said this to be a reason to ship Romione. God what is wrong with you? Literally, stop fucking ASSUMING god damn it! Do you want me to assume things about Harmione shippers? Do you want me to go there? Because I will go there! I will go there the moment you tell me to. Just challenge me.

Ron is not a perfect best boi , the reason why so many of us like him is that he's imperfect and tries to become better through the course of time. You are once again assuming and I am once again asking you to stop.

Ron might be an ordinary wizard. He might be poor, sure, but he's a pure-blood and won't face much if he chose not to fight. But he did. He fought. Now I identify with Ron's attitude a fair bit, but I am also likely to spend my day in a library without noticing. People aren't one dimensional. Stop trying to act like you're a psychologist, i know you're not. I don't even think Hermione's overbearing at all! You just insulted someone you're a big fan of. Jesus.

Both Hermione and Ron are strategic, jealous, passionate, feisty, argumentative, intellectual...

that's like 6 similarities. They aren't polar opposites in the slightest. Their differences are just: workaholic, not workaholic. Nerd, not a nerd. Like that's fucking it, man!

8)

being relaxed doesn't make you less independent or driven. A relaxed and levelheaded Hermione will think through things, not be impulsive, not panic etc. She doesn't need Ron. I don't understand your obsession with acting like we ever insinuated that. Then she doesn't need Harry either lol. Stop shipping her with Harry, then or like shut the fuck up. Being a bit relaxed won't stop her or anyone from hitting great strides. Just don't get relaxed to the point you're lazy and casual about everything, that's it.

9)

What do you mean? Ron is balanced. He does finish his work on time. And even if he does procrastinate, she could also help him not and be more driven. Of course, this is an open invitation for you to call me a sexist bitch because I said that she could help him and now you'll think her goal is to help him become better yada yada yada. Fuck off. Defeating the horcrux taught him enough. He respected her. He remembered about the elves when she didn't. He begged to be tortured instead of her. He wouldn't need it because school work and jobs are different and the same person might perceive those differently. Calmness and relaxation doesn't hinder your potential. Not caring and laziness does. You can't function if you work and are stressed 24/7 with zero breaks. Period.

10)

No i do not want (nor does anyone want) Hermione to become Ron. Being slightly calmer doesn't change up your personality. I'm sure many people dislike those sort of fanfics without a doubt. I hate OOC and I don't want Hermione to lose her intellect with Ron because that makes no sense. Ron himself is intellectual and loves arguing with her. They'd boost each other, more like it.

-------

okay thats it i am exhausted as fuck. thanks for reading, i appreciate it. notes and reblogs are appreciated, this takes work.

[thetypedwriter]

Gideon the Ninth Book Review

Gideon the Ninth Book Review by Tamsyn Muir 

It would be only a slight hyperbole to say that a million people have either recommended this book to me or have told me to read it. I’ve heard for years now that this book is incredible and extremely well written and beloved by many. So, if that’s the case why did I wait so long to read it?

I don’t have a good answer. Sometimes a book is on your radar, but either the time isn’t right, other books take priority, or in my case, it’s adult fiction and I held slight trepidation that I wouldn’t love it as much as everyone else in the world seemed to. 

Thank goodness, that didn’t end up being the case and I’ll get into why in a moment. 

First, Gideon the Ninth has the most amazing descriptive sentence belonging on any front cover of any book ever. 

I shall put it here for prosperity and awe: “Lesbian necromancers explore a haunted gothic palace in space!” -Charles Stross. 

Now, I don’t know who you are Mr. Stross, but that has to be the best sentence written in the English language since its conception. If that isn’t enough intrigue for you to crack open the novel then I truly don’t know what is or what it would take. 

That being said, Mr. Stross wasn’t entirely accurate, but that’ll be clear soon enough. 

The novel surrounds our main protagonist, Gideon Nav, or, known as Gideon the Ninth, the primary cavalier to the Ninth House necromancer. Essentially, this world takes place in a different solar system with its own sun star known as Dominicus as well as nine planets also known as the Nine Houses. 

Each House has a specific specialty for what is known for, and as summarized helpfully, but also overwhelmingly, at the beginning of the novel, the Ninth House is also known as the keepers of the Locked Tomb, House of the Sewn Tongue, and home to the Black Vestals. 

This meant nothing to me at the beginning and quite truthfully, I still struggled to remember throughout the novel who belonged to the Third House, or the Fifth and what that quite meant, as once again, each House has a reputation and expected skill set that precedes them. 

Not to say that it was poorly written because it wasn’t. Muir just has a lot of characters with specific titles and while she actually does quite a good job of categorizing them and helpfully reminding you who is who, I still struggled with just the sheer amount of information and people. 

Normally, this would be a massive criticism, like it was with the cast of characters in Lore but in this case it’s not Muir’s fault. She’s giving me all the information necessary to understand. It was just my brain that struggled trying to recognize and categorize everyone. If anything, I’m excited to re-read Gideon the Ninth and have it sink in like a second skin eventually. 

Having this large cast of characters, the book revolves around each of the Nine Houses (except for the First House) sending their best necromancer, a wielder of both thanergy (death energy) and thalergy (life energy) in the form of a House Adept, someone who is able to wield this kind of energy either in bone magic, flesh magic, or spirit magic. 

In accompaniment, each Necromancer Adept has a primary Cavalier, a trained fighter that is both protector, companion, and often, necessary energy suppliers to their Adept in both horrendous and acceptable ways. 

The goal of these pairs, having been sent to the First planet, is to become a Lyctor, an immortal servant to the Undying Emperor. The catch is that once the Necromancers and their Cavaliers arrive on the First, the shuttle departs and they are trapped in an abandoned, dilapidated, once-regal and great mansion that boasts hundreds of floors, secret doors, and mystery upon mystery. 

Each pair expects a streamlined process to Lyctorhood once they arrive, a methodical procedure, perhaps some training, and ultimately a test. What they don’t expect is a mellow man by the name of Teacher that claims to know nothing about the process himself, but is the overseer of the First. 

What follows is a mind-boggling search to become a Lyctor and unravel the mysteries of the haunted palace. What the pairs don’t expect is the death of their own, gruesome murders at the hand of someone in their very own positions and an evil danger beyond any of their imagination lurking in the mansion. 

This novel was a great concoction of mystery, action, interpersonal relationships, character growth, dazzling descriptions, and world building. 

The world of Dominicus and the Nine Houses is expansive and rich, something that I haven’t been able to sink my teeth into, and not for lack of trying, but because it is so deep and so layered that I simply need to take several bites to get it all down.

The mystery is fulfilling and strangely, to me at least, reminiscent of a game called Danganronpa. If you know what that is, and even if you don’t, it centers around the idea of a murder mystery, but where the killer is one of your own and the mystery is trying to figure out not ony the who, but the why of what they are doing, amongst a slew of other deadly riddles.

Gideon the Ninth is the same. As people continue to get picked off and brutally murdered, as a reader you find yourself trying to puzzle out not only who, but why someone would commit such atrocities and the motivation behind it. 

The plot itself of Gideon the Ninth was extremely satisfying and alluring. There were times where I personally found that novel bogged down with excessive description, but it was usually broken up with Gideon’s personal brand of crass humor, a very much needed breather with the expansive exposition, that, while extremely well done, well researched, and well written, did get a tad boring from time to time for me personally, even if it allowed for clear imagery as well as adding to already well formed world building. 

In addition to the plot, all of the characters were well done and as fleshed out as they could be considering the amount of characters involved. First, even though this is set in a fantasy sci-fi setting, each of the characters seemed realistic and like they could potentially be real people. 

A large criticism of books I often have, especially in YA, is that the characters often come across like caricatures, and not real flesh and blood humans with both positive and negative qualities. 

Each character, some developed more than others, have both flaws and strengths, even the main characters, which I highly appreciated. Not only does it make the story more real and palatable, but it also is just more interesting to read about as it’s actually based in humanity and the nature of human beings rather than some perfect carbon copy of one. 

Gideon as a narrator was hilarious. She was often crass, blunt, horny, humorous and ignorant. But on the other hand, she was also an extremely talented fighter, actually very sweet deep down, forgiving, and loving. 

This mix in a main character was a welcome one in addition to making Gideon feel like a real person, despite all the bone magic and necromancy, and often her thought process and dialogue made me laugh out loud. 

Another main character, Harrowhark Nonagesimus (What a name!) is Gideon’s Necromancer and main companion. She’s bitter, rude, spiteful, and ruthless. She’s also hardworking, intelligent, and stubborn. 

If you’re catching the pattern here, Muir isn’t just writing archetypes and passing them off as characters. She’s writing complex and nuanced personalities that are intriguing and interesting and well developed. 

I could get into the other plethora of characters like Camila, Dulcinea, Palamedes, Magnus, Judith and so on, but this review would be a thousand pages long so I’ll just settle for saying that every character was well done and lovingly crafted and not one of them, even the annoying ones, were characters that I hated. 

One important thing to note was Muir’s writing itself. It was incredible. Such descriptions! Such characterization! Such detail! Such vocabulary! I was supremely impressed with her writing as a whole and often found myself having to look up words that I had never heard of in my life (always a welcome change of pace). I was blown away by her sheet talent and creativity. 

The last two things I have to note might get me in trouble. 

One, the ending for me was...bittersweet. For fear of spoiling someone, I won’t get into details, but I found it both lacking and simultaneously making absolute sense. I wanted both more and yet, found that everything was just enough. It’s hard to put into words, but if you know, you know. 

I do have a slightly sinking feeling though that the ending twist will somehow be undone in the sequel. I don’t know if this is true (although I will eventually find out), and I can’t decide if I’m going to be happy or dismayed by it. 

Such conflicting feelings are in of itself homage to Muir’s skill as a writer and the complexities of her tale. 

Lastly, the one aspect that might get me into the stickiest of predicaments: Harrowhark’s and Gideon’s relationship. I don’t know if I like it or not. On the one hand, I absolutely love it. It's a hate-to-love slow burn, which really is the only way an OTP makes its way into my heart. I love that they’re so different and yet so compatible, one flesh and one blood and all that other nonsense. 

They see each other as equals, as adversaries, and I adore that dynamic in any pairing. I also love the F/F representation of some badass women and that they’re not traditionally attractive and beautiful. 

One of my favorite lines came from the end of the book where Gideon describes Harrowhark’s face as, “bitter” and “hateful”. I just love when characters aren’t conventionally gorgeous and yet beautiful in the eyes of the beholder and all that jazz. 

Now. Onto the problems. 

Harrowhark’s and Gideon’s relationship is kinda...toxic? It grows into something less so, but it definitely starts off that way. I really hate imbalances of power of any kind and Harrowhark definitely has power over Gideon, power that she creully abuses. I asked myself: if Harrowhark was a man and treated Gideon so abysmally for years, and then Gideon eventually forgave him and loved him despite everything, would I think differently?

And the answer is yes, yes I would. 

Is that fair? Probably not. But I can’t help but think how the dynamics change with the two of them being women, and how in my opinion, I think more is forgiven of Harrowhark because of it, even when it’s not deserved. 

Now, Harrowhark is a complex character and has traumas of her own, but I just can’t help but think of all the things she did to Gideon and the things she took away from her and forced her to do and then think of them together and it’s...not great. 

Overall, my feelings on their relationship are complicated (which is a repeated pattern when it comes to Muir’s writing) and I don’t mind that it’s complicated, it makes it interesting, but I also would be bereft to mention it here. I look forward to seeing how it develops and if my feelings change and grow on the matter as well. 

In total, Gideon the Ninth is a fantastic read. It has everything you want inlaid with characters who not only push the plot along, but incentivize you to read more. It has complicated issues and complicated characters, but that means it’s nuanced and complex and juicy enough to bite into. 

Don’t do what I did and wait years for this novel. If you need a good read, you don’t need to look any further and then let yourself be swept along for the necromantic ride. 

Recommendation: “Lesbian necromancers explore a haunted gothic palace in space!” -Charles Stross. I mean. Come on people, what more can you ask for?

Score: 8/10 

[bettsfic]

hi betts! i got very interested in your posts esp the implied author. i wanna ask a question (if you dont mind!). so about the implied author, i always feel like that my writings though beautiful always lack mentioned maturity and read very... YA-ish? its not something im trying to achieve. i want to make it more mature and 'classical'. do you have a tips for this? im not aware enough of what to improve on to achieve that, basically. thank you in advance!

this is a great question! unfortunately, though, i don't have a handy dandy term like "implied author" to thoroughly encapsulate my possibly abstract answer.

first, while i understand your goals, i think beautiful prose, and the focus thereof, is still a very important pursuit. there's also nothing wrong with being YA-ish; the implied author comes from a book called the rhetoric of fiction, and the title implies that it's a study of fiction in interaction with an audience. so different readers get different things out of what they read (i wrote about this more in my june newsletter). possibly your perspective is something someone else hasn't seen before, and you've offered them something new without even knowing.

that said, i absolutely understand the drive to have a wider perspective, and write things that you find more complicated and challenging. however, the only way i can answer this is with metaphors couched in narrative, of how i learned about how to approach my writing differently, and which presumably, maybe widened a reader's sense of my implied author (but since i can't be a reader of my own work, there's no way to tell for sure).

so, i once took a creative nonfiction seminar during which i read a whole bunch of memoirs, and the final project was either a research paper or a personal essay. obviously i chose the personal essay. i decided to write about my ex-boyfriend, with whom i'd broken up five years earlier, and i was still very fucked up about it even though we'd been broken up far longer than we were together.

looking back on that essay, it reads like a sales pitch, ten pages of me just pleading with the reader to see my side of the situation, to see how i was the victim, sympathize with me and not him. he's the evil one. hate him with me. please please please.

it was not a good look.

there was a lot of unprocessed grief in that essay, a lot of anger. it was clear i had no wider perspective of the situation other than wallowing in my own narrow feelings about it. i was telling the reader what to think about me, about him, about the situation, rather than conveying the situation as it truly was and allowing them to draw their own conclusions.

in nonfiction, that's terrifying, because it potentially paints me in a negative light. a reader may see my actions and think poorly of me. and honestly, looking back, they should. i was as toxic to my ex as he was to me. i was not good to him at all.

but see, that's an example of me telling you what to think. in the essay, i am pretty much saying outright, "he is evil. hate him." i want to force the reader to be on my side. but after a mental breakdown and a lot of trauma therapy, i was able to step out of the situation and my feelings thereof, and see it from a much wider perspective, and instead of putting my actual emotions on the page, i'm able to illustrate honestly the emotions i felt at the time. i am no longer in the story. i'm outside of it.

here are the events as they actually happened: one night, he didn't come home. i texted him. i tried to call him. i waited a couple more hours and called him again. he came home as i was looking up numbers to nearby hospitals, around four a.m. he wouldn't tell me where he'd been. the next day i found a bunch of hickeys on his neck. i was hurt, and angry, and i pushed him. i told him to get out of my house. he still denied it, and kept denying it for hours longer, until finally admitting he'd been dating someone else for months. i couldn't find it in myself to blame him. to me, it was my fault for not being good enough for him, for not fitting into the shape of someone he could love.

there was more to the story than that; he was financially dependent on me, he was no longer attracted to me and felt trapped in our relationship, my father had just died and i couldn't even begin to grieve over the loss of someone whose life mine revolved around.

but an essay -- or a short story, a novel, a poem -- can't ever render reality exactly as it is. we as writers are always just curators of experiences, images, sentences. there's a lot of fear in that, of leaving out details, of being misunderstood. but that's the inherent risk of art.

the lesson i brought back to fiction is this:

it's not my job as a writer to place judgment on my characters, but to simply convey the story as it happens. my characters may have biases, misperceptions, judgments, and opinions, but they are not mine. widening the implied author, so to speak, is a process of removing yourself from your prose.

obviously you will make characters who are like you in some ways, and so they may share traits with you. they may be identical to you in every way. but they are not you, and cannot be you. possibly the implied author is the absence of ego. or maybe it's an embrace of the self and the world as things that can't be fully known.

i think about films that have a wide implied author versus a narrow one (in my opinion; see above point about fiction as rhetoric). to me, pacific rim has a very wide implied author. even though all the characters in the movie take the events therein very seriously, i know that the mind creating this story knows it's kind of ridiculous, even though it's not a comedy. they know this wild, over-the-top conceit is a vehicle for the more complicated and nuanced experience of intimacy and trust.

a narrow implied author would be zack snyder's justice league. that film leaves me with no evidence that the mind behind it is capable of truly understanding experiences beyond their own, or using their medium to render a nuanced portrayal of being. that doesn't mean snyder isn't, in reality, capable of those things, or that the movie isn't enjoyable on an aesthetic level, but that i found no evidence in the text of, well, themes. it's just...characters doing things. i see no exploration in it, no question that the narrative addresses.

which leads me to my second point, which is that i think the widest implied authors are the ones who are vulnerable enough not to have an answer or conclusion, to simply discover and explore larger questions.

so, what questions do you have? what things do you not know? what are you most afraid to convey or admit?

in some ways, my answer to your question is that you don't have to worry about it, because the implied author is the experience of the reader, which you can't control. however, i think all of us, myself included, can work toward a greater perspective of ourselves and our world, to understand things to a more complex degree. and beautifully, writing helps us do that, at the risk of exposing the things we don't know, the questions we can't answer, our true colors which may be darker and uglier than we'd like to admit.

[pynkhues]

Hi Sophie! I’m an aspiring writer and I had a question for you!! How did you go on about finding an agent? Also how does one find job postings related to writing? (Tv, etc.) I’m very inspired by you and how talented you are!!!

Hi, anon! Thank you for your kind words, and it’s so exciting that you’re an aspiring writer! I think knowing that you want to write really is the first step on a pretty incredible journey, and it’s one that it helps have to have tools on. Knowing how to ask questions, like you did, is a great way to start building that toolkit too.

Especially because your writing toolkit will be something you build, because there’s not really one answer to either of your questions. I really mean it when I say writing and publishing is a journey, and as a part of that, the pathways people choose to take (and the pathways available to them) often vary a lot, and are impacted by so many things, from where you live to the genre and medium you write in to the networks you have access to.

I’m going to try to answer that for you as well as I can here which I hope will be a useful starting point for you, but I will be contextualizing it a bit with the fact that a) I’m in Australia, which has a bit of a different industry to many parts of the world (in no small part because we have a very small population), and b) that I worked in the industry before I started having my work published, which did give me a jump start and a pretty good network of professional and personal support.

Okay!

So let’s jump in.

Behind a cut because this got a bit long.

How did I get an agent?

Well! I was rejected by four agents before I got one, haha, so that in itself was a bit of an adventure. It meant that I was effectively my own agent for quite a while (something that’s quite normal in Australia for reasons I’ll talk about later), which meant doing everything from pitching works to teaching myself enough legal vocabulary to negotiate contracts (not my strong suit honestly, haha).

The first two agents I ever spoke to were both agents that weren’t open for unsolicited submissions. This is an important term in the industry, because what that means is that they’re not reading any new writers who:

they didn’t invite to submit (usually this would be after you’d won a prize, or they’d read your short story or essay in a journal or magazine, loved it and got in touch)

didn’t come recommended by colleagues; or

didn’t come through their existing networks.

Does that mean you can’t get your work in front of them? It doesn’t actually. Usually when agents aren’t open for unsolicited submissions, they’ll still be interested in work. It just usually means they don’t have the time for a massive slush pile. What they frequently do in these instances instead is that they’ll attend conferences, festivals, workshops or events and do pitching sessions a couple of times a year. That usually looks like you booking a five, ten or fifteen minute window, generally for free (be cautious if they’re charging extra on top of your event ticket) and doing a verbal pitch of your project.

I’ve done a lot of these at various events in various contexts (it’s always hell, haha), but only twice to agents. Once was at the CYA Conference in Brisbane (which is a charged pitch but the money’s a donation towards the Children’s Book Council), where I pitched a YA manuscript I’ve since put in my bottom-drawer, and Emerging Writers Festival in Melbourne, where I pitched The Rabbits, which is my novel which came out in July with Penguin Australia.

Those pitching sessions went just okay. Both liked my pitches, but the agent at CYA had a full stable of YA authors and was more looking for middle-grade fiction, which meant my story skewed too old. She gave me her card if I ever wrote for a younger audience, but otherwise declined to invite me to submit. Again, this is frequently actually why an agent might be closed to submissions or they might reject your work even if they like it – they're just at capacity with what you're pitching.

The one at EWF went better and I was invited to submit my complete manuscript, but she told me that while she thought I was a good writer, she didn’t personally like my writing style and therefore didn’t think she could sell it. She did actually invite me to submit something else if I had something more commercial, but I really figured that if she didn’t like my writing style, she probably wasn’t going to like whatever else I sent her, so I ended up declining because I thought it would be a waste of both our time.

The other two agents I submit to were both open for unsolicited submissions so I didn’t have to go through events. In both cases, I did cold submissions, which just means we’d never spoken before, so when you do that you need to put together a query packet because - - well. They don’t know who you are, haha. All publishers and agents have different requirements for their query packet and these should be listed on their website (if they’re not, feel really empowered to email and ask – in all of my industry experience, they have always infinitely preferred you doing that to guessing. It shows you know the etiquette and want to get it right).

Generally speaking though, what you're looking at pulling together for a packet is usually:

A cover letter explaining who you are, why you’re interested in them being your agent (being familiar with who else they represent is a good thing to highlight), and what story you’re selling them on.

A one-page synopsis of your manuscript.

A writing CV if you have one, or another relevant CV (i.e. if you're pitching a non-fiction book on being a nurse in the pandemic, attaching your nursing CV so they can see you're legitimate is important).

And usually either the first 50 pages or the first three chapters of your novel.

You generally email that to them, it goes into a slush pile, and they’ll read through it when they get the chance. I got a personalized rejection from one, which is pretty lovely (getting a personal rejection instead of one that’s clearly an email template from agents, editors and publishers might sound silly, but they’re actually pretty significant. These are people who get thousands of manuscripts a year, and taking the time to write a reply usually means your work resonated enough that they want to give you that encouragement even if the answer’s still no), and the other, I never heard back from, and my follow up email was ignored. Less lovely, haha, but unfortunately not uncommon.

So yeah, I took a bit of a break from seeking out an agent then, which I could do in Australia. One of the benefits of having a small industry here is that there’s a very limited number of agents (we’re talking literally about 25), which means submissions outside of agents and agencies are pretty normal. My understanding in the US and the UK is that you’re not really going to get a look-in without an agent, but in Australia you can submit direct, having an agent just makes it a lot easier.

So I didn’t have an agent when I actually got offered my book deal. I’d submit The Rabbits to a few different publishers, it had been rejected already by a couple and was still in the slush pile at one when I submit it to the Penguin Literary Prize. It won (yay!), Penguin offered me a book deal, and when the news broke in industry news, I was approached by six different agents, including, hilariously, the agent who said she didn’t like my writing style, haha.

I ended up talking to a few of them, but I went with a fairly new agent who I’d known through industry work, and I went with her because she had a really strong legal background which is what I was personally interested in.

Because that’s an important thing to consider too.

Why do you want an agent?

I actually knew that I didn’t really need an agent to sell my work. I’d been doing that for ten years already, I have over twenty short stories and a novella published, I’d sold my book, and I’d sold the rights to a screenplay already on my own, so the ability for an agent to sell work wasn’t so important to me. What was important to me was having someone who had a background in publishing law (my agent actually worked in the rights team in-house at a top five publisher before she became an agent), and understood rights management particularly in digital rights and international rights, because it makes my head spin, haha.

So that’s why I went with her!

But how do you find agents?

You didn’t ask this question exactly, but I think this is a very relevant question. There are databases of agents and publishers out there – Duotrope is probably the best known and I know people rave about it. One of the things that’s useful about it is that it’ll do a bit of a breakdown listing what genres the agent reads, if they’re currently open to unsolicited submissions, and their requirements. Take a look at Ginger Clark’s page for example (she’s not my agent – she’s American for starters, haha – but I have worked with her before and she’s a gem. Her most famous client is probably Ursula K. Le Guin, but she reps tons of other people too).

So yeah! Duotrope’s really useful. It has free info but also a paywall for certain things, and I personally find it kinda difficult to navigate?

I'd actually instead just recommend you take a look at writers you like and admire, especially ones who write similar genres to you, and just Google who their agent is. They all have websites, so they’re a lot easier to find these days than they were. 😊

How do you find job postings related to writing?

This is a tricky one, anon, as it depends on what sort of jobs you’re looking at. If you’re looking for copywriting opportunities, outlets for articles, short stories, poetry or essays, publishers who are posting open calls for manuscripts, or even cultural production jobs, those are all pretty different things. SO! I’m going to answer this one a little more broadly.

Writers Centres are your friends. Full disclaimer, I worked at one for five and a half years, and have been a member of Writers Victoria since I moved to Melbourne. They’re incredible resources for not only opportunities, but workshops, pitching, professional and creative development, community, networking and advice. They literally exist to help you achieve your goals.

- Writers Victoria maintains a free calendar of Opportunities and Competitions, but publishes more in their quarterly magazine which is a member perk. They’ll also often share job opportunities through their social media channels. I also still get the free e-news for Queensland Writers Centre and Writing NSW too because sometimes they share different stuff.

- I’ve heard Gotham Writers in New York is good too if you’re in America, but really I’d just suggest googling where you live and writers centre and seeing what comes up!

- Similarly festivals. I’ve worked at Brisbane Writers Festival and National Young Writers Festival here in Australia (the latter’s on online right now if you want to check out their free program!) Sign up to your local festival’s e-news, follow them on social media, they’ll usually share stuff.

- Speaking of! Social media! Haha. Twitter is often good for sharing jobs, competitions and opportunities, but I find it can be a bit of a cesspool too where people bombard the hashtags with self-promotion, so approach with caution. I find Facebook groups are way better for it personally, especially as there are a lot of specialized groups that are focused in certain or on certain writers. I know there’s lots for BIPOC writers for instance, I’m personally in a few and recommend:

Binders Full of WRITING JOBS

Binger Full of Copywriters

Style Binders – Writers in Fashion, Lifestyle and Beauty

Binder Full of Editors Seeking their Freelance Writers and Vice Versa

If you’re in Australia though, I’d especially recommend:

Women in Arts Management Collective (particularly if you’re interested in cultural production work)

Film and TV Networking Australia

Melbourne Women in Film

Writers Victoria Members

Australian Binder Full of Women Writers

Australian Arts Amidst COVID-19

Young Australian Writers

I think most of these are searchable, so just have a look, but also google your city or state + writer and see what pops up.

Otherwise, as much as it sucks to say it, a lot of the industry is who you know, so try and find ways to connect and meet with people and forge your own little community. Go to events – festivals, book launches, book clubs, join Facebook groups and in particular, if there are journals or magazines that are made in your local area, go to their launches and the events they run, no matter how big or small, and just chat to people there. As you get more established, you can be more discerning about what you go to, but when you're starting out, these are powderkegs of community and connection, and they breed suppport and, if you find the right people, you'll grow and develop together too.

Being a writer can often be pretty lonely, but being a part of supportive industry really makes all the difference, and as an old mentor of mine said – creative karma is real. You support the people coming up around you, and you’ll not only be creating a better, more inclusive and welcoming industry, but an industry that supports you right back. 😊

[ladyherenya]

I’ve taken forever to finish this post. Such round-ups are easier when I haven’t read so many books, and when the pandemic isn’t being so distracting.

Also read: A Bride of Convenience by Jody Hedlund, Cutie and the Beast by M.E. Carter and “Dueling Magics” by Stephanie Burgis. 

Total: sixteen novels (including four audiobooks), two novellas, one short story, one graphic novel and one comic volume. 

Cover thoughts: Tarashana is my favourite, followed by A Natural History of Dragons. I altered the covers for the Stevenson trilogy -- I like my versions more! 

Did not finish: The Long Distance Playlist by Tara Eglington. 

Still reading: Love in the Blitz: The Greatest Lost Love Letters of the Second World War by Eileen Alexander. 

Next up: The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water by Zen Cho. 

My full reviews are on Dreamwidth and LibraryThing. 

*

A Portrait of Loyalty by Roseanna M. White (narrated by Susan Lyons): Romantic historical mystery, set in London during 1918. Christian fiction. Features characters from the The Number of Love and On Wings of Devotion.

I was surprised by how long it took before I really cared about the characters and their relationships. It was interesting to consider the way dark-room photography could be used -- and manipulated -- in aid of the war effort. 3 ★ 

*

Playing Hearts by W.R. Gingell: Portal fantasy based on Alice in Wonderland. Novella. 

I like retellings and Alice in Wonderland references and Gingell’s storytelling, so I was a bit surprised by how long I took to warm to this. I liked the final section a lot. 3 ★ 

*

Dawnshard: From the Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson: Fantasy. Part of the Stormlight Archive, set after Oathbringer. Novella.  

I struggled to focus, distracted dredging up and searching through my memories of this series. But Sanderson is a successful storyteller, and the end of this adventure was satisfying. 3 ★ 

*

Game of Hearts by Cathy Yardley: Contemporary fandom-y romance. Features characters from Level Up and One True Pairing.

The characters’ respective family issues were resolved far too readily, but I find this sort of fluffy romance is acceptable if it comes with fandom references.  

*

Bel Lamington (1961) by D.E. Stevenson (narrated by Patience Tomlinson): Romantic fiction. Features characters from the Dering Family trilogy.

Delightful. A very gentle sort of story, although it’s not just gardening and picturesque scenery and new friendships -- Bel also encounters stressful difficulties at work. I could predict how everything would all ultimately turn out -- but was surprised by some of the turns the story took getting there. 3½ ★   

*

A Bride of Convenience by Jody Hedlund: Historical Christian romance set in 19th century Canada. 

An interesting glimpse into an aspect of history I didn’t know about (bride ships), but neither the pacing nor the tone appealed to me. 2 ★ 

*

Torch by R.J. Anderson: YA-ish fantasy, faeries and shapeshifters. Sequel to Swift and Nomad.

A satisfying conclusion with some surprising developments. I was glad to see things resolve happily for Ivy.  3 ★  

*

The Dering Family trilogy by D.E. Stevenson: Romantic fiction set in England and Scotland. 

Vittoria Cottage (1949) (narrated by Leslie Mackie): Nothing too dramatic happens but it’s a fascinating insight into postwar life in England, still with rationing. I like that Stevenson considers the concerns of a middle-aged widow worthy of this sort of attention -- and of this sort of romance.  3 ★ 

Music in the Hills (1950):  James Dering goes to stay with his aunt and uncle in Scotland, and learn about farming. I knew how James’ romantic endeavours would unfold (from reading Bel Lamington) but even with that foreknowledge to make things extra predictable, I wanted to keep reading. This has such a strong sense of place! And the characters are very likeable.  3½ ★ 

Winter and Rough Weather (1951): Follows on from Music in the Hills.  A vivid insight into how poor roads and poor weather can isolate one from the outside world. I didn’t mind spending time with James and Rhoda’s friends, but they rather became the focus towards the end and maybe I’d have liked this book more if that hadn’t been the case? 3 ★ 

*

“Dueling Magics” by Stephanie Burgis: Short story set after A Most Improper Magick. Children’s fantasy. Verdict: cute. 

*

Fangirl: the manga, vol. 1 by Rainbow Rowell (story adapted by Sam Maggs and illustrated by Gabi Nam):  First installment in the manga adaptation of a young-adult novel about a fangirl going off to college.

A lovely way to revisit Fangirl! Judging from my memory of the novel, this is a remarkably -- and satisfyingly -- faithful adaptation. I really liked the artwork. 3½ ★ 

*

The Tuyo series by Rachel Neumeier:  Fantasy. 

Nikoles: A prequel side-story about a minor character from Tuyo. A thoughtful look at what causes a conflict between two peoples to escalate -- or to be resolved -- through the eyes of a likeable protagonist.  3 ★ 

Tarashana:  A direct sequel to Tuyo. I loved it. It’s a journey into the unknown, full of difficulties and danger in that way that good fantasy quests so often are. Very tense!  I was also impressed with the way this story explores the challenges of justly judging people, and how this gives Ryo a more nuanced perspective, but the events of the novel thematic cohesion. 4 ★ 

*

The Long Distance Playlist by Tara Eglinton:  Epistolary Australian YA. Unfinished.

Two teenagers reconnect through email and share Spotify recommendations for dealing with breakups. I didn't finish this before my loan expired -- maybe I'll read more when it becomes available again.

*

Second First Impressions by Sally Thorne: Contemporary romance between two 20-something employees at a retirement village.

Thorne has a gift for vividly capturing the quirky personalities of two people and capturing the different ways in which they like each other. There were a few small-ish things in this story I didn’t personally like. Mixed feelings, I have them.  3 ★ 

*

Copper Mountain by Rachel Neumeier:  Urban fantasy. Part of the Black Dog series, set after Shadow Twin and Black Dog Stories III.

Dimilioc deals with demons. I was reminded that I do care about these characters. This wouldn’t have been so tense if I wasn’t so invested! 3½ ★ 

*

The Year’s Midnight by Rachel Neumeier: Death’s Lady, book one. Portal world fantasy.

Compelling. I really like how, even though Dr Daniel Dodson doesn’t believe his patient Tenai is from another world, this doesn’t actually undermine his ability to help her. Because he believes that Tenai fully believes her story and that it’s important for understanding her anger.  3½ ★ 

*

A Natural History of Dragons: a memoir by Lady Trent by Marie Brennan (narrated by Kate Reading): Fantasy. Isabella tells of her childhood obsession with dragons, and how, aged nineteen, she joined an expedition to Vystrana.

Such a novel and interesting approach to dragons. Isabella’s adventures are eventful, and her observations are astute and often delightfully expressed.  But  I came away feeling unsure if I found the ending satisfying, because as a reader, I’m HERE for the emotions. 3½ ★ 

*

The Murderbot Diaries: Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells: Science-fiction. Set between Exit Strategy and Network Effect. Novella.

A less intense installment. On the other hand, I would happily read about Murderbot solving any number of mysteries. ANY NUMBER. It was interesting to see Murderbot working under a different set of restrictions.  3½ ★ 

*

Cutie and the Beast by M.E. Carter:  Contemporary romance, single-parent co-coworkers, roommates-to-lovers.

I finished it but it wasn't really my thing.

*

Runaways: Canon Fodder (volume 5) by Rainbow Rowell (illustrated by Andres Genolet): Marvel superhero comics.

The previous volume had more scenes which stood out to me as memorable or quotable, but this volume had a strong, complete story arc and that was really satisfying! As is the rather pointed commentary about being a superhero. 3½ ★

[thattimdrakeguy]

Weirdly enough Red Robin is the series I’d be most scared to review, because for obvious reasons I imagine more than any other character it’s the Tim fan base (I won’t say fandom, because I feel like that gives a different connotation nowadays. and it’s a bunch of chill, un-interactive but very passionate, chaps) that follow me.

And I’d just get sooo many people giving me nit-picks, and telling me stuff I already know.

Cause I can say anything against Teen Titans 2003, New 52, Rebirth, and Wonder Comics stuff cause that’s the generally agreed upon stuff that you can complain against for Tim. Cause like, to not play dumb to it, this whole Bat-Family fandom acts like there’s freaking laws to abide by if you don’t want a bunch of batty (not a pun, not even saying not a pun in sarcasm lol) fans and stans down your neck. Normally involving certain characterizations or comics that, honestly, aren’t even usually the more accurate ones, but the contradicting ones that don’t make a lick of sense, and that’s not even talking about the straight up fanon ones.

Not to say I wouldn’t get why it’s the Red Robin series that’d get people to give me crap out of all the Tim stuff, because I do. It’s a lot of peoples entry to Tim, and it’s pretty heavy implications of suicidal ideation, and more so obvious mental breakdown journey across continents means a lot to people. I can get why, and if it wasn’t those characters in it, I’d think it was great too.

Also I know for a fact people would act like I’m just bias for 90s Tim, and point out Timmy’s in a teddy bear hoodie in my header. Cause it’s the most weakest defense someone could possibly make cause they’re lacking an actual point. Like they know everything a fucking ‘bout me, when they don’t, I’m just allowed to think my own stuff, and I’m allowed my dang comfort art, so blah blah blah. I’ve proved myself enough. I don’t need some random dismissive guys random approval or not, but man can it be annoying when someone thinks they’re smart about it.

Like basically put, it would be very exhausting to go through the many different series and years of comic book content to explain why I think the way I do, when all the other person has to say is “I like this series a lot, and it means a lot to me, it’s story about depression, and plus it’s Tim being at the button of his sanity so-- And I think this person is stuck on 90s Tim” cause like I freaking get it, and acting like cause I prefer a different Tim comic means my opinion isn’t valid, is the most childish thing ya can really do. Like I love 90s Tim the most for a reason, and I started reading Tim as Red Robin first, ya ninny.

But to just be honest, it is an incredibly flawed series that has overall, in the long game, soiled the character of Tim Drake, and directly influenced the New 52 and beyond depiction of him. Not to give Lobdell an excuse, I just find it really odd that people getting praising it as the peak of Tim content when it’s even caused some really freaking toxic fandom beliefs.

When some of the most important scenes in the series are so botched that it has genuinely made people despise other characters when I don’t even think they were portrayed well for that to make sense. The messy inconsistent writing as it went between two different writers causing some absolutely terrible characterization for Tim that isn’t even always consistent within the series itself because FabNic is just awful, and how forgettable most stuff after the first story is.

That first story I can understand the love for it. But people treating the whole series as a whole like it’s a great journey of long-term story development just feels like a real bad describer for it. Because to me by the end of it’s run it caused Tim to be put in the terrible spot that he’s only now escaping from little under a decade later. As well as only really starting cause people in the company didn’t like Tim and the characters around them as much as you’d hope.

In total, I honestly feel like if it wasn’t released during a time were the common tastes were very edgy and emo-esque, as well as around the time the online fandom spaces were only really then being formed in a way that was practical for casual interaction and discussion, and being the only series titled “Red Robin” therefore people seem to think it’s Tim’s variation of “Nightwing”, when it’s honestly not, it wouldn’t be a series that highly regarded.

I’m not saying the whole thing is a pile of shit, cause it’s also frankly not. There’s some powerful stuff in there, and some moments that really do hit super hard in ways that don’t feel superficial. Cause another thing people don’t seem to understand that when I say his characterization isn’t good in it, does not equal me saying “He is not the same exact character he was 15 years before the series came out”, it legitimately just means I feel they took the character to places that felt more forced than genuine, or just had him stuff that goes against what he’d do for the sake of just being edgy as if it’s deep, even during his circumstances and it created people having a false understanding of who Tim is at his heart, that made it incredibly difficult for Tim to get a good story for basically a freaking decade.

It’s a series I want to review because I have genuine things to say about it, but when ever I do say anything about it I feel like I see several sub-posts that are almost undeniably about me (hasn’t happened for a while cause I don’t really bother talking about stuff I don’t like anymore, cause life's hard enough, and I’ve seen the worst end of a lot of people from it) trying to downplay me, because they got defensive about it, rather than actually trying to process what I meant by things instead of just assuming it cause it’s touchy for them.

Like I’ve openly shit on Damian’s most popular series’, and accepted fandom malarkey, because I legitimately think they’re overhyped as could be, not that great, and only have the popularity they do through bandwagoning and going along with things. And I did that while knowing how defensive the Damian fandom is, and how quick they are to just leak out nasty assumptions or outright suicide bait you (yes I remember someone tried to defend me by suicide baiting someone else, but fuck them too, I never defended them or asked them to. idgaf which fandom does it. i’m clearly not on anyone's team. this isn’t a fucking sports game).

I’ve even straight up shit on pretty much every single Jason story except Under the Red Hood, while defending some Robin Jason stories, and I haven’t even got crap on me for that, which is honestly strange. Surprisingly just got told “Ya know what. Fair point. I can accept that. I don’t agree, but I can accept it.”. Which given what I have been shown of the Jason fandom I expected much worse, but they’ve honestly been really chill with me. Me and the Jason fandom has been actually some of the most pleasant interactions I’ve had outside my own bubble.

The majority of Steph’s existence as a character I’ve criticized and gotten crap on it, but honestly I found the response of countless anons going “YEAH MAN I AGREE WITH YOU” and going way harder on her than I ever did to be pretty dang annoying, and even more annoying cause people kept thinking I said stuff I freaking didn’t out of it. So every now and again people will just straight up lie about me to my face. Like you try to talk to someone that’s been preparing to talk to you by fighting an imaginary version of yourself. It’s pretty difficult if I had to be honest. Talking ‘bout bias’s like I didn’t write TimSteph fan fictions before I realized they weren’t that great and didn’t work, while realizing that I honestly didn’t think Tim was into girls in-general.

But, to get back on topic, with the Tim fandom it’s less like, open faced attempts to make you feel like a garbage human being, and more just straight up rudely dismissive as quite often the ones I’ve seen do it try to portray themselves as some calm knowledgeable unbias source of Tim knowledge.

And there’s a different sensation of annoyance at that.

Like what is the point of trying to pretend to be some source of knowledge and for a few comradery, while also being a dismissive person that first has to make others seem lesser.

And there’s some that I’ve seen do it that I don’t even think are dicks honestly, and have no problem with it, cause it’s just so innocently “I just really like the series and still think it’s good”. That I’d be confused why people would think I have a vendetta against everyone else. I’ve never been like, straight up offended more than once over the specific topic of Red Robin. But it is a thing that makes me like “I’ll get so many people giving me crap over having a different opinion for this won’t I”. And get some people trying to validate just being a bit of a fucker to me for no good reason.

So like, may or may not write a Red Robin review, but I might not cause despite quite a few people in the Tim fandom being quite chill about it, there’s quite a lot of people that are low-key toxic about it, and a lot of bad fandom things came out of it as well.

[queer-and-dear-books]

Title: True Letters From a Fictional Life

Author: Kenneth Logan

Genre: YA Fiction | Romance | Friendship | Drama | Mystery | LGBTQ+

Content Warnings: Homophobia | Racism

Overall Rating: 8.4/10

Personal Opinion: James Liddel has lived his whole life pretending to be something that he’s not. Straight. Because that’s what everyone around him expects him to be. So in order to cope, he writes letters to people in real life talking about the truth but never sends them out. But maybe he should. Maybe the truth would set him free. In this easy-paced novel, you’ll find yourself hoping everything works out for James as his fictional life and his real life collide.

Do I Own This Book? No.

Spoilers Below For My Likes & Dislikes:

Likes:

- Okay, I have to talk about the ending. James has lived his whole life trying to imitate what everyone expects of him, a straight boy. Even when he’s not dating Theresa, his mom keeps a photo of them on the fridge, a permanent reminder to her son of the future that she wants for him even though in reality, he’s gay. He’s gay and he’s scared because lots of people talk shit about Aaron, the openly gay kid. His best friends used homophobic slurs, his older brother fakes a lisp, his dad says kids don’t know their sexualities, and his mom pitied Aaron’s parents because they have a gay son. It’s really no wonder why he’s terrified of not blending in. Of not being what everyone wants him to be. But in the end, though his mother is still processing that her son is not who she thought he was, she put a Polaroid of James with his boyfriend on the fridge instead and it means so much. The fact that the final chapter was a talk with the younger brother about being queer and why it’s not a thing to be ashamed or afraid of is so important too.

- I really enjoy the humor. It’s clearly a defense mechanism for James, to deflect by making jokes when someone asks him an uncomfortable question. He has had a lot of time acting as he said. But I like how easily his friends fall into that banter too. It flows so naturally and I see why he gets along so well with Derek and Hawken. 

- Hawken is also such a cool kid. He’s so chill about finding out that James had a crush on him and he’s secure enough in his own sexuality to try glitter makeup and kiss James on the lips. He’s a good guy and I like that he was there for James during the letter fiasco. He also gave a lot of good advice when it came to coming out. Clearly, he’s got a good relationship with his gay brother.

- Derek is a good friend too. I can see why his faith made it difficult for him to understand queer people. I do think he should’ve been a tad more understanding as a minority but I guess from his POV, he’s a guy who has had to face adversity but he overcame it by blending in and being nice to others. At least, to those that he believes deserve it. But the thing that really makes him a good friend is that he decked Mark without hesitation when Mark said “which one of you is the man.” And he also found James after James ran away from home and was there for him when he felt alone.

- Luke is such a good older brother too. He made jokes but he obviously loves James and cares for him. When he gave his brother a hug in the middle of the trail and let him know his sexuality didn’t matter to him, I loved him. And the fact that he invited a bunch of people over to show James that he had a good support group was just so nice of him. He wasn’t at all skeeved by Topher kissing his brother and he even called Hawken cute. Also, during the final chapter, when they were talking with Rex, the way Luke kept dying with laughter really had me losing it. Especially when Rex assumed James’s boyfriend was Hawken just like Luke did. Also apparently, Rex kissed a boy? I’m glad James and Luke reacted very subtly in that instance.

- Kim is such a good friend too and it’s wild to me that she was the second person James ever came out to. Not to mention, the only person he intentionally came out to. She took it rather well considering Theresa was her best friend. She didn’t out James and she wanted him to feel comfortable around her. She also talked to him about Topher which I bet made him feel normal, being able to talk about his relationship with someone else. I hope she and Derek really get together.

- James has such a distinct and intelligent voice in this story. Even in his writing too. The letters were such a great plot device and I had no idea that Abraham Lincoln used to do that to vent about cabinet members before talking to them. It’s wild because it’s almost a therapy technique. But I do like that James soon decided to give some of those letters to people toward the end. He learned more about communication and how the truth can set you free. Breyer, his English teacher, probably helped a lot with that too.

- James and Topher have a really cute relationship. I don’t think it’s going to last but I like how much James likes Topher. They’re good for now. For his very first gay relationship, they’re good.

Dislikes:

- Honestly, in the first 60% of this book, it felt like I was just reading about a ton of microaggressions stacked on top of one another rather than a story. I mean, we have a random cashier being racist to Derek, we have Derek calling Aaron a fairy, we have Aaron calling Hawken a “retard,” and casual f-slurs and homos being tossed around too. It is fucking wild and it bothered me so much that this was taking place in 2016 in liberal Vermont. Granted, I know the rural areas are a bit more conservative and Kenneth Logan was probably writing more from his experience as a youth but damn, this was a lot to deal with. I am glad though, that when James was officially out of the closet, he had more support than jeers. And I like his friendship with Aaron too.

- Theresa, yo, what the fuck. She really stole his letters and sent them out without permission! I do think Aaron should’ve gotten that letter because he deserved an apology, no matter what form it came in. And it was a good thing Hawken already knew everything before he got his letter. Man, a lot of people shipped them together. I get Theresa wasn’t out to ruin his life but what she did was still completely unwarranted. And it was never her right to do that. I get she was hurting from the revelation that James wasn’t attracted to her but damn.

- Mark is worse than her though. I get that he has his own baggage to deal with (absent mother and an abusive father) but wow, he’s a disgusting bigot. My biggest quandary though is how he and Hawken were best friends before. I mean, Hawken is super chill and open-minded and Mark is literally calling track and cross-country runners “faggots” and not real athletes. And Hawken really thought this was the dude who was cool with gay people since he knew about Hawken’s brother. He clearly misjudged Mark and I am glad that he dumped Mark as soon as he revealed his true colors. Mark doesn’t deserve any kindness from Hawken.

- Also James broke into a house and literally didn’t face any consequences? Hell, Mark barely got consequences for almost killing Aaron. That was fucked up too. And bruh, Aaron getting so relentlessly bullied in the cafeteria was just brutal and wrong. Stupid ass baseball team and their toxic ass masculinity. But yeah, James just broke into a house and let a cat run out? That made me feel a lot less sympathy for him.

- James? Not the most rootable main character. He did lead on Theresa. I’m not saying I don’t get it but the fact that he was dating Topher for real while also indulging her with dates and some kisses was wrong. Not to mention, his own internalized homophobia stung. The way he talked down about femme gays is gross. But you know, I sorta but not really get it? It was because he had felt threatened by Aaron’s confidence to be himself. 

- Also fuck James’s dad for saying Aaron was targeted for being femme. Shut the fuck up. Let men be however they fucking want to be. But also, thank you for being more accepting of your son than his mother. Granted, it’s the bare minimum but still. The bar is low.

- I feel like I didn’t address all the casual microaggressions enough, it was gross. Such a diverse cast of characters and yet not a single one of them was without at least one microaggression. Except, I think, Kim and Topher? But in the case of Topher, some things he did raised some red flags for me as to how he’ll be as a boyfriend. But he did get better over time for me and he was so patient with James. I just wish he texted back quicker because it gave me anxiety every time it was pointed out that he didn’t respond to James. But I think that’s just a sign that James was more into Topher than Topher was into him. Who knows, maybe he’ll fall in love or maybe they’ll break up and move on to someone new.