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letstalkaboutfandomsbaby · 3 years ago

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what is the most romantic place you'd like to meet nanami at?

OH LORD lemme think sksksk

Short answer: local bookstore :3

Long answer below the cut bc im a heathen sksksksk

Okay, let's set the scene

It's my day off

I decide to go out to a local bookstore and look around and get books that i will not read sksksk

I dress up FOR MYSELF bc i wanna look pretty :3

My go-to "going out" outfit goes something like this:

I'd wear this floral pink sundress i have that i sewed some pockets into

I'd probs do pink makeup too bc im a heathen so I'd do like rosegold eyeshadow with mascara, some blush and highlighter, and lipgloss bc im always wearing lipgloss skskks

I'd also wear my heart shaped hoops (see my earring collection sksksk) and I'd have my hair tied back with a bandana (its white with yellow lemons all over it :3)

Okay! So im all dolled up and im feeling pretty and witty and gay sksksksk

I go to the bookstore and im just browsing lowkey taking pics of books i want so i can find them used online for a cheaper price sksksk but im holding onto several bc i havent decided which ones i HAVE to buy today

Im looking around and i see a book i wanna take a closer look at but this GUY is standing in front of the bookshelf and i cant get to it

I quietly say "excuse me" and my voice sounds super tiny and frail bc i get super anxious talking to strangers and making demands skskks

And this big ass guy turns to look at me and he apologizes and moves out of the way and i smile and say its fine and grab the book from the shelf so i can judge its cover and summary sksksk

Im kinda freaking out bc holy shit this guy is handsome and he's wearing a suit? In the middle of August when its like 90°F out?? Props to him but i would rather die than overheat like that sksksksk

Im not interested in the book so i put it back and when i look back at the guy i notice he's looking at me

He blushes and looks down at his book really quick and im screaming on the inside bc holy shit he's adorable

But all i do is give a quick smile as i walk past and keep looking at books

I spend a couple hours looking around the bookstore bc it's super intricate and has multiple levels and the aisles are super small and theres like 500 sections (no listen this is a legit bookstore i've been to irl and its crammed inside this house and it's like a goddamn maze)

And as im looking around i keep running into this guy!

And we smile and maybe laugh a little bc jesus this is like the 10th time we've passed each other but it's bound to happen in a bookstore like this

I end up in the adult fiction section and im debating if i should get a book or not bc im cheap and dont wanna spend money when i hear an "excuse me" from behind me

I turn around and holy shit! Its the guy ive been seeing all over this place sksksk

He apologizes for disturbing me but asks if i could recommend a book to him

He's new to America in general and there's so much new literature and he has no clue where to start

Omg he has a little bit of an accent and he seems kinda nervous asking me about books, he's so fucking cute 🥺

I get super excited bc i love recommending books to people so i start dragging him around the adult fiction section and showing him some of my fav books

Here's what I'd recommend to him:

I'm Thinking of Ending Things - Charlie Kaufman

Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn

East of Eden - John Steinbeck

A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess

Animal Farm - George Orwell

Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury

The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood

The Lord of the Flies - William Golding

Slaughterhouse-Five - Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

Beloved - Toni Morrison

Jazz - Toni Morrison

And im gushing about each book and im trying not to spoil anything but i just wont shut up about them

And then i realize oh shit this guy has a mountain of books now and im like 😀 shit my bad sksksk

Like i start apologizing for getting carried away and he's smiling softly and saying that its fine

ANYWAYS i tell him to start with Kaufman and Steinbeck bc they're incredible and my all time favorite books

But he says that he's actually gonna buy all of them and im like???? You got the money for that? Shit dude sksksk

And so we talk a bit more and we're walking through the bookstore and i start putting my books away bc im only gonna get one today

He asks me why I'm doing this and i explain that i dont wanna spend too much money today

I think he'd offer to buy them for me and of course i say no bc this dude is a stranger and im not gonna take his money wth

We're about to go our separate ways but he tells me his name first and i tell him mine and we shake hands before he walks away

I browse a bit more before i go to the checkout and guess who's there? Yes, it's Mr. Nanami, the guy i just spent 40 minutes talking about books to sksksk

He's buying a LOT of books, like even more than i recommend and im like "OH he got MONEY money 👀"

Im waiting in line behind him until he finishes

He turns around and blushes omg he's so cute with pink cheeks

Proceeds to hand me a bag

I'm like ????? what's this homie?

Oh shit

It's filled with all the books I was looking at but put away

????????????? What's going on dude? Are you trying to rub your wealth in my face or something?

"No, they're for you."

😀 wat

He explains that he bought the book for me like he wants me to have them

AND IMMA BE HONEST WITH YALL, I'D HAVE NO CLUE HOW TO RESPOND????

"What? No, I can't accept this."

"Why not? Do you not want these books?"

"What? No, it's not that, I just can't accept this from you. It's not right."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that we just met and it wouldn't be right for me to accept this."

"I don't see what the problem is."

??????????? BRO?????

"Dude, I can't just take your money, you're a total stranger, why would you even buy me these?"

"I bought them because you were kind and recommended several books to me."

"... alright i'm returning these and you're getting your money back."

He stops me and insists that I keep the books and I legit start getting mad at this point bc wtf dude i'm not going to take several hundred dollars worth of books from you wth

Ok now I'm just being ridiculous and causing a scene

"Look," he starts, pulling me to the side so that other customers can buy books, "if you insist on paying me back somehow, then join me for dinner."

🧍‍♀️

wat

"...Did you set this all up just to ask me out on a date?"

He says no, that he just wanted to be nice but since I'm being stubborn and making a big deal out of all this then he might as well ask

He's like bright red at this point and idk wtf to say

"Well, I'm not going to go out to dinner with a stranger-" he looks a bit disappointed "-but if we exchange numbers and get to know each other then I'd be happy to go out to dinner with you."

yayyy smiles all around sksks

We get each others' numbers and then go our separate ways

Anyways that's how i met your mother sksksksk

#ask #nanami kento #self insert #holy fuck this got long sksksk #my bad ssksk #☀️ asks

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comradesummers · 4 years ago

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Top 5 books or anything I should read

Hi, thanks for asking!

I’m an English major, so I can’t remember the last time I read a book that wasn’t for class. But I’ll try to recall what it was like to read books solely for pleasure. Also, I’m not going to be ranking the books because I don’t want to and I’m going to have 6 books instead of 5 because I feel like it. (Fair warning: I could write a lengthy content warning for every single one of these books, so if you’re worried about that sort of thing, I do recommend you look them up before you read them. You’re also welcome to ask me about it.)

Catch 22 by Joseph Heller

So this book was extremely written by a white guy in the 60′s. It’s the kind of novel that galaxy brain dudebros are constantly recommending to their girlfriends. But given that I put a David Foster Wallace book on this list, I might just have to accept that I’m a galaxy brain dudebro at heart.

Anyway, this novel is a brilliant deconstruction of the absurdity and tragedy of war and capitalism. It’s hilarious, clever and heartbreaking. I think a lot of authors do the non-chronological timelilne thing just to seem more interesting than they actually are, but in Catch-22, the non-linear timeline is used perfectly. The narrative works on an emotional level (even if it’s a bit confusing on the linear level) so that a lot of plot points that are initially presented as funny and absurd become such emotional gut punches later. For a book that’s known for being so clever and above it all, it is also unabashedly emotional and Heller truly cares about his characters in a way that very few satirists do. It’s a book that will make you laugh and cry and care a whole lot more than you were expecting to.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

So this is kind of a weird one for me. It’s really short, more like a novella than a novel, which isn’t usually my thing. Also, the characters aren’t really characters, they’re archetypes (which is done on purpose, because that’s how a lot of short stories work, but I know that’s a turn-off for some people). I’m also not a huge horror fan and this is one of Gaiman’s more horror-y outings. So why do I love it so much? Well, it’s basically Childhood Trauma, the book, and it does that really really well. Like, through it’s archetypes and its horror tropes and its general use of shorthand, it captures this really specific atmosphere of nostalgia and fear. It’s like one short but perfectly constructed dose of pain and catharsis and it achieves that through restraint. It’s a brilliant little piece and I love it a whole lot.

Beloved by Toni Morrison

So, if it’s not clear by now, I love me some good emotional storytelling and there’s no genre more beholden to emotion than the gothic novel. And, with all due respect (and love) to the Bronte sisters, Beloved is the best gothic novel of all time. I’m honestly struggling to explain why it’s so good. Partially because everyone already knows its good. I mean, it’s a classic for a reason. But partially because talking about this book and its contents is really difficult. This is the saddest book I’ve ever read. There’s no other book that destroyed me quite as much as this one. I’ll probably never reread it because it was so hard to get through the first time. Morrison’s prose truly takes you to the depths of the pain of her characters. It presents the horrors of slavery mostly through the trauma of the aftermath and it does so with such care and brilliance. This book is truly a masterpiece and if anything on this list is required reading, especially for my fellow clueless white people, it’s this one.

Brief Interviews With Hideous Men by David Foster Wallace

I was considering leaving this one off the list, just because I was embarassed to admit that I’m the kind of person who likes David Foster Wallace. I mean, I might as well start vaping and mansplaining while I’m at it. But I decided to be honest instead, so here we are.

Anyway, I was never able to get through DFW’s headier stuff. Like I really did try to read Infinite Jest, but I could not get through it. But Brief Interviews is a short story collection, which is great, because if DFW gets too far up his own ass in one of the stories, you can just skip to another one. And to be honest, I do think there are some shitty stories in this one (wtf is that Tri-Stan shit David?). But the ones that work? Holy shit do they work. I’m not even remotely kidding when I say that The Depressed Person is what finally convinced me to go to therapy. Like I read it and I realized that if I related to the character that much, I really did need help. It’s such a good story and if you don’t want to read the whole book, at least read that one. Personally, I think it’s the best thing DFW has ever written. And the interviews themselves are almost as brilliant. Like, I know that DFW is most well known for his post-modern experimental style and his weird obsession with tennis, but honestly, I think he’s at his best when he writes character studies. He’s really good at creating uniquely shitty human beings and then truly getting to the core of why they are that way. And Brief Interviews is the crowning achievement of that.

Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin

So James Baldwin is a genius, obviously, and there are plently of novels of his I could have chosen for this list. I went with this one because I love books that follow multiple generations of one family, and this book is easily the best version of that that I’ve ever read. It’s a novel about the cycle of abuse, religion, racism, segregation, poverty, police brutality, coming-of-age and sexuality. And even though the book is pretty short, it covers all of these themes brilliantly and thoughtfully and with such love and care. It’s also semi-autobiographical, which is probably why it feels so personal and gut-wrenching. Objectively, it’s probably the best book on this list. It truly is a masterpiece from beginning to end. Also, no offense to Umberto Eco, but it has the best religion based hallucination/vision from God (depending on how you choose to read the scene) scene in any book ever.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon

So I know I said I wouldn’t rank anything, but this is probably my favorite book ever. The best way I can think to convey my love for it is to tell you that I’ve associated it with an unrelated song (The Only Living Boy in New York) and there are few things I care about more in the world than making sure that that song will be used in one particular scene in the inevitable TV adaptation, even though I know that’s never going to happen because it would be a completely anachronistic song choice.

It’s hard for me to describe why I love this book so much. Part of it comes down to a really specific personal connection. My grandpa, like Joe, escaped the Holocaust and went to New York and had a really close relationship with a distant cousin of his because the Nazis had killed most of his extended family. So yeah, as a Jew, this book hits pretty hard. But also, as is probably pretty apparent by now, I love pretentious prose that uses way too many big words. I also love emotional and thematic stortytelling and oh boy does this book have that in spades. And the character work is so gorgeous and I care about these people’s relationships so much and the comic book sequences recapture the feeling of golden age comic books so perfectly and god I love it so fucking much.

#christ that was hard #also shoutout to cloud atlas which i remembered halfway through writing this thing but i was too lazy to add a section for it #catch 22 #joseph heller #the ocean at the end of the lane #neil gaiman #beloved #toni morrison #brief interviews with hideous men #david foster wallace #go tell it on the mountain #james baldwin #the amazing adventures of kavalier and clay #michael chabon

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olivieblake · 4 years ago

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As a writer or even just a consumer of media do you find people are less willing to accept “flaws” in characters and stories? I’m not talking like this character is a murderer he’s evil no one should like him type stuff, though as someone who started off writing dramione I’m sure you’ve seen your fair share of that but just like when characters are ever short of perfect. Like when a strong female character is kinda insecure or a couple isn’t communicating well or has a heated fight everyone gets mad that it’s a toxic relationship or bad writing. I once read a review of a book where someone stopped reading it after two chapters cause it had bad therapy practices, ie. the character still had shit to work through and therapy isn’t magic therefore they weren’t always doing the healing right and it’s like? that’s the whole point!! it’s an arc the character is gonna grow! It’s also made clear early on that the therapist didn’t agree with the coping methods (overly controlling their life) so it wasn’t like they were trying to portray it as a good thing. I know you’ve mentioned people have ✨opinions✨ about your DFS Hermione for having flaws and staying flawed and her flaw is just that she kinda thinks she’s right a lot and maybe isn’t the most self aware nothing even serious lol. I’m not saying don’t be critical of media but it’s kinda overwhelming reading think piece after think piece about why this thing you enjoy is actually the literal worst™️. Like am I toxic for having some of the same flaws ? Am I a problematic creep for enjoy stories where everything isn’t always sunshine, I don’t want to have a train wreck of a relationship but sometimes reading about one can be kinda fun? Is that terrible?

there’s a lot here that I’d like to discuss and I’m thinking about how I’d like to do it (I’ll inevitably chat about it in a video because it’s interesting and complex but I think I may have too many topics for this monday)

let’s see I think I will start by saying: in general, critical discourse about media (books, tv, film, fanfic) is a good thing, but it has definitely gone awry from what I consider to be its origins. I think the whole point of viewing media critically and making observations about what we are portraying via fiction is crucial for amplifying/protecting marginalized stories and reducing harm—specifically, the harm that minorities and women face by being inundated with bigoted, prejudiced, hateful, or ignorant tropes, caricatures, or relationship dynamics. I definitely believe that we should consider what we consume and how we consume it, particularly when it comes to the marginalized voices who do not see themselves represented well or fairly in white male dominated media

that being said, I do think it has led to the expectation that fiction cannot have ANY problems, which is absurd and counterproductive. it’s also extremely reductive, particularly when it comes the Strong Female Character™ thing you mention, where a woman STILL only has value if she’s strong in the “correct” way. I mentioned in one of my other posts and also last week’s video that there’s some kind of disconnect between the VERY GOOD intentions of things like #ownvoices or the movement to empower female characters and the actual outcomes, which make it so that any flaws in a marginalized fictional character are magnified to represent the entire group. the very reasonable request to see ourselves in fiction has somehow become an exponentially convoluted demand to see ourselves a certain way in fiction, where any character who does not reflect our personal experience is bad and wrong. previously, the expectation was that white male stories were universal whereas everything else was only for that specific group, and now, ironically, everything that is created still has to fit that universal quality and please everyone, despite that not being the point. the problem is when you only have ONE movie about this topic or ONE book about this ethnicity, then of course it hasn’t done enough to exemplify an entire subject or culture. there has to be an entire body of work the way there is with white-dominated media, where no single film or book accurately represents the experience of being white

plus we have twitter which is a horrifying hellscape where you get rewarded by the algorithm for making loud, obnoxious points so add that to the list (yesterday I saw that one of the top 3 reviews on Beloved by toni morrison is a 1-star review written by a white man and I was just flabbergasted by the lack of self-awareness)

but anyway that’s like, more of a macro look at what I think is going on but you’re right that people are not very forgiving of flawed characters. to some extent, I get it; the one thing we don’t want our characters to do is annoy us, and that’s fair. but I also think people have lost the sense that “oh, this thing isn’t for me” and thus can’t successfully identify the difference between critical failure and personal dislike

now. as for Divination for Skeptics. let me start by saying it’s not like I don’t understand why people find hermione in Divination for Skeptics annoying, because I get it. if you’re taking the story very seriously then sure, maybe you want her to change her behavior and it’s frustrating that she doesn’t. fair enough! to that I say it’s a comedy and if you don’t find it funny you’re perfectly welcome to dislike it, it’s not a big deal to me if I don’t make you laugh. however, I DO take issue with people who claim she’s too flawed or doesn’t grow, because they almost always do it in a very specific way: they say that she doesn’t show enough empathy, aka how dare she not read draco’s mind and simply alter her personality and behavior to suit his. it genuinely infuriates me that in my opinion, people who voice that particular “criticism” have seemingly internalized the belief that women should be emotionally perceptive; that for them, hermione’s “flaw” is that she does not take on the emotional labor that draco refuses to perform. (her actual flaw is that her survival technique/coping mechanism is a hyper-rationality that incorrectly assumes she has perfect information; i.e., that everything she knows is accurate, and therefore all of her decisions must be sound.) whereas draco knows this about her—knows and acknowledges it—and yet cannot bring himself to voice his feelings out of a fear-based desire to hedge his own emotional risk. who, then, is more flawed in the context of the story?

I don’t really have a conclusion yet so I’m going to pause for now and we’ll revisit this; I think mainly it’s that the more media diversifies, the more people will struggle with the preconceptions they have and the presumption that everything they consume is for them, and therefore that they are the metric for whether something is “good.” I think good art, good media, will reflect the world as it exists, but it will still only be the world according to one tiny fraction, a sliver of the actual human experience. does bad representation mean bad art? when it harms people yes. but when it speaks to a deeper truth (the truth of “we are all given to vice and imperfection even if it is not this specific version”), no. but that requires quite a degree of sophistication and self-awareness to identify, hence the discomfort of continuous vitriol or bad takes

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hello-there · 4 days ago

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Communities are a new way to connect with the people on Tumblr who care about the things you care about! Browse Communities to find the perfect one for your interests or create a new one and invite your friends and mutuals!

#tumblr communities #communities

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mercyoncanvas · 6 years ago

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if someone wanted to really understand you, what would they read, watch, and listen to?

read- so the romantic in me wants to say anything by beverly jenkins. like let me fall in love all over history with different variations of 80′s and 90′s heartthrobs (morris chestnut has starred in three). but toni morrison is a definite. sula in particular.

watch- I swear, Spike Lee must’ve seen the future and based she’s gotta have it on me. The treatment of Beyonce’s mine is definitely a peek into the mind of 2014 Mercedes Jones.

listen- kimbra - version of me ; noname- telefone ; janet jackson- velvet rope

have you ever found a writer (whether books, journalism, and/or comics) who thinks just like you? if so, who?

tracy chapman definitely. like her whole discography got me through college. but if we’re talking particulars of exclusively folks who write books etc. toni morrison writes like how I wish I could see art – if that makes any sense.

list your fandoms and one character from each that you identify with.

I remember the deep and dark days of 2006 and stalking the internet for bandom fanfiction (day 26 for anyone being nosy) I’m not much into fandoms now but if I was I would definitely take a peek over into Game of Thrones. I wonder if people still argue through Author’s Notes anymore.

do you like your name? is there another name you think would fit you better?

It’s taken like at least 14 years to learn to love my name. All the car jokes got real old beloved. I’m just happy my parents didn’t try to name me something like volkswagon.

do you think of yourself as a human being or a human doing? do you identify yourself by the things you do?

human being. yes, we do things, but we’re always being. you can do a whole bunch of things but that doesn’t mean anything if who you are inwardly doesn’t match.

are you religious/spiritual?

I’ll admit I sometimes do feel lost in the shuffle but I know there is something out there. Cause if there’s nothing out there? Yikes.

do you care about your ethnicity?

oh to be young, gifted, and black. I love being black y’all.

what musical artists have you most felt connected to over your lifetime?

I stated Ms. Tracy before, but Tracy Chapman is huge one. Beyonce because duh? (she said world stop, and we stopped). Oleta Adams. MC Lyte. Amel Larrieux. Stevie Nicks.

are you an artist?

I mean I’d like to think I am. Just ignore my the still white board on my easel and ignore the fact I keep sketching out Rihanna’s cupid’s bow in my notebook.

do you have a creed?

Real g’s move in silence but but keep their ears open. also, let yourself be taken over for the 99 and 00′s.

describe your ideal day.

There’s a beach and an umbrella and the sun is damn hot but the breeze blows ever couple minutes. I’ve got my book open and my music is playing but just low enough to hear kids laughing.

dog person or cat person?

Both. also hamsters.

inside or outdoors?

Depends on the time of year. Right now inside but the snow can be pretty to walk around in.

are you a musician?

I used to play piano a lot. But it’s been a smooth seven years since I’ve sat down and really played.

five most influential books, movies, tv shows, comics, over your lifetime.

girlfriends, over the cherry moon, sula, lemonade, making the band 2.

if you’d grown up in a different environment, do you think you’d have turned out the same?

Probably. Would’ve played the piano more that’s for sure. I mean somethings are nature but nurture plays a huge part.

would you say your social media is a fair representation of the “real you”?

I have several IGs for a reason.

what’s your patronus?

I’d want it to be something cool and majestic like an antelope, but let’s be real, it’s like a street cat. They survive anything. And have a shiny coat while doing it.

which Harry Potter house would you be in? or are you a muggle?

Ravenclaw but would definitely be smoking whatever is the equivalent of weed on the grounds cause some of them are way too intense.

would you rather be in Middle Earth, Narnia, Hogwarts, or somewhere else?

Hogwarts baby. Weekends guzzling butterbeer and the Yule Ball? All damn day.

do you love easily?

If you ask my exes you’d get a resounding no, but they still get my yearly Xmas cards don’t they?

list the top five things you spend the most time doing, in order.

1. listening to music 2. sleeping 3. browsing for new paints 4. ordering takeout 5. mouthing the words to my music very enthusiastically.

Honorary mentions include forgetting to hit people back, wanting some wine, and wanting to visit NYC for the weekend.

how often would you want to see your family every year?

Let’s be real everyone is trying to keep up with us. I wish I could some people more often though.

have you ever felt like you had a “mind-meld” with someone?

Me and Tina may fuss and fight, but she somehow always knows when to have fries ready for me whenever I come into the Double C and if that’s not twinning I don’t know what is. I had Rachel too but… it just hurts to think about it now. I thought I had it with someone else but… I think I read more into than what it is. And some people you just... always have a connection with.

could you live as a hermit?

A complete hermit? Not at all. I’m way too nosy and waiting for gossip sites to post new things would get real old real fast. Although I do get the appeal

how would you describe your gender/sexuality?

cis-lady and well ask me on a day someone loves me. a solid three on the kinsey scale.

do you feel like your outside appearance is a fair representation of the “real you”?

Brown eyes, might possibly smell like acrylic paint, kinda thick? It’s true and you should say it.

on a scale from 1 to 10, how hard is it for someone to get under your skin?

I’m a Leo take that as you will.

three songs that you connect with right now.

1. Poke Bowl- Radiant Children 2. UMI Says- Mos Def 3. Get Through- rum.gold

pick one of your favorite quotes.

“You wanna fly, you got to give up the shit that weighs you down.” - Toni Morrison

#cporttask01 #cporttask

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themagiciansreccenter · 6 years ago

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Five @ Five: @highkingmargooffillory

I like it when you sleep for you are so beautiful yet so unaware - MargoWicker

She looked so pretty even in a t-shirt with messed up hair. I gladly took the painkillers and took a moment to mentally calculate the equivalent in numbers of four shots of vodka. She reached around to take the tray off the nightstand and placed it on the bed between us. I noticed Eliot must have intervened when I saw the bowl of strawberries. I sarcastically pointed out “Aw babe you shouldn't have” as I plucked a berry from the bowl. Her smile in response matched the sun lighting up the room.

Shameless self-promo

I actually like this one because it’s long enough to not be a one shot.

The story follows Margo and Julia (switching pov) and the evolution of their love story at Brakebills in an alternate timeline. Just a heads up, it touches on eating disorders and obviously includes alcohol and sex. Also let me know if there’s anything you’d want to see in future chapters.

I follow rivers - frankie_31

She’s waiting for him today. She’s pulled a wrought iron lawn set under the shade of the willow trees and there’s a pitcher of lemonade and two glasses. She’s wearing her signature swathes of black and this time her head is bare. She has a thick coil of dark hair tied in a knot on top of her head.

This is a literal work of art. It’s an AU where Margo is a witch, Quentin an unassuming boy, and Eliot as a “familiar”. Without revealing too much, it has a mysterious and slightly uneasy vibe. It reminds me in a way of Beloved by Toni Morrison (especially if you’ve seen the movie).

The high king and the battle magician - EmberandShadow

Margo had noticed her around the castle, of course, she had been the one to offer her a place to stay in the first place. But she didn’t think she’d notice her the way she did. Margo was aware that she spied on the council meetings, that she wandered around the halls like some widower ghost in a gothic novel, and while that’s all well and good Margo doesn’t think it’s all that healthy.

This is a rare ship of Kady and Margo in Fillory. Its pretty cute and fluffy but a good read!

Kady is in fillory training to be a swordswoman and Margo is exerting her rule as High King. There is sex in it so yeah… Just a heads up.

Julia and Margo’s Story Went Like This - Lionessevalenti

"I..." Julia looked helplessly at Quentin. "I don't know what just happened."

He brought his shoulders up to his earlobes in a long, slow shrug. "I think you just got a girlfriend."

"She didn't even ask if I was into girls."

"Yeah, but... you are. And you're definitely into that one."

Oh Hooo Hoo. Let me tell you this one fucks me up good. Its very nicely written and details Julia and Margo’s relationships over time. There’s dresses and rose and cute shit. That’s all I’m saying.

Study Date - 9r7g5h

So why Margo of all people wanted to study with her, Alice really wasn't sure. Eliot she could have understood- he still believed her parents had given her private lessons and she was just holding out some amazing spell from the rest of the group. Quentin needed all the help he could get, Penny liked being near her because she could shut out her mind and the mind of others, and Kady just seemed to like the peaceful company. The rest of their little group that had somehow been thrown together in this interesting turn of fate, she could understand.

But not Margo.

This one is Alice and Margo’s love story which I think is my second favorite ship next to Julia and Margo. As I’m sure you can tell I’m into femslash. It’s very cute, sweet, and innocent so I would recommend it if you need a reprieve from any other sad stuff.

#five@five #author spotlight: highkingmargooffillory/margowicker #the magicians rec center

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8-bitgossip · 6 years ago

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Quotations

Ambient Conversations:

“I fucking hate mosquitos. Can we get away from all of this stagnant water before we die of West Nile or some shit?”

“You know, there’s a really good hiking trail around here. If you just turn here…. And we’re going the other way. Nevermind.”

“Gotta love the wilderness, the sun, the rivers, the lakes, the idea that there could be a Chosen archer hiding in the trees just waiting to murder us.”

“...Yeah. Heights. This’ll be fun. Not. Can we uh -- get down. Like. Now.”

“So. Have you ever thought about what’s gonna happen when all this is over? People don’t even have homes to go back to anymore and what? Are we gonna hold hands and sing kumbaya and pretend this all didn’t happen? Like fucking hell.”

When Deputy Points a Gun at Them:

“Ah. So this is what betrayal feels like. Gotta admit I’m hurt Deputy.”

“Et tu, Brute?”

Holland Valley:

“Ah. You can almost smell John Seed’s entitlement from here. Or… maybe that’s just his cologne. Eau de Asshole.”

“The Spread Eagle. Did you know that Girl’s Night has karaoke? You’ll have to ask Grace to sing Man! I Feel Like a Woman! by Shania Twain. It’s a blast.”

“Ah yes. Open fields, straight roads, the perfect place for snipers to shoot at us while I can’t shoot at them. Let’s get a move on.”

“...you think that the general store ever got my shipment of books in before shit went south? No?” *sighs* “And I was so looking forward to finishing the last of Toni Morrison’s body of work.”

“Gotta admit, even though I don’t remember it -- one baptism was more than enough for me; evidently I cried the whole time. My childhood priest wouldn’t be pleased with me converting to some crazed religious cult. Catholicism is cult enough for any one person.”

“You think we could convince some people to sneak speakers up by John’s house? And blast Oh John from their fucking radio station while he tries to sleep? It’ll be hilarious.”

After Being Captured By John:

1st Encounter: “Did you enjoy your dip in the bliss filled water? Was John everything you hoped for? Thank god for Pastor Jerome and getting you out of there before shit hit the fan.” 2nd Encounter: “God. John’s quite the drama queen isn’t he? Shouting for you over the loudspeakers, promising that God will lead him to you.” *snickers* “He’ll be sending you flowers and love poetry before you know it, Dep.” John’s Death: “Well, everyone in the Valley can breathe at least a little easier now… It’s just a damn shame about the lives lost in the process and all of the people displaced by the violence.”

Henbane River:

“Ah yes, just your good, old fashioned, brain melting hallucinogenic drugs that at the very least sends you on a bad trip and at worst, turns you into a fucking zombie. Just how I wanted to spend my Tuesday.”

“Oh good. I’ve been meaning to stop by and see Addie. I have to talk to her about the fucking alleged haunted house she sold me.”

“I swear officer! It wasn’t me! Don’t cart me off to jail!” *snickers*

“You know what fucking sucks the most about all of this? They blissed out all of the best swimming spots in the Henbane, so unless you want to get really high I don’t recommend it.”

“Do you have any idea how much I’d love to take a rocket launcher to that sanctimonious prick’s dick?” *pause* “On the statue, dumbass. Although… Now that I’m on the topic…”

“...Please tell me that you’re also seeing pink elephants and about a dozen Faith’s littering the sides of the roads. Oh god.”

After Being Captured By Faith:

1st Encounter: “You never take me anywhere nice, actually, I lied. Do not. I repeat. Do not. Take me skydiving off of that fucking statue. I will murder you.” 2nd Encounter: “Best be careful there Dep. The adrenaline can bring you back but… there’s always a cost. You gotta wonder what the cost of finding that Marshall and bringing him back is.” Faith’s Death: “It’ll take years for this place to get back to normal… All of that Bliss, in everything. It’s not just gonna go away, and we don’t even know the long term effects. What a fucking waste of life.”

Whitetail Mountains:

“I should stop by and see Will and Eli while we’re here… No one in that fucking Militia keeps themselves fed unless you bug them about it. Fully grown toddlers, I swear to god.”

“Guess I should be thankful that the Cult isn’t as concerned with book burning as other zealous religious groups -- I would storm the Veteran’s Center myself if Jacob tried to burn my books.”

“...Did you hear that howl? We should go. Before we end up as wolf chow. Or, we could stay and when the Judge’s come you stay there, and I’ll climb a tree and use you as a big, beautiful distraction.”

“So… You know that fucking eyesore of a Truck that Hurk Senior owns? A few months ago I dumped pink paint all over that shit. Hurk and Sharky thought it was funny… his daddy not so much. It was just detailed too. Such a shame, that.”

“For the record, if you’re planning on using helicopters to travel you can count me out, out of this county, out of this little group of yours, out of existence. There will be no heights for this woman in this or any lifetime.”

“Please tell me that you’re not actually going to get those records on the kid’s list. He has like, the WORST music taste. Literally give anyone else that job because I don’t know how much of What’s New Pussycat I can take.”

After Being Captured By Jacob:

1st Encounter: “Careful now, Dep. The mind is the one thing that’s really hard to un-fuck once you get it into a bad place so just… be careful. The reprogramming may not be so family friendly.” 2nd Encounter: “You ever think that people get tired of his whole, “I ate a man once”, shtick? Like. We get it, you’re the scary mountain gremlin who likes to murder people and train deadly wolves, we don’t need more than that.” Jacob’s Death: “...What happened was... unfortunate. But it’s over now. It’s all almost over.”

Intercompanion Dialog:

Nick

Nick: “Hey. So, Kim’s been meaning to ask you for that recipe you and Will brought to the last cookout.” Bridget: “The peach cobbler or the pudding shots?” Nick: “….Both. Definitely both. And make sure that you bring them both again next time. They were a lifesaver. Who the fuck brings pineapple pizza to a barbecue?” Bridget: “Evidently, the Seeds. As if we needed another reason to shoot them.” Nick: *laughs* “Right?” Bridget: “I’ll make sure to stop by the next time I have a chance, I’m sure that Kim would enjoy some new faces around.”

Grace

Bridget: “I managed to find a copy of Beloved for you if you’re still interested in reading it?” Grace: “Really? You found it before the Peggies lost their shit then?” Bridget: “Yeah, it was in the last shipment of books that came into the library before everything went post-apocalypse now.” Grace: “I’d love to read it, be nice to take my mind off of everything that’s going on.” Bridget: “Of course! I’ll bring it by 8Bit the next time we’re gonna meet up there for you to read. I promise you’ll love this one.” Grace: “You haven’t steered me wrong yet.”

Boomer

Bridget: “You know… I’ve always been more of a cat person myself….” Boomer: *whines* Bridget: “Don’t give me those --” *sighs* “Fine. Fine. You’re the only exception. Happy now?” Boomer: *happy bark*

Sharky

Sharky: “Hey so, Bridget. I have a question.” Bridget: “Hm?” Sharky: “Do you think that readin’ Shakespeare and Charles Dickens and shit would make me sound smarter?” Bridget: “Nope.” Sharky: “Seriously?” Bridget: “Sharky, it was like… the Simpsons of our times, people just like to act like it was smarter and better. Besides, you’re plenty smart by yourself and if anyone tells you different you can tell them to find me and I’ll beat the shit out of them with my twenty five pound Shakespeare anthology.” Sharky: *laughs* “Can and will do, ma’am.”

Adelaide:

Bridget: “So… About that haunted house you sold me…” Addy: “Ah, I was wondering when you’d figure that out -- technically no one’s ever died on the property and the hauntings are all just rumors that the town likes to tell.” Bridget: “It definitely explains why it was half of the price of every other house in Hope County.” Addy: “Darlin’ you always get what you pay for, and honestly, I think you and that man of yours got quite the steal on that place.” Bridget: “Uh-huh. Just know, that if I die, I have every intention of haunting you just so that you have to deal with those sort of shenanigans and whispers from the people in Fall’s End.” Addy: *laughs* “It’s a deal.”

Billy:

Billy: “So I say we just…” *inaudible whispering* Bridget: “Absolutely not! We are not going to panty raid the entirety of John Seed’s house and hang his silk underwear from his flag pole no matter how funny I think that is.” Billy: “Come on, think of the rage -- the pure unadulterated fury that he’ll have at seeing his glorious black silk boxers hanging from every available surface in the Valley.” Bridget: “Do not. It’s too fucking tempting.” Billy: “You know you want to.” Bridget: “You’re the absolute worst.” Billy: “That’s not a no.” Bridget: “Fuck you.”

Peaches:

Bridget: “Hey! You want some treats?” Peaches: *cougar noises* Bridget: “I talked to Chad and he gave me the scraps from the latest roadkill he’s gotten and I’ve saved it for my favorite kitty.” Peaches: *happy cougar noises* Bridget: “Yup! It’s all for the best murder machine in the Henbane.”

Hurk:

Hurk: “So you’re sure you’re not interested in Hurk’s Gate?” Bridget: “Nope. I’m pretty good where I’m at, plus, Jerome would be out a Youth Pastor if I did.” Hurk: “Well, I guess you could still stay with the Youth Pastoring thing, helping the youth and all of that is important, plus you could start recruiting them to Hurk’s Gate.” Bridget: “Still gonna pass.” Hurk: “Huh. Gonna have to do the hard sell on you, huh? Well, what if I told you that there are tons of beautiful men and women who are --” Bridget: “Hurk, I’m gonna stop you right there. My grandmother was Irish Catholic, were I to convert to anything she’d come down from heaven just to beat the ever living shit out of me.” Hurk: “Respecting the wishes of your grandma I can get that. Yeah.”

Jess:

Jess: “Hey, thanks for letting me crash with you and Will for the last few months, it’s been… a lifesaver. Really.” Bridget: “We know how hard it’s been, I’m glad to see you getting back on your feet… Well, as back on your feet as you can get given the circumstances.” Jess: “It’s crazy, all this shit goin’ south with the Peggie’s is what it’s taken for me to get my life back in order… It’s almost surreal.” Bridget: “Well, if you ever need us, our door is open and the spare bedroom is yours.” Jess: “Thank you, Bridget.’

Ashlee:

Bridget: “So. When all of this is over, we’re having a party. A big one.” Ashlee: “Obviously.” Bridget: “My first thought is at the lake, but then I’m like, “but wait, we live in the middle of nowhere, our only sources of entertainment are drinking and shooting things” which means that I’d spend my time worrying about people accidentally ending up in the water and drowning.” Ashlee: “A fair point, but may I just say that they’re all fucking adults and should know better. We’ll grab some trucks to put along the waterfront to play music and block the way into the water and then people will have to think to get in.” Bridget: “An excellent idea. This is why I keep you around.” Ashlee: “And here I thought it was because I was attractive and intelligent company.” Bridget: “Always. Heart emoji” Ashlee: “Did you just---” Bridget: “Don’t.”

Cheeseburger:

Bridget: “Cheeseburger!” Cheeseburger: *bear noises* Bridget: “You know, every time we’re out here, I’m always surprised that the deputy hasn’t had a saddle made to ride you into battle like the majestic beast you are.” Cheeseburger: *bear noises*

#far cry 5 #guns for hire #guns for hire oc #bc: proud to be a librarian

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theraistlinmajere · 6 years ago

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THE “”GOTHIC”” REC LIST

Edited for my own use.

LET’S START WITH THE GATEWAY DRUG BOOK

1. Flowers in the Attic (VC Andrews): Published in 1979 and technically considered contemporary Gothic. The style closely resembles a lot of “original” Gothic fiction I’ve read, but the themes, story arc and style are distinctly contemporary and very psychological. Gets a bad rap because it’s over the top insane and averagely written (which most Gothic is, tbh). Flowers is light reading, and I think it’s a good gateway drug into heavier Gothic. Has several sequels but stands alone as well. I wish I could call this Victorian-inspired Gothic but honestly it’s just knockoff Victorian in a contemporary setting. If you don’t enjoy this book, it probably means you don’t like the over the top insanity and average writing. Skip it if you like!

1.5. But if you do like it, I hear My Sweet Audrina is pretty good. All of VC Andrews and her ghostwriters are like a hellhole people sometimes don’t escape tbh it’s a raging aesthetic disaster down there.

Note: I have a strong suspicion that “contemporary” Gothic published between 1965 and 1989 will eventually have its own movement name; you will see a decent amount of it on this list.

THE VICTORIAN GOTHIC PART OF THE LIST Most of these are available for free online due to copyright law being born late or whatever. 2. Carmilla (Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu): Considered the first English vampire story (Germans invented the European vampire allegedly), and published in 187…9? 1871? Something like that. A novella. Arguably a same-sex romance (VERY arguably), but can also be read as a close friendship. The writing is good, but not the absolute greatest I’ve ever read. The real strong point here is the imagery and the dawn of the English vampire. Great Halloween read; I read it almost every autumn. 3. “The Trifecta,” according to Gothic fans: Dracula (Bram Stoker), Frankenstein (Shelley), and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Swift & Stevenson): First mainstream vampire, original English monster movie fuel, and the dawn of psychological fiction. Shelley’s the best writer out of all of them but she’s a Romantic and I’m sort of biased against Romantics. She’s a precursor to true Victorian Gothic. Dracula is still one of the creepiest books I’ve ever read and it’s the only one in the trifecta I really really love (and finished).

Note: If, by any chance, you find yourself seriously obsessed with vampires at any point in time, please consult me for an extended list of vampire fiction because I have a shit-ton of it in my reading history and left most of it out so vampires wouldn’t clutter this list lmao.

4. Edgar Allan Poe, Completed Works. The Cask of Amontillado, The Masque of the Red Death, The Pit and the Pendulum, and The Tell-Tale Heart are all notable. His poetry is lovely–Annabelle Lee and The Raven are most culturally significant. Just solid and wonderful work that I like a lot but haven’t explored in a lot of detail. Will appeal to your interest in darkness imagery.

5. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories (Washington Irving): QUINTESSENTIAL HALLOWEEN READING. SPOOPY. WONDERFUL. I truly love this anthology. Will also appeal to your interest in darkness as a concept and a physical thing. 6. Nightmare Abbey (Thomas Love Peacock): an 1818 novel that makes fun of the Victorian Gothic movement. Hilarious, contains all the typical Victorian Gothic tropes and has the added benefit of actually falling into the Victorian Gothic movement ironically. Usually comes packaged with another novel called Crotchet Castle which is similar. 7. If, somehow, you haven’t had it with Victorian Gothic yet (and I got to this point, it happens, Victorian Gothic is a slippery slope)… Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (Susanna Clarke): A really bizarre story behind how this was published, at least it is to me. Published in 2004, Over 10 years in the making and is written in the Victorian Gothic style but with a quirky and modern twist. The writer takes a page out of contemporary social commentary and includes pages-long footnotes, heads up (they’re funny and entertaining though). HUGE. You could kill a man with this volume. Excellent writing; I’m halfway through. I hear there’s time travel (?) and there are about ten thousand characters. Neil Gaiman is a fan. 8. The Phantom of the Opera (Gaston Leroux) is not technically Victorian (Technically Edwardian? Also French; I’m not familiar with French literary eras) but of course it has a huge following. I’ve read a little so far; I like the style and I think it’s culturally significant. You might want to read this because it’s heavily inspired by a French opera house, the Palais Garnier in Paris. Amber tells me she read literature in French to help sharpen her skills in the language; you may consider picking up an un-translated version of this? A BRIEF INTERLUDE FOR MORE CONTEMPORARY 9. Interview with the Vampire (Anne Rice): One of my favorite books of all time! Possibly the dawn of the romanticized vampire. Falls into that 70s contemporary Gothic bracket and is pretty amazingly written, but markedly more angst-ridden than anything else on the list (save for maybe Flowers). Lots of “what is evil?” and “what does immortality imply?” type speculation. Also gets a bad rap because Anne Rice made it big and haters are rife tbh it’s a very solidly built book in my opinion (BUT SUPER EMOTIONAL VAMPIRES). If you like this, continue with The Vampire Chronicles (The Vampire Lestat, Queen of the Damned, Prince Lestat, and about 8 others in between that concern minor characters). Lestat is one of my favorite fictional characters of all time. 10. Coraline (Neil Gaiman): Quick, cute, I found myself actually afraid for a little while despite the audience being middle grade readers?? I enjoyed it. The only Neil Gaiman on the list because his other work doesn’t impress me very much. 11. The Spiderwick Chronicles (Holly Black and Tony Diterlizzi): More middle-grade creepy aesthetic stuff. Cute modern fantasy stories, five volumes. I can read these books at twenty years old and still enjoy them (like Coraline)! The only good thing Holly Black has ever produced, in my opinion, though many people like her and her ~aesthetic.

11.5. Should you find yourself in the mood for more quick middle-grade aesthetic-y stuff, Pure Dead Magic (Debi Gliori) is really an adorable book with two sequels. Victorian Gothic tropes such as the creepy mansion, creatures in the dungeon, family drama, and Weird Newcomers are all present, but it’s set in modern times. One of the main characters is a hacker. Addams family-esque.

THE SURREAL-ISH FICTION PART OF THE LIST

Not true surreal fiction; these are contemporary surreal-inspired works. 12. The Bloody Chamber (Angela Carter): An anthology of short stories which retell fairy tales. Falls into the contemporary surrealism movement and is not traditionally considered Gothic, but this is definitely your aesthetic. Very quick read, very vivid imagery, lots of second-wave feminism and some brief eating disorder symbolism. Carter was a phenomenal writer! My favorite story is “The Lady of the House of Love"

12.5 (Just as a reminder since I’ve mentioned these) See also: Nights at the Circus (Carter) and Mechanique: A tale of the Circus Tresaulti (Valentine) for your interest in circus books!

13. The Palace of Curiosities (Rosie Garland), which I also rec’d before. Similar style to Chamber, similar themes. Both beautiful books. 14. Deathless (Catherynne Valente): Oh, Deathless. Technically contemporary lit, but hails to Russian Gothic (one of the earlier Gothic movements which I haven’t read much of). Retelling of about a million Russian folk tales. I could go on about this book for a thousand years. Stylistically similar to The Bloody Chamber as well, but far more poetic. (Very) structurally inferior to every other book on this list, but so heart-wrenchingly romantic you won’t notice or care on the first read. Visually breathtaking, absolutely the closest thing to death and the maiden imagery I’ve found in fiction. I’m fairly confident you’ll appreciate this one! Might as well read it to test my theory!! There’s controversy surrounding the fact that the writer is not Russian–something to be aware of. 15. The Enchanted (Rene Denfeld): TREAD WITH CAUTION. This is contemporary literary fiction (not Gothic) written from the pov of a death row inmate. Nominated for approximately a billion awards in 2014 (and won a few); high caliber of writing. Incredibly visceral, horrific, psychological imagery that was too much for me, though I still liked it. Short but dense–I had to take a two-day break to ward off the anxiety it caused. But you are darker~ than I so you might like it more!

THE SOUTHERN GOTHIC PART OF THE LIST 16. Beloved (Toni Morrison): Contemporary Southern Gothic. Incredibly creepy imagery, explores the connection between women’s issues and racial issues. Uses abortion and slavery as metaphors for each other. Gracefully written, but Southern Gothic (even contemporary) tends to be textually dense so it’s something to really think about as you read. 17. As I Lay Dying (Faulkner): “True” Southern Gothic. DENSE AS HELL but I think Beloved is a good precursor to Faulkner. A lot of almost comedic family drama, similar to Flowers in that sense, but very srs bsns nonetheless.

17.5. Basically all of Faulkner is considered Southern Gothic. He’s the father of Southern Gothic. If you enjoy this, you might also like Absalom! Absalom! and other such works. I loved As I Lay Dying but it’s possibly his easiest read, and while I love a good challenge I haven’t stepped up to this one yet.

Note: I use reading guides for all my classical works and Shakespeare, and I think there are good ones for Faulkner too, so that might be something to look into if you wanna vanish into this hell lol.

AN ADDENDUM: OTHER WRITERS

HP Lovecraft: Father of horror or whatever. Awful writer–anyone will agree. The guy had no command of language, but he’s known for over-the-top horror imagery that people really enjoy. Honestly I hate his writing so I haven’t bothered with much of it.

Oscar Wilde: If, by this point, you still want more Victorian-era writing, Wilde is here for you. Lots of social commentary, wrote basically one piece in the Gothic style (Chapter 16 of The Picture of Dorian Gray, my favorite novel), snarky as hell, incredibly gifted writer.

Neil Gaiman: Modern surreal in my opinion, sometimes called modern Gothic, well-loved and writes creepy things. I think he’s average because I’ve read too much Murakami (who does “modern surreal” way, way better) but many people really love him.

THE BLACKLIST Knockoff Gothic/Gothic themed things to avoid. I apologize if you like any of these okay ._.

The Grisha Trilogy (Leigh Bardugo): Contemporary YA, tries to be Russian Gothic and fails. Stick to Deathless. This book makes a mockery of Russian culture whereas at least Valente exhaustively researched her novel. Also doesn’t do romance very well.

The Night Circus (Morgenstern): What the hell is this book, tbh. 400 pages of obtuse and cliched imagery which you don’t have time for in your life. No plot. Two-dimensional characters, bad writing.

Those Across The River (Christopher Buehlman): Terrible. Just terrible.

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pip-n-flinx · 5 years ago

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I too had an awesome english teacher freshman and senior year of highschool!

First day of class, he explains how he wants papers formatted and laid out in his class. Then he assigns us a paper. Not a literary analysis paper, oh no. "Write about the American Dream." Whose American Dream? Is it universal? Shall we talk about it generation by generation? Is it dead? "I will not answer," he said "write about the American Dream."

I failed. Horribly. But I learned. I learned construction, organization, perspective, and the importance of multiple edits. And I learned fast.

Margaret Atwoods A Handmaids Tale was easily the hardest read of freshman year english for me. About a week in, Troy set up the board to have three columns. Enjoying, On-The-Fence, Striggling. He asked each of us in turn to place ourselves on the board. When it came my turn, I wrote my name under "Enjoying." I was the only one. He stopped as I returned to my seat. "Alright Gordon. I have to ask: why?"

Perhaps he expected some trite teachers pet answer, but I was young and stupid and thought myself oh-so-interesting. I told him it painted the church in the manner I had always regarded it anyways. He blinked. The class was aghast. But he breezed onwards like it was only natural and saved me weeks of ostricization at lunch by simply barreling ever onwards.

We read other books that challenged me, though the short stories unit was easily the most grueling for me. Our final project was to write and perform a poem for the class, after interviewing three people of different ages.

AND he offered us an extension per semester. One assignment where you could have an extra time to work on it, no questions asked. Only caveat? You had to tell him the day before it was due. Big game tonight, and your paper isnt ready for tomorrow? Cool.

This was extremely relevant given you never had more than 3 days notice to write your papers. Most were due two days after they were assigned at the end of the reading. Citation mistakes? 10% lost for each one. I learned MLA the way a fish learns to breathe water. I can still do it for most publications some 11 years later.

Senior year the lit got more challenging. AP World Lit was brutal and challenging for me. We started off with Dante's Inferno. I am... not nearly Caothlic enough for that shit. 100 Years of Solitute? The God of Small Things? Crime and Punishment? Toni Morrison's Beloved? Those are NOT easy reads. But he was brilliant at letting the students lead discussions.

When the paper for 100 Years of Solitude rolled around, me thesis statement read: "Music is the harbinger of concupiscence...."

Troy came back to me the day after I turned my paper in. He looked at me. Long. Uncomfortable. And for the second time told me "I've taught this book for over a decade, and I have never seen a paper on this before." But no, thats not what blew me away. He admitted to having to look up concupiscence. And I grant its a big, beautiful, and in most contexts unnecessary word for "lust." But I never for a minute thought I would stump the man. And he admitted it.

I had a teacher who could let his students lead. Who knew how to redirect after horribly awkward moments. Who would happily talk about the male writers fascination with phallic imagery. Who knew his students would all need a each semester. Who made me work for every grade I had. And who could admit when he was wrong.

I haven't met a teacher to rival him since. Not in punlic or private college. I probably didnt do him justice here, but yeah. I miss that class

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loosejournal · 6 years ago

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Dwight Garner’s favorite quotations

For nearly four decades I’ve kept what is known as a commonplace book – a bound notebook, and later a long computer file, passed from desktops (1990s) to laptops (2000s) to my cell phone, into which I’ve poured verbal delicacies, “blasts of a trumpet”, as Emerson put it, and bits of scavenged wisdom from my life as a reader. Yea, for I am an underliner, a destroyer of books, and maybe you are, too. Commonplace books are not so uncommon. John Locke kept one, as did Virginia Woolf. W. H. Auden published his, as did the poet J. D. McClatchy. E. M. Forster’s was issued after his death. The novelist David Markson wrote terse and enveloping novels that resembled commonplace books in many regards; they were bird’s nests of facts threaded with the author’s own subtle interjections. For fans of the commonplace book genre, many prize examples have come from lesser-known figures like Geoffrey Madan and Samuel Rogers, both English, who produced books that are notably witty and illuminating. These have become cult items. Christopher Ricks noted about Rogers that, although he may not have been an especially kind man, “he was very good at hearing what was said”.

I use my own commonplace book as an aide-mémoire, a kind of external hard drive. Reading it is a way of warding off what Christopher Hitchens, quoting a friend, called CRAFT (Can’t Remember a Fucking Thing) syndrome. I use my gleanings in my own writing. Like Montaigne, I quote others “in order to better express myself”. Montaignecompared quoting well to arranging other people’s flowers. Sometimes, I sense, I quote too often, swinging on them in my writing as if from vine to vine. It’s one of the curses of spending a lifetime as a word-eater, and of retaining, so far, a semi-reliable memory.

I am no special fan of most books of quotations. Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations, the Yale Book of Quotations and the New Penguin Dictionary of Modern Quotations, to name three dependable reference books, have their uses, for sure. They are sturdy repositories of literary and verbal history. (Countless other books of quotations aren’t reliable at all.) But even the best contain a good deal of dead weight. They lean, sometimes necessarily, on canned and overused thought and, more grievously, are skewed to the upbeat. So many of the lines they contain seem to vie to be stitched on throw pillows or ladled, like chicken soup, on the credulous soul. “Almost all poetry is a failure”, Charles Bukowski contended, “because it sounds like somebody saying, Look, I have written a poem.” The same is true of quotations and aphorisms; too many have a taxidermied air, as if they were self-consciously aimed at posterity.

This small slice of the material I’ve hoarded is a sliver of a much larger book project, one that will break with the conventions of commonplace books and volumes of quotations by organizing quotes by feel rather than by category. There are few life lessons except by accident. I must add that I do not agree with everything that is said: retweet does not, as they say on Twitter, necessarily equal endorsement.

-----

(small selection)

“It’s only words, unless they’re true.” – David Mamet, Speed-the-Plow

“Why are you all reading? I don’t understand this reading business when there is so much fucking to be done.” – Sheila Heti, How Should a Person Be?

“Better a good venereal disease than a moribund peace and quiet.” – Henry Miller, Quiet Days in Clichy

“Everything that is true is inappropriate.” – Oscar Wilde

“Everyone nodded, nobody agreed..” – Ian McEwan, Amsterdam

“Let’s, as if sore, grab a few things from the flood.” – A. R. Ammons, Complete Poems

“Fragments, indeed. As if there were anything to break.” – Don Paterson, Best Thought, Worst Thought

“He licked his lips. ‘Well, if you want my opinion–’ ‘I don’t,’ she said. ‘I have my own.’ –Toni Morrison, Beloved

“Love poems must be bounced back off a moon.” – Robert Graves, Paris Review interview

“See the moon? It hates us.” – Donald Barthelme, Sixty Stories

“You know where the Beatles got that shit from. You know that’s our shit they fucking up like that.” – Albert Murray, South to a Very Old Place

“How come the Beatles never got busted for statutory rape – because they’re white?” – Eve Babitz, Eve’s Hollywood

“I hope you don’t mind, I’m from the South. We’re touchers.” – Charlie Rose, attributed

“Mick Jagger should fold up his penis and go home.” – Robert Christgau, Village Voice

“Somehow he knew, based on very little experience, that this faux-casualshit spelled money.” – Tom Wolfe, Bonfire of the Vanities

“Being rich is about acting, too, isn’t it? A style, a pose, an interpretation that you force upon the world.” – Martin Amis, Money

“If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to.” – Dorothy Parker

“Oh, fuck, not another elf.” – Hugo Dyson, as J.R.R. Tolkien read aloud an early draft of The Lord of the Rings

“I am putting a mental jigsaw together of what a hobbit looks like, based on a composite of every customer I have ever sold a copy to.” – Shaun Bythell, Diary of a Bookseller

“You put your finger in it, and go swish, swish, swish.” – Jane Jacobs, on how to make a West Village martini

“Wasn’t the whole 20th century a victory lap of collage, quotation, appropriation, from Picasso to Dada to Pop?” – Jonathan Lethem, The Ecstasy of Influence

“I suddenly began to realize that everybody in America is a natural-born thief.” – Jack Kerouac, On the Road

“The not paying for things is intoxicating.” – Philip Roth, American Pastoral

“I don’t trust anybody who hasn’t shoplifted.” – John Waters

“Cleanliness might not be next to godliness but it is certainly adjacent to horniness.” – Geoff Dyer, on hotels, in Otherwise Known as the Human Condition

“The assumptions a hotel makes about you! All those towels.” – Stanley Elkin, The Dick Gibson Show

“The meat around my skull can’t stop smiling.” – Catherine Lacey, The Answers

“Let’s have some new clichés.” – Sam Goldwyn

“I need some new attitudes, some new affirmations and denials.” – Lionel Trilling, letter

“Good-bye, and I don’t mean au revoir.” – Christopher Ricks

“Of course it’s all right for librarians to smell of drink.” – Barbara Pym, Less Than Angels

“Edward worried about his drinking. Would there be enough gin? Enough ice?” – Donald Barthelme, Flying to America

“I have no enemies. But my friends don’t like me.” – Philip Larkin

“There was obviously nothing to recommend me to anyone.” – Deborah Levy, Hot Milk

“I have always disliked myself at any given moment; the total of such moments is my life.” – Cyril Connolly, Enemies of Promise

“Talk into my bullet hole. Tell me I’m fine.” – Denis Johnson, Jesus’ Son

“Every time he played a note he waved it goodbye. Some times he didn’t even wave.” – Geoff Dyer on Chet Baker, But Beautiful

“Let us reflect whether there be any living writer whose silence we would consider a literary disaster.” – Cyril Connolly, The Unquiet Grave

“If we did get a writer worth reading, should we know him when we saw him, so choked as we are with trash?” – George Orwell, Keep the Aspidistra Flying

“Book publishing should be done by failed writers who recognize the real thing when they see it.” – Robert Giroux, Paris Review interview

“Books are, let’s face it, better than everything else.” – Nick Hornby, Ten Years in the Tub

“Revenge is the capitalism of the poor.” – Aravind Adiga, Selection Day

“It makes an immigrant laugh to hear the fears of the nationalist, scared of infection, penetration, miscegenation, when this is small fry, peanuts, compared to what the immigrant fears – dissolution, disappearance.” – Zadie Smith, White Teeth

“The face of ‘evil’ is always the face of total need.” – William S. Burroughs, preface to Naked Lunch

“In our deepest moments we say the most inadequate things.” – Edna O’Brien, The Love Object

“How desperate do you have to be to start doing push-ups to solve your problems?” – Karl Ove Knausgaard, My Struggle: Book Two

“The primary object of a student of literature is to be delighted.” – Lord David Cecil

TLS, 2018

#quotes #dwight garner #commonplace book

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aion-rsa · 6 years ago

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Batman Hunts the KGBeast

https://ift.tt/2xOVjky

In this exclusive preview of Batman #56, The Dark Knight takes on his deadliest foe: election interference. Lol/jk he's an assassin.

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News Jim Dandy

Batman

Oct 1, 2018

DC Entertainment

I'm not one to get excited for solicitations, but when DC sent over this exclusive first look at the next issue of Tom King's Batman, the solicit text took me on a bit of a roller coaster ride.

See for yourself...

BATMAN #56 written by TOM KING art by TONY S. DANIEL enhanced foil cover art by TONY S. DANIEL variant cover by FRANCESCO MATTINA The Dark Knight’s looking to drop both the hammer and sickle on the KGBeast, whose rampage across Gotham City takes a toll on Nightwing when he’s injured in the fray. Blaming himself for his ward’s fate, Batman gets grimmer than usual—and vows to take the Russian assassin down like the Berlin Wall. Is even Gotham City ready for that much violence? The streets will run red like borscht if the Dark Knight gets his way against this Soviet scourge.

Let me take you on the ride I went on.

1. "Oh shit, the KGBeast! Hell yes, I'm in for this." Every time the KGBeast shows up in a Batman comic, it's at a bare minimum a ridiculous amount of fun. The most recent was I think in All-Star Batman, Scott Snyder's intro to the absurd and beloved Metal, where he was hunting Batman along with the rest of the world.

2. "Whoa, Tony Daniel is at a whole new level." Look at these pages! This is a far cry from the "slightly more dynamic David Finch" that we got back when he was working with Grant Morrison during Batman: RIP. The faces are more cartoony and exaggerated while still retaining Daniel's usual thickness and density in his figures. It's almost like he's taking his cues from Greg Capullo, or aiming for Jim Lee-drawing-high-school-manga. And man it is great to read.

3. "Wait shit that was KGBeast?" It's my fault really, that I didn't read Batman #55 closely enough. I assumed the one-handed man who came into Gotham and shot Nightwing in the head was just a random mob/supercriminal assassin. Not THE one-handed mob/supercriminal assassin. Seriously, his appearance in the last issue was so subtle and understated that this was one of the best surprises I've had in comics in a while.

Take a look...

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from Books https://ift.tt/2y0VoRj

#aion-rsa #Books

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mementotori · 8 years ago

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Path of the Grey: Chapter 6

Oh hey yeah there’s more NSFW at some point

@mad-mod, @ineffablewitch

"Sweet, crazy conversations full of half sentences, daydreams and misunderstandings more thrilling than understanding could ever be." ― Toni Morrison, Beloved

9:28 Dragon

"This is stupid, Eshne."

"Shut up, Jowan, this is genius, have I ever steered you wrong?"

Jowan looked down the stairs, watching Eshne settle herself on a templar's shield. He peered down, wondering why he let a girl not only younger than him but also half his size talk him into these stupid stunts. When he saw the flash in her eye, he remembered.

"I don't know, Esh. Last time we crashed into a bookcase." Jowan's eyes went wide.

Eshne scoffed, wiping the sweat from her freckled forehead, "I've fixed the position, we'll make it this time."

"Oh, Maker."

"Your Maker has nothing to do with my genius, Jowan. Now get on."

Reluctantly, Jowan sat behind her, both barely fitting on the shield, but Eshne was small enough. Eshne put her hand on the stairs, ice started to form over the stone, making a slippery slide.

"Three, two, one," Eshne counted down, "Send off!" She pushed off the first step.

Jowan screamed behind her as they slipped down the stairs into the library on the shield. Eshne cackled wildly as they descended down the iced steps.

They reached the bottom and kept sliding. Eshne kept laughing, adrenaline pumping as they made it into the main part of the library. The shield finally came to a stop right in front of a pair of students who had been reading. Jowan fell over, not blinking. Eshne kept laughing, her cackles were almost shrieks.

"I hate you." Jowan whispered.

"Do not." Eshne stood up, picking up the shield, "I think I can get us to go further."

Jowan groaned, slowly sitting up, "You're lucky it's your birthday."

She handed him the shield, fixing her always braided hair.

"And hello to you too, Eshne." One of the students said, setting her book down, "I rate this one about a seven."

"Seven!" Eshne put her hands on her hips, "Holy shit, Nani, give me some credit. I learned the frost spells for this. Took me months!"

Nani flashed a smile, "I'm kidding it was awesome." She stood up, "Let's get some extra ice on the shield this time, I think it will slide better."

"You genius you." Eshne kissed her cheek.

"Defacement of Chantry property I see?"

The three of them looked up to see Greagoir, he was frowning and crossing his arms. Behind him was the First Enchanter, Redd, Wynne, and another templar they didn't recognized.

Redd saw Nani and prepared himself.

"Oh no, ser. Jowan and I were simply returning this, we have no idea where it came from. I was studying. That's what us mages do." Eshne smiled even wider.

"My dear, ser," Nani began, "How could you think that this sweet child would ever go against the laws of our beloved Chantry?" She put her arm around Eshne, "My sister and I, as you know, are devout Andrastians, and would flaw ourselves if we knew we had insulted the Chantry in such a way."

Eshne nodded in agreement, "Devout as she said."

Redd stifled a laugh.

Wynne rolled her eyes, "Eshne Surana, you will return the shield."

"What are you talking about return, I never claimed it in the first place." Eshne grabbed the shield from Jowan, then handed it to Greagoir.

"Just doing our Andrastian duty, ser." Nani added.

"Maker preserve me…" Greagoir sighed, "I suppose it is the Makers will that I should see you two today." He looked to the three mages, "You are aware that the Templar whom you had originally been a charge under is retiring," Greagoir sighed, "This is Ser Cullen Rutherford. He's going to be the Templar watching you from now on, Maker help him." He whispered the last part.

Ser Cullen gave a nod towards Nani, and when he saw Eshne he blushed under his helmet, "I look forward t-to m-making your a-acquaintance, M-Miss Surana." He extended his hand to her.

Jowan suppressed a laugh under a cough.

"Awesome," Nani held her chest, "I was so worried for my own safety. Thank you so much, Knight-Commander." Her words laced with sarcasm.

Redd cleared his throat, "I trust he will be more than up to the task of watching his charges Greagoir." He chuckled, "Even if they are a handful." He eyed his daughters.

Greagoir scoffed, marching back in the direction of the Templar barracks. Irving chuckled, shaking his head before he went off for his study.

"Eshne," Wynne began, "I would suggest you unfreeze the steps." She raised her brow.

"That is such a good suggestion, mammae. I'm so glad you thought of that." Eshne ran to do just as she was asked, skipping back to Wynne.

"I'll see you tomorrow morning for your studies." Wynne smirked, receiving a kiss on the cheek before she too left.

"So," Eshne began, rocking on her heels, "You're the unlucky Templar who was placed to lord over my every move."

Cullen removed his helmet, still blushing as he scratched the back of his head, "W-well I wouldn't want to m-make you un-uncomfortable, Miss Surana."

Eshne scoffed, but couldn't form a word when she looked up at him

"Oh." Eshne nodded, her eyes locking with his, her posture softening into a slight slouch as she crossed her arms.

Nani gave her a slight nudge.

"Well, that's, that's good," Eshne sputtered out, "A good, quality in a Templar, good Ser."

"What?" Jowan started laughing, but was cut short by a pinch on his arm.

"Right," Cullen blushed, "I'm sure I'll see you again soon, Miss Surana."

"Yeah that sounds, awesome." Eshne snorted.

Eshne couldn't help but stare at the Templars behind as he walked away, presumably trying to find Greagoir.

"Sweet Maker." She said to herself.

"You don't believe in the Maker." Jowan sneered.

"If that's what he gifts to the world I'll strip naked and dance the remigold for the big man." Eshne swooned.

"Please tell me you're joking, Esh." Jowan made a disgusted face, "You have a crush on the one person who is supposed to watch over our every move."

"Jowan," Eshne turned to him, patting his shoulder, "My poor sweet Jowan. They don't make men like that everyday."

"What about me?" Jowan laughed.

"You're someone's type, Jowan," Eshne smiled, "Just not mine.

Jowan ruffled her hair and she smacked his arm.

She looked back up at him, fixing her hair again while Nani cackled.

"Let's find another shield."

Nani snuck into the library late that night. She left the mage's quarters when Cullen hadn't been looking. He was so easy to fool.

She snickered.

Nani fixed her hair, making sure the front braids were pulled taught. Her hair was relatively straight anyways, she just wanted to look somewhat presentable. She pushed one side of her hair back behind her ear, a little white sliver of a scar at the tip of her ear the only living memory of her life in the Wilds.

Someone came up behind her, sliding their hands over Nani's hips.

Nani turned around, "Niall, don't be fresh."

Niall smiled and kissed her, "I had to take the opportunity before your father saw."

"He's in the barracks."

"Really?"

"Really really."

Niall lifting Nani's chin gently and he kissed her again.

"You look beautiful." He said.

"I know." Nani raised her brow.

She ran her finger over his chest, "The apprentices are all in the barracks now."

"Whatever are we mages to do?" Niall said, taking Nani's hand and placed delicate kisses over her palm and up her arm.

When he reached her neck Nani let out a moan and pushed him to a hidden corner behind one of the bookshelves.

Niall lifted her up by her thick hips, holding her to the wall. Nani pulled up her robes. She closed her eyes, feeling Nial work his fingers into her smallclothes, his other hand supporting her butt. She tried her best to keep quiet, not wanting any templar to hear them, but it was so hard when her entire body was ready to surrender to Niall's touch.

A wave of excitement ran through them, the potentiality of getting caught gave Nani a rush. Niall lifted up his robes to put his condom on, then making sure Nani was comfortable and wet enough.

He watched Nani's face as he slowly went into her, her lips parting. Her legs tightened around his waist, and her nails dug into his back.

He knew she wanted him to go faster, but he couldn't help but indulge in the carnal pleasure, seeing her writhe with each thrust.

Niall kept fucking her, his finger circling around her clit, just how he knew she liked it. He felt her tightening around his dick, knowing she was close to orgasm. His fingers kept at it.

The closer she came to orgasm Nani felt it harder to keep quiet. She let out a small moan. Niall smiled and shushed her, playfully nipping at her jaw. A long wave of pleasure ran through Nani, and Niall could feel that she had had her fill.

He buried his face in her clothed breasts, finally releasing himself. He wished desperately that he could properly look at her whole naked body instead of these quick sessions around the tower. He set Nani down, kissing her plum colored lips.

"They're finally moving me up to the mage's quarters," Nani said, lowering her robes, "Maybe we can get some time alone then?"

"Whatever you wish, my darling." Niall kissed her forehead.

He watched her walk away, glancing at her butt, thinking himself to be a very lucky man indeed.

#dragon age fanfiction #dao #Path of the Grey #Surana #Eshne Surana #fire crackles in her hands as the flames flicker at her feet #Nani Surana #the woman with blood on her fists and lightning in her eyes

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