#encyclopedia of spirits

[marcellreign]

The end of the spell reads:

“And the knowledgeable will understand.”

Excerpt From: Encyclopedia of Spirits, Judika Illes

[letswonderspirit]

I borrowed a ghost hunting kit from my local library today 8^]

[space-blue]

Avatar Lore Dumps — Visual Encyclopedia

So, I hurt my ankle, but a friend and fellow avatar lover went to the bookshop today and very kindly took pictures of everything. It's wonky but readable, and she was being so kind I wasn't about to ask for reshoots. Any of you want the lore from the encyclopedia for your fics, have at it! It'll do until a real rip comes out.

Metkayina, Omatikaya, Miscel.

[errorwarblesrr]

I was looking through old Wind Waker interviews and tossing them into Google translate (unfortunately it's the best I have </3) I kind of found this bit interesting

I guess I find it interesting because I feel like I see people describe Wind Waker as the opposite. Where it's a zelda world, but the main character isn't actually Link but happens to be a random guy. Here, Aonuma describes it as a non zelda world, but the main character happens to be Link.

Idk the translation could be wonky since well it is google translate so here's that original Japanese bit

[woodsteingirl]

i loveeeeeee researching stuff i already have done one million research into. like hiiii girlie (<- woman who is writing this thesis I’m reading) i know that book omg we are looking at the same sources omg…

[archivist-dragonfly]

Book 430

The Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Spirts, third edition

Rosemary Ellen Guiley

Checkmark Books 2007

This is a surprisingly useful book to me. It’s just about the only book I have that has post-its in it to mark certain entries. It has particularly good summations of specific hauntings and ghosts. For example: the late 19th century Amherst Haunting, or the Chaffin Will Case from the early 20th century, or the well-documented 1977 Enfield Poltergeist. With over 600 entries, on everything from haunted places to famous mediums, this is an excellent reference.

[variouscolors-old]

[tag dumpmon • page 2]

[← main menu + main tags]

[amanda-kinda-reads]

The Element Encyclopedia of Ghosts & Hauntings by Theresa Cheung ★★★★

Finished earlier this year but I had to take a break from this book halfway because it was a lot of info and I was getting burnt out and kinda bored 😅

But it was a good and learned quite a bit 😊

[ozzgin]

Yandere! Sea Monster x Reader

In the spirit of Mermay, I come to you with a slightly different approach: an octopus hybrid, dwelling in the dark depths of ancient waters. :) Hopefully close enough to the sea monster you imagined, @wally0117

Content: gender neutral reader, male yandere, monster romance, reader likes sharks (a lot); inspired by The Shape of Water and My Octopus Teacher; photo from Whalebone Magazine

He’s always been aware of humans, naturally. Observed them from the beginnings of time, from the very first rudimentary attempt of a boat that crossed his waters. Though he can only guess how these creatures exist, how they breathe, how they move. What arrives in his depths is always a corpse of some sort. Bloated, decaying carcasses, rarely intact, whether chipped by fish or by time. Everything else is left to his imagination.

Until today. The fish are restless, the currents are stronger. Something must be happening above, stringing him along curiously. His many legs sway in tandem, opening and closing, as he investigates the source of interest. His pale white eyes narrow to a mere squint, unused to the light of the surface levels. At last, he finds it: a human.

Yet this one is unusual. Intact - save for the bleeding wound - and unlike the washed-out, cadaveric blue tint he’s normally accustomed to. He notices a twitch of the limb and it dawns on him: this one is still alive.

You wake up with a violent cough, thrusting out the leftover liquid that had invaded your lungs earlier. You clearly remember drowning, so how did you end up on shore again? The answer reveals itself rather quickly: a monstrous creature, albeit humanoid for the most part. The upper half resembles a man, but the torso ends in thick, enormous tentacles, now flopped onto the sand, surrounding your body. You search for the creature’s face, framed by translucent tendrils that seem to replace what you’d expect as hair.

“Thank you”. He scans your features and remains silent. Does he even understand human speech? After a moment of consideration, he looks ahead, surveying the water, then returns to you, giving you a nudge. He most likely wants to know how you ended up in that situation to begin with. “That’s, well…”

Conveniently enough, the monster has brought you back to your little camp, so you reach for your backpack and pull out a book. Of course, no words can ever replace the image itself. With renewed enthusiasm, you open your encyclopedia and turn it towards the man, showing him a photo of a sand tiger shark, tapping on it excitedly. “I was looking for sharks!”

Ever since the bizarre, life-saving encounter, you’ve been returning to the same spot most days. And without exception, the monster will be waiting for you in one of the neighboring caves. Judging by the pellucid, pale skin and his reluctance to be in the light, you guessed early on that he might be a creature of the depths.

One that has been around for a long time, it seems. Once he understood your interest in sharks and other aquatic animals, he developed a liking to play guide for you, silently touring you through forests of kelp, hidden caves, labyrinths of reefs and hills. He knows where the animals linger, and they don't scurry away when you approach. You've never dreamed of being so close to them, staring into their eyes and tracing their fins as they swim past you, unbothered and relaxed. The monster will gaze at you from a distance, amused by your passion.

On ground, you’ve begun your own little experiment: can the octopus creature learn sign language? You didn’t need long to discover how intelligent he is, mimicking your gestures with flawless ease, instantly memorizing the meanings, the connections, the implications. He seems to be terribly delighted by this newfound tool of communication, often asking you questions with earnest curiosity.

Ah, yes, the questions. It makes sense that he’d want to know more about humans, though his interrogations are rather…particular. Specific. It’s less about humans as a whole, and more about you. How long have you been swimming here? How deep can you actually swim, with or without aid? Might you have a family waiting for you back home? A mate, perchance? No? Interesting.

"My vacation will end soon", you sign with pursed lips. He tilts his head. "Leaving?" his webbed hands gesture, somewhat uneasy. You nod. You can discern a glint of melancholy in his eyes. Eventually, he resumes: "Would you like to see my home?" Your eyebrows raise in surprise. His home? Down there? Was such a thing even achievable for a human like you?

The plump suckers attach themselves to your skin, one resting over your mouth. "Do you trust me?" You cast one final glance over the underwater abyss, a black hole trapping all light and matter. You shake your head in approval. Without hesitation, he plunges over the cliff, pulling you after him and into the yawning void of darkness. His form glows eerily, and his movement is swift and elegant. You can tell this is his land, his territory. You would've been dead a long time ago.

He releases you on the wet stone, inside the air pocket of a cave. You need a few moments to overcome the wave of claustrophobia pressing against your lungs. As you catch your breath, you recall your long path from the surface. It would be impossible to make it back out again without your friend. A cold shiver runs across your spine. "Have a break, and I'll show you everything else afterwards", he gestures with a smile. "How long will it take? I don't want to walk back at night", you explain.

Silence. You stare into his empty orbs, awaiting a reaction. There's not a sound, not a gust of wind, not a shred of light. "You're not going back", he finally answers.

You see, he's done a fair amount of research himself. He doesn't need an encyclopedia to figure you out: how you breathe, how you move, how you exist. In fact, he is rather confident in his ways of helping you adapt to a life spent together. He would've never brought you down here if he wasn't certain of your survival. His grin widens in anticipation, a strange warmth enveloping his innards at the mere thought of it: a future with you in it, right here. However, one question remains, a cheeky, perverted detail that has been on his mind from the moment he met you, yet he could never investigate it properly.

How do humans mate?

[nop23243]

OPTIMAL FORM!!

[dionysianivy]

God Dionysus

°🏺⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

Manifestations: Dionysus typically manifests in the form of a man, lion, bull, or goat. He is the horned Green Man, crowned with snakes. He is sometimes described as androgynous or effeminate with long, beautiful, dark, wavy or curly hair. Dionysus is wine: by drinking wine, one shares the sacrament of Dionysus’ body.

Iconography: He is sometimes venerated in the form of a huge phallus.

Attributes: His primary attribute was the thyrsus: a wand (originally a fennel stalk) topped with a pinecone; also cymbals, frame drums, and other percussion instruments.

Sacred animals: Leopards and panthers, snakes, mules, donkeys, goats, and lions

Mount: Dionysus rides a chariot drawn by griffins.

Plants: Grapevines, ivy, walnut trees, fig trees

Colors: Purple, wine

Spirit allies: Dionysus only wants to be alone when he’s hungover. He is a gregarious, friendly spirit usually surrounded by aretinue including devotees, sacred animals, and other deities. His allies include:

• Apollo

• Demeter and Persephone

• Hekate

• Kybele

• Pan

• Satyrs

• Semele

• Silenus

Sacred site: Dionysus eventually became Apollo’s altar-equal at Delphi, taking over the shrine in winter. He was considered Apollo’s opposite, representing hot ecstatic energy rather than Apollo’s cold rationalism. The coasts of southern Italy are allegedly among Dionysus’ favorite places.

Sacred days: Devotion to Dionysus once dominated Greek winters. In Athens, he was honored by four festivals:

• Dionysia (end of November/beginning of December)

• Lenea (approximately one month later)

• Anthesteria (end of January)

• Great Dionysia (end of February)

🍷🍇🍷🍇🍷🍇🍷🍇🍷🍇🍷🍇🍷🍇🍷🍇🍷

source: Encyclopedia of Spirits: The Ultimate Guide to the Magic of Fairies, Genies, Demons, Ghosts, Gods & Goddesses - Judika Illes

tip jar.ೃ࿔*:･

[fictionadventurer]

I truly cannot think of anything more pointless for a fantasy writer to worry about than "Who domesticated wheat in your world?"

I've seen at least two different threads bring this up. It's so pedantic that it's ridiculous. I'll go so far as to say that answering this question will make your story worse. Unless your plot directly hinges upon the agricultural history of your imaginary realm, there is no reason for anyone in the story to know, mention, bring up, or in even the slightest way care about the answer to that question, and absolutely zippo reason for anyone reading it to take time out of their presumably adult life to take even a microsecond to consider it.

Who domesticated wheat in our world? Does it matter? Does not knowing the answer stop you from having a morning slice of toast?

Stop telling people that they need to create thousands of years of worldbuilding before they can include even the simplest details. You're writing a story, not an encyclopedia. This Cinema Sins approach to worldbuilding is joyless and mean-spirited and it actively makes for worse storytelling.

[the-remote-viewers-division]

Does anyone else think that there’s a chance Harry's memory loss was caused, not by pale exposure or acute encephalopathy triggered by alcoholism, but by his skills trying to save his life?

(I’m a latecomer to the fandom so my apologies if this has already been discussed ad nauseam!) At the second tribunal, Judit mentions Harry has lost his memory before; after two cases that would've been triggering for Harry.

JUDIT MINOT - "But, Detective Vicquemare," she interjects. "He *has* blanked out before." YOU - "I have?" JUDIT MINOT - "Yes, a couple of times. After some of the more... serious benders." She pauses, remembering. "One was after the Two Drunks case, the other when we looked into that mural."

I think after each of these cases, Harry could’ve hit crisis mode: in the former, the sheer horror/disgust at what he’s done and how he’s become the type of cop that nearly beats someone to death, and in the latter for the mural dredging up bad Dora feelings.

Then, when talking to Joyce, and getting stuck in the "Mr. Evrart is helping me find my gun" loop, the skills have an interesting little exchange:

CONCEPTUALIZATION - He seems to be in some sort of *loop*. ELECTROCHEMISTRY - Well, *that's* not good. Looks fine over here. You sure it's not some sort of *glandular* problem? REACTION SPEED - No, it's not that -- it's... I have no idea. This is bad. VOLITION - Executive function is completely shot. I keep pushing buttons and nothing is happening. ... LOGIC - How do we get out of here? SUGGESTION - What makes you think we *will*? INTERFACING - Yeah, we need to pull the plug, there's nothing else to do. EMPATHY - Are you not afraid it'll kill him? ENDURANCE - *Physically* he should be fine. Or at least no worse than usual... ENCYCLOPEDIA - What if he forgets everything *again*? INTERFACING - Okay, I'm gonna do it. Hold on...

What if after THE UNSOLVABLE CASE, THE NEXT WORLD MURAL, and his bender/breakdown/rock-bottom in Martinaise, Harry attempted suicide and his skills, in order to stop him, "rebooted" his brain causing him to have amnesia? Perhaps they act due to the influence of Shivers/the spirit of Revachol to save Harry because she needs him to save her?

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

Marlene Dietrich (Shanghai Express, Witness for the Prosecution, Morocco)—Bisexual icon, super hot when dressed both masculine and feminine, lived up her life in the queer Berlin scene of the 1920s, central to the 'sewing circle' of the secret sapphic actresses of Old Hollywood, refused lucrative offers by the Nazis and helped Jews and others under persecution to escape Nazi Germany, the love of my life

Mary Philbin (Phantom of the Opera, The Man Who Laughs)— I must simply say I love Mary Loretta Philbin. She was known for her, in the words of Wikipedia, ethereal screen presence. In fact, Pat O' Malley says it best, "If I were superstitious I would think that the spirit of some great tragedienne of a forgotten past slipped into Mary's soul when she heard the camera begin to click." I first saw her in the Phantom of the Opera adaptation of 1925, where she plays a very interesting rendition of Christine Daae (I would argue a foundational performance, since this was the first mainstream portrayal of the character outside of Gaston Leroux's 1910 book) opposite Lon Chaney as the title character, and I Loved her performance, and ofc developed a bit of a crush on her. After her years in Hollywood, she stopped acting in 1930 and lived the rest of her life in relative peace. One fact that always stuck with me was the fact that later in her life, she very rarely made public appearances, but did in fact do so in order to attend the Los Angeles opening of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera. And if all that isn't enough to convince you, look at a photo of her. She is really, stunningly beautiful.

This is round 3 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Marlene Dietrich:

ms dietrich....ms dietrich pls.....sit on my face

its marlene dietrich!!!! queer legend, easily the hottest person to ever wear a tuxedo, that hot hot voice, those glamorous glamorous movies…. most famously she starred in a string of movies directed by josef von sternberg throughout the 1930s, beginning with the blue angel which catapulted her to stardom in the role of the cabaret singer lola lola. known for his exquisite eye for lighting, texture, imagery, von sternberg devoted himself over the course of their collaborations to acquiring exceptional skill at photographing dietrich herself in particular, a worthy direction in which to expend effort im sure we can all agree. she collaborated with many other great directors of the era as well, including rouben mamoulian (song of songs), frank borzage (desire), ernst lubitsch (angel), fritz lang (rancho notorious), and billy wilder (witness for the prosecution). the encyclopedia britannica entry im looking at while compiling this propaganda describes her as having an “aura of sophistication and languid sexuality” which✔️💯. born marie magdalene dietrich, she combined her first and middle names to coin the moniker “marlene”. she was a trendsetter in her incorporation of trousers, suits, and menswear into her wardrobe and her androgynous allure was often remarked upon. critic kenneth tynan wrote, “She has sex, but no particular gender. She has the bearing of a man; the characters she plays love power and wear trousers. Her masculinity appeals to women and her sexuality to men.” in the 1920s she enjoyed the vibrant queer nightlife of weimar berlin, visiting gay bars and drag balls, and in hollywood her love affairs with men and women were an open secret. she was an ardent opponent of nazi germany, refusing lucrative contacts offered her to make films there, raising money with billy wilder to help jews and dissidents escape, and undertaking extensive USO tours to entertain soldiers with an act that included her a playing musical saw and doing a mindreading routine she learned from orson welles. starting in the 50s and continuing into the mid-70s she worked largely as a cabaret artist touring the world to large audiences, employing burt bacharach as her musical arranger.

First of all, there are those publicity photos of her in a tux. Second of all, I have never been the same since knowing that she sent copies of those photos to her Berlin lovers signed "Daddy Marlene." Not only is she hot in all circumstances, but she can do everything from earthy to ice queen. Also, she kept getting sexy romantic lead parts in Hollywood after the age of 40, which would be rare even now. She hated Nazis, loved her friends, and had a sapphic social circle in Hollywood. She also had cheekbones that could cut glass and a voice that could melt you.

Her GENDER her looks her voice her everything

“In her films and record-breaking cabaret performances, Miss Dietrich artfully projected cool sophistication, self-mockery and infinite experience. Her sexuality was audacious, her wit was insolent and her manner was ageless. With a world-weary charm and a diaphanous gown showing off her celebrated legs, she was the quintessential cabaret entertainer of Weimar-era Germany.”

The bar scene in Morocco awoke something in me and ultimately changed my gender

"Her manner, the critic Kenneth Tynan wrote, was that of ‘a serpentine lasso whereby her voice casually winds itself around our most vulnerable fantasies.’ Her friend Maurice Chevalier said: ‘Dietrich is something that never existed before and may never exist again.’”

"Songstress, photographer, fashion icon, out bisexual phenom (notoriously stole Lupe Velez and Joan Crawford's men, and Errol Flynn's wife, had a torrid affair with Greta Garbo that ended in a 60-year feud, other notable conquests including Erich Maria Remarque -yes, the guy who wrote All Quiet on the Western Front- Douglas Fairbanks Junior, Claudette Colbert, Mercedes de Acosta, Edith Piaf), anti-Nazi activist. Marlene was a bitch - she had an open marriage for decades and one of her favorite things was making catty commentary about her current lover with her husband, and her relationship with her daughter was painful- but she was also immensely talented, a hard worker, an opponent of fascism and the hottest ice queen in Hollywood for a long time."

"She can sing! She can act! She told the Nazis to fuck off and became a US citizen out of spite! She worked with other German exiles to create a fund to help Jews and German dissidents escape (she donated an entire movie salary, about $450k, to the cause). She looks REALLY GOOD in a suit. If you're not convinced, please listen to her sing "Lili Marlene". Absolutely gorgeous woman with a gorgeous voice."

Gifset link

"Bisexual icon and Nazi-hater. Looks absolutely stunning in the suits she liked to wear. 'I dress for the image. Not for myself, not for the public, not for fashion, not for men'."

"would you not let her walk on you?"

Mary Philbin:

She is hot?

Shes just so cute

Mary Philbin started acting after winning a beauty contest hosted by Universal Pictures and went on to star in a number of films, including one of the most iconic silent horror films of her era, "the Phantom of the Opera". She also gave a sweet, heart-wrenching performance in "The Man Who Laughs" alongside Conrad Veidt.