#i came across some tweets by their writer and he was incredibly excited for this pairing

[pharawee]

Boss Thawatchanin as BU & Gap Jakarin as DA — NORRASING (2023) · pt. 1/2

[atlafan]

The Real Him - One Shot

a/n: I’m not sure where this came from...a lot of this is sort of how I feel about writing, and reading, and how my brain works???? Hope you enjoy cause it’s fun! Book Writer!Harry x Y/N (not proofread) 

Words: 9.6K

Warnings: Fluff, wee bit of angst, and smut

Books weren’t things Y/N found interesting. She hated reading the assigned books in high school for whatever English classes she had to take. She often would just read what she needed on Sparknotes, and that was enough. Then, in college, even if she wanted to read for leisure, she didn’t have the time. She had to read articles and academic journals constantly. By the time she was done for the day, the last thing she wanted to do was read.

Now, as a young adult living in the city, she noticed her anxiety was always worse at night. She lived alone in a little studio apartment, it had a wonderful view. She would watch TV or scroll on her phone until she fell asleep, but the screens were too much for her eyes. She knew it wasn’t good for her. Much to her friends’ shock, she texted them asking them for book recommendations. Y/N didn’t want to think too hard, she didn’t like scary stories, but she also liked a little bit of world building and romance. Fuck, if there was anything she loved, it was a good romance. Her friends told her about this young author they discovered whose stories were enthralling.

She took their word for it, and ordered one of his books off his website. He was self-published, which she found to be interesting. How good could he be if a major publication didn’t want him? She trusted her friends’ opinions though, so she went with it. He had this series called, The Unicorn in the Farmer’s Pool, that they raved about. She told herself she’d start with the first one and see how it goes. Sometimes Y/N had a hard time concentrating to even read a book, so she didn’t want to buy too many.

The title of the book itself was odd, but when she read the description she understood. Apparently, it was about this young woman, new to town, who was going for a walk with her younger sister, and one day they come across this beautiful old home and large farm. There was a pool in the back with one of those big unicorn floats, which they both found odd. They see the farmer outside, and the woman inquires about it. He explains that it’s his daughter’s. He and his wife were divorced, and she moved out to the city. Unfortunately, she passed away, so his little girl came home to live with him.

It was a certified slow burn, so when it came in the mail, Y/N couldn’t wait to get her hands on it. There was only one picture of the author, Harry Styles, on his website. The book, however, had a lovely picture of him on it. He even named his publication company after himself, trademarking HES Books. He was handsome, there was no denying that.

“Alright, let’s see how well this guy knows how to write thing from the perspective of a woman.” She says as she settles into her bed with the book.

For the first time in a long time, Y/N found a book that she just couldn’t put down. Sure, she passed out with it on her chest, but she’d get right back to it the next night. She was ripping through it. Her heart would race anytime the farmer and the woman had a scene together. She cried when he spoke about his divorce, and how he never slept knowing his daughter was so far away. He’d never wish his ex-wife ill, but he felt like it was fate to have his daughter home. He’d give her anything she wanted, even a giant unicorn float for the pool. Something she couldn’t have in the city. His daughter would paint his nails glittery colors, and he didn’t give a shit what anyone else thought of it. Y/N could feel her heart pounding as the woman slowly fell for him. They became fast friends but it was clear they wanted more, but they were both so scared.

“Oh, you son of a bitch.” She says to herself when she gets to the end of the book, it was a cliffhanger. They hadn’t even gotten together yet. They were caught in a rain storm, about to kiss, but they were interrupted. “Goddammit.” She groans and grabs her laptop to buy the rest of the series. “Welp, Mr. Styles, you now own my ass, I hope you’re happy.” She sticks her tongue out at his picture on his website.

By the time she finished the third book, she was inconsolable. It thrilling, but she knew it couldn’t be the end for the two who were now so in love with each other. She also couldn’t believe how well written their love scenes were, a little shocked there was a small dash of smut. She looked on his website and saw he was set to release the fourth and final book of the series soon, and there would be a big release for it. He would do a reading and signing. Y/N texted her friends and they all agreed they needed to go. They still couldn’t believe how much Y/N liked the series. It consumed her soul, she couldn’t get enough. She even bought his other standalone novels to read until the release.

Eliza: hey! HES just released the first book on audio, and he narrates it! Should hold us over until the release ;)  

Y/N: holy fucking shit! Literally about to go download it, thanks!!!

Now this was a way to fall asleep, she thought. She plugged her earbuds into her phone, turned her light off, and hit play. She gasps the second she hears his voice.

“He’s British?!” She says to herself. “Dear god.”

His voice was deep and sultry, and sounded incredibly crisp through the audio. Each night for the rest of that week, she fell asleep to the sound of Harry’s voice; it was euphoric. She felt sort of weird for becoming as big of a fan of him that she was. It was like she was in high school again having a crush on some unattainable celebrity. She couldn’t even talk about him to anyone at work. It was like this big secret between her and her friends. Instead of listening to music in her office, she started listening to interviews or podcasts he was involved in. Anything to just get a better understanding for who he was or how his mind worked. She found that he was incredibly private, only tweeting or posting on Instagram from promotional purposes. A PR person most likely running the sites for him.

“Okay, I think I’m obsessed with him, like, it’s bad.” She tells her friends at brunch one Saturday morning. They would all try their best to get together a couple times a month.

“Welcome to the dark side.” Eliza says.

“I knew if we didn’t push you that you’d come around at some point to ask us for a book rec.” Melinda says.

“You could have just showed me his picture, he’s so handsome! I can’t wait to go to the signing. I wonder what type of suit he’ll wear. Maybe all black?”

“I heard he’s into florals lately.” Eliza says. “I’m glad we got our tickets when we did, it’s going to be packed.”

“Yeah, like, at least we’ll have seats for the reading.” Melinda says.

“I can’t believe we’re going to hear his voice in person. That audio book? Oh my god.” She pretends to fan herself. “I’ve been enjoying his other novels too. He has such a way with words, I can’t remember the last time I actually enjoyed a book this much. Maybe The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants?” She chuckles.

“Didn’t you read that in high school?!” Eliza laughs.

“Yeah!” Y/N laughs, and Melinda joins in. “I fucking hate reading. I wonder if he’ll ever sell the rights and have it turned into a movie or TV series.”

“People have been begging him. He said maybe once the fourth book has been out for a bit. He didn’t want to feel pressured, like, you know how with Game of Thrones the books didn’t come out fast enough for the series?” Melinda says.

“Oh yeah, that makes sense. I think a TV show would be good. Then they could take their time with it. The only thing is I can’t picture someone playing the farmer other than him.” Y/N sighs.

“Agreed.” Eliza says. “I can really only see him.”

“So, how are we dressing for the signing? I don’t wanna look desperate by dressing up too much.” Melinda says.

“Melinda…” Y/N starts chuckling. “You have a girlfriend.”

“I’m aware.” She swats a hand at Y/N. “But damn, Harry is too fine.”

//

Y/N curls the ends of her hair on the day of the signing. It was finally here, and she couldn’t be more excited. She found a cute yellow top to wear with some high waist jeans. She does some simple makeup, but makes sure to have her eyes pop. The rules were that people could only bring one book with them, so she grabs the first in the Unicorn series. She fully intended to buy the new book as well, and they said he would sign all new purchases too.

She meets Melinda and Eliza outside the bookstore where it would all be happening. They get in line to buy their new books, and head to their seats. They were able to snag tickets for the second row. He would be reading the first few chapters of the first book, and then would spend the rest of the time signing books.

“I’m so excited.” Y/N whispers to both of her friends.

A man comes out shortly to check the crowd of people waiting, and soon it’s announced that Harry would be coming out. Everyone stands up and claps for him. He was wearing a sleek black suit, and his hair was pushed back off his face. He looked bashful as he smiled out to everyone, and stood at the podium provided. Everyone sits back down as he clears his throat.

“Thank you all so much for being here. Whether you’re a new fan or if you’ve been with me for years, I appreciate your support. It feels surreal for this series to be over. I’ve loved these characters so much, and when I finished the final edits, it felt weird saying goodbye. I also want to say thanks for all the support with the first audio book. I fully intend to do one for the rest, it just takes a lot of time and editing, so hold tight for me, alright?” The crowd giggles, and his dimple grows deeper. He takes a sip of the water provided, and opens the book. “Let’s get started shall we?” He looks up at the audience who was waiting patiently. He makes eye contact with Y/N. It’s brief, but he looked at her…or at least she told herself he did.

His voice was just as smooth in person as it was on the audio. Y/N was swooning, barely paying attention to the words, but more so watching the way his lips moved. The way he’d lick his lips after getting a sip of water, and watching his Adam’s apple bob up and down. It all felt like a dream. He ended up reading five chapters instead of three, as a treat, until his manager came out to remind him to wrap it up.

“Right, well, I’ve been told I’m done speaking.” He chuckles. “I just need about ten minutes and I’ll be able to sign all your books. Thanks so much!”

He leaves as everyone claps for him again. Everyone gets in line and waits for him to return. There was a table waiting for him to sit at and a ton of markers.

“I wonder how long we’ll get with him. Like, a minute, right?” Eliza asks.

“Make every second count.” Y/N says.

“I’m gonna try to take a selfie.” Melinda says. “Then I’ll really remember it forever.”

As the girls got closer to the front of the line, Y/N felt herself getting nervous, and her palms were starting to sweat. She tries to wipe them on her jeans before she gets to him.

“Hello, love.” He smiles at her. “Whatcha bring f’me?”

“Huh?” She was so taken aback.

“Well, I know you didn’t come here to have me sign a body part…unless you did.” He shrugs. “Although, I don’t think my manager would appreciate that.” He winks at her and it makes her giggle.

“I have the first back, and the newest one.” She hands them both to him. “I have to say, I’m not really a big reader, but this really drew me in. I think I’ve fallen in love with reading for the first time in my life.”

“That’s like…I mean…wow, what a compliment, thanks.” He signs both of the books. “What’s your name?”

“Y/N.”

“Y/N.” He repeats as he continues to leave a nice note in both of her books. “You know pictures aren’t allowed, but if you turn around and happen to take a selfie they can’t stop you.” He points to the few guards.

Y/N turns around and takes a selfie with Harry. She turns back around and chuckles as she takes her books back.

“Thank you so much. I can’t wait for the next audio books.”

“You liked the first one?”

“Loved it.”

“So, it wasn’t weird listening to me for that long?”

“Not at all…” She starts blushing. “Your voice is sort of, um, soothing…I have a lot of anxiety at night, and, well, reading, and evening listening has helped me sleep a lot better. So, thanks again.” She smiles at him and he smiles back.

He wished he could hug her. He looks back at his manager, who just sighs at him and nods. Harry stands up from the table and walks around. Before she knew it, his arms were being wrapped around her. She got a whiff of his cologne, and she swore it was her new favorite smell in the world. She barely got a chance to put her hands on him before his manager said it was enough and Harry needed to get back to it.

“Sorry, that was just so endearing.” He lets go of her and sits back down. “Thanks for your support.”

Y/N steps aside and looks at her friends who were waiting for her to finish up. She looks back at Harry who was already talking to the next person. She sighs, knowing she was long forgotten already.

“Oh my god, I took a picture of him hugging you.” Eliza says. “What was it like? All he did was shake my hand.”

“He smelled so good.” Y/N whines. “Girls, let’s go out for drinks tonight. I need to get some energy out.”

“Great idea! We can drink and then dance the night away.” Melinda says. “What did he write in your books?”

“I don’t wanna look yet, I wanna save it.” Y/N smiles and holds her books close to her.

//

After grabbing dinner and dropping their books off at Y/N’s place, they all head to their favorite dance bar. They all get their drinks and stand near the bar to drink them. Y/N was happily sucking on her straw, swaying along to the fast beat of the music.

“Look, they actually roped off the VIP section.” Eliza points out. Y/N and Melinda turn to look.

“I wonder who’s here. Once in a while someone cool shows up.” Melinda says.

The group in the VIP section erupts into laughter, and the girls’ eyes grow wide. Harry was standing up from the booth, looking much more casual. He still had his dress pants and button up on, but his sleeves were pushed up, revealing his tattoos. He strides up to the bar as he shakes his head back at his friends. He brushes right by the girls, bumping into Y/N, causing her to spill her drink.

“Oh shit, I’m sorry, love.” He says to her, and then he looks her up and down. “Do I know you?” He slurs slightly.

“Um…we…we met earlier today. You signed my books.”

“I signed your what?!” The music was really loud, he must have thought she said something else.

“Books, books!” She really enunciates the k sound.

“Oh!” He bursts out laughing, and puts a hand on her shoulder. “I was gonna say, that sorta thing isn’t really my style. What are you drinking, I’ll get you a new one.”

“Oh, you don’t have to do that. There’s still plenty in here.”

“Don’t be silly, I feel terrible. In fact,” He looks at Melinda and Eliza, and then to the bar tender. “Their next round’s on me. I also need another bottle of Patron for my table.”

“Coming right up!”

“Lost a bet with ‘em.” He rolls his eyes. “So the next bottle’s on me.” He shrugs.

“We’ll bring it over to you.” The bar tender says as she puts up three new drinks for you and your friends.

“You really didn’t have to do that.”

“S’the least I can do. Your support is the only reason why I can afford what I have. I should buy your drinks all night.” He smirks.

“Y/N.” Melinds grabs her shoulders and whispers in her ear. “Go for it, bitch, go for it. He’s hitting on you. We’ll be over there.”

She lets Y/N go and drags Eliza with her over to another part of the bar. Y/N grabs her drink and smiles at Harry.

“Your name’s Y/N, right?”

“You must have seen hundreds of people today, how’d you remember?”

“I’m really good with names.” He grins. “Do you want to join me and my friends?”

“What?!”

“Come on, seems like your friends are busy anyways.” He nods over to Melinda and Eliza where Melinda was working as a wing-man for Eliza. “They’re bringing over the Patron, you’ll love it.” He grabs her wrist and brings her over. One of the body guards raises his eyebrows. “I’m baacckk, let us in Mike.” Mike lifts the rope up and lets Harry and Y/N in. “Everyone this is Y/N, she’s got to be one of my biggest fans, so she’s joining us.” He pulls her down into the booth with him and puts his arm around her shoulders.

He was drunk, this was very clear. No one seemed bothered by her presence. Everyone was just happy to have refills for their drinks. Harry takes a shot of the Patron along with everyone else as Y/N sips on her drink. She felt bad, Eliza had to be a bigger fan of Harry, or at least she had been a fan longer…

“So, how’d you know he’d be here?” Harry’s manager, Jeff, asks.

“I didn’t.” She blushes. “My friends and I come here all the time.”

“Right, like we haven’t heard that one before.” Jeff smirks. “Some of you fangirls-“

“Oi! Don’t make fun, she’s cool.” Harry defends her.

“I can prove I’ve been here plenty of times.” Y/N takes her phone out and shows them her Facebook page. “There, you can see how many times I’ve checked in here. I only live a block away, so this tends to be the spot.”

“See, Jess, this is the spot.” Harry smirks, and knocks back another shot. “We’re being rude, here.” He slides a shot over to her. “Have as much as you like.”

“That’s okay, I have this.” She points to her glass.

“Oh, I knew I liked you, you’re so nice.” He pulls her a little closer to him. “But really, if you want any, you can have as much as you want, okay?”

“Thanks.”

Y/N sort of just sits there and tries to listen as each person talks, but the music was so loud, and she was itching to dance, especially now that she had a couple of drinks in her. She was drumming her fingers mindlessly on the table.

“Do you want to dance?” He whispers in her ear. A shiver goes up her spine. She looks up at him and nods. “Alright, let’s hit it then.”

She gets out of the booth and he quickly follows her out to the dance floor. At first it’s just light and playful, he keeps one hand in hers, but keeps a respectable distance. If Y/N was dancing with her friends right now she’d probably be popping her ass no problem. She sort of wished they were still around. She couldn’t remember the last time she danced with a guy. She looks at him and feels a little bold, so she hooks an arm around his neck and dances close to him. His hands move to her hips as she essentially grinds on his thigh. When the next song starts, she turns around to grind her ass against his pelvis. He presses forward against her and she can tell he’s very happy to be dancing with her.

“You said your place was only a block away?” He says into her ear, and she nods. “Wanna head there?”

She stops dancing and turns around to face him.

“Are you serious?” She raises an eyebrow at him.

“Sorry, too forward?”

“No…I just…um…yeah, let’s go back to mine.”

He smiles and throws his arm around her shoulders. He looks over at Jeff who was still sitting with their friends. He waves off to him, and heads out side with Y/N. Harry whistles for a cab, and one pulls up almost right away. They both get into the backseat, and Y/N gives the driver her address. Harry rubs circles into her shoulder. She rests her hand on his knee, as her leg shakes with nerves.

“You alright, love?”

“Mhm, yeah.” She doesn’t look at him.

“No need to be nervous, babe, we don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”

She looks up at him now and smiles. She wanted to do everything with him. It was like every fantasy she had was coming to life. She had dreams about this, but never thought it would come true. The cab pulls up in front of Y/N’s building and they both get out of the cab. She keys into the front door and she leads him to the elevator.

“I’m surprised you’re not exhausted, must be draining to meet so many people.”

“Caught a second wind.” He winks at her. She giggles as they get off at her floor.

She leads him inside as she flips the lights on.

“It’s just a studio.”

“It’s nice, just enough space. You’ve got a great view.” He says as he walks over to the window.

“Yeah, I got really lucky.”

“Mind if I pull the curtains?”

“Not at all.”

She watches the muscles in his back flex as he reaches to pull the curtains closed. He turns to face her and walks over to where she is. He cups one of her cheeks and she leans into his touch.

“I have to be honest, I don’t usually do this.” He says.

“Do what? Hook up with a girl from a bar?” She smirks.

“No, hook up with a fan…” He sighs. “But what you said to me earlier about your anxiety and how my books have helped you, it stuck with me all day. I’m really glad I ran back into you. I got kinda nervous when you didn’t message me.”

“What? Why would I have?”

“I wrote my number in your book.” He lets go of her and steps back. “You didn’t read my notes?”

“No, I…I was saving them for when I was feeling down.” She admits, a little embarrassed. “Why did you put your number in it?”

“In case you ever needed someone to talk to…if you ever got sick of listening to the same story over and over. It was a little impulsive, but no one’s ever said anything like that to me before.”

“I’m surprised by that.”

“Usually people just tell me that they enjoyed it, or they try to flirt or something. It’s usually pretty hollow.” He shrugs. “But you…” He takes her hands in his. “Well…if you noticed, I didn’t really hug anyone else.”

“I did notice. You made me feel really special, Harry.”

“I’d like to keep making you feel that way…”

He releases her hands, and she wraps her arms around his neck. Her hands slide up through his curls, and she gets up on her tip toes while his arms wrap around her waist, pulling her close. His lips brush over hers, and she pulls his face closer to hers to deepen the kiss. She smiles against his lips which makes him smile and pull back.

“What is it?”

“I just…I can’t believe this is happening…” She presses her hips closer to his.

“You’ve thought about this before, with me?”

She nods her head yes and he smirks.

“Is that weird?” She asks, cheeks heating up from embarrassment.

“Who am I to judge what helps someone fall asleep at night?” His voice was low now, eyes darker than they were moments before.

Maybe this wasn’t something either of them should be doing while inebriated. But from lack of better judgement they start kissing again. His hands slide down to cup her ass, and his large hands give her a squeeze. She groans into his mouth, giving him the perfect excuse to lick into her. Her tongue molds to his, and she starts pushing him to walk back towards her bed. He happily lets her lead the way.

The back of his calves hit the bed, and he almost loses his balance. He sits down and brings her with him so she’s straddling his lap. Lips only breaking for a moment to get some air until they’re on each other again. Her hands lace through his hair and he groans when she tugs on him. His lips move to her jaw and then to just under her ear. She gasps when she feels him suck on the tender skin. Her hips roll down over his, and he smirks against her. He licks over the spot he was sucking on, and goes back for more. She grinds herself against him, feeling his bulge press up against where she needs it most. His lips move back to hers so he can nip at her bottom lip before looking at her.

“You want this?” He asks.

“Wouldn’t have said yes to coming back here if I didn’t.”

“You could have changed your mind between the bar and now.” He tucks some loose strands of hair behind her hair. “I meant what I said earlier, we don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”

“I want to, do you?”

“I certainly didn’t change my mind.”

She smiles and leans in to kiss him again before getting off him. She reaches behind him quickly to snag one of her throw pillows to put on the floor. She sits up on her knees before him and reaches for his for the button on his dress pants. She looks up at him as he widens his legs for her. He wasn’t expecting a blow job, but he wasn’t one to turn it down. She pops the button and undoes his zipper. She reaches into his pants and palms him through his boxers first. His palms were flat on the bed, his arms keeping him up, but he can’t help but let his head fall back from her touch.

“Harry, look at me.”

He immediately does as she says so he can make eye contact with her.

“Is this okay? Can I take it out?”

“Yeah, please.”

She smiles and tugs his pants and boxers down slightly, he lifts his hips up to help her. He unbuttons his shirt while his dick slaps up against his lower stomach. She gazes up at him. Once his shirt is off, she can’t help but look over all his tattoos.

“You’re so…pretty.” She chuckles.

“Not as pretty as you.” He runs his hands through her hair, giving her a little encouragement to get started.

She blushes as her eyes fall to his hard cock, tip swollen and ready to go. She licks her right hand and gives him a few pumps first. He grunts as he watches her. She licks a stripe up from his base to his tip before she wraps her lips around him. His eyes flutter closed for a second, but he didn’t want to miss anything so he does his best to keep his eyes open to watch her work on him. She already had small droplets of spit rolling down her chin. Sloppy, he thinks to himself and he smirks. She sinks a little further down on him, testing herself to see how much she can take. He thrusts up slightly to meet her halfway and she gags on him, needing to pop off for a moment.

“Sorry, been a while.” She mumbles, and gets back on him.

“No worries, doing great, love.”

He helps keep her hair back as she starts to bob up and down on him. Her warm mouth felt so fucking good around him. She swallows around him before really hollowing her cheeks to suck on him. Her mouth moves up to his tip so she can lick away at his slit. She wraps a hand around him to pump him as she does this.

“Baby, baby, hold on.” He pants, and moves her face away from him. She looks up at him with big, innocent eyes that were slightly watery now. “I’ll come if you keep doing that.” He sounded almost out of the breath. She nods and stands up. His hands grips her hips and then slide to the button on her own jeans. “You’re sure?”

“Yes.” She says, taking off her shirt. He looks up at her and kisses on her chest as he undoes her pants.

He yanks them down her legs. He smiles at her mismatched set of underwear. She had worn a white bra with her yellow shirt, and a simple pair of blue panties with her jeans.

“I didn’t think, um, I would be…it was a girl’s night, and-“

“Do you really think I care about your underwear not matching?” He raises an eyebrow at her as he smirks.

She smiles and rests her hands on his shoulders as he kisses on her lower tummy. He stands up to kick his pants away, and lets her get on the bed. She lays on her back, propping herself up with her elbows. He crawls onto the bed and settles between her legs. His lips find hers as he grinds himself against her covered center. She bites her bottom lip, just wanting her underwear gone. He reaches behind her to unhook her bra. After a few seconds of fumbling he gets it, and watches the bra loosen around her. She pushes it off her shoulders, and tosses it to the ground. His hands cup her full breasts immediately. He kneads them and tweaks her nipples. She grinds her hips up towards his as they continue to move against each other. He dips his head down to kiss on her chest, and he rolls a nipple between his teeth. He works his way down her body and slides her underwear down her legs, tossing them aside where he feels like. She parts her legs for him.

He dips his down and licks from her center to her clit. He does this slowly but with precision. Her hips buck up towards him, encouraging him to keep going, so he does. He licks all around her until his lips are around her throbbing clit. He nibbles and sucks and flicks his tongue while his fingers explore her folds. Her hands were in his hair. She kept thinking she was going to wake up. Any minute now she would snap out of her dream. She would pinch her eyes closed and expect to see the morning sun creeping through her windows, but not this time. When she opened her eyes there he was, head between her legs, lapping away at her. The clouds covering the moon and night sky. He had her whimpering and tugging at his hair. He wanted her to come, but not yet, just get her to the brink. She pouts at him when he lifts his head. He licks his lips and smiles at her.

“Got any rubbers?”

“Mhm, in the bathroom, I can-“

“I got it, just tell me where.”

“The box in the cabinet below the sink.”

He pecks her lips before going into her little bathroom. He smirked to himself wondering how he might shower the next morning. He was taller than the showerhead. He bends down to open up the cabinet and spots the box of condoms. It was opened, but not many were missing. Not the he was one to judge. Harry hooked up a lot. He grabs a couple, just in case they feel like getting frisky again later on, and heads back out. He rips the foil packet open and slides it on over his length. She bites her bottom lip in anticipation.

“Tell me something,” He starts as he gets back on the bed, between her legs, hovering over her body. “When you had me in your thoughts was it ever like this?”

He rubs his tip against her clit, getting her to moan out. He pushes into her entrance but doesn’t go much further until he gets his answer. His eyebrows were raised, looking at her.

“This is usually the part when I’d wake up.” She whispers. “Before anything good could really happen.” She cups his cheek and runs her thumb over his cheekbone. “Please.”

He kisses her as he pushes the rest of the way inside her. They both groan. She was so wet, even with the condom on, it still felt amazing. He was nice and snug inside her. He moves slowly at first to not hurt her. He hooks an arm under one of her legs to bring it up a little higher. He wanted to get in as deep as possible. She clutches at his shoulders as he drives it in.

“Oh my god.” She gasps as his tip brushes her g-spot. “Jesus Christ.” She grits her teeth.

“Ever had anyone like this before?” He says into her ear.

“Never this deep, shit.”

He sits up and puts both of her legs over his shoulders. His fingers press bruises into her thighs as he holds onto her. She looks up at him as her mouth falls open. He was ramming into her and it felt so good to fuck like this. She didn’t want to be treated delicately. What he was doing was amazing, but her clit was missing the friction, so her hand slides down to rub at it.

“Fuck.” He breathes as he watches her touch herself. He lets go of one of her thighs and moves her hand aside so he can rub it for her. Her head rolls back the second she feels his thumb on her.

“Just like that.” She pants. “Don’t stop.”

He grunts his response as he continues to fuck her. He could feel her tightening around his cock and he knew she was close. He rubs her a little faster, and watches as her body contorts under his.

“Let go, come on, show me how you do it, Y/N.”

That pushes her over the edge. She cries out as she comes around him. He rubs her still, but slows his pace to help her through it. She tightens around him again as she comes down from her bliss. He drops her legs and pulls out. He sits up against her headboard and pulls her into his lap. He doesn’t have her face him, though, he has her sit on him facing away. Her head rolls back against his shoulder once she sinks down on him. She uses her knees to push herself up and down on his cock. He bites down on her shoulder, licks up to just under her ear to suck on the tender skin again. His hands find her bouncing breasts, and he kneads them.

“Harry.” She groans.

“Feels good, love?”

“So good.” She turns her head and sticks her tongue out slightly so he’ll kiss her. His tongue meets hers and they practically slobber all over each other as her pace quickens on him.

His hands slide down to her hips to help her. He thrusts up into her to get into a rhythm. He could feel his orgasm bubbling at the base of his spine.

“Fuck, oh my god.” He moans, which makes her moan. She tightens around him. He wanted her to come again, to come with him, so he rubs her clit while she continues to bounce him.

“Shit, fuck, Harry!”

They come at the same time, both of them crying out form the intensity. He gives her a second to catch her breath before he lifts her off of him. She gets up and quickly walks to the bathroom to clean herself up. He goes in after her to rid himself of the condom. She was about to throw on a t-shirt when he comes back out.

“Don’t bother.” He smirks.

“What do you mean?”

“It’ll just come off again.”

“Oh.” She blushes and puts it back into her dresser.

He gets on the bed with her and pulls her close to his chest. His fingers run up and down her back lightly, causing goosebumps to raise on her skin. She rests one of her legs on top of his, and wraps her arm around his torso. She wasn’t sure if she’d have the energy to fuck him again so soon, especially when the rhythm of his heart beat was lulling her to sleep. Her eyes flutter closed. He looks down at her and smiles when he sees her lips parted. He kisses the top of her head, and slowly falls asleep himself.

//

The next morning, Y/N wakes up cozy, head stuffed into her pillow, blankets wrapped around her. It was darker than usual. Her eyes flutter open and see the rain falling down. She hears it tapping delicately against her windows. It was a normal Sunday morning, or it would have been if she hadn’t completely forgotten there was a warm body wrapped around her. She rolls over slowly not to disturb the stranger. She gasps to herself when she sees it really is Harry Styles, not just some guy that looked like him. She really took him home with her and she really fucked him. He pulls her closer to her and she sighs.

“Your bed’s comfy.” He mutters.

“Thanks, I’ve got one of those foam pads under the sheets. Makes a world of difference.”

She feels his chest rumble as he chuckles. She feels him press a soft kiss to her forehead before pulling away slightly.

“Mind if I grab a shower?”

“Not at all.” She smiles up at him. “If you don’t mind smelling like my fruity shampoo, that is.”

“You’re funny.” He chuckles again and stretches as he sits up. He rubs his eyes, and gets out of the bed. Y/N couldn’t help but ogle his naked body as he walks away. He pops his head out of the door frame to look at her. “Are you coming?”

“Oh…you wanted me to-“

“Obviously.” He scoffs. “Wouldn’t mind fucking you again, either.”

Normally she’d wrap herself in a blanket, but if he was going to be bold, then so was she. So she gets out of bed and struts over towards him. She brushes her teeth quickly as he uses some mouth wash. She gets the water in the shower going.

“Does that head detach? I don’t know if I can crouch for that long.” He laughs.

“Yeah, it comes right off, don’t worry.” She pulls back the curtain and they both get in.

She helps him wash up, scrubs her nails over his head as she washes out the shampoo, and once they’re both clean, he hoists her up against the wall, and kisses her. She was plenty wet for him, and he smiles against her as he slips a finger inside her.

“You were ready f’me, hm?”

“Guess so.” She nips at his bottom lip, which delights him.

“Mind if I just slip it in like this and pull out after?”

“That’s fine.” She smiles. “Wouldn’t mind actually being able to feel you.”

“Christ.” He groans, and then pushes his hard cock inside her. Her head rolls back against the tile as his lips attack to her throat.

It was a nice, passionate morning fuck. When they’re done she gets him a towel, and wraps one around herself. He watches as she runs around to make her bed back up. It was a small apartment, so any clutter just made it look even smaller. He grabs his phone out of his pants pocket, and sighs.

“Alright?” She asks, sitting on the edge of her bed. He comes to sit down next to her.

“Yeah, just a ton of missed calls and texts. Thought I made it pretty clear to Jeff I wouldn’t be coming back to the hotel last night.”

“Do you have a plane to catch or anything?”

“Not today, tomorrow though.”

She watches as he types away to respond to the dozen or so texts he had form various people.

“Would you like any coffee or anything? Juice?”

“Just a black coffee would be perfect if it’s not too much trouble, love.”

“Coming right up.”

His eyes flicker up to watch her bum and hips sway as she walks into the kitchen area. She fills up her Keurig to get his coffee going.

“No cream or sugar, just black?”

“Please.” He smiles. “Thanks.”

She nods and gets a mug down from her cabinet to place under the machine. She thinks he’s talking to her for a moment, but when she looks over she can see he’s on the phone.

“I’m not sure when I’ll be back. I’m well aware, thanks.” He sighs and shakes his head. “I’m allowed to go out and have some fun.” He crosses a leg over the other so he can rest his elbow on his thigh, propping his chin up with his palm. “She’s making me a cup of coffee, is that alright? No, I don’t just carry those in my back pocket…” He rolls his eyes. “I’ll take care of it. Alright, bye.”

She comes over to him with a mug for him, and one for herself. She added a bit of cream to hers. She just couldn’t do black coffee.

“Thank you so much, feel like I’m about to get a headache.” He says, taking the mug from her, smacking his lips after he takes a sip.

“I have some aspirin if you need some.”

“Caffeine should work just fine, but thank you.”

“So, uh, not that I was listening in or anything, just, small space and all, but what don’t you carry around in your back pocket?”

“Oh.” He chuckles. “An NDA, that’s all. Jeff’s gonna email one over to me any second I’m sure.”

“What do you need an NDA for?”

“It’s not for me, it’s for you.”  She looks at him deeply confused. “I’m a very private person, and not that I think you’re the type to go around spouting your business, it’s just, well, you’re a fan and…”

“You need me to sign an NDA so I won’t tell anyone we fucked?”

“Basically, yeah. Sorry if that makes things a little awkward. It’s just to keep my personal life personal, that’s all.” He takes another sip of the coffee. “This is really good, what brand is this?”

“Green Mountain Coffee…it comes from Vermont.”

“It’s delicious, I’ll have to look into it.” He smiles, although she can tell she’s starting to feel uneasy. She’s painfully aware that this was just a drunk hookup, a one night stand. “Are you alright?” He puts a hand on her knee.

“M’fine, just a bit groggy.” She sips her own coffee.

“Well, I’m starved, you’ve gotta be too, right? What a good place to grab some breakfast around here?” He stands up and starts looking for his clothes.

“Um…there’s a place right down the street.”

“We’ll have to take a cab unless you have a really big umbrella.” He smirks as he pulls his boxers on.

“Do I have to sign an agreement saying I won’t talk about breakfast too, or?”

Harry sighs as he pulls his pants on. She looks at him as she sips her coffee.

“Guess I’ll find out when I read the fine print.” She stands up and walks back over to her kitchen area. He follows her there with his mug and sticks it in the sink.

“Why is it such a big deal?”

“It’s not, I just…I mean…what do you think I’m going to do? Go onto a blog and spill every detail about last night? As if I could remember every little thing.” She scoffs and rinses out her mug.

“You easily could. You have to understand, sometimes when stories slip or people feel like they know things about you, it’s harder to get deals or make business decisions. I want to be taken seriously, so I don’t post personal things on social media, and I have the people I hook up with sign NDA’s.”

“Well, maybe I should have you sign one for me then.” She says, crossing her arms. He raises an eyebrow at her. “How do I know our night together won’t be inspiration for your next love scenes? You’re quite descriptive in your works. You must take from real life when you’re writing those things.”

“I’ll tell you what, I’ll text Jeff and have him email me two, one for each of us. I won’t talk about you and you won’t talk about me. Now, can we please go get some breakfast?”

“Why do you even want to go anywhere with me if you’re so scared of people finding out?” She walks over to her dresser to pick out an outfit she wouldn’t mind getting wet in the rain.

“It’s one thing to be seen with someone at a diner, it’s another to have what you’re like in the bedroom aired out to millions of people.”

“It’ll be obvious we slept together. My neck is littered with kiss marks.” She taps over one of the spots. He watches as she wriggles a pair of panties up her legs, and then a pair of jeans. “You’re also wearing your clothes from last night.” She tosses him his button up.

“I don’t suppose you have a large t-shirt I could throw on?”

“I’m sure I could find one.” She find a bra and t-shirt of her own, and then rummages through her pajama drawer for one of her larger bed shirts. “Here.” She hands him the shirt. He puts it on and looks down at it.

“Cute.” He smiles. “You can keep mine, and I’ll keep this one, how’s that sound?”

“Guess I’m just glad that’s not my favorite one.” She grabs her raincoat and umbrella. She furrows her brows and then remembers where her rubber boots on. “Could you order an uber or something?”

“Sure.”

They get down to the street, and head into the car he ordered. The diner was busy when they got there, but since it was just the two of them, they didn’t have to wait long to be seated. Harry’s phone pings with the email from Jeff.

“So…I just need to digitally sign it?”

“Mhm.” He hands his phone over to her so she can read over everything. He rests his chin on his palm. “Don’t think I’ve ever seen someone read over it so diligently before.”

“I’m a lawyer.” She mumbles.

“No shit.” He sits up, suddenly even more intrigued with her. “Good for you.”

“Well, I’m in law school, and I work as a para at a law firm, but I’m getting there.” She says as she uses her finger to sign her life away. “I’d like to read the one he sent to you for me.”

“Just swipe to the next email.”

She nods and looks it over. It was the same as her. She hands him back his phone and watches him sign it.

“I’d like both copies emailed over to me.”

“Alright, what’s your email?”

“I’ll put it in.” She takes his phone back and puts her information in, sending herself the copies. “There.” She crosses her arms. “Happy?”

“Yes, actually.”

A waitress comes over to them, and they both order scrambled eggs with bacon, potatoes, and toast. It’s quiet between them for a few moments. She looks out the window to watch the rain fall, and then looks back at him. He was twiddling his thumbs in his lap.

“Harry?”

“Yeah?” He looks up at her.

“What am I doing here with you? You could have easily slipped out this morning, even last night…”

“I’m not that kind of guy.”

“So…what is this, a consolation before we never see each other again?”

“No.”

“Then what is this?! I feel like I’m not even looking at a real person. I’ve wanted to meet you for so long, and I would have killed for the opportunity to sit down and have breakfast with you. I have so many questions about your work, and-“

“So, ask me.”

“What?”

“Ask me all your questions. What can I answer that I haven’t already in an interview? You wanna know my thought process? Where and what I get inspired by? How long it takes me to write a book, a chapter even? I only have bullshit answers, to be honest. I keep notes on my phone for when I get inspired, and then when I’m able to be at my computer I’ll type for hours without stopping. It’s like I blackout or something. It feels like I didn’t even take a second to blink. I’ll work on multiple projects at the same time too. I have three other books I’m currently working, all with completely different topics and characters. I can’t shut my brain off, ever. I don’t know why I’m like this. Even when I go on a vacation to unplug, I have to keep a notebook with me to write things down. I started writing because I just needed to get everything out of my head. I feel a huge sense of relief when I’m done with a piece so I can just move on from it. I had to start my own publication because my content was going to be put in the same category as Fifty Shades, and I didn’t want that. Luckily, Jeff went to school for PR, and he helped me out, and now he’s my manager. He’s the best there is, but sometimes it would be nice to fuck a pretty girl and take her to breakfast without having to worry about every little thing.”

Before Y/N can respond their food is brought over. They both thank the waitress. She picks her for up and plays with her potatoes before looking at him.

“Not to mention, said pretty girl told me how much my work means to her, how it helps her sleep at night. Fuck, I mean, I thought I was going to melt into a fucking puddle right there. My anxiety gets bad at night too, I knew exactly where you were coming from, babe. I can’t tell you how many nights I try to go to sleep and can’t, so I just get up and go back to my computer until I pass out in my chair.” He blinks at her, as she still says nothing. “Are you…not going to say anything?”

“I’m not sure what to say, I’m trying to take in everything you said and match it to the person you were yesterday at that signing. It’s an act, right? Your cool demeanor?”

“I have a stage presence for sure.” He sighs, and takes a bite of his bacon. “What am I gonna do, get up there and tell everyone that the fourth book took so long because I had to have surgery for carpal tunnel?”

“For someone who likes to be so private, you’re sure telling me a lot of personal things.”

“You signed something saying you wouldn’t discuss any of this, so I feel a little freer to explain myself. Have I totally ruined your perception of me? Is this a never meet your hero sort of moment?”

“Not at all.” She smiles. “You seem comfortable with me, which is nice. I like that I’m seeing this side of you, you’re more than just the suave guy I’ve seen in interviews, or listening to on podcasts. You’re a person, just like me.”

“Exactly, so you understand why I might want some privacy.”

“I do.” She nods and finally takes a bite of her food. “I’m sorry if I got a little pissy about it.”

“Don’t be, it’s always an awkward conversation to have.”

“So, how many women do you hook up with exactly? You’re making yourself sound like a player.” She chuckles.

“I mean…I’m a guy who has needs. I’m not gonna lie, I probably do it a little too much, but I don’t usually spend this much time with the person, or if I do…well…it’s not usually like this.”

“Why?”

“I wanted to actually have a conversation with you.” He shrugs. “You peaked my interest.”

“Clearly.” She smirks.

“At least I’ve never rubbed one out to the thought of a famous person.” He smirks back.

“Oh, I’m sorry, do you consider yourself famous?” She grins at him. “And I haven’t rubbed one out, it’s usually just a dream. Don’t flatter yourself, Harry.” She shakes her head.

“My bad, so I’ll just assume you get that wet for every guy you hook up with?”

Where was this conversation going, and why was it happening in such a public place? Was he trying to rile her up?

“I don’t think this is appropriate to talk about right now.” She whispers harshly.

He smirks and continues eating. They look at each other occasionally as they eat. The waitress comes over with the bill, and Harry throws some cash down on the table.

“Let me pay the tip at least.” She says, reaching for her purse.

“Don’t be silly, I put plenty down for the tip. I’ve got it.” He puts his hand over hers. “Seems like the rain’s stopped, wanna walk back?”

“Do you not need to be anywhere?”

“Nope.” He smiles. “Today’s my free day, isn’t that nice? I’ve got a plane to catch tomorrow morning, and that’s all I have to worry about. So, I’m more than happy to walk you back home.”

She nods and follows him out of the diner.

“So, do I only get your email, or do I get your number too?”

“Why, so you can hit me up whenever you’re in the city?”

“Precisely.” He nudges her as she laughs. “Come on, I gave you mine.”

“I can’t believe I didn’t even look…I would have been so embarrassed, you would have forgotten all about me. I don’t even know if I would have even had the courage to message you.”

“I wouldn’t have forgotten you.”

“Did you manager know you just gave your number out like that?”

“God no, he’d murder me.” Harry chuckles. “Jeff’s great, but he’s way too serious.”

“So, maybe I’ll message you sometime.”

“I prefer chatting on the phone, to be honest.”

“Why’s that?”

“Anyone can send a text, but a phone is, like, I don’t know, it’s romantic.”

“Romantic?”

“Yeah, like, a phone is something you really need to make time for.”

She pouts at him and looks at him with big eyes. They stop once they’re in front of her building.

“I come back to the city in two weeks, I really would like to see you again.”

“What are you coming back for?”

“Another signing. This one sold out, and I felt bad. I think anyone who wants to see me should.” He shrugs. “I wouldn’t have anything that I do if it weren’t for the people who supported me.”

“That’s sweet.” She smiles. “Okay, I guess we could see each other again.”

“Great, just make sure you call me, okay? Then I can call you, and we’ll just be two people calling each other sometimes.” He blushes.

“Why are you so romantic?” She laughs and wraps her arms around his waist.

“I wish I knew. It’s a blessing and a curse, I think.” He sighs and cups her cheeks. He leans in and kisses her, she happily kisses him back and pulls him closer.

“Do you, um, need to go back to your hotel now?”

“Not necessarily, what’d you have in mind?” He raises an eyebrow at her. She leans up and whispers in his ear, making his cheeks grow hotter. He looks at her, a little stunned. “I definitely have time for that.”

“I figured you would.” She winks at him and yanks him into her building.

She wasn’t ready to let go of him just yet. Everything still felt like a dream, only better. Even when Harry had to go off to his next signing, she slept better than she ever had. She called him late one night, much to his surprise, and they spoke for hours. She didn’t have to listen to the same words over and over to fall asleep, she had him, the real him.

[ufonaut]

I came across some of geoffrey thornes opinions from twitter, and I dont think the man knows the difference between personally not liking a character and calling the character boring. Its just super funny to say Hal and Alan are uninteresting, when the reason the other green lantern characters exist is due to their original popularity.

folks i hate to say it but mr thorne is literally completely 100% undeniably right

i love his dedication to tweeting about parallax being the only interesting thing to ever happen with hal on an yearly basis but all jokes aside, i've never agreed with anyone more

hal's endless parade of minimum wage jobs, the years when he was living out of motel rooms or on friends' couches, the road trip with ollie and all that came out of it are certainly highlights of the character and a great big contribution to what makes him himself but beyond that, and unfortunately that's the vast majority of the time, hal's a space cop with the personality of a cardboard cutout. parallax is not only what sets him apart from comic book heroes as a whole, the earliest legitimate exploration of what the guardians' lack of emotional intelligence & sympathy can lead to or even a look at the underbelly of heroics a la identity crisis before identity crisis was even a glimmer in brad meltzer's eyes but it's also the very first time we're directly confronted with hal's humanity

and geoff johns, whose fanboy-ism is so well known he might as well have been a member of H.E.A.T. (see: hal's emerald attack team, the most ridiculous fanboy campaign of all time), wanted to write a character who was so thoroughly heroic, so unfailingly morally pure that he couldn't have possible fallen prey to the madness of all-encompassing grief without an outside influence. similarly, grant morrison wanted to write a pulp-y sci-fi story that played fast and loose with enough continuity gags to draw in longtime readers and took space cop to new extremes. even back in the sixties, hal suffers so thoroughly from abysmally dated writing in a way alan's '41 series inexplicably does not

hell, the early half of the nineties run is good enough and even there you can tell the inherent tension to the series is hardly hal slowing down & growing old (which was the very intentional case with ollie queen over in the green arrow title running at the same time) but the writers realising the book's getting stale with the whole space cop shtick to the point that the solicitations for emerald twilight described nothing even in the vicinity of what we actually ended up with before gerard jones was thankfully booted off the book and ron marz brought in. so far, marz is the only one to have understood hal's potential and gone through with it all the way!

without parallax, hal is boring. his early popularity & what led to the green lantern franchise as we know it is barely owed to who hal was as a person back in the day and much more to the popularity of sci-fi in the sixties and julie schwartz's incredible ability to release just the right book at the right time. by then, alan scott was largely forgotten and had been unceremoniously kicked off his solo book by a stray dog twenty years prior when the appeal of comic books dwindled massively after the war. certainly there's merit to talk of legacy but if we're legitimately talking about real life context, "the glc exists because hal isn't boring" doesn't pass as the most compelling of arguments

i'd give geoffrey the benefit of the doubt regarding his comment about alan (which could also be read as including alan despite him being a non-traditional green lantern, not because he's enough of a snoozefest to rival hal) but even without that, what alan has become in the modern era is hardly as exciting as the absolutely magnificent writing he'd benefitted from once

frankly, i'm grateful we've got a writer with a genuine taste for innovation on the current ongoing green lantern title and i think geoffrey thorne is not only taking the series in the direction it's needed for so long but he's managed to make me love characters whose very existence i'd previously been opposed to and i'd call that the signs of a job well done, not to mention he's had callbacks to both pre-retcon parallax and the starheart's return to form as the oldest magic in the universe so if/when hal and alan are brought back into the limelight we can rest assured it'll be the best versions of them

[lokiondisneyplus]

Director Kate Herron calls from her childhood bedroom. She's staying at her parents' home in Southeast London for the summer, having spent the past year apart due to the pandemic and directing her latest series, Marvel's Loki. "It's so surreal seeing the show go out," she says over Zoom, "and being in the room that I was last in as a teenager."

Loki's first three episodes have seen the God of Mischief (Tom Hiddleston) team up with Agent Mobius (Owen Wilson) and the all-powerful Time Variance Authority to track down a fugitive Variant of himself: A female Loki that goes by Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) who's set on blowing up the Sacred Timeline and, with it, the MCU as we know it.

"My dad, bless him, he was never into Marvel before, but now he's obsessed with it," she says. "When I got the job, he started watching his way through the films, and he's got all these different YouTubers that he now watches for theories, and he tries to get spoilers out of me. He's like, 'What does it mean?!' and I'm like, 'Dad, I can't tell you!' It's very sweet, but very funny."

Now, with three episodes left of the season, she's bracing for their first family viewing experience. "I might not be able to, though. I might be like, 'You have to watch it by yourselves and then we can talk!'" she laughs. "Wait to hear the Loki theme and be like, 'Oh, I can go downstairs now.'"

In the meantime, Herron fielded all of ET's midseason questions about making Loki's bisexuality canon in the MCU, flexing more of his magic than ever before and why Sylvie isn't really Lady Loki or the Enchantress.

We are halfway through the season. Outside your parents, how has the reaction felt so far?

It's been amazing. We had these big ideas in it -- like, about free will and good and evil -- and wanting to [know that] if we're going back in with Loki because he's so beloved, that it's going to be a good story for that character, but some fresh terrain. I think the response has been pretty joyous and it's just so fun seeing what people are liking, what people's theories are. I couldn't be more happy, to be honest.

Being someone who appears pretty online and active on social media, how deep are you going into reading what people say and diving into those theories and all that?

I definitely read a lot of them -- I don't comment on them -- but I used to love Lost and Game of Thrones, and I was on Reddit, commenting, like, "Ooh, maybe it means this or means this," and I think that's the fun thing with our show, right? Our fans are so smart and it's fun seeing what they're getting right and what's not right but is very interesting. The Easter eggs they dig up are always amazing to me. Some of them we put in there, and I'm like, "Well, let's see..." and I'm like, "Oh, they found it!" So, it's really fun tracking it online. It's very weird directing something where you know every frame will be [screen]grabbed by some fans because they're looking for stuff.

I loved your tweet about why it was important for you to confirm that Loki is bisexual in the show. Not really reveal -- because he's bisexual in the comics -- but make that canon. Talk to me about having those conversations with Marvel.

I think it was something very important to everyone. And I felt like, OK, how can we acknowledge this? We have aspects of the story that are there, so how do we build this into the story so it feels earned in the moment? I didn't want it to feel like we were just wedging something in, but we had this beautiful scene where these two characters are being really raw and really honest about who they are, and I was like, "Well, it is a part of who he is and who they are." For me, talking with Michael [Waldron] and Bisha [K. Ali], it just felt like it was the right moment for that line. This episode is really beautiful for me, because it's these two characters getting to know each other, so in that sense, it felt like the right place for that conversation to happen. And I thought it was done really beautifully by the writers.

Obviously, like I've said, it's very personal to me, and I said it was a small step in some ways -- because obviously, he's just talking about it -- but in the bigger scale of things, I'm like, oh no, it's massive actually. If I saw that when I was 10, it would be really big for me. It's been really nice getting comments from people online. Some people were like, "It helped me actually talk about how I feel to my family and helped me come out." And I thought, "Well, if it helped one person do that, then it's worth it."

This is the MCU's first lead character who is openly queer. Did you know that? Were you aware of how big a milestone this would be?

Yeah. Well, in some senses, yes, and in some senses you're never sure, right? Because [Marvel is] so secretive about all their other projects. [Laughs] For me, I was like, I'm telling Loki's story, it's a part of who they are and I just want to acknowledge it. It's canon in the comics and if we can make it canon in the films, that would be amazing. When I came on board, I was like, if there's a way to do this, it would mean a lot to me and, I'm sure, a lot of people. But it was very welcomed, and I think we're all very proud of how we did that.

This may be getting into spoiler territory that you aren't able to talk about, but acknowledging one's sexuality is one important part of representation, seeing it play out through relationships is another. Can we expect to see any further exploration of what it means for Loki to be bisexual in this show?

I'm trying to think how to answer your question. [Laughs] I would say in our story, this is how we acknowledge it. But I hope that that paves the way for deeper exploration.

We're halfway through the season. What were your biggest goals in these first three episodes?

I think the biggest one was obviously, the Loki we're with in this story is on a completely different path, so it was tracking his character in the sense that he basically sees this amazing arc that the other Loki had gone on across the MCU movies, he sees that he reconciles with his brother, but that wasn't him in that moment. He's watching a different version of himself. But seeing that moment and seeing that he has room for growth and change is really interesting with our Loki, because he's in a very different headspace. So, it was tracking, what's familiar about this character from the Loki that we've seen over the last 10 years go from villain to antihero? And what is going to be completely different and completely different sides to this character that we get to now dig our teeth into? That was something really important to me and to Tom and the writing team, and it was really fun unpacking that and what his identity means.

The other challenges, honestly, were just setting up the TVA, because it's outside of time and space and giving that a grounding and a reality and making that feel like a whole new exciting corner of the MCU. That was a big responsibility, and I was really excited by that. And then you have the bigger arc of the story, but you also knowing it's going out weekly on TV. So, how are we going to track this week by week. Where are we leaving the characters and what are we leaving for the audience? Something we always thought about was we knew there'd be discussion week to week, so it was like, "Where are we going to give them certain bits of information across the show?" We wanted to provoke conversation and discussion about even just things like free will, you know?

I will say about the TVA, I'm basically a human Miss Minutes stan account. I think she's the baddest bitch in the MCU. I watch every Miss Minutes fancam that pops up on my Twitter feed.

She's incredible! What I love about it is that she's in our first episode and she actually used to come out of the presentation that Loki watches -- she came out on the screen -- but it was too crazy. We were like, "OK, we can't do that in the first episode. We'll do it in the second episode!" But what I love about her is that we're seeing the TVA through Loki's eyes and it's, like, the status quo, right? And if our status quo is a Southern-talking, Roger Rabbit-style clock, the show is going to probably get quite weird. I think that's what I love about her. And obviously, Tara [Strong] is awesome. Yeah, Miss Minutes is a lot of fun.

You talked about exploring who Loki is and could be. He's always had an arsenal of powers, but in this series, you really get to explore and define what his power set is. What were those conversations like?

That was something else, coming in, I was so excited about. We have six hours of him, let's see some more magic. Because across the comics, he's super powerful, and for example, in the last episode, that's what was so exciting to me about that, the oner at the end of episode 3 was that I've seen a lot of oners but I haven't seen one with magic. So, I was like, let's put loads of magic in there! We get Loki using his telekinesis and his magic blasts and then also Sylvie, as well, and her powers.

For me, it was exciting getting to bring those in in a way that pushed the story forwards. Because I get it, when he first lands in the TVA, they can't use magic, so I know if I was watching, I'd be like, "What? No magic?!" But I think that's the fun thing is, we still have three episodes to go and also it was fun to put him on Lamentis and see him using his powers in different ways. It was definitely something important to me and the team, was to get to show a little bit more of him. But across the films, you can only do so much. Now we have six hours, so it felt like, of course we have to delve into that more.

I don't know if you saw this on Twitter, one of my favorite reactions to episode 3 was someone tweeted a screenshot of Sylvie screaming and her hands glowing and wrote, "she did the meme!!"

[Laughs] That's great!

We've now officially met Sylvie, and we're starting to piece together that this may be sort of a hybrid character of Lady Loki and Sylvie Lushton, the Enchantress. Are you able to confirm that you pulled from both to create your Sylvie? Or is that something that's to be further revealed?

I would say there's more to be delved into. One thing I would say is, like, she's different to the comics. Like, she's a unique character, but obviously, there's things that have been pulled from. I think for her character, she's on the run and she's called Sylvie and she's dyed her hair. The blonde that we associate with Sylvie is played in that sense, but it makes sense for her character within our story. But I would say deeper than that, yeah, there's more to be revealed about her character to comes.

The main thing I would say is: Lady Loki in the comics is a very different character to our character, obviously. I love that character and I think she's got a very different journey. But our Sylvie is a female Loki, in that sense -- because in episode 1 and 2, they know it's a Loki they're tracking -- but I think that's part of the discussion. It's almost like Loki -- as in Tom Loki -- he's like, "Wait, how much of my life have you got? Who are you?" And I think that's the real question is, who is she? So, we will discuss that as the show goes on. Why does she not like being called Loki? What's her past? Where did she come from?

Tom and Sophia have such great chemistry, but how challenging was it for you and Michael and Sophia and the writers to create a character that essentially has to match up with our Loki, who's had however many films to become the fan-favorite character that he is?

It starts in the writing. Because she's a unique creation, and that was exciting and I was intrigued where they were pulling from with the comics. I was like, OK, that's cool. Beyond that, I think it's casting it. Sophia is an incredible actor. I've worked with her before. She has this fire in her and she brings this amazing vulnerability to all her characters, but she's also, like, so funny. It's just, so many of these things she always brings, I was like, they're so Loki. So, I was like, "We've got to get her to read!" And we were just all blown away by her read of it.

She definitely can hold her own. That's the other thing, as well. I know her, and I was like, she will hold her own. I know she will. Because she's going against Tom's Loki and that's such the fun thing about them. Even just on the train, where it's the end of the world and Loki's solution is, "I'm going to have a party and I'm going to have a drink. I'm going to have a lovely time." And her solution is, "I'm not going to have a glass of champagne, thanks. I'm going to focus on the mission of getting off the moon." Those little differences is what's quite fun about them to me. How are they different, and how are they the same?

Was there something you got to do as a director in these first three episodes that you had never done before that you were especially excited or nervous or both to tackle?

I suppose so much of the show, right? Because I've done a lot of drama and a lot of comedy, but they were like, "Here you go! Here's the reins to this massive, genre-driven piece where you have to set up a new corner of the MCU and you're going to have this beloved character." There was a lot to carry. But I'd say in terms of something I was excited about, only because Kevin Feige was teasing me, when we filmed the big oner at the end of episode 3, I was really inspired in the writing, because it sounded like you were really with the characters. I love doing long takes anyway and I remember thinking, "Oh man, this sequence feels like the one that we should do as this oner," because I want the audience to feel like they're with Sylvie and Loki in this moment, and it's also a moment where you finally start to see an apocalypse and it feels more real, because you're seeing the horror and the terror that's going along with that.

For me, that was exciting, but the really cheesy bit that made me so excited is they had these foam rocks that fell on people, but it felt like real movie magic to me. I was so obsessed with the rocks. I was like, "Oh my god. This is like real, big Hollywood filmmaking." And I remember Kevin Feige was like, "You can take a rock home, if you want," and I was like, "Oh my god!" So I have this rock. It's in bubble wrap now, and I'm going to unpack it when I move into my place. But that's probably honestly the most excited I've ever been. [Laughs] I was just so excited by the rocks. Oh, and also, I remember when we were at Roxxcart and Tom gets thrown into those robo dogs, I was obsessed with the robo dogs. He was like, "I think this is the happiest I've ever seen you." So, those are my favorite moments on set. The foam rocks and the robo dogs.

Somebody's going to come into your flat in the future and there's going to be a shelf with just a rock and a robotic dog on it.

Mhmm! And I'll be like, "Yeah, guys, I did something." [Laughs] They'll be like, "What is this...?" But the foam rocks are genuinely amazing, because they look like real, heavy rocks, but they're so light. I was so fascinated with them. I was so excited. I made a lot of low budget stuff before this, so it was a big deal to me.

My favorite part of the first three episodes is the Kate Berlant cameo. How did that come to be?

Basically, I love comedy and my producer, Kevin Wright, does as well, and we were trying to think of people that could be fun. We've got Josh [Fadem] in episode 1, and that was a miracle. I just spoke to her about the part and was like, "This is a very small role, but if you're interested, you're very talented and you're so funny." And she was like, "You know what? That sounds really fun. Renaissance faire? Yeah, I'll come do it." So, it was very kind of her to come down and do that for us. She's so funny, man. She's so funny.

Do you let her riff at all?

We did. We have a lot of alts and a lot of very extended bits of her talking to the Minutemen. I think there's one where she talks about a bird show at the faire. She's so funny. I was very flattered and grateful that she did that for us.

I'm going to start the #ReleaseTheKateBerlantCut campaign. I want a whole episode of her alts. Or she can be the new Stan Lee and cameo in every MCU project. Before I let you go, if you had to choose one word to tease these upcoming three episodes, what is that word?

Hmm. I thought of one word, but then I'm like, it's spoiler-y, so I can't say that. [Laughs] Oh, one word. Exciting? I have to say "exciting," because I can't say the other one I wanted to say!

[astrolornb]

hbd to Hayao Miyazaki! (Capricorn sun/Aries moon)

Iconic animator, director, and screenwriter Hayao Miyazaki (b. January 5, 1941) turned 80 years old on January 5, 2021.

Miyazaki is the co-founder of Studio Ghibli and acclaimed for his whimsical and fantastical animated feature-length films. He is known for writing stories with environmental and social messages, which often centre independent girls as protagonists.

His first breakthrough directorial film, Nausicäa of the Valley of The Wind (1984) follows a young princess who fights to defend her home community from war and environmental devastation in a post-apocalyptic world. Miyazaki adapted this screenplay based on a manga he wrote.

To be frank, I find I can’t really watch this film anymore (after having watched it maybe 3 or 4 times?), with the amount of war and fighting in it (the accompanying music is also kinda intense). However, this was once my favourite film by Miyazaki and I still recommend watching if you haven’t already seen it.

Today, Spirited Away (2001) and Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) remain some of my favourite films.

In Spirited Away, a ten-year old girl named Chihiro must save her parents from the spirit world by overcoming obstacles in a bathhouse full of spirits and outsmarting a powerful witch. I think this film both fascinated and slightly scared me as a kid, but I’ve grown to love it more as an adult. This description truly doesn’t quite do the film justice as the cast of unique characters each add a different twist to Chihiro’s journey towards bravery.

In Kiki’s Delivery Service, a young girl must leave home to train as a witch as per the traditions of her village. However, she starts to lose her powers when on her own and must regain them in order to survive. Kiki was truly an angsty teen of her time. As an entrepreneur, she basically delivered bread UberEats-style on her broom, to boot!

How many other teenage witches can you name who fly across the sea while listening to the radio? I once dressed up as Kiki for Halloween.

The above mentioned films were all written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki.

When I found out Miyazaki’s birthday, it came as no surprise that he was born as a Capricorn. I say this in reference to watching the NHK docu-series “10 Years with Hayao Miyazaki,” which highlights his obsessive and regimented work schedule and habits, reeking of Capricorn stereotypes.

“Placing value on the act of working hard is an incredible mistake…Working hard, it’s just something you do. If you don’t, nothing worthwhile will come about.” - Hayao Miyazaki (source)

Capricorns are Earth signs who are passionate and driven, above all else.

I don’t know about you, but in my life, Capricorns are always grinding (staying on top of everything!). These include successful artists and freelancers who are committed to their practice and communities (often while working multiple jobs), pushing through law/grad school during a pandemic, and dedicated to showing up and caring for their friends and family.

Tweets by astrologer Danielle Ayoka (@mysticxlipstick)

Maybe this devout sense of purpose and passion is what makes them come off as so wise beyond their years.

Capricorns are the epitomy of old souls. Their practicality makes them seem like a grandparent, regardless of their actual age.

“I’m so excited!” Miyazaki smiles with grandpa joy as he releases the tape from the video camera that he installed in his car to record as he drives. A little strange, perhaps, yet in the first part of the docu-series, it truly offers a pragmatic glimpse into his approach to work. (In this case, the study of daily motion.)

Screencapture from 10 Years with Hayao Miyazaki by NHK

Of an emotional nature, another Capricorn stereotype is that they come off as cool and distant. In the same docu-series, viewers later witness Miyazaki walk out of the middle of his son’s film premiere. Ouch.

For Miyazaki, quality of work > everything else.

Tweet by karen han (@karenyhan)

In the documentary film the Kingdom of Dreams and Madness (2013), viewers watch Miyazaki going off on a team of animators, even making some cry after giving his feedback.

Capricorns set high standards. More so for themselves than for others though. However, beyond his Capricorn sun, Miyazaki has an Aries moon. The moon represents a significant emotional aspect of our inner selves.

What does this mean? According to the AstroTwins,

Aries is ruled by Mars, the planet of aggression and war, which can make you temperamental and straight-up combative. With your fiery emotions, you get frustrated easily, blowing up at the slightest provocations. Although your temper tantrums pass quickly, you don’t always realize how much havoc your rage spells can wreak. The fallout could take years to live down, if the bridge isn’t permanently burned.

...

Aries is the first sign of the zodiac, and this moon sign makes you an initiator who likes to be number one. A warrior at heart, you’ll courageously champion any cause, project or person you believe in. You have a star quality, but your competitive streak can be fierce! 

Hayao Miyazaki’s birth chart (via astro-charts.com)

This combination of steadfast hard work (Capricorn sun/Earth sign) and fierce independence (Aries moon/Fire sign) likely contributes much to how Miyazaki has attained his status as such an accomplished filmmaker and artist.

While this blog post is a tribute to the great Miyazaki, it is also an acknowledgement that he is an imperfect person, as we all are. Humans are complex creatures. Like so many of us, he is someone who has caused hurt and someone who has experienced significant loss. And, at the same time, he is someone who has created so much beauty, too.

Screenshot from The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness (2013)

To many fans disappointment, Miyazaki retired from filmmaking after The Wind Rises (2013). However, in true Capricorn style, he has returned to work and emerged from retirement to direct a new film titled How Do You Live? which he intends to dedicate to his grandson.

With this forthcoming film, the Studio Ghibli animators have been tasked to draw more frames by hand than ever before. In the slow and steady Earth-sign-led process, they are producing a single minute of animation per month with a team of 60 people.

Studio Ghibli producer and general manager Toshio Suzuki says, “That means 12 months a year, you get 12 minutes worth of movie. Actually, we’ve been working on this film for three years, so that means we have 36 minutes completed so far. We’re hoping it will finish in the next three years.” Wow.

In Japan, an 80th birthday is referred to as the “umbrella celebration” (sanju 傘寿) in reference to the shape of the characters. The abbreviation of the character for “umbrella” (傘) can be read as “80″ by overlapping numbers 8 (八) and 10 (十).

Astrology writer Gala Mukamalova, once wrote about the power we give years. In an astrological love letter, she offered this to our hardworking, stubborn goat friends:

“But you, Capricorn, you who are still here, still wind howling through trees, still a leaf clinging to this life—forgiveness is something you can learn. How to give it, yes, but mostly how to receive it.”

Despite how much I enjoy projecting onto famous people based on their birth charts, I don’t truly know all that haunts Miyazaki or drives him to create as an artist, a son, a father, and a survivor of war.

Yet still, I hope this year may allow Miyazaki and his Capricorn sun to pursue forgiveness of self, whatever that may look like. I have no doubt that he will continue to find success with his work to come. Hopefully his Aries moon can tread lighter and enable him to act more kindly towards his studio team, too. After all, it is 2021.

Happy 80th birthday, Hayao Miyazaki. ☂️

[abundanceofsoph]

SkyFire 1: Chapter 19

New Year’s Eve in London 2014 & early January 2015

Word count: 1.8k

SkyFire 1 MASTERLIST

In the days between Christmas and the New Year, Aurora and Harry spent many hours in the conservatory off the back of the house, watching the snow softly fall in the back garden. Harry would occasionally pull out his acoustic guitar and entertain Rori while she sketched the scene, or they would simply cuddle up under a blanket and talk. The sense of time standing still enveloped the house and allowed for the young couple to remain wrapped up in each other, revelling in the cosy winter atmosphere. On the afternoon of New Year’s Eve, Harry loaded up the car and they said goodbye to Anne and Robin before driving down to London. They arrived well after sunset and while Harry carried in their bags as soon as they arrived at his house, Aurora headed to the bathroom to shower and wash her hair to get ready for the party they were both attending later that evening. She was mostly finished, her hair washed, and legs shaved, when the glass door opened, and Harry joined her under the warm spray.

“Mind if I join?” he murmured, pressing himself against his girlfriend’s back, taking the loofa from her hand and finishing scrubbing the body wash across her stomach and back. Rori chuckled as she turned in his arms, kissing him deeply as he tipped his head under the water to wet his shoulder length curls. She pulled back from the kiss to rub shampoo into his hair, smiling happily as she recalled seeing online that the fans had been calling it his Prince Harry hair.

After they’d both rinsed off and stepped out of the shower, they wrapped themselves in large fluffy towels and Aurora set about drying and styling her hair before getting started on her make up. By the time she was finished and slipping into her skinny jeans and lacey blouse, she turned to see Harry walking out of his large walk-in closet, black skinny jeans hugging his legs and a black button up short open at the collar.

“Help me with the buttons?” Rori asked him, and he stepped forward, pushing her long curls out of the way to button up the back of her shirt. He placed a soft kiss on her bare shoulder when he finished, looking to the mirror in front of them.

“You look beautiful,” he told her softly, earning a beaming smile in return. “Car should be here soon.”

They both turned towards the door, Aurora scooping her clutch purse of the end of the bed as she passed and they made their way down the stairs to the front door, slipping on their winter coats before walking outside and climbing into the waiting uber to take them into the city.

The car dropped them off at one of the many docks along the Thames and they made their way down towards the medium sized boat waiting at the waters edge. The party onboard was already in full swing by the time the pair made it aboard and Rori found herself recognising most of the faces in the crowd, despite having never meeting most of them before. There were other singers, song-writers, producers and other behind the scenes members of the British music scene. Harry soon had a glass in his hand as they pushed through the crowd on the back deck, looking for their friends. Eventually they spotted Louis and Liam towards the back of the boat and exchanged hugs.

“Where’s Niall and Zayn at?” Rori asked as she pulled back from Liam’s arms.

“Zayn bailed to hang with Perrie and Niall’s on his way,” Liam replied.

They continued to chat, laughing as they filled each other in on the Christmas’ with their families until Niall finally arrived a little over half an hour later. The boat pushed from the wharf around 10.30 and the party was swarming on the decks as the clock neared midnight. Since she wasn’t drinking, Aurora was feeling the chill of the winter wind blowing up off the water and headed into the spacious cabin for a while to warm up, knowing she would want to go back out when the fireworks started at midnight. She was sitting on a bench seat along a long bank of windows looking out at the city sliding past on the riverbank as she slowly felt her hands warming back up when Nick Grimshaw sat down next to her.

“Hello love,” he greeted, throwing an arm around her shoulders when she returned his greeting.

“Not drinking?” he asked, noticing the half empty bottle of water next to her.

“I don’t drink,” Rori replied simply.

“Probably a good idea,” he chuckled. “I think everyone else is gonna be feeling pretty miserable tomorrow morning. Mind if I ask why?”

“My dad’s a recovering alcoholic,” Rori replied, shocked that she’d been asked given that not many people had noticed over the years that she didn’t drink, and even fewer had ever bothered to find out why. “Apparently I’m genetically predisposed to addiction, so I just decided not to tempt fate.”

“So, you’ve never had a drink?” Nick asked, not shocked, but certainly curious.

“I tried a sip of Harry’s champagne once but otherwise nope.”

“Huh,” Nick replied, sipping at his own drink and the conversation turned to other things.

Aurora was still sitting there with Nick when Harry found her half an hour later.

“There you are,” he cheered as he stumbled over to her and she could tell that while he wasn’t completely trashed yet, he was well on his way to drunk and she laughed when he fell onto her lap as he attempted to sit next to her. “Sorry love,” he drawled, sliding sideways, his leg still hoked over hers as he sat beside her, his arms wrapping around her waist, “The boats a bit rocky and I don’t think I’ve got my sea legs yet.”

“Yeah, the boats rocky,” Rori parroted sarcastically. “That’s definitely why you can’t walk straight.”

“Of course,” Harry agreed, snuggling his head against her shoulder and Rori laughed deeply, always enjoying how clingy Harry was when he was drunk. She placed soft kisses along his hairline as he hummed, and Nick excused himself to go find someone to dance with him back out on the deck. “Couldn’t find you,” Harry murmured, “got worried about you.”

“I’m sorry babe,” Rori said, rubbing her hand up and down the length of his back. “I just got a bit cold, so I came inside to warm up.”

“I could warm you up,” Harry offered, lifting his head to kiss up along her neck towards her jaw.

“That’s very sweat of you H, but I’m not having sex with you on a crowded boat,” Rori chuckled. Harry pouted and returned to leaning against her shoulder, his arms tightening around her waist instead.

“You’re such a buzzkill,” he mumbled into her skin.

“I love you too,” Rori laughed in reply. “How about we go find the boys. It’s almost midnight.”

Harry agreed and Rori quickly moved his arm around her shoulder and held on to his waist as they headed back out onto the deck. She managed to keep her tipsy boyfriend on his feet as he stumbled along and was grateful when she quickly found Louis and Niall amongst the dancing party guests.

Liam was nowhere in sight when the countdown began, a cool wind whipping through the partiers aboard the boat. Louis and Niall raised their glasses to the sky as they screamed out the count with those around them, drunkenly kissing each other on the cheek as the clock hit midnight and Harry pulled Aurora to him, kissing her deeply. The night sky lit up with the fireworks display, the colours bursting and reflecting off the surface of the Thames below them.

“Happy New Year, H,” Aurora whispered when the pulled apart. “I’ve got a good feeling about 2015.”

“Me too, love. Me too,” Harry replied, smiling broadly down at his girlfriend as the party continued on around them.

xXx

Harry and Aurora were wrapped tightly around each other in Harry’s bed, savouring the final hours before Aurora's flight when her phone started ringing on the bedside table. Harry was closer so he reached for it, passing it over and she briefly saw Marks name and face before she pressed it to her ear, her cheek still flush against Harry’s bare chest. 

“Have you been online today?” he asked.

“Hello to you too Mark,” Rori chuckles, “and no I haven’t. I’ve been a little busy.”

“Well you need to,” her agent replied. “The response to the Rascal Flatts cover you posted a few days ago is great. Everyone loved it, including Rascal Flatts.”

“I’m sorry, what now?” Rori gasped, earning a questioning look from Harry at her change in tone.

“They tweeted out a link to your video and they want to collaborate with you for their next album,” Mark explained, a smile clear in his voice as he pictured her excited expression.

“Holy shit,” Rori said. “Holy shit. Holy fucking shit Mark!” She placed the call on to speaker, opening up twitter and scrolling through her mentions until she found the one she was looking for.

>RascalFlatts: So incredible to find out that the wonderfully talented @.aurorastark covered our song Riot. You absolutely blew us away Aurora and if you ever wanted to come down to Ohio to write with us, we would love to have you. 

“I don’t even know how to process this,” Rori said, not sure if she was speaking to Harry or Mark or just speaking out loud for the sake of it. She was freaking out and started scrolling through the replies to the tweet.

>AuroraFan77: Aurora and country music was the crossover I didn’t know I was missing from my life

>RascalFlattsFan8: every pop collab they’ve done has been incredible, so I’d been keen for this @.taurenwells @.justinbieber @.natashabdnfield & now @.aurorastark

“Do you want to do it?” Mark asked when she fell silent.

“Obviously.”

“OK well I’ll reach out and see if we can lock down a time for you to fly to Ohio. You don’t have a lot of free time though. You’re still planning to join Harry on tour as soon as classes finish?”

“I am, yeah,” Rori agreed.

“I think we’ve got some free time around the Ohio shows, Mark,” Harry butted in. “I’ll send you the tour schedule to see if you can fit something in.”

“Thanks Harry,” Mark said. “Anyway, you too enjoy the rest of your day and I’ll talk to you in a few days Rori.”

“Talk to you soon Mark.”

NEXT CHAPTER

OR CONTINUE READING ON AO3

[freddiesaysalright]

Catching Up Part IV

A Joe Mazzello x Reader Story

Summary: Reader is a writer for an entertainment news network and after Joe comes in to do an interview, they reconnect.

Word Count: 2.6K

Tag List: @crazylittlethingcalledobsession, @jennyggggrrr, @somethinginthewayiam, @grandaddy-roger-trash, @rogerloveshiscar, @hopefully-aesthetically-pleasing, @danamaleksworld If you’d like to be added let me know!

Part I  Part II  Part III 

Part IV here we go!!!

Monday rolled around and you dreaded going back to work. Although, you knew Joe was coming in to re-do the Bohemian Rhapsody interview, so you had that to look forward to. The past few days with him had been bliss. Cute dates and great sex. You couldn’t have been happier. The only damper was that Joe was leaving New York a week after the interview at your station. He’d be back the next month, but going so long without seeing him was going to be the wait of a lifetime.

You walked into the newsroom, humming to yourself. You stopped in your tracks when you saw Don sitting at your desk, smiling eerily at you. You shot him a questioning glance as you slowly approached.

“‘Sup?” he said when you reached him.

“Good morning,” you returned. “Is something wrong?”

“Come on, let’s go in my office and talk,” he said.

You set your purse in your seat when he stood up. You shook your jacket off your shoulders and followed him. He closed the door behind you. You worried for a moment he was going to ask you to do the interview again, even though Emily was already at her desk. You took a hesitant seat across from him.

“What’s going on, Don?” you asked.

“Are you seriously going out with Joe Mazzello?” he replied.

Your gaped at him. “I - I don’t see how that’s any of your business.”

“It is my business,” he said. “When our own magazine Tweets pictures they caught of you two together this weekend.”

Your heart sunk. You thought you’d been so careful.

“Do you have any idea how embarrassing this is for us?” he said, raising his voice slightly. “One of our own writers is sleeping with a source!”

“Hey!” you cried. “He’s just doing a promotional interview. This isn’t an ongoing story. Even if it was, I’m not the reporter on it, so it doesn’t violate any ethical rules!”

“So you are sleeping together?” he wondered.

“You know I’m not going to answer that,” you returned levelly. You were impressed with your own composure. Anger was boiling in the pit of your stomach.

“You can’t see him anymore.”

“You can’t ask that of me.”

You glowered at each other over his desk for a moment. He sighed, rubbing his temples.

“I just don’t get it,” he said almost under his breath, but you still heard.

“There’s nothing to get,” you replied. “Joe and I are two adults having a relationship. It’s no one’s business but ours. If those are your only concerns, I’ll be going now.”

You stood up, turning on your heel and going for the door. He leapt to his feet and grabbed your arm to stop you, turning you to face him. Then, before you could ask what he wanted, he kissed you. You scrunched up your face and shoved him hard away from you.

“What the hell, Don?” you demanded. “Is all this because you’re jealous?! You don’t even like me!”

He looked down, clearly embarrassed. “It’s - uh - well, it’s a weird self preservation thing. When I like someone, I’m ruder to them.”

“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard,” you returned. “I’m going to say something to you that is insubordinate and grounds for termination, but you need to hear it. If you are attracted to a woman, man up and ask her out. You’re an adult, so quit pulling pigtails.”

You stood there, waiting for him to tell you to pack up your desk, but he just looked at you, shocked.

“Well?” you said. “Are you going to fire me or do I have to tell you how to do that too?”

He rolled his eyes, his usual self returning at last. “You’re not fired. Just...don’t mention this to anyone. I’m sorry.”

“Fine,” you said coldly, and you swept out of the room.

You walked over to your desk. You looked up and saw, once again, the four stars of Bohemian Rhapsody coming into the newsroom for their interview. This time, when you caught Joe’s eye, you smiled. He winked and you waved at him. His presence made your anger melt away. Don didn’t matter.

Putting off your work, you made your way to the green room to say hello.

“Welcome back, guys,” you said warmly.

They all said their thanks as you went to Joe and wrapped your arms around his waist and rested your head on his chest. He kissed the top of your head and you hummed with satisfaction.

“What’s up, babe?” he asked.

“I just like holding you,” you said.

“Well, then by all means, carry on,” he said lightly.

You considered for a moment telling him about what happened between you and Don, but decided against it. He was about to do an interview Don was producing, and you didn’t want any tension there. Especially on Joe’s end since he would be on camera.

Emily came into the room shortly afterward. She was definitely made for daytime television. She had think, beautiful blonde hair. Round, brown doe eyes, and a wide, sparkly smile. She was so pretty, but it was hard to be jealous of her because she was also so kind.

“Hey!” she greeted, her thick Georgia accent coming through already. She took in you and Joe. “Aw, y’all are cute! Good for you, Y/N!”

You and Joe looked at each other and smiled in a way you were sure was disgusting to the onlookers in the room.

“Well, I’m Emily,” she said, shaking hands with all of them. “I just wanted to come by and introduce myself before we got started. And apologize for last week. I heard Don was pretty rude.”

“Well, to Y/N, yeah,” said Joe. “But not to us.”

“Still, it was unprofessional,” she said. “He’s still producing the segment, though.”

“Really, it’s alright,” said Gwilym.

As if summoned by the mention of him, Don poked his head in the door. You refused to meet his gaze, burying your face in Joe’s chest and closing your eyes.

“Emily, gentlemen,” he said, nodding to them. “We’re gonna get started in just a few minutes. Y/N, if you could get back to your desk and do some actual work, please.”

You rolled your eyes. To be extra snarky, you kissed Joe long and passionately before you left. But when you got to your desk, you ignored your work further. You jumped on Twitter - which wasn’t abnormal since you often wrote for the social media accounts associated with the network - and found the magazine’s page. The first thing up under the pinned Tweet was the picture of you and Joe. It was a nice picture. You were grinning at each other.

The Tweet just said your name, under your byline, and that you and Joe were the “new flame.” It had pretty good traffic too. There were about two hundred comments, eight hundred retweets, and one thousand likes. You clicked on it to read the replies, hoping that no one recognized you. You had not posted a picture of yourself online since the ones your ex leaked, for fear that someone would reverse search and match your face to the one in the nudes.

The replies were mostly shocked emojis, people congratulating you and Joe, or something nasty about your appearance. You read every single one of them, looking for any chance that someone had linked your image. You breathed a sigh of relief when you read the last one and it hadn’t happened. You kept the page open to keep an eye on it in case that changed. But for now, you could breathe a sigh of relief.

When the interview was over, Joe took you to lunch. You chose a casual place and got burgers. You laughed and talked together. At one point you were tossing French fries at each other, trying to catch them in your mouths, much to the amusement of a baby at the next table over, who giggled, high pitched and adorable.

“Oh, hey, bud,” Joe cooed. “Didn’t see you there.”

The baby gurgled some nonsense back and Joe nodded thoughtfully. “You make a very good point, there. I agree.”

A smile parted your lips as you looked on at Joe having a full, made-up conversation with this little baby boy. It was the sweetest thing you’d ever seen.

“What’s that?” Joe said, leaning closer as the boy said something that sounded like “a-goo.” Joe looked between you and the boy. “Well, you can tell her that yourself.” A beat passed and then the boy went “ga!” loudly and pumped his tiny fists in the air. “Alright, I’ll tell her if you’re really that shy about it.” He looked at you. “He says you look very beautiful today.”

You brought your hand to your chest and gasped dramatically. “My, my! What a kind compliment from such a handsome boy!” You looked at the baby and wiggled a finger at him.

Finally, the mother, who had been in deep conversation with her girlfriends, noticed you and Joe entertaining her son. She smiled.

“Wow, I didn’t realize Russell was over here making some new friends,” she said kindly.

“He’s quite the chatterbox,” said Joe, offering his hand to shake. “I’m Joe, this is my girlfriend, Y/N.”

“Nancy,” she replied. “Nice to meet you. Thanks for keeping him busy.”

“No problem,” you assured her.

“He is a great conversationalist,” Joe continued. “And a bit of a flirt.”

She chuckled. “Would you like to hold him?”

“Heck yeah!” he replied.

Smiling still, she took Russell from his carrier. He shrieked with excitement as she put him in Joe’s arms. He twisted his face up to earn laughter from Russell. They babbled back and forth to each other and you thought your heart might explode from how adorable it all was.

“Honey, you need to keep him,” Nancy said to you under her breath. “He’s gonna be an incredible dad one day.”

“We’re just starting out,” you told her. “But it’s something to keep in mind for sure.”

Russell and Nancy left shortly after, but you looked at Joe like he hung the moon.

“You really like kids, huh?” you observed.

“Oh, yeah,” he returned. “My nephews are like, the lights of my life.”

“That’s so sweet,” you said. “Are you going to see them while you’re in town?”

He nodded. “Yeah, actually. This afternoon. But I’m free the rest of the week if you want to spend some time before we leave.”

“Absolutely,” you returned. “I already took the time off work.”

“Aw, you didn’t have to do that,” he said.

“I want to be with you, Joe,” you said. “Work just isn’t as important.”

He smiled and leaned over the table for a kiss. You thought of how your day started compared to what you were feeling now. Don didn’t matter. Twitter pictures didn’t matter. All you needed was Joe to take you out of your fear and and anxiety.

The week passed far too quickly. You took Joe to the airport, parked, and walked him inside. You hated that you couldn’t go all the way to the gate with him, but he had a little bit of  time before he absolutely had to be there. After he checked his bag, he came back to you. Hot tears filled your eyes and you tried to wipe them away before he saw. He still saw.

“Aw, baby, don’t cry,” he said, pulling you into his arms. “I’ll call you every night. And, if you’re comfortable with it, we can face time.”

You looked up at him, color draining from your face. “I don’t know about that.”

“That’s okay,” he said, rubbing your arms. “Like I said, only if you’re comfortable.”

You rested your forehead on his chest, relishing each moment you had him here in your arms. Where you could really feel him there with you. You etched the details into your memory to hold you through the next eight weeks until he returned. The rhythm of his heartbeat. The soft warmth of his skin. The way he drummed his impatient fingers against you.

He leaned in and kissed you, and you gave the kiss similar treatment. Although, with the way he kissed you it was hard to concentrate. It was passionate and yet soft. Romantic. A kiss to remember on nights you missed him most.

“I’m not saying this to freak you out, okay?” he said. “But Y/N, I really think I’m falling in love with you.”

Neither of you had used the word “love” before. It felt soon, but it also didn’t. It didn’t scare you to hear that from Joe. In fact, it excited you. You beamed through your tears.

“I’m falling in love with you too,” you said.

He sighed, relieved, and kissed you again. He checked his watch.

“I’ve got to get through security,” he said.

“I’m gonna miss you,” you told him.

“I’m gonna miss you too,” he returned.

With one last kiss and squeeze of your hand, he let go. You watched him until he disappeared through the line. It felt like your whole heart was going with him.

The weeks without Joe passed in a haze. You were exhausted all the time and becoming oddly emotional about him. Each time you hung up with him at night, you cried to yourself a little, missing him so much. You were an emotional person, but you’d never felt so weepy before. It concerned you, but you knew you’d also never felt this strongly about someone before.

After a month of Joe being gone, you were finishing up your feature article on up and coming female directors. The deadline was the following day, and you were making the final edits before submitting it to your editor to look over.

A sudden wave of nausea hit you. You felt your stomach churn uncomfortably, and you pressed your hand to it, frowning. You’d had a normal breakfast so you couldn’t imagine what was causing this. Your body heaved, and you jumped up to run to the bathroom. You just barely made it into a stall - not even having time to lock it behind you - and you vomited into the toilet. It took a few minutes before you were done and sat back on the floor.

“Rough night?” came the voice of Don from the door.

You jumped and squeaked with fright. “God, Don! I know this is a unisex, but don’t sneak up on me like that.”

“Sorry,” he said. “Are you sick? Do you need to go home?”

“I don’t know,” you replied.

“Well, whatever this is, I don’t want it spread around the office,” he said. “Go ahead and take the day off.”

Tears sprang to your eyes. “Don…that’s so nice.”

“Holy shit, it’s not that nice,” he said, eyes widening. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Everything makes me cry recently, so I’m sorry for the waterworks,” you said with a sniffle. “But I probably should go home.”

“Please do,” he said. “I’m...so uncomfortable.”

You thanked him again before leaving the office and heading home. When you entered your apartment, Christy was there, reading on the couch. She worked in an upscale restaurant that was only open in the evening, so she was home all day.

“You’re home early,” she said.

“Yeah,” you said, wiping tears from your face.

“Everything okay?” she wondered, setting the book down.

“I don’t know,” you told her.

“Tell me what’s going on.”

“I’m so tired, I’m emotional as hell, and I just threw up at work. In front of Don.”

“Jesus,” she muttered. “I hope you’re not pregnant.”

You stared at her, wide eyed. She sighed.

“Let’s go to the store.”

You went together and picked up a couple tests. When you came home and took them, the result was always the same. Pregnant. You still had two weeks before Joe returned to New York. How on Earth were you going to tell him?

[perfectirishgifts]

Building A Leading ESports Organization. An Exclusive Interview With Adrian Montgomery, CEO Of Enthusiast Gaming

New Post has been published on https://perfectirishgifts.com/building-a-leading-esports-organization-an-exclusive-interview-with-adrian-montgomery-ceo-of-enthusiast-gaming/

Building A Leading ESports Organization. An Exclusive Interview With Adrian Montgomery, CEO Of Enthusiast Gaming

I recently had the privilege to sit down (well share a Zoom call!) with Adrian Montgomery, Chief Executive Officer of Enthusiast Gaming. It is not often as a writer you get direct, unfiltered access to the CEO of one – if not the – leading company in its space, let alone for it to be in my favorite sector – eSports!

For those still unfamiliar with Enthusiast Gaming (as I realize not all of you are quite there on eSports yet! Time to get on-board now though, huh?), the company’s aim is to “build the world’s largest platform of communities for gamers and eSports fans”.

It is already the largest gaming network in North America and the UK with 100 gaming related websites, 1,000 YouTube channels, 7 professional eSports teams and over 30 virtual and in-person gaming events globally such as EGLX, (eglx.com) and the largest mobile gaming event in Europe, Pocket Gamer Connects. The platform reaches over 300 million gamers each month, generating an average of 4 billion views of content each month.

Enthusiast Gaming EGLX

Enthusiast Gaming also has approximately 500 gaming influencers, reaching over 500 million subscribers on Twitch and YouTube. Enthusiast Gaming’s eSports division, Luminosity Gaming, has over 70 million loyal fans and followers, and is a leading global eSports franchise that consists of 7 professional eSports team, including the Vancouver Titans Overwatch team and the Seattle-based Call of Duty team. Yes, wow.

Enthusiast Gaming Vancouver Titans

Before joining Enthusiast Gaming, Adrian was a senior officer and director of several companies in media, sports and entertainment, finance and industrial services — most recently serving as president and CEO of Aquilini Sports and Entertainment, one of Canada’s premier sports and entertainment organizations.  Adrian’s personal passion for eSports clearly jumped off the screen as we got talking about how he became involved in eSports one fateful day when he had a very different type of rental inquiry for their 20,000 seat arena.

“I had just read an article about eSports, and one of my guys phoned me and said “You know how you were interested in eSports? Well, these guys are coming in – do you want to come on the site tour?”. Well, it turned out we had this opportunity to host the biggest eSports event in the world – the DOTA 2 International run by Valve – that was coming out of Seattle for the first time.  I came down and met these three guys, who were acting as if they were in charge of FIFA or the SuperBowl or something! “Take that down, move that, block that off, our crew needs this…”. I was getting a little frustrated and keen to try to put them in their place, saying ‘Hey, so what exactly is the prize purse for this little rinky-dink tournament right? “$33 million dollars (USD)”. Oh my god! So, I went back at the end of the site tour and said, alright, there is clearly something here!”

Despite several doubters among traditional hirers of the venue and concerns on the complexity of the set-up and all its incredible visual effects, the event went ahead. The entire building sold out in one hour for six straight days, the city of Vancouver became overrun with cosplay wearing, DOTA 2 fans and Adrian’s team could not get into their offices as fans lined up were around the block to get in.  So how did the DOTA 2 team achieve this? A complex, multi-layered, omni channel marketing campaign?

“It is almost impossible to sell out a 20,000 seat arena for six days. So I asked the organizers, “I’ve got to know – what is the marketing plan here? They said, “look dude, we’ve got it covered,” to which I replied with, “look, I might be fired tomorrow so you’ve got to give me something.” To my surprise, they said “Ok, you want to know the plan, ok, here is the plan. First we are going to send out a Tweet…” and I said “Ok.. and?” and they responded with – “That’s it, that’s our marketing plan.”

This moment saw the company’s 87-year-old multi-billionaire owner task Adrian with getting into this brave new world of eSports.

“What did you do? And whatever you did, we need to get all of the way into this industry.” A month later they bought an Overwatch team, then Luminosity Gaming and the rest is history”

Enthusiast Gaming Event

Fast forward to today, in asking what now sets Enthusiast Gaming apart, without hesitation Adrian cites the company’s singular focus on its fans.

“We feel no-one is as obsessively focused on the fan experience as we are. The thing that makes us so different to anyone else in the space is that we are not trying to dominate a vertical; we are not trying to just be an eSports organization, a collection of websites, or a tournament organizer – we want to build value right across the fan experience. If you are a super-keen EPIC Games’ Fortnite player who has logged-off, the beauty of this gaming phenomenon is that you are not then ‘done’ – you go to Twitch where – obviously! – we want you watching our Fortnite streamers Muselk and Fresh, when you go to YouTube, we want you to go to the biggest Fortnite YouTube channel in the world – our channel, BCC Gaming, if you want to see what EPIC Gaming is up to next, we want you to then come to one of our events and see their booth up-close. It is all highly integrated – and hopefully a lot of fun also!”

While it is clear Enthusiast Gaming connects with its fans in a very genuine way and has built meaningful relationships, you would be forgiven for thinking there is a significant marketing machine behind this growth – and a bit like how Adrian was surprised about the DOTA 2 event, you may also be surprised to learn they’ve done it in a purely organic, authentic way.

“The thing that blows people away – and is routed in our content and approach – is when I tell them we don’t spend a single cent in acquiring or keeping that traffic coming back. They won’t believe it. Building a world-class business routed in user-generated content is definitely a very hard thing to do – and when you succeed it is a very hard thing to explain! There is a lot of art as to how it’s curated, how its presented, but when you can do it well, the sky is the limit for you in terms of possibilities.”

For all of its growth, gamers can still be seen to be misunderstood as a community. Of the 300 million active base the company has, many falls into the cliched ‘hard to reach’ segments – of Millennials, GenZ & Gen-A, and that are so attractive to brands.

Enthusiast Gaming Event

“They are the world’s most lucrative demographic because they have a lot of purchasing power. They don’t have their money sucked away by these things called children and mortgages. If you are a company, you are no doubt trying to get them into your world at a very early point in their buying lifecycle. What people don’t really understand is that with any traditional sports would kill for the demographics of an eSports fan – they are a little bit older than you think – typically being in their 20’s; they have more disposable income than other traditional sports fan but then, they are elusive – they just don’t consume content the way I did in 20 years ago!”

Enthusiast Gaming is already partnering with the likes of Gillette, Proctor and Gamble, GoDaddy, and Pizza Hut. However, Adrian was clear that other brands need to realize that gaming is not a hobby for many millions – billions of people.

“eSports is more than a hobby for gamers – it’s a way of life. It’s their identity, it’s their social network, and it’s their method of expression. eSports and gaming is going to continue to skyrocket, and people are realizing how pervasive it is in people’s lives. What I’ve seen change this year – and I can tell you which is one of the most exciting things for our industry today – is that most marketing directors now know if you need to communicate with young people, you simply must have a video game strategy. eSports has made quantum leaps during the recent pandemic.”

With the likes of GenZ’s being highly influenced by the people they follow on social media, it just so happens that their heroes– and some the biggest stars on social media – are gamers. Enthusiast Gaming sponsors some the biggest athletes, recently signing one of the biggest content creators on Twitch – xQc – who has a community of 100,000 concurrent viewers every night. The company is also focused on developing the next generation of talent. Recently creating the “Rising Stars” competition, Enthusiast Gaming sought to leverage its incredible platform to create a “star-making factory” and find and develop the next gaming superstars of tomorrow.

“We are trying to create ‘The Voice’, we’re trying to create ‘American Idol’ for gamers. We recently had a five-week competition with all entries judged by stars on our roster like xQc, Muselk, Anomaly, and Fresh sit on as judges. We recently concluded the competition at the 2020 Enthusiast Gaming Live Experience (ELGX), where BabyCappah took the title and a $100,000 USD sponsorship with Luminosity Gaming. We are creating something of a Simon Cowell fuelled concept here…and I think we are going to be very successful with it!”  

BabyCappah will actually become a fully-fledged member of the Luminosity Gaming roster. In true entrepreneurial style the company had originally beta-tested the concept with a smaller version called ‘So You Think You Can Stream’.

“The incredible gamer who won is actually quadriplegic – RockyNoHands – we made the decision instantly to sign him to Luminosity Gaming.  We are so proud to be associated with him. He is an incredible example of how we can hopefully convince people with disabilities to engage more with eSports with him as a leading ambassador – it is very exciting to see the impact eSports can have.”

We all hear the eye-popping statistics about how big the gaming industry is. From Activision, to Tencent, to EA to biggest companies on the planet – Amazon, Facebook and Google – vying to be THE broadcast platform for the content is clear that there is still so much growth in eSports. This is true for Enthusiast Gaming which has also recently completed others acquisitions, and with the company planning to list on NASDAQ, and launching a free Ad-Supported Streaming TV Channel – BCC Gaming – with Samsung TV Plus. So – what’s next?

“What is next is for us to sell our content – using elements such as subscription. We believe we can take a userbase and turn it into a marketplace. Why can’t we have an App Store? Can we connect these communities and people together and make a social media network of our own even – that is all ahead of us. I always tell my team, while we are building a company called Enthusiast Gaming, we are also helping to build an industry – and the rules are being written as we speak. The plane is getting configured in flight and there are people like us, like FaZe Clan, and all of the other publishers collectively building something incredible. To have people like you helping get the word out and for taking us seriously really means a lot and it is very exciting times ahead.”

It is clear from talking to Adrian that there is an incredible opportunity for brands to engage through eSports provided they are happy to mirror Enthusiast Gaming’s authentic approach. As a CEO, Adrian is a leader driving everyone forward in an open, honest and authentic way and clearly runs a very collegiate, interactive and respectful organization that every company can learn from. It is clear Enthusiast Gaming will be a major part of eSports’ continued growth and I’ll be watching with great interest.

From Media in Perfectirishgifts

[calzona-ga]

Before Grey's Anatomy premiered its 14th season last week, fans were promised a return to form. Krista Vernoff—a writer and producer on the show since its first season and showrunner of seasons four to seven, who left the team in 2011—is back again to serve as showrunner this year. And she's bringing with her a throwback to the lighthearted, banter-filled tone of the series' early days, when oddball cases and on-call room nookies balanced the show's notoriously tearjerking drama.

For Jessica Capshaw, that means falling in love with her (already much-loved) character all over again.

When Dr. Arizona Robbins first appeared in season five—before high-drama plotlines like the plane crash that took half of Seattle's doctors down with it—she was a free-spirited pediatric surgeon who rolled through the halls on her Heelys. She was a B-12 shot of chipper energy to a sometimes angsty ensemble, and her relationship with Dr. Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez) became a cornerstone for fans, especially gay viewers itching for more LGBTQ visibility in primetime.

"I could never have anticipated how important it would be to me to [play a gay character] at a time when telling this story actually means something to people."

Shonda Rhimes has disavowed the term "diversity," saying instead that her mission is to "normalize" TV by populating her projects with character that reflect real life's array of different perspectives, experiences, shapes, colors, and lifestyles. Callie and Arizona fit neatly into that mission before Ramirez left the cast at the end of season 12.

Now Capshaw—who's every bit as effervescent as her character, talking at an excited clip and eager to pepper our conversation with exclamations of love for her cast and crew—is eager to go straight for the funny bone, especially when it comes to exploring Arizona's single life. Here she opens up to MarieClaire.com about recapturing the spark that first made the show a sensation, what it's like to say goodbye to old castmates (and hello again to returning ones), and what being in Shondaland for nine years has taught her.

HOW HAS THE SHIFT IN GREY'S ANATOMY'S TONE CHANGED THINGS SO FAR? "You won't find a person on or near the show who isn’t well aware that this year, the show is really going back to the beginning. Well, I wasn’t even there at the beginning, so pretend like it’s the beginning plus me. The show started with this spark, people gathered around it and starting really loving all of its warmth. Then it became this fire and it just kinda has kept burning. Shonda and all the writers and producers have been smart enough to stoke the fire when needed—people have left and new people have come in, and they've always found equilibrium—so that it can burn for a long time. So here we are, a rip-roaring fire. Everyone can roast their marshmallows around us!

And now we're going back to that initial spark—the characters are 14 years older and there’s a different set of challenges, but it's got the same old kind of humor. I think this season is going to be really funny. At the beginning of the show, which I remember as a viewer, every once and a while there would be a storyline that was super absurd, and you just went with it, and you always ended up at some sort of emotional crossroad. You'll be seeing more of that."

WHEN THE CHARACTER OF ARIZONA WAS INTRODUCED, SHE WAS AN UPBEAT NEW DOCTOR—BUT HER STORY ARC TOOK HER TO DARK PLACES. WHAT DOES THIS SEASON MEAN FOR HER? "For the past few years, there was sort of a dark, post-plane crash Arizona, and for good reason. There were funny bits in there, and the character that people had initially responded to was definitely in there too, but maybe not as radiant as she once was. Not that I'm calling myself radiant! But I think that Arizona is sunshine. She came in bright, and there was always something about her that was really fun to play, that resonated with people. This season, I think, is a return to that Arizona."

LAST SEASON WAS YOUR FIRST WITHOUT SARA RAMIREZ, WHO WAS YOUR MOST CONSISTENT SCENE PARTNER. WHAT WAS IT LIKE TO SUDDENLY BE WITHOUT YOUR OTHER HALF? "In our jobs, you spend so much time with the people you’re working with that you do create a kind of family. And like a real family, you inherit each other. You're put together, then you work and play together, then over the years there is the developing of relationships, the deepening of relationships, some departures and estrangements. Sara and I had such an incredible group of fans who championed the relationship between Callie and Arizona, and that felt so, so good. We took it really seriously. We put our best foot forward in everything we did, in terms of representing a couple, of representing a relationship that we could really be proud of. It was really, really wonderful.

And then of course, Sara wanted to move on, and so we said goodbye. We had our moment, like, 'Oh my gosh, I wish you the best! Whatever you're going to do next is going to be amazing.' But the characters we played are going to get to live on in perpetuity somewhere in Shondaland. It’s so much fun to play with a relationship that lasts for a really long time, because you get to challenge yourself in different ways throughout. And then there’s something really fun about having to learn and grow and be surrounded by new actors and relationships who challenge you in new ways. So I guess the answer is that it's bittersweet.

Callie and Arizona coupled up pretty quickly, so we didn't get to see much of single Arizona until last season's flirtations with Dr. Minnick. But based on last week's premiere, it looks like we'll be seeing a lot more of Arizona in the dating scene. What happens when your other friends are together and you're single? How do you juggle dating with being a single, working mom?"

YOU'VE PLAYED A GAY CHARACTER ON PRIMETIME TELEVISION FOR NINE YEARS. HOW HAS THAT EXPERIENCE AND THE FEEDBACK FROM FANS CHANGED OVER TIME? "There is no end to how incredibly moved I have been by the letters or direct messages or tweets or Instagram comments from people whose lives have been in some way, shape, or form affected by just the telling of a gay woman's story on primetime network television. I could never have known. I had no idea when I came to Grey's Anatomy that I was even going to be playing a gay character. I could never have anticipated how important it would be to me too, at a time in the world and in the country where telling this story actually means something to people. But the needle is being moved, constantly. I can tell you right now that the letters I was getting nine years ago are different from the letters that I'm getting today. Today they're much more emboldened. Especially the younger generation of viewers, who have a full understanding of who they are, and are choosing to embrace who they are without hesitation. I love that part."

"Once you're in Shondaland, you're *in* Shondaland."

THE SHOW HAS A DIVERSE ROSTER OF MEN AND WOMEN WHO WRITE AND DIRECT IT. HOW HAS THAT SHAPED THE WAY YOU TELL STORIES? "I'm kind of out of my element here because I don't really know how the writers would want to be identified or how they would want their process to be described. But the way I feel as an actor on this show is that, very simply put, there's representation. That's good for every single character. It's never really just one person who writes a whole show, anyway. They have a group of writers so that someone can come in and help fortify a certain perspective or suggest little tweaks that make story a little more true, a little more resonant for viewers. It feels egalitarian, it feels just. There's a distinct sense that this is the way things should be, that you need representation in the beautiful land of storytelling."

CHANDRA WILSON, KEVIN MCKIDD, AND DEBBIE ALLEN HAVE ALL DIRECTED SEVERAL EPISODES OF THE SHOW. LAST SEASON, ELLEN POMPEO DIRECTED HER FIRST EPISODE TOO. WHAT'S IT LIKE TO BE DIRECTED BY YOUR COSTARS? "You know, another actor is directing an episode towards the end of the season too. I won't even tell you who. I won't be a spoiler! But I asked them, 'What made you want to do it?' And they said, 'You know, it's just and incredible opportunity, to be supported in learning how to do this. There's no way that I would ever want to pass that up.' But the caveat is that you have to do the work. Every actor that has directed has spent copious, long hours shadowing. They come to set when they're working as an actor, but they also come to set when they're not working. They sit in the chair behind the director and they watch and they watch and they watch so that they know what they're doing. Me? I'm okay with not directing. I have four kids. Maybe when they get older."

KIM RAVER, WHO PLAYS FAN FAVORITE DR. TEDDY ALTMAN, IS BACK THIS SEASON. WHAT WAS IT LIKE TO SEE HER ON SET AGAIN? "Oh my gosh, I love her so much. I was so happy she came back for even just a little bit. You know, everyone consistently says that once you're in Shondaland, you're in Shondaland. Because it's true. You're in the fold. You're in the mix. You're one of her people. So you never say never because unless your character actually genuinely dies, you can always come back. And even then you could be a ghost."

ALLY MCBEAL'S GREG GERMANN COMES TO GREY-SLOAN MEMORIAL THIS SEASON, BUT HIS CHARACTER HAS BEEN KEPT UNDER WRAPS. WHAT CAN YOU TELL US? "I can tell you that he plays an incredibly experienced, incredibly arrogant, incredibly funny doctor who comes to the hospital to help out one of our doctors. If you had talked to me three days ago, I would have had nothing to say about him, because I've only ever seen him across from me at the table read. But I actually ran into him the other day—he was in the golf cart going up the set and I was walking down. He was on Ally McBeal back when I was on The Practice. I said, 'I was across the way from you on the lot when I was on The Practice.' And he goes, 'Oh, yes! I have a vague impression of you.' And I said, 'Well, I always aim to leave a vague impression!' And he was, of course, mortified. He started treading water and it was hysterical. He is very, very funny. He's exactly how you would imagine him from the Ally McBealdays."

YOU'RE ABOUT TO HIT THE SHOW'S 300TH EPISODE. HOW DO YOU PLAN TO CELEBRATE? "Oh, I think we're going to eat a lot of cake, my friend."

[pjstafford]

David Duchovny's HOHW Tour Fan Girl Experience: Seattle

David Duchovny HOHW Tour Fan Girl Experience: Seattle: This is the first of five blogs on select topics related to my trip to Seattle to see David Duchovny. This one is about the over-all experience. Others will speak about the information provided at a book discussion, a review of the concert and music, the question to video or not to video, and the movie New Year’s Day. The last is a stretch but doing a separate blog will keep me from digressing on it in this blog. Brief recap. I wrote a blog related to the treatment of dark subject matter in David Duchovny’s written works across television, movies, novels and music lyrics. He quoted the tweet related to the blog and said the appreciation moved him. Many within the fan community of Duchovny including the Duchovniacs liked what I had written and wanted to be sure I made it to a concert this tour which I could not afford. Fans from around the world arranged for airfare. Cathy, a friend who I had connected with in Duchovny chat groups, offered concert and book discussion tickets, a place to stay, and incredible hospitality. Suddenly I was going to Seattle. I arrived Saturday late afternoon. What a delight to meet Cathy in person after six months of almost daily contact on Twitter! It was both of our first time seeing and meeting Mr. Duchovny. For the rest of this blog I will refer to him as David so I don’t sound like Darin Morgan. If you don’t catch the reference, then that's a great example of how nice it is to be with a person that speaks the language of the specific fandom. Neither Cathy nor I have that in our daily life away from social media. I see the Duchovny fandom and X-Files fandom as distinct but intersecting. The Darin Morgan reference is an X-Files reference. Cathy is an X-file enthusiast. I will never know as much as she does on the topic of the X-Files. I have seen more of David’s movies and read and listened to more interviews and articles than she has. It's a nice compliment to each other when you have a week-end of Duchovny planned. Both of us have similar experiences of being a fan in the 90’s of the X-Files without any fandom obsession, watching seasons 1-9 again to prepare for season 10, falling in love with X-files on a new level, but falling truly and completely in love with David’s music and novels. Neither of us have a history of fan girling since the Bobby Sherman/ Donny Osmond's days. Our first time meeting in person there was hardly any awkwardness at all- we were already friends. Now our friendship has deepened. It was great to meet her husband as well. We share an interest in science fiction, but I have sadly fallen decades behind. Definitely have things to read and stream on his advice. Sunday morning we took the ferry to Seattle, parked close to the Croc, went to find a marquee or poster on the Croc but didn’t. Found only his name on a calendar. It was a 25 minute walk to the book discussion. I wore my Lick My Face Shirt from Target Zero since I never am brave enough to wear it in public in Albuquerque anymore. The first couple of times it elicited some rude comments. I thought David Duchovny fans would know the reference. No…not a single one seemed to know the reference which makes me sad for Target Zero. I do have suggestions that Target Zero send little cards out with the shirt that can be passed out to explain to people the reason for the shirt. I would wear it more if I could easily deliver a card and it would increase awareness. I found in Seattle a complete different attitude towards this shirt from people who did not know the reference. I never felt uncomfortable. I received a lot of comments which started a lot of conversations. A very young man just stopping me telling me he loved it and a member of Keaton Simon band saying it was the best shirt ever when I was waiting in line are stand outs. I’m curious why they liked it so much without knowing the reference, but neither compliment was suggestive just sincere about their appreciation of the sentiment. I digress. It was a light rain overcast day which was perfect for the Seattle experience. Cathy and I kept saying “Let it Rain.” When we got to the book discussion an hour before the doors were opening there were four persons already there. Cathy and I went to get a cup of coffee and granola bar and then came back. By a half hour before the doors open the lines were forming down the street. They would end up with 600 people in attendance. The center section was reserved for members. Cathy and I found front row seats off to the side and felt so excited about how close we would be to David. It was nothing compared to how close we would be as the day progressed, but- not knowing that at the time- we were excited. Jess Walter, a writer from Washington, facilitated the discussion. Cathy was familiar with his writings and excited to see him as well. It turns out that David and Jess are longtime friends and so the discussion had this beautiful relaxed bantering and good questions from one writer to another. At one point Jess said, “I am the world’s foremost Duchovny scholar.” Cathy said she immediately thought “no you are not, Pam is.” I thought that was grand! Cathy took pictures and a couple of brief videos. I took a total of 10 minutes of video not in order but with different question and answers through-out the session. I took a lot of notes trying mostly to write all the quips David was saying. I am writing another blog on that so will just say the discussion piece was delightful. Then, came audience questions. Some personal history here is that six months ago while reading a passage of Bucky Fucking Dent related to the nature of America in 1978 and loving the way David had written about Carter losing the nation and a good-looking monster in California was waiting to take his place, I had told Cathy I would love to drink a glass of red wine with the man and discussed the American Protestant Work Ethic. Over the months we have referred to this as “my dinner with David” which is all in my head, of course, but I have developed a list of questions which I feel strongly I need to ask him – no, none on the X-Files. I say that because when Jess asked David about the most common question he is asked on his novel he said, “What’s your favorite episode of the X-files?” Cathy had always said she would never be able to ask him a question because she would be too shy. She had a good one she wanted to ask though. We were sitting in front of the microphone and she jumped up to ask a question. She asked the second question of the session. No hesitation. I was so proud of her. Her question was since the previous two books had been scripts turned into novels was his next novel, expected in 2018, “Miss Subways” first a script. The short answer was yes but the longer answer was in depth. Another highlight for me personally was a fan asking about one of David’s original poems. During the answer, Jess mentioned Eliot and David said “April is the Cruelest Month.” People who know me well know I love Eliot’s poetry and Mulder had once quoted this exact line while looking at a playboy. If it makes me a little geeky to remember that …well. There is one more element of questioning in this event important to a later piece of the blog. I don’t remember if it was in the discussion or the audience questions David was asked about why he toured. He feels it is a different way of expression and celebrating music which allows for audience interaction in a way he has never experienced before. As I described the audience participation later, you will see how important that piece is to him. He said it is unique for that audience and for just that time. He then said but everyone has a fucking phone and then it’s on you tube and then it is forever. Later in the QA before the concert he made a remark that showed his disdain for phone videos. I was going to ask a question at the book discussion, but didn’t have a chance. My question would have been about a difference in BFD between the main novel and the epilogue. They both have an omnipotent narrator but in the main novel you are in the action and in the moment. In the epilogue there is a distance that is controlled by come close, come closer still, come closer yet again. I’m curious why he wanted the distance in the epilogue portion of the novel. Alas, a question for another time. Once the questions was over, I looked at Cathy and said “we’re moving.” Great job of keeping up with me. I wanted to be sure we were through the book signing in time to not be too far behind in the line for the VIP concert experience. As you will see we did great with that, but it could have been a hard decision – stand in line for the book signing or get to the concert venue. We got from front of the theater to the lobby for the signing quickly to be within the first 100 in line (remember there were over 600) for the signing. We did well moving to get to that position. Fan Girl clapping all around. They had announced rules for the signing. He would sign only his books or CDs. No memorabilia. No personalization in the signature. I have both books in Kindle and Audible. I do not need a hard edition. Also, given how my adventure to get to Seattle had started with the blog and his retweet and people donating for me to attend, I really wanted him to sign a printed version of his tweet response to me. I know he had already responded in the tweet, but just because of the trip experience I wanted a signature on that tweet to frame. I didn’t think of it along the lines of memorabilia from X-Files. It was about his writing. So I braved the line to see what I would get with my breaking the rules approach. While waiting in line we had an opportunity to thank Jess Walter. I would certainly read his books. He is very funny. I was really appreciative for such a relaxed interview to see that side of David. First gate keeper was primarily responsible to make sure people were all set on the right page ready to hand it over in order to speed up the process, but was also checking what was being signed. She told me he would not sign the tweet, period, end of sentence. It was not happening. She was doing her job, but I persisted and she agreed that I could go up and try if I wanted, but he was not signing. The next gate keeper was right before David and Cathy was before me so I could not witness her experience, but she indicated that when he saw her he immediately said “Good Question.” He recognized her and her question. She was happy with her interaction and then turned to watch mine. I was struggling a little to get through the second gate keeper but she said “will you can show him.” This made me somewhat flustered and nervous when I met the man. I was asking him to break the rules for me which was selfish. I handed him the printed tweet and said I had written you a “fan letter.” He immediately remembered. “Yeah, that was you?” Picked up a pen to sign the tweet. I should have taken this intensely close up opportunity to look at his face, interact, but I became very shy and could only look down. When I realized he was taking the time to write and was stopping to think about what to write (breaking another rule) I was really touched. He handed it to me and I put my hand on my chest, looked in his eyes and said “thank you so much” and started to walk away. I heard him say “Yeah” and realized he was still talking to me. I turned back around and he was looking at me smiling. His eyes smile with his face and he said in a deep, sincere voice “It was nice to meet you.” I said “You too.” Turned and walked on realizing that I had rushed the moment- not him- and that he clearly remembered the blog I had written and was still appreciative. I was glad I had been persistent. OK- novelist experience over get ready for some hard old lady fan girl rock and rolling experience. Cathy and I were both elated with our experience and the walk from the venue for the book discussion back to the Croc was much faster. We checked and there was no one in line at the Croc yet so we went to get Pizza. We got the pizza to go and went back to the Croc. The doors were confusing to us because what looked like the main door to us said go to main entrance on the other street and that door said Back door bar. Where should we stand? Out what seemed to be the front door a man came out who said he was the photographer. He didn’t know where we should stand. He was nice and we chatted briefly. I said I know we must seemed crazy. He said he was sure we were not the only ones that were going to get crazy that night. He was right. e went to the back door and ate our pizza. It was three. Cathy had gotten an email saying to be there no later than 5:15 p.m. It might have been a bit much to get there so early. By this time it was raining a little harder. We ate our pizza in the rain and I am happy because it is part of the experience, but in retrospect, we could have sat in a restaurant ,not stood in the rain, and had been fine with being first in line. I noticed a man was in the box office and rang the bell. He was obviously annoyed with us and came out told us not to block the door. He hit a spot on the wall and said this is where the line starts and went back inside. That gave us some amusement as one of us made sure to always stand in that exact spot. Here, here is where the line starts. Several people walked by and we interacted with them. Many asking who was playing there tonight and then saying “the x-files guy?” A couple of highlights is that the opening band Keaton Simon and his band members came and stood, blocking the door, for a while because they were confused about the side door/ main door dilemma as well. While they were texting and finding out we had some slight interactions (such as the comment about my shirt and them laughing that we were there so early). In one interaction with one of the people during the first hour we were there someone had a spliff. Cathy is ignorant of drugs and drug terminology so I was able to point it out to her and tell her that in BFD when Ted has a fantastic free streaming sequence in his brain which starts out something like I was crossing the Hudson with Walt Whitman in a spliff the size of a canoe, that is what a spliff looks like. Street education to better enjoy literary masterpieces. It began to rain harder. We stopped saying “Let it Rain” and came up with the idea that the DavidDuchovnymusic.com web site should market Let it Raingear. It was a full hour before anybody else came to stand in line. A full hour. About 4:30 there were ten of us in line and they opened the bar and told us to come into the bar- we could buy food and drink- and they would make an announcement when the VIP experience would start. We had lost our front line place and more people would come and crowd into the bar before 5:30. The best part about being in the bar was the opportunity to meet the Dutch Duchnovniacs. They compared the Amsterdam concert with the Portland show which they had been to two nights before. They said it was clear David had worked on his voice since the Europe tour. Later in the QA they gave David a pair of wooden Dutch shoes slippers. It wasn’t long before people started lurking near the opening between the bar and lobby which would lead to the theater. Cathy said she was willing to lurk so we did. Finally the bouncer sent everyone back into the bar and wouldn’t let people lurk. I went to the bouncer and said that we had been there at 3 and had waited in the rain to be first in line. He said yes, but they would just make an announcement and we should go back to the bar. I touched him on the arm, gave him my best puppy dog eyes, and said “and you will remember that we’ve been here since 3 in the rain waiting to see him and make sure we are not at the end of the VIP line.” He said, “oh just chill and stay here.” For the remainder of the wait he would not let anyone else lurk near the door and we were able to wait with him. As he let us in first I was so thankful to him. Here is for me the funniest part of this story about waiting in line. We walked in and there were some areas toward the side of the bar where there was a bar so you could lean and be comfortable. Cathy said “oh, let’s go to the side.” Cathy doesn’t like to be in the front of a crowd or the middle of a crowd or in a crowd. She would have stayed in the back. I just thought – we’ve been here in line since 3 in the rain and I just practically offered to blow the bouncer and you don’t want to be up front. So funny! Imagine if after all of that we had stayed in the back. She must have seen my look and said – wherever you want. We went up front. She enjoyed the experience and I don’t think neither of us would have as good of a time without being in front. I decided not to be center stage. I wanted to see the guitar player and the drummer. I had told myself that before the concert. David has world class musicians. I was going to watch a little of them. I also wanted to be on the side because – full fan girl confession here – he has a scar on one of his eyes and I wanted to be able to see that scar. I love that scar. I know it makes no sense. It is a flaw on an otherwise perfect face. I loved that scar on Mulder when you seldom saw it except in certain camera angles and when he grimaced and suddenly smiled. It’s like a perfect profile as he stares directly at a clue and then the moment of clarity comes for him and the scar pops out. A sudden flaw that made it clear he wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t every episodes, but those episodes it does! As an older man, it has deepened and is usually visible but still pops out more in certain expressions when he sings. Those of you who are not a fan can laugh at me. I love that scar. Managed in the 90’s to miss the red speedo (yellow pajama bottom, grey sweat pants), but I noticed the scar. Go figure. The sound check began with the guys in the band coming out first. Then David came out. He made a general acknowledgement of crowd and immediately walked and looked at the stage. He found a spot on the stage and moved his hands measuring stage to ground. He had already decided he was going to dance in the crowd that night and was finding his spot to do that. He waved slightly at a young woman standing near us who was insistently waving. We will be talking about her some in this blog. He stood then in front of where Cathy and I were with his side turned. Head bowed as if waiting for someone to speak in his ear set. Soon as the voice sounded in his ear he jumped to it and went to the mic. It was fun to be part of the sound check. There was a horrendous noise at one point and David said is that feedback. Pat said no I was playing really bad. David said it was really loud we should turn it down and Pat said in case I play bad again. Quite amusing. The lights were blinding on stage and David said they’re not going to be that way all night are they. It was fun. Next the QA. I enthusiastically raised my hand and Brad said with a laugh the woman right in front. Yeah, they might have been talking about the crazy old ladies so determined to be up front. My question was about the song Lately December. It’s the least played song on tour from the first album and is so beautiful. David repeated the question – I am soft spoken so no one else really heard me and said you like it, so do I, but we do a rock concert and it’s a contemplative song. Then he thought a little and said we do slower songs but that one is more complicated and difficult to play or maybe I don’t sing it very well on tour. He then called the band lead Colin on stage and asked him who said “Oh, that’s a hard song.” So that’s the reason. The young girl next to me asked who he had written “the rain song” about. He said a person. Later in introducing the song he said a friend. He had said previously in concerts his ex-wife loved rain so we should assume that’s the person and friend. They weren’t doing that one either but agreed to change the set list since they were in Seattle. Someone else yelled out “Let it Rain “and he said we always do “Let it Rain.” A good question was from a high school literature teacher who wanted to know what he would teach in class if he was still teaching. David said he is a big fan of teaching the classics and justified why. A bad question was “You’re in my top five (people I would have sex with). Who are your top five?” He said I’m not answering with a man recording that. He answered a question did he prefer playing Moody or Mulder thoughtfully and well, similar to answers he had given before. Someone asked about Aquarius. Cathy and I have been part of a #SaveAquarius group and even though he does not think it will come back we were happy to hear him speak about Hodiak with affection. In answer to another question he told a story about babysitting Keaton, the opening act, and that it was Keaton who had suggested he could record the songs that David had originally written just for himself. I got to ask the final question. Two questions – almost a dinner with David! I said I wanted to ask about “Stars”. He said “Stars? We’re not doing that one either. We’re killing you not doing your favorite songs.” Not especially happy with myself that at that moment I gushed. “Anything you do tonight I will love.” That remark got the response it deserved- an eye roll from David. Could I have said something like – ok I’m out of here. That might have been amusing. Or something after I love anything you do like –really even “Baby Snatcher”-(but no, not really, not “Baby Snatcher.”) Baby Snatcher was one of his early and excessively bad movies. Instead I gushed. Then I asked the question which started with I recently watched “New Year’s Day.” David interrupted with “Wow” and made a surprised face with his eyes wide. Eye roll and face in one question- I was distinguishing myself here. See, I could really digress now if I was not writing a distinct blog about “New Year’s Day”. It is an early Duchovny movie. My question pertained to the monologue at the end of the movie by the main character played by the brilliant director, Henry Jaglom. The monologue is related to how stars we see now died years ago and David asked if I was accusing him of plagiarism. I was on a roll boy in my extended conversation with David. I said no I was wondering how much that early movie had influenced him. He said he thought he knew about the dying stars before he was in the movie. I nodded and then he said was it Henry in the monologue? I said yes it’s Henry and refrained from telling him how it summarizes the whole movie in such a poignant manner, how my favorite scene is the unscripted one between him and Henry, and asking what it was like to work with this brilliant director. I refrained. He looked like he was thinking about something and said thank you for reminding me that was in there. So as it ended I didn’t get the impression that he was really annoyed by a Stars question that was really a New Year’s Day question. I wonder if he realizes there is also a significant mythology piece in X-files about Stars where Mulder delivers a similar speech to Scully as Henry had said at the end of New Year’s Day. I get the feeling that David had some influence on New Year’s Day and X-files in this regard and that the concept of dying stars has been with him through-out most of his adult life as meaningful imagery. However, I did not get that response from David. I love the song Stars. Then it was time for group pictures which I don’t really get. Like a picture with a bunch of people you don’t know with a celebrity in the middle. It felt a little rushed, unpleasant, uncomfortable. Cathy, however, had the opportunity to tell him thank you again and to have him say thank you back so I was glad for her. Pictures are on DavidDuchovnymusic.com if anyone is interested in seeing them. I’m wearing the Lick my face shirt. We had to struggle a little again for our space when we got back from the shoot. A woman who had snuck in with the VIP despite having a general admission ticket had kept our space but wanted to be between Cathy and I and I kind of got stuck in back. That was not going to work for me and I told Cathy I was moving down stage a little further but still in front. The young women there were so accommodating to that and pleasant to me. Then the venue was open for all concert ticket holders. The concert had been the first one on the toured sold out and it was packed. It was an intimate venue. I estimate maybe 500 there- really packed in like sardines. Cathy and I talked about the fact that we couldn’t really drink because if we had to go to the bathroom we would never get back. We decided to go to the bathroom one last time before it wasn’t possible. I was going to keep my spot though so I announced loudly (yes, I did) I am leaving for a few minutes but am coming back to this exact spot (pointing to the floor). I then pointed one by one at all the eager fan girls around me, pointed to me and the spot, and did the watching you gesture. (In my defense I am really short and kind of need a front spot to see anything.) A man about five rows back was laughing at me and when I walked by he said “Hey she’s coming back to that spot.” He did the watching you gesture to all the people around him. It was hard to come back and he did the same thing as I came back – laughing the whole time. I brought back a glass of water for Cathy and myself and that was the only liquid we drank for the next several hours. We had a great conversation with several young girls around us – all of who were very familiar with David’s music. The young girl who had asked the question about “the rain song” said that she was thinking of getting a tattoo of lyrics either from the “rain song” or “Let it Rain.” She asked me if when those songs play if I would let her get in my place since she was behind me and I said of course. Who wouldn’t? I spent some time looking at the stage and thinking what songs I would watch the guitar player and drummer on. I was excited to see the bongo’s. I pointed them out to Cathy and we knew we would be hearing “When the time comes.” Keaton and his band came out and certainly warmed us up. High energy, rap style including a little rendition of “Staying Alive”. It was very fun. As Keaton was gathering stuff he up, Cathy and I had an opportunity to tell him how great he was. Anticipation for David got a little much. The girl behind me kicked me and hit me several times. She was annoying everyone. I turned around and just hugged her. She is there to see a man 35 years older than her whose music she loved. I thought it was beautiful, but I also wanted to settle her down a little with some tactile touch. They came out and put down the set lists which the front row could read. We were excited to see the encore Sweet Jane and the Weight as the only covers but had heard the reports from earlier concerts about how good the covers were. We were really impressed that they had not put down any set list for David. Did he memorize them every night? Then they came out with three sheets of large print set list to tape down for him. It had to be bigger and on three pages so he could see it. We found that endearing. David started with the high energy and fast “3000.” Since I am writing another blog specifically about the concert I will only tell in this blog those highlighted moments specific to the experience. One of the first thing during that song is he how much he was sweating. At one point he moved his head and I watched a bead of sweat fall from his face to the floor. Among the other many talents which David has, add the ability to work a room of 500 so every individual believe they had personal interaction with David. Possible every person did. That experience of the communication and audience interaction which David said is the reason he does the tour is something he delivers for the fans very well. I had decided that I was going to watch some of Pat McCusker’s guitar and Sebastian’s drum despite the fact that it meant not watching David. Obviously I was going to watch Sebastion on the bongos during “When The Time Comes.” At one point he looked up and we made eye contact and I nodded and he nodded back. Obviously the best time to watch McCusker would have been “Unsaid, Undone” but no I felt strongly about watching David. Luckily there were many times through-out the night when he moved directly in front of me. Whenever I clapped, I tried to clapped “around.” Pointing my hands to each band member. I hope the band knows that David’s fans are aware that David’s expression of music is only possible because of their incredible playing and that we love them because of it. The point came for the young woman who loved the songs about rain to go to the front. Think of how hard I had fought for the spot. Do you think I would have given it up if I knew she was going to take off her bra, threw it on the stage and then keep her shirt off exposing her breasts to David? No I would not have. Cathy said her immediate reaction was just concern that David would avoid our side of the stage because of her. He made at one point a slightly stern face and shook his head at her and she covered up. Cathy was upset about it at first but now says that it was part of the experience and is the only time in her life she will ever have that experience. My concern was with David eyesight and knowing that he knew where I had been standing he would not realize it was not me flashing her, but Cathy assured me that he would be able to tell the difference between a 21 year old breasts and mine…yeah, probably. This young woman did tweet to David the next day with a picture of a bra on stage. I found that impressive. She is owning the moment as well without embarrassment. While I was annoyed so much at first, since then I have mellowed about it. But ladies keep your clothes on. There is no indication that David likes panties or bras being thrown at him. “Unsaid, Undone” is my favorite song off the album (any song that can reference Dylan’s Idiot Wind and quote obscure Latin text cannot fail to make me happy) and it is loud and rocking. This was his best song of the night by far. At the end of the song he was by my section of the audience, he bent down so it seemed like he was inches from our face when he sang/ yelled “I said I’m done.” Then he did something I have not seen in any videos. Still bent near our faces, his face went cold (he is a great actor after all, isn’t he?), he put his hands up so they were just below his eyes – kind of walling himself off except for the eyes, and then while maintaining eye contact and still bent he walked backwards. It was chilling. The most spectacular concert moment I have ever experienced. I don’t know how he could maintain eye contact with everyone in that area, but it felt as if he was staring directly at me and Cathy said the same (staring directly at her). OMG. I have a love hate relationship with “Positively Madison Avenue” which I will get into more in another blog. But the love is stronger than the hate. He stood right by me and again and was bending down when he sang the lyric “a beleaguered Pete Seeger got to hitch his way to heaven.” So cool. I will say that there were moments when I realize my fan girl love might be a little different than others. He was introducing a song early in the set and nonchalantly took off his jacket and everyone screamed. I was like “what did he say” and Cathy was like he took off his jacket. Then after he stood up by the beleaguered Pete Seeger line to run across stage singing “you can sell panties and still remain a genius “women yelled because he said the word panties. That’s not me- but did you see that scar? I also noticed the nice hair on his arms. We each have our fan girl kicks I guess. Oh yeah, and he had the perfect amount of scruff. He left and came back for encore. I was excited to see the Pink Pussy hat in his pocket. The band puts them on for “The Weight.” Keaton came on to sing with him. This was a moment. David had told a story about babysitting Keaton. It was Keaton last night on the tour and they had not sang together. I will rave about this performance in a later blog about the concert. They went off stage and we screamed for the next encore – which we were obviously going to get –it was already on the set list. The band did an extended opener on “Sweet Jane” and then David ran out, to the spot he had scoped out way back in sound check and jumped off stage for a dance with the audience. There was a sudden rush to him. I was so close that I could feel the physical displacement of air as women rushed him. I did not and why it would have been great to have felt his back muscles or touch the hair on his arms, I was glad to be that close and take in the scene. I have a framed picture in my head of David with his butt stuck out wiggling, his hands up dancing, his eyes closed, women around him touching all around his back wiggling too and this delightful look of joy of his face. Going back to the discussion of audience participation and David’s motivation to perform. I will never think of that statement and not see this picture in my mind. How insulated must David have become in his fandom with all the crazy fan girls like me out there. This is his chance to give some loving and receive some loving from his fans. It is beautiful, but scary and I hope he never gets hurt. He seems kind of a pro though at positioning his body to make sure no vital areas are touched. Then he was back on to finish the song and then he was gone. People immediately grabbed for his set list. I just wanted a set list. Note to DavidDuchovnymusicc.com –post set lists, look at Bob Dylan.com set list posting. I like to know what songs were played in the order for the concerts I’ve been to. I’ve never wanted a set list before, but there no one else this set list will be stored. I saw a set list far back on stage and asked someone if I could have it. He shook his head. A bouncer came and told us to move on because the concert was over. I took my stuff over to one of the benches I had mentioned earlier and started to layer up. I watched until the bouncer was gone and then went to someone else and asked if I could have the set list. He gladly gave it to me. Cathy and I started back to the vehicle in rock and roll and Duchovny heaven, but with aching old lady legs. Back at her place we went to bed about three a.m. The next morning at 7 we realized we were both awake and posting on twitter. A friend sent us a tremendous screen cap from the concert taken of the back of David on stage with Cathy and I in front gazing at him. It had never occurred to us that we would be videotaped in the audience, but we were delighted. Cathy found another picture of him looking away from us up at the upper level of the bar, but our face are lighted in the same way as he is lighted. These pictures mean more to us than the VIP group pictures. We found vids of “the Weight” with Keaton Simon and David. I screen capped one and posted it and Keaton liked it. Then we found video from the other side of that song to see the interaction we had missed. Beautiful. We must have watched the video of “the Weight” like a hundred times. Cathy and I are in several chat groups together. We sat with each other as we twittered, tumblred and instagramed asking what chat group should get what pictures and stories and which of us were going to post it. #SaveAquarius has a fan girl for another of the show’s stars so we didn’t want to overload them but there were Duchovny fans in that group not in any other. Of course, our concert group needed pictures and stories. Then there is our Moody group. Finally there is a small intimate group of five who had to get our most intimate details and stories. At some point Cathy put on her HOHW shirt. I stayed in pajamas most of the day. We had a late brunch with champagne. It is what you do the day after. About 6 p.m. we were pretty done and had to take a break. What could we possibly do to distract us? It turns out Cathy had the X-files Season 10 special features which I had not seen. Ok – does that sound silly? But we both agreed we had not seen Mulder, Moody or Hodiak – not at one moment did we think – oh, that’s …we saw Duchovny- or we saw the Duchovny persona he puts on as novelist and the persona he puts on as rock star, but we did not see Mulder. A girl can only go so long without Mulder. We went to bed about 10 p.m. exhausted. By the next morning the pictures and vids of the girl who had flashed her breasts were making the round so we started watching video’s all over again. At one point I said to Cathy “I have to say. I just, I know I shouldn’t, but I just have to say, I just have to say” and then I said something I am not going to put here. Cathy is a real concerned voice said “exactly who are going to say that to?” I said, “Just you. You are the only one here.” We both then laughed hysterically at how into the social media we were that even in our private conversation she was concerned I would post something inappropriate. Cathy’s husband was tremendous during this period. Letting us fan girl away as much as we wanted. Then Cathy took me to the airport and my fan girl experience was over, but the next day the pictures from the Boston concert started popping up everywhere. What’s a fan girl to do?

[johnboothus]

What Happens to Social Media Contest Winners Who Travel for Booze? Here Are Their Stories

When Paul Corgan, a 26-year-old from Portsmouth, N.H., sent his online application to become White Claw’s “best life ambassador” in March 2018, he completed a short blurb and shared a photo and link to his Instagram account. After clicking submit, he forgot about the competition almost immediately.

The contest would grant two winners $60,000 each to travel America for six months. Their only requirement was to document themselves “living their best life” by posting one photo per week to Instagram featuring the up-and-coming hard seltzer brand.

Articles detailing the competition went viral across social media platforms. So by the time Corgan received an email in June 2018 informing him he was one of five finalists being considered for the role, he still assumed his chances of winning were slim. Then, just over a week later, after a Skype interview with the brand’s marketing department, he awoke to an email.

“It just said ‘Congratulations’ as the subject line,” Corgan says. “It was the most exciting thing that had happened to me in my life.”

Contest Marketing: Everyone’s a Winner

For active social media users, competitions like White Claw’s “Best Life Contest” will be a familiar concept. While their prizes often seem too good to be true, the bar for entry is remarkably low.

All that’s usually required is to follow the brand on a social media platform and share a post or photo tagging its account, often using a specific hashtag. In advertising lingo, the concept is known as contest marketing; it’s a savvy promotional strategy and one that an increasing number of alcohol brands are turning to.

Within the past year alone, Natural Light has run a range of social-media-driven competitions with prizes including free beer for a year, $10,000 for a Halloween costume contest, and $1 million to help 25 drinkers pay off their graduate school loans.

Guinness, meanwhile, offered drinkers the keys to their very own Irish pub for a weekend, while Keystone Light launched a “Free Rent” campaign that paid 13 lucky winners’ rents for a year. In May 2019, Busch Beer announced it would contribute $25,000 toward one couple’s wedding ceremony and would send its spokesman, Gerald Downy, better known as “Busch Guy,” as the officiant.

Credit: Megan O’Leary Photography

These contests present a win-win scenario: Contestants commit to a small social media interaction, and brands generate buzz at a fraction of the cost of traditional advertising. Plus, the headline-grabbing nature of the campaigns all but guarantees nationwide coverage from numerous media outlets. (VinePair was one of several drinks publications that picked up the White Claw campaign, and even national news outlets like CNBC covered the contest.)

But while the contests themselves gain widespread coverage, the actual winners often go almost unreported.

When Fox 32 Chicago covered the Busch wedding contest in May 2019, the story received close to 40,000 likes, over 11,000 shares, and upwards of 20,000 comments on Facebook, according to data from content marketing research platform BuzzSumo. Despite such a positive reaction, Fox didn’t bother announcing the winners — the now-wed Abbi and Andrew Roth of Janesville, Wis. — nor did it follow up on the contestants to find out how the big day went.

The only coverage of the Roths’ wedding day appears to be a July 2019 article in Janesville’s Gazette Xtra. “We’re just a couple of regular Joes,” Abbi Roth told the publication. “We never thought this would happen.”

The “Lucky” Winners

While the Roths may be a pair of Busch-Light-loving “regular Joes,” success in other competitions — those that call upon the winner to fulfill a specific role — rely on more than brand alignment or fandom.

Prior to working as a White Claw ambassador, Corgan ran his own company that handled the social media accounts for small restaurants and businesses. He points to luck as a huge factor in winning the Best Life Contest; but he also says his love of travel, which he emphasized in his online application and interview, as well as his photography skills and knowledge of social media, helped him stand out and eventually win the contest.

In August 2018, Mr Fogg’s, a London mini-chain of bars inspired by the novel “Around the World in Eighty Days,” announced it was looking for an adventurous individual to travel the world, drink gin, and collect botanicals to inspire a cocktail for the bar upon their return. The winner would also get to choose a travel companion to join them on their escapade.

Numerous publications (including, again, VinePair) covered the competition, which gained even more online traction after actor and Aviation gin owner Ryan Reynolds tweeted about it.

I’ll do it.

— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) August 16, 2018

To enter the competition, candidates applied on Mr. Fogg’s website and had to prove they were social media savvy, over 21 years of age, and skilled at writing and photography. Previous travel experience was also imperative.

“We didn’t think there was any chance we were going to get it because you never do with these things,” Jessica Last, the winning contestant, says. “But at the same time, we did feel all the questions that they asked were really relevant to what we were already doing: We were adventure/travel photographers and bloggers on a very small scale.”

When Last, a 30-something London resident, won the competition, she selected her longtime travel companion Charlie Wild to join her on the trip. The pair had recently returned from an eight-month, around-the-world adventure that they documented together on their blog, The Travel Project, after previously quitting their jobs in advertising.

Mr. Fogg’s enlisted the help of British explorer, writer, and photographer Levison Wood to pick the winners from more than 10,000 applicants. Resumes arrived from across the globe, including New Zealand, the U.S., Argentina, and Bermuda. According to a 2018 interview in trade publication Hospitality & Catering News, Woods picked Last because of her “genuine” passion for travel, and her “beautifully shot” Instagram photos.

Winning the Contest: What Happens Next?

Within two months of finding out he’d won the White Claw contest, Corgan was in the brand’s Chicago headquarters learning about the company values, discussing travel plans, and tasting the difference between White Claw and rival hard seltzer brands.

The aim of the immersion course was to prepare him and the other contest winner for their new, temporary ambassadorial roles. The position, he soon learned, would be remarkably self-driven. “The team over at White Claw was amazing,” he says. “They were really open to our ideas of what we wanted to do and where I wanted to travel.” (Corgan and the other winner traveled independently, but they did cross paths briefly in Denver during the six-month excursion.)

 View this post on Instagram

 A post shared by Paul Corgan | Adventure Travel (@paulcorgan) on Aug 14, 2018 at 2:52pm PDT

As advertised, the winners were given the freedom to travel as they pleased, he says. “We just had to share one [Instagram] feed post a week about what we were doing, where we were going, and how we were living our best life with White Claw,” Corgan says.

Last and Wild, meanwhile, were whisked off on the worldwide gin trip in even quicker fashion. Though she doesn’t recall the exact time frame, Last estimates they set off within a few weeks of finding out she’d won in August 2018. The fact they were both working in freelance roles allowed them to drop everything and jet off at a moment’s notice. “It was all a bit of a whirlwind and continued that way till we got back,” she says.

Life on the Road

While Last and Wild’s journey was slightly more prescriptive than Corgan’s adventure (the pair followed in the footsteps of Phileas Fogg, the protagonist in “Around the World in Eighty Days” and the namesake of Mr. Fogg), Last says they were given free rein on what they did in each country they visited (seven in total over a 72-day period).

The highlights of their trip included a visit to an Indian tea plantation in Darjeeling, cycling across eight islands in Japan, learning about micro herbs in Singapore, and discovering the incredible cocktail scene in Mumbai. Perhaps the biggest “high” was taking to the skies in a hot air balloon in the U.S., Last says, adding, “I’ve always wanted to do that.”

Corgan set off from New Hampshire at the end of August 2018 and embarked on a 12,000 mile, three-month road trip across America to the Pacific Northwest, and then south to California. He toured various national parks and also ticked off a major bucket list item along the way.

“My grandfather was a senator in North Dakota back in the ‘30s and he helped establish Grand Teton National Park,” Corgan says.

After the road trip finished, Corgan planned his remaining experiences around the things in life he’s passionate about. He visited New Orleans because of his love of music (Corgan shares piano tutorials on YouTube), went camping in Hawaii, and piloted a plane in Miami. The latter forced him to get creative when it came to sharing the experience on Instagram — “you can’t fly a plane while drinking hard seltzer,” he says — while other unexpected obstacles presented their own challenges.

“There was a time driving through Wyoming where I couldn’t find a single can of White Claw because there was a national shortage,” he says. “A lot of my friends thought I was going around with a truck of White Claw and promoting it at fairs and stuff.”

In reality, Corgan purchased the cans for his photos on the road, so when the shortage hit, “I had to just travel until I found a liquor store that had some,” he says. “They were sold out for miles and miles, so I just postponed shooting that week.”

 View this post on Instagram

 A post shared by Paul Corgan | Adventure Travel (@paulcorgan) on Jan 24, 2019 at 6:04pm PST

Luck Favors the Experienced

When the first deposit for his White Claw adventure landed in his bank account, Corgan was on the shop floor of a men’s clothing store where he supplemented the income from his social media business as a part-time sales associate. “It was the craziest moment ‘cause I was there selling stuff, but I was smiling so much,” he recalls. “I was like, ‘O.K., I don’t have to be here at all.’”

After his six-month gig, Corgan started a new content creation company, Content Club Co., providing curated photos and videos for brands he feels strongly about, like Timberland, La Colombe, and Underwood.

“My life is completely different now than it would have been had I not won,” Corgan says.

So was it luck or skill? Probably a combination of the two. But if you find yourself procrastinating on social media and stumble across an alcohol-fueled opportunity of a lifetime, just remember: It could be you.

The article What Happens to Social Media Contest Winners Who Travel for Booze? Here Are Their Stories appeared first on VinePair.

Via https://vinepair.com/articles/viral-alcohol-travel-contest-winners/

source https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/what-happens-to-social-media-contest-winners-who-travel-for-booze-here-are-their-stories

[isaiahrippinus]

What Happens to Social Media Contest Winners Who Travel for Booze? Here Are Their Stories

When Paul Corgan, a 26-year-old from Portsmouth, N.H., sent his online application to become White Claw’s “best life ambassador” in March 2018, he completed a short blurb and shared a photo and link to his Instagram account. After clicking submit, he forgot about the competition almost immediately.

The contest would grant two winners $60,000 each to travel America for six months. Their only requirement was to document themselves “living their best life” by posting one photo per week to Instagram featuring the up-and-coming hard seltzer brand.

Articles detailing the competition went viral across social media platforms. So by the time Corgan received an email in June 2018 informing him he was one of five finalists being considered for the role, he still assumed his chances of winning were slim. Then, just over a week later, after a Skype interview with the brand’s marketing department, he awoke to an email.

“It just said ‘Congratulations’ as the subject line,” Corgan says. “It was the most exciting thing that had happened to me in my life.”

Contest Marketing: Everyone’s a Winner

For active social media users, competitions like White Claw’s “Best Life Contest” will be a familiar concept. While their prizes often seem too good to be true, the bar for entry is remarkably low.

All that’s usually required is to follow the brand on a social media platform and share a post or photo tagging its account, often using a specific hashtag. In advertising lingo, the concept is known as contest marketing; it’s a savvy promotional strategy and one that an increasing number of alcohol brands are turning to.

Within the past year alone, Natural Light has run a range of social-media-driven competitions with prizes including free beer for a year, $10,000 for a Halloween costume contest, and $1 million to help 25 drinkers pay off their graduate school loans.

Guinness, meanwhile, offered drinkers the keys to their very own Irish pub for a weekend, while Keystone Light launched a “Free Rent” campaign that paid 13 lucky winners’ rents for a year. In May 2019, Busch Beer announced it would contribute $25,000 toward one couple’s wedding ceremony and would send its spokesman, Gerald Downy, better known as “Busch Guy,” as the officiant.

Credit: Megan O’Leary Photography

These contests present a win-win scenario: Contestants commit to a small social media interaction, and brands generate buzz at a fraction of the cost of traditional advertising. Plus, the headline-grabbing nature of the campaigns all but guarantees nationwide coverage from numerous media outlets. (VinePair was one of several drinks publications that picked up the White Claw campaign, and even national news outlets like CNBC covered the contest.)

But while the contests themselves gain widespread coverage, the actual winners often go almost unreported.

When Fox 32 Chicago covered the Busch wedding contest in May 2019, the story received close to 40,000 likes, over 11,000 shares, and upwards of 20,000 comments on Facebook, according to data from content marketing research platform BuzzSumo. Despite such a positive reaction, Fox didn’t bother announcing the winners — the now-wed Abbi and Andrew Roth of Janesville, Wis. — nor did it follow up on the contestants to find out how the big day went.

The only coverage of the Roths’ wedding day appears to be a July 2019 article in Janesville’s Gazette Xtra. “We’re just a couple of regular Joes,” Abbi Roth told the publication. “We never thought this would happen.”

The “Lucky” Winners

While the Roths may be a pair of Busch-Light-loving “regular Joes,” success in other competitions — those that call upon the winner to fulfill a specific role — rely on more than brand alignment or fandom.

Prior to working as a White Claw ambassador, Corgan ran his own company that handled the social media accounts for small restaurants and businesses. He points to luck as a huge factor in winning the Best Life Contest; but he also says his love of travel, which he emphasized in his online application and interview, as well as his photography skills and knowledge of social media, helped him stand out and eventually win the contest.

In August 2018, Mr Fogg’s, a London mini-chain of bars inspired by the novel “Around the World in Eighty Days,” announced it was looking for an adventurous individual to travel the world, drink gin, and collect botanicals to inspire a cocktail for the bar upon their return. The winner would also get to choose a travel companion to join them on their escapade.

Numerous publications (including, again, VinePair) covered the competition, which gained even more online traction after actor and Aviation gin owner Ryan Reynolds tweeted about it.

I’ll do it.

— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) August 16, 2018

To enter the competition, candidates applied on Mr. Fogg’s website and had to prove they were social media savvy, over 21 years of age, and skilled at writing and photography. Previous travel experience was also imperative.

“We didn’t think there was any chance we were going to get it because you never do with these things,” Jessica Last, the winning contestant, says. “But at the same time, we did feel all the questions that they asked were really relevant to what we were already doing: We were adventure/travel photographers and bloggers on a very small scale.”

When Last, a 30-something London resident, won the competition, she selected her longtime travel companion Charlie Wild to join her on the trip. The pair had recently returned from an eight-month, around-the-world adventure that they documented together on their blog, The Travel Project, after previously quitting their jobs in advertising.

Mr. Fogg’s enlisted the help of British explorer, writer, and photographer Levison Wood to pick the winners from more than 10,000 applicants. Resumes arrived from across the globe, including New Zealand, the U.S., Argentina, and Bermuda. According to a 2018 interview in trade publication Hospitality & Catering News, Woods picked Last because of her “genuine” passion for travel, and her “beautifully shot” Instagram photos.

Winning the Contest: What Happens Next?

Within two months of finding out he’d won the White Claw contest, Corgan was in the brand’s Chicago headquarters learning about the company values, discussing travel plans, and tasting the difference between White Claw and rival hard seltzer brands.

The aim of the immersion course was to prepare him and the other contest winner for their new, temporary ambassadorial roles. The position, he soon learned, would be remarkably self-driven. “The team over at White Claw was amazing,” he says. “They were really open to our ideas of what we wanted to do and where I wanted to travel.” (Corgan and the other winner traveled independently, but they did cross paths briefly in Denver during the six-month excursion.)

View this post on Instagram

  A post shared by Paul Corgan | Adventure Travel (@paulcorgan) on Aug 14, 2018 at 2:52pm PDT

As advertised, the winners were given the freedom to travel as they pleased, he says. “We just had to share one [Instagram] feed post a week about what we were doing, where we were going, and how we were living our best life with White Claw,” Corgan says.

Last and Wild, meanwhile, were whisked off on the worldwide gin trip in even quicker fashion. Though she doesn’t recall the exact time frame, Last estimates they set off within a few weeks of finding out she’d won in August 2018. The fact they were both working in freelance roles allowed them to drop everything and jet off at a moment’s notice. “It was all a bit of a whirlwind and continued that way till we got back,” she says.

Life on the Road

While Last and Wild’s journey was slightly more prescriptive than Corgan’s adventure (the pair followed in the footsteps of Phileas Fogg, the protagonist in “Around the World in Eighty Days” and the namesake of Mr. Fogg), Last says they were given free rein on what they did in each country they visited (seven in total over a 72-day period).

The highlights of their trip included a visit to an Indian tea plantation in Darjeeling, cycling across eight islands in Japan, learning about micro herbs in Singapore, and discovering the incredible cocktail scene in Mumbai. Perhaps the biggest “high” was taking to the skies in a hot air balloon in the U.S., Last says, adding, “I’ve always wanted to do that.”

Corgan set off from New Hampshire at the end of August 2018 and embarked on a 12,000 mile, three-month road trip across America to the Pacific Northwest, and then south to California. He toured various national parks and also ticked off a major bucket list item along the way.

“My grandfather was a senator in North Dakota back in the ‘30s and he helped establish Grand Teton National Park,” Corgan says.

After the road trip finished, Corgan planned his remaining experiences around the things in life he’s passionate about. He visited New Orleans because of his love of music (Corgan shares piano tutorials on YouTube), went camping in Hawaii, and piloted a plane in Miami. The latter forced him to get creative when it came to sharing the experience on Instagram — “you can’t fly a plane while drinking hard seltzer,” he says — while other unexpected obstacles presented their own challenges.

“There was a time driving through Wyoming where I couldn’t find a single can of White Claw because there was a national shortage,” he says. “A lot of my friends thought I was going around with a truck of White Claw and promoting it at fairs and stuff.”

In reality, Corgan purchased the cans for his photos on the road, so when the shortage hit, “I had to just travel until I found a liquor store that had some,” he says. “They were sold out for miles and miles, so I just postponed shooting that week.”

View this post on Instagram

  A post shared by Paul Corgan | Adventure Travel (@paulcorgan) on Jan 24, 2019 at 6:04pm PST

Luck Favors the Experienced

When the first deposit for his White Claw adventure landed in his bank account, Corgan was on the shop floor of a men’s clothing store where he supplemented the income from his social media business as a part-time sales associate. “It was the craziest moment ‘cause I was there selling stuff, but I was smiling so much,” he recalls. “I was like, ‘O.K., I don’t have to be here at all.’”

After his six-month gig, Corgan started a new content creation company, Content Club Co., providing curated photos and videos for brands he feels strongly about, like Timberland, La Colombe, and Underwood.

“My life is completely different now than it would have been had I not won,” Corgan says.

So was it luck or skill? Probably a combination of the two. But if you find yourself procrastinating on social media and stumble across an alcohol-fueled opportunity of a lifetime, just remember: It could be you.

The article What Happens to Social Media Contest Winners Who Travel for Booze? Here Are Their Stories appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/viral-alcohol-travel-contest-winners/ source https://vinology1.tumblr.com/post/190645703179

[wineanddinosaur]

What Happens to Social Media Contest Winners Who Travel for Booze? Here Are Their Stories

When Paul Corgan, a 26-year-old from Portsmouth, N.H., sent his online application to become White Claw’s “best life ambassador” in March 2018, he completed a short blurb and shared a photo and link to his Instagram account. After clicking submit, he forgot about the competition almost immediately.

The contest would grant two winners $60,000 each to travel America for six months. Their only requirement was to document themselves “living their best life” by posting one photo per week to Instagram featuring the up-and-coming hard seltzer brand.

Articles detailing the competition went viral across social media platforms. So by the time Corgan received an email in June 2018 informing him he was one of five finalists being considered for the role, he still assumed his chances of winning were slim. Then, just over a week later, after a Skype interview with the brand’s marketing department, he awoke to an email.

“It just said ‘Congratulations’ as the subject line,” Corgan says. “It was the most exciting thing that had happened to me in my life.”

Contest Marketing: Everyone’s a Winner

For active social media users, competitions like White Claw’s “Best Life Contest” will be a familiar concept. While their prizes often seem too good to be true, the bar for entry is remarkably low.

All that’s usually required is to follow the brand on a social media platform and share a post or photo tagging its account, often using a specific hashtag. In advertising lingo, the concept is known as contest marketing; it’s a savvy promotional strategy and one that an increasing number of alcohol brands are turning to.

Within the past year alone, Natural Light has run a range of social-media-driven competitions with prizes including free beer for a year, $10,000 for a Halloween costume contest, and $1 million to help 25 drinkers pay off their graduate school loans.

Guinness, meanwhile, offered drinkers the keys to their very own Irish pub for a weekend, while Keystone Light launched a “Free Rent” campaign that paid 13 lucky winners’ rents for a year. In May 2019, Busch Beer announced it would contribute $25,000 toward one couple’s wedding ceremony and would send its spokesman, Gerald Downy, better known as “Busch Guy,” as the officiant.

Credit: Megan O’Leary Photography

These contests present a win-win scenario: Contestants commit to a small social media interaction, and brands generate buzz at a fraction of the cost of traditional advertising. Plus, the headline-grabbing nature of the campaigns all but guarantees nationwide coverage from numerous media outlets. (VinePair was one of several drinks publications that picked up the White Claw campaign, and even national news outlets like CNBC covered the contest.)

But while the contests themselves gain widespread coverage, the actual winners often go almost unreported.

When Fox 32 Chicago covered the Busch wedding contest in May 2019, the story received close to 40,000 likes, over 11,000 shares, and upwards of 20,000 comments on Facebook, according to data from content marketing research platform BuzzSumo. Despite such a positive reaction, Fox didn’t bother announcing the winners — the now-wed Abbi and Andrew Roth of Janesville, Wis. — nor did it follow up on the contestants to find out how the big day went.

The only coverage of the Roths’ wedding day appears to be a July 2019 article in Janesville’s Gazette Xtra. “We’re just a couple of regular Joes,” Abbi Roth told the publication. “We never thought this would happen.”

The “Lucky” Winners

While the Roths may be a pair of Busch-Light-loving “regular Joes,” success in other competitions — those that call upon the winner to fulfill a specific role — rely on more than brand alignment or fandom.

Prior to working as a White Claw ambassador, Corgan ran his own company that handled the social media accounts for small restaurants and businesses. He points to luck as a huge factor in winning the Best Life Contest; but he also says his love of travel, which he emphasized in his online application and interview, as well as his photography skills and knowledge of social media, helped him stand out and eventually win the contest.

In August 2018, Mr Fogg’s, a London mini-chain of bars inspired by the novel “Around the World in Eighty Days,” announced it was looking for an adventurous individual to travel the world, drink gin, and collect botanicals to inspire a cocktail for the bar upon their return. The winner would also get to choose a travel companion to join them on their escapade.

Numerous publications (including, again, VinePair) covered the competition, which gained even more online traction after actor and Aviation gin owner Ryan Reynolds tweeted about it.

I’ll do it.

— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) August 16, 2018

To enter the competition, candidates applied on Mr. Fogg’s website and had to prove they were social media savvy, over 21 years of age, and skilled at writing and photography. Previous travel experience was also imperative.

“We didn’t think there was any chance we were going to get it because you never do with these things,” Jessica Last, the winning contestant, says. “But at the same time, we did feel all the questions that they asked were really relevant to what we were already doing: We were adventure/travel photographers and bloggers on a very small scale.”

When Last, a 30-something London resident, won the competition, she selected her longtime travel companion Charlie Wild to join her on the trip. The pair had recently returned from an eight-month, around-the-world adventure that they documented together on their blog, The Travel Project, after previously quitting their jobs in advertising.

Mr. Fogg’s enlisted the help of British explorer, writer, and photographer Levison Wood to pick the winners from more than 10,000 applicants. Resumes arrived from across the globe, including New Zealand, the U.S., Argentina, and Bermuda. According to a 2018 interview in trade publication Hospitality & Catering News, Woods picked Last because of her “genuine” passion for travel, and her “beautifully shot” Instagram photos.

Winning the Contest: What Happens Next?

Within two months of finding out he’d won the White Claw contest, Corgan was in the brand’s Chicago headquarters learning about the company values, discussing travel plans, and tasting the difference between White Claw and rival hard seltzer brands.

The aim of the immersion course was to prepare him and the other contest winner for their new, temporary ambassadorial roles. The position, he soon learned, would be remarkably self-driven. “The team over at White Claw was amazing,” he says. “They were really open to our ideas of what we wanted to do and where I wanted to travel.” (Corgan and the other winner traveled independently, but they did cross paths briefly in Denver during the six-month excursion.)

  View this post on Instagram

  A post shared by Paul Corgan | Adventure Travel (@paulcorgan) on Aug 14, 2018 at 2:52pm PDT

As advertised, the winners were given the freedom to travel as they pleased, he says. “We just had to share one [Instagram] feed post a week about what we were doing, where we were going, and how we were living our best life with White Claw,” Corgan says.

Last and Wild, meanwhile, were whisked off on the worldwide gin trip in even quicker fashion. Though she doesn’t recall the exact time frame, Last estimates they set off within a few weeks of finding out she’d won in August 2018. The fact they were both working in freelance roles allowed them to drop everything and jet off at a moment’s notice. “It was all a bit of a whirlwind and continued that way till we got back,” she says.

Life on the Road

While Last and Wild’s journey was slightly more prescriptive than Corgan’s adventure (the pair followed in the footsteps of Phileas Fogg, the protagonist in “Around the World in Eighty Days” and the namesake of Mr. Fogg), Last says they were given free rein on what they did in each country they visited (seven in total over a 72-day period).

The highlights of their trip included a visit to an Indian tea plantation in Darjeeling, cycling across eight islands in Japan, learning about micro herbs in Singapore, and discovering the incredible cocktail scene in Mumbai. Perhaps the biggest “high” was taking to the skies in a hot air balloon in the U.S., Last says, adding, “I’ve always wanted to do that.”

Corgan set off from New Hampshire at the end of August 2018 and embarked on a 12,000 mile, three-month road trip across America to the Pacific Northwest, and then south to California. He toured various national parks and also ticked off a major bucket list item along the way.

“My grandfather was a senator in North Dakota back in the ‘30s and he helped establish Grand Teton National Park,” Corgan says.

After the road trip finished, Corgan planned his remaining experiences around the things in life he’s passionate about. He visited New Orleans because of his love of music (Corgan shares piano tutorials on YouTube), went camping in Hawaii, and piloted a plane in Miami. The latter forced him to get creative when it came to sharing the experience on Instagram — “you can’t fly a plane while drinking hard seltzer,” he says — while other unexpected obstacles presented their own challenges.

“There was a time driving through Wyoming where I couldn’t find a single can of White Claw because there was a national shortage,” he says. “A lot of my friends thought I was going around with a truck of White Claw and promoting it at fairs and stuff.”

In reality, Corgan purchased the cans for his photos on the road, so when the shortage hit, “I had to just travel until I found a liquor store that had some,” he says. “They were sold out for miles and miles, so I just postponed shooting that week.”

  View this post on Instagram

  A post shared by Paul Corgan | Adventure Travel (@paulcorgan) on Jan 24, 2019 at 6:04pm PST

Luck Favors the Experienced

When the first deposit for his White Claw adventure landed in his bank account, Corgan was on the shop floor of a men’s clothing store where he supplemented the income from his social media business as a part-time sales associate. “It was the craziest moment ‘cause I was there selling stuff, but I was smiling so much,” he recalls. “I was like, ‘O.K., I don’t have to be here at all.’”

After his six-month gig, Corgan started a new content creation company, Content Club Co., providing curated photos and videos for brands he feels strongly about, like Timberland, La Colombe, and Underwood.

“My life is completely different now than it would have been had I not won,” Corgan says.

So was it luck or skill? Probably a combination of the two. But if you find yourself procrastinating on social media and stumble across an alcohol-fueled opportunity of a lifetime, just remember: It could be you.

The article What Happens to Social Media Contest Winners Who Travel for Booze? Here Are Their Stories appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/viral-alcohol-travel-contest-winners/

[bestinspirationalstories-blog]

7 Beautiful and Inspiring Short Stories About Your Life

Bill Gates took on Twitter to remind the world that there was really some positivity in 2018, although it was \a really tough year.\ In a series of tweets, Gates posted a number of stories and different articles that made it \Feel better in 2018 and more optimistic about the new year. The first Gates story was Edwardo Sanchez, who was the first person in his family to complete his university degree on May 18, 2017. \Congratulations, Edwardo!\ Gates wrote . Three articles that Gates tweeted were related to health awareness. 

The first was about the movie Toilet, A Love Story, which Gates describes as a love story in Bollywood that \challenged the public on the sanitation challenge in India\. Other articles included the Maldives and Bhutan eliminating measles and a study on the subject. New York Times that doing good deeds has a positive impact on donors and recipients. Gates, an avid reader himself, has tweeted about a \sport\ called Extreme Reading, which encourages people to read more. Some examples of this activity show people reading parachuting and even reading underwater. Gates himself took part in the challenge, which became his own Twitter hashtag. See his full thread of tweets below. 1 / We can not deny that 2018 has been a really tough year ... but it has also delivered incredible moments of hope and progress. 

Here are some inspiring tweets that you may have missed ... 2 / On May 18, 2018, Edwardo Sanchez tweeted that he was the first person in his family to finish his studies. Congratulations, Edwardo!   Toilet: A love story , a Bollywood novel about a couple of young brides, has educated the public about the challenge of sanitation from India. In June, WHO certified that Bhutan and the Maldives had eliminated measles. laureate of the World Food Prize, will use its prize to create a fund to provide grants to young Africans involved in the Agriculture. The New York Times reported that doing good to others helps those who give as well as those who receive.These tweets made me feel better about 2018 and more optimistic about the new year. I hope they will also give you more hope. What tweets inspired you this year? I really wanted my own home for my son and also a place for my 22 year old independent daughter to call home if she ever needed to. 

I never had my own home and ... Today is my birthday and the team of \The Secret\ plays an essential role in the celebration of my existence in the world. So I start with my heart full of gratitude !! Just a return from ... I was hurting physics. I have never exceeded 80% in any of my physics tests, although I did it for other subjects. The day before my next article, I told myself that I am focused ... First, I would like to thank Rhonda, all his team and also you for reading this story! My story begins 3 years ago, when I was first introduced to The Secret. ... I belong to a very conservative family in India where children are expected to be good at studies and stay with their parents. So for a few years, I wanted to go to The ... I do not know how to say how grateful I am to Rhonda Byre and the whole team behind The Secret. So, my story goes like that. My mother was diagnosed with dengue two weeks ago ... Hi ... I'm an old woman aged 24. I like reading articles related to the law of attraction. 

I would like to share my story and I also want to thank-universe and ... Hi everyone! I had wanted a newer car for a while now and for one reason or another the good car was wrong. However, I imagined being excited and trusting the Universe that it was ... It was my third year at the university and I was struggling with internships . There were only a few companies left to visit our college for internships and I was not selected in any of them. During this ... A few days after reading  The Secret  I was so happy, grateful and ready to change my life in every area of ​​my life. I did not want to wait, so I went right ... From my childhood, I always wanted to become a movie star! As many of you know, there is always a lot of dance in all Indian films, so I really wanted to learn ... I'm so grateful to the Universe and Rhonda and the whole  The team Secret. I started to manifest what I thought in a few hours. I wanted Rs. 200,000 on January 1st. ... I was 17 years old when I discovered the Secret and, out of curiosity, I thought:  Why not try? . Little by little, little by little, I became better and better ... I came across The Secret about 2 years ago but I did not really practice it. Only recently have I lost hope and felt really miserable. And believe it ... The first part of this year has been financially difficult for me. 

I am an independant writer and I did not see much work coming in my way. I felt really stressed, completely lost as to how I ... Dear Rhonda, I would like to say thank you for sharing The Secret, it did wonders for me! It all started 4 years ago when I started learning to drive. I passed my ... I got in touch with The Secret when my life was completely in a mess. At the time, I actually used the secret without knowing that I was. In 2006, I was mowed and I became extremely fat ... I watched The Secret years ago and I consciously practiced using it. I've been a little bit forgotten in the past two years, but after a stressful time in my life I decided to be ... Since I read and followed The Secret, I lived wonderful moments in my life! Great things happened before reading The Secret but now I know how they were going. I remember my close friend ... I left a promising career after receiving several offers to move my family. However, I had a troubled teenage daughter who had finally started to improve her life. Accept a promotion offer from my company ... You are using an obsolete browser. Please update your browser to improve your experience. 

The job search process can get you tired and tired, especially after applying dozens (and sometimes hundreds) of jobs with little or no response. From time to time, it's good to have some inspiration to help you continue. Well, we searched the Web and found eight great job search success inspirational stories. These could be the kick you need to keep going. Do you want more inspiring job search stories? Check out our suggestions! Lily Herman is a writer and publisher based in New York. In recent months, her work has been featured in Teen Vogue, Glamor, Raffinerie29, Cosmopolitan, TIME, Newsweek, Fast Company and Mashable. You can check out his website, LinkedIn and Twitter. Hmmm, it looks like you're already registered for this class. While you are here, you can also check out all the amazing companies that are hiring like crazy right now. A group of frogs crossed the forest when two of them fell into a deep pit. When other frogs saw how deepThe pit was, they told the two frogs that there was no hope for them. However, the two frogs ignored their comrades and started trying to jump from the pit. However, despite their efforts, the group of frogs at the top of the pit continued to say that they should simply give up because they would never get away with it. 

Eventually, one of the frogs took care what the others said and he gave up, jumping even deeper to his death. The other frog continued to jump as hard as possible. Once again, the group of frogs shouted at him to stop the pain and die. He ignored them, and jumped even harder to finally get by. When he came out, the other frogs said, \Did not you hear us?\ The frog explained to them that he was deaf and that he thought they were encouraging him all the time . Moral of the story: People's words can have a huge effect on the lives of others. Therefore, you should think about what you will say before it comes out of your mouth - it may be just the difference between life and death. These short stories pack more than one punch than most novels! Meet a doctor who LITERALLY feels the pain of his patients ... 

[theseventhhex]

Dave Depper Interview

Dave Depper

Photo by Jaclyn Campanaro

Dave Depper’s ‘Emotional Freedom Technique’ slowly came together over several years, it evolved as Depper’s career and life did. Written and recorded at his home in Portland, the songs are exactly what you wouldn’t expect from the Northwest’s favourite support player – they are intimate. Straddling the line between pop and despair, ‘Emotional Freedom Technique’ is a letter to the broken heart that won’t mend but still beats. It is a portrait of what happens when someone is flung across the world on tour – grateful to be there, grateful for the success and the adventures, but ultimately lonely. For a record centered around the self-doubt and discovery in the depths of isolation, ‘Emotional Freedom Technique’ is the light at the sharp corner of a shadow... We talk to Dave Depper about overcoming writers block, social media and Iceland…

TSH: What lead to you following a certain thread with the synth-pop direction that you ended up taking on ‘Emotional Freedom Technique’?

Dave: Prior to this record taking shape, I didn't know much about how I wanted my own sound and musical vision to be like. The synth-pop thing came out of this exercise called the 20 song game, where you write 20 songs in 12 hours on your own. The synth-pop direction was something I ended up settling on, even though it was a style that I had never previously done before, however, it felt really comforting as the jams started pouring out.

TSH: How did you manage to overcome your struggle with penning lyrics?

Dave: Lyrically, it took a few years to decide what I wanted to write, which was hard for me. I felt really restricted with songwriting and I had tried out various different approaches. Then, one day, this hyperemotional ethos appeared out of nowhere. The key song that helped me overcome this hurdle was ‘Hindsight’. The song just poured out of me one day in 20 minutes. I recorded it almost in its entire form and it felt like the clouds parted. I no longer had to worry about being judged for my lyrics, you know? This song allowed me to write the record about a very specific time of my life and I was suddenly given a roadmap.

TSH: Were you quite drained with your busy touring life in the lead up to the release?

Dave: Yeah, you know, a lot of this album came about from me feeling pretty lost and stuck. I was constantly on tour all the time and recovering from this painful disillusion of a relationship. I was having very specific experiences like meeting an entirely new group of people in a different city, as well as dating a woman that was thousands of miles away - simply because that's where I would end up meeting a person. I was mainly attempting to have long-distance relationships, but everything about my romantic life in this 3 to 4 year period really seemed strange and unreliable. I couldn't really talk to anybody about it, so I poured all of my feelings into the songs, much like a journal.

TSH: You also had a desire to recreate something in Prince’s image…

Dave: Yeah, that was the song ‘Communication’. I formed the song one day after Prince died. I’ve always really loved Prince’s creative wind drum programming, so I started the song with this wind drum beat and basically formed a song thinking about what Prince would make. In the same vein as Prince, I made sure the bridge of the song was one you had to wait for, as well as waiting for 2 minutes for the huge lift and synthesiser solo. I guess the track was a lot like ‘Soft and Wet’, with the synth solo coming in and then totally disappearing.

TSH: What intentions did you outline with ‘Your Voice on the Radio’ (feat. Laura Gibson)?

Dave: Funnily enough that song is the only bit of fiction on the album. I wanted to create a classic duet like ‘Don't You Want Me’ or something like that. Before I went on this hyperemotional road, I actually wanted to make a record that was sort of like a pastiche of specific pop styles. I guess the record ended up being that way anyway, but this song was me trying to do a classic eighties duet. The lyrics are about a lonely young man hearing the singer he loves on the radio and he's daydreaming that she's thinking of him too. Anyhow, Laura is a dear friend of mine and I guess I took her out of her folk roots and put her into this disco diva role for this song, haha! It was super-fun to have her over and record her. I wasn't sure how the song was going to fit in with the rest of the album being so melancholic. In the end, I stripped it down and reconstructed it, which made it sound melancholy like the rest of the record.

TSH: Knowing you were pretty much having relationships that were just blue bubbles of text, did nothing seem real to you with modern technology?

Dave: Oh, definitely. I hate what modern technology has done to us and I include myself in this too. Feeling tethered to this phone and minicomputer in my pocket is quite frustrating. I really want to unplug from everything, but I'm in a situation where I'm promoting this record, so I have to make sure people see posts on social media. It does suck having to check your phone or laptop every few minutes. Although, it’s nice that my beloved cats are a hit on Instagram, haha!

TSH: How liberating is it to have a body of work out there with your own voice and style of writing?

Dave: Man, I can't tell you how liberating it is. I am so grateful that this album is out there. I’m just grateful for whatever part my brain or energy within me allowed for this record to happen. For a long time, it just wouldn't happen, and I just thought I was a guy that plays in bands. I was happy being the guy that helped other people’s records sound good. For me, discovering myself was a really incredible thing and I'm already so excited to work on future material.

TSH: You’re also a huge Grimes fan…

Dave: I just love how everything she does is bursting with life. She is learning what she's doing as she is going along, as well as making albums with all this technology all by herself. She's so proud of her output and this comes across so impressively with her music. I’ve seen a few interviews where she breaks down her music – she’s like a kid in a candy store and I love that about her! Oh, and her music is just badass.

TSH: How was your trip to Iceland recently?

Dave: It was fantastic. It was a trip that had very little forethought. I have a really good friend in Spain that I never get to see and we were talking about taking a male bonding trip somewhere. It turned out that our schedules aligned in April. He just threw out Iceland and I've always wanted to go there. We got a really inexpensive flight from Portland, which was direct and we were blown away. We decided not to do too much research and see where the wind takes us. Every square inch of the island is the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen in your life. I was almost frustrated taking these photos and putting them on Instagram - they were amazing photos, but they didn't really capture the 360° amazing panorama around me. Being in Iceland was like being on the moon and Mars and on an erupting volcano - all at the same time! The landscape changes every five minutes when you’re going for a drive too. It was such a beautiful and stunning place.

TSH: What lead to you tweeting ‘I have a sudden and violent obsession with making nothing but French House tracks and this is gonna lead nowhere good’…

Dave: Ha! Well, when I’m not doing my own music, I get occasionally commissioned to do some advertisement music. One of the companies needed a very traditional French house sounding sound - something like Daft Punk or Justice will do. Anyhow, I ended up really liking what I did and didn't want to give it away. The whole sound was fascinating and I’d never thought about making this type of music before. I sort of have an EP of that stuff ready to go – it’s all instrumental at the moment. I spent three weeks making this very accurate French house type of music, I don't know if that's the next thing that I want to put out, but it’s definitely inspired me to make a diverse range of music.

TSH: Do you find much solace amongst such bedlam in the world?

Dave: Man, I don't really have any clarity about the state of the world right now, it's really hard. It’s hard being in America right now, you just never know if something is going to collapse, or if a real geopolitical crisis arises, how our country is going to react, as well as the threat of terrorism - it's really concerning. I'm trying to be as engaged and informed as I can, but there is such a relentless drumbeat of chaos and uncertainty, so I'm having to find solace in creating music.

TSH: Do you have much perspective with future plans?

Dave: I think one thing that I’ll always lean towards is the thrill of discovery and the joy of seeing something through. I feel that I'm really fascinated by getting inside other people’s heads and applying that to the work I do. For better or for worse, I don't think I'll ever invent some sort of exciting new genre of music, or do something that sounds radically different from something that someone has done before. Also, I definitely feel like I've said all I have to say with this record, because it was such a specific sad time, but I don't regret any of it, and I'm very proud of the record. I don't need to explore this territory again - I'm ready to move on. I’m not sure what to write about next, but I'm not worried about it. I know I felt great when I completed this record and I know I can get there again, so I’ll aim to be very honest and true to whatever I ultimately choose to put across.

Emotional Freedom Technique