#i don't think i've had a mrs maisel one before

[pynkhues]

Hi! What are your thoughts on Lenny’s and Midge’s relationship?

Hi! Yes! I love them, actually. I have my issues with the show, but Rachel Brosnahan and Luke Kirby have chemistry for days, and I think the show's done a good job of establishing a push-pull between them that makes them both step up and spin out and collide again in a way that's narratively pretty satisfying and makes sense for Midge's character arc.

I like that they're both pretty selfish characters and that they don't make each other less so too. They make each other better comedians, not better people, which is actually a really fun and rare space for shows like this to occupy, and I love that the show and the actors both seem to have fun being there.

I do think the end is destined to be a tragic one for them though, and I'm curious as to how the show handles that.

[burntblueberrywaffles]

Fic tag game

got tagged by @fangeek-girl ❤️❤️

How many works do you have on Ao3?

I have 7 works but 3 of them are fanfic lol

2. What's your Ao3 word count?

1896 words total. Your girl is definitely one for brevity LOL

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Wednesday, that one drabble I made for The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, and I've been writing for Star Wars (though I haven't posted anything yet) and Mrs maisel (i wrote a whole short fic for that almost a year ago but I forgot about it completely until I found it in my notes apps, I should get around to posting it)  

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

I don't have 5 fics total but here's my current count in order:

1-Lies

2-The world's a little blurry

3-Pretend

5. Do you respond to comments?

Yes always! the fact that people are READING my stuff and taking time to comment has me 🥺🥺🥺

My writing ao3 isnt linked to my main email adress though so sometimes it takes me a while to respond because I wont see it until I periodically check my fic stats

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

.....Probably The world's a little blurry let's be real (I'm going to fix it it in the next one in the series, I promise!!!)

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

akdadhjgsjgd hard to say all my shit is angsty, I guess Pretend?? kind of, it's less of a downer than the other ones. The final part of Come a little closer will have a happy ending though I promise! (already finished writing the end, I just need to write the beginning lol)

8. Do you get hate on fics?

No ❤️ I don't think any of my stuff has gotten enough attention for that lol

9. Do you write smut? What kind?

NO my ace ass has no experience with that so I wouldn't know how 🧍‍♀️🧍‍♀️🧍‍♀️(I might need to in some future project, fortunately a lot of my friends are perverts (affectionate) so I could probably ask for some guidance if it comes to that LOL)

10. Do you write cross-overs?

No, I'm not a big fans of crossovers in general so certainly have never felt compelled to write one.

11. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No

12. Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

No

13. What WIP you would like to finish, but doubt you ever will?

So many ugh I cant even choose, it's more rare for me to actually finish something than the opposite, that's why I'll never post anything unless the whole thing is finished (only exception is my current series, but that's because I felt like each fic making up the series were self-contained enough that they didn't need to follow up immediatly to work? if that makes sense - plus the first one was a one shot and only thought of how to follow it up after posting it)

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

ANIDALA MY BELOVED

15. What are your writing strengths?

I think I'm really good at imagery and emotion (being a poetry writer goes brrrrr)

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

DESCRIPTIONS oh god I'm so bad at it. My fic are vibes only lmao, what are they wearing? where are they? what movements are they doing? NOT IMPORTANT how about I offer you 12 metaphors on how this character is feeling instead. (though I'm forcing myself to work on it haha)

I also struggle with any longer story arc... there's a reason all my stuff is so short lol

17. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

If it's in french it would be pretty fun since it's my ✨first language✨ hehe. For other languages I'd see if one of my friends speak it but otherwise idk if I'd include it bc I don't want to butcher another language, I've seen too many english authors put french through the ringer it's painful 😭

18. First fandom you wrote for?

I guess Julie and the Phantoms? I never posted it but I had a pretty advanced fic for that. unless you count the 13 reasons why fic I posted on wattpas when i was early teen but we dont talk about that

19. Favourite fic you've ever written?

right now it has to be The world's a little blurry, I just love how it came out hehe

20. What fic would you want to rewrite one day?

none right now.

Anyway tagging @nonamemanga @beri-allen @unlifeira @realmermaid333 @suchaladyy @witchysith @king-crimson-works @theycallme-thejackal and anyone else who might want to do it!

[katzell]

your thoughts on the marvelous mrs. maisel finale? especially, the conclusion of the lenny and midge’s storyline?

Thank you so much for the ask!

I've been thinking about it for weeks, so it's time to get into it. I'm going to mainly address the Lenny and Midge part of the question, mostly because addressing everything else would make this far longer than it already is. And boy is it long. Here we go!

After years of ranting and raving, I now know when there is a version of a show I am watching and a completely different show the writers are creating. When I realize the show I want isn't something the showrunners are interested in, I cut and run.

I nearly dropped Maisel many times over the years as it became clear Midge was never going to have her big break before the finale. It would rather spin its wheels and have more family dinners and musical numbers than grapple with the real dangers of being in show business in the 1950s and 1960s. Midge and Lenny was the only thing that kept me going, and paradoxically it was because Lenny was going to die rather than in spite of it.

I never carried an ounce of hope that Lenny was going to escape the real fate of Lenny Bruce. When the Palladinos introduced Lenny in the pilot, they never meant for him to be a regular character. It was supposed to be a fun nod to the comedians of the time and the kind of comedy the Palladinos were inspired to explore in the series. And then Luke Kirby gave a mesmerizing, unforgettable performance. From that point forward, ASP was always very careful to make most of the characters who populate Midge's world fictional versions of real people. The decision to call him Lenny Bruce and not David Blake (or something better) put limits on what that character could realistically be or do.

For ASP, saving Lenny would have meant undercutting the few ties to reality Maisel had established. And I I agree with her. Especially given how little the show really seemed interested in exploring the darkness of that world. Sexism, racism, antisemitism, homophobia were all present, but the tone was always more light and whimsical. Which is why we got so many interminable boring overindulgent musical sequences.

Knowing that Lenny's death was coming filed in some of the shadows the show itself danced (literally) around. It also allowed me to enjoy Midge and Lenny as a pair of star crossed lovers who could have saved each other, but ultimately don't because of both their own faults and the societal forces around them.

Accepting those limits, I found really beautiful tragedy in Lenny's final two appearances. The opening scene broke me. I was prepared for him to die, but I wasn't prepared to watch him fail. Immediately after the episode I was upset with that narrative choice, but rewatching his previous appearances I came to agree this moment carries more narrative weight than one terrible phone call ever could. Midge watching Lenny fail and not confronting him after was set up in season four. And it's a tragedy of miscommunication on both their parts that comes from a place of love and respect.

Lenny told Midge when he woke up on her couch that he never wanted her to save him again. He was so embarrassed at the idea of Midge seeing him at his worst that he fled her home without his shoes, without using the bathroom, almost in a state of undress. Lenny also made clear to Midge that his drug use wasn't something he would discuss with her in the hotel room. Lenny so desperately wanted Midge to be impressed by him. And yet that desire ultimately prevents any chance Midge has of actually getting close to him. At Carnegie Hall, he realizes for the first time how carefully Midge listens to him and appreciates him. The thought terrifies him. Suddenly his best self seems like it might ruin Midge. So he bolts.

Lenny and Midge could talk about the struggle of comedy and even nod to the ways the world was inhospitable to people who lived outside of the accepted cultural mores of the time, but Lenny could never bring himself to share with her the nature of his addiction. For Lenny, this subject was far more taboo and unspeakable than religion, race, and sex. Because unlike those topics, society saw (and still sees) addiction as a personal failing. For all that Lenny could call bullshit on some things, he internalized this myth. If Lenny had been more honest with Midge, if he had gotten out of the cab and gone back upstairs, if he had let Midge know more about his drug use, if he had asked Midge to bring an umbrella to support him for more than national television appearances, Midge would never have let him fall on his own.

Midge remembers everything Lenny ever said to her. His words are maxims, even prophesies. Midge believes Lenny even when she shouldn't. We see her quoting him often. She carries his fortune with her for the rest of her life. It's such a clear indication of her love for him, but it's also a tragedy. Midge probably let herself believe that the paraphernalia she found in the bathroom wasn't a big deal, because Lenny had promised her it wasn't. By the time she had heard enough to know differently, the damage was done. If Lenny hadn't told her not to save him she would have tried to pull him out of his spiral with everything she had. As it was, she sent him Susie, her best friend, her greatest asset, the lifeline she had relied on over and over. But it just wasn't enough. Midge couldn't meet him at the club and respect what he had told her. And Midge always, always tried to do what Lenny said.

That miscommunication, that tragedy, is heartbreakingly rendered by Rachel Brosnahan and Luke Kirby. Without explicitly saying anything, we know Lenny wants Midge to walk through that door and to try to rescue him. And we know that Midge wants to do just that, but cannot bear the idea of being rejected by him.

In the end, at least, we have that scene in Chinese restaurant which I think might be the most visually stunning scene of any of Midge and Lenny's encounters (I'm sorry Miami club, you are a close second!) It's a nice final reminder of what Lenny did for Midge: he acknowledged she deserved a place amongst the elites of the craft. I only wish there had been room for Midge to also validate Lenny. I would have loved her to give him some parting words that he might also treasure.

There are other ways of tragically ending Midge and Lenny's journey that I would have loved to see, but given the Palladinos disinterest in really exploring the nasty, dark, ugly parts of show business in the 1960s, I am not surprised we didn't get them. That can be a project for a fanfic writer who doesn't want to "fix it" so much as "make it worse." (Go for it fanfic writer! Sometimes we need sad things!)

I also have my own ideas of what would be a happy ending for these characters (see Midge and Lenny's Alternative Adventures). But I think the key to landing those stories (for me) is to confront this miscommunication so that Midge and Lenny can both accept and demand more from each other and to build up a new, less brittle kind of respect that comes from real intimacy. I want productive fights that tear through artifice and expose the mess underneath. Only then do I think they have a shot of saving each other from their own worst instincts.

Does that mean I liked it? Hahahahaha I don't even know. I respect it. It lingers. I felt something. And that's better than most series finales. And Midge and Lenny remain sensational.

[kpg-1126]

Generic tag game

Last song/piece I listened to: I don't remember which song it was, but it was from the middle of my playlist of chapter titles from my last fanfic . . . which . . . my husband chose randomly from my playlists while I was out of the room. I guess I'm glad he didn't go with the cannibalism one.

Last book I read: The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde (it was amongst the last - I had a spell of not reading much for the last *checks watch* two-three months. ugh.)

Last film I watched: Oppenheimer - although I didn't watch it very well, I wasn't really the one watching it. Before that it was Bottoms and Barbie on my one day off to myself.

Last TV series: Technically the last episode of anything I watched was the first 1.5 episodes of Girls5eva. Last series I finished? The Crown, I think.

Last video game (if applicable): The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. I beat it 20 years ago. I have played random things since, but I haven't owned any gaming system or played anything long enough to count it as the "last video game."

Last thing I googled: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (and fyi, I've watched all but the last three episodes - waiting for the next visit with my parents)

Last thing I ate: Greek yogurt (peach)

Sweet, Savory or Spicy: Depends. All are good at the right time.

Amount of sleep: About 6 hours.

Currently reading: Circle of Friends - Maeve Binchy (traveling again next week, maybe I'll make it another 100 pages or so)

Currently watching: A lot of college basketball through Monday

--

Tagged by: @warningsine

[forasecondtherewedwon]

Fic-Writer Interview

Not tagged but picked up from @mercurygray :)

How many works do you have on AO3?

261!

What’s your total AO3 word count?

1,762,015!

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Affinity War (3182)

3 Simple Rules for Dating a Centenarian (2688)

The Great Madripoorian Snake Off (2245)

"Stare Enough" (1843)

Alright on Paper (1463)

Picture a t-shirt bearing the exhausted Ben Affleck smoking meme and the words, "I survived the MCU and so can you!" (My top 5 were written for Spider-Man and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.)

Do you respond to comments?

Respond and proceed to treasure forever.

What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

After poking around in my catalogue of fics, it's either one I wrote for Bodyguard, "Don't Ever Let Me Start," or "The Pretty Ones (Who Try to Kill You)" for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.

What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

Most of what I write does have a happy ending. Hmm... Love Me Like You Drew (for Nancy Drew) and "Same Day, Different Jumpsuit" (the one and only Natasha/Mobius fic on AO3) are both near and dear to my heart.

Do you write crossovers?

Nope! I'm a real compartmentalizer.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Yes! So fun! It typically boils down to "I don't like the ship(s) and/or character(s) in this fic and am here to complain even though you tagged everything properly and I could have just scrolled past!" Fic hate is silly. I chuckle all the way to the "delete" button.

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

*shakes smut variety pack* What kind ya lookin' for?

Click here for my E-rated fics on AO3.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Yep, I've had people post my fics on other platforms without my permission, thinking that as long as they added my username for "credit," it was all good 🙄

Have you ever had a fic translated?

I have not, by choice.

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Nope! I'm an editor and an only child, so.

What’s your all-time favourite ship?

I've written for so many pairings (and a few trios), but Midge/Lenny from The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel has an evergreen ability to set my heart aflutter.

What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

Rude. Probably my Scream AU of Nancy Drew. I would love to write it, but I can't currently see going back and reacquainting myself with all the characters I'd planned to include.

What are your writing strengths?

I love writing humour, in dialogue or otherwise. Also descriptions packed with metaphor.

What are your writing weaknesses?

I. Hate. Plot. I'm here—on this planet, on the internet—to create atmosphere, not complex storylines.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

Love it! Like @mercurygray, I speak some French and Italian, so those are the ones I tend to add if I'm going beyond English.

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Gilmore Girls (specifically A Year in the Life), and I am ready to return to it TOMORROW if Amy Sherman-Palladino provokes me with more bad characterization.

What’s a fandom/ship you haven’t written for yet but want to?

Nothing comes to mind! With both ships and fandoms, I pretty much jump when I wanna jump. I'm also always open to hearing requests.

What’s your favourite fic you’ve written?

Oh! Oh! What a question! It's my baby, my Pride and Prejudice AU, For Now, We May Remain Silent. I wrote it with my copy of Austen open on my desk next to my laptop, going line by line. I worked on it while coping with the final illness and death of someone I loved very much, so a lot of love went into it, and I'm glad I have the fic as a reminder of that time.

From "Studio Tour," still my favourite chapter:

Here are her paintbrushes, disorganized and held in the loose grip of big, old coffee cans. The brushes rattle when Peter runs his finger over their handles, the faded red bristles spinning. A thick, flat brush with discoloured yellow bristles might be his favourite. Glancing over his shoulder, he furtively strokes the uneven hairs with his thumb. They all have this well-used quality that makes his chest clench confusingly. Michelle’s been living a whole life with these in her hand, he thinks, and I don’t know anything about it.

Tagging: Any and all fic-writers following me! Say I tagged ya!

[sweetly-yours-and-mine]

I agree. Iris' story is quite sad at times and relatable. What I take from it is that she's unhappy and wants more. I think, to a degree, that we can all relate to wanting to be successful, loved, and remembered. That's just a bit of my takeaway from her.

This show introduced me to Rachel. I've never watched Mrs. Maisel. Her name sounded familiar, but I had no idea where she was from. One of the things I love about theatre is being introduced to actors and their work. She's quite lovely. I gave her and Oscar gifts the last time I saw the show at BAM. Last night, I told her and Oscar that they get better every time I see the show. Rachel and I had more of a conversation about it, and she asked if she could hug me after I told her that this was my fourth time seeing it and that I have four more shows lined up. You could just tell that she appreciated it, and I felt very lucky. I was the only one she took a picture with. I think that pissed some people off, but oh well.

I feel like every interaction I've had with Oscar, I've blacked out, and my brain remembers them all in a very different way. So, I'm grateful I have videos and pictures. That's my very long way of saying that I get you.

The atmosphere was different at BAM, but that didn't stop autograph hunters and people from doing too much at times. I don't blame them either. It's just unfortunate that it's so different because, as I said before, I wish everyone could have a more intimate and calm experience. I don't think people realize that they don't have to stay to sign things and take pictures with people. You aren't paying for that experience when you buy your ticket to the show. They could just go straight home if they wanted to afterward. Especially after that show because it is so emotionally grueling. They wouldn't do it if they didn't want to because they get nothing from it. There's no extra pay to go meet fans at stage door. They aren't obligated to do it. So, it's clear that their kindness is genuine.

Oh, I was confused the first time I saw it. Honestly, I don't think I'll fully understand all of it until I read it. I take something new from it every time I see it, and things click into place. Act 1 ending that way definitely would've had a different feeling to it. I sort of like that it ends on, not a light note, but something with some sort of comedic relief because I think it leaves the audience in a better place going into Act 2.

Yeah, I know what you mean. It's overwhelming to be in it.

I hope you do see it a second time! I'm definitely going. It's one of the only two weekend shows I'm doing. Everything else has been on weekdays!

Yes, experiences are important. I'm trying to do my best with my experiences to not compare them to others and stop living in the "What if?" mentality. Also, I agree. It's very nice to know that there are good people like them in the arts! - 🎭🌙

Oh sorry anon, I meant that specifically in regards to the drunk scene at the end of Act 2. But I feel that the rock bottom analogy applies to all of the play as well, though it ends on quite a hopeful note. This was my first introduction to Lorraine Hansberry and I am a forever fan now. She was a genius.

And your moment with Rachel? That is so sweet! They're both such humble people if your comments could affect them like that. And you can really just tell it from themselves, it's just apparent in the way they talk and move.

That's also another bad influence of celebrity-ness (ig? lol). Despite everything you're paying for the show, not the stage door experience, which is just a bonus. I feel really bad now too because Rachel's understudy is making her debut today and I wonder how many people are going to be disappointed that they won't get to see a TV star. The line between Hollywood and theatre rn is kinda blurred, no matter how hard it seems both Oscar and Rachel are trying to enforce it.

I find that reading plays in general do take up quite a lot of mental effort, since I have trouble imagining things in my head, but they also require less attention span ig? The basics of it is given to you on the page and you can easily interpret it the way you want. Usually during the semester, I find I'm reaching for plays more, because after a full day of classes I don't want to read dense paragraphs and try to sift through the meaning.

I hope you enjoy the rest of the times you go see it anon! It's such a strong play with strong cast and crew. I feel like I've been spoiled now because I don't want to see any local production back home, because our theatre scene is not nearly as good as New York's. I'm currently on the hunt for plane tickets, and I might end up actually going to see A Doll's House as well, because again, I loved the play when I read it in high school and I love Jessica Chastain as well!

[theycallme-thejackal]

32

nearly 200 writing prompts

Pairing: Lenny Bruce & Midge Maisel Rated T Warnings: Mentions of Drug Use

He stares at her, drink halfway to his lips. "What are you doing here, Midge?"

She sets her purse on the bar as she takes the stool next to him and ordering a drink for herself. "I came to say goodbye."

Lenny finally takes a drink, a longer one than initially intended. "You didn't have to do that."

"You disappear on me for months, and then I find out you're headed to California with a one-way ticket? You bet your ass I had to."

He focuses on the glass in his hand. "Who told you?"

"Dinah can find anyone," she explains, taking a drink. "You're no longer safe from my sneak attacks, Mr. Bruce."

"Don't talk dirty to me when I'm wallowing," he drawls, and her soft laughter has him smiling for the first time in what feels like months.

Has he smiled since Carnegie Hall?

"Why are you wallowing?" She asks after a moment.

He finishes his drink as hers is delivered, and he gestures for another before looking at his watch. He's got about ten minutes until his flight boards, and her sitting there, looking like she does, all blue eyes and perfect hair, has him seriously reconsidering this whole thing.

"I don't want to go," he says. "But, uh...things are not as well as I might've had you believe." He waves his hand as the bartender brings his second whiskey.

"Yeah, ever since I got here I've been thinking about pinning you down and force-feeding you a sandwich."

He meets her gaze with a smirk but refrains from commenting on just how much he wouldn't mind being pinned down by her. She senses the joke anyway (because of course she does), and rolls her eyes with another soft laugh, shaking her head.

Another one of their heated stares has him swallowing thickly. "It's one way because I don't know how long I'll be there," he explains. "It could be a while."

"A while?" She asks. "A while like a few weeks or a while like..."

"Depends on how I do, and considering how I've been since you last saw me, it's probably gonna be closer to three months," he admits. She inhales sharply and nods, ducking her head. "Midge?" He asks when he hears her sniff.

"It's silly," she comments, dabbing beneath her eyes. "I've always been okay between our run-ins, but this feels - "

"I'll be back," he promises, finally reaching for her then. "And if I'm good, they may actually let me use the phone."

She squeezes his hand between both of hers. "What about visits?" She asks, lifting her gaze cautiously. Her eyes are damp, and his heart clenches at the sight.

"If I'm very good," he replies.

Midge nods and squeezes his hand a little tighter. He hears the boarding call for his flight and sighs, "That's my cue."

She nods quickly. "Okay," she says, forcing a smile. "I'm proud of you, Lenny."

He smiles softly at her. "Thanks, Midge."

He stands, pulling some bills out of his wallet and tossing them on the bar, enough to pay for her drink as well. When he looks back to her, she's staring up at him, and all he wants to do is bail on rehab and spend a week locked away with nothing but her, a bed, and a truly indecent number of condoms.

She slides off the stool and takes his face between her hands, surprising him by kissing him deeply. His hands find her waist, slipping around her and pulling her body close.

"What was that for?" He asks breathlessly.

"Incentive," she tells him, sounding a little short of breath herself.

He smiles and gives her another slow kiss before heading for the plane.

[nevermindirah]

Do you have any thoughts on the use of AAVE for Nile (or lack thereof) in TOG fanfiction? I've been reading some Book of Nile fic and some writers seem to write her as a Millennial™ (using words like "fave" and "woke") but never acknowledge her Blackness in her patterns of speech. I know we don't see her use as much AAVE in the films, but I would argue she's in situations where code-switching would be valued (first in a "professional" environment in the army, then around a group of non-Black strangers).

Hi anon! I have many thoughts on this and I'm honored you asked me! But I should start by saying I'm white and any thoughts Black fans and especially Black American fans have on this that they want to share would be beyond lovely. (I'm not gonna tag anybody bc that feels rude but please add onto this post if any of y'all see this and want to!)

The main reason I personally avoid AAVE for Nile in my own fics is because I'm not Black. But Nile-centric fics by Black writers tend to avoid using much of it too, at least from what I've noticed/understood, and my guess is it's largely for the reason you mention, that she's in situations that encourage code-switching.

In movie canon Nile is highly competent at tailoring her language to each situation she finds herself in. This fantastic linguistics analysis meta shows how skillfully Nile chooses her vocabulary and grammar to meet her goals with different conversation partners in different contexts. In comics canon Nile had a bunch of different civilian jobs before joining the Marines, so she would've had experience code-switching in the ways that made sense for all those different contexts as well as the Marines and her family and high school and wherever else she spent her time before we met her. And now she's spending her time with a handful of immortals none of whom are native English speakers and a fellow Black American but one with a Queen's English UK accent whose professional experience is in the CIA where high-status code-switching is often an absolute must for success or even survival.

Fics featuring Nile are charged with extrapolating from that to how it might show up in her use of language that she's coping with a traumatic separation from her family and her career and pretty much everything she's ever known and now she needs to be able to make herself understood to people who seem to care about her and each other but are super duper in crisis, three (soon to be four) of whom predate Modern English entirely and the only one who's anywhere near her contemporary she's not supposed to talk to for a century. All of these people are telling her that pretty much any contact with any mortals poses an existential threat to her and the rest of the group. How the FUCK is she supposed to cope with that, like, generally? And would it be a more effective way for her to cope if she talked to Andy Joe and Nicky using the speech patterns that she used to use with her mom and brother, to at least retain that part of her identity even if it means having to do a lot of explaining, or would it meet her needs better to prioritize Andy Joe and Nicky understanding what she means with her words over using the particular words and grammar forms she used with her family?

I've seen several fics, both Nile-centric / BoN and otherwise, explore this a little bit in how/whether Nile uses Millennial™ speak. It's often a theme in Nile texting Booker despite the exile because of the popular headcanon that he as The Tech Guy is the only other immortal who understands memes. But Nile's much-younger-than-Booker mom probably uses Boomer and/or Gen X memes and Andy has been adapting to new communication styles for forever as evidenced by her canon high level of fluency with standard-American-accented English.

Which brings us back to people avoiding AAVE because they're not Black and they don't want to make mistakes (or they're not Black and they don't want to get yelled at for making mistakes, though I think many people overestimate how much they'll get yelled at while underestimating how much these mistakes can hurt). I can imagine some Black fans hold back from using much AAVE in fic because they don't want to share in-group stuff with white people who are likely to then adopt and ruin it, as white people so often do with Black cultural stuff. Some links about this including a great Khadija Mbowe video. I'm saying this gently, anon, because you might not know: woke, an example you cited as Millennial™ speak, is AAVE, and that's gotten erased by so many white people appropriating it and using it incorrectly online.

And also there's the part where fandom is a hobby and you never know when you're reading a fic that's the very first thing someone's ever written outside of a school assignment. This cultural considerations of language shit takes a level of effort and skill that not everybody puts into every fic, or even could if they wanted to because they haven't had time to build their skills yet. It's definitely easier for non-Black fans to project our millennial feels onto Nile than to do the layers of research and self-reflection it requires to depict what Blackness might mean to Nile, and it's not surprising that often people sharing their hobby creations on the internet have gone the easier route. There's not even necessarily shame in doing what's easier. It's just frustrating and often hurtful when structural white supremacy means that 3-dimensional Black characters are rare in media and thoughtful explorations of them in fandom are seen by the majority of fans as not-easy to make and therefore Nile Freeman, the main character in The Old Guard (2020) dir. Gina Prince-Bythewood, has the least fic and meta and art made about her of our 5 main immortals.

I've been active in different fandoms off and on for twenty years and I barely managed to write 5,000 words about Sam Wilson across multiple different fics in the 7 years since I fell in love with him. There's an alchemy to which characters we connect with, and on top of that which characters we connect with in a way that causes us to create stuff about them. Something about Nile Freeman finally tipped me over the edge from a voracious reader to a voracious writer. It's not for me to judge which characters speak to other individuals to the level of creating content about them, but I do think it's important for us to notice, and then work to fight, the pattern where across this fandom as a whole Nile gets way less content, and way less depth in so much of the content that's in theory about her, than any of these other characters.

Anyway, back to language. My two long fics feature Nile with several Black friends — Copley and OCs and cameos from other media — but all of those characters except Alec Hardison from Leverage aren't American. It's very possible I'm guilty of stereotyping Black British speech patterns in I See Your Eyes Seek a Distant Shore. I watched hours and hours of Black haircare YouTube videos in the research for that fic and I modeled my OCs' speech patterns on what I heard from some of those YouTubers as well as what I've heard people like John Boyega and Idris Elba saying in interviews, but the thing about doing your best is you still might fuck up.

I'm slowly making progress on my WIP where Nile and Sam Wilson are cousins, and what ways of talking with a family member might be authentic for Nile is a major question I need to figure out. For that, I'm largely modeling my writing choices on how I hear my Black friends and colleagues talking to each other. I haven't overheard colleagues talking in an office in a long-ass time, but back when that was a thing, I remember seeing a ton of nuance in the different ways many of my Black colleagues would talk to each other. Different people have different personalities! And backgrounds! And priorities! A few jobs ago my department was about 1/3 Black and we worked closely with Obama administration staff many of whom were Black and there was SO MUCH VARIETY in how Black people talked to each other, about work and workplace-appropriate personal stuff, where I and other white coworkers could hear. There are a few work friends in particular who I have in my head when I'm trying to imagine how Sam and Nile might talk to each other. From the outside looking in, God DAMN is shit complicated, intellectually and interpersonally and spiritually, for Black people who are devoting their professional lives to public service in the United States.

One more aspect of this that I have big thoughts on but I need to take extra care in talking about is the idea of acknowledging Nile's Blackness in her patterns of speech. There's no one right way to be Black, and Nile's a fictional character created by a white dude but there are plenty of real-life Black Americans who don't use much or even any AAVE, for reasons that are complicated because of white supremacy. (Highly highly recommend this video by Shanspeare on the harms of the Oreo stereotype.)

Something that's not the same but has enough similarity that I think it's worth talking about is my personal experience with authenticity and American Jewish speech patterns. My Jewish family members don't talk like they're in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and I've known lots of people who do talk that way (or the millennial version of it), some of whom have questioned my Jewishness because I don't talk that way. That hurts me. Sometimes when another Jew tells me some shit like "I've never heard a Jew say y'all'd've," I can respond with "well now you have asshole, bless your Yankee-ass heart," because the myth of Dixie is a racist lie but I will totally call white Northerners Yankees when they're being shitty to me for being Southern, and this particular Jew fucking revels in using "bless your heart" with maximum polite aggression, especially with said Yankees. But sometimes I don't have it in me to say anything and it just quietly hurts having an important part of me disbelieved by someone who shares that important part of me. The sting isn't quite the same when non-Jews disbelieve or discount my Jewishness, but that hurts too.

Who counts as authentically Jewish is a messy in-group conversation and it doesn't really make sense to explain it all here. Who counts as authentically Jewish is a matter of legal status for immigration, citizenship, and civil rights in Israel, and it's my number 2 reason after horrific treatment of Palestinians that I'm antizionist. But outside that extremely high-stakes legal situation, it can just feel really shitty to not be recognized as One Of Us, especially by your own people.

It can also feel really shitty to be The Only One of Your Kind in a group, even if that group is an immortal chosen family who all loves each other dearly. Sometimes especially in a situation like that where you know those people love you but there are certain things they don't get about you and will never quite be able to. I'm definitely projecting at least a little bit of my "lonely Jew who will be alone again for yet another Jewish holiday" stuff onto Nile when at the end of I See Your Eyes Seek a Distant Shore she's thinking about being the only Black immortal and moving away from the community she'd built with a mostly-Black group of mortals in that fic. Maybe that tracks, or maybe that's fucked up of me.

Basically, this got very long but it's complicated, writing about experiences that aren't your own takes skill which in turn takes time and practice to build, writing about experiences not your own that our society maligns can cause a lot of harm if done badly, it can also cause a lot of harm when a large enough portion of a fandom just decides to nope out of something that's difficult and risky because then there's just not much content about a character who deserves just a shit ton of loving and nuanced content, people are individuals and two people who come from the exact same cultural context might show that influence in all kinds of different ways, identity is complicated, language is complicated, writing is hard, and empathy and humility and doing our best aren't a guarantee of avoiding harm but they do go a long way in helping people create thoughtful content about a character as awesome and powerful and kind and messy and scared and curious and WORTHY as Nile Freeman.

[rachaellikesyaoi]

I posted 8,839 times in 2021

20 posts created (0%)

8819 posts reblogged (100%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 440.9 posts.

I added 4,161 tags in 2021

#dean winchester - 657 posts

#castiel - 625 posts

#make me laugh - 606 posts

#destiel - 592 posts

#spn - 550 posts

#julia - 292 posts

#supernatural - 290 posts

#barry - 203 posts

#deancas - 178 posts

#sam winchester - 168 posts

Longest Tag: 133 characters

#there are so many pieces in the finale that just dont make any sense. it fundamentally breaks and pulls and references so many things

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

I can't wait for 20 years from now when they reboot supernatural and we all rise up from the grave like those shitty zombies at the end of s14/start of s15. It'll be great.

1 notes • Posted 2021-02-28 12:48:10 GMT

#4

I just want to fucking scream

1 notes • Posted 2021-06-18 11:06:04 GMT

#3

spn asks: 8, 9, 11, 14, 27

Oh my god!!! Yay! Thank you for the ask!!!

8. Favorite Cas?

Endverse!Cas. Love my little Stoner dude who fell from grace and would follow Dean to the end of the world. I've literally been reading 'Down to Agincourt' by seperis and I'm almost on book four. Which is dedication, because it's beautifully written and lacking any smut. That's how much I love Endvers!Cas.

9. Favorite Dean?

Demon!Dean. How could you not love him? Sure, he's a 'bad guy,' but so is Billie Eilish and I'd follow both of them into hell with a smile.

11. Which episode do you wish we had gotten?

I honestly think it's a tie between Human!Impala, and a body swap episode. I would have loved to see Baby as some hot stud and Dean being all flustered when Baby inevitably asks why Dean is calling him 'the car' or 'impala' instead of their given name which is Baby. BUT I would have also loved to see Cas and Dean switch bodies and see Jensen and Misha acting like the other's characters. It would have been great.

14. If there was a reverse French Mistake, who would cope the best?

I think Jensen would, because he's essentially Dean Winchester, but more adjusted. I'm sure if given some time to train, then he'd fit into the position well.

27. Which would you rather have addressed in canon: Cas killing countless copes of Dean or Dean's grief each time Cas died?

I think I'd want his grief addressed, because unlike with other deaths of Dean's loved ones, I feel like Cas' deaths never got the same treatment? I dunno. I'm probably wrong, but I feel like when John, Mary, Bobby, or anyone else got a more fleshed out grieving Dean than anytime Cas passed. But maybe that was the point? 🤷🏼‍♀️

Thank you for the ask! I don't think I've ever done one before!

2 notes • Posted 2021-03-09 15:15:00 GMT

#2

Need New Blogs to Follow

I haven’t done this in years, but I’m looking for active blogs to follow for all of my fandom needs. If you post any of these fandoms, please reblog or like this post and I will check out your page and probably follow!

Supernatural

Doctor Who

Umbrella Academy

Marvel 

DC

Star Trek

Yu Yu Hakusho

Lovecraft Country

Disney

Stardew Valley

Animal Crossing

Kingdom Hearts

Good Omens

The Boys

Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Persona

Spider-Man (Anything)

Sherlock

Miss Kobiyahsi’s Dragon Maid

Fruits Basket

Cowboy Bebop

Yuri on Ice

11 notes • Posted 2021-06-15 14:43:40 GMT

#1

I was today years old when I learned that Sean Gunn, James Gunn brother and the actor who plays Kraglin in the MCU, also does the motion capture for Rocket.

He also did the mod-capping for the Weasel in the new the Suicide Squad movie. 

Huh.

22 notes • Posted 2021-08-25 14:25:14 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[sweetly-yours-and-mine]

Hi! I love you and talking to you as well.

The prices are outrageous. Theatre isn't as accessible as some people think it is or act like it is. Honestly, if I didn't have money in my savings, I wouldn't have been able to afford the seats I've gotten and gone as many times as I have. I'm also irresponsible with money, but that's another issue.

I wasn't familiar with the show before I saw it, but every time I see it, I take something new from it. I have a lot of thoughts on the theatre community. There are some great people, but there are pretentious snobs that make it hard to enjoy and experience things sometimes. There's a lot of mess which you called out perfectly.

There is definitely comedy in the show, but I wouldn't label it as a comedy. If anything, the comedy is there to relieve the tension sometimes. The stuff with Gloria, Sidney, and David dancing is something I never found funny. They're all in pain in one way or another. If anything, I could see something nervously or uncomfortably laughing as their initial reaction.

With the BAM run compared to this run, in all honesty, I don't remember much of a difference other than this one being shorter. There were things cut out and changed, but they weren't drastic changes. The theatre layouts are also different. They had floor space at BAM, in between the stage and the audience. So, when Gloria came in, Iris, Mavis, and Alton sat in chairs, watching everything play out.

With the autograph stuff, I'm glad to hear it worked out! It's been raining every weekend here for some reason. It's ridiculous. I'm sorry you couldn't get Rachel's autograph. I understand being tongue-tied and anxious. I met them again last night, and I was incredibly nervous despite having met them a few times now. I did have a sweet moment with Rachel that I don't think I'll ever get over. Anyway, I'm glad Oscar signed your Playbill and copy of the play! I'm probably going to pick up a copy when I'm there next time. I'm sorry you had to deal with autograph hunters. They're the worst.

They definitely changed how they're going about signing and taking pictures. They breeze through them now. I understand and respect it, but I'm sad it's different, you know? BAM was a more intimate experience, and I wish all the actual fans could've experienced something like that. The fact that they even go out and take the time to do it when they don't have to speaks volumes about how genuinely grateful and kind they are.

Honestly, if you can afford it, go see it again in June! I'm seeing it in June as well. I hope you enjoy exploring the city. I both love and hate it every time I go there.

You can tell the whole cast put everything they had into their performances. Everyone involved with this production deserves high praise and credit for their work.

You don't sound pretentious. You've read the play, and I haven't. With any media, we all experience it differently. So, I'm more than happy to hear your thoughts, and I'm always down to talk about how Broadway is bullshit despite how much I love it. There are a lot of issues. - 🎭🌙

Definitely! There was a lot of quick wit, and back and forths that I really enjoyed. I remember reading the 'Iris is half-Greek so she needs to turn down only half her face' line on the plane over and I laughed out loud. But I do felt that in that particular scene, at least the audience in my show was thinking it was also meant to be amusing when it was a kind of delirious happiness, so 'happy' to the point that it was painful. It's when you hit rock-bottom and you laugh so you can hear your voice echo around the walls kinda thing. Even a few moments before Gloria's suicide they were laughing a little too heartily for the tension that was building up on stage. It was probably just that night though, since it was still just a couple of days after opening.

Rachel was just the sweetest! And so so pretty! I love her in Mrs. Maisel and it's just clear what a kind person she is, it radiates out of her. It's so nice to hear you had a sweet moment with her. Lolol I was so nervous with Oscar that I literally have no recollection of him standing in front of me and signing my stuff :DD I really hope that if I go next time I'll be able to tie two words together lol.

That was one of the main reasons why I wished I had seen BAM (as well). Not only did they seem to spend more time outside, I think it was away from that Broadway pretentiousness. A lot of the photos and videos of stage door from BAM seemed that it was a bit of a more calm atmosphere (I mean Oscar rode his bike home, so clearly it must have been).

But I don't blame them either for going so fast through fans. They both seem exhausted after the end of the play, and Oscar's seemed to have lost a lot of weight. I can't imagine having to sit through New York traffic on top of it all after doing such an emotionally grueling play, leave alone getting screamed and yelled at for photos and autographs. They really are the sweetest people for taking the time despite it all to do it, I just wish people were more recognizing of that fact, ya know?

The play itself is really good! It's quite dense though, but if I hadn't read it beforehand and tried to sort out the meaning, I don't think I would have understood as much as I did. Reading plays in general I feel is a bit tricky, because after seeing it, I really felt that I had only grasped the bare bones of it, and then saw it come to life. Anne Kauffman clearly knows what she's doing though, what with the Tony nomination and all, so I'll just hold my tongue on that. The play ends Act 1 after Iris and Sidney fight and Iris says 'let's fight like hell' for their relationship. Then the rest is in Act 2.

I don't necessarily think it would have been better per se, cause the tension built up nicely, and ending the first Act with Sidney taking the pill was also a strong point to end it. I just thought they changed it around for Broadway and that irked me again.

I am all for bashing pretentious practices in society, honey. I knew theatre was already quite flawed but on Broadway it was like seeing everything maxed out, ya know?

But I've recently tried to spend more money on experiences than things, and I do think I can manage to catch the play a second time. Hopefully I get some sweet moments with the two of them as well! They're such lovely people and it's so nice to know that there are still good people like them in the arts.