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memoria-99 · 10 months ago

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Okay, in the introduction I said that I like IkeVamp and IkePri as well but now I see I never wrote anything about those

So I found this from my phone memo and I'm posting it here, control C+V.

An extremely personal ranking based on both character and route. (IkeVamp)

1st place Shakespeare

Sad villain + who wears 'mask' to hide his inner self. The only route I was never bored with and the route that MC is best written. MC wasn't stupid here, she was determined and overall depicted okay. And above all, his narrative was convincing and the romance was smooth, and there was no "sudden bland villain" that was used so much in previous routes.

2nd place Vlad

Sad villain + innocent... freak? LI who is involved with MC in the past, plus he've been waiting for MC for a long time? I love that trope. Already a passing mark for me. And among the pureblood vampire routes, this is the only one that wasn't about "how tragic the immortal life that has to keep watching human death" which was refreshing. Sadly, MC wasn't that great.

3rd place Dazai (tie)

Eccentric but sad guy. He and MC build real nice emotional bond and his narrative was interesting yet sad. I think MC was pretty decent as well. Didn't have much expectation in this route but turned out to be surprisingly good. Made me curious about Charles too.

3rd place Arthur (tie)

Playboy. Thought he was just a girl-loving casanova, but he turned out to have a deep side. Nicely unraveled story. Both his narrative and story was interesting and well written. The chemistry between MC and him was fun. But the villain was a bit too sudden and unconvincing. Everything was fine except that.

4th place Mozart

Kuudere + tsundere. He's like a cat; chic but cute. The chemistry between MC and him was good. Historical facts and his narratives were properly mixed, and the villain was bland, but among the "bland villains", at least this one had his own proper reason. The only downside was that the MC was too dull and clueless.

5th place Isaac

Tsundere. He's really kind-hearted, but he's hit by people so hard that he puts up a wall from others. Wanted to pat him. I liked the process of MC breaking down his iron wall. Overall story was decent and villain narrative was the best(?) among the "bland villains".

6th place Leonardo

He as a character was really attractive and nice, but it's more like a story of a pureblood vampire than a story of a historical figure. The chemistry between MC and him was good. The route where the most random and ridiculous villain appeared.

7th place Napoleon

He was plain and so was MC. Nothing in particular was memorable, but the chemistry between MC and him was good. The villain was just... not understandable at all, like in many routes.

8th place Jean

Both him and MC weren't bad. But honestly, nothing was really memorable besides that I thought 'MC doesn't know how the ugly duckling story ends?'... and I think his friend aka villain was more helpful than MC for his trauma recovery.

9th place Theodorus

The story wasn't that bad. But here are the minus points: him calling MC a dog, MC who's always kinda dragged around by him, and ridiculously unconvincing villain story. So many minus points for me.

10th place Vincent

A fantastic three combo with a dull LI and a dull MC and a boring story that made me yawn. And romance is a bit awkward. I mean, MC and him being good friends is acceptable. But romance... well? I don't think their relationship was enough to develop into a romance. I was more interested in Shakespeare here.

11th place Sebastian

Wasn't particularly disappointed because I didn't have high expectations in the first place, and I didn't feel anything after finishing it. MC and him are best as good friends. And the story flow was very, very unnatural. Faust was a real fresh air and the Deus ex Machina here.

12th place Saint-Germain

Him being indecisive and MC being the stupidest ever, pureblood vampire trope recycled from Leo's, zero chemistry between MC and him, unnatural romance. I was really looking forward to his route, but after finishing it was dragged down to the very bottom in my heart. Vlad was way more attractive.

13th place Faust

Dropped. Is he even an LI? How can you romance someone who kidnapped, locked you up and calls you an experiment subject if it's not a Stockholm syndrome???

(Cannot rank) Charles

Curious, but never tried (kinda fed up with the game itself because of that some guy at the 13th place) Definitely will check out his route someday.

This seems to be the end. Quite needlessly long, so if someone is still reading, I really appreciate it.

#ikemen vampire #ikevamp #ikemen series #ranking #personal thoughts

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mumza03 · 2 years ago

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Notes on Connected. (may 1st, 2023)

sooooo I broke down the newest video for generation loss scene by scene. So this is your final warning for spoilers!!

starts with connecting with three dots going back and forth doing the loading screen thingy. theres a static background

next it says welcome on a black background.

next thing on screen looks a bit like a wormhole, it looks a bit like a scene out of doctor who. theres messages on the screen, says "look into infinity" "you are now worthy" "one of many" it repeats like four times then changes to "one of millions" "one to another" "one to yours" "one to another"

another change still with the worm hole thingy it has what looks like is a title screen reading "Generation One: The Social Experiments" this is something small but I find it interesting that the experiment has an S at the end kinda implying that there have been many of them or there are many going on at the same time.

next it goes to a solid red screen with "GEN 1" in the top left corner.

then it shifts to posters tapped to a wall, from the left most poster to right most it reads "DO NOT WATCH" top has the design for show fall crossed out with an x "lies" underneath middle one says "it has all changed, it has changed everything, it will change everything, I will stop it, DO NOT WATCH" bottom "IT ISNT FOR US" the is is underlined twice and the right one says "IT ISNT A SHOW"

very quickly it shows a man in a suit standing like the "had to do it to them" meme with a white box over his face. Someone pointed out that there might be a show fall pin on his lapel. so this dude it probably someone important in showfall

when it cuts back to the posters except all the posters are covered in missing posters. its hard to see the face of the person, but it could be gl!ranboo because it looks like their shoulder (idk i might be reaching but like it also makes sence for this to be them) in the top corners I think there are also show fall logos. the missing person number to call is 484-749-3255 but! I already called and recored it so I have what is said written down "(mans voice) hello, thank you for calling showfall missing person hot line we appreciate your call, but you are not able to help us. please hang up immediately. *beep* **pause** (lady voice) your voicemail has been sent, goodbye." theres tape connecting the missing posters and it looks like the genloss logo abit

cut to a poster with the showfall logo on it at the top and bottom it says "05 03 23" so May 3, 2023

next thing is the showfall logo with showfall media at the bottom and a man saying "we are happy to welcome you to the showfall media family, please join us for our special keynote on May 3rd at your time." and at the end very quietly he says "there is something going on here"

and that is where the video ends! but in the description there is a link to a website, and the word "Welcome."

I dont remember who but someone pointed out how the showfall logo is making dots appear because of an optical illusion. but yeah! thats a break down of the connected. video. so yeah heres my breakdown of the video i think i may try and do these when possible.

#genloss #ranboo #generation loss #gl!ranboo

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bookofjin · 4 years ago

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How did Liu Kun lose Bingzhou? From what I know, his Chief Clerk basically handed over the province to Shi Le but surely it's more complicated than that, right?

Long rambling answer below

Let's start with the relevant relevant entries in the Annals of Emperor Min, JS005:

4th Year [of Jianxing], Spring, 3rd Month [9 April – 7 May 316], the King of Dai, Yilu, passed away. His multitudes reverted to Liu Kun.

…

[11th Month, Chang'an falls to Liu Yao.]

Shi Le besieged Leping. The Minister of Works, Liu Kun, dispatched troops to aid them, they were defeated by Le. The Grand Warden of Leping, Han Ju, set out and ran. The Senior Clerk to the Minister of Works, Li Hong, used Bing province to rebelliously surrender to Le.

12th Month, jiashen, New Moon [31 December?], the sun was eclipsed.

On jiwei [4 January], Liu Kun ran to Ji, to depend on Duan Pidi.

四年春三月，代王猗盧薨，其眾歸于劉琨。

…

石勒圍樂平，司空劉琨遣兵援之，為勒所敗，樂平太守韓據出奔。司空長史李弘以并州叛降于勒。十二月甲申朔，日有蝕之。己未，劉琨奔薊，依段匹磾。

NB: There is a dating problem here. 4th Year of Jianxing, 12th Month, New Moon (31 December 316) was a yimao day. It was the next month, 5th Year, 1st Month, New Moon (29 January 317) which was a jiashen day. So it is possible some events have been jumbled around. However according to NASA, there was indeed a solar eclipse on 31 December 316 AD. Sima Guang points out that the list of eclipses in the Songshu treatise writes “yimao, New Moon”. So the simplest solution seems to be that the entries are located at their correct places in the annals, and it is just the name of the day when the solar eclipse took place which is wrong. Maybe someone had a list of eclipsed without the 60 day cycle names, and computed it wrong?

Moving on to Liu Kun's biography in JS062:

3rd Year [of Jianxing 315 AD], the Emperor dispatched the Combined Grand Herald Zhao Lian, Holding the Tally, to designate Kun as Minister of Works and Commander-in-Chief of the Various Army Affairs of Bing, Ji, and You Provinces. Kun sent up a petition to yield Minister of Works, accepted Commander-in-Chief, and set a date with [Touba] Yilu when they would chastise Liu Cong.

Soon after Yilu father and son plotted against each other, and Lu and his older brother's son Gen both died of illness. Their section groups scattered in four directions. Kun's son Zun had previously been a hostage with Lu, the multitudes all adhered to him. Reaching this point, Zun, together with Ji Dan and others, led Lu's multitudes, 30 000 people, and 100 000 horses, cattle, and sheep, and wholly came to revert to Kun. Kun because of that was roused again, and led several hundred cavalry from Pingcheng to console and admit them.

Just then Shi Le attacked Leping. The Grand Warden, Han Ju, requested aid from Kun, and Kun himself, since the multitude soldiers were newly united, wished to rely on their sharpness and so overawe Le. Ji Dan remonstrated, saying:

These, though people of Jin, for a long time have been in the wild borderlands. They are not familiar with grace and trust, and will be difficult hence to rule and manage. Now [if we] on the inside gather the Xianbei's remaining grain, and on the outside seize and destroy the Hu's cattle and sheep, and moreover close the passes and defend the defiles, apply ourselves to agriculture and rest the soldiers, and when we have accustomed and reformed them to feel righteousness, and after that employ them, then merit can be established.

Kun did not follow, and fully issued out his multitudes. He instructed Dan to lead 20 000 infantry and cavalry as the vanguard, Kun himself was the rear support.

Le had earlier occupied the defiles and strategic points, he set up an ambush from where to strike Dan, and greatly defeated him. As one the army were all lost, and combined with that earth shook in fear. Soon after there was again blazing drought, Kun's destitution was pressing and he was not able again to defend [himself].

The Inspector of You province, Duan Pidi of the Xianbei, several times dispatched words to appeal to Kun, wishing that they together would encourage the royal house. Kun because of that led the multitudes to go to him, he followed the Feihu [Pass] to enter Ji. Pidi saw him, and to great extent honoured and esteemed [him]. He and Kun joined in marriage, and pledged to be brothers.

三年，帝遣兼大鴻臚趙廉持節拜琨為司空、都督并冀幽三州諸軍事。琨上表讓司空，受都督，剋期與猗盧討劉聰。尋猗盧父子相圖，盧及兄子根皆病死，部落四散。琨子遵先質於盧，眾皆附之。及是，遵與箕澹等帥盧眾三萬人，馬牛羊十萬，悉來歸琨，琨由是復振，率數百騎自平城撫納之。屬石勒攻樂平，太守韓據請救於琨，而琨自以士眾新合，欲因其銳以威勒。箕澹諫曰：「此雖晉人，久在荒裔，未習恩信，難以法御。今內收鮮卑之餘穀，外抄殘胡之牛羊，且閉關守險，務農息士，既服化感義，然後用之，則功可立也。」琨不從，悉發其眾，命澹領步騎二萬為前驅，琨自為後繼。勒先據險要，設伏以擊澹，大敗之，一軍皆沒，并土震駭。尋又炎旱，琨窮蹙不能復守。幽州刺史鮮卑段匹磾數遣信要琨，欲與同獎王室。琨由是率眾赴之，從飛狐入薊。匹磾見之，甚相崇重，與琨結婚，約為兄弟。

Here there is no mention of Li Hong. Instead the deteriorating situation in general forces Liu Kun to abandon his own territory, and go to Duan Pidi with whatever followers he still had.

Wei Xiong and Ji Dan have a joint biography in WS23 appended to that of Wei Cao. Note that in JS61 Ji Dan's name is written 箕澹 while in WS23 it is written 姬澹. 箕 and 姬 were homophones also in Middle Chinese. “Emperor Huan” refers to Touba Yituo, and “Emperor Mu” to Touba Yilu. Liuxiu was Yilu's son, who rebelled against him in 316.

[Wei ]Xiong, courtesy name Shiyuan, and [Ji] Dan, courtesy name Shiya, were both brave, strong and had many plans and designs. In the era of Jin they were provincial Assistant Officers. When they had entered the state together with Wei Cao, Emperor Huan [due to their] vigour and their bodily strength, used both as generals. They often accompanied conquests and attacks, and greatly displayed their power and fame.

At Emperor Huan's hurrying to the difficulties, he petitioned Jin to classify their merits and deeds. Both were designated Generals. Xiong continuously had merit in battle, and bit by bit moved to General of the Left and Marquis of Yunzhong. Dan likewise, due to his brave achievements, displayed his fame. At the end of Emperor Huan, he had reached General of True Righteousness and Marquis of Loufan. At the beginning of Emperor Mu, both were entrusted and relied on. After Wei Cao passed on, they together became Assistant Assessors of Left and Right.

At the treason of Liuxiu, within the state there was great chaos, new and guessed and suspected, and frequently executed and slaughtered each other. Xiong and Dan both had the adherence of the crowd's feelings, and planned and wished to return home south. They talked to the multitudes, saying:

[I] have heard the various old people are jealous of the new people's courage in battle, and wish thoroughly kill them. [If] we do not soon have a plan, [I] fear [we] will have no offspring.

The people of Jin and the Wuhuan were frightened and afraid, all said:

Dead or alive [we will] follow the two Generals.

Hence Xiong, Dan, and Liu Kun's hostage son Zun led the Wuhuan and people of Jin, a multitude of several ten thousand, and rebelled. Kun heard about it and was greatly pleased. He led several hundred cavalry to swiftly go to Pingcheng, and console and admit them.

It happened that Shi Le attacked Kun's Leping. The Grand Warden, Han Ju, requested aid from Kun. Kun, since he had obtained Xiong and Dan's multitudes, wished rely on their sharpness so as to wipe out Shi Le. Xiong and Dan remonstrated, saying:

The chaotic population is starved and exhausted, and cannot conveniently be employed. [We] ought to stop and rest, look for faults, and then act.

Kun did not follow. He sent Xiong and Dan to lead the multitudes and chastise Le. Kun stationed at Guangmu to make sounds of supporting them. Le led light cavalry and fought with Xiong and Dan. Dan was greatly defeated, he led more than 1 000 cavalry and ran to Dai commandery. Le dispatched Kong Chang to pursue and wipe him out.

雄字世遠，澹字世雅，並勇健多計畫，晉世州從事。既與衛操俱入國，桓帝壯其膂力，並以為將，常隨征伐，大著威名。桓帝之赴難也，表晉列其勛效，皆拜將軍。雄連有戰功，稍遷至左將軍、雲中侯。澹亦以勇績著名，桓帝末，至信義將軍、樓煩侯。穆帝初，並見委任。衛操卒後，俱為左右輔相。

六修之逆，國內大亂，新舊猜嫌，迭相誅戮。雄、澹並為群情所附，謀欲南歸，言於眾曰：「聞諸舊人忌新人悍戰，欲盡殺之，吾等不早為計，恐無種矣。」晉人及烏丸驚懼，皆曰：「死生隨二將軍。」於是雄、澹與劉琨任子遵率烏丸、晉人數萬眾而叛。琨聞之大悅，率數百騎馳如平城撫納之。會石勒攻琨樂平，太守韓據請救於琨。琨以得雄、澹之眾，欲因其銳，以滅石勒。雄、澹諫曰：「亂民饑疲，未可便用，宜休息觀釁而動。」琨不從，使雄、澹率眾討勒，琨屯廣牧為之聲援。勒率輕騎與雄、澹戰，澹大敗，率騎千餘，奔於代郡。勒遣孔萇追滅之。

We can see that there is considerable overlap between the “Ji Dan section” of Liu Kun's biography and this text, to the point of often sharing the same wording. Clearly they share the same source.

Moving back to JS, in the Yearly Annals of Shi Le, JS104, we find the following:

[Shi] Le attacked the Grand Warden of Leping, Han Ju, at Zhancheng. Liu Kun dispatched General Ji Dan to lead a multitude of more than 100 000 to chastise Le. Kun stayed at Guangmu to make sounds of support for Dan. Le wanted to resist them, someone remonstrated to him, saying:

Dan's troops and horses are spirited and abundant, their spear-points are possible to dislodge. [We] ought to [make] deep ditches and tall ramparts so as to grind down their sharpness, attack and defend as circumstances differ, [we will] surely acquire perfect security.

Le said:

Dan's great multitude have come a great distance, their bodies are tired and their strength exhausted. A gathering of dogs, sheep, and crows, their titles and orders are not uniform. [When we] can fight a single battle and seize them, what is strong about them! The robbers have arrived isolated, how can we let go and depart! A great army's single movement, how easy is it to turn around in the middle! Suppose Dan exploits my withdrawal, [and we] look back [for him] then without leisure, how would we get to obtain deep ditches and tall ramparts! This is the way of not fighting and then wiping out and destroying myself.

He immediately beheaded the one who remonstrated. He used Kong Chang as Chief Controller of the Vanguard, and ordered those among the Three Armies who set out late beheaded. He put deceptive troops up on mountain[s], and divided them into two ambushes. Le and the light cavalry fought with Dan, he pretended to gather the multitudes to then go north. Dan let loose the troops to pursue them, Le's ambushers issued out to the front and rear to strike from both sides, and Dan's army was greatly defeated. They captured ten thousand armoured horsees. Dan ran to Dai commandery, Ju ran to Liu Kun.

Kun's Senior Clerk, Li Hong, used Bing province to surrender to Le. Le thereupon ran to Duan Pidi. Le moved the households of Yangqu and Leping to Xiangguo, set up wardens and stewards, and then withdrew. Kong Chang pursued Ji Dan to Sanggan. Le dispatched the Combined Senior Clerk of the Left, Zhang Fu, to present the victory to Liu Cong.

…

Kong Chang attacked Dai commandery, Dan died there.

勒攻樂平太守韓據於坫城，劉琨遣將軍姬澹率眾十餘萬討勒，琨次廣牧，為澹聲援。勒將距之，或諫之曰：「澹兵馬精盛，其鋒不可發，宜深溝高壘以挫其銳，攻守勢異，必獲萬全。」勒曰：「澹大眾遠來，體疲力竭，犬羊烏合，號令不齊，可一戰而擒之，何強之有！寇已垂至，胡可捨去，大軍一動，豈易中還！若澹乘我之退，顧乃無暇，焉得深溝高壘乎！此為不戰而自滅亡之道。」立斬諫者。以孔萇為前鋒都督，令三軍後出者斬。設疑兵于山上，分為二伏。勒輕騎與澹戰，偽收眾而北。澹縱兵追之，勒前後伏發，夾擊，澹軍大敗，獲鎧馬萬匹，澹奔代郡，據奔劉琨。琨長史李弘以并州降于勒，琨遂奔于段匹磾。勒遷陽曲、樂平戶于襄國，置守宰而退。孔萇追姬澹於桑干。勒遣兼左長史張敷獻捷於劉聰。

…

孔萇攻代郡，澹死之。

So here we get the same events presented from Shi Le's point of view. There some similarities in wording between this and WS023. The main source of JS104 is almost certainly Cui Hong's now lost Spring and Autumn of the Sixteen States 十六國春秋 (SLGCQ), WS also most likely relied on the SLGCQ for its chapters on the Sixteen States.

The Taiping Yulan quotes extensively from the SLGCQ, and its sections on Sixteen States rulers is essentially an extended summary of Cui Hong's book. In TPYL120 we read the following:

Cui Hong's Spring and Autumn of Sixteen States, Chronicle of Later Zhao, says:

…

Former Zhao's 1st Year of Linjia [316 AD], Liu Kin dispatched Ji Dan to come and chastise. Le fought with him, and Dan's army was greatly defeated. Kun's Senior Clerk Li Hong used Bing province to come and surrender.

崔鴻《十六國春秋·后趙錄》曰：

…

前趙麟嘉元年，劉琨遣姬澹帥眾來討。勒與戰，澹軍大敗。琨長史李弘以并州來降。

This adds precisely nothing.

I won't quote the account in ZZTJ089 since as far as I could tell it does not add anything not found in the sources quoted above. But Hu Sansheng in his commentary adds a helpful reminder that “at the time Bing province was seated at Yangqu”.

Going back to your actual question, as we have seen none of the sources give any detail at all on how Li Hong handed over the province to Shi Le. But looking at the big picture, Liu Kun had been on the defence basically since the beginning. He gradually lost the southern parts of the province and in 312 he had been forced to retreat from Jinyang to Yangqu which then became the provincial capital.

In the Chinese writings, the seat of an administrative unit is often referred to by the name of that unit, for example Jinyang was often known simply as Bingzhou and indeed is now called Taiyuan. When JS104 writes “Kun's Senior Clerk, Li Hong, used Bing province to surrender to Le.”, “Bing province” could be understood to mean not the whole province but the “the provincial seat of Bing province”, i.e. Yangqu. JS104 then continues “Le thereupon ran to Duan Pidi. Le moved the households of Yangqu and Leping to Xiangguo.”

To speculate a little, when Liu Kun himself went to Guangmo to support Ji Dan, I think it's quite likely that he left Li Hong to defend Yangqu in his absence. Then when Li Hong heard of the defeat he decided to surrender. With the loss of Leping and Yangqu there was not much Bingzhou left to defend, not enough territory to support an army at least, and so Liu Kun had little choice than to relocate elsewhere.

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somegirlsnerdywords2 · 4 years ago

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Anime i’ve Watched

That begin with a B (Part 3)!

Yep this is how i’m going to bring over all the anime and manga i’ve watched and posted about on the old blog. It’s not so detailed but it will have to do. Anything new I watch or read from this point on will have their own posts.

Boku no Hero Academia (My Hero Academia):

Genres: action, comedy, school, shounen, super power

Synopsis: The appearance of "quirks," newly discovered super powers, has been steadily increasing over the years, with 80 percent of humanity possessing various abilities from manipulation of elements to shapeshifting. This leaves the remainder of the world completely powerless, and Izuku Midoriya is one such individual. Since he was a child, the ambitious middle schooler has wanted nothing more than to be a hero. Izuku's unfair fate leaves him admiring heroes and taking notes on them whenever he can. But it seems that his persistence has borne some fruit: Izuku meets the number one hero and his personal idol, All Might. All Might's quirk is a unique ability that can be inherited, and he has chosen Izuku to be his successor! Enduring many months of grueling training, Izuku enrolls in UA High, a prestigious high school famous for its excellent hero training program, and this year's freshmen look especially promising. With his bizarre but talented classmates and the looming threat of a villainous organization, Izuku will soon learn what it really means to be a hero. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

My Rating: 10/10

Finished airing in 2016 with a total of 13 episodes.

My Thoughts: Perfection delivered in 13 episodes. What a beginning to an amazing series and honestly who doesn’t love a good underdog story full of heroes and villains? I know this girl sure does! Amazing cast of characters, story, music and art/ animation. A must see for fans of the superhero genre and a great place for fans of Western comics to start their anime journey in my personal opinion.

Boku no Hero Academia 2nd Season (My Hero Academia 2):

Genres: action, comedy, superpower, school, shounen

Synopsis: At UA Academy, not even a violent attack can disrupt their most prestigious event: the school sports festival. Renowned across Japan, this festival is an opportunity for aspiring heroes to showcase their abilities, both to the public and potential recruiters.

However, the path to glory is never easy, especially for Izuku Midoriya—whose quirk possesses great raw power but is also cripplingly inefficient. Pitted against his talented classmates, such as the fire and ice wielding Shouto Todoroki, Izuku must utilize his sharp wits and master his surroundings to achieve victory and prove to the world his worth. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

My Rating: 10/10

Finished airing in 2017 with a total of 25 episodes.

My Thoughts: A second season that’s as good as its first?! Virtually unheard of but here you have it in the form of Boku no Hero Academia season 2! I just love this story and these characters even more with each passing season. A must watch for fans of the 1st season!

Boku no Hero Academia 3rd Season (My Hero Academia 3):

Genres: action, comedy, school, superpower, shounen

Synopsis: As summer arrives for the students at UA Academy, each of these superheroes-in-training puts in their best efforts to become renowned heroes. They head off to a forest training camp run by UA's pro heroes, where the students face one another in battle and go through dangerous tests, improving their abilities and pushing past their limits. However, their school trip is suddenly turned upside down when the League of Villains arrives, invading the camp with a mission to capture one of the students. Boku no Hero Academia 3rd Season follows Izuku "Deku" Midoriya, an ambitious student training to achieve his dream of becoming a hero similar to his role model—All Might. Being one of the students caught up amidst the chaos of the villain attack, Deku must take a stand with his classmates and fight for their survival. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

My Rating: 9/10

Finished airing in 2018 with a total of 25 episodes.

My Thoughts: I have no idea why season 3 lost a point but a 9/10 from me is basically perfection and all the praise so don’t let the point lower rating deter you from checking out this installment of the series. Suppose it’s time to watch the 4th season, eh?

Bonjour♪Koiaji Pâtisserie (Bonjour♪Sweet Love Patisserie):

Genres: slice of life, comedy, reverse harem, romance, shoujo, ONA

Synopsis: Sayuri Haruno dreams of becoming a pastry chef and enrolls in Fleurir Confectionary Academy, an elite school located in Tokyo's trendy Aoyama district. At Fleurir, she finds herself surrounded by charming boys, each one distinctly unique. Out of the entire class, Ryou Kouzuki's desire to become a pastry chef is the strongest. Blessed with unparalleled technique, instructor Mitsuki Aoi acts like a prince and is hugely popular at the school. Gilbert Hanafusa, the mood maker of the bunch, is a student from France. Yoshinosuke Suzumi is not very good at expressing his feelings, but underneath his stony exterior lies a wholehearted passion for wagashi (Japanese sweets).

As Sayuri pours her heart and soul into making her dream a reality, she encounters many happenings... (Source: NTV)

My Rating: 6/10

An ONA that finished airing in 2015 with a total of 24, 5 minute episodes.

My Thoughts: A reverse harem style ONA featuring delicious looking treats... all brought to you in short 5 minute bites! As far as reverse harem animes go this really wasn’t all that bad but like most others in the genre (or look to fit the genre) there just wasn’t much deapth... though honestly what do you expect with 5 minute episodes?! Pretty male characters and lovely art.

Brothers Conflict:

Genres: reverse harem, romance, shoujo

Synopsis: Ema Hinata is a sweet girl with only her father to call family. One day, she learns that he will be remarrying Miwa Asahina, a wealthy fashion designer. Though she's glad she has a new place to call home, the family she gains is greater than she could ever imagine—Ema now has 13 step-brothers! Wishing to give her father space, she moves into the Sunrise Residence where her brothers live . As she settles in, Ema realizes she may not experience the loving kinship of a family that she has always longed for, as many of her new brothers exhibit feelings toward Ema that aren't just familial. With each brother desiring Ema's attention in his own way, will she be able to work toward a happy ending for all, or will she choose one brother that has stolen her heart? [Written by MAL Rewrite]

My Rating: 6/10

Finished airing in 2013 with a total of 12 episodes.

My Thoughts: And here we have yet another reverse harem... also not the worst of the worst but really nothing to write home about. Definitely uncomfortable with the whole step siblings premise so if you’re like me and weirded out by that one i’d avoid this anime. Aside from that there isn't really much to say. The story and characters are lacking but there’s a male character sure to fit every persons tastes so there’s that... I suppose?

Bungou Stray Dogs:

Genres: action, comedy, mystery, seinen, superpower, supernatural

Synopsis: For weeks, Atsushi Nakajima's orphanage has been plagued by a mystical tiger that only he seems to be aware of. Suspected to be behind the strange incidents, the 18-year-old is abruptly kicked out of the orphanage and left hungry, homeless, and wandering through the city. While starving on a riverbank, Atsushi saves a rather eccentric man named Osamu Dazai from drowning. Whimsical suicide enthusiast and supernatural detective, Dazai has been investigating the same tiger that has been terrorizing the boy. Together with Dazai's partner Doppo Kunikida, they solve the mystery, but its resolution leaves Atsushi in a tight spot. As various odd events take place, Atsushi is coerced into joining their firm of supernatural investigators, taking on unusual cases the police cannot handle, alongside his numerous enigmatic co-workers. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

My Rating: 7/10

Finished airing in 2016 with a total of 12 episodes.

My Thoughts: You know what? This is honestly one I truly wanted to love but for some reason it just wasn’t a fit. I know plenty of people that love this series and i’m afraid my own comments won’t do it much justice so if any of you guys have any thoughts or opinions to add be sure to send them my way! Love, love, love the art style.

Byousoku 5 Centimeter (5 Centimeters Per Second):

Genres: drama, romance, slice of life, film

Synopsis: What happens when two people love each other but just aren't meant to be together? Takaki Toono and Akari Shinohara are childhood friends, but circumstances beyond their control tear them apart. They promise to stay in contact, and although the progression of time widens the distance between them, the chain of memories remains ever-present. Byousoku 5 Centimeter is a romantic drama that focuses on the mundane and harsh reality of long-distance relationships. Stuck in the past and unable to make any new memories, Takaki and Akari cling to the hope of seeing each other again. They live their everyday lives half-heartedly, both hurting themselves and the people around them. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

My Rating: 7/10

A film (or three part) series that aired in 2007.

My Thoughts: The artwork and sound are outstanding but this one was another miss from me. After rave reviews I expected more and was a bit disappointed with what I got. This is all the more true considering I recall very little about this title.

#boku no hero academia #boku no hero academia 2 #boku no hero academia 3 #anime #bonjour koiaji patisserie #brothers conflict #bungou stray dogs #byousoku 5 centimeter #5 centimeters per second

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seeyouinaminute3000 · 5 years ago

Text

Let Me Explain

Your POV

Everyone has their happy stories but others are still waiting for their "someone" but I'm really proud to say that I've already found mine and her name is Natasha. The whole team already knew that we've been dating for 2 years and this past few months something changed this is the first time Nat rejected my invitation for a romantic date and almost everynight she's not in our bedroom and everytime I call her name she's not answering, I've already tried to call her phone but still no answers. My mind is actually full of thoughts right now, maybe she's dating someone and she's afraid to tell me the truth and everytime we're cuddling she's out of her mind. I guess i'm the one who will end this relationship even though I don't want to.

I let out a deep sigh and it seems Nat noticed it.

" hey love, is there something wrong? " Nat started

" nope, maybe I'm a bit tired and didn't have enough time to rest " I lied. " uhmm Nat we're about to celebrate our 3rd anniversary, do you have any plans? " I asked.

" wait , what?! " Natasha suddenly sits and turn her head to you, you can see the shock from her face. " wait, you didn't remember? Nat? " "sorry I have to go Y/N" Natasha replied. this is the first time she called you using your name cause ever since you joined The Avengers she's calling you " kitten,beetroot, doll and princess ? what's happening Nat ? everynight you're not in our bed and these thoughts of mine keeps saying that you're cheating on me" you whispered to yourself enough Natasha to hear it but she still continue to walk outside the door

FAST FORWARD...

It's already bedtime and still Nat is not inside the tower and you knew she'll be back tomorrow morning. You waited for the others to fall asleep before you grabbed a blade from the mirror cabinet and tears keep streaming down your face and you know that your anxiety keeps coming back, hunting you everytime you're not with someone. You slid the blade on your wrist creating long cuts on it, blood dripping on the floor same as your tears. You're sobbing so loud but you thank God Tony made the room soundproof so that no one can hear you when you and Nat is having a great time with each other. You heard the door opened and still you can't stop yourself from sobbing, you can hear footsteps approaching inside the bathroom of your bedroom and few seconds you saw Nat open it but your eyes is now blurry and you suddenly collapsed and everything went black.

FAST FORWARD...

You can feel a hand resting on yours as you looked down you can see Natasha sobbing, you gently removed your hands and Natasha looked at you, smiling but you can see the pain in her eyes.

" I'm sorry Y/N " she started

" I knew about it Nat, I know you're dating someone and you're afraid to tell it. " I said.

" wait , no " Nat replied

" don't push it Nat-- "

" please let me explain Y/N "

" I want to end this relationship Nat "

" but-- "

" NATASHA STAY AWAY FROM HER! " the five boys barged inside the room.

" I love you, you know that " she kissed the back of my hands and leave the room

2 months later...

I started to get ready, I'm wearing a dress, not just a simple dress because she gave it to me when we celebrated our 2nd anniversary, why am I wearing this? because Nat leave a hand written letter before she left the tower and the letter says " meet me at your favorite place on our 3rd anniversary...let me explain...I love you" as soon as I've finished preparing myself, I get my car keys on the table and I drove the car as fast as I can. As soon as I arrived in my favorite place I asked the receptionist about the reservation of Natasha and she guide me towards the private rooftop of the restaurant and as I've noticed there are many candles leading the path I was on. I saw Natasha...she changed a lot her hair is now long with the mix of red and blonde as I've wished when we're cuddling while celebrating our 1st anniversary.

Flashback...

Nat and I were cuddling for about an hour thinking of our future and sharing some wishes

"I wish someday you'll have a of course red long hair with a blonde on it I think it look good on you"

"everything looks good on me, I know you know that" Natasha replied

" yeah I know, you'll look damn hot on it" I said and I noticed her chuckled.

End of Flashback...

"Hey Y/N it's been 2 months since we last saw each other, and I'm sorry about that"

"no no it's okay, I'm fine now I've already move on" I chuckled

"look I told you I'll explain, right?" she asked

"yes and wait do you have a family now? I mean you already have a baby inside your tummy. Aww I'm going to be an Auntie now."

" actually no, I don't have any relationship after I left the tower."

"but you know what let's sit first" she added

walking our way towards the table, Nat guided me and she help me sit on the chair. I love this when she's being a gentlewoman everytime we're having a date

"do they know?" she asked.

"no, I tell them that I have a meeting with my friends and they agreed"

"ohh" silence filled the rooftop and I decided to break it while clearing my throat

"so you said, you'll explain right?"

"yup and there's no stopping now" she let out a deep sigh and began explaining herself.

" look, Y/N you know I love you right? with all my heart" she started

"Nat I don't have time for this"

"okay...I know those 2 months I've wasted before I left the tower is actually worth it"

"what? are you saying it's okay for you without me on your side?" I asked

"no Y/N, because that time I started to prepare for this, for our 3rd Anniversary but it turns out to put your life in danger because of me. The time when I pretended to be shocked because you reminded me of our upcoming anniversary that's just...that's just an act"

Nat began sobbing and tears are now streaming her face so she decided to put her head down of embarrassment.

" I'm so sorry Y/N, but please forgive me, give me another chance ; another chance to love you, another chance to take care of you I'll promise to protect you at all cost. I can wait for your decision if you'll forgive me or not but I love you so much and no one could change that" she explained.

"wait...you said you prepared this, right? so it means the boys knows everything?" I asked

"no, only me and I was about to spill it out when you were in the hospital but the boys barged in"

"so what really is the plan you prepared all this stuffs?" I asked looking at her

she got up from her chair and knelt down in front of you

"I guess it's time for you to know what is all these stuffs for"

Natasha pulled out a velvet box in her red pouch and opened it, you gasped as you saw a diamong ring inside it

" I Natasha Romanoff kneeling in front of a girl asking her if she can be part of my life forever until we build our own family until I die "

I told her to stand up and she keeps saying 'no, you need to answer me first' until I decided to kneel so that I'm facing her again, I cupped her face with the both of my hands and kissed her lips passionately as I've decided to break the kiss she pouted.

I finally gathered my strength and answer her question.

"yes Nat...I would love to be by your side until we built a family and until both of us die"

she was about to kiss me again but I stopped her from placing my palm to her lips earning a cute pout from her again.

"and yes I'll forgive you Nat since I'm the one who ended our relationship without letting you explain" I said

"I love you boo"

"boo?" I asked.

"yes from now on I'm calling you boo and of course love or I can just call you 'my sunshine' " she winked at me and kissed my lips passionately but full of love.

__________

I hope you like it...love lotsssss <3

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johobi · 7 years ago

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SDFLKSDJF!!!! JO!!! I. AM. DEAD. My tombstone is going to read "Here lies MJ, she died from her heart stopping after reading ch 9 of WYLEI." 1st of all, that gif of domestic boyfriend!Jungkook is too adorable. He is such a dreamboat in this chapter, your words makes my heart so warm. THE FLUFFY FEELS. 2nd, I love how real MC is. We've all had those days where we just want to be in blanket burritos. (1/?)

3rd, THE SMUT WAS SO FUCKIN INTENSE!!!! God, I nearly combusted, it was written so well. I never knew whisking eggs could be so goddamn sexy (I was thinking about how amazing his veiny forearms would look, unffff). It’s been my dream to have sexy fun times in one of those immaculate kitchens with the expensive, white marble countertops LOL. Noona kink went into OVERDRIVE, holy shit. (2/?)

4th, THE ENDING KILLED ME. I’ve never felt my stomach drop so quickly, not even on a god awful roller coaster. WOWOWOW my feels are a mess. I know you were agonizing getting this chap out, so I just want to say thank you for your SUPERB WRITING and working on this even with work, xmas, and being sick. YOU’RE AMAZING AND I LOVE YOU!!! Ok, gonna end it here, sorry about the constant shouting lol (3/3)

I know, I was like, ‘I gotta get a gif of that Jungcook for this’. Subverts expectations from what really goes down. ;)))

I did inject a lot of fluff into this chapter, because I feel like Y/N’s interactions with Tae mostly consist of angst (if only we coulda seen more of them in their better days :)))), and Jungkook is the fluff. It keeps it balanced. Of course, when things come to a head, those two things are gonna collide, and who knows how things will end up.

I’m glad you liked the smut - I started out liking it, then not liking it, then liking it, then not aND I DON’T KNOW ANYMORE. I’ll let others judge if it’s good or not. I’m really glad that aspect didn’t let you down (I know how thirsty you are for oUR KOOK

HAHAHAA it’s my first proper cliffhanger and I don’t know if people like those or not but the opportunity presented itself and i was liKE YEP I’M ENDING IT ON THAT NOTE!! Guess I’m evil. :’)

Ahhhh, thank you so much my love, yeah it’s been a bit of an ordeal but gdi I just wanted this chapter to shoo! Shoo! out of my drafts so I could start planning the next one (and the one-shot). And NO, YoU’RE AMAZING AND I LOVE YOU!! Your enthusiasm is the fuel that stokes my writing fire. Thank you for shouting into my inbox, it’s always most welcome.

#wylei #jo asks #mj #bendthekneetobangtan

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momkiddies-blog · 6 years ago

Photo

Latest Post On https://momandkids.fun/2019/02/25/read-aloud-books-for-5th-grade/

Read Aloud Books for 5th Grade

I’m continuing my read aloud book recommendations, this week is for 5th grade. (Fifth grade is ages 11-12.) to teach things like reading strategies, literary devices, character arc, and more. Also, you can use the historical and realistic fiction books on this list to integrate with your current events and history subjects.

MORE Realistic Read Alouds

I can’t recommend this book enough!! Marsh writes a stunning novel about two young boys from very different backgrounds — one is a refugee from Syria while the other is an American who has just moved to Belgium. Interwoven in this timely, poignant story are the big issues of refugees, prejudice, fear, friendship, and kindness. To avoid the overcrowded refugee centers, Ahmed hides in the basement of the house where Max lives with his family. When he’s discovered by Max, the boys develop a friendship, enrolls in school, and continues hiding. And it works. But it can’t last forever. Because a local policeman suspects something…

See You in the Cosmos by Jack Cheng Luminous and heartfelt, 11-year-old Alex Petroski’s story will grab your heart and expand it. His dream is to launch a rocket into space with his iPod of recordings about life on earth. The story is a transcription of what Alex records on the iPod such as his solo journey to the rocket convention, the interesting people he befriends on the way and there, his trip Las Vegas to find information about his deceased father, as well as his unique, innocent perspective that tries to make sense of the world.

The Crossover by Kwame Alexander VERSE Basketball player and twin Josh narrates his life in quarters, just like the game he plays. He writes about missing his twin, Jordan who is distant now that he has a girlfriend, about getting in trouble when he hits Jordan in the face with a basketball, and about watching his father as his father’s heart fails. This is a relatable coming-of-age story. Plus, this sports-loving kids will love all the basketball.

Wonder by R. J. Palacio Both “a meditation on kindness” and not judging people by how they look on the outside, but by their character. Wonder helps us see compassion, empathy, and acceptance from a variety of character’s points of view. Auggie, a boy with a facial difference, starts public school for the first time in 5th grade. His experience, though often difficult, shows his inner strength. In the end, kindness wins over bullying!

Funny, sensitive, well-written, brilliantly paced, relatable, and poignant. The middle school assigns the worst teacher, Mr. Kermit, to the so-called worst kids –the class known as the unteachables. It’s clear to the students in this class that Mr. Kermit does not care even a little bit about teaching. Or disciplining. Or any of them. As we get to know the kids in this small class, something surprising happens. The teacher next door, the daughter of Mr. Kermit’s former fiance, gets Mr. Kermit to start caring. And that opens the doors to important classroom changes including the class’ unexpected and transformative field trips.

Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen I can’t recommend this book enough — it will make kids think deeply. Angry at the world, 15-year old Cole beats a classmate into a coma and subsequent brain damage. To avoid the jail time, Cole agrees to spend a year by himself on an island in Alaska, thinking he’ll escape as soon as possible. But after Cole almost dies trying to escape, he decides to give the year-long process a chance. As readers experience Cole’s pain and anger, it makes his healing and transformation that much more powerful.

Amal’s life is turned upside down when she offends a regional Pakistani overlord. She is forced to leave her home and school in order to work for the overlord in his home as a servant — indefinitely. Amal finds her inner strength and fights back, freeing herself and the other household slaves. The author skillfully sets the scene of rural Pakistan making you feel transported. In addition, you’ll feel the injustice and cheer for Amal’s bravery.

Historical Fiction Read Alouds

The WAR That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley Ada and her brother escape their mother’s abuse when the London children are evacuated during WWII and go to live with a grieving woman in a small country town. It’s difficult for both the woman and children to trust but slowly the trust grows and all three regain something lost — hope and love. “I slipped my hand into hers. A strange and unfamiliar feeling rand through me. It felt like the ocean, like sunlight, like horses. Like love. I searched my mind and found the name for it. Joy.” I can’t recommend this book enough, it just touched my heart at such a deep level. Furthermore, the sequel, The War I Finally Won, is also an incredible, beautiful story.

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry Lowry does an excellent job at writing about WWII in a way that isn’t too scary or inappropriate for kids. Annemarie’s best friend hides Annemarie’s Jewish family. The tension is high as the Nazis are everywhere looking for Jews or Jewish sympathizers. It’s challenging to hide knowing that every day you could be caught and sent to a death camp. Finally, the family escapes to Sweden where they will be safe from the Nazis.

Refugee by Alan Gratz Wow. This book is an eye-opening, timely book. Follow three distinct, alternating stories about being displaced from your country, on the run, and in danger. First is a young Jewish boy who escapes from Nazi Germany on a ship to Cuba, only to be turned away from the Cuban port and sent back to Europe. Next is a Cuban girl in the 1990s who, with her family and neighbors, flees in a homemade raft to the United States at great peril. Finally, is a story about a Syrian boy whose home is bombed in a country at war. He and his family travel a great distance to find a country that will allow them shelter. Gatz skillfully connects all three stories with a satisfying, realistic conclusion.

Chains, Forge, Ashes (Seeds of America) by Laurie Halse Anderson Live the Civil War time period through the eyes of an African-American girl named Isabel and her friend, Cuzon. Enslaved, escaped, or enlisted, these two are determined survivors. The writing is amazing and the stories are captivating. I love and highly recommend these books; they’ll transport your students back into this time in U.S. history. Boxed Set Here.

Paper Wishes by Lois Sepahban It would be hard as an author not to vilify this country for sending thousands of Japanese Americans to prison camps. But this author doesn’t. She just skillfully shares the evocative story of 10-year old Manami of Washington State, who is sent with her family to a dusty camp, leaving behind her beloved dog, Yujiin, and everything else her family owned. Devastated, Manami stops speaking. Her story is painful, sprinkled with hope, and all too real.

Sci-Fi Read Alouds

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle I’ve read this book aloud so many times — and every time it’s just as fantastic. (That doesn’t always happen with books.) A Wrinkle in Time is a remarkable, well-written adventure in space that deals with the overarching theme of good vs. evil. Meg and her brother, Charles Wallace, and friend, Calvin, set off to find her missing scientist father who disappeared while researching tesseracts. They’ll be helped by three wise creatures, be tempted by evil, and eventually find that good does triumph over evil.

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O’Brien This is a classic, excellent Newbery winning book about highly intelligent lab rats and mice who escape from the lab and form their own community on a farm. When a field mouse named Mrs. Frisby encounters trouble with a sick son, she turns to the rats for help. That’s when she learns the truth about her husband’s previous life. In fact, this was always one of my fifth graders’ favorite read-aloud books.

DYSTOPIAN Set in a dystopian society, this Newbery medal winner grabs your attention and keeps it until the end. What is going on in this community? When Jonas is assigned his job as “Receiver of Memory” he learns just how much his hidden and controlled. Ultimately, he’ll have to decide just what he’ll do with this horrifying information. Not only is this a thought-provoking story, but it will also introduce your readers to dystopian fiction.

Welcome!

Download my “Can’t Put ‘Em Down” book lists for your kids ages 3 – 13.

Also, I’ll send you a bonus “23 Reasons to Read” printable poster!

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#Child Development

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scarletjedi · 8 years ago

Note

Do all the fanfic asks you haven't yet! (And for ones that require a specific fic, go with your original stor ♡)

Cut for length

things that inspire you: Good writing in other people

things that motivate you: panic, fear, love

name three favorite writers: Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman, Gail Simone

name three authors that were influential to your work and tell why: J K Rawling was a real inspiration as this book, loooooong ago, began life as a HP fanfic. Samuel Delaney was a major influence mostly because he was my graduate advisor and gave me some of the realist writing advice that I'm only now coming to understand. PG Wodehouse taught me how prose could be like poetry--and be cutting and funny at the same time. (Pratchett did the same thing, but I read Jeeves first)li>

since how long do you write? I’ve been writing since I was very wee, with a dedication to writing for publication since I was 16, and a dedication to improving my craft since I was 18 or so.

how did writing change you? It gave me a greater appreciation of script, and a greater appreciation of the way language works. Anything other than that, I’m not sure because it’s been me for so long. *shrug*

I’ve already answered this :P

what time are you most productive? Morning, which means vacations are not productive because I sleep in.

do you set yourself deadlines? Nope. When I do, I don’t meet them and it spirals.

how do you do your researches? google, usually. For something more complicated, I have access to several different academic libraries :D

do you listen to music when writing? I do and I don’t. I do when I need to focus, and I don’t when I can’t focus. I try, and if it doesn’t work I shut it off.

favorite place to write: My office

hardest character to write: My protagonist, Chris. He’s the main focus, so he has to be perfectly executed, and there’s a lot of pressure.

easiest character to write: Jamie, his romantic interest. He sprang fully formed into my brain, and he’s a delight.

hardest verse to write: 3rd?

easiest verse to write: 1st!

favorite AU to write: TIME TRAVEL AU

favorite pairing to write: Jamie/Chris (my main pairing)

favorite fandom to write: right now, I’m diggin Star Wars - it’s been a love for so long. But I miss LOTR, and I’m trying hard to get the next chapter of WAMW out.

favorite character to write: Katie, the protag’s little sister. (she’s 16)

least favorite character to write: Pat, the dad.

favorite story you’ve ever written: fanfic - Comes Around Again, though Old Man Luke is creepin’ in and I have a fondness for Pineapple. Original fic, I’ve got a porn ficlet called “Thanksgiving” that may see light sometime soon.

least favorite story you’ve ever written: It’s not that it’s my least favorite, but I posted “Love Letters” before I was completely happy with it, and it twitches sometimes.

favorite scene you’ve ever written: In fic: Bilbo recounting the Winter in CAA. In my book: interviewing The Beast. :D

favorite line you’ve ever written: “Everyone in the room wants to fuck me,” Jamie said airily, his smile sharp. “Lesser mortals use Tinder, now.”

story you’re most proud of: Comes Around Again, the BEAST

best review you ever got: I was told my fic, “Drowned in Moonlight” said *exactly* what someone wanted to say, they just couldn’t find the words.

worst review you ever got: i was told CAA moving towards the movie ‘verse was lazy writing and they “thought better of me”

favorite story/poem of another author: Sansukh - god, that last chapter killed me.

hardest part of writing - getting it out initally.

easiest part of writing - Revision

alternate title for (insert story title) - My book has had several titles, all terrible. It’s currently “The Beast” but it has been both “Weather Magic” and “Breaking”

alternate ending for (insert story title) the original ending of the book involves a cross-country escape and a full-scale battle. it’s scaled back now, and better for it.

alternate pairing for (insert story title) - there has never been another pairing for my original fic. Pineapple could also be Obi-Wan/Rex or Obi-Wan/Qui-Gon/Rex

single story or multi-part story? MULTI

one-shot or multi-chaptered story? MULTI

canon or AU? depends on the AU. GIVE ME TIME TRAVEL

do you reread your own stories? On occasion. sometimes, the story I really want, is the story I wrote.

do you want to be published some day? VERY BADLY.

which one of your stories would you most like to see as a movie/series. I’d love to see my book on TV. My wife and I talk about fancasts all the time. I think Netflix could do it - they’d make it gay enough without the gratuitous violence (HBO). That being said, the fact that CAA wont be filmed PAINS me.

one song that captures (insert story title): Uuuhhhh….

do you plan or do you write whatever comes to your mind? I write from an idea, whatever it is, then I plan a bit, then I write between main points.

would you ever write a sequel for (insert fic title here) My original work is the first in a series. :D

do you write linear or do you write future scenes if you feel like it? I write out of order. Usually, I have an idea, then a moment later in the work (like the climax) that I write out, then i fill in the blanks.

share the synopsis of a story you work on that you haven’t published yet: BOY DISCOVERS MAGIC IS REAL, the Gods are real, and the world is about to end. Also, he’s bisexual.

share a scene of a story that you haven’t published yet: Meet my main boys:

Chris sighed, knocking his knuckles against the car window. “You gonna tell me where we’re going, yet?” he asked. Jamie tapped his lips with his finger, humming, and Chris rolled his eyes. “I will hit you,” he said, mild.

“Sure, why not.” Jamie said at last, and ran his hands over his steering wheel in a quick, practice move. “We’re looking for Burnt Mill Road.”

“Oh, that’s not ominous,” Chris muttered. He squinted to try and make out the writing on the street signs as they passed, but was hard to see; Mid-August rain had soaked the roads, and now it rose as a lingering, ground-hugging fog. That, combined with what felt like two-hundred percent humidity, meant that the letters of the street signs blurred in the headlights and didn’t come into focus until just as they were passing by.

Jamie grinned, his dimples casting shadows in the scruff on his cheeks. It was too short for a beard, but Jamie made sure to keep the edges trimmed like the vain peacock he was. Fuck him, if it didn’t look good on him. Adult. “Are you scared?” Not that he acted like one.

“No,” Chris said, strangled, and he winced. He wasn’t, really, but there would be no way of convincing Jamie that when his voice cracked. He cleared his throat. “How many time have we done this shit? Have I ever been scared.”

Jamie barked out a laugh. “Every. Time.”

Chris sighed. Every. Single. Time. “I’m not scared, I’m cautious.”

“Uh huh,” Jamie said dryly, chancing a glance over at Chris. “Did caution check the flashlights three times? Did caution make me wait half ’n hour while his phone charged?” HIs voice dropped, like he was in on a secret, and he glanced down at Chris’s lap. “Is caution wearing your lucky underwear?”

Chris’s mouth twisted, and he sucked on a tooth. “It’s practical,” Chris ground out.

“You fucking are,” Jamie said, shaking his head. “I can’t believe you just admitted it. What’s practical about lucky underwear?”

“Not that!” Chris said, rolling his eyes. He was, in fact, wearing his lucky underwear. They were comfortable, okay? But there was no need for Jamie to know that. “I meant the phone.”

“Yeah,” Jamie snorted. “If we get a flat tire, not for ghosts.”

Chris looked out the window, conceding the point. He folded his arms. “How do you even know what underwear I’m wearing?” he grumbled.

Jamie sighed, overly put-upon. “Hello?” he said, sing-song, and rolled his hand to gesture at himself. “Gay. What do you think gay-dar is?”

“Knowing who in the room would fuck you?” Chris offered, shooting Jamie a lopsided grin.

“Everyone in the room wants to fuck me,” Jamie said airily, his smile sharp. “Lesser mortals use Tinder, now.” Chris laughed, finally, and Jamie’s grin brightened.

They drove on, and Jamie ended up behind a boxy old Chrysler, its back end covered in bumper stickers that had been bleached white in the sun. One of them was one of those ribbon magnets, but Chris couldn’t tell which cause it supported. Maybe it supported all of them, or none of them. Schrodinger’s ribbon. A street sign caught his eye, and he frowned.

“How many “Pine” streets are even in Jersey?”

“All of ‘em,” Jamie answered without pause.

Chris crocked his head, still looking out the window. They passed a sign that said Welcome to Atco. What was in Atco? He pulled out his phone, and typed “haunted Atco” in the search bar. Loading. Loading. Loading. Fucking 3G. “All of the streets are called ‘Pine’? or all the streets called ‘Pine?’ are in Jersey?”

Jamie hummed. “I stand by my earlier statement.”

“I request clarification,” Chris said, closing the app and darkening his phone.

“Request denied.”

“Ass,” Chris said, with a crooked smile.

“Ginger.”

how many unfinished ideas/stories are you working on at the same time?: 7!

three spoilers for (insert story title): The boy gets the boy, the Beast Speaks, HE CAN FLY

open question to the writer: I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THIS MEANS I’VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS FOR OVER AN HOUR!!

#meme #poplitealqueen

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gigsoupmusic · 5 years ago

Text

Take 5 : Marcus Gray

Marcus Gray is a British singer songwriter who doesn’t like to define himself as solely one genre or another. Making music he likes and what excites people is purely what drives his prodigious talent. He was born in SW London, grew up in Surrey and moved to the artistic hub of Brighton on the South Coast in 2018 where he thrives to this day on the musical and creative vibes generated in the city. He recently released his debut single Free Man. We wanted to find out more with a Take 5... When did you realise that you wanted to be a music artist? What or who has inspired you? I've always been moved and influenced by music from pretty much a toddler. I was in the school choir as a kid, and a handful of primary school orchestras (playing trumpet) and musicals. Unfortunately, a long line of not particularly great music educators pushed me away from the hobby and by 13 or so I was pretty much one of those kids who 'hates music'. At 13 I went to see The Pogues at The O2, my first gig, and Frank Turner was supporting, we caught the last couple songs of his set, and I was, as cliché as it sounds, blown away. Completely in awe of the stage presence and so when I got home I looked him up. The next bit was pretty standard; I suddenly discovered a type of music I hadn't before, lyrically brilliant and sophisticated yet so relatable. For the next 3 years I basically listened on repeat. Shortly after The Pogues gig, I got an acoustic guitar for my birthday and taught myself to play. Writing came shortly after, and now 7 or so years down the line here we are. I could list a long line of inspirations BUT, the short list of who initially got me into writing is Frank Turner, Bob Dylan, Noel Gallagher and Bruce Springsteen Who, living or dead, would you dream of collaborating with? I'd obviously love to work with any of the names above, but I'm not a fan of writing with other people. Everything I write has a strong meaning behind it, and, almost always, that meaning is personal and getting someone else involved in that process would take some pretty deep levels of trust. This being said, there's a big group of people I'd love to be in a room with and see them write. Tell us about your single –'Free Man'- what is the song about? Free Man was written differently from most of my songs, in the way that it was written in the car driving back home to Brighton in May some time. I had this repeating melody in my head and so just started playing around with words as my voice memos recorded. I think I wrote the 1st, 2nd and 3rd verse in the car. The rest came later. The song is about running from my own mind. In the opening verse I sing 'I wanna be a free man, clean man, I'm running through my dreams man', this is my way of saying I'm frantically running through my own thoughts. "leaving the doors, open for me" refers to doing my best to keep my options open. I won't dissect the entire song here, but the chorus talks about time passing quickly, lies from wise people and how I can only be me. https://youtu.be/FDoL1bEgqxI Tell us five things you love about the city you live in – Brighton - and why…… 1. It's generally a pretty positive place to be.2. The music scene is good, plenty of open mics to test waters for those starting out.3. Being by the beach is always a winner.4. A fair few good pubs.5. I'm only a 10 min drive from the Sussex Downs What are you most looking forward to this year? The lockdown being over, having a pint (or 10) and playing a shit tonne of shows. Read the full article

#MarcusGray

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game-refraction · 7 years ago

Text

Russian publisher 'Buka' shafted us out of $24k & threatens to sue when confronted - From the eyes of tinyBuild

I recently received an email from Alex Nichiporchik, CEO of tinyBuild games. As a news outlet, we have published many press releases and interviews from games tinyBuild has released over the last few years. This email wasn’t a normal press release, but it was more of a warning about what can happen to smaller game studio’s when bigger guys come out to bully you. I’m going to copy/paste the entire article here, with a link at the bottom to read it at the original location. Be warned, this post is quite long.

**Please note we at Game-Refraction are only publishing this to share information, and are not taking any sides in this dispute.

My name is Alex Nichiporchik. I’m 28. Born in Latvia during the Soviet Union. Obsessive gamer since touching the NES for the first time. You may know me as the producer behind Hello Neighbor, Punch Club, or SpeedRunners, or as the guy who called out G2A for their questionable business model. Today I speak to you as a once-22-year old aspiring indie dev with a dream to make games. This has been 6 years in the making.

I understand this whole post may come off as a long rant, so will try to keep it as factual towards the timeline as possible. The goal here is to prevent indie developers from ever getting into situations like this. Situations that kill studios and ruin lives.

You’re reading the expanded and updated version of a post I wrote 2 years ago titled “Why The Original No Time to Explain sucked” on Gamasutra. In it, I described the early days of my ventures in indie games, and the first commercial game called No Time to Explain. A key factor in that story was that a Russian publisher called Buka Entertainment bailed on a financial commitment, essentially cutting the game’s budget in half. The e-mails outlined in this post are translated by me, so I expect independent 3rd parties to verify the translations.

Short summary of the timeline:

March 30th 2011: Publisher (Buka) sends a publishing offer/inquiry for No Time to Explain

April 8th 2011: after some negotiations, the Publisher sends over the publishing offer [$24.5k in financing with half sent over on signing]

April 30th 2011: We come to terms and I send a signed digital copy of the agreement

May 5th 2011: Got confirmation, that the invoice I sent over is confirmed good and processing at finance (money will be sent soon)

May 13th 2011: Met and exchanged hardcopies of the contract

June 1st 2011: Get an answer after a few ignored e-mails saying that it’s all fine, money is coming

June 29th 2011: Get an e-mail that says our project is canned alongside several others.

May 11th 2017: the Publisher threatens to sue the Developer for spreading false information. Information that is outlined in this post.

May 18th 2017: The CEO of Buka threatens me in a personal meeting

June 19th 2017: I honor the original contract and send over the Gold Master of No Time to Explain, call for Buka Entertainment to honor their commitments

Let’s start from the beginning.

Back in 2011 I was working on No Time to Explain. It had a great Kickstarter(for the time, it’s before DoubleFine happened), and after raising a budget of $26k on the crowdfunding platform, we got contacted by a Russian publisher called BUKA Entertainment.

Buka Entertainment wanted to publish our game in retail in Russian speaking countries, and also help it get onto Steam. They were ready to give us anadvance on royalties which was great. We’d use the money to create our game in a proper game engine (it was using Flash ActionScript 2 at that point, far from ideal for a desktop game). We negotiated the advance up a little bit.

“Alex, my superiors are ready to raise the advance to 17,000 euro (~$24.5k) and accept your conditions. Awaiting your thoughts”

On April 8th 2011 we came to an agreement. They’d give us $24.5k (17k euros according to the exchange rate at the time) as advance on royalties, split into two payments. One on signing, and one on completely the gold master milestone. After going through the contract, I sent over a signed copy.

“Hello! Attached is a signed pdf. Awaiting your counter-signed version and the advance. Also we can arrange a meeting in Moscow on May 13th, I will have a few hours free in the morning” [context: I was in Moscow for a game development conference called DevGAMM where we met in person to exchange hardcopies]

Sent it over and was informed that I should send over the invoice. I sent over the invoice and got confirmation it was being processed.

We met, exchanged contracts. Everything seemed good.

Since then I sent a few e-mails and didn’t get much response, until this came in. You can see me sending a reminder mail above which says “Sending a reminder regarding previous e-mail”.

“Hello Alex. Apologies for the silence, the previous letter got into spam. Yesterday I checked the payment, it’s currently pending to go out this month, so it’s not long left to wait. Regardless I apologize for the wait, we have a busy payment period for projects of the second half of year, they’re in a queue. I hope the wait won’t be long.”

What follows is a few weeks of silence. I’ve reminded a few more times until finally getting this soul-crushing response:

“Hello Alex. I regret to inform you, but my superiors have made the decision to terminate the contract. Sales of smaller and casual games have dropped catastrophically since the beginning of the year, we are forced to close several projects, including No Time to Explain. I am very sorry this happened. Wish you and your project good luck”.

I’m not going to dive into many details of how we did have to release No Time to Explain in Flash, how it took us 2 years from then to get to Steam via Greenlight, and how it ruined our first-start at indie games. These types of situations kill studios and a company that does this shouldn’t be called a publisher.

Our world completely collapsed in on itself

We didn’t have the money or the experience to take legal action

It’s a large publishing company dropping a small indie studio

Fast-forward to 2017

A few weeks ago I noticed Buka is exhibiting at the same annual conference in Moscow where we met 6 years ago. We’re also attending. So I pinged them about the thread, trying to get them up to speed. I was met with a very defensive response. Curiously, they’ve ignored any previous attempts of contact until we became big enough to get noticed.

They keep on asking for the copy of the original contract, which we’ll keep to ourselves for legal purposes after an inappropriate reaction to the inquiry. They also throw out credibility to any of the written down e-mail conversations where the payments, contracts, and even invoices are acknowledged. This didn’t seem to be worth the hassle, we didn’t have any financing or experience to take legal action initially, and today it didn’t seem worth my time.

A few days after though, I got this e-mail:

“Alex, hello, I must insist that you send us a copy of the contract ASAP. At this point I am seeing your actions as unworthy PR based on lies. We are preparing counter actions.”

The person is referring to how since 2011 we have been open about what happened with Buka. I even made a presentation about it in 2013, how we got to Steam through greenlight and being dropped by a publisher. They ignored all of that, as I state in my response:

“[Blurred], this thread [it’s in the original thread about the publishing offer & all details] has plenty of proof that we had a deal in place. Instead of talking about the issue at hand, you are behaving as if I’m lying about this for 6 years now — do you want to say that you don’t have a copy of the contract? When we were a small developer and openly asked for help in this — your company kept silent. The only reason I’m raising this question right now is because I don’t want other smaller devs to suffer the same fate. If you call yourselves a publisher, you need to honor your agreements. One of our contracts was signed on a napkin. The beauty of our jurisdiction is that any document (a napkin or an e-mail) have legal weight. Honestly, it’s not about the 30k. It’s about the principle. Imagine how great of a PR move it would be if a publisher pays owed dues 6 years later. The media would love such a story. And we’d use this money as prize money for indie devs at DevGAMM Awards or donate to fighting cancer.” *note – we raised over $900k in the tinyBuild Humble Bundle since this thread happened, and the recommended charity during that bundle was 1UpOnCancer. I take pride in supporting causes like this.

Here’s the latest e-mail in that thread.

“Thing is that Buka during its 23 years of existence has never broken any of its agreements. Our legal system admits only signed agreements with stamps. Judging by the draft that you sent over, the country for settling disputes is Russia, and our company is registered here. In order to initiate a payment to a foreign entity you are required to open a passport of a deal and present a package of documents for currency control, which includes the agreement. Also, with our jurisdiction these kinds of disputes are solved very easily, especially as you say at the time you needed money, official letter to the name of the chief executive officer, with outlined description of the issue and attached documents. According to your agreement, if it was signed, the first payment should have gone through. You, for some reason, chose a different way and if you don’t have a signed agreement, then yes you are spreading false information. If I had a signed contract with you, I wouldn’t be asking for its copy, but would recommend to write an official request and we would move in that direction. Now we have two options Copy of the agreement – Official Complaint – Official Answer = we find solution to problem We prepare documents and sue you for slander “

My response has been basically the initial starting points to this article. I ask “Which part about this is a lie?” and link to the images that are embedded into this thread. However, do note that I highlighted them saying they’ve never broken any agreements. Earlier in this post, in the response that we’re being shutdown, it says “we are forced to close several projects”. I’m wondering if that’s a flat out lie.

1. In order to to initiate a payment from one company to another we need merit 2. In Russia such merit is a signed copy from two sides + a stamp of the Russian company, and an invoice (in order to initiate a payment to a foreign company additional documents are required for financial control) 3. If the contract was signed, then in order to cancel it, an e-mail from a manager is not enough .There has to be a document signed by the signee, not a simple manager [redacted name] 4. If you have such documents, you write an official letter — a complaint towards the CEO, attach copies of all documents and send them by mail to the address in my signature. Within the lawfully allowed timeframes we will give you an official answer. 5. Before I see the documents (with the understanding that possibly an employee has gone above his authority while talking to you), I must assume that you are spreading false information and am forced to take defensive action.

TL;DR Buka is pretending as if it never had an agreement with tinyBuild, that it doesn’t owe anyone money, is lying about never cancelling projects, and after threatening to sue tinyBuild for not keeping quiet about it discredits ex-employee who made original deal. Make your own conclusions.

This is coming from their current Head of Projects. The previous person I dealt with was Head of Licensing. Does this mean some sort of Head of Business will come in next and say the previous head had no authority to threaten with a lawsuit?

I have contacted the CEO of Buka directly about this, asking for a call to de-escalate the situation. My requests for an urgent call have been ignored and instead they’ve been trying to force a personal meeting.

Threats and lies during a personal meeting

In Moscow on May 18th I was enjoying a gamedev networking party. Suddenly the CEO of Buka showed up and aggressively demanded to speak. I politely told him that per instructions of our legal counsel, I will not have a dialogue without the presence of lawyers. Lawsuit threats are serious business.

He proceeded to talk anyway. What came out of his mouth was a series of threats and lies. He was saying things like “there is no contract” “you will lose in court” “you stand no chance”. Apparently smiling makes some people angry — so in reaction to me smiling and nodding he said we should sue them, so I laughed, thanked him for attending the event, and advised him to enjoy the party.

He proceeded to storm off never to be seen again. It still baffles me how could someone so confidently lie to my face.

How Buka Approaches Indies

I’m going to finish off this blog post with an e-mail that Buka sends when hunting for indie titles. This e-mail has been sent to one of our devs before we started working together. It’s a reply to asking what kind of services Buka offers:

“By publishing the digital version we mean selling the game on the Steam platform, where we will be mentioned as the publisher and you will be credited as the developer. If you’re interested in the financial side of things, we can form a commercial offer based on how ready the project is and how much time is needed. Under marketing we plan to use our standard marketing support: news blast to Russian and Foreign media channels. Paid and free announcements in Russian and foreign social groups. Plus Steam release campaign support: we guarantee placement on the homepage with an audience of 500,000 views, placements in the New section, discounts (if you have a start discount), and so on. If you have a trailer, we can use the catalog of videotrailers, which has a guaranteed number of views”.

The highlighted part is what should raise eyebrows. They’re telling developers they can guarantee 500k views on the homepage during launch. Which is what every single game on Steam used to get at the time. It’s essentially saying “give us a % of the sales and we’ll push this button”. They also guarantee placements in the New & Discounts section on launch. Again, this is what every game on Steam got.

Honoring Agreements

Despite all this — the lies, the threats, and the indecency on Buka Entertainment’s leadership part, I am still honoring our agreement. I have just sent over the Gold Master for No Time To Explain (Remastered). That version has been built in Unity, and is the Remaster we also released on consoles. I am granting BUKA full rights to distribute it in Russian retail according to the original agreement. The only thing I ask for is to honor their end of the agreement with adjustment for late payments.

I took an 8% annual interest feeand applied it to the original USD amount. The total comes up to $38,878. If Buka Entertainment pays for this, I will throw in $11,122 of my own money and create a $50k Russian Indie Dev Fund (meaning Russian-speaking, this covers all post-soviet countries, what people typically call Eastern Europe or CIS). This fund will be distributed amongst top 3 Russian indie projects by independent judges during DevGAMM Minsk 2017 in November. This fund will change lives, and it’s only fitting to have a happy end at the same event where it seemingly had a happy beginning.

If they don’t pay up, I’m calling for an industry-wide ban on Buka Entertainment’s conference attendance. If they can’t sell themselves at industry events, they won’t be able to scam devs and ruin lives.

Link to Original Blog Post: http://www.tinybuild.com/single-post/buka-entertainment-scam

Russian publisher ‘Buka’ shafted us out of $24k & threatens to sue when confronted – From the eyes of tinyBuild was originally published on Game-Refraction

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