#like i honestly feel like the wording (as a poet) means a lot to me

[toppedbykakuna]

ive been the butt end of 2 relatively homophobic/transphobic comments from customers at work this weekend and im feeling weird about it

[soracities]

how do you know when you're getting good at poetry? everybody dunks on halsey and rupi kaur's poetry, and i never really got why and idk if that's what i sound like

Honestly, I don't think there's ever a point at which you "know" you're getting good at poetry--I think "good" and "bad" are kind of vague and amorphous (and distracting) categories that don't do much in helping us understand the feel and impact of certain writing, chiefly because they can also be deeply subjective. How a poet views a particular work and how a reader views it will be very, very different because their relationship to the work is different. I also think "good" is a sort of external category that does not (or should not) carry into the act of writing itself--when you make "is this good?" the chief consideration as you write, you're not actually present in the writing: you're focused on the finished product, not the process, but the process is the most important thing: that's where the poem actually meets you. I think growth, in writing, is less about knowing if you're "good" in this regard, and more about being able to have confidence, or simply just trust, in the writing as it happens.

There's a famous saying somewhere that a work of literature is never "finished"--it just stops. I think skill, when it comes to writing, lies in recognising where this point is, in learning and developing how you navigate what it is you want to say, and how you say it. Some poems, eventually, reach a point where you can take them no further and you know there is nothing more to be said in them or through them. Some poems reach a point where you can take them no further, but there is still something left to be said in them. Those poems get revisited, worked, and reworked again, until they (maybe) get close to the first category: this may mean you work on them for a few weeks, or for years--but either way you are prioritizing the process of making the poem, not how it will be received. "Is this a good poem?" in my view at least, is not really the relevant question--what's relevant is "is this true to what I wanted to say?" Leonard Cohen famously wrote over 100 drafts of "Hallelujah"--I don't know if the central question for him here was just a matter of his skills as a songwriter.

Regarding Halsey and Rupi Kaur, I've only been able to read Halsey's poems through previews on Google Books so I don't know what other people's critiques are--based on what I saw, though, I don't know if it makes sense to criticize their quality as "poems" when she is primarily a songwriter and a lot of those poems wound up as songs. I'm more familiar with Rupi Kaur's writing, though, and others like her (Atticus, Michael Faudet etc), and while I have a personal policy of not getting into Kaur online (there's an ask here which is about as much as I'm willing to say regarding my feelings on her writing)--I can get into this trend or poetry "style" as a whole. And to be honest I think the chief issue here with poetry like this is that poetry, by definition, involves a deep and intimate relationship with language: this holds true regardless of whether the poem is simple, or complex, whether it's 5 lines long or goes on for 50 pages. As I said in that previous ask, it's not something you can reduce to a formula, nor is it a matter of mere reportage or a collection of statements: what makes a poem has nothing to do with line breaks (prose poems exist), but everything to do with how the language moves, how the language of a poem engages with its own content, with itself, and, as a result, with the reader.

The kind of work that proliferates on Instagram does not have that kind of engagement with language--they are, to me, pieces of information more than anything else. They reduce language to a series of stock phrases that act, not as actual words, but as images (and I don't mean this in a visually evocative way). It tries to evoke something that requires a thoughtful and sustained examination in order to be expressed, by surpassing the reality of what that examination actually requires. It tries to ape the effect of a powerful poem without the work that goes into actually being able to make that kind of a poem in the first place: and that work is a sustained encounter and confrontation with the language used and its relationship to what it tries to convey, in understanding that words are not interchangeable blocks you move around willy-nilly but that they have weight and intention, that they interact with each other to build up an idea or a feeling or a landscape in the most accessible way (insofar as language can make anything accessible, at least). But this is rarely, if ever, felt in IG poetry because it refuses to recognize or respect the demands and requirements of the medium it uses.

And because it is lacking in this engagement and recognition, these poems are also, for the most part, lacking sincerity--and this, to me, is one of the most crucial things when it comes to writing. I recall one IG poet whose work was in the same class as someone like Atticus, but I also recall one of his poems which genuinely moved me--and it moved me because, unlike everything else on his account, that poem felt sincere: the structure and the language wasn't any different to anything else he wrote, but in reading it, it was not a question for me of whether it was "bad" or "good"--what made the impact was that it was honest: and the difference showed. You can't come into a poem with ulterior motives. You can't come into it without an understanding, or respect, for the language you use. I'm absolutely not policing what people should or shouldn't read, and I'm not saying people are wrong for liking these poems, either, or that Halsey, Kaur, Atticus et al., are wrong for writing them. Expression is expression, and what speaks to you speaks to you. And to be honest, it is a different kettle of fish when you are writing something purely for yourself (and I think allowing yourself to partake in any kind of artform, without worrying about needing to be good at it, is deeply important for the human spirit)--but because they are putting their work out publicly, if we are going to be evaluating what they write and how they write it, that evaluation has to be rooted in an understanding of the art form they intend their work to be a part of.

For me, these are the main issues I have with these writers and their work and why I just do not like them. But I also want to stress that, ultimately, what you sound like in your own poems, anon, does not matter as much as being sincere to yourself does. As I said, I don' like using terms like "good" and "bad" and I think that often they're fairly reductive (and sometimes outright pointless) categories to use when we talk about and assess poetry--more than anything else, the key to building a robust and informed discernment when it comes to poems is to simply just read--read a lot of it and read widely. The broader and richer your repository of poetry (and literature in general) is, the more informed you are when it comes to all the different ways language can move through a poem, and all the different impacts it can have as a result. It deepens and enriches your understanding of all the different ways of looking at something, questioning something, expressing something. Your vocabularly grows and deepens; your net of associations--visual, linguistic etc--strengthens. And when this understanding grows you are able to place the things you read into a much wider and far more informed context. And this in turn allows you to grow as a reader and a writer. I hope this helps you a little, anon 💕

[csny]

not to be messy but how do you feel about people stealing other peoples viral posts on tumblr and reposting it on twitter like it’s theirs. (she’s on here by guttergirl-444) & she has stolen many more lol

at first glance it’s like shock and amazement more than anything because i never thought this would happen to me, but when i actually stop to think about it, it actually is very frustrating and invasive. i know it happens all the time and i can’t really stop it, plus my posts have no copyright or anything but it is true, when i make posts that aren’t haha funny laugh a lot play a lot, they kind of are little extensions of my artwork. like drafts and ideas that often get elaborated on if they seem to connect with people.

i don’t really want to dunk on other artists because it feels mean spirited, but i just want to point out this one instance that shows how writing anything on tumblr is “just a tumblr post” and people often don’t consider that there’s a person behind it. it’s almost like a popular tumblr post becomes fair use. This artist here took my words directly from my post (and even used the same iconography of a beach??) and when you click on the link in the description, it takes you to their instagram account with 142k followers. not even a single nod to me, who wrote the actual words. as an extra little punch, they call themself a poet in their bio.

sure my post was a bottom text top text “meme image” but there was a lot behind it—in both thought and time. the exact same ideas and photos made their way into a book i made just a couple months later. i think i sold umm one copy?

all in all, im not complaining about lacking “popularity” because that’s utterly stupid. but there’s something moderately soul-crushing about making a tumblr post and having it ripped to shreds by all walks of life online. It literally feels like i’ve placed something beautiful in the world out of my own kindness, then walked away, and when i come back everyone has defaced and damaged and killed it. it’s kind of invasive but I know it’s the way things go.

i love the anonymity of tumblr but sometimes I wish it we were all a little more open. Maybe people could remember that behind every blog is another person with ideas, cares, opinions, annoyances, and loves. I’m sure this one twitter account isn’t really doing much damage—honestly I haven’t even gone to look at it to see how people are replying—but it’s rough out there on this beautiful social media we call tumblrposts.

[madebypointlesswords]

Rating all the Latin authors I've read in the past two years in honor of my oral Latin exam tomorrow

Caesar (De Bello Gallico)

This is a weird one because while his prose isn't extremely difficult, it was also the first unedited work I read, so for lil 15-year-old me, this was very difficult. But I learned a lot from Caesar (especially that he made it an art to making his sentences as long as possible. We read an entire 200 words, and IT WAS JUST ONE SENTENCE.), and the sense of nostalgia while rereading it is very pleasant, so I will give you a solid 6/10

Pliny the Younger (Epistulae)

Mixed feelings about this one again. This could also be just because I despise prose. I really do not like it at all. Pliny's epistulae were pretty okay. I liked them a little better than Caesar's because of their variety (for those that don't know, epistulae means letters). His letter about the Vesuvius was a lot of fun to translate, even with all the hyperbata, but his letters about or to his third wife were very uncomfortable. Like, I get things were different back then. BUT YOU WERE 45, PLINY. 45. SHE WAS WHAT? 14? 15 TOPS? MY GOD. THAT'S A BIGGER AGE DIFFERENCE THAN I HAVE WITH MY FATHER.

7/10

Ovid (Metamorphoses)

Ovid is life Ovid is love. He was the one who introduced me to Latin poetry, and I will always love him for it. He was an icon and a legend. The poems of his that we read (Daedalus & Icarus, Latona and the Lycian peasants, Diana and Actaeon) were all bangers, and I love them all to death. I never wanted to go back to reading prose after this (but unfortunately, I will have to next year. ew)

11/10 (I love you, Ovid)

Vergil (The Aeneid)

*deep sigh* Listen. I love his complex works, and I have great respect for this poem but by the GODS. Vergil's poetry is the most difficult I've had to translate by a long shot. He made me rethink my entire career in Latin. I have considered quitting so many times because of this man. I felt like a complete idiot most of the time. This is not a guy to fuck with. Luckily I got through it on my finals (barely.) but Christ alive this man made my life difficult.

5/10

Horatius (Satires and Odes)

Horatius will always have a special place in my heart. We read his poetry right after Vergil's, and it almost completely restored my faith in my abilities. He's just my little guy and I have fond memories of translating his works. We still know many Latin phrases that he wrote (Carpe Diem being the most famous. Hello, DPS fandom). Also, he and Vergil were most definitely in love. I don't make the rules. I have evidence if you want me to elaborate.

9/10

Catullus (love poems)

Ah, Catullus. Horny poet of the year. Had a wild affair with an older married woman. Nepotism baby. Sappho stan. Didn't know how to budget, but we aren't holding that against him. Just wanted to write poetry and dance (who doesn't, honestly). Gave fuck-all about education. Wrote nearly all of his poetry about the older woman he had an affair with. Might I add that this woman was married to one of his father's bestest buddies? Yeah. Icon. Here's a kid's choice award.

8/10

Martialis (Epigrams)

This dude had ZERO chill. Roasted everyone in the city. Literally, no one is safe. Wasn't afraid to call people out by their real names. Some people allegedly committed suicide after being roasted by this guy. Translating his epigrams gave me more joy than hearing we had seen the end of Vergil. His humour may be a little silly now, but I will not accept any Martialis slander on my blog.

10/10

And that is all folks

[stars-and-darkness]

20 questions for fic writers!

many many thanks to @garglyswoof for tagging m

How many works do you have on ao3? 63. i need to calm down.

What's your total ao3 word count? 747 502. i need to calm down.

What fandoms do you write for? the vampire diaries, shadow & bone, avatar: the last airbender, star wars, marvel. also, that one suez canal x ever given fic, and that one goncharov fic.

Top five fics by kudos: A Queen's Gamble (you know it's an old one if the title is capitalised lmao), make them bow., the fate makes for a lousy poet., where the heart moves the stones, nyctophilia.

Do you respond to comments? i try. i am not very good at it, but every now and then i sit down, crack my knuckles, and go about emptying my poor inbox.

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? the end. is like ... the only fic i ever wrote that ended unhappily.

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? see above, lol, literally everything else. i'm a wuss.

Do you get hate on fics? i mean ... not really? i would mostly classify the rude things i got as entitlement rather than hate. the impression i usually got was that those people liked my writing style, or the plot, or characterisation, or whatever--there was just one thing or several that they wanted to happen differently, and they felt the need to tell me that.

Do you write smut? looooooo, no, my ace ass would probably spontaneously combust.

Craziest crossover: i don't suppose i've ever written an actual crossover, but today i put dracula-the-historical-figure into the vampire diaries universe, so ....

Have you ever had a fic stolen? ... maybe? okay, strap yourselves: a few years ago someone asked if they could translate a fic of mine into spanish and post it on wattpad, and i said yes. (THIS is one of the reasons why i don't allow translations anywhere but ao3 anymore). they did, and they sent me the link. i linked the translation to my fic, the usual. then, a lot later, i actually went to check their post, and i realised that i wasn't credited though the person said they would. yaaaaay.

Have you ever had a fic translated? well, other than the fiasco up there, the incredible @winterandmistletoe, who made the edit that graces the beginning of make them bow., has two chapters of the russian translation of that fic up on ao3. there's also been an offer to translate The Manifesto of a Last Love into russian, but that one hasn't been posted yet.

Have you ever co-written a fic before? i have not! and honestly, i don't think i'd be very good at it. i'm a bit of a tyrant, so in an effort NOT to be perceived as such i'd probably be super lenient of whatever the other people came up with even if i didn't necessarily like it. i'm pretty particular in my tastes, and one of the things i love about writing fic is that i have nobody but myself to answer to.

All time favorite ship? ehhhhh, nooo, i can't choose between my children!

What's a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will? considering that tvd has had me in its claws for two years now, it feels unlikely i'll ever go back to my wips in other fandoms. you never know of course, but it feels that way. i mean. those unfinished wips don't exactly haunt me, but sometimes i remember them and feel awful about it, lmao.

What are your writing strengths? i'm told i do dialogue and humour well!

What are your writing weaknesses? ughhhhh probably action? it's so hard. oh! and my tendency to describe how a character's eyes look in every other sentence.

Thoughts on dialogue in another language? SO fun fact that dracula fic that i posted today? the one where half the dialogue is in french? i had originally written it all IN FRENCH, and then decided to take mercy on my readers and just put the english translation into italics. yeah. anyway, rule of thumb, ig: if the pov character understands what's being said, then english in italics (or if it's just a sentence or two the spoken language with a footnote). if they can hear individual words, then the language that's being spoken, without translation. if they hear only gibberish--maybe they're super unfamiliar with the language, maybe it's being spoken very fast or with an accent--then just 'character x says something in z'.

First fandom you wrote in? marvel, for my own peace of mind. star wars is the first one i actually posted for.

Favorite fic you've written? again, you can't ask me to pick between my children.

tagging: @morningstargirl666 @kirythestitchwitch @helpless-in-sleep @marxandangels @purplesigebert @darkestgrays @averseunhinged

[incorrectcoldflashblog]

Sooooo...is it too much to ask for your answers to all of the questions on the ask list about your country?? (I hope you will say no and tell me to select a handful, if that's what you prefer.)

Sorry, sorry, I totally meant to do this faster but that was a lot of questions, haha. Putting this under a read more because it got LONG.

1.) favourite place in your country?

Honestly there are a lot of beautiful places in France, but a personal favorite would be Biarritz, near the Spanish border. My whole extended family used to vacation there when I was a kid.

2.) do you prefer spending your holidays in your country or travel abroad?

Given the choice I’d prefer to travel abroad.

3.) does your country have access to sea?

Yes, via the English channel, the Atlantic and the Mediterranean sea.

4.) favourite dish specific for your country?

La blanquette de veau, a dish that was originally from Normandy :)

5.) favourite song in your native language?

Nooo, don’t do this to me. I hate picking favorites. I’ll just share one that has some personal significance for me and not call it my favorite ;)

6.) most hated song in your native language?

I don’t know that I really hate that many songs, but on a personal level I definitely never wanna hear Jusqu’ici tout va bien by Gims again as long as I live. It’s the theme song to a show my roommate watches every evening (which means I have to hear it Every.Day.) and it irks me that the title is a reference to one of the best scenes from my favorite movie when the song itself is so annoying. But maybe I just feel that way because I have to hear it so, so often.

7.) three words from your native language that you like the most?

Clair-obscur (chiaroscuro), l’engrenage (an ineluctable series of events) and it’s technically two words but l’amitié amoureuse. The literal translation would be ’friendship in love’ but it’s not actually a romantic love, it just describes basically having an intense but platonic crush on your friend. It’s one of my favorite concepts in the French language.

8.) do you get confused with other nationalities? if so, which ones and by whom?

No, we don’t, for better or for worse France is very uniquely French, lol.

9.) which of your neighbouring countries would you like to visit most/know best?

The one I know best is probably Switzerland, just because my great-uncle lived in Lausanne and we visited him a few times when he was still alive. Fun fact, he ran away to Switzerland after having an affair with a married woman because her husband threatened to kill him, lol.

The one I’d like to visit most is Italy, just because that’s where part of my family is from (from Parma) and I’ve never been.

10.) most enjoyable swear word in your native language?

Putain, which I use approximately 500 times a day XD

11.) favourite native writer/poet?

Listen, how am I meant to pick just one when there are so many??

Classic literature: Gustave Flaubert

Contemporary writer: Marie Ndiaye

Favorite poet: maybe Marguerite Yourcenar? Although my favorite poem might be L’Irréparable by Charles Baudelaire.

You didn’t ask but my favorite play is Le Cid by Corneille. Romeo and Juliet wishes XD

12.) what do you think about English translations of your favourite native prose/poem?

I think there’s just always something missing in translation tbh.

13.) does your country (or family) have any specific superstitions or traditions that might seem strange to outsiders?

I mean, I know outsiders often comment on the fact that French people kiss each other on the cheek to say hello (se faire la bise) but I don’t know if that counts as a strange tradition.

14.) do you enjoy your country’s cinema and/or TV?

Ehh, to me French cinema/TV is divided in two categories, really fucking good and really fucking awful, haha, there’s pretty much no in-between. A bad movie is called a navet (a turnip) by the way^^

15.) a saying, joke, or hermetic meme that only people from your country will get?

There’s a lot of jokes and memes that originated from the tv show Kaamelott that are going to be hard to decipher for people who haven’t seen it. Here’s one I think you’ll enjoy:

16.) which stereotype about your country you hate the most and which one you somewhat agree with?

The one I agree with is that French people complain all the time because we really, really do, haha. I don’t agree with the stereotype that French people are lazy though, we just don’t live to work but why are we acting like it’s a bad thing?? I don’t know, there are a lot of negative stereotypes about French people but tbh at the end of the day I don’t really care that much.

17.) are you interested in your country’s history?

Sure, it’s definitely interesting, but there’s so much of it it can be a little intimidating.

18.) do you speak with a dialect of your native language?

Nope.

19.) do you like your country’s flag and/or emblem? what about the national anthem?

Our emblem is le coq (the rooster), which you only see on the French team’s shirts, just like you’re most likely to see the flag when there’s a World Cup. It’s fine I guess, I don’t really have an opinion on it.

Our national anthem is kind of problématique but it does go hard. I’ll give it that. Like, if you’ve ever watched that scene from Casablanca where they sing La Marseillaise you’ll understand what I mean by that.

20.) which sport is The Sport in your country?

Mbappé Soccer :)

21.) if you could send two things from your country into space, what would they be?

I’ve been puzzling over this question for weeks, haha, and I’m still not sure what it means, like? Do you mean annoying people I’d launch into space or XD

22.) what makes you proud about your country? what makes you ashamed?

I don’t have a lot of national pride tbh. I’m ashamed about a lot of the public discourse, the islamophobia, the state violence, the way Nicolas Sarkozy and the media brought far-right talking points into the mainstream and now we’re all swimming in their shit.

I’m proud to know that French people are always ready to burn shit down though.

23.) which alcoholic beverage is the favoured one in your country?

According to Google it’s beer. I would’ve probably said wine.

24.) what other nation is joked about most often in your country?

Probably Belgium. There’s lots of belgian jokes.

25.) would you like to come from another place, be born in another country?

I don’t really think about stuff like that. Every country has its own issues, so it is what it is.

26.) does your nationality get portrayed in Hollywood/American media? what do you think about the portrayal?

Oh boy, does it ever. Every time a new season of Emily in Paris comes out you can bet French Twitter is gonna have a field day over this shit XD

27.) favourite national celebrity?

When you say national celebrity my first thought immediately goes to Jean-Jacques Goldman. Amazing songwriter, but also very well-known for his work with the Restos du Cœur, a French charity that was founded by his friend the comedian Coluche and les Restos famously do more for the poor than our own government ever would. Probably why Goldman gets elected personnalité préférée des Français every other year. (He also pays his taxes in France, unlike some people, and we always appreciate that here.)

28.) does your country have a lot of lakes, mountains, rivers? do you have favourites?

It does. I think the most famous are the river Seine, the Mont-Blanc (although that crosses over into Italy) and as far as lakes go I’m sure there are a lot but I can’t think of a really well-known one.

29.) does your region/city have a beef with another place in your country?

My city does have beef with another city, but I won’t say which for privacy reasons ;)

30.) do you have people of different nationalities in your family?

My paternal grandmother was from Laos and my paternal grandfather’s family immigrated from Italy (not him directly, but his mother). I think there’s some German (well, Prussian) and Flemish on my mother’s side. My aunt’s husband is also from Italy, and my eldest brother’s wife is from Madagascar. I think that’s all :)

Thank you so much for asking, friend, I can only hope I didn’t totally bore you to death XD

“Hi, I’m not from the US” ask set

[unabashedpsychicspyduck]

Dead Poets Society Thoughts

(maybe I'm just delulu but 🧍🏻‍♀️)

I'm really convinced that the argument of Neil and his father was just not about his acting business but more like also about coming out of the closet cause if you think about it why tf would his father decide to send him to a military school after seeing his son play a big role in a queer coded play. Yes, Neil loved acting but him playing a fairy role in a Shakespeare play can also be a subtle way of him coming out as gay. During the argument where his father asked:

"Tell me what you feel"

he momentarily glanced at his mom as if his mom knew something before looking back at his father and saying the word "nothing" (I mean it could also mean that he just wanted his mom to take his side but still...)

You also cannot tell me that nothing is going on between him and Todd. There's a lot of gay subtexts in the film and don't even get me started with the deleted scenes. Esp in the snow scene. Charlie and the others knew Neil longer than Todd and yet at that scene Todd broke down the most. The other dead poets comforted him while sharing a knowing look as if they knew what was up. The way Todd mourned Neil's death like how a lover would─no platonic sht could ever explain that. There's just a lot of possible hints in the movie and it's really hard to shrug off esp that it's literally right in front of us.

(I'm honestly tired of bawling my eyes out over these but they are too loud at the back of my head)

[marnz]

I watched tsn last year because my memory suddenly remember that i used to see photos and gifs of it in 2016 and i read someone blog analyzing the relationship of mark and eduardo (in 2016) but didn't know it was a fb film, so i decided to watch it, to be honest my brain is pretty damage from working corporate job and seeing how nasty capitalism is, so my first thought watching it wasn't really wow gay, eduardo was in love!!! but was more like wow mark is such a jerk, i didn't see anything gay that people were screaming about 🙃 and being reminded that this is zuckerberg and his old friend irl did not help, and i also read the story of what actually happened irl and understand how eduardo was also a jerk too so i just jumped into ao3 to read fanfic, i actually wish i watched it during highschool or college time more because i truly can't consume queerbait series or films that aren't obvious anymore, normal queer film/tv series is fine tho. This is just my own experience i'm sure there are many tsn new fans who watched it and also enjoy how "gay" it is like you guys in 2010 too :) i just have damaged brain i think

oh no friend I’m so sorry about your job! Let’s get you a better one. I don’t think your reaction is wrong at all, like I said, it was a different time and you had to be there. I got into it in college and exited the fandom in the mid 2010s; I would never in my life get into it now. I think you are right…it’s 2024.

However I have been thinking about this since I got your message and I also think the constant analysis and the fanfic contributed pretty heavily to the atmosphere, plus like I said the Andrew Garfield of it all. Honestly I think the fandom boils down to a couple things:

1) the film has homoerotic subtext mostly evidenced by Eduardo. There’s a lot of time spent on Eduardo’s feelings about Mark, like even during the bathroom blowjob scene the camera takes a moment to remind us that Eduardo is thinking about Mark in the next stall. There is almost no time spent on Mark’s feelings about Eduardo. So this subtext is like, there are feelings and they are unreciprocated. Isn’t this so tragic when 0.03% happens? Mark certainly talks a lot about his feelings for Eduardo, but words do not matter. Action matters. Contrast this with a more classic queerbait like Sterek where 1) there was queerbaiting market and 2) there was reciprocal homoerotic subtext that could never be acted upon.

2) I don’t think fandom is super good at dealing with an unlikeable or unsympathetic yet compelling protagonist! Which means this protagonist is rendered much more sympathetically in fic and people watch or read the media source with rose colored glasses. “He would not fucking say that” x1000.

3) I’m not that much older than you I think but…there was this period in tv where there were canon gays who were as interesting and dynamic as a pool noodle and, meanwhile, in subtext and/or queerbait land, there were relationships that consistently got a lot of time and attention and so were sooooooo compelling. And those are the relationships that I, and fandom, tend to gravitate towards. Plus growing up there weren’t a ton of happy gay stories so instead it was like, you have Brokeback Mountain, you have Dead Poets Society, you have What Happened to Lani Granger? You have, for some reason, Glee (boring except for faberry and Santana). Thank god we are not there anymore.

4) I have bad taste <3

Anyway sorry for rambling here, your asks got me thinking because it very much was like hmm well yeah it IS completely inexplicable huh but I think a lot of fandom is like that.

[mermaidsirennikita]

thoughts on the new daisy jones and the six episodes? honestly just need you to voice thoughts on how mediocre/bad this adaptation is lmao

Mediocre is a good word. It's not like, OFFENSIVELY bad, but it definitely isn't good, and I keep thinking of how it feels like a Lifetime series with... somewhat more of a budget? But You season 1 was on Lifetime, and it didn't look this... bleh (and was miles ahead in terms of writing and performance).

I'll break down my issues:

--On the surface, it's a faithful adaptation, but it actually loses so much nuance. It tricks you into thinking it's got the book by hitting the story beats, but in reality it doesn't seem to accomplish what the story was telling you at all ("TJR was involved!" authors are almost always involved on some level, doesn't mean their voices are heard/she's getting a fat check from this, so I don't blame her if some selling out is involved).

As someone who loved the love triangle (it's one of my favorites, ever) in the book... The book was also a lot more than the triangle. There was more on music making (and not hokey Glee-esque "let's close our eyes and bop a little" moments). There was more on addiction (the scene where Daisy is walking around, stepping on glass and bleeding and PARTYING while Billy thinks "she looks like she knows how to have fun" is toned down to "Daisy is by the pool slurring a little" lmao). There was more on toxic masculinity (there were SHADES of Billy seeming like Billy when he got pissed at Daisy in episode 6 and demanding a million retakes, but like... Billy was a dick about controlling the musical output to EVERYONE, not just Daisy, because Billy had some alpha male toxicity that stemmed from his need for control to maintain sobriety AND his daddy issues). It's all beats, no nuance.

--Lol they have BUTCHERED Karen. Karen is now a NLOG who wants to surf to show Graham how much cooler she is than the UNCOOL GIRL who LIKES BARRY MANILOW (a perfectly nice young lady who seemed FUN). I think they're weaving in Karen and Daisy instead of Karen and Camila, because you know. Bad music bitches > stay at home moms, I guess? Never mind that Camila supported Karen through her abortion in the book, which was hugely affirming textually as Camila ISSSS maternity embodied (wonder if they'll include the abortion at all).

--I was big on not needing people experienced with music in these roles before the show came out. Now I wonder if I was wrong? Or if Riley and Sam just SUCK AT IT. (I say this as someone who has liked Sam in other roles, and though I'm less familiar with Riley, I actually did enjoy her in The Lodge, and that role seemed MUCH more suited to her.) Riley does a lot of Stevie mimicry to compensate (how many times shall she flap her arms). Sam does some weird like. Snapping and weaving? Which, I've said this a lot to my friends--I think the show is trying to lean into the Jim Morrison -> Billy thing. Which--I think Jim is one of several artists who influenced Billy's vibe. Lindsey is another one, obviously. The "look" and sex appeal and lost poet vibe of Billy says Morrison, imo; Morrison is what Billy would've been like if Billy did not get on the wagon and stay on it. (Also, check out pics of Morrison and Pamela Courson and try to tell me that TJR didn't think of those visuals with Billy and Daisy and the album cover scene especially--Fleetwood Mac ain't the only influence here). Anyway, suffice to say that Morrison had a distinct performance style that I feel Sam is trying to emulate, along with some Jagger? It's definitely more that than Lindsey, imo. AND HE DOESN'T HAVE THE SWAGGER TO DO IT I'M SORRY.

(Look at his episode 6 hair after they gave him some salt spray for bounce and body and try to tell me they aren't attempting a Morrison Young Lion era vibe.)

So much of the performance scenes read as earnest theater kids versus experienced musicians, several of which are drunk or high in these scenes.

--I hate how much they've made Daisy and Billy explicitly aware of their feelings and like. Confronting them. One thing I loved about the book is that they had this one impetuous, super brief kiss and it like. Ruined the band lmao. Was the beginning of the end. Here it's like, this intentional thing where Daisy is like WHAT ARE WE and he knows and I'm like dude. A huge issue with Billy and Daisy is that she knew they were in love and he kNEW but wouldn't let himself acknowledge it and dead-ass tried to sit there and LIE TO HIS KID'S FACE ABOUT IT LMAO until he was so emotionally wrecked that he had to cop to it. Here it's so. Boring. Juvenile. Camila is taking pics of it, oooh!!!

--Even though they're basicifying Camila, one of the most confident women in literature, into a jealous wife type... Camila is still one of the highlights because Camila Morrone plays her very naturally and has charisma. The biggest highlight is Warren, however, because he is funny and played to perfection, and is the oNLY person in the doc clips that seems like an aging rock star who's still high on pure vibes.

--I've already said this, but to reiterate: the music is mid as hell. Every time they play real music that is good, I weep a little inside.

--Daisy in the book was someone who did obnoxious, narcissistic things... But you were like it's okay, because she seemed genuinely impulsive and also was half to fully zonked the entire time. Here, she seems sober a lot of the time (if Daisy is supposed to be high... it ain't coming through unless Riley is slurring, and believe me, I know what functional drugged people look like) and just like. A calculated asshole lmao. Like, the scene where she jumped ahead in the performance wasn't charming or wacky, it was obnoxious. She's supposed to be a charismatic if problematic celeb. You should think back on her behavior and go mmm that was fucked but not initially clock it as hard because she's so mystifying. Also, Riley and Sam have very little chemistry, so I think that while Daisy's antics in the book were called out by Billy, there was this lens of "Billy is madder than he normally would be because he wants to fuck her" that is lacking here.

--What is pacing. Six episodes in and they've barely performed. Daisy and Billy should've been writing songs together as of episode 3. Nah, we needed to slow things down for the riveting CLINGY JEALOUS GIRL KAREN KAREN moment.

--Very cheap wigs, meh "Camila is dying" makeup in the present day lens.

--It feels very much like Daisy has been toned down so that the average girl can project onto her and feel validated by her. Daisy in the books was on HARD shit and was not doing well. At all. She pulled it off, but I'll go back to the Morrison/Courson inspo--she was 27 Club-bound, and if Billy had fallen off the wagon he would've had a similar fate... Which is why they could not be together. So much of the book to me is about the complexity of love; of how you love people for different reasons, and how sometimes, you give up what you love a little more because there's something you also love fully that is bETTER FOR YOU.

Like, I think the show is leaning hard into "man, if only Billy and Daisy had been able to meet earlier, twin flames" while the book was like "Billy and Daisy were in love, but they would've died if they'd been together, and also Billy gave up Daisy and music but fuck shit he also had an amazing woman he adored and kids, so choosing life and 'losing something' isn't actually a loss". The show feels very "ooh wish fulfillment" whereas the book felt emotionally real.

Anyway, I think it's pretty weak.

[nostradamus0]

20 QUESTIONS GAME

Thanks for the tag @bronzeagepizzeria!! :)

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

39 works

2. What’s your total AO3 words count?

111,601 words

3. What fandoms do you write for?

whatever i’m hyperfixated on lol. my more recent writing has been for Supergirl, Once Upon a Time, and Doctor Who

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

swing low, supernova, & come to carry me home

love me like you mean it

we'll still be here (when it's all said and done)

you remind me: that it’s such a wonderful thing to love

the other side (of a world without you)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

yes, but sometimes it takes me a while because of the raging adhd. i love the community aspect of fanfic, talking about writing makes me happy, and i’m always so grateful when people leave comments and i want to say thank you!! :) 

i saw someone say once that they don’t believe in responding to comments because they think people who do it are just trying to “inflate their comment count” or whatever and that is so depressing. i hope they see the light

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

probably i couldn't say: i need more time. that’s a real depressing fic, ngl. i remember i got really invested in writing it, even though the plot goes against everything i want for the characters

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

most of what i write is stupidly fluffy and/or sappy as hell lmao. but if i had to pick the most fluffiest, i might say what kind of woman loves like this.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

not really? i’ve gotten a few rude comments, but nothing super mean

9. Do you write smut? If so what kind?

no lol

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

i’ve never written a crossover. i’ve written, and have in progress, fics based on other media, but no actual crossovers.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

not to my knowledge

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

yes! i'm sure they did a great job but i don't speak russian so i can't actually tell

13. Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

yes, a very long time ago, and it’s lost now. the internet is not always forever. save things if you don’t want to lose them, kids 

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

what kind of sick question is this

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

all of them lmao. seriously though, i started a Finding Neverland supercorp AU and i dream desperately of finishing it, but likely never will.

16. What are your writing strengths?

i’m first and foremost a poet, so i’m good with sentence-level things like diction and the way lines flow and sound. alliteration and i are besties. i’m also not bad with imagery/description.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

dialogue. endings. middles. beginnings. i struggle a lot with describing actions. did i mention dialogue?

honestly, when it comes to fanfic, i think my biggest weakness is my own anxiety. i have zero experience with romantic attraction or anything, so i’m always worried i’m doing a shit job portraying it and then i get caught up in my head.

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

i wish lol. i know bits and pieces of Polish and Spanish, but i’m only fluent in English. i’d love to find an excuse to use Polish, but that feels unlikely. i have a wip (that i haven’t touched in ages) that’ll eventually be supercorp but starts during Lena’s early childhood, and i’d love to use some Irish, but i have zero knowledge of Irish

19. First fandom you wrote for?

either Doctor Who or Once Upon a Time, i think? somewhere around 2013–2014? all that stuff is long gone, though.

20. Favourite fic you’ve ever written?

your voice is the splinter inside me. i poured my heart into that fic, and i’m still pretty proud of the result. i started a part 2, but i’m not in a headspace right now to finish it.

no pressure tags! @mulderscully @sssammich @benwvatt @pretty-pony plus everyone who wants to because i'm sleepy and can't think all that good right now <3

[imaginationxlost]

OC in Fifteen Quotes Tag

Tagged by @writinglyra here

Rules: Share 15 or fewer lines of dialogue from an OC, ideally lines that capture their character/personality/vibe. Bonus points for just using the dialogue without other details about the scene, but you’re free to include those as well!

In the spirit of my Camp NaNo story, the sad poet is up for this! In chronological order! I wonder if you can tell when it crosses over into the sequel I am Currently Working On

“It’s safe,” I said, like a proper big brother should, patting her head, “I promise.”

“Before I came to you? Probably twenty minutes,” I reply, opening my eyes and directing my gaze towards the ceiling, “It’s not just that, though. Today is also a dysphoric day, and I'm just… feeling everything a little too intensely.”

“There are consquences, Lia,” I say, frustration creeping into my voice, “history shows that much. I don’t want to be a repeat of—” My voice catches before I say his name, and I shake my head.

“Lia and I aren’t even from Earth,” I say, the words just spilling out at this point, “we’re refugees- our parents were killed and we barely got out with our lives- and it’s just-” I break into sobs again, once again falling into Mike’s arms.

“I know,” I reply, my voice barely more than a whisper. “But… that doesn’t change the fact that Lia absolutely needs to be kept safe. That fact that she’s my sister completely aside, keeping her alive to get back home and retake her throne is the right thing to do. Adriel needs stopped.”

“Dad is alive?” I finally manage to stammer, my voice filled with a mixture of disbelief and longing.

“Mike can share my room,” I squeak, and I immediately feel my face get hot. “I just- I mean to say-”

“I’m not,” I say, perhaps a little too quickly, because the doubt is obvious on his face. “I’m not frightened of you,” I insist again. “There’s just- There’s a lot going on, a-and I don’t like leaving Mike, and my shoulder still hurts-” I stop myself, putting a hand over my mouth to stem the flow of anxious words, before the full truth spills out.

“I know you’re right,” I finally admit, my voice barely above a whisper. “But it’s just… It’s been so ingrained in me that these abilities are wrong. I’ve always felt like I had to fit into this mold of what a Jack should be.”

“Fitting, honestly,” I mutter. “Almost poetic, to come back home the very way we left.”

“It happens pretty often,” I murmur whilst leaning into his side and putting my head on his shoulder. “Your sleep schedule doesn’t need to be as bad as mine.”

“Dad, I’m serious. I’m fine. I know- I know why you’re worried,” I grab the notepad and hug it to my chest. “It’s a problem, but I’m dealing with it. Promise.”

“I’m so-” I catch myself, and flinch, ducking my head. “Lia, I don’t know what you want me to say.”

“You’ve NEVER gotten it! Never once! Of course you don’t. You’re perfect! No one has ever doubted if you can- can be good enough! No one looks at you and assumes you’re inherently going to be untrustworthy- dishonorable- no one assumes you’re a bad person because of something entirely out of your control! OF COURSE you don’t get it!”

“I’m not dying,” I finally manage, my voice hoarse. “I write to process those feelings. Give it back.”

Tagging: idk I had no takers in the wtw discord (probably because I asked at 1AM but oh well) so do it if you want and say I tagged you

[warriorsparked]

// This is just my personal opinion, but innocence and Megatron don't often go together well for me. I mean this from an entirely pre-war perspective when I say innocent. I often see people portraying him as this sweet, kind, innocent person, and although we know a 4 million year war can totally change people (and Megatron dealt with a LOT), I still feel like those things stem from a deeper place of violence and trauma that he'd had to cope and deal with from the beginning of his life.

I've never seen Megatron as an innocent. Innocent in the sense that he was obviously not born/created as a killer. No one is (although there's that funny little nature vs nurture argument that we still haven't managed to put our finger on). At the end of the day, people are all shaped by what is around them and how they manage to cope with those things. Some people snap, some people don't. What makes those people snap, though? Well, we've not quite figured that out yet.

if you put two people in the same scenario, they could still turn out completely different--whether or not genetics makes a difference (as a twin, I find this stuff interesting as well, because despite that, twins can still grow up to be very different people). People perceive things differently and uniquely, and thus we all feel differently and cope differently.

Megatron grew up in one of the hardest environments on Cybertron, I just can't see him being sweet and innocent. There's always been a gruffness about him, a temper, and a broodiness.

I have big issues with how soft MTMTE made him, because it just doesn't feel entirely Megatron. And therefore, it doesn't feel genuine to me, but a way for them to just slap a "good guy" badge on him (let's be honest, it's not that black and white and it never should be). It feels like we're supposed to believe this lovely, sweet, innocent peace keeping poet just dropped everything he believed in one day to become a warlord that murdered and killed whenever he pleased, and it's just not believable to me.

Megatron Origins did a really good take on his earlier life. It showed the harsh conditions that Megatron lived under, it showed the pressure building, and it showed a reasonable young mech snapping beneath that pressure (which we also know people can do). But it being a one shot comic, it was enough to get that GLIMPSE and not have to expand too much on it, which MTMTE ended up doing as it was a much longer running comic series. It then felt... pressured? To me, I guess? That we must see this nice, peaceful mech who Megatron once was if we're to believe he's REALLY going to keep the peace post-war. Fools energon makes him weak (even if it's a placebo), because everyone is worried he doesn't snap, and I'm kind of... annoyed he doesn't? Because people CAN heal, yes, but not often without setbacks and taking one step backwards before taking another forward.

And I think that's my biggest gripe. Megatron never came from a happy place. That doesn't mean he can't be kind (people choose kindness over violence every day even though they've been brought up around it). Like I said, Megatron wasn't born a killer. But there's just something that never sits well with seeing him as some sweet, innocent mech who is cheery and kind.

I want to see that inner turmoil that was building up to the point of exhaustion. I want to see his frustration at the state of the world, and the PASSION behind the words that he wrote. I understand he was a "peace keeper" in MTMTE's flashbacks, but honestly, I wish he was the young, angry, passionate revolutionist that we missed out on seeing. Because that anger, that passion, that crazed and twisted world he ended up making came from those feelings. And I have a hard time with MTMTE's version of Megatron and seeing how he turned out to be the thing he hated most when there's no real UNF in that younger Megatron.

Another reason why my Megatron is just heavily HC based tho and I don't follow the MTMTE timeline.

Anyway, night time ramblings...

[missingn000]

ASJSHSVDJODKDVSIDKFBFBWJDBFBD So... You made that post about describing your writing style and l had a lot of feelings about it and you just gave me an oportunity to infodump and congratulate.

For me, your writing style is like you are both describing a scene and showing us its most intimate meaning. Like, you are writing what is happening as any good book would do but at the same time you are describing the feelings we would experience if we were seeing this on real life.

Your fight scenes are probably the BEST ones l have ever read. Not because you explain how they move, but you describe how would we feel seeing them fight (In tpg chap41, when you describe the domains, *chefs kiss*, even better than seeing Gojo's domain on the anime).

Your dialogues are witty and intelligent, you always end up making a pun that leaves me rolling in the floor, and then you make a statement to show the tragedy/beatuty of the situation that breaks me a little.

And to top it all you always use a vocabulary and descriptions and comparisons that l wish l could emulate.

If l wanted to describe your writing style as you would... It's like you are both a painter, giving us enough about the scene to know exactly what is happening but without giving too much details. And at the same time you are like a surgeon, carving open through your characters and themes so that we see exposed their core and their souls. You show us exactly what they feel and how, how your narrative intertwines their threads like a beautiful tapestry, but then you show us the other side and it's still the same character with their found family and everything they do boils down to the basis of their personality. But you do it in such a way that you may as well be a poet, writing in verse a melody where every chord fits its place creating an harmony that echoes through the dome and filling your ears with its sound.

Maybe this got out of hand, but l like how it turned out and l've barely been on the discord lately because of the exams, so l think you deserve to know this ;)

I like your writing style

WHADDAHELL I LOVE U??? YOU'RE GONNA MAKE ME CRY this is seriously so sweet!! you're basically touching on everything i try to do as a writer: showcase a scene both physically and emotionally through words. fight scenes are my FAVORITE thing to write, and i had a blast describing both sukuna and getou's domains in chapter 41. dialogue is also really fun for me, and witty banter between the characters always leaves me giggling too. but showing the emotional/dramatic side of the characters is equally important, and i'm so thrilled to hear you think i successfully weave them together!! connecting the characters, themes, and imagery in this story has been very challenging, but even more rewarding, and i'm honestly BEAMING at this message. seriously made my day. THANK YOU SO MUCH MWAH

[lmanburg-letter-service]

To: Tubbo and Ranboo

hey big guys. Uhhh been a while yeah? never really written one of these before (Well. i've written some private letters to my brothers before but never posted them onto one of these so)

Fuck i'm awkward as shit right now but. how're you doing Tubso? you taking care of yourself? yeah? because you Better fucking be or else i'm breaking reality itself and i'm GOING to make you take care of yourself YOU HEAR ME, best friend threats aside, hope you're doing great. i feel just a little bit hollow whenever i see the words bossman and know i won't ever really listen to you say those words to me or, well anyone again, but it's been getting better. you were and are my best and closest friend, and i'm sorry for being such an idiot so many times throughout our friendship. i did stupid things, and blamed you for it many times, that wasn't fair at all no matter how much i was struggling, you were struggling too for the longest time man. i just want you to know you're a damn saint for dealing with it and staying by my side, you couldn't always protect me (no matter how much you tried) and i don't blame you for it, some things just can't really be helped i guess, miss you big man.

and Ranboo (without a b because i'm so very gracious like that), it's been raining a shit ton lately. i know you'd hate it here, sure i like the rain but i can't really help but feel panicked whenever some rain drops fall because "oh cool rain. wait SHIT WHERE'S RAN" and then i realize you're not here and even if you probably PROBABLY wouldn't be horribly allergic to the rain anymore, in fact, maybe you like rain now? who knows honestly, it's like, you burn in lava normally but if you didn't then actually it'd maybe be kind of cool to just, sit in lava without toasting?? maybe that's a weird thought, i dunno you tell me. that aside, i should've hung out with you more man, i didn't want to admit it back then absolutely not but you're fucking hilarious when you want to be, you always stood up for what was right n all that and i always appreciated that yknow, i'm glad uh, i'm glad nothing ever happened to you after the trial. my own situation after it was, Bad capital B Bad, but it felt better knowing you would never get to be in my shoes. i barely remember the letters you sent me anymore but they were one of the best highlights in my day that the. person. tormenting me wouldn't be able to taint. you didn't need to do that but you did, you really don't need to do a lot of things but you still do em for people, i guess that's just a you thing.

woah look at me being a real poet, actually, i've been considering straight up making poetry what would that be like?? you ever do any poetry?? ..if anybody ever finds this letter i mean. who knows. i'll probably uh, send in some others some other time, maybe when i get reminded of you guys again, which i mean happens often you were my best friends even if i was an ass and didn't really deserve it, okay i'll jsut say i miss the sleepovers i know i said they were cheesy and maybe they kind of are but WHO CARES!! CHEESYS GOOD SOMETIMES EY

but right right Uhh. should prooobably end this before it turns into my personal 3784739k word novel: i miss my best friends frowney face, so

from your bestest most awesome big man friend, a Big T/clementine fictive ❄️����️

[Letter Sent!]

[veneritia]

1, 2, 6, 8, 13 & 14, 24, 41 for Euphemia!

...I went a little berserk haha sorry, but I'm curious about her!

i want you to know that the second i saw this in my notifs the first words out of my mouth were "jesus christ" and "anon i love u"

ok so Euphemia is a little tricky because she's a much newer character compared to the rest of the cast, and she has the most screen time in book 2, so there's a good chance a lot of these answers are gonna change in the future. But honestly this is the perfect excuse to start developing her

What motivates your character?

It's the same thing that motivates every vi Aetier: survival and ambition. While the vasiliers of the empire have many children to their name, at the end of the line, only one can succeed the throne. Everyone else is competition. Everyone else is the enemy. Everyone else is out for blood.

2. How does the public view them?

Euphemia is extremely well-beloved by the public. And by public I mean the noble circles of the empire. She's charming and talented and the physical embodiment of the phrase 'pretty in pink.' She is the jewel of the imperial court, the subject of much ardor, the muse of poets, the sole princess of aetier, etc. etc. If we go beyond the courtiers and the vieux riche, the majority of the common people in the empire have passing knowledge of her. Mostly positive, but generally in the sense that they view her as "Dantalion's child."

6. What, if anything, sticks out about their appearance?

Feels like a cop-out answer but I have to go with the eyes. the vi Aetiers have this weird genetic quirk where everyone born in that family has silver eyes, so meeting euphemia (and anyone on her father's side of the family) is just the people with blue eyes meme

The second trait...has to be the smile, I think. Euphemia always smiles as if she's in on some big secret and is secretly laughing because you don't know what she knows

13 & 14. Who is the closest person to your character? How did they become close?

That would be her mother, Eudocia vi Kallystos. Eudocia has always kept her daughter close, and is Euphemia's staunchest advocate in the sociopolitical scene at Court. Euphemia looks up to her mother a lot. Outside of the family, though, possibly one of Euphemia's reiakomes (lady companions), whose been raised with her since she was young.

24. From childhood to their current age, how has your character changed?

Euphemia's twice as cunning, thrice as ruthless, and infinitely better at hiding it. As a child, she would've been the little girl that had all the adults wrapped around her finger and knew it. I wouldn't say that she's changed all that much since she was a child, just gotten a lot better at smoothing or hiding the more vicious parts of her personality...until it was time to strike. Roses have thorns and all that

41. What kind of clothes does your character wear?

Expensive ones. Imported silk and gold brocade, brightly colored cloth (hues of pinks/reds/purples are her favorites), and all the jewels. She was an imperial princess and wanted everyone to know it. As for the specific style, wctd is loosely (and i mean very loosely) based off of the various styles of byzantine court dress (no specific century though bc this is fantasy and we play fast and loose lmao)

This was so much fun! Thanks so much for this ask anon!!

📩 Send me one of these 50 OC questions! 📩

[daisychainsandbowties]

I love your writing. I love how vulnerable you allow the characters to be. I love how you make ugly things beautiful and pretty things holy and reverent. I am extremely thankful for you and all that you do.

But I'm curious:

Are there any writers/works that you would say have had an influence on your style?

crying and crying. honestly yes! ugliness is very beautiful to me it’s very human & vulnerable & good to be ugly & i think life tends to be very imperfect & messy but we can be very beautiful (and yes, holy) inside of it.

hmm so first thing is that i’m mostly a poet & i came to that in my usual way which was deciding one day to teach myself how to Poetry. i figured it could not be very different from math and lo & behold it was not very different from math

i grew up using recitation of poems as a calming technique so those certainly influenced how cadence occurs to me, patterns of language (some poems were as gaeilge). some of the poems i memorised growing up were Dulce et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen; Ode to a Nightingale by Keats; a whole bunch of Dickinson & especially Persimmons by Li Young Lee. the waste land by ts eliot too. i did adore shakespeare & how easy it was to commit to memory in iambic pentameter.

but then when i was 16 i decided to ‘git good’ at poetry (i was, in fact, very bad at it for many years to come) so i picked up Ariel by Plath & a load of Anne Sexton. Richard Siken too. and i read those books about 50 times each. could never read them too many times.

realised that poetry should be kind of like eating good food or having good sex. an experience that bears repeating.

so yes Sexton & Siken especially i think are explicitly influential to my style. also recently have learned a lot from Ocean Vuong (Night Sky With Exit Wounds but also please read ‘Not Even This’. listen to Ocean perform it) oh & also very recently impressed with Hull by Xan Phillips, & Danez Smith’s ‘don’t call us dead.’

language was made for puncturing & those poets know how to turn a sentence, a stanza, a turning of thought into a lung collapse, a harpoon.

i do firmly believe that it’s pointless to mimic style. it can happen that other words bleed into yours but it should be an accident, like the mirroring of language that forms the basis of so many interpersonal movements. language IS an exchange but we all bring something to the table.

& again it’s food - personal and cultural and loving and it’s about need and want and desire and death (food & death so tenderly intertwined in so many cultures). so i think reading good writing lends you instinct; the ability to look at what you make and know if it is good or at least true and therefore ‘getting there’ and therefore beautiful in the attempt regardless of imperfection.

i believe in purple prose and also Just Saying Things & i really think (i teach creative writing sometimes at uni) that i can bring out beautiful writing from anyone. it’s not always about skill it’s about heart, and then skill creeps up on you. i can always tell when someone is just performing writing and when someone has a story to tell.

so like!! the #1 thing that has influenced me is learning to love the way that writing makes me feel (powerful, stupid, profound, unoriginal, death-defying, mortal). i think reading so so much & just internalising different language-textures helps a bunch! i get so much inspiration from reading textbooks, wikipedia articles, random journals & i think poetry even if you are not & don’t wanna be a poet is very good at showing you the bones and sinews and connective tissue of meaning.

i am also so influenced by sci-fi & fantasy. particularly the Book of the Ancestor by Mark Lawrence (more gay nuns lmao) & N.K. Jemisin with The Broken Earth trilogy. 'the slow regard of silent things' specifically by Patrick Rothfuss (not a person to learn pacing from but astounding at sentence-level). also i am very influenced recently by This Is How You Lose The Time War. as a kid by Garth Nix (particularly Lirael, Sabriel) & artemis fowl.

of course on that note it’s usually the non-literature things that inspire actual writing from me. it’s principles in physics or math or thinking about Voyager 1 or philosophical questions that actually produce the sort of rabid pursuit of meaning that writing is. truly immersing in curiosity is an excellent way to approach making art. it's about reaching out & touching for a moment the fabric of everything - & you might find it is wet & sticky or dry and dusty or soft or that it hurts your hands to touch, but the chasing of meaning is worth it, & making meaning is divine.

i hope that is (somewhat) of an answer